Those Winter Sundays

Those Winter Sundays Historical Context/Info about Author: Robert Hayden grew up in a poor African-American section of Detroit known as Paradise Valley. At a young age, his parents separated and his mother could no longer afford to keep him so he was sent to live with a foster family. His adoptive father was a strict Baptist and manual laborer and while he was a stern man, he always attempted to care for and nurture Hayden’s love of literature. Summary: The poem, composed in 1962, is a tribute to Hayden’s stepfather in an effort to express both his gratitude for all the hard work he had done for him as well as the regret that he feels for not appreciating him more during his lifetime. The poem’s power is emphasized through the technique of using flashbacks from his childhood and juxtaposing them against the knowledge and newfound respect he now has as a man. This short, simple poem touches on topics such as family relationships, coming of age, and sacrifice for loved ones. Literary Devices Used: Symbolism & Imagery – Those Winter Sundays has many symbols and imagery that are well utilized in order to convey Hayden’s message. He refers to his stepfathers â€Å"cracked hands†, which in this case, is used to symbolize the hard work this father was willing to go through for the love of his family. Another symbol present in the poem is his â€Å"polished good shoes† which is another symbol used to express the indirect nature of a fathers love. Even though he was strict and withdrawn he would take the time to make sure that his son would have a better life than he had. Syntax/Structure- In order to emphasize the labored existence of his father, the author repeatedly uses the â€Å"c† sound, which kind of adds the element of pain. Examples of this alliteration include, cracked, banked, thanked, and chronic. The overall structure of the poem also attributes to the underlying tone. It is constructed very simply which may help to express the simplicity of the love between a father and son. They did not lead an extravagant lifestyle and his father didn’t do go out of his way in order to show affection towards his son, but the point was he did what needed to be done even if it was hard, without calling for any appreciation and that was enough to show his love for his family. The poem also ends with a rhetorical question, â€Å"What did I know, what did I know of love’s austere and lonely offices? which helps to show the regret and change in heart the man has had through his own personal growth. Tone- the poem’s tone shifts in the beginning from a cold, harsh tone to a warmer comforting tone by the seventh line. Although by line nine the poem’s tone shifts again to a negative uncomfortable tone. The cold, harshness of the tone described in the first stanza reflects through the coldness of the house, the Father’s cracked achy hands and the fact that no one has ever thanked him. This fluctuation of tone indicates the uncertainty the son feels about his father and whether or not he truly does care for him, which of course as a man he realizes he always had.

Describe Your Learning Style

Running head: How Do I Learn Best How Do I Learn Best Kelli Powell Grand Canyon University: NRS 429V September 30, 2012 What is a learning style? Well a learning style is the way a person tends to learn best. It involves your preferred method of taking in, organizing, and making sense of information, Lake Washington Institute of Technology (2012). Some people prefer to learn by doing and touching, others prefer to learn by seeing, or by hearing the information. Still others learn using more than one learning style.If a person was interested in finding out what their particular learning style is would be to take the VARK questionnaire for learning styles. The most common learning style is the multimodal, but the learner can switch from one type of learning style to another depending on what the subject is being learned and or their mood, Fleming (2011). After taking the VARK questionnaire, Multimodal learning styles was assessed as the learning style of choice. The multimodal learning environments allow instructional elements to be presented in more than one sensory mode (visual, aural, written, and kinesthetic), Sankey, Birch & Gardiner (2010).In this particular case visual and kinesthetic were the dominate methods of learning. Strategies of learning that this person uses are highlighting and underlining notes, grouping subjects together with a certain color highlighter, use of charts, graphs and images to help them learn the subject matter. They would also make graphs or note cards with the information placed in sequenced that they can take with them, listen to music while studying and try to make the material personal to them and others that they know.They would also break their study time up into smaller sections so that it would not seem so overwhelming. As a multimodal learner they would be very adaptable to the different learning styles as they could adapt more easily to different situations and learning environments. For example if their instructor w as only doing a verbal lecture an auditory learner may want to sit towards the front of the room away from windows and doors so that there was less distractions.As a visual learner they would try to take notes during the lecture, would color code their notes, and pay attention to any visual aids that were being used. Where a kinesthetic learner would ask questions and participate in discussions, take a laptop for notes so that they are doing something actively with their hands during lectures, consider taking a three hour class versus one three hour class, Student Development Centre (2009). As a multimodal learner, it is easier to learn when doing more than just reading a textbook as it harder to understand than when doing something that is interactive.As a multimodal learner some adjustments that they would need to make in their study habits would be to not to try and do the assignment all at the end of the week. By starting at the beginning of the week they would be able to break the assignment down into smaller sections so that it would not seem so overwhelming when typing a paper. Other changes that they would need to make would be finding an area and time to study where there were fewer interruptions. The use of more visual aids, for example outline of topic in chart or diagram format.This would help them keep track of where things fit together in their subjects and projects. The major benefit of having a multimodal learning style is that it â€Å"allows students to experience learning in ways in which they are most comfortable, while challenging them to experience and learn in other ways as well†. Someone who is a multimodal learner, that learners on more than one level tends to have a deeper processing of the information, maintains their attention span longer, making the information easier to understand and remember. Sankey, Birch & Gardiner (2010).The VARK Questionnaire Results My scores were: * Visual: 11 * Aural: 6 * Read/Write: 9 * Kinest hetic: 11| | You have a multimodal (VRK) learning preferenceReference Lake Washington Institute of Technology, Learning Styles: Why do They Matter? , Retrieved from http://www. lwtech. edu/trio on September 26, 2012 Sankey, M. , Birch, D. & Gardiner, M. (2010) Engaging students through multimodal learning environments: The journey continues. In C. H. Steel, M. J. Keppell, P. Gerbic S. Hopusego (Eds. ), Cirriculum, technology transformation for   an unknow future. Proceedings ascilite Sydney 2010 (pp. 852-863). http://ascilite. org/au/conferences/sydney10/procs/Sankey-full. pdf Student Development Centre, The University of Western Ontario (2009), Learning Skills Services, Handouts & Advice, Learning Styles & Preferences, Retrieved from www. sdc. uwo. ca/learning/index/html? styles on September 29, 2012 Fleming, N. D. , (2011), VARK: A Review of Those Who Are Multimodal, Retrieved from http://www. vark-learning. com/english/page_content/multimodality. htm on September 23 , 2012

Xbox

Get Free Xbox Live Membership Codes This method requires a glitched code I personally bought, the code doesn’t work when you try to redeem it, however to the employee’s at Xbox is shown on their screen as Active and working but does not tell them what the code is actually for (1 month, 3 month, 12 month, 4k msp etc. ) I know what you’re thinking already, bullshit? No, try it yourself below. Note: They could ask for the code anytime, so be ready. Make sure you’re signed in on a NEW silver account every single time you do this or it will not work.Also, on the Silver account fill out billing info with a fake address name, ect. Also, edit your bio and motto and everything else such as your gamerpicture so it looks like a real account. *Don’t just rush into this method without following the directions stated above or it will not work! * K8F3V-78HXG-YRRJ4-TW8XQ-RR7M3 1. Go to Xbox. com and get on Contact Us -> Support 2. From the drop down menu, choose Xb ox Live -> Prepaid Codes 3. 3.In the description type â€Å"Help with prepaid codes, very confusing† Or something along those lines. *Change what you write here everytime! * 4. When they welcome you, just go with what they say, act normal. Tell the Agent a scenario, say you got your code for you birthday from your mother. You got the code, wrote it down on a piece of paper and planned to use it when you needed it. Then, say that you tried to use it and it gave you an error code on the xbox. (Be creative with this story, make it convincing! ) 5.Tell them you can’t take the card back because you trashed the card after you wrote it down on a notepad on your computer for covinence. 6. If they ask you to troubleshoot the issues just don’t reply for a while, then tell them it didn’t work, or if they ask what the code was tell them it was for whatever you’re wishing to obtain. 7. If they ask what the error was when redeeming, the error on xbox. com is â⠂¬Å"This code is not valid† and the error on the console is â€Å"This code isn’t valid. Please enter a valid code. † 8.They will probably go on for a while asking you different questions , just answer the questions and feed them the lies you think they want to hear and you’ll be fine. 9. Eventually they should either : Offer you a 1 month code as they can’t give you anything else because you don’t have the original card, escalate the request for you and you will receive your desired code via email in a few days OR they will tell you they can’t do anything (If they say this to you, you have failed. You should just end the conversation then X it off and try again in an hour or so)

Book Review of a Thousand Splendid Suns

Book Review of A Thousand Splendid Suns 17th century Afghanistan poet Saib-e-Tabrizi wrote this commendatory poem after visiting Kabul. ‘Every street of Kabul is enthralling to the eye; Through the bazaars, caravans of Egypt pass; One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs; And the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls. ’ In this world there are still many women say that they are suffering unfair treatment and demand for the right to vote, the right to manage.But to the women who had experienced two Afghanistan war (The first time Afghanistan war: from 1979 to 1989, the former Soviet Union armed invasion of Afghanistan. Second Afghanistan war: the second Afghanistan war in 2001 is based on United States-led coalition forces on October 7, 2001 for Afghanistan war cover to the Organization and the Taliban, for the United States on the revenge of the 911 incident, also marks the start of the war against terrorism. Not ended. ), the only thing what t hey want is to live.Khaled Hosseini has lived in the United States since he was fifteen years old and is an American citizen. His 2003 debut novel, The Kite Runner, was an international bestseller, selling more than 12 million copies worldwide. His second, A Thousand Splendid Suns, was released on May 22, 2007. In 2008, the book was the bestselling novel in Britain (as of April 11, 2008), with more than 700,000 copies sold. In 2006, he was appointed United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (Office) goodwill ambassadors, currently residing in Northern California.The Buffalo News says ‘Hosseini's literary abilities are such that he is able to do what all great artists do: take individual stories and, through the alchemy of insight, compassion and expression, universalize them—thereby turning them into art. ’ For reasons why he wrote this novel, Khaled Hosseini is saying ‘ although life is filled with pain and bitterness but each a sad plot can let people see hope in the Sun. Each faces behind dusty has a soul. Dedicated to Afghanistan's women.In 2003, returning to Kabul I see wearing traditional female twos and threes to go masked costume in the streets, was trailing behind their children dressed in rags, begging passers-by give change. At that moment, I would like to know, where they have been taken to life. What they dream, hope and desire? Did they talk about love? Husband how man? Spread in Afghanistan in the years to 20 years of war, they lost what? I talked with many women in Kabul; their stories are real people and heart.When I began to write of the thousand splendid Suns (a Thousand Splendid Suns), I find myself constantly think of those full of toughness of Afghanistan women. I though they may not be thrown describing Laila or Mariam source of inspiration for the role of the story, however their voices, faces and life stories of perseverance has always haunted me, and about the novel, I had a most inspiring is from Afghani stan collective spiritual power of women. ’ Mariam (She is my favorite role in this book), the illegitimate child of a Herat businessman, is forced into a loveless marriage at age fifteen to a middle-aged Kabul shoemaker, Rasheed.He demands absolute obedience from his spouse, as well as strict observance of Islamic customs restricting the movement, appearance and attire of women. In the early years of their marriage, Rasheed's mandates run counter to the modernizing forces in Kabul, where many women hold professional jobs, teach at the university, or run for public office. But with the rise of the Taliban, a whole society falls into lockstep with these dictates of Sharia, traditional Muslim law.Laila, a woman young enough to be Mariam's daughter, becomes a reluctant member of this household, when her parents are killed in a bombing, and all her friends have either die d or departed from Kabul. Rasheed takes her on as a second wife, and his bullying and overbearing behavior gr ow all the worse as the two women band together to resist his authoritarian control over their lives. When they try to escape, an Afghani man betrays them at the bus station and takes Laila's hard-saved money. This makes Rasheed even more abusive.A few years later the Taliban come into town, and all the stereotypes of the Taliban are emphasized, as if Hosseini was given the charter to reinforce them. Mariam ends up killing Rasheed in trying to save Laila from being killed by him. So, Mariam is executed by the Taliban, who â€Å"cannot† accept her story because of her being a woman. Thus, Mariam's woeful existence comes to end. Her whole life is a necklace of tragic events, pieced together one after another. And with her death, the reader is left with an enduring sense of sadness for M ariam, especially in the fact that Hosseini never did give her a break in her fictional life.As for Laila, she ends up traveling to Pakistan to marry her original love(r), eventually returning b ack to Kabul to work with an orphanage. The novel traces the trials and tribulations of Mariam and Laila as they struggle for survival, and eventually plan for a daring escape attempt that puts them at odds. Not only with Rasheed, but also with an entire society that sees them as little more than chattel. Hosseini skillfully develops the complexities and predicaments of his plot, which constantly intersects with political and social events in recent Afghan history.When I saw this book, thinking it may like The Kite Runner; finally, we will smile for the happy ending. But I was wrong. I was shocked when I read to Mariam lastly dead in order for Laila’s escaping. In the past years, Mariam has been in a miserable life. A birth is being neighbors’ laugh at, played a trick on illegitimate. Once a month to see her father. Then, naively think can and live with the father, but has to face her mother's death and father’s betrayal. At the age of 15, she is arranged to mar ry Rasheed, a shoemaker from Kabul who is thirty years her senior Also is not out of the mother's grief is far to marry someone from distance. She turned to Jalil again,’ tell them. Tell them you won’t do this’ Waiting. A silence fell over the room. Jalil kept twirling his wedding band, with a bruised, helpless look on his face. From inside the cabinet, the clock ticked on and on. † When I saw here, I feel myself becoming Mariam, despite knowing the answer is ‘ no ‘ but also hope that their father would not do such cruel things. In Kabul, Mariam becomes pregnant seven successive times, but is never able to carry a child to term, and Rasheed gradually becomes more abusive. â€Å"His powerful hands clasped her jaw.He shoved two fingers into her mouth and pried it open, then forced the cold, hard pebbles into it. Mariam struggled against him, mumbling, but he kept pushing the pebbles in, his upper lip curled in a sneer. ‘Now chew,’ h e said. Through the mouthful of grit and pebbles, Mariam mumbled a plea. Tears were leaking out of the corners of her eyes. ‘CHEW! ’ he bellowed. A gust of his smoky breath slammed against her face. Mariam chewed. Something in the back of her mouth cracked. ’Good,’ Rasheed said. His cheeks were quivering. ‘Now you know what your rice tastes like.Now you know what you've given me in this marriage. Bad food, and nothing else. ‘Then he was gone, leaving Mariam to spit out pebbles, blood, and the fragments of two broken molars†. Beside the shortly peace time of weeding,, Mariam has always been that a dozen years of life. Full of cursing and render phase. Read here, how much I hope that she will be a turning point in life. She can have a happy life, a long time to heal he pain since childhood and adolescence. But life is often not as we expected. After Laila marry to Rasheed, Mariam's identity than wife more like a maid.Mariam also abhorred La ila, but after all, both they are poor women. So, when Mariam says â€Å"There's nothing more I want. Everything I'd ever wished for as a little girl, you've already given me. You and your children have made me so very happy. It's all right, Laila jo. This is all right. Don't be sad. â€Å"Laila could find no reasonable answer for anything Mariam said. But she rambled on anyway, incoherently, childishly, about fruit trees that awaited planting and chickens that waited rising. She went on about small houses in unnamed towns, and walks to trout filled lakes.And, in the end, when the words dried up, the tears did not, and all Laila could do was surrender and sob like a child over whelmed by an adult's unassailable logic. All she could do was roll herself up and bury her face one last time in the welcoming warmth of Mariam's lap. Later that morning, Mariam packed Zalmai a small lunch of bread and dried figs. For Aziza too she packed some figs, and a few cookies shaped like animals. Sh e put it all in a paper bag and gave it to Laila. â€Å"Kiss Aziza for me,† she said. â€Å"Tell her she is the noon of my eyes and the sultan of my heart.Will you do that for me? † I can not control my excitement and couldn't help but shed tears. This great Mariam, although she was so limited in education, her fate has been so bumpy. But she still pay her own life in exchange for the freedom of Laila . And finally, as she died lonely, was killed by Taliban with stones. Her fate was unfortunate. Her fate was always driven. Even if Her one day have mastered fate, ending is ironic. She is not demanding from fate what, a little happy, it will make them happy. ‘Mariam wished for so much in those final moments.Yet as she closed her eyes, it was not regret any longer but a sensation of abundant peace that washed over her. She thought of her entry into this world, the harami child of a lowly villager, an unintended thing, a pitiable, regrettable accident. A weed. And ye t she was leaving the world as a woman who had loved and been loved back. She was leaving it as a friend, a companion, a guardian. A mother. A person of consequence at last. No. It was not so bad, Mariam thought, that she should die this way. Not so bad. This was legitimate end to a life of illegitimate beginnings. This paragraph for Mariam after her and Laila killed Rasheed, at the end of the execution ground inner monologue. ) Fate did not forgive her, but she eventually forgave fate. She was patience, she is great. Than Mariam, I personally think that Laila is much more fortunate. She was born in a wealthy family, has a good education. But war deprived this beauty girl of happy life. She was forced to separate from her lover- Tariq and all her families died because of the war. Due to be alone in the world, she was forced married Rasheed.The girl's life was completely changed because of the war. It is no doubt that she felled from heaven into hell. But luckily the nice girl met be auty minded Mariam. Because Rasheed found that the first child is not his own, also began to maltreat her. All the good luck seemed to give the Laila. After Mariam and Laila’s escape failed, Laila met Tariq again on the streets of Kabul. Finally, Mariam and Laila killed their husband together. Mariam clocked all charges and let Laila peaceful leave with Tariq. Thanks author for Laila does a person know to be grateful. As she walks to her desk at the front of the class, Laila thinks of the naming game they'd played again over dinner the night before. It has become a nightly ritual ever since Laila gave Tariq and the children the news. Back and forth they go, making a case for their own choice. Tariq likes Mohammad. Zalmai, who has recently watched Superman on tape, is puzzled as to why an Afghan boy cannot be named Clark. Aziza is campaigning hard for Aman. Laila likes Omar . But the game involves only male names. Because if it's a girl, Laila has already named her. In the end of this novel, Laila with Tariq together go back to Kabul and set up a locally school. Laila do this in order to repay this piece of land and her Savior Mariam. Finally, I want to talk about on the Mariam and Laila common husband Rasheed. Mariam and Laila live in a patriarchal authoritarian society, where women must obey their fathers, husbands and sons, only a son can give them access to social status. Rasheed for their husbands, the â€Å"me, and do not allow cursing, screaming, begging and howling, only the daily routine of playing and being hit. And that violence is a social and legal recognition. To a certain extent, we should not condemn Rasheed. Although he married to the pretty young girl Laila by telling lies, said Tariq is dead. Has a very oppressive side of his character. He was the victim of the system. He not only represents himself, mapped out a malformation of social moral values. In Afghanistan even more we don't know where in the world, there are many men are affe cted by social oppression and do the same cruel treatment of women and children.This book makes me sigh, how many injustices and tribulations a woman can bear. Originally Jalil like Nana, instead finally came into Nana seduce Jalil; just because have no child, ridiculed in a wife bear husband ridicule, irony and even beatings; to innocent little lives in the stomach, Laila can give up name node, you can discard face, She can give up everything that she can give up. Afghanistan woman in the face of suffering like a snowflake falls in General on other people's Windows, quietly melting, no sound, no moaning, only silent obedience of loneliness and despair.But suffering does not make them progressive annihilation, but shaped their great personality and will. Beset the outbreak of war, disease, families of the lost, which, on their face with a bear patiently the calm, give them the desire to live more strongly. Any suffering won't make them shaken confidence in life, because in their min d, have no â€Å"disappointed†, not â€Å"sad†. Unfortunately for it, they must endure, and it is still affordable. Normally I'm more of an action-adventure type reader when it comes to novels and recreational reading.But I was given the chance to read A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini (author of The Kite Runner), so I decided to try something out of my normal genre. I am so glad I did. This is a stunning and moving novel of life and love in Afghanistan over a 30 year period. And the past Afghanistan in my eyes has been always associated with wars, the Taliban, Bin Laden, displacement, terrorists and Jihad. By the author and his beautiful writing, I saw Afghan are yearning for freedom, hope in the future In our society now, from the films, books or other media, we tend to see are both indifference of humanity in a little bit.And this book tells the inexcusable age, two Afghanistan unlikely friendships between a woman and not destroying love story. Husseini st roke light, sincere, simple, time spans forty or fifty years, depicting two different character actress: Mariam and Laila, struggling their tragic twists and turns of fate, their stories heavy despair and warm bright, behind the sad story of the stubborn looking good and hope not to be destroyed. Through it, we should realize, that human society still need to love and trust. Humanity just like the splendid suns will follow in every corner of the world.

A Study of Ethics in Relation to Business Practices

A Study of Ethics in Relation to Business Practices Combining ethics and business can be difficult at times, for every business’ goal is to make profit and certain ethical issues might be overlooked in order to avoid complications that might obstacle the company’s activities and jeopardise its revenue opportunities. The relationship between ethics and business has been discussed by many experts, such as Friedman (1970), who argued that a manager’s decisions should be driven by money, however they should not ignore the basic rules onto which every modern society is based. This may sound like a good solution to the ethical issues most companies have to deal with nowadays. A number of practical solutions to the ethical problems encountered by leaders who manage a group of individuals was given by Aristotle, a Greek philosopher who certainly didn’t run a company, yet analysed and discussed the duties of a leader, placing great importance on their morality and virtues, as every leader should be virtuous to deserve the name, as the pointed out in his Nicomachean Ethics. In the first place, it would be useful to analyse the meaning of the adjective â€Å"ethical† before applying it too liberally. Ethics comes from ancient Greek â€Å"ethos†, which means â€Å"character†, intended as the common belief that guides and determines the actions, behaviours and thoughts of a community. Ethics are not â€Å"absolute†, as different communities can have different opinions as to what is ethical and what is not, so before conducting a critical study on the relationship between ethics and business, it should be clarified that when it comes to business, western countries are the ones which dictate and set the standards for what is ethical, as Miriam Schulman (n.d.) correctly observed. Now, ethics and law do not always go hand in hand, as law can sometimes be unethical and a good action which may seem morally right could be deemed illegal by a country’s code, e.g. when Hitler ran Germany, the holocaust, albeit unethical, was permitted by the law, whereas helping a prisoner escape was considered illegal, even though arresting someone and forcing them to work without giving them a salary just because of their religious beliefs or nationality is absolutely unethical. Every manager should be able to distinguish between what is legal and what is ethical as to make decisions that do not simply conform to the law, but are also ethically â€Å"right†. Ethics, in fact, has to do with what concepts such as good, bad, right, wrong, fair and unfair. German philosopher Marx described the whole production process, explaining how the worker alienates themselves when manufacturing/creating something, whatever this is, emphasizing the importance of equality as opposed to meritocracy. That is the main reason why Marx’s theories have been questioned many times, for it is not easy to tell whether equality is ethically correct, seeing as people who possess qualities that others don’t and work harder than others deserve to be given more responsibilities and rewarded accordingly, as Michael Young (1958) observed. Human society and business alike are dynamic, which means that they tend to change alongside with people and governments’ needs, expectations and actions. It is their complexity that makes corporate ethics such an interesting, yet critical subject that every human resource manager should understand in order to make decisions that might benefit the company without damaging their employees in any way. In the following paragraph, a few cases will be analysed and discussed as to show what kind of issues may arise when business ethics are violated and determine whether Human Resource Management is compatible with them. Psychological implications in human resource management Managing an organisation’s employees is no easy task and requires specific skills, without which a manager might severely damage the company they work for. In fact, because employees are not to be seen as mere workforce, but also and mainly as individuals who have ambitions, needs, expectations, problems and feelings, a human resource manager, in fact, should know that when it comes to managing people, theoretical issues, as well as practical ones, are faced. Therefore, a deep understanding of the human psyche and behaviour is required, which is why psychology plays a very important role in human resource management, as Suraj Kumar (2011) pointed out. Job dissatisfaction is not to be underestimated, for all humans tend to adapt to new situations and, when they find themselves in unpleasant ones, research has revealed that they do whatever they can to reduce dissatisfaction. These defensive mechanisms may negatively affect a company, leading to bad performance, absence, low productivity, withdrawal behaviours and, last but not least, lack of loyalty, in the sense that employees will leave the company as soon as given an opportunity to do so, damaging the company, which will have to invest time and money in the finding and training of new employees. (Rosse, J. G., Saturay, S. L., 2004) O’Toole (n.d.) argued that Aristotle’s theories on leadership and ethics could be adapted to modern times and used by managers to make fair decisions that will benefit the companies they work for and the employees they supervise. To do so, they should ask themselves what they would want if they were in the employees’ shoes, how they would like to be treated, what kind of treatment and incentives would help them express their potential, whether they would like their opinions to be kept in consideration when important decisions that might affect their careers are made and so forth†¦ Moreover, Aristotle, as well as other thinkers, such as Socrates, maintained that a leader (and mankind in general) should not be enabled to rule other people unless they know themselves and are virtuous. According to Socrates, self-knowledge is an ability that prevents failure from happening. In light of such enlightening observations, it would be useful to analyse a few contemporary cases. Western companies and ethical issues Nike and forced labour Nike Inc. is a popular and successful sportswear brand and equipment supplier whose net income, as of 2010, was over US $1, 900 billion (United States Securities and Exchange Commission, 2010). The company has been harshly criticized for manufacturing their products in countries such as China, Vietnam, Mexico, Cambodia, Pakistan and Indonesia, where, according to Locke (2002), not only adult employees underpaid, child workers are used especially in stitching centres. Even though Nike’s code of conduct says that the company provides healthy and safe workplaces for all their workers, ensures that nobody below the age of 18 can sign a labour contract with them, does not use any form of forced labour, respects their employees, does not practise discrimination and commits to providing their employees at least the minimum wage plus benefits (Kochan, A. T., Schmalensee, R., 2003) , Australian Channel 7 News (2008) revealed numerous cases of forced labour involving the American company and a few years later Associated Press (2011) published an article reporting cases of forced labour and employee abuse at some of Nike’s plants in Indonesia. Are forced labour, abuse and child labour ethically correct? Obviously not, seeing as freedom is not just a privilege, it is a right for the simple reason that everyone is born free, even though many factors contribute to shaping humans’ judgement and choices throughout their lives. According to English philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1651), a person is free when they can decide to do something even though they could have done otherwise. That is what free will, intended as liberty, is. Gap and child labour With regards to child labour, the employment of people below a certain age, which is not always 18, is seen as a form of exploitation in most western countries, for, ethically speaking, children are weaker than adults and should not be made to work hard, especially considering that several western companies, such as Nike and Gap (The Guardian, 2007) have been criticised for collaborators with contractors which employ children, force them to work under horrible circumstances and treat them nearly as slaves, in terms of minimum wage and abuse. It goes without saying that these practices are unethically correct, as we are all born equal and a person should not exploit and abuse of another one. As reported by The Guardian (2007), after the child labour scandal, Gap confirmed its code of conduct, promising to put an end to its collaboration with those contractors found guilty of child labour and abuse and to withdraw thousands of products which had been manufactured by children. Two other interesting cases are those of HM and Zara, two popular clothing retailers which have been accused of using cotton which might be picked by children in Uzbekistan and Bangladesh, where they are forced to work under horrific conditions. They both responded to these accusations stating that their codes of conduct banned child labour, however ensuring that raw materials are not picked by children is a very difficult thing to do, for most underdeveloped and developing countries fail in guaranteeing that unethical practices, such as slavery and child labour, are removed. (Independent Television News 2009) Nowadays, ethical behaviour and commitment to moral values (non-economic ones) are often used by companies to promote their services and/or products. However, Adam Smith (1952) argued that businesspeople’s ultimate goal is to make the public believe what they want to believe as to raise prices. That is why sensitivity to ethical issues is often included by companies in their marketing strategies. Try as they might, governments can not monitor corporations’ sensitivity to ethical issues, as ethics regulates details of human actions and behaviours which governments can not control. (Berle, A. A., Means, G. C., 1932). Utilitarianism and business Utilitarianism is a philosophical trend initiated by Jeremy Bentham (2005) and John Stuart Mill (2009), who spoke thoroughly about ethics, their relationship with business and human rights, maintaining that a right action leads to a good consequence, therefore, the ethical worth of an action can be gauged by its outcome. Unlike other philosophers, such as Hume (1975) or Locke (1997), who simply maintained that every action has a consequence without giving recommendations as to what is the most ethical thing to do, Bentham and Mill argued that, when faced with a decision, everyone should carefully consider their options and the consequences implied by each of those options and finally choose the one that will generate the greatest felicity. Only by going through this specific decision-making process can one be certain of being making an ethically correct choice. According to Richard Mervyn Hare (1981), most people tend to use intuitive, instead of deductive, moral thinking to make de cisions, as in doing so, happiness is maximised. However, when it comes to more delicate matters, such as human rights, managing and supervising other people and ensuring that employees are treated fairly not only because employee dissatisfaction is known to increase the likelihood of failure, but also and mainly because it is right to treat employees fairly, a more deductive and critical thinking method is required. Applying the utilitarian principle to business and human resource management in particular, a manager should consider their various options, asking themselves what the various courses of each action might be, what costs, risks and harms they would imply, not only for the company, but also for its stakeholders, employees and themselves and all those who might be somehow affected by their decision. The main problem managers are usually faced with is to avoid potential conflicts of moral rights. In order to do so, a manager should ask themselves what choice they have the moral right to make in relation with the current circumstances, what moral rights the other party have and whether there is a conflict of moral rights between themselves and the other party. Should there be a conflict of any kind, the manager should whether their rights or those of the other part deserve precedence. Job enrichment and employee motivation While ethics are often overlooked especially during negotiations, when information that might jeopardise the success of a merger, just to name one, is withheld, managing employees is a completely different matter. In fact, keeping account of ethics when making decisions that involve employees, elaborating strategies that will affect them or simply assigning tasks is essential to the creation of a stimulating and productive working environment. According to American psychologist Hertzberg (1993), job enrichment is the best method to motivate employees, ensure their loyalty and cooperation whilst letting them express their abilities and fulfil themselves. In order to create a pleasant working environment that stimulates employees and benefits the company, a manager should make sure that each employee is given the opportunity to perform different tasks of varying difficulty, faces challenges and receives constant feedbacks. Communication is key to the encouragement of ethical behaviour and motivation, as through it, a manager can provide merit recognition. Among the other things, a manager should provide their employees with adequate resources to perform their assigned tasks well, give clear instructions, let employees know what the corporate mission is and make them feel involved in the decision-making process, provide them with enough freedom, rewards, incentives and encourage them and, last but not least, ensure job variety so that every employee can express their abilities and feel self-fulfilled. (Mione, P. ) Now, in order to create a positive working environment where the manager takes actions that display their virtues, instead of their vices (dishonesty, greed, laziness, selfishness, neglect†¦), ethical behaviour should be motivated. Therefore, it is important that the manager should set the example among employees and develop a programme that rewards good behaviours and penalises bad ones through penalties and sanctions. Rules and expectations that define what is acceptable and what is not should be written down and communicated to employees, as to anticipate bad behaviours. At the same time, good behaviours should be rewarded through incentives and praised. Participative management techniques should be used to motivate ethical behaviour and, in order to assure justice when it comes to disagreements and conflicts, these should be handled impartially and formally. The company should also create an effective method for employees to file complaints and report unethical or illegal behaviour so that they won’t have to go to the ombuds office every time a workplace issue arises. Regardless of the efficiency of its method, which might also include an ethics hotline and website, the company should use an ombuds office to investigate complaints with confidentiality, ethics and objectivity. Conclusion Ethics differs from country to country, being a framework of rules which define what is right, wrong, good, bad, acceptable and unacceptable. Corporate ethics in China is different to corporate ethics in France, which does not mean that one of them is wrong, whereas the other one is right, since ethics goes hand in hand with culture. Therefore, a relativistic approach is sure to be the most appropriate one to study ethics without letting personal prejudices and opinions influence the course of the analysis. Ethical norms evolve and, nowadays, consumers are sensitive to ethical issues, such as forced labour, diversity, discrimination and child labour, which is why western companies such as Nike (Associated Press, 2011) and Gap (The Guardian, 2007), which have been accused of violating basic ethical norms, have had to revise their codes of conduct and reassure consumers that their products, despite being manufactured in underdeveloped and/or developing countries, where governments still find it difficult to eradicate slavery, forced labour and other unethical practices. Now, when it comes to human resource management, ethical behaviour is strongly recommended for research (Hertzberg, F., 1993) has proved that it plays a very important role in creating a productive working environment. While ethical norms are often overlooked during negotiations, it is crucial that a manager should be virtuous, set the example among their employees and take actions that will produce the greatest benefit f or the company, its employees and themselves. In this regard, three principles should be applied in order for the manager to make decisions that display their virtuous traits and benefit those around them: the utilitarian principle, the right principle and the care ethics principle. In other words, before taking an action, a manager should ask themselves whether that action will do the greatest good for those who will be affected by it and evaluate all the different options, then, they should ask themselves what action they have the moral right to take and, finally, whether their choice â€Å"cares† for their needs and those of the people with whom they have working relationships (coworkers, stakeholders, supervisors, suppliers, employees and so forth†¦) That is why every working environment should be regulated by ethical norms and employees should be encouraged to obey them through incentives and rewards, which will ensure their satisfaction and loyalty, which have been proved to greatly contribute to the enhancement of employee performance, hence to the corporation’s success. (Judge, T. A. et al., 2001)

Security as a management or technological issue Essay - 1

Security as a management or technological issue - Essay Example 11-24, 2009). Due to such significance and impact of security issues, a number of experts have been carrying out researches to identify loopholes in the systems. However, such researches (Azari, pp. 20-41, 2003) have resulted in the commencement of new debate or two different perspectives regarding the issue of security in organisations, as some experts promote consideration of security as a management issue, whereas, some encourage its deliberation as a technical or technological issue. In specific, this paper will attempt to evaluate the security issue from different perspectives, and will endeavor to recognise its existence from either perspective. In order to understand the security issue, it is imperative to understand the processes of organisations and information systems, and for such purpose, understanding of a cell will be valuable. In specific, every cell in the humans exists for a particular purpose, and for accomplishing the task, cells utilise the environment as an input, and this cycle continues in a constant manner throughout a human life. In this regard, it is an understanding that environment or surroundings in the form of organs play a greater and influential role in success of different cells in the body. It is the case with IT systems, as well as business processes in which, environment plays an imperative role in the success of organisation, and similarly, in the success of IT systems. Moreover, after the globalisation, organisations are now in connection to the environment due to introduction of technological systems in different business processes that now are very crucial during various business decisions and policies of organisations. Internet is an obvious example of such position of organisations that have now become a part of a larger technology network (Azari, pp. 81-84, 2003). A few decades ago, internet access was not an

Toyota Final Simulation Bus310 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Toyota Final Simulation Bus310 - Essay Example Here, the case study puts emphasis on the three organizational environments and how each contributed to the technological development. The success of every organization is highly dependent on such an organization’s resource composition and how best they mobilize those internal resources. The invention of the simulator portrays Toyota as an organization which mobilizes its internal resources: finances, natural and human resources to better satisfy their customers (Liker & Meier, 2006). With the final simulation at hand, it is predictable that Toyota is destined to gain a huge internal environmental support since, whenever an organization comes up with a new landmark invention; such an organization is always motivated to do even more. A motivated human resource, for instance, is always characterized by creativity and innovation as well as working towards the achievement of the organizational goals. Toyota is one organization that can highly be credited for how it has matched its internal environment to its external environment. The near external environment is always characterized with those factors that an organization has little influence over as opposed to the internal resources (Liker & Meier, 2006). The vital factors in the near external environment include the customers and the suppliers whose contributions are essential to the success of any organization. For most entrepreneurs, it is the customers and the suppliers that a company should hold dear to their activities. It is very logical that an organization that does not pay attention to their customers have no future. In coming up with the perfect simulator, it is predictable that Toyota fully exploited their near external environment. The customers for instance influence a huge amount of organizational decisions depend highly on the feedback such an organization gets from its customers. In fully implementing the driving simulation technology, it is

Victim Assistance Office and Organizational Structure Assignment

Victim Assistance Office and Organizational Structure - Assignment Example In addition, the services to be offered in the office will be discussed. Other aspects to be analyzed include associate agencies necessary for the success of the office, outreach programs, and how to seek and receive funds. The office will have three posts including Prosecuting Attorney, Chief Assistant, Counselor and an Office Administrator. The Prosecuting Attorney must have a law degree from the internationally accredited university. The Prosecuting Attorney will be the overall manager of the office and will thus be in charge of the affairs of the victims. Secondly, the Chief Assistant, who is subordinate to the Prosecuting Attorney, must also have a law degree from the internationally accredited university. The Prosecuting Attorney will work in collaboration with the Chief Assistant in meeting the objectives of the office. Finally, the office administrator will be in charge of administrative duties at the office such as handling of victim records and correspondence. Counseling services will be provided by the Counselor. Associate agencies will include police departments. The police will help the office in ensuring that suspects are arrested. In addition, the police, especially the FBI, will help victims to carry out investigations. Community organizations will also help the office in ensuring that crime victims are assisted in coming up with the challenges that affect them. The victim assistance office main aim will be to provide direct assistance to individuals who have been affected by criminal activities. The counselor will ensure that the traumatized, as well as, confused victims are assisted. After counseling, the prosecuting attorney will be required to provide referrals to effective agencies that will help the victim in understanding the justice system. In the current society, there is still lack of knowledge on what should happen after crimes have been committed (Doyle, 2008). The victim assistance office will help  in creating and disseminating understandable information to crime victims.  

Personal and Professional Qualities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Personal and Professional Qualities - Essay Example Professional competences include knowledge and understanding of children and their learning, subject knowledge, curriculum, the education system and the teacher's role." (Birgitte). As a person who wishes to enjoy great professional success, there are certain well-determined personal and professional qualities and characteristics which I would like the principle to recognize in me. These include, among many others, Passion, Strong interpersonal skills, and Humor. Similarly, there are some basic characteristics I seek to find in a school environment which I consider essential for the development of my personal and professional qualities. As a teacher with high motivation for personal and professional development, I would like to find certain well defined characteristics in the school where I teach. These characteristics of the school include, first of all, an environment for teacher training/staff development; second, accessible administration, i.e. principal and assistant principal s hould be visible and approachable to both staff and students; and finally, a safe working environment for staff and students where materials necessary to learning, such as books, computers etc should be available. Therefore, as a personal and professional achiever and a teacher who always meet the requirements of the students as well as the school, my specific personal and professional qualities and characteristics are well defined. Essentially, the principal always prefer those staff members who are great teachers with ability to meet the needs of their students. Therefore, the qualities of passion, strong interpersonal skills, and humor can be decisive in the success of my professional life. These are the qualities which I possess as a teaching staff and I wish my principal to recognize them. Only a teacher with great passion for student's affairs and development can influence and meet their varied needs. It is essential, therefore, to have a reputation as a greatly committed teacher with positive approach and a passion and zest towards the teaching profession. Similarly, I strongly feel that the teacher needs to possess strong interpersonal skills to effectively interact with colleagues and students in order to be successful in the career. From my personal experience, I can guarantee that a teacher with high interpersonal skills will develop a greater rapport with the principal, other staff members and the students which determines a person's success as an effective teacher. Therefore, I would want the principal to recognize my strong interpersonal skills, along with my passion and humor. It is also of significant value in the modern stressful life to possess a sense of humor which will ease the hardest of the situations. However, my personal experience confirms that one should be careful and situation-bound in the exercising of one's humor which has immense influence on the success in teaching life. Finally, three most important characteristics I am looking for in the school where I may teach include provision for teacher training/staff development, easily accessible administration, and safe working environment for staff and students. These are of prime significance as they contribute heavily to the best maintenance of one's career record. I wish to have a friendly atmosphere in the school whe

Explain the Scientific Management Approach with reference to Henry Essay - 1

Explain the Scientific Management Approach with reference to Henry Fayol and Frederick Taylors principles of management - Essay Example tation of science was basically targeted at manufacturing industry and other regular responsibilities, in order to improve productivity and competence from top to lower echelon of leadership. On the one hand, Taylor suggests that the development of proven practices need to be anchored on comprehensive observation of business processes, and on thorough training and recruitment of the most qualified of workers, because by doing so, organizations will be guaranteed smoother processes and more profit (Maqbool, Zakariya, and Paracha, 2011). In light of this, Taylor summarised his approach in four principles namely: a) scientific creation of work processes; b) scientific selection and training of workers; c) enlightening workers on the benefits of scientific management; and d) specialization of employees (Taylor, 2013). All of these strategies are aimed at improving productivity and better gains in organizations. Taylor (2013) argues that developing a scientific system of work eases the measurement of employee output. With these analyses, positive adjustments could be affected to the equipment and workstation programs used by employees, which would eventually enhance efficiency and productivity of business. Scientific recruitment and preparation of workers to weather various workplace challenges helps to realign divergent employee aptitudes, and fit them to their respective job. In light of this, the role of management would translate in to selecting the most qualified of employees for a particular job, and training the candidates scientifically to enhance their productivity (Maqbool, Zakariya, and Paracha, 2011). For instance, a high school that is in need a graduate teacher specialised in specific subjects, would recruit such an individual from a pool of applicants, and train him or her on the best ways to relate well with students, fellow members of staff, parents, school clinicians and the immediate community to ensure they fit in the new workplace