Raffles Hotel Marketing Communications

Assignment #4 Observation Report A: Describe one on-the-job problem of issue encountered and how it was resolved. I first encountered this problem two weeks into my internship with Raffles Hotel Marketing Communications. After my orientation week, it was finally time for me to take on projects on my own and start communicating with some of the clients and media the department would follow up from time to time. One of the projects that I was tasked was to prepare the Arabic version of Raffles Hotel’s fact sheet for the Saudi Arabia sales trip that the Director of Sales and Marketing will be doing at the end of the week.This request came in as a last minute project as there were several delays in the process of translation and positioning of the facts and information. In what limited time I had, it does seem that I would not be able to complete to the fact sheet in time due to the constant delays from the Translation Company and external help that took quite some time to get bac k to me. Time wasn’t on my side and I knew I cannot afford to mess up this project. That was when I decided to adopt one of the many values that Raffles Hotel believes in – taking ownership of guest requests.Instead of sitting around waiting for things to happen and emails to be replied, I decided that it was time for me to take action and get what needs to be done, done. The issue was eventually resolved after I made personal trips around the hotel, asking for help from colleagues from various departments that have knowledge in the Arabic language. I managed to prepare the Arabic fact sheet of Raffles Hotel in time for the Saudi Arabia sales trip and have shown my managers that I am someone they can trust to get things done on time and to the best of my abilities.

Portable Players Essay

The innovation set by the Walkman has lead to the creation of different portable media for music listening. This paved the way for the consumers to forever change the way they listen to music (Bellis 1). In fact, the Walkman is considered to be the main catalyst which prompted many companies to re-invent their products to become handy and mobile. Previously, music and news were only confined in big mechanical boxes sitting inside a living room. No one ever imagined that a bulky listening device can actually be turned into something which will fit right into one’s pocket. The Walkman, with an offshoot of portable CD players, has greatly modified the way people establish their lifestyles. The establishments of portable media players, especially those which can play music, have increased a form of mobility for consumers. Practically, it is very obvious that people are now freer to work on other matters even while listening to their favorite tunes. For most cases, this can equate to greater productivity values in day to day activities. Moreover, having a portable listening device such as a CD player makes one’s feelings more invigorated. This can deliberately affect his outlook towards the tasks he is going to do. Aside from that, it is very likely that the convenience of having a portable media player can increase the ability of a person to interact with other people. On a personal note, the presence of portable listening devices is actually a two-faceted situation. On the positive side, people now have the option to bring along the music wherever they go and whenever they may demand for it. Portable media have truly become one convenient way to integrate an entertainment platform defying the limits of previous generations of bulky and impractical music devices. This enriches a person’s point of view because of the fact that he can actually make his life enjoyable by listening to his favorite music anytime. On the other side however, having portable media can actually spell some drastic effects towards an individuals’ personality especially when the use of such devices become uncontrollable. One reason why mobile music players have a positive effect to a person’s social life is the fact that they can satisfy the personal needs of people. For example, if one needs to relax a bit out of the daily routine work, then a simple click and popping of headsets to the ears would sustain a change in mood for the better (Weinberger 1). However, it is also possible that such person, with the right addiction level towards music, may forget that he is still actually a part of the greater social structure. It is very possible that he will tend to interact less and less with other people, become unproductive at work or even modify an attitude towards obsession. Add to that the fact that portable music players pose a certain degree of health risks. Personal stereo systems may actually induce hear loss with extended use according to Canada’s Minister of Health. Even the Media Awareness Network is concerned about having music which promotes racism, discrimination and violence which makes it more available to portable players. Technology is one of the main factors for the development of human society. But sometimes, there are also some consequences that it may induce for people to change their outlook in life, personal feelings and overall philosophy. In such a case, it is important that each person has the capacity to limit himself towards becoming a slave for technological advancement in which social interaction perspectives maybe compromised. As of the moment, the portable music players are still doing its job to satisfy the entertainment hunger of the people. It is only a matter of personal evaluation to help an individual look beyond the excitement of having a mobile music treasure box and see other consequences it may bring. Works Cited Bellis, Mary. â€Å"Sony Walkman. † About. com. 2008. 27 Feb 2008 . Health Canada, â€Å"It’s Your Health. † Minister of Health. 2006. Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada. 27 Feb 2008 . Media Awareness, â€Å"Inappropriate Content in Music. † Media Awareness Network. 2008. 27 Feb 2008 . Weinberger, Norman. â€Å"Musica Research Notes. † Musica. uci. edu. 1996. 27 Feb 2008 .

Introduction of Management

Chapter 1 Introduction of management Management  is a universal phenomenon. It is a very popular and widely used term. All organizations – business, political, cultural or social are involved in management because it is the management which helps and directs the various efforts towards a definite purpose. According to  Harold Koontz, â€Å"Management is an art of getting things done through and with the people in formally organized groups. It is an art of creating an environment in which people can perform and individuals and can co-operate towards attainment of group goals†. According to  F. W. Taylor, â€Å"Management is an art of knowing what to do, when to do and see that it is done in the best and cheapest way†. Management is a purposive activity. It is something that directs group efforts towards the attainment of certain pre – determined goals. It is the process of working with and through others to effectively achieve the goals of the organization, by efficiently using limited resources in the changing world. Of course, these goals may vary from one enterprise to another. E. g. : For one enterprise it may be launching of new products by conducting market surveys and for other it may be profit maximization by minimizing cost. Management involves creating an internal environment: – It is the management which puts into use the various factors of production. Therefore, it is the responsibility of management to create such conditions which are conducive to maximum efforts so that people are able to perform their task efficiently and effectively. It includes ensuring availability of raw materials, determination of wages and salaries, formulation of rules & regulations etc. Therefore, we can say that good management includes both being effective and efficient. Being effective means doing the appropriate task i. , fitting the square pegs in square holes and round pegs in round holes. Being efficient means doing the task correctly, at least possible cost with minimum wastage of resources. Management can be defined in detail in following categories : 1. Management as a  Process 2. Management as an  Activity 3. Management as a  Discipline 4. Management as a  Group 5. Management as a  Science 6. Man agement as an  Art 7. Management as a  Profession Management as science science is a systematic body of knowledge pertaining to a specific field of study that contains general facts which explains a phenomenon. It establishes cause and effect relationship between two or more variables and underlines the principles governing their relationship. These principles are developed through scientific method of observation and verification through testing. Science is characterized by following main features: 1. Universally acceptance principles –  Scientific principles represents basic truth about a particular field of enquiry. These principles may be applied in all situations, at all time & at all places. E. g. – law of gravitation which can be applied in all countries irrespective of the time. Management also contains some fundamental principles which can be applied universally like the Principle of Unity of Command i. e. one man, one boss. This principle is applicable to all type of organization – business or non business. 2. Experimentation & Observation –  Scientific principles are derived through scientific investigation & researching i. e. they are based on logic. E. g. the principle that earth goes round the sun has been scientifically proved. Management principles are also based on scientific enquiry & observation and not only on the opinion of Henry Fayol. They have been developed through experiments & practical experiences of large no. of managers. E. g. it is observed that fair remuneration to personal helps in creating a satisfied work force. 3. Cause & Effect Relationship –  Principles of science lay down cause and effect relationship between various variables. E. g. when metals are heated, they are expanded. The cause is heating & result is expansion. The same is true for management, therefore it also establishes cause and effect relationship. E. g. lack of parity (balance) between authority & responsibility will lead to ineffectiveness. If you know the cause i. e. ack of balance, the effect can be ascertained easily i. e. in effectiveness. Similarly if workers are given bonuses, fair wages they will work hard but when not treated in fair and just manner, reduces productivity of organization. 4. Test of Validity & Predictability –  Validity of scientific principles can be tested at any time or any number of times i. e. they stand the test of time. Each time these tests will give same result. Moreover future events can be predicted with reasonable accuracy by using scientific principles. E. g. H2  & O2  will always give H2O. Principles of management can also be tested for validity. E. g. principle of unity of command can be tested by comparing two persons – one having single boss and one having 2 bosses. The performance of 1st person will be better than 2nd. It cannot be denied that management has a systematic body of knowledge but it is not as exact as that of other physical sciences like biology, physics, and chemistry etc. The main reason for the inexactness of science of management is that it deals with human beings and it is very difficult to predict their behavior accurately. Since it is a social process, therefore it falls in the area of social sciences. It is a flexible science & that is why its theories and principles may produce different results at different times and therefore it is a behavior science. Ernest Dale has called it as a  Soft Science. Management as art Art implies application of knowledge & skill to trying about desired results. An art may be defined as personalized application of general theoretical principles for achieving best possible results. Art has the following characters – 1. Practical Knowledge:  Every art requires practical knowledge therefore learning of theory is not sufficient. It is very important to know practical application of theoretical principles. E. g. to become a good painter, the person may not only be knowing different colour and brushes but different designs, dimensions, situations etc to use them appropriately. A manager can never be successful just by obtaining degree or diploma in management; he must have also know how to apply various principles in real situations by functioning in capacity of manager. 2. Personal Skill:  Although theoretical base may be same for every artist, but each one has his own style and approach towards his job. That is why the level of success and quality of performance differs from one person to another. E. . there are several qualified painters but M. F. Hussain is recognized for his style. Similarly management as an art is also personalized. Every manager has his own way of managing things based on his knowledge, experience and personality, that is why some managers are known as good managers (like Aditya Birla, Rahul Bajaj) whereas others as bad. 3. Creativity:  Every artist has an el ement of creativity in line. That is why he aims at producing something that has never existed before which requires combination of intelligence & imagination. Management is also creative in nature like any other art. It combines human and non-human resources in useful way so as to achieve desired results. It tries to produce sweet music by combining chords in an efficient manner. 4. Perfection through practice:  Practice makes a man perfect. Every artist becomes more and more proficient through constant practice. Similarly managers learn through an art of trial and error initially but application of management principles over the years makes them perfect in the job of managing. 5. Goal-Oriented:  Every art is result oriented as it seeks to achieve concrete results. In the same manner, management is also directed towards accomplishment of pre-determined goals. Managers use various resources like men, money, material, machinery & methods to promote growth of an organization. Thus, we can say that management is an art therefore it requires application of certain principles rather it is an art of highest order because it deals with moulding the attitude and behavior of people at work towards desired goals. Management as both Science and Art Management is both an art and a science. The above mentioned points clearly reveals that management combines features of both science as well as art. It is considered as a science because it has an organized body of knowledge which contains certain universal truth. It is called an art because managing requires certain skills which are personal possessions of managers. Science provides the knowledge & art deals with the application of knowledge and skills. A manager to be successful in his profession must acquire the knowledge of science & the art of applying it. Therefore management is a judicious blend of science as well as an art because it proves the principles and the way these principles are applied is a matter of art. Science teaches to ’know’ and art teaches to ’do’. E. g. a person cannot become a good singer unless he has knowledge about various ragas & he also applies his personal skill in the art of singing. Same way it is not sufficient for manager to first know the principles but he must also apply them in solving various managerial problems that is why, science and art are not mutually exclusive but they are complementary to each other (like tea and biscuit, bread and butter etc. ). The old saying that â€Å"Manager are Born† has been rejected in favor of â€Å"Managers are Made†. It has been aptly remarked that management is the oldest of art and youngest of science. To conclude, we can say that science is the root and art is the fruit. Levels of Management The term â€Å"Levels of Management’ refers to a line of demarcation between various managerial positions in an organization. The number of levels in management increases when the size of the business and work force increases and vice versa. The level of management determines a chain of command, the amount of authority & status enjoyed by any managerial position. The levels of management can be classified in three broad categories: – 1. Top level / Administrative level 2. Middle level / Executory 3. Low level / Supervisory / Operative / First-line managers Managers at all these levels perform different functions. The role of managers at all the three levels is discussed below: 1. Top Level of Management It consists of board of directors, chief executive or managing director. The top management is the ultimate source of authority and it manages goals and policies for an enterprise. It devotes more time on planning and coordinating functions. The role of the top management can be summarized as follows – a. Top management lays down the objectives and broad policies of the enterprise. b. It issues necessary instructions for preparation of department budgets, procedures, schedules etc. c. It prepares strategic plans & policies for the enterprise. d. It appoints the executive for middle level i. e. departmental managers. e. It controls & coordinates the activities of all the departments. f. It is also responsible for maintaining a contact with the outside world. g. It provides guidance and direction. h. The top management is also responsible towards the shareholders for the performance of the enterprise. 2. Middle Level of Management The branch managers and departmental managers constitute middle level. They are responsible to the top management for the functioning of their department. They devote more time to organizational and directional functions. In small organization, there is only one layer of middle level of management but in big enterprises, there may be senior and junior middle level management. Their role can be emphasized as – a. They execute the plans of the organization in accordance with the policies and directives of the top management. b. They make plans for the sub-units of the organization. c. They participate in employment & training of lower level management. . They interpret and explain policies from top level management to lower level. e. They are responsible for coordinating the activities within the division or department. f. It also sends important reports and other important data to top level management. g. They evaluate performance of junior managers. h. They are also responsible for inspiring lower level managers towards better performance. 3. Low er Level of Management Lower level is also known as supervisory / operative level of management. It consists of supervisors, foreman, section officers, superintendent etc. According to  R. C. Davis, â€Å"Supervisory management refers to those executives whose work has to be largely with personal oversight and direction of operative employees†. In other words, they are concerned with direction and controlling function of management. Their activities include – a. Assigning of jobs and tasks to various workers. b. They guide and instruct workers for day to day activities. c. They are responsible for the quality as well as quantity of production. d. They are also entrusted with the responsibility of maintaining good relation in the organization. e. They communicate workers problems, suggestions, and recommendatory appeals etc to the higher level and higher level goals and objectives to the workers. f. They help to solve the grievances of the workers. g. They supervise & guide the sub-ordinates. h. They are responsible for providing training to the workers. i. They arrange necessary materials, machines, tools etc for getting the things done. j. They prepare periodical reports about the performance of the workers. k. They ensure discipline in the enterprise. l. They motivate workers. m. They are the image builders of the enterprise because they are in direct contact with the workers. Functions of management Management has been described as a social process involving responsibility for economical and effective planning & regulation of operation of an enterprise in the fulfillment of given purposes. It is a dynamic process consisting of various elements and activities. These activities are different from operative functions like marketing, finance, purchase etc. Rather these activities are common to each and every manger irrespective of his level or status. Different experts have classified functions of management . According toGeorge & Jerry, â€Å"There are four fundamental functions of management i. e. lanning, organizing, actuating and controlling†. According to Henry Fayol, â€Å"To manage is to forecast and plan, to organize, to command, & to control†. Whereas Luther Gullick has given a keyword ’POSDCORB’ where P stands for Planning, O for Organizing, S for Staffing, D for Directing, Co for Co-ordination, R for reporting & B for Bu dgeting. But the most widely accepted are functions of management given by KOONTZ and O’DONNEL i. e. Planning,  Organizing,  Staffing,  Directing  and  Controlling. For theoretical purposes, it may be convenient to separate the function of management but practically these functions are overlapping in nature i. . they are highly inseparable. Each function blends into the other & each affects the performance of others. [pic] Planning It is the basic function of management. It deals with chalking out a future course of action & deciding in advance the most appropriate course of actions for achievement of pre-determined goals. According to KOONTZ, â€Å"Planning is deciding in advance – what to do, when to do & how to do. It bridges the gap from where we are & where we want to be†. A plan is a future course of actions. It is an exercise in problem solving & decision making. Planning is determination of courses of action to achieve desired goals. Thus, planning is a systematic thinking about ways & means for accomplishment of pre-determined goals. Planning is necessary to ensure proper utilization of human & non-human resources. It is all pervasive, it is an intellectual activity and it also helps in avoiding confusion, uncertainties, risks, wastages etc. Organizing It is the process of bringing together physical, financial and human resources and developing productive relationship amongst them for achievement of organizational goals. According to Henry Fayol, â€Å"To organize a business is to provide it with everything useful or its functioning i. e. raw material, tools, capital and personnel’s†. To organize a business involves determining & providing human and non-human resources to the organizational structure. Organizing as a process involves: †¢ Identification of activities. †¢ Classification of grouping of activities. †¢ Assignment of duties. †¢ Delegation of authority and creation of responsibility. †¢ Coordinating authority and responsibility relationships. Staffing It is the function of manning the organization structure and keeping it manned. Staffing has assumed greater importance in the recent years due to advancement of technology, increase in size of business, complexity of human behavior etc. The main purpose o staffing is to put right man on right job i. e. square pegs in square holes and round pegs in round holes. According to Kootz & O’Donell, â€Å"Managerial function of staffing involves manning the organization structure through proper and effective selection, appraisal & development of personnel to fill the roles designed un the structure†. Staffing involves: †¢ Manpower Planning  (estimating man power in terms of searching, choose the person and giving the right place). †¢ Recruitment, selection & placement. †¢ Training & development. †¢ Remuneration. †¢ Performance appraisal. †¢ Promotions & transfer. Directing It is that part of managerial function which actuates the organizational methods to work efficiently for achievement of organizational purposes. It is considered life-spark of the enterprise which sets it in motion the action of people because planning, organizing and staffing are the mere preparations for doing the work. Direction is that inert-personnel aspect of management which deals directly with influencing, guiding, supervising, motivating sub-ordinate for the achievement of organizational goals. Direction has following elements: †¢ Supervision †¢ Motivation †¢ Leadership †¢ Communication Supervision-  implies overseeing the work of subordinates by their superiors. It is the act of watching & directing work & workers. Motivation-  means inspiring, stimulating or encouraging the sub-ordinates with zeal to work. Positive, negative, monetary, non-monetary incentives may be used for this purpose. Leadership-  may be defined as a process by which manager guides and influences the work of subordinates in desired direction. Communications-  is the process of passing information, experience, opinion etc from one person to another. It is a bridge of understanding. Controlling It implies measurement of accomplishment against the standards and correction of deviation if any to ensure achievement of organizational goals. The purpose of controlling is to ensure that everything occurs in conformities with the standards. An efficient system of control helps to predict deviations before they actually occur. According to  Theo Haimann, â€Å"Controlling is the process of checking whether or not proper progress is being made towards the objectives and goals and acting if necessary, to correct any deviation†. According to Koontz & O’Donell â€Å"Controlling is the measurement & correction of performance activities of subordinates in order to make sure that the enterprise objectives and plans desired to obtain them as being accomplished†. Therefore controlling has following steps: †¢ Establishment of standard performance. †¢ Measurement of actual performance. Comparison of actual performance with the standards and finding out deviation if any. †¢ Corrective action. Planning   means looking ahead and chalking out future courses of action to be followed. It is a preparatory step. It is a systematic activity which determines when, how and who is going to perform a specific job. Planning is a detailed programme regarding future courses of action. It is ri ghtly said â€Å"Well plan is half done†. Therefore planning takes into consideration available & prospective human and physical resources of the organization so as to get effective co-ordination, contribution & perfect adjustment. It is the basic management function which includes formulation of one or more detailed plans to achieve optimum balance of needs or demands with the available resources. Definition of Planning:- According to Koontz & O’Donell, â€Å"Planning is deciding in advance what to do, how to do and who is to do it. Planning bridges the gap between where we are to, where we want to go. It makes possible things to occur which would not otherwise occur†. According to Urwick, â€Å"Planning is a mental predisposition to do things in orderly way, to think before acting and to act in the light of facts rather than guesses†. Planning is deciding best alternative among others to perform different managerial functions in order to achieve predetermined goals. Steps in Planning Function Planning function of management  involves following steps:- 1. Establishment of objectives a. Planning requires a systematic approach. b. Planning starts with the setting of goals and objectives to be achieved. c. Objectives provide a rationale for undertaking various activities as well as indicate direction of efforts. d. Moreover objectives focus the attention of managers on the end results to be achieved. e. As a matter of fact, objectives provide nucleus to the planning process. Therefore, objectives should be stated in a clear, precise and unambiguous language. Otherwise the activities undertaken are bound to be ineffective. f. As far as possible, objectives should be stated in quantitative terms. For example, Number of men working, wages given, units produced, etc. But such an objective cannot be stated in quantitative terms like performance of quality control manager, effectiveness of personnel manager. g. Such goals should be specified in qualitative terms. h. Hence objectives should be practical, acceptable, workable and chievable. 2. Establishment of Planning Premises a. Planning premises are the assumptions about the lively shape of events in future. b. They serve as a basis of planning. c. Establishment of planning premises is concerned with determining where one tends to deviate from the actual plans and causes of such deviations. d. It is to find out what obstacles are there i n the way of business during the course of operations. e. Establishment of planning premises is concerned to take such steps that avoids these obstacles to a great extent. f. Planning premises may be internal or external. Internal includes capital investment policy, management labour relations, philosophy of management, etc. Whereas external includes socio- economic, political and economical changes. g. Internal premises are controllable whereas external are non- controllable. 3. Choice of alternative course of action a. When forecast are available and premises are established, a number of alternative course of actions have to be considered. b. For this purpose, each and every alternative will be evaluated by weighing its pros and cons in the light of resources available and requirements of the organization. . The merits, demerits as well as the consequences of each alternative must be examined before the choice is being made. d. After objective and scientific evaluation, the best alternative is chosen. e. The planners should take help of various quantitative techniques to judge the stability of an alternative. 4. Formulation of derivative plans a. Derivative plans are the sub plans or secondary plans which help in the achievement of main plan. b. Secondary plans will flow from the basic plan. These are meant to support and expediate the achievement of basic plans. c. These detail plans include policies, procedures, rules, programmes, budgets, schedules, etc. For example, if profit maximization is the main aim of the enterprise, derivative plans will include sales maximization, production maximization, and cost minimization. d. Derivative plans indicate time schedule and sequence of accomplishing various tasks. 5. Securing Co-operation a. After the plans have been determined, it is necessary rather advisable to take subordinates or those who have to implement these plans into confidence. b. The purposes behind taking them into confidence are :- a. Subordinates may feel motivated since they are involved in decision making process. b. The organization may be able to get valuable suggestions and improvement in formulation as well as implementation of plans. c. Also the employees will be more interested in the execution of these plans. 6. Follow up/Appraisal of plans a. After choosing a particular course of action, it is put into action. b. After the selected plan is implemented, it is important to appraise its effectiveness. c. This is done on the basis of feedback or information received from departments or persons concerned. . This enables the management to correct deviations or modify the plan. e. This step establishes a link between planning and controlling function. f. The follow up must go side by side the implementation of plans so that in the light of observations made, future plans can be made more realistic. Organizing  is the function of management which follows planning. It is a function in which the synchronization and combination of human, physical and financial resources takes place. All the three resources are important to get results. Therefore, organizational function helps in achievement of results which in fact is important for the functioning of a concern. Definition of organizing According toChester Barnard, â€Å"Organizing is a function by which the concern is able to define the role positions, the jobs related and the co- ordination between authority and responsibility. Hence, a manager always has to organize in order to get results. A manager performs organizing function with the help of following steps:- 1. Identification of activities –  All the activities which have to be performed in a concern have to be identified first. For example, preparation of accounts, making sales, record keeping, quality control, inventory control, etc. All these activities have to be grouped and classified into units. 2. Departmentally organizing the activities –  In this step, the manager tries to combine and group similar and related activities into units or departments. This organization of dividing the whole concern into independent units and departments is called departmentation. 3. Classifying the authority –  Once the departments are made, the manager likes to classify the powers and its extent to the managers. This activity of giving a rank in order to the managerial positions is called hierarchy. The top management is into formulation of policies, the middle level management into departmental supervision and lower level management into supervision of foremen. The clarification of authority help in bringing efficiency in the running of a concern. This helps in achieving efficiency in the running of a concern. This helps in avoiding wastage of time, money, effort, in avoidance of duplication or overlapping of efforts and this helps in bringing smoothness in a concern’s working. 4. Co-ordination between authority and responsibility –  Relationships are established among various groups to enable smooth interaction toward the achievment of the organizational goal. Each individual is made aware of his authority and he/she knows whom they have to take orders from and to whom they are accountable and to whom they have to report. A clear organizational structure is drawn and all the employees are made aware of it. DIRECTING  is said to be a process in which the managers instruct, guide and oversee the performance of the workers to achieve predetermined goals. Directing is said to be the heart of management process. Planning, organizing, staffing have got no importance if direction function does not take place. Directing initiates action and it is from here actual work starts. Direction is said to be consisting of human factors. In simple words, it can be described as providing guidance to workers is doing work. In field of management, direction is said to be all those activities which are designed to encourage the subordinates to work effectively and efficiently. Definition of directing According to Human, â€Å"Directing consists of process or technique by which instruction can be issued and operations can be carried out as originally planned† Therefore, Directing is the function of guiding, inspiring, overseeing and instructing people towards accomplishment of organizational goals. Direction has got following characteristics: 1. Pervasive Function –  Directing is required at all levels of organization. Every manager provides guidance and inspiration to his subordinates. 2. Continuous Activity –  Direction is a continuous activity as it continuous throughout the life of organization. . Human Factor –  Directing function is related to subordinates and therefore it is related to human factor. Since human factor is complex and behaviour is unpredictable, direction function becomes important. 4. Creative Activity –  Direction function helps in converting plans into performance. Without this function, people become inactive and physical resources are meaningless. 5. Executive Function –  Direction function is carried out by all managers and executives at all levels throughout the working of an enterprise; a subordinate receives instructions from his superior only. . Delegate Function –  Direction is supposed to be a function dealing with human beings. Human behaviour is unpredictable by nature and conditioning the people’s behaviour towards the goals of the enterprise is what the executive does in this function. Therefore, it is termed as having delicacy in it to tackle human behaviour. Controlling consists of verifying whether everything occurs in conformities with the plans adopted, instructions issued and principles established. Controlling ensures that there is effective and efficient utilization of organizational resources so as to achieve the planned goals. Controlling measures the deviation of actual performance from the standard performance, discovers the causes of such deviations and helps in taking corrective actions Definition of controlling According to Brech, â€Å"Controlling is a systematic exercise which is called as a process of checking actual performance against the standards or plans with a view to ensure adequate progress and also recording such experience as is gained as a contribution to possible future needs. According to Donnell, â€Å"Just as a navigator continually takes reading to ensure whether he is relative to a planned action, so should a business manager continually take reading to assure himself that his enterprise is on right course. † controlling as a management function involves following steps: Process of controlling 1. Establishment of standards-  Standards are t he plans or the targets which have to be achieved in the course of business function. They can also be called as the criterions for judging the performance. Standards generally are classified into two- a. Measurable or tangible – Those standards which can be measured and expressed are called as measurable standards. They can be in form of cost, output, expenditure, time, profit, etc. b. Non-measurable or intangible- There are standards which cannot be measured monetarily. For example- performance of a manager, deviation of workers, their attitudes towards a concern. These are called as intangible standards. Controlling becomes easy through establishment of these standards because controlling is exercised on the basis of these standards. 2. Measurement of performance-  The second major step in controlling is to measure the performance. Finding out deviations becomes easy through measuring the actual performance. Performance levels are sometimes easy to measure and sometimes difficult. Measurement of tangible standards is easy as it can be expressed in units, cost, money terms, etc. Quantitative measurement becomes difficult when performance of manager has to be measured. Performance of a manager cannot be measured in quantities. It can be measured only by- a. Attitude of the workers, b. Their morale to work, c. The development in the attitudes regarding the physical environment, and d. Their communication with the superiors. It is also sometimes done through various reports like weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly reports. 3. Comparison of actual and standard performance-  Comparison of actual performance with the planned targets is very important. Deviation can be defined as the gap between actual performance and the planned targets. The manager has to find out two things here- extent of deviation and cause of deviation. Extent of deviation means that the manager has to find out whether the deviation is positive or negative or whether the actual performance is in conformity with the planned performance. The managers have to exercise control by exception. He has to find out those deviations which are critical and important for business. Minor deviations have to be ignored. Major deviations like replacement of machinery, appointment of workers, quality of raw material, rate of profits, etc. should be looked upon consciously. Therefore it is said, â€Å" If a manager controls everything, he ends up controlling nothing. † For example, if stationery charges increase by a minor 5 to 10%, it can be called as a minor deviation. On the other hand, if monthly production decreases continuously, it is called as major deviation. Once the deviation is identified, a manager has to think about various cause which has led to deviation. The causes can be- a. Erroneous planning, b. Co-ordination loosens, c. Implementation of plans is defective, and d. Supervision and communication is ineffective, etc. 4. Taking remedial actions-  Once the causes and extent of deviations are known, the manager has to detect those errors and take remedial measures for it. There are two alternatives here- a. Taking corrective measures for deviations which have occurred; and b. After taking the corrective measures, if the actual performance is not in conformity with plans, the manager can revise the targets. It is here the controlling process comes to an end. Follow up is an important step because it is only through taking corrective measures, a manager can exercise controlling. Types of managers: ? Functional manager: The functional manager is responsible for only one functional area. Like ? Production manager, ? Finance manager. ? Marketing manager ? HR manager ? General manager: The individual responsible for all functional activities, such as production, sales etc†¦ MANAGERIAL ROLES A s a manager, you probably fulfill many different roles every day. For instance, as well as leading your team, you might find yourself resolving a conflict, negotiating new contracts, representing your department at a board meeting, or approving a request for a new computer system. Put simply, you're constantly switching roles as tasks, situations, and expectations change. Management expert and professor, Henry Mintzberg, recognized this. He argued that there are ten primary roles or behaviors that can be used to categorize a manager's different functions. In this article we'll examine these roles, and we'll see how you can use your understanding of them to improve your management skills. The Roles Mintzberg published his Ten Management Roles in his book, â€Å"Mintzberg on Management: Inside our Strange World of Organizations,† in 1990. The ten roles are: 1. Figurehead. 2. Leader. 3. Liaison. 4. Monitor. 5. Disseminator. 6. Spokesperson. 7. Entrepreneur. 8. Disturbance Handler. 9. Resource Allocator. 10. Negotiator. [pic] The 10 roles are then divided up into three categories, as follows: Category |Role | |Interpersonal |Figurehead | | |Leader | | |Liaison | |Informational |Monitor | | |Disseminator | | |Spokesperson | |Decisional |Entrepreneur | | |Disturbance Handler | | |Resource Allocator | | |Negotiator | Interpersonal Category The roles in this category involve  providing  information and ideas. 1. Figurehead  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ As a manager, you have social, ceremonial and legal responsibilities. You're expected to be a source of inspiration. People look up to you as a person with authority, and as a figurehead. 2. Leader  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ This is where you provide leadership for your team, your department or perhaps your entire organization; and it's where you manage the performance and responsibilities of everyone in the group. 3. Liaison  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Managers must communicate with internal and external contacts. You need to be able to network effectively on behalf of your organization. Informational Category The roles in this category involve  processing  information. 1. Monitor  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ In this role, you regularly seek out information related to your organization and industry, looking for relevant changes in the environment. You also monitor your team, in terms of both their productivity, and their well-being. 2. Disseminator  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ This is where you communicate potentially useful information to your colleagues and your team. 3. Spokesperson  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Managers represent and speak for their organization. In this role you're responsible for transmitting information about your organization and its goals to the people outside it. Decisional Category The roles in this category involve  using  information. 1. Entrepreneur  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ As a manager, you create and control change within the organization. This means solving problems, generating new ideas, and implementing them. 2. Disturbance Handler  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ When an organization or team hits an unexpected roadblock, it's the manager who must take charge. You also need to help mediate disputes within it. 3. Resource Allocator  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ You'll also need to determine where organizational resources are best applied. This involves allocating funding, as well as assigning staff and other organizational resources. 4. Negotiator  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ You may be needed to take part in, and direct, important negotiations within your team, department, or organization. Better understanding of role 1. Figurehead Figureheads represent their teams. If you need to improve or build confidence in this area, start with your image, behavior, and  reputation. Cultivate  humility  and empathy, learn how to  set a good example at work, and think about  how to be a good role model. 2. Leader This is the role you probably spend most of your time fulfilling. To improve here, start by taking our quiz,  how good Are Your Leadership Skills? This will give you a thorough understanding of your current abilities. Next, learn how to be an  authentic leader, so your team will respect you. Also, focus on improving your  emotional intelligence  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ this is an important skill for being an effective leader. 3. Liaison To improve your liaison skills, work on your  professional networking  techniques. You may also like to take our Bite-Sized Training course on  Networking Skills. 4. Monitor To improve here, learn how to  gather information  effectively and  overcome information overload. Also, use effective  reading strategies, so that you can process material quickly and thoroughly, and learn how to  keep up-to-date with industry news. 5. Disseminator To be a good disseminator you need to know how to share information and outside views effectively, which means that good communication skills are vital. Learn how to share organizational information with  Team Briefings. Next, focus on improving your  writing skills. You might also want to take our  communication skills quiz, to find out where else you can improve. 6. Spokesperson To be effective in this role, make sure that you know how to  represent your organization at a conference. You may also want to read our articles on  delivering great presentations  and  working with the media  (if applicable to your role). 7. Entrepreneur To improve here, build on your  change management  skills, and learn  what not to do when implementing change  in your organization. You'll also need to work on yourproblem solving  and  creativity skills, so that you can come up with new ideas, and implement them successfully. 8. Disturbance Handler In this role, you need to excel at  conflict resolution  and know  how to handle team conflict. It's also helpful to be able to  manage emotion in your team. 9. Resource Allocator To improve as a resource allocator, learn how to  manage a budget,  cut costs, andprioritize, so that you can make the best use of your resources. 10. Negotiator Improve your negotiation skills by learning about  Win-Win Negotiation  and Distributive. .

Review key debates and thinkers on Globalisation Essay

Review key debates and thinkers on Globalisation - Essay Example 6 Skeptical Approach†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦... 8 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 9 Introduction Globalization was considered as the wave of the future when it first appeared to unite countries into one global economy for the mutual benefits, which presumed global integration and interdependence in the technological, economic, social, cultural, ecological and political spheres. The core intention of promoting globalization among countries had positive purposes and tasks to make the world more mature, connected and interdependent. The supporters of globalization influenced many government policy makers, economists, businessmen and journ alists into believing that globalization is inevitable and everyone involved should do their best to smooth the process of financial, political and cultural development and integration (Bridges, 2007; Stiglitz, 2006). However, financial and corporate globalization overcame the globalization of production and cultural development. ... t paper will determine the meanings of global economy and globalization in addition to discussing and comparing different approaches to globalization, mainly skeptical and hyperglobalist. By better understanding the map of rhetorical formations in widely-read texts regarding globalization, it might be possible to understand better the concerns and intentions of these opposite viewpoints on globalization and recent global changes. Understanding of Global Economy and Globalization Global Economy Global economy is related to an integrated world economy with unified market of unrestricted and free movement of goods, services and labor produced and provided across the world, which becomes increasingly interconnected (Rao, 1998). Domestic producers have an opportunity to expand and raise capacity according to global demands while domestic consumers are now able to choose from a wide variety of imported goods. One of the main purposes of a global economy is to rationalize prices of all the products globally. In the past, restrictions of World Trade Organization (WTO) prevented such an opportunity, but with the recent reduction in the level of tariffs and quotas free flow of goods and services between the developed and the developing countries has become a distinct possibility (Plane, 2005). With the WTO, World Bank and IMF acting as institutional conduits for economic and political policy dictation, the globalizing states and corporations are now able to bypass most states forcing them into compliance with rules and regulations they have had no part in making, and making governments abandon long-held traditions of economy and society. As a result of global economy and globalization, transnational companies or multinational companies (MNCs) emerged leading to a shifting of

Answers the two Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Answers the two Questions - Essay Example The infamous Zimmermann Telegram became the basis of United States formal entry into the conflict. Woodrow Wilson himself gave a speech to congress and declared war on Germany marking the official entry of United States into the World War. My personal opinion is that Zimmermann Telegram was not a good enough reason to enter the war. It was more of a self fulfilling prophecy where United States thought that Mexico would join Germany in turn declaring a war against Germany. The telegram was sent in case United States joined the war therefore it cannot be used as a justification to enter the war. According to Benjamin Freedman, Zionist were the main reason behind US involvement in the war against Germany. Freedman thinks that Zionists wanted assurance from Britain regarding Palestine and in return they took the task of involving US in the war against Germany (Freedman, 1). Jews were controlling all the newspapers and banks so it was easy for them to force US in the war. Freedman concludes that US had no reason to join the war. America was Pro Germany before 1917 to a certain extent and was not interested in the war. America should not have involved itself in the war because there was nothing to gain out of it. United States had little to gain from entering the war but only due to Zionist intervention did they take part in the war. The whole of the world changed as a result of US intervention because it was the first time when public opinion was deliberately changed in order to keep the war efforts going (Spielvogel). American public was not interested in the war but the public was made to believe that they were under threat. All this was done because of a powerful lobby of Zionists in United States. American history for certain would have been far better if US would not have declared war against Germany. Lives were lost and money was wasted, but the most perilous socio

Economic recession and human behavior Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Economic recession and human behavior - Essay Example Issues of survival will develop into reactions that are outside of social responsibility. As the economy turns downward and the financial life of members of society become increasingly more difficult to navigate, decision making becomes a confusing and difficult process. The desperation that develops when the bills are piling up and the creditors are calling can make changes in the way in which people attend to their values and personal ethics. As the job market dwindles and unemployment rises, the effects on the family become profound when housing and food become increasingly difficult to maintain. As well, increases are noticeable in domestic violence and in crime as desperation heightens emotion and lowers inhibitions. As an economic recession increases its effects on the population, taking jobs, homes, and personal identity when associated with a lifestyle, the ensuing desperation changes the way in which a culture functions and creates an unbearable tension in the dynamic of society. The term Recession refers to an economy that is not seeing growth. When two terms or more have failed to see growth, then the economy is considered in a recession. As well, when a rise in unemployment at 1.5% (Eslake) is felt and a diminished gross domestic product is experienced, these are the signs of recession. Depression is developed when a â€Å"significant and sustained downturn†(Eslake) is experienced. This is seen when a decline in the GDP is at 10% or more or when â€Å"a contradiction in real GDP lasts more than three or four years†(Eslake). An example of recession was seen in the 1980’s when the economy declined and widespread unemployment emerged. Depression occurred in the 1930’s and was marked by debilitating poverty spread throughout the United States. Unemployment and inflation contribute to the economic issues that arise during a recession. Unemployment is the percentage of people who are not employed but are looking for a

Anecdotal Observation of Play Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Anecdotal Observation of Play - Essay Example Eventually, one girl asked her what her princess name was and she meekly said â€Å"Princess Petal†. The girls took turn down the slide and then climbed back up to the fort one by one, including Valerie. Valerie’s Observed Gross Motor Skills: Valerie seems to have developed good gross motor skills as she was seen pedaling on her tricycle around the playground. Her legs were strong and well-coordinated as she twisted and turned the vehicle with care not to hit any other child or object. She was also responsible enough to park her tricycle in a location that keeps other children safe and as she walked towards the playground equipment, she showed stability and grace in her gait. When she went up the playground equipment via the chain ladder, she was careful to hold on well to the chain as she balanced her body while climbing up. She is able to estimate which rung of the ladder to place her feet on to enable her to push herself up. She had no trouble climbing the chain ladd er which was in an inclined position towards the platform of the playground equipment. This showed that she can balance her whole body well. She was fearless when she slid down the slide with her friends and quickly ran to climb back up with agility in her movements. Observation 2: Back in the classroom, Valerie was observed to be making an Art project with other children in the round table. They were making a brown paper bag puppet. Valerie was seen cutting some colored paper to make different shapes then putting them in a cup to paste on the paper bag later.. Then, she got some markers and drew some lines and circles and curves on the paper bag. Mark took one of her markers to use on his puppet. . Valerie frowned and grabbed back her marker, to which Mark said, â€Å"You’re not sharing!† Valerie continued drawing on her paper bag without saying a word and moved all her materials away from Mark. He just looked on and a little while later, Valerie handed him one of her markers and said, â€Å"There you go.. now go ask Annie for more markers coz I’m using most of mine here†. Valerie’s Observed Fine Motor Skills: For a four-year old, Valerie displays well-developed fine motor skills. She can hold the scissors properly with her hand and cut some strips of papers as well as cut some closed shapes. It was not evident in the observation if she could cut across lines. She is also able to hold the marker with a tri-pod grip and exerts enough pressure on the marker so she is able to create smooth and neat lines and shapes on paper. Later on, she was observed to use a popsicle stick to scoop some glue for her cut-out colored paper to paste on her brown paper bag puppet. She did this without any mess and she came up with a neat and attractive puppet that looked like a cat. She was later seen putting the puppet on her hand and moving her fingers altogether on her palm to make the puppet â€Å"talk† to her classmates. Valerieâ€⠄¢s Social Skills Aside from exhibiting well-developed motor skills for her age, Valerie likewise displays healthy social skills. Although initially shy, she is unafraid to interact with her peers when she found it interesting to join them in their play. Walker (2009) explains, â€Å"A modern view of the child acknowledges agency, that is, children’s capacity to understand and act upon their world. It acknowledges that children demonstrate extraordinary competence from birth†

The Problem with Rich Kids Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Problem with Rich Kids - Essay Example Consequently, the author goes on to explain that similar and detrimental problems are experienced by the wealthy as their children who learn in prestigious schools, colleges and universities still have social and emotional issues as youths. The maladjustments levels registered in affluent children tend to worsen, as they grow older en route to colleges.   In a study conducted by the author in 1990s, on both the poor and the affluent, the rich children were found to indulge in activities of substance abuse like hard drugs than their counterparts. Consequently, a study conducted by Luthar & Latendresse (2) corroborated with the views of Luthar as affluent youths â€Å"reported the significantly higher use of cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana, and hard drugs† (Luthar & Latendresse 2). Even though crime is highly likely in poor youths, Luthar states that the levels of wrongdoing among these youths are comparable to those of the affluent society (Luthar Para 4). In an attempt to decipher the cause of various disturbances among affluent youths, Luthar states that it is demand for high-octane accomplishments as â€Å"the children of affluent parents expect to excel at school and in multiple extracurriculars and also in their social lives† (Luthar Para 8). Many parents put emphasis on performance and success as they wish that t heir offsprings experience similar gratifications through the rich educational environment, professional lives, and experiences. As a result of the pressure, the children generate elevated symptoms of anxiety and depression (Luthar Para 18).

No more Privacy polices Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

No more Privacy polices - Term Paper Example This is manifested on how machines that we encounter in daily activities like ATMs and supermarkets and such things store our data, which are not limited to personal but includes behavioral patterns determined through recorded choices (Moor 1997:27). This kind of phenomenon intrudes one’s privacy. In some cases, the data gathered through these channels can be used to oppress or tamper’s one’s right, not just privacy but extends to other rights innate to individual like due process and others. In dealing with complex issue of privacy, there is a need to look at in a theoretical perspective: ethical theory of privacy. Three – fold premises emerges: something vital and important to defend and something based on individual’s preference and the importance of privacy (Moor 1997:28). There is a need to be not confused on how these premises work. Having Moor as the point of departure, I shall project a more concise use and view of the term â€Å"privacy†. One thing to take into account is that privacy is an instrument for protection from harm, which could be an incursion of personal life that is no longer the scope of outside forces (Moor 1997:28). One example is HIV+ individuals whose medical information can be prejudiced, which can be a cause for non – selection in a profession or can face other forms of discrimination (Moors 1997:28). In this case, privacy accords individual safety to assure enjoyment of equal benefits like fair treatment in work place or any other things that should be enjoyed by everyone. Furthermore, privacy is a tool to build relationship to people (Moors 1997:28). In the case of building relationships, there are certain personal things that are kept private for the sake of assurance and acceptance. Sometimes, in intimate relationships, like marriages, privacy can be considered absence since trust is a condition to be met. There is a need to be open about one’s actions and decisions since it is shared.

What sources of information do learner use to get a skill outside of Essay

What sources of information do learner use to get a skill outside of the formal education system - Essay Example These sources of information often avail information to the learner although, at times the learner may be unconscious of it. These sources of information include personal learning experience, families, friends, information and communication technology, digital media, internet, community members among other sources. Acquiring a skill for doing a particular job from people experienced in that line is probably the best way of learning. For instance, interacting with people experienced in rock climbing can help one acquire the technique in the most effective way. Safety techniques for using build anchors use belay devices, use karabiners and quick draws for the beginners of rock climbing can best be learnt together with the experienced climbers who are experts. Also several exercises outside classroom can help one develop a particular skill. Thus several years of gymnastics improves one’s ability to practice yoga. Students may try new things and upon failure to achieve their set objectives, they get assistance from family members (Knight 14). Through family members, a student may acquire a unique skill through copying what the other members of the family do for instance, marrying a vegetarian partner or having a vegetarian parent can make one become vegetarian. Friends from work places or r esidential places can also help one acquire a particular skill. Therefore, doing and attempting to do, forms the basis of a student’s natural acquisition of skills (Volpe 149). Primarily, parents are regarded as the primary educators to their children. For instance, living with a deaf parent can help one acquire the skills of using sign languages (Juul 108). Through a strengthened relationship between the learner and the parents, a learner acquire relevant information that help him impact relevant skill outside classrooms. Parents avail this relevant information to the learners through story telling in the form of narratives, spiritual teachings

Indigenous Knowledge Amd Essay Example for Free

Indigenous Knowledge Amd Essay Pedagogy in First Nations Education A Literature Review with Recommendations. ’’ Marie Battiste, director of the Apamuwek Institute, in partnership with the Canadian Government has made a research conducting a literature review on indigenous knowledge. The author writes about the challenges that such a research implies. For example, the record of educational knowledge for indigenous people is not necessarily done through books as with the European knowledge system. Throughout the years, the rights of indigenous knowledge in the educational system under the constitutional Act of 1982 section 35 and 52 (p. 13) was not always respected. Her goal s to ensure that the right information about indigenous knowledge is integrated into classrooms. To achieve it, Battiste proposes three approaches. The first one would be to clarify insights into the tensions between Indigenous people and European ways of knowing. The second approach is on innovating program to help understand the challenges of Native People. The third part is based on the Author’s research and the Ministry recommendations in improving First Nations education. Marie Battiste suggests to focus on ‘’ Similarities between the two systems of knowledge ather than on their differences’’ as a start to introduce educational reform. (p. 11). Reference: Battiste. M. (2002) Indigenous Knowledge and Pedagogy in First Nations Education

Difference between functional and dysfunctional conflict Essay Example for Free

Difference between functional and dysfunctional conflict Essay Functional Conflict Susie Steel is a vice president in a real estate development firm called Hearts Development. She has spent enormous amounts of energy cultivating a relationship with a local town regarding an available plot of land. Susie would like to purchase the land to build townhomes for sale. She has developed an excellent relationship with the town politicians and community members. An issue has developed over the planned usage of the land, though. The town will sell the land to Susies company but feels that townhomes would be bad for the overall community. Theyre concerned with the additional cost and burden of kids that the townhomes would bring into the community. Susie understands the communitys concern and wants a win-win situation to occur. She feels that this issue will be a functional conflict due to the fact that the disagreement will bring a positive end result to both parties. Positive results of functional conflict include: Awareness of both sides of issues Improvement of working conditions due to accomplishing solutions together Solving issues together to improve overall morale Making innovations and improvements within an organization In Susies case, constructive criticism and discussion resulted in a compromise and a solution between the parties. Susie understood the towns concern but needed to find something to build that would bring revenue for the company. Through their joint meetings, the end solution was for Hearts Development to build a retirement community, which would only have citizens 55 and over living in the town. This would eliminate the issue of having more young people come into town and burden the school system.

Shell’s strategic position in the light of its external and internal environment

Shell’s strategic position in the light of its external and internal environment Shell Strategic Analysis The paper analyses Shells strategic position in the light of its external and internal environment and the key forces and pressures acting on it. The paper takes an overview and then uses PESTLE, SWOT and Value chain analysis to provide a strategic insight of the firm. PESTLE; SWOT; Value Chain Analysis Shell Strategic Analysis Introduction and Company Overview Shell Group provides energy and petrochemical services across the world. With its headquarters in Hague, the Netherlands, and largest subsidiary in the United States, its mission is to position its self as a global leader in the oil and gas sector with a superior competitive advantage in terms of meeting energy demand responsibly. Shell Group belongs to Royal Dutch Shell Plc, based in Wales and England (Shell, 2010 [online]). Its upstream strategy focuses on the exploration of new natural reserves of oil and gas and investing in projects to gauge technological and know-how value-added advantages. As for the downstream strategy, the company selects growth markets to invest in and uses existing assets to acquire consistently high cash returns (Shell, 2010 [online]). Performance focus, growth delivery and new project plans form its strategic framework with strong priority given to competitive performance, profitable growth and sharper delivery. The group operates in more than 90 countri es with over 100,000 employees and 44,000 service stations. Shell has the share of 2% in the global oil market and 3% in the gas sector. In 2009, its earnings were $12.7 billion which fell sharply from 2008s $27 billion figure (Shell, 2010 [online]). The paper will explore how the external and internal environments of the company are affecting its strategy and operations and overall success. Comprehensive PESTEL Analysis Political Forces As declared by EU and UN, carbon emissions are to be charged with penalties and taxes, oil and gas companies have been forced to settle government pressures through partnership agreements and alliances to support their operations by offering an incentive to the government in the form of the betterment of the economy. Oil has been found to gauge economic development of a country (BBC, 2010 [online]). Due to its intense demand, especially in the U.S, government tends to come under the pressure of the leading giants and ease strictness on them, though; they still raise questions regarding the environmental impacts but with the demand pressures from the customers, governments allow Shell and companies alike to find new reserves to meet the demands (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). However, these new means include bio-fuels which do not harm the environment. But Shell has strong reliance on oil and gas reserves and has no intention to venture into bio-fuels in future despite of all social an d political pressures. Shell has been engaged with the Climate Action Partnership with the US, as an attempt to gauge a positive image of the company in terms of a socially responsible business, while it actually uses highly carbon intensive production methods (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]).The partnership is focused towards reducing the amount of greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere, but while the government is going in that direction, Shell, using its strategic alliances with the government has lessened the regulatory control over its high carbon emitting fuel products. Shell has been forced to take on such diplomatic measures to ease political and regulatory pressures onto the company, when it faces a decline in the conventional natural oil reserves and has to find new alternative forms of oil reserves to meet the demand, which are more carbon intensive but allow it to stay profitable (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). In underdeveloped nations such as Nigeria, which craving for basic necessities, welcomes companies like Shell to bring in foreign direct investment and more job opportunities. Thus, despite of social pressures to reduce exploitation of workforce and gas flares that is destroying lives, the government gives ease to the multinationals in order to support the growth of the economy (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). Free trade agreements among the European and Americas allow Shell to more profitability engage in exports of oil. Russia is a hub of oil reserves and Shell took on the opportunity to exploit the reserves in Russia to meet the challenge of its growing demand, and its increasing lack of conventional oil reserves around the world. Russian government, previously had a high export duty on oil imports, has recently reduced it by 2.6%, which is benefiting Shell and other oil companies with their plants in Russia to export the oil products to their home countries and respective countries where they sell the fuels (Shell, 2010 [online]). Environmental Forces Conventional oil reserves are fast declining but Shell since 1995 has been engaged in finding new forms of oil reserves as oil sands in Canada to oil shale, but with the expense of environmental degradation (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). Research has shown that carbon emissions are much higher from the unconventional oil reserves being used in the manufacturing of fuel, and Shell having invested a large amount of capital in projects to extract oil from unconventional reserves has become the worlds most carbon intensive company (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). Social Forces Oil and gas companies harm not only the environment but to the workforces as well as there are various security and health issues to consider. 20 people were reported to have died due to severe working conditions in 2009 (Shell, 2010 [online]). In Nigeria, Shells operations have been causing gas flares consistently which has caught social attention but the company is reluctant to take action due to its cost reduction strategy (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). Globally, consumers are engaged in responsible consumption and the companies have been obliged to encourage responsible consumption (Dess, 2009). Shell took on the initiative in 2007 to advertise itself as a manufacturing facility that does not harm the environment but uses its waste (carbon dioxide) to cultivate flower growth (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). This encouraged consumers to develop a positive image of Shell but later on, news reports on the matter suggested a different story. Only one of the plants in Netherlands was engaged in the flower growth while the rest were heavily involved in carbon emissions (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). This hampered Shells image further as not only was its accused of destroying the environment but also of misleading the consumers. Technological Forces The oil and gas industry has been benefited greatly owing to technological advancements in drilling and extraction of oil and gas. Heavy capital investments are required to acquire the advance technological equipment to extract oil and gas from unconventional reserves. Shells biggest strength is its investment in smart technologies that allow it to make the most out of the oil and gas reserves (Shell, 2010 [online]). Economic Forces Oil prices have increased the world over, which has resulted from heavy taxations from the government due to which costs of production have risen (Shell, 2010 [online]). Using extensive, costly technology which requires heavy investments, further forces the companies to charge high prices for fuels (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). There is a growing demand for energy, which is expected to rise up by 57% in the next 20 years (Shell, 2010 [online]). This becomes a challenge when there are fewer natural reserves of oil and gas left to meet this demand. Shell has used its scenario planning efforts to invest in new projects to extract oil and gas from unconventional reserves to be able to meet the growing demand in future, but this also translates to higher prices for customers (Shell, 2010 [online]). Legal Forces Environmental safety and carbon emission regulations have increased for all oil and gas companies, including Shell (BBC, 2010 [online]). With the growing concerns all over the world over the drastic changes occurring in the environment due to global warming, the government raises strong questions against major companies responsible for global warming, the oil and gas companies. Shell and BP are quite on the main screen when such allegations are put forward. Oil and gas companies are enforced with strict employment safety and health regulations as the manufacturing plants are dangerous for human health. This has a heavy cost potential for companies (Hill, 2009). Comprehensive Porters 5 Forces Analysis Level of Competition There is a high level of competition in the industry but among few players. Shells major competitor is British Petroleum. British Petroleums strategy has also been focused on acquisitions, partnerships and alliances to build up a larger framework to meet growing demand. Currently BP has acquired contractual agreement with the government of Azerbaijan and Gulf of Mexico, while Shell gauged its success in 2009 in Iraq, Canada, and Australia and also in the Gulf of Mexico (BP, 2010 [online]). The competition among these two companies is intense due to their similar strategy to obtain cost reduction, performance focus and growth. While, BP has invested in solar energy, giving in to the political, social and environmental pressures, Shell is still glued to the oil and gas reserves to stay ahead in the game (Oil and Gas, 2010 [online]). While BP has lowered its stakes by investing in solar energy, Shell is playing a much risky game by perusing new oil reserves through heavy capital investments (BP, 2010 [online]). Threat of Substitutes With the advent of alternative energy sources, the threat of substitute products has risen, such as from bio fuels. Many companies are now investing in bio fuel technologies to respond to social, environmental and political pressures (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). Threat of New Entrants Threat of new entrants is low, as it requires a heavy capital investment to set up plants and use advance technology for extraction domestically and internationally to meet the demands. There are heavy fixed costs involved in the industry which can only be curbed once economies of scale are received (Oil and Gas, 2010 [online]). Bargaining Power of Suppliers Bargaining power of suppliers is low. There are few suppliers in the industry. The industry is focused on low cost production and, thus, alternative energy sources are searched and invested in heavily, the suppliers of which are low, but under the influence of the manufacturers (Oil and Gas, 2010 [online]). Bargaining Power of Customers Bargaining power of customers is low as there are not many fuel companies available in the industry which offers conventional, alternative and bio mass fuels. Detailed SWOT Analysis Strengths Shell has obtained competitive edge in terms of technology. In 2009, it spent over $1.2 billion in research and development activities (Shell, 2010 [online]). Shell has obtained first mover advantages by using unconventional oil reserves which has given its cost benefits (Shell, 2010 [online]). The company has taken a much focused strategy for performance, which has allowed it to reduce costs by $1 billion by 2010 (Shell, 2010 [online]). Shell signed a joint venture with Cosan (S.A) Company to produce and sell ethanol and extract power from sugar cane in Brazil. The company sensed its cost benefits and its prospect to enhance its presence in the ethanol market (Shell, 2010 [online]). Shell has invested $ 1 billion in solar and wind energy which is part of Shell Renewables SBU (Shell, 2010 [online]). Shell has 20% brand preference which is the highest among its competitors (Shell, 2010 [online]). Weaknesses Shell currently has a severe lack of association with bio fuels, which are growing in demand There is also lack of substantial countering of the social pressures and the media exposures on part of Shell (Foe Europe, 2010 [online]). Opportunities Bio-fuel and low-carbon emission fuels sector is growing and is highly encouraged by the government, society and is healthy for the environment (The Guardian, 2010 [online]). Promoting a better health and safe environment in the plants is a good opportunity for Shell using commercials or public relations campaign. Threats Government and interest groups are taken strong actions against heavy carbon emitting fuel companies, like BP and Shell Heavy investments in unconventional gas reserves are full of stakes as these reserves allow for a large amount of carbon emission. This is potentially dangerous for the companys image and acceptance (Oil and Gas, 2010 [online]). Value Chain Analysis Primary Value Chain Activities Inbound Logistics Shell is currently in contract with Cosan, a Brazilian company to supply ethanol. Azherbaijan and Russian suppliers are also used to supply oil and gas reserves (Shell, 2010 [online]). Operations The performance strategy involved restructuring and reorganizing the operations of the company to upstream and downstream where priorities were towards performance focus, competitive growth and new project investments. The overall operational performance has also met with improvement as efficiency rates have rose. The reorganization will allow faster implementation of future growth strategies as well (Shell, 2010 [online]). Outbound Logistics Shell has an extensive global outbound logistics network which allows it to distribute the refined oil in the most cost efficient manner. It uses light transportation (Shell, 2010 [online]). Marketing and Sales Shell markets itself as the largest fuel provider, where its service centers are located in 90 countries worldwide. It adds the image of an innovation and quality-focused company which does not compromise on performance. Although, Shell has previously received an excellent amount of sales revenue, recently, there has been a decline, due to rise in oil prices, rising social exposure of the workforce exploitation and environmental degradation by the company (Shell, 2010 [online]). Service Shell uses its helpline service to address customer complaints and queries. Other than that, there is no extensive or special form of service that Shell offers to customers with regard to complaints and queries. Shell service stations have the direct interaction with the customers and the company makes sure that the employees address to customers appropriately and offer services in the standard way (Shell, 2010 [online]). Support Value Chain Activities Procurements Shell is now engaged in e-procurement, using the help of SAPs support systems to enhance its supply chain activities. SAPs support offers an ERP system that allows procurement to be done online (SAP, 2010 [online]). Technology Development Over $1.2 billion have recently been spent by Shell in research and development of new technologies to gauge the most benefit out of the reserves of oil and gas and find new opportunities for investments (Shell, 2010 [online]). Technological innovation development in extracting energy is a key strength of the company and it is continually engaged in investing in new technologies that would give it an edge over its competitors. Human Resource Management Human resource activities are the most challenging for Shell as it has to face several employment issues starting from health, and work environment to safety issues. These are true for factory workers who work in high danger zones (Shell, 2010 [online]). In Nigeria, a high rate of people dying in the factory has become common. As shell is a global competitive company, it seeks highly talented and experienced people who seek innovation and growth for the company for its management. Shell offers learning and development opportunities for its diverse workforce. It offers monetary and non-monetary forms of incentives to employees (Shell, 2010 [online]). The human resource management uses online application system for interested candidates and uses simulation based testing tools for hiring appropriate employees for middle management and senior management posts. Firm Infrastructure Shells infrastructure is heavily reliant on technological support, by means of ERP, data management, research and development, marketing, procurement, human resource management, extraction and production operations (SAP, 2010 [online]). This allows a strong network of coordination and communication to be maintained globally. Conclusion Shell Group with industry leadership in terms of cost, quality and technology, is faced with immense social, political, economic and legal challenges. Its strategy to focus on performance, new ventures to exploit unconventional oil and gas reserves and achieve profitable growth in return has met success, but the pace has slowed due to economic influences. for big oil giant like Shell, keeping diplomatic alliance with the governments of many countries has become common but this not something to rely on and to put heavy capital investments at stake like Shell is doing right now, by continuously investing in new plants for oil and gas extraction from unconventional reserves such oil sands and oil shale. Such attempts are increasingly causing environmental degradation and the government may go strictly against them in future once more drastic environmental changes become dominant. Clever strategy is to continue ethanol and solar and wind energy production and invest in more bio fuel ener gies to tap new opportunities.

Beneath the Smooth Skin of America Essay -- Scott R. Sanders Literatur

Beneath the Smooth Skin of America Change is something you are probably familiar with. In â€Å"Beneath the Smooth Skin of America,† Scott R. Sanders talks about many changes in his life. The author starts the story looking throw the eyes of himself as a child. As a child he remembers that all that was in his sight was all he could see. The author’s best example of this is he says, †Neighbors often appeared†¦where they came from I could not imagine† (27). As the author begins to see more by leaving the area he was around so often he starts to see more and more things. He started moving around to different places and started seeing the things that he had not see before. The author points out many things that he began to see like the stores around the town and the different colors of places. The smell of the certain area over the one smell he was used to. In his travels to the south he noticed the bathrooms signs in the south read, â€Å"Colored† and â€Å"White.† All these d ifferent changes made his world seen bigger and bigger. As the author got out more the more world started to irritate him. The author’s relatives, who lived in the southern states, helped the author to think of himself as, â€Å"A Northerner†(p.28). After leaving for college in Rhode Island he explains that in his college days he thought of himself as a â€Å"Midwesterner.† The other students of his college, using the stereotype, made fun of him and the way he acted. â€Å"I was square, my new friends assured me† (p.28). This ...

Machiavellis the Prince: By Any Means Necessary :: essays research papers

Machiavelli's "The Prince": By Any Means Necessary Part 15 of Machiavelli's The Prince, entitled Of the Things for Which Men, and Especially Princes, Are Praised or Blamed, states that, in order for a man to maintain control of a government and better that territory, he must engage in certain actions that may be deemed immoral by the public he serves. Machiavelli argues a valid point, that the nature of man is twofold, encompassing good and evil, right and wrong. The effectiveness of his argument, however, relies on the fact that the person reading his essay is an objective observer of human nature. Not leaving this to chance, Machiavelli plays a psychological game with the reader in order to convince them of his argument. Machiavelli prefaces his thesis with commentary that attempts to place the reader in a subordinate state-of-mind. He confesses to the reader that he fears sounding presumptuous for writing about a subject covered many times before by others and differing from their opinion in the matter. This statement places the author at the mercy of the reader and prepares them to hear an idea that may not be popular. Having been asked forgiveness for the pride of the author, the reader drops barriers that he may have against arguments driven by ego and opens his mind to Machiavelli on a personal, sincere level. By placing himself at the feet of the reader, Machiavelli puts himself and his argument in a position of power. He wastes no time in using this power to gain more control over the reader. In the next sentence he states that his intention is to create an outline for behavior in public office â€Å" of use to those who understand†. This statement compels the reader to agree with the points that the trustworthy, forthright Machiavelli argues, or be relegated the ranks of those ignorant dullards that do not understand. Machiavelli then presents his thesis, that a ruler must use both good and evil in order to maintain his power over the state. The reader has almost no choice but to accept this idea before any proof has been given. With the reader in the palm of his hand, Machiavelli needs only to make a very general argument of his point to convince the reader of its validity. The author states that there are actions for which a prince is either praised or blamed. He lists many examples of good qualities and their opposing attitudes. Instead of labeling them good and evil, however, Machiavelli titles them imaginary and real. By calling the good traits and the leader who possesses

Free Essays - Ernest Hemingways A Farewell to Arms :: Farewell Arms Essays

A FAREWELL TO ARMS Do you agree that Farewell to Arms is as successful in the portrayal of fear and suffering as when he writes of courage and comradeship?   The four themes of fear, suffering, courage and comradeship are prominent issues which are raised in the novel Farewell to Arms. The protagonist, Frederick Henry faces fear when he is injured where he admits his own fear. He shows courage without second thought when he helps injured men coming from the front. Individual suffering is shown through the eyes of Frederick Henry having to face the death of his wife and child. Physical suffering is obviously shown by the men that get injured in the war. This physical suffering provides the context in which courage can take place. Comradery, surprisingly, doesn't seem to be as obvious in the novel as the other themes; it is mainly shown by the nurses' commitment to one another and the 'male bonding' at the mess. There also seems to be more of an individual comradery within friendships and with individuals rather than a whole group. In fact, there doesn't seem to be a sense of people working together for a common cause. These four themes contribute to the many decisions that Frederick Henry has to make. That is in regards to the war and his relationship with Catherine, he has an inner conflict with himself with external forces pulling him in opposite directions which the protagonist must sort out which is more important to follow. Frederick Henry is an American who serves as a lieutenant in the Italian army to a group of ambulance drivers, whom is portrayed by Hemmingway as a 'lost man' searching for order and value in his life. The fear and suffering the Frederick Henry has in his life which he experiences by the war, shows him how pointless the war is, he disagrees with the war because it is too chaotic and immoral for him to rationalize its cause. However, he fights anyway, in order to achieve the discipline which the army forces into his life.  Ã‚   The courage he has in the war and comradeship or the individual comradeship he has with various people such as Catherine and the priest gives him a sense of order and value in his life that the war does not give him. Frederick Henry befriends the priest because he admires the fact that the priest lives his life by a set of values that give him an orderly lifestyle.

Bookmaster

Bookmaster Case Case Study Questions MGMT357 Professor Janet Steinke March 10, 2013 Background The case bookmaster explains how Drew went to bookmaster to buy a book he wanted to enjoy reading. When Drew arrived at the bookstore and explained to the CRA what book he wanted. The CRA informed Drew that the book was instock and that there were actually two copies of the book on the shelf. However, when Drew and the CRA went to the shelf to get the book there were no copies available.Drew would have to drive to another store that was 15 miles away to get the book. The CRA then suggested to Drew to buy the ebook which was almost $20 cheaper. Drew would have to download the ebook on his computer since the Kindle and iPad’s were too costly for him at the time. Kindle an Ipad both have many restrictions on their work and try to prevent piracy to maximize profits. Case Questions 1. Each player in the above value chain makes money by creating value for the stakeholders. 2. 3.The ebook h as many advantages and disadvantages. the first advantage is the development, marketing, and decreasing costs for eReaders. The second advantage is its easy accessible and can be read on any device if it’s an apple because they are linked together. The third advantage is that marketing the product is easier on line than in a book store. The first disadvantage is that the sale price is lower so the profit margin is relatively the same. The second disadvantage is that piracy is more common and the content is easier to duplicate.The third disadvantage is that competition is very high in the digital industry. The hard copy book also has many advantages. The first is that hardcopy books are easier to stay focused on because the web-surfing variable is eliminated. The second advantage is that you can jot down your thoughts while reading. The third advantage is hardcopy books are not subject to the failure of technology. Some disadvantages to hard copy books are as follows; The cost to make the books are high.Books are harder to carry around if you have more than a few with you. The third disadvantage is the costs of books are high. 4. The role of operations in the hardcopy value chain is to print books. The role of operations in ebooks is to produce digital content and to store the content. 5. The other issues that are important on critiquing both of these is the future. Where are books headed in the future? It is important to try and forecast whether ebooks or hardcopy books will be a thing of the past.

Not Everything That Is Learned Is Contained in Books

Learning is a good way to improve intelligence of human being. There are a lot of sources which people can learn from, such as books, works, social environment, reading and so on. Among these sources, learning from book is an efficient way to get a lot of knowledge. However, not all things are included in books and it is just a source for knowledge. It is probable that books are an enormous source of knowledge for the people to study. There are different types of books, for example novels, journals, scientific books, sociology books, news, reports and so on. When the basic education or specific field of interest is needed to study, learning from books is an effective way to be efficient in it. Some books give people the experience of the writers. These books are valuable for the people because although they did meet with this experience, they will easily know about these experiences. Therefore, books are a good source of knowledge for the people. On the other, reading books is not a perfect way of studying since not everything that is learned is contained in books. There are unlimited amount of knowledge and experience that we have to learn in our real lives, and it is called life experience. Life experience can only be found in the real life and learning from books will only be knowledge. For example, if a person gets a serious disease, only this person will know how serious it is and others people will know only as knowledge. This person may also improve the maturity by thinking how life is impermanent. Therefore, not everything that is learned is contained in books. In conclusion, studying form books is only a part of learning. The perfect way of learning is to learn from books and from real life as well.

Pygmalion: the Play and Higgins Essay

Pygmalion is a primarily Shavian reworking of Ovid’s Metamorphoses with undertones of Cinderella. Romance and satire dominate both the play’s plot as well as style. Shaw takes a strong central situation–the transformation of a common flower girl into a lady–and surrounds it with superficial trimmings. There is technical innovation in the plot structure since Shaw, under the influence of Ibsen, replaces the stock Victorian formula of exposition, situation and unraveling with exposition, situation and discussion. The plot thus has three distinct stages of development. In the first stage Professor Henry Higgins, who is an expert in phonetics, transforms a common flower girl into an artificial replica of a lady by teaching her how to speak correctly. Prior to this Eliza’s life has been miserable. As a poor flower girl she coaxes money out of prospective customers and is thrilled when she suddenly receives a handful of coins that Higgins throws into her basket. She lacks the capacity to express her feelings articulately and an indiscriminate sound of vowels â€Å"Ah – ah – ow – ow – oo† serves to connote a multitude of emotions ranging from pain, wonder, and fear to delight. However she is not entirely depraved and is at least self-reliant enough to earn her own livelihood by selling flowers. In Act Two Eliza arrives at Higgins’ laboratory at Wimpole Street and haughtily demands that Higgins teach her to speak correctly so that she can become a lady in a flower shop. This desire for financial security and social respectability constitutes a step forward in her larger quest for self- realization. For Higgins Eliza is simply a phonetic experiment, a view that dehumanizes her and results in the creation of an artificial automaton-like replica of a lady. In the second stage of the play the audience encounters an Eliza who has become an artificial duchess. She is no longer a flower girl but is not quite a lady. During Mrs. Higgins’ at-home she proceeds to deliver Lisson Grove gossip with an upper class accent. She is nothing more than a live doll and there is an element of crudity in her parrot-like conversation. The mask of gentility that she wears only partially hides her low class background. Shaw demonstrates here that having fine clothes and the right accent are not enough to make a lady. The fact that the Eynsford-Hills fail to see through her facade implies that they too do not possess true gentility. By the time that Eliza returns after her triumphant society appearance at the Ambassador’s ball, she no longer exhibits this element of crudity. She has benefited from Higgins’s lessons in achieving social poise and has acquired the ability to articulate her thoughts and feelings. She has begun to think for herself and is capable of manipulating any situation to her advantage. The play enters into the third phase of development in Act Four. Eliza now encounters the great moment of truth and reality of her situation. Her education has created in her an intense dissatisfaction with the old way of life and she is not exactly pleased about the avenues open to her as a lady. She realizes that her social acquisitions do not enable her to fulfill her aspirations or even earn a living. She becomes aware of the wide disparity between her desires and the inadequacy of the means for fulfilling them. She repudiates Higgins’ suggestion that she could marry a wealthy husband and wryly comments that earlier â€Å"I sold flowers, I didn’t sell myself† while now that she has been made a lady she isn’t fit to sell anything. She has thrown away her mask and reveals a newfound maturity. She throws Higgins’ slippers at him and thereby breaks free from a life of subjugation and dependence. Critics feel that at this point the play enters into a period of calm and the main impetus of the action dissipates. Eliza’s society appearance has been a tremendous success and after the climatic encounter between Higgins and Eliza in Act Four the dramatic tension disappears. Eliza runs away to Mrs. Higgins and the only issue left is the resolution of her relationship with Higgins. The readers have to agree that the main impetus of the action has disappeared since all the preceding acts had been gearing up for the crucial moment of Eliza’s test. Now Alfred Doolittle’s strategic second appearance performs a resuscitating act for the play in its dying stage. Doolittle’s transformation from a dustman to a gentleman also provides an ironic comment on Eliza’s metamorphosis. After this brief spirit of energy the action returns to the issue at hand – the relationship between Eliza and Higgins. Eliza has developed into a self-sufficient woman and has become a perfect match for Higgins. She has garnered the requisite strength of character and maturity of thought to face life courageously. Gentility has become an integral aspect of her personality. No longer afraid of Higgins, she treats him as an equal. She negates his role in her transformation and insists that it was the Colonel’s generosity and courteous behavior, which truly made her a lady. She rejects Higgins’ proposal that he, she and Pickering live together like old bachelor friends and astounds him by announcing that she will marry Freddy instead and support him by offering herself as an assistant to Nepommuck. Higgins, although hurt at Eliza’s suggestion of assisting the detestable Nepommuck, is nevertheless happy that Eliza is no longer a whining helpless creature but a tower of strength and a woman at last. The play concludes on an uncertain note and the readers do not know whether she might indeed marry Higgins. This reflects Shaw’s inherent distaste for finality. In the majority of his plays the issues and conflicts they deal with are never quite resolved and the audience is left wondering about what will happen after the curtain falls. However Shaw realizing the importance of an ending does provide a resolution in the epilogue. The dramalies neither in the conflict, nor in the discussion or the exposition. The conflict itself arises over the issue of the resolution of the problem. Unless there is a resolution, there is no drama, for the action remains incomplete. Action always has to be completed either comically or tragically. Hence in the epilogue, Shaw resolves the issue by making Eliza marry Freddy Hill. It was typical of Shaw to have provided such an anti-romantic conclusion to the play. Many commentators accuse Shaw of deliberately twisting the natural end of Pygmalion merely to make the play unromantic. But critics would do well to remember that the actual point of ending is not the issue of Eliza’s marriage but her achievement of liberty. While throughout the play Higgins boasts of having transformed a common flower girl into a duchess, after Eliza’s climactic assertion of independence from his domination he remarks, â€Å"I said I’d make a woman of you; and I have. † In this perspective the original ambiguous ending seems preferable to the neat resolution given in the epilogue.