Rational Frame Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Rational Frame Theory - Essay Example This paper looks at the concept of relational frame theory based on the tutorial developed by Dr Eric J. Fox, Ph.D, in his website. It will be based on the explanation of a hierarchical representation (given below) of Dr Fox’s views on this area. According to Dr Fox, language can create both problems and solutions. Any situation, whether it is positive or negative, is directly related to the language and emotion used. It can be used to instruct, to give praise or heap insults. It can be used to judge people and it can be used to make laws. It can be used to educate people and can be used to dictate actions. Words used in a certain context can even result in violence and wars. On the other extreme, it has the ability to bring about peace among nations. These few examples of the power of language show how much it can influence a society and its individuals. It should be stated here that language studies can help in understanding human behavior and actions to a large extent. It can help psychologists to provide solutions to problems faced by individuals. Traditional theories on the field believe that words used in language have symbolism and generativity. Symbolism refers to the power of a word to signify other meanings or thin gs even though a particular word has a specific meaning. For example the word fire may evoke different emotions in people. For one person fire can mean warmth, for another it can mean pain, and for a third person it can mean food. This power of the word can have diverse effects on people in the context they are used. A combination of words, in other words a sentence, has generativity. According to Dr Fox, â€Å"generativity means that we can create and understand an infinite number of meaningful sentences or utterances† (Fox, 2002).The sentence ‘An apple is a blue fruit that is found in the North Pole’ may be absurd and incorrect, but it has meaning. In

Development or environmental injustice Essay Example for Free

Development or environmental injustice Essay What does it really take to experience development? What are the defining criteria for development? Is development quantitatively measured or qualitatively evaluated? What are the key indicators of a developing or developed country? The answers depend on the person’s priority and preference. The expansion of metropolitan areas has been referred to as urban development by those who are after the material indicators of development- high rise buildings, wider highways, more cars and more parks. For those who are concerned with the long-term environmental and health effects of urbanization, they call it urban sprawl. For the purpose of having a common point of reference, let me use 1Dr. Howard Frumkin’s definition of urban sprawl: â€Å"the complex pattern of land use, transportation and social and economic development. † This complex pattern requires the extension of urban areas to rural areas, and thus converting the latter to urbanized locality. Urbanization implies vast forest and agricultural lands to be converted to different land uses. Sad to say, the list includes recreational facilities and parks which, for investment and environmental considerations are to be of least priority. Extensive roads construction which provides spaces for suburban dwellers to drive a car just to buy a pack of cigarette in the next block, is not suppose to be of immediate consideration. Besides this qualitative indicators of poor urban sprawl considerations, there are environmental threats of urban sprawl that are needed to be evaluated and be given high priority by the development advocates, as it concerns life of the present and future generations. 2â€Å"Automobile has been a prerequisite to urban sprawl. † (J. E. Anderson) The most adverse effect of heavy reliance to automobiles is obviously air pollution. In the United States, 3about 25% of all trips are shorter than one mile of these, 75% are by car. Another related 4study revealed that only 1% of trips in the US are on bicycle and 9% by foot. Do these figures present impressive urban development rates for the US? I am afraid not because the Netherlands has 30% accounting for transportation on bicycle. These facts rather provide proofs that vehicles are the leading source of air pollution. Despite modern environmental standards, urban air quality remains to be greatly affected by the emission of air pollutants from transport. In the 5US alone, 30% of nitrogen oxide and 30% of hydrocarbon emissions are brought about by mobile sources. In addition, 5carbon dioxide emission, which is the end product of burning fuel such as gas, accounts for 80% emissions. Carbon dioxide is the major greenhouse gas, with global warming potential. Needless to explain, development should no be measured quantitatively, that is by the number of cars that are going to and fro the streets of the cities. Rather, development should be measured qualitatively, that how much does it contribute to the quality of life the residents are to experience when programs relative to urban sprawl are push through. Housing development is a part of urban sprawl, which requires forest fragmentation. 6Chet Arnold of the Center for Land-use and Research at the University of Connecticut said forest fragmentation occurs when â€Å"large, continuous forests are divided into smaller blocks, either by roads, clearing for agriculture, urbanization, or other human development. † This means that housing development requires animal populations in the cleared forests to be thrown out of their natural habitats. Destruction of natural habitats accounts for great loss of biodiversity, which results to ecological imbalance. I agree that man deserve to have decent life and part of it is having a more comfortable living. But humans are not the only residents of the earth. We also have to take into consideration the floras and faunas as part of biodiversity. Let us remember that earth creatures are dependent on each other. Humans, being given the capacity to think and understand over the lower forms of life should see things beyond material and short-term comforts that development brings. Urban sprawl in this context alone is clearly an environmental injustice. Water resources are not exempted from the list of natural resources that are directly affected by urban sprawl. As requisite of urban sprawl deforestation brings forth water pollution. This is besides the effects of pollutants that directly come from factories, sewage treatment plants and local wastes, which are typical to urbanized cities. Rainwater that runs through the deforested lands are not effectively absorbed and thus flows downstream. This process results to lesser groundwater recharge, then water supply shortage follows. Added to the list of negative effects of urban sprawl to natural resources are noise pollution, the heat island effect, soil erosion and the declining fertility rates of soils. The main point of all these is that urban sprawl is the root of many environmental injustices. Air pollution, deforestation, water pollution, soil degradation and the destruction of biodiversity are results of a chain reaction from a single step to what others refer to as urban development. What humans failed to do and still refuse to consider is the future. Development projects, of which urban sprawl is a major player, are focused on comforts and pleasures of today and shortly after tomorrow. The next generation should be taken into serious consideration. There are things that still can be undone, but there are things that cannot. Natural resources that were destroyed can still be replaced, but it takes a century to bring them back to where they used to be. By itself, there’s nothing wrong with development. What makes it undesirable is its planner to consider the future. REFERENCES 1. Frumkin, Howard. Urban Sprawl and Public Health. Public Health Reports. May-June 2002 issue. Volume 117. page 201 2. Anderson, J. Edward. Personal Rapid Transit and Urban Development. Retrieved from http://faculty. washington. edu/jbs/itrans/sprawl. htm on December 19, 2006 3. Koplan, JP, Dietz. Caloric Imbalance and Public Health Policy. JAMA 1999. 282. pages 1579-81 4. Pucher, J. Bicycling Boom in Germany: A Revival Engineered by Public Policy. Transportation Q 1997:51. pages 31-46 5. US Environmental Agency. National Emission Inventory. Air Pollutant Emission Trends. Current Emission Trend Summaries. Retrieved from http://www. epa. gov/ttn/chief/trends/index. html on December 19, 2006 6. NASA. Urban Sprawl: The Big Picture. Retrieved from http://science. nasa. gov/headlines/y2002/11oct_sprawl. htm on December 19, 2006

The Lying Witches and the Downfall of Shakespeares Macbeth :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

Lying Witches and the Downfall of Macbeth      Ã‚   A false statement or a statement intended to deceive someone is known as a lie.   Of course, there are many different types of lies. There are those blatant lies that have no truth in them whatsoever, lies of omission, and half-truths.        Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the Shakespearean play, Macbeth, evil witches deceive their victim, Macbeth, by telling him half-truths about his prophecies.   As a result of this new "half-true" knowledge, Macbeth makes rash decisions that lead him to paranoia, grief, and eventually his downfall.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The first set of prophecies that the witches reveal to Macbeth in act 1, scene 3, stated that Macbeth was to become Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor and finally be crowned king.   They also said, "Thou shalt get kings, though thou be none."   Macbeth was shocked when the first two prophecies came true.   In act 1, scene 3, he spoke of his fears, saying "unfix my hair, and make my seated heart knock at my ribs." In Elizabethan times, witches were known as creatures of the devil, satanic creatures who roam the world to cause destruction and chaos.   But how could devils speak of great truths? Macbeth's new knowledge was then reported to his wife.   He writes about how he will become king.   But how would he do this?   One of Macbeth's rash decisions was to murder the present King.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Macbeth had invited the King and the King's men to his castle to celebrate the victory of the battle that had been won.   That night, while everyone was asleep, Macbeth took a dagger and killed the King. After the murder he became very paranoid.   In act 2, scene 2, he cries: "Didst thou not hear a noise? ...There's one did laugh in's sleep, and one cried `murder!', Methought I heard a voice cry `Sleep no more! Macbeth does murder sleep'...I am afraid to think what I have done; look on't again I dare not."      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Macbeth become king. As a result of his Paranoia, he called upon murderers to execute Banquo, a friend of his that knew about the prophecies.   Paranoia had taken over his life so much that his wife was left out of his plans.   He had become so paranoid, his feelings had become numb. This is shown in act 5, scene 5, when he says: "I have almost forgot the taste of fears: The time has been, my senses would have cool'd to hear a night-shriek.

How the organization should select, recruit, train Essay

SUMMARY The following report consists of a guide on how the organization should select, recruit, train and make the most out of the new HR mangers. In addition, it is composed of an introductory program welcoming the graduating managers, takes into account the training needs and methods and the monitoring of employee performance to judge whether or not employees are satisfied and know the goals of the organisation. Furthermore, the career development allows for the opportunity for managers to revaluate their self-confidence, as well as career paths for an improved future for employees. Finally, we will talk about strategic management and the methods of consistency for employee development and the techniques managers need to know. By utilizing these procedures the company will facilitate the training of the new managers. INTRODUCTION In a growing number of organisations human resources are now viewed as a source of competitive advantage. Even the public sector has gradually moved from rules and regulations based HRM approach to a more values-based approach, which understandably has resulted in increased focus on accountability. There is greater recognition that distinctive competencies are obtained through highly developed employee skills, distinctive organisational cultures, management processes and systems. This is in contrast to the traditional emphasis on transferable resources such as equipment. Human Resource Management (HRM) is concerned with the acquisition, development, utilisation and accommodation of human resources by organisations. Increasingly it is being recognised that competitive advantage can be obtained with a high quality workforce that enables organisations to compete on the basis of market responsiveness, product and service quality, differentiated products and technological innovation. The new HR managerial positions aim to complete these needs and achieve high consistency of the HR practices that are vital for the organization. 1. HRM-AN IMPORTANT ASPECT Firstly, it has to be buried in mind that HRM is a very important function within the organization. An effective implementation of HR procedures means a good investment in both the employees and the managers, line and senior ones. Human Resources is a key element for the organization and through the effective implementation of the procedures that will be carried out through a certain strategy, the organization actually achieves its objectives and becomes more devoted to quality and improvement. By following these procedures the organization can gain more loyalty, dedication and flexibility, and in the same time employees, due to this commitment, can broaden their learning horizons and feel more need for improvement. HRM is the key to the future, when effective and continuously improving people will have been considered as an organization’s main competitive advantage. It is the group of procedures and activities that bring the right person in the right place. The new HR managers have to be selected and trained in the best way possible. Their decisions and actions in the future will play a big role in the company’s future development. 2. SELECTION- RECRUITMENT TECHNIQUES Making the new managers more HR consistent implies that the managers have the proper skills for this job and can achieve the organization’s objectives. A whole new selection technique should be carried away and adjusted to the HR needs of the company. This means that the factors affecting which of the candidates will be selected and recruited, will consist of the vital HR procedures and activities The new candidates should be aware of all the skills that are required, but also should know every detail of what the job of the HR manager involves. 2.1 Job profile Through an effective job analysis the organization could avoid extra costs for re- advertising the positions, re-training costs and could reduce labor turnover. The job description should include all the skills, the abilities and the knowledge that are required for the managerial positions. It has to be made clear that the new vacancies that the company offers include clearly HR procedures and the knowledge of HRM theory and extended aspects of HRM is crucial. The new vacancies aim to give solutions to problems related to the staff of the company. This implies that the skills involved in the new vacancies include team working and development. To obtain a reliable job description, the company could ask some HR experts, which are members of the organization, to create a job analysis that will include all the above elements. The job description should include the title HRM manager and as said before, it should also include the main HR tasks. 2.2 Person specifications Labor turnover could be reduced in low levels with a clear person specification. The job advertisement should consist of demanding HRM skills and more specifically skills that are related to team working, socialization, influence over others; intellectual capacity and smart way of talking. It should also include information about the company, its environment, its culture and some compare with competitors. The vacancy should be advertised through means such as newspapers and agents, but more importantly the organization should approach universities and colleges and advertise the vacancy there. The new managers should have a high level of education and be specialized in HRM. Obtaining references for the new managers could be limited to university sources. The course plan that the graduates have followed should be parallel to the job demands. The application form is an element that should be carefully designed for the specific demands of the new HRM vacancies. It is the first step in identifying who your most suitable candidates are and what skills each one holds. It should contain fields about education qualifications, with specific reference to modules that the graduates have attended. Some questions about physical condition in comparison to some tests for drugs and health condition will be desirable. 2.3 Interview plan When the selection process has been completed and it is clear which of the candidates qualify the basic demands, the next important step is the interview. The whole process should be designed very carefully and in a way that will make it more reliable. The interview is the organization’s first approach to the candidate. This interpersonal exchange of information allows not only the candidate become more familiar with the organization and its objectives, but also the organization itself with the candidate. The flow of information from both sides has as a result a precise evaluation of both parties. The steps that follow comprise the essential structure of the interview. Step 1 Get prepared for the interview. Find the right place and make sure it is comfortable and friendly, so that the interviewed will be feeling relaxed and outgoing. Distinguish who the interviewees will be and provide them with information regarding the interview plan and a description of how the process should be completed. A panel interview is suggested as the most reliable one. The interviewing team can consist of up to 10 people, but the process should be approached carefully or else the candidate may feel uncomfortably when being bombarded by questions from 10 people one after another. There may be also a clerk to take notes and an equal opportunities adviser to ensure that all procedures are followed. The interview team can be separated and complete 2 interviews per candidate, to ensure that there is absolute agreement between the interviewers. Before the interview begins all the relevant documents, especially the application form of the candidate should be read carefully and some bullet points can be made for each candidate. This way when the candidate will be interviewed the interviewee can bring in mind some skills of the first and can make additional questions. The nature of the measurement of the candidate should be agreed before the interview. This can be carried out by a points system based on how closely the candidate meets the skills that were stated in the job description. Step 2 After the preparation the interview can be opened. Opening is a very important part. It sets the tone of the interview process. Before the interviewee starts with the questions, a short introduction of the staff and the company should be made for the ice to brake and the candidate to feel more comfortable. A very important element of the interview is listening. Apart from the introduction and the questions, the candidate is doing most of the talking. The interviewees should let the candidate talk as much as possible so that they can draw a better picture of them. It is crucial that the candidates are asked for HRM skills. Moreover some key questions relating to HRM theory could be a good aspect of evaluation. An example of question would be how the candidate perceives the concept of HRM. Another one would be on how they believe that staff can be improved and leaded effectively. There are some key points that should be carefully treated during the interview. First, the interview should be structured and it has to be made clear what it is trying to elicit. The organization needs 10 new graduates for managerial positions in HR functions. This has to be buried in the mind of the interviewees and should make them evaluate the candidates according to their HR skills. The questions should be agreed before the opening of the interview and they should be prompted and followed-up through a controlled procedure. Finally, it has to be examined that all the measures of the Equal Opportunities Act have been addressed. It is crucial for the organization not to neglect the law. Equal opportunities should be given to all candidates irrelevant to ethnic group, sex or religion. The new managers can be trained only by people who respect laws and do not make discriminations. Both the Race relations Act of 1976 and the Sex Discrimination Act of 1975 should be taken into account. Step 3 The final stage of the interview plan involves the summation of the data and the closing of the whole process. The organization should give the opportunity to the candidate to ask some questions. This way it can be made clear if the candidate is really interested for the vacancy and in combination with the recorded data a clear and precise evaluation can be made. A lot of attention should be given in the recording of the data. The important issues discussed should be taken down into paper and some notes about the behavior of the candidate during the interview, can be complementarily made. Above it is mentioned that there will be 2 different groups of interviewees that will question the candidate. The first group will be the one to ask the candidates about their skills and questions related to the application form. The second group will test the candidate in a workplace simulation. During this procedure the candidates will have a brief group meeting, where they will be tested in a case study situation. The candidates will be assessed The organization should follow these steps in selecting the appropriate candidates. As mentioned again right people in the right place is the key function of HRM. Introduction is a crucial point in the selection and recruitment process. If this process is effective and the evaluation is 100% reliable there will be no need for staff turnovers and moreover the organization will have found the most suitable people for the new managerial positions. 3. INDUCTION PROGRAMME After the selection procedure is finished and the new managers have been selected, a series of training and development techniques should be implemented so that the organization will meet the demands of HR which are characterized by lack of consistency. The induction programme is a key aspect of the Human Resource Department. Primarily, it is the first time the new manager and the organisation come in contact after the relationship of employer and employee is established. Before the actual training program, the induction process should ease the arrival of the new manager by being supportive of their needs, well structure and last but not least co-ordinated. The aim of the induction process is to familiarise the inexperienced manager with the organisation and its surroundings. Therefore, their anxiety of entering the new organisation is dispelled as fast as possible. Likewise, this process assists in inducing the organisation culture. This principal operation is not only critical for managers working for the first time but also for employees with prior experience. In addition, after this process has been successfully completed, it will help the managers in associating them with their colleagues and superiors. All personnel want to feel acceptance by the colleagues. Additionally our induction programme will be consequential in bringing about sufficient teamwork. Consequently, a system of communication exists in the environment. In order for the company to obtain less disruption amongst its new managers and the existing employees, they should be fully and functionally integrated in the company and their own department. It also makes the manager comfortable at another level. By touring the premises, the prospecting managers are facilitated by knowing about various departments and their location. It will state to them the do’s and don’ts of the organisation. It will show them where the canteen is and where the cloak is. It is at this stage of the welcoming process that training specialists come in hand. Their responsibility is to plan, organise, and direct a wide range of training activities. Trainers conduct orientation sessions and arrange on-the-job training for new employees. Planning and program development is an important part of the training specialist’s job. In order to identify and assess training needs within the firm, trainers may confer with managers and supervisors or conduct surveys. They also periodically evaluate training effectiveness. A brief outline of the company’s history should be included as a supplementary guide in directing them to the set of values and mission statement of the company. They inform them about the range of products and their functions (including a demonstration) as well as a brief summary of the organisation’s main suppliers and target customers. By introducing the new managers to the firm’s handbook, they will learn about the benefits, plans concerning holidays and sickness and the company’s rules, disciplinary procedures and the payment of wages. During the course of the induction programme, emphasis should be placed on both individual and group training. Each new manager should be aware of how of how to handle circumstances that require problem solving. They should be proficient in either acting alone or as part of a group. Another component of the induction programme should be that the aspiring managers are well equipped with a computer program, which the organisation will provide immediate feedback to any problems that may arise, so as to generate communication for managers both with their employees and superior managers. They should possess both simple skills (the application of spreadsheets) and complex skills (functioning of pilot simulations). In conclusion, they should also occupy the skills for electronic learning. This may involve interactive Internet-based training, multimedia programs, distance learning, satellite training, videos and other computer-aided instructional technologies, simulators, conferences, and workshops. 4. TRAINING Having successfully accomplished the induction programme the determined managers should head to the training program. Training is fundamental to the selection process in judging whether or not your managers are capable in their positions. Training and development managers as well as specialists should conduct and supervise training and development programs for all its incoming employees. Increasingly, our management should recognise that training offers a way of developing skills, enhancing productivity and quality of work, and building loyalty to the firm. Training is widely accepted as a method of improving employee morale, but this is only one of the reasons for its growing importance. Other factors include the complexity of the work environment, the rapid pace of organisational and technological change, and the growing number of jobs in fields that constantly generate new knowledge. In addition, advances in learning theory have provided insights into how adults learn, and how training can be organised most effectively for them. Each and every one of the ten managerial graduates should appreciate the fact that training helps rank-and-file workers, by discovering which individual is most specialised for each job and division. Furthermore, training simplifies this process by placing all trainees in every single job to analyse which individual is most suited for each job. What is more, it maintains and improves their job skills (they may set up individualised training plans to strengthen an employee’s existing skills or even teach new ones) and possibly prepares them for jobs requiring greater skills. Training methods include on-the-job training (such as the program for the current training method). Schools, in which shop, conditions are duplicated for trainees prior to putting them on the shop floor, hence providing for them enhanced situations. Taking that into consideration, the managers will also recognise that superior quality, swift productivity and the minimisation of labour costs due to the fact that the specialised person for any job will produce output at a faster rate and therefore more will have been produced at a lower cost. Some companies have set up leadership or executive development programs among employees in lower level positions. These programs are designed to develop potential and current executives to replace those retiring. Trainers also lead programs to assist employees with transitions due to mergers and acquisitions, as well as technological changes. Managers should be taught how to be more open-minded and should be social and friendlier towards their employees. So that in turn, the employees will feel closer towards the company and especially their managers. This way, employees will be able to express their problems in a clear manner to their managers. In addition, managers should offer their help and advice to employees so that they will equally feel more satisfied and more importantly feel equal to their managers and all other staff. By helping one another the employees will feel as though they play a fundamental role in achieving the company’s objectives. Moreover, they will feel more content and thus more focused on performing their best. Therefore, maximum output by each employee will be achieved. The training process that should be carried out for your new managers is that upon selecting them they should be placed in a room to watch a specified videotape presenting them with the Human Resource basics. Moving along, they should attend lectures and take an active part in seminars. Both of these steps will need an inspired speaker in order to keep them concentrated and focused on their roles. An improved technique in communicating with the managers in these lectures and seminars are visual aids such as videotapes and slides. However, for the process to be complete and moreover essential, the company should encourage their inexperienced managers to ask questions so that they can fully comprehend the information represented to them and feel adjusted in the company. Then they should be taken inside the corporation and to put their recently acquired to practice by observing real working procedures and more significantly take part in talking to the employees themselves and sharing the wealth of experience and knowledge they have. On a final note, they can also help them with obstacles they may have in their duties. From this whole experience, they will learn that the aspects of Human Resource Management are to work effectively as a team and to treat employees fairly. A recommended form of training is role-play where individuals act out a role with others in the group. This process is especially beneficial to the instruction of the managers as they can recognise most of what they have done. More relevantly, it will be highly practical in the course of the training. Another aspect of role-playing is that managers may further develop their inter-personal skills and will associate more with their colleagues and feel more open towards each other. 5. PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT Performance Management is a systematic and data-oriented approach to managing people at work that relies on positive reinforcement as the major way to maximise performance. Performance management is necessary for the success of any type of corporation due to the fact that it takes into account the talent, knowledge and skills of its managers-and then helps them improve their qualities. It is intended for anyone who manages the performance of others. Whether you are a first-time work leader or an experienced supervisor, manager, program director or department chair, performance management will provide your company with useful information with respect to the managers’ conditions. For performance managers, this changing environment offers many new challenges and opportunities. Performance managers and their employees are increasingly being asked to become generalists who step outside of traditional narrowly defined job descriptions in support of team objectives and goals. These changes are resulting in the development of new approaches to human resource management. The performance management process provides an opportunity for the employee and performance manager to discuss development goals and jointly create a plan for achieving those goals. There are a couple of steps that managers must learn to keep staff orientated and what is more, to stay thriving, be profitable and have linkages to customer engagement. In the first place, you must identify the employee’s individual strengths. You must position that individual to perform a role that capitalises on these strengths. When we refer to â€Å"strengths† we are referring to a person’s ability to provide consistent, near-perfect performance in a given activity. We believe that, when selecting employees, companies have spent far too much time and money focusing on the skills and knowledge of employees and not nearly enough on their talents, which are the basis of strength and success. You must find a way to engage these talented employees. Again, there are many ways to do this for instance by paying them more, provide more generous benefits, but these are low-character solutions. The only way to engage talented employees successfully is to select and develop remarkable managers. Grand managers can select the best people, set accurate expectations for them, motivate them, and develop them. Companies that are unable to create this kind of environment will loose not only in terms unsatisfied employees but equally, sales and their customer base. They will loose more talented people than they keep. They will miscast, over-promote, undervalue, and otherwise misuse those talented employees who do stay. Lacking talented people in the right roles, these companies will have to revert to less robust routes to performance. Pressed by high character competition, these routes will serve these companies poorly. In the end, lacking great managers to keep it on the right path, these companies will loose. So, in order to avoid becoming one of these companies the organisation must rely on managerial excellence in finding talent and the human resource department in selecting the right managers for this part. Apart from those benefits, it also allows for discussion about job performance (the new managers should conduct an annual performance evaluation) with the employee and provides feedback on strengths and improvements needed. Development plans should contribute to organisational goals and the professional growth of the employee. The performance management process begins with analysis and description of the job. The performance manager identifies essential functions in the job description and the strategic mission and goals of the department or organisational unit. Standards of minimum acceptable performance are developed for the position with the employee. Additionally, standards for performance, which exceeds expectations, may be set to encourage the employee to strive for even better results. Performance should be evaluated based on changes over a period of time. The new organisational theory emphasises a focus on decision-making and accountability at the level where the work is done, the graduates should be qualified in making sound decisions and be liable for their own actions. Similarly, the organisation should develop a service culture that rewards team performance, and the integration of its operations should exist so that communication between departments is accelerated. A proposed performance management system helps in monitoring and documenting employee performance and provides opportunities to develop or enhance employee performance. We would like to state that in order to adhere to the firm’s mission statement and its objectives, the new managers should be instructed upon the use of disciple amongst employees. Managers should be aware of the fact that appraisals should be objective, quantitative and outcome-oriented assessments, which will, in sequence, assist the employee to develop and provide mentoring, coaching, and constructive feedback. Most managers like to think that if they are effective, they will not have to discipline employees. Unfortunately, the need to do so does crop up. The primary reason for knowing how to discipline employees is to enable the manager to quickly stop undesirable employee behaviour and guide employee work patterns back within acceptable norms. Discipline is also important for several secondary reasons. One secondary reason for disciplining is that discipline problems do not correct themselves. When discipline problems are ignored they tend to get worse rather than better. Another secondary reason for terminating behaviour problems is that they invariably lead to other problems which are potentially more dangerous to the manager. These other problems include morale problems, performance problems, control problems, and even other discipline problems. On the other hand, an effective manager who solves discipline problems starts a different cycle. The benefits to the manager are in the form of good morale, performance and control, and thus recognition from higher levels for a job well done. This manager will get the next available promotion. In closing, an annual or periodic HRM audit check will allow a firm to proactively identify and correct employment-related problems before they reach a critical stage of paralyzing the firm’s business operations. 6. CAREER DEVELOPMENT When people lose sight of their career goals, they often lose confidence in their own ability and commitment to their manager. In turn, the newly acquired graduates should be competent in dealing with their employees and knowing how to evolve their career prospects and how to comfort them and reassure them that they can actualise their careers according to their individual talents and dreams. It is due to these principles that career development is another mandatory aspect of our departments to teach the new managers. There have been a number of significant changes in the field of management development over the last decade. Organisational structures have become flatter and management development needs have consequently changed. Career development is currently focused on being highly responsive to the changing needs of the organisation, as well as those of the individual. Similarly, the needs of managers in small businesses will be different to those in more mature, hierarchical organisations. The arriving managers should keep in mind that there is less emphasis on formal, structured training programmes and a shift towards more informal and flexible development options. There is now a much greater emphasis on self-development and continuous learning. The professional managers should take advantage of the fact that international assignments are becoming more and more typical parts of a managerial career owing to the ever-increasing pace of globalisation in the world today. As an outcome, cross-cultural leadership competencies are required within international companies, meaning that managers must have concise communication with their employees and be distinguished in preparing reports for their superiors. The culture of an organisation can be positive and supportive, or threatening and destructive. Our career development culture should help address the momentous issues of productivity, competitiveness, affirmative action, and succession planning. It will additionally support people in redefining their talents and realising the full potential of their jobs. Managers should play a key role in creating a career development culture. Managers seldom do performance appraisals properly because they are afraid of their workers and the workers are virtually paranoid about the slightest negative note on their files. In order for our company to have the cutting edge, our new managers must be honest with the employees. A better way is to organise a system of mentor ship, in which, managers ease any tensions that may exist between the employees and the employer. A managed career development culture can pay great rewards to an organisation and the people working in it. Employee development is important to the success of the individual as well as to the company as a whole. Through our performance-feedback process, employees are able to create an Individual Development Plan to help them focus their efforts on areas that need the most development so they can improve and enhance their performance. The plan includes goal statements describing what skill, knowledge or experience will be developed, the rationale for why it’s important to develop these areas and a list of activities that will be done to achieve these goals. Managers should moreover create an Employee Handbook, describing to them their position and value to the corporation. This will be a ‘living’ document that will be updated and added to as needed and as you grow your company. Coach the new graduates in dealing with performance issues or work habit problems and in parallel demonstrating the ability to conduct employee counselling. Last but not least, it should assist in complying with requirements for governmental reporting. An Employee Handbook will be a ‘living’ document that will be updated and added to as needed and as you grow your company. While completing and implementing a Career Development Plan can never guarantee success or promotion, increased skills and expertise will improve marketability, both inside and outside of the corporation. The performance feedback process provides the structure and resources for assessing current skills, understanding the company’s skill needs, establishing individual goals, and developing an action plan to meet goals and improve abilities. A postal survey of managers in career service organisations showed that, while technical infrastructures for knowledge management are present, managers do not fully recognise the capabilities of the infrastructures that they have. This may be due to poor career development managers. Knowledge management infrastructures are examined in the context of prevailing organisational cultures. In conclusion, one can say that career management’s central focus is on guiding its new managers to performing more clearly when they have to aid their employees on problems such as: Where is my career going? What are my contributions to the company? It is increasingly about the need to face and manage change successfully. About securing the future well being of the business and recognising that this may require fundamental change. Management development is also, then, the key to organisational renewal and certainly, it has been used as a lever for change in sectors such as finance, telecommunications and healthcare. 7. HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT’S FUNCTIONS As we are in the dawn of the 21st Century, our campus requires a dramatically different approach to the personnel function, to support the strategic plan’s implementation, and to help our employees effectively manage the consequences of unprecedented change. As a result, the transition from past practices to new ones will require a very different vision for the personnel function. The Human Resources function must serve as an active, strategic partner in the University community by providing services and a competitive compensation/benefits program to help attract, retain, and motivate a highly-talented, committed, and diverse workforce. The HR staff must exhibit sensitivity, judgement, and appropriate flexibility, as well as promote fair and equitable treatment of all employees. Furthermore, amongst other functions of human resource management should incorporate promoting a campus culture that respects and values all employees. Additional functions include: * Communicating honestly and clearly with the campus and its employees. * Focus on people, eliminating bureaucratic â€Å"red-tape† going on for decades now. * Utilising the full potential of the human resources to the firm’s advantage. * Maximise resources by utilising technology to its fullest extent to improve efficiency, effectiveness, transaction processing and overall service. * Offer competitive, market-based compensation and a comprehensive benefits package to our employees. * Recognise and reward performance and accomplishments utilising the Performance Review and Development (PRD) process. * Promote a learning environment with professional development, training, mentoring, and continuing education. * Embrace and promote the principles of continuous quality improvement (CQI). * Collaborate across cross-functional lines (compensation, employment, benefits, and employee relations & training). 8. STRATEGIC HRM & CONSISTENCY IN HRM PRACTICES Strategic human resource management has been defined as ‘ the linking of human resources with strategic goals and objectives in order to improve business performance and develop organisational culture that foster innovation and flexibility ‘. Strategic Human Resources means accepting the human resource function as a strategic partner in the formulation of the company’s strategies as well as in the implementation of those strategies through human resource activities such as recruiting, selecting, training and rewarding personnel. Whereas strategic human resource recognises human resource’s partnership role in the strategizing process, the term HR Strategies refers to specific human resource courses of action the company plans to pursue to achieve its aims. By design the perspective demands that human resource managers become strategic partners in business operations playing prospective roles rather than being passive administrators reacting to the requirements of other business functions. Strategic human resource managers need a change in their perspective from seeing themselves as relationship managers to resource managers knowing how to utilise the full potential of their human resources. It has to be taken into account that the lack of consistency in human resource practices and procedures which has resulted in complaints, is due to, the inadequacy of a current, well-written employee handbook. Therefore, employees are unclear about substantial policies and practices. Employees question their decision to join your firm, they are unsure of basic company information (organisation, history, culture, etc) and they are unclear of their role within the organisation. What we must do in order to ensure that they execute a continuous flow of HRM procedures is realise that they require more supervisory and human resource time to answer questions and concerns. Other methods could insist on the correct conducting of effective and consistent performance appraisals are by the application of standardised performance appraisal forms. A form ensures consistency and completeness of the appraisal. The purpose of a performance appraisal is not merely to comment on past behaviour. Rather, it should be designed and conducted to influence or change on future performance and behaviour and to guarantee that the incoming managers, on a continuous level, regulate the degree of consistency in HRM practices. 9. CONCLUSION The above manual comprises a strategic approach to the organization’s HR functions. The suggested steps that are outlined in this report aim to make the organization familiar with how an effective and consistent HR department can work. An effective implementation of the suggested strategy could help the organizations meet its key objectives easier. The new HR managers are expected to bring improvement and quality culture to the organization. The new culture will establish new standards and more commitment from all the members of the company. Learning is a vital factor and its procedures should never stop being updated. The future of the organization depends on the development of its members. Therefore the selection of capable and skilful employees is vital and should never be neglected.    REFERNCE/BIBLIOGRAPHY * Armstrong, M and Baron, A (1998). â€Å"Performance Management- the new realities†. * John Stredwick, (2000). â€Å"Human Resource Management†, Reed Educational and Professional Publishing Ltd. * Foot, M. and Hook, C. (1999). â€Å"Introducing Human Resource Management.† Longman. * Munro-Fraser, J. (1954). â€Å"A handbook of employment Interviewing†. Mcdonald and Evans. * Taylor, S. (1998). â€Å"Employee Resourcing†. * Mullen, J. (1997). Starring Roles. â€Å"People Management† 29 May, pp.28-30 * Holbech, L. (1998) â€Å"Motivating People in Learn Organizations† Butterworth-Heinemann INTERNET SITES * http://www.smartbiz.com/sbs/cats/perf.htm * http://www.amtekhr.com/services.html * http://www.otis.com/hr/subcatg/1,2244,CLI1_HRC4_RES1_SCM33,00.html * http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos021.htm * http://humanresources.about.com/

Financial ratios analysis Essay

NoCarb Limited Ratio Analysis will cover four ratio groups: Liquidity, Profitability, Activity and Financial structure ratios, in order to have a better understanding of company financial position. Liquidity ratios Measure the organization ability to satisfy its requirements for cash to meet its obligations based in its current assets. Cash is very important to keep company’s operations running. A failure to do that could lead the company to major problems, even a risk of bankruptcy. Nocarb current ratio has improved in 0.44 (1.48 – 1.04) from previous year (2013), this is basically due to the increase of inventory levels and the conversion of receivables to cash. Quick ratio has decrease only in 0.02 (0.37 – 0.35); not a significant variation. Quick ratio does not consider â€Å"Inventory†, which in this case is not a good idea to omit it, because we do not know how much divers are Nocarb’s products. We only certain about inventory being made up of soft  drinks. Profitability ratios To measure profitability performance, we are going to analyse profit margin and ROA ratios. Alternative Profit margin indicates the percentage of profit we get from each dollar of sales. In the case of Nocarb has increased in 0.96% (16.24 – 15.28) with respect to 2013. Soft drink industry profitability depends more from the volume of sales rather than the high profit earn from each unit. This industry is completely different from, for example High Tech industry, where volume of sales is small but with a high rentability per unit or service. There is a significant decline of 1.22% (4.61-3.22) in the ROA ratio (also known as ROI). This value indicates that Nocarb is losing efficiency at the moment to generate profit. We need to analyse activities ratios to have a better picture of Nocarb financial position. Activity (turnover) ratios From Note 2 we can see that Inventory level s have constantly increased since 2012. It is not a surprise that â€Å"days in inventory† has increased from 285 days to 760 days. This indicates that Nocarb have serious problems with the associated cost of keeping high level of inventory like insurances, obsolescence, handing and warehouse renting cost. This is also reflected in the drop of sales from 59860 in 2013 to 43014 for this year. Nocarb sales on credit. Therefore is important to analyse â€Å"days in debtor† indicator, which indicate how long it takes for Nocarb’s customers to pay their debts. We can see that it is taking longer for customers to pay their bills from 285 days in 2013 to 760 days this year. If this becomes a tendency Nocarb can be in risk of running out of cash, necessary for daily operations. This also indicate that Nocarb it is over financing its customers. Financial structure ratio After analysing Nocarb’s liquidity and activity ratios, which indicates a poor performance, we need to measure the borrowing level of Nocarb. â€Å"Debt to Equity† will help us to see how risky this company is. Debt to Equity ratio has significantly decreased from 294.53% in 2013 to 178% this year but it is still a high level. A ratio of 178% indicates that Nocarb assets are financed mostly with debt, making Nocarb more vulnerable to any fluctuation  of interest rates. Conclusion Soft drink industry is a mass production industry. We assumed Nocarb does not have a unique product as most of its counterparts. This industry relays in high levels of sales, maximum inventory turnover and minimal levels of inventory to reduce costs. Profit margin ratio is not a good indicator for Nocarb due to the low profit margin per unit; usual for mass production industries. Nocarb has serious problems with high levels of inventory and its associated additional costs. This situation is a result of the decline of sales and the increase of inventory, more probably financed by debt as â€Å"debt to equity† ratio indicate. Nocarb need to redesign its Sales and Marketing strategies. Review its supply chain and inventory strategies. Review its Credit Policies and promote Cash sales. Also needs to be very care full with its borrowing/debt level.

Me Myself and Irene essays

Me Myself and Irene essays The 4 criteria I used to judge the movie Me, Myself, Zellwigger. Both of those actors do an excellent job, but some of the best and most comedic acting comes from the wide range of supporting actors. Without a doubt, the funniest actors are the 3 black children of Jim Carreys character, Charlie. They express emotion incredibly believably. One scene is where one of the children, Shawntay, is working on a quantum-physics assignment as a high school student. He doesnt understand one of the questions and one of his brothers, Jamal, starts yelling at him, partly frightened that people will think that Shawntay is stupid if he doesnt understand completely what he is studying. It sounds absurd, but the actor completely gets that emotion across. When they start yelling at each other they show so much emotion that you forget that they are just actors and not just brothers. Jim Carrey probably does the best acting job out of all the cast members. Carrey, in a way, has to play two char acters during the movie. His characters name is Charlie Baileygates who is a schizophrenic state trooper. One personality is Charlie, a calm, cautious, nice guy who avoids confrontation. The other personality is Hank, a narcissistic, horny guy who is constantly getting into fights and losing, and looking for trouble. Carrey plays both parts to perfection. As usual, he does an excellent job with facial expressions to express what each character is feeling. He really shows his acting ability in the scene towards the end of the money where the two personality members are fighting each other. It is just unbelievable how well he makes it look like two different guys fighting each other. In that scene, one personality is supposed to pick up the other, knocked out, personality. Carrey instead of taking the jo...

3 Cases of Repetitive Punctuation

3 Cases of Repetitive Punctuation 3 Cases of Repetitive Punctuation 3 Cases of Repetitive Punctuation By Mark Nichol In each of the sentences below, the number of commas is excessive, which can obscure comprehension because the reader is distracted from effortlessly recognizing the syntactical structure of the statement. Discussion and a revision follows each example. 1. The next step is to escalate the issue to the executive management, including the CEO, and, through appropriate channels, the board of directors. When repetition of commas or other punctuation marks within a sentence is overbearing, recast the sentence or, as shown here, change punctuation marks to reduce the number of identical occurrences: â€Å"The next step is to escalate the issue to the executive management (including the CEO) and, through appropriate channels, the board of directors.† 2. They will need to exercise their own judgment when considering whether a lower threshold is appropriate for a portion, or all, of their customers, which, again, may lead to inconsistent practices across the industry. If a word or phrase signals an abrupt or unexpected shift in a sentence, a dash is likely a more appropriate substitute when too many commas burden a sentence: â€Å"They will need to exercise their own judgment when considering whether a lower threshold is appropriate for a portion, or all, of their customers- which, again, may lead to inconsistent practices across the industry.† 3. The entrance of nontraditional competitors, such as fintech, or financial technology, companies into the financial services industry, is driving this recent evolution. The primary parenthesis in this sentence is misidentified: The phrase â€Å"or financial technology† is inserted into the parenthetical phrase â€Å"such as fintech companies,† which expands on the main clause â€Å"The entrance of nontraditional competitors into the financial services industry is driving this recent evolution.† The parenthesis should therefore end at companies, not industry: â€Å"The entrance of nontraditional competitors, such as fintech, or financial technology, companies, into the financial services industry is driving this recent evolution.† However, the proximity of punctuation here is oppressive, and punctuation isn’t always required when additional information is inserted into a sentence; the statement is equally intelligible as punctuated here: â€Å"The entrance of nontraditional competitors such as fintech, or financial technology, companies into the financial services industry is driving this recent evolution.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Punctuation category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Avoid Beginning a Sentence with â€Å"With†50 Nautical Terms in General UsePreposition Mistakes #3: Two Idioms

Invention and History of Volleyball

Invention and History of Volleyball William Morgan invented volleyball in 1895 at the Holyoke, Massachusetts, YMCA (Young Mens Christian Association) where he served as Director of Physical Education. Morgan originally called his new game of Volleyball, Mintonette. The name Volleyball came about after a demonstration game of the sport, when a spectator commented that the game involved much volleying and game was renamed Volleyball. William Morgan was born in the state of New York and studied at Springfield College, Massachusetts. Ironically at Springfield, Morgan met James Naismith who invented basketball in 1891. Morgan was motivated by Naismiths game of basketball designed for younger students to invent a game suitable for the older members of the YMCA. William Morgans basis for the new game of  Volleyball. was the then popular and similar German game of Faustball and a few other sports including: tennis (the net), basketball, baseball and handball. The Morgan Trophy Award is presented annually to the most outstanding male and female collegiate volleyball player in the United States. Established by the William G. Morgan Foundation in 1995 during the centennial year of volleyball, the trophy is named in honor of William Morgan.

What is wrong with the UK economy and how to fix it Essay

What is wrong with the UK economy and how to fix it - Essay Example ub-prime of the European mortgage market collapsed smashing down the previous housing boom in American economy and it brought about a raffle effect around the world especially the countries which had higher degree of economic connection with the American economy. (Shah 2009) According to the World Economic Outlook, published by International Monetary Fund on 8th October 2008, the world economy was approaching towards a severe economic downturn due to the most severe economic shock since the â€Å"Great Depression† of 1929. Fund anticipated a decline in global growth (basis: purchasing power parity) by 3 percent in 2009. (Shah, 2009) In January 2009, the world economists predicted that among the highly developed nations UK would most adversely be affected by this recession. The grim picture represented in the IMF outlook reveals that the economy of England has been contracting by 2.8 percent which is more than twice of the anticipated rate. (â€Å"UK Will be Hardest Hit by Global Recession†, 28th January 2009) The matter of fact is that for the last decade the growth performance of UK has been centred towards three sectors: housing, finance and public sector. All the other sectors have been contracting during those years of economic upswing. The major employment generating sector in Britain is the service sector (81 percent) and the service sector is dominated by the financial sector. The financial sector contributes  £344 billion each year. The unique combination of efficient institution, least government regulation and agile workforce has made the financial sector of Britain a paradise for international finance. During the last decade the financial market was growing by a booming housing market and speculation. After the global credit crunch it comes to broad daylight that neither saving nor increase in earning has been the cause of growing housing market; rather it was financed by debts. Within the period 1997 to 2007 there was a gargantuan rise in personal

Global marketing and communication Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Global marketing and communication - Assignment Example So, it can be said that globalization complements the standardization of company’s products in various markets around the world, and as a result plays a major role in the influencing and changing the consumer behavior of the masses in various markets around the world. There are some widely popular examples that can be quoted to demonstrate the globalization strategy of companies when they focused on treating the world as a single entity. It has to be noted that different category of products like beverage drinks, electronic goods, music products, clothing accessories implement the strategy related to globalization. The popular sports brand Adidas implements the strategy of globalization for the purpose of communicating value to its customers around the world (Pride and Ferrell, 2010, p. 194). Another company that increasingly categorizes the world as a single entity for the purpose of marketing its standardized products is the globally reputed beverage brand Coke which caters to consumers around the globe, with its widely popular product range which are homogeneous in all markets around the world (Czinkota and Ronkainen, 2007, p. 313). Various companies that have the clothing based product offering like that of Levi Jeans etc, also focus on standardization of its products while offering it to consumers in various markets around the world. Localization Localization happens when companies of a particular country focus on the process of going for market development by entering in to new markets in the country (Hines, 2000, p. 27). Talking in these regards, it can be said that the companies while focusing on the designing of... As a matter of fact, it can be said that there is a great demand for various new as well as existing products and services in the marketplace. In an attempt to cater for this demand, various companies around the world are focusing on fulfilling this demand by entering into new markets or catering existing markets by offering new values based products and services. This paper discusses in details the multiple processes that companies implement for the process of value generation for a wide range of customers while maintaining their levels of profitability. Conclusion As of today’s date in an attempt to survive the cut throat competition in the marketplace, the companies around the world firmly believe, that the process of entering into new markets through the carefully designed strategic moves related to product development, market development, product penetration and diversification will help them achieve significant amount of business growth in the upcoming future. So, the companies are looking forward to implement the various methodologies like globalization, localization as well as glocalization. On a concluding note, it has to be stated that in this particular assignment, the global brand Apple is taken because of the brand’s significant amount of presence in various markets around the world. The other important factors behind the selection of this particular global brand are the process of high brand equity as well as high consumer demand around the world.

Production and Marketing Department Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Production and Marketing Department - Assignment Example Through quality, the firm would be able to make more sales hence improving their scale of revenue. On the other hand, production department can lower operations cost by being efficient, creativity, good production and good management of resources in the organization. The two organs are in some way find it challenging to come to conscientious as to how they should operate. Production department usually try to find the best quality in order to meet their clients need as much as possible. How the customer expects the product or service to be like or perform is what drives them. Contrary, marketing department operates differently. Maximizing sales in the market in order to increase revenue to the firm is their major concern. Quality is never in their mind, and as long as they are making sales, they feel that they are doing the right thing. Specifications of the products also cause conflict among the two organs. Production section gives their specifications based on what they have produced and designed. With the marketing side aims at maximizing sales of the company, they always try to make specification appealing to the customers which may not always be the case. This becomes a challenge to the management since they need to close the gap to avoid it affecting reputation of the company. Perceived and actual quality should not have a huge gap between them. Marketing segment gives promises to the customers explaining how good and effective the product is. If it performs below the target, it always lays its finger in production unit for making them overstate the product’s performance, creating further conflict. In conclusion, organizations achievements are based on how they operate. It is important to have production and marketing department working together to avoid challenges explained above. If each unit does only its core role, conflicts are bound to arise.

WEEK 4 DQ 7 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

WEEK 4 DQ 7 - Assignment Example Generally, organizational culture helps in enhancing teamwork in the organization. The type of organizational culture adopted and applied in an organization depends on the management and the amount of control that it wants to exercise in the organization (Schein, 2010). The most common types of organizational culture include the collaborative culture, the controlled culture, the competitive culture, and the creative culture. The collaborative culture encourages teamwork and cooperation of activities while the controlled one depends on punctuality and has fewer margins for error. On the other hand, the competitive culture encourages competition between the employees on a daily basis while the creative one allows independence in projects. The culture provides a sense of identity, promotes trust, fosters commitment, and gives the employees a reason to behave in a certain way (Sims, 2002). An organization’s culture is very important because the organization can use it to improve i ts overall performance. This is because the culture determines the mode of decision making in the organization as well as the extent to which the employees can communicate with the management to provide input on certain issues that may be affecting the organization. A good organizational culture can even function as an organization’s competitive

Female and Male Political Elites in the U.S Essay

Female and Male Political Elites in the U.S - Essay Example Although great achievements have been made with regards women's rights, equality and representation in the past decades, the number of legislators and women in the cabinet still comprise of a few female elites. Only sixteen percent of women hold seats in the Congress and five females serve in President Bush's cabinet (Wolbrecht 1-10). In recent years, two women served as Secretary of State and another one will be serving with the President-elect once he assumes office. Another great stride for women is when Nancy Pelosi was elected Speaker of the House just recently. However, during the last election, the number of women seeking office for state legislatures faced a decline as compared to the previous elections and membership of women in national groups that could enhance their political influence also dropped in number.1 This is interesting to note as research have shown that the lower level of nominations and elections in the past contributed to the dearth of women in politics. How ever, this does not mean that women are disadvantaged in experience or sources of fund (Gaddie and Bullock, 761). On the contrary, women who sought office fared equally well with males in terms of financial ability. Gaddie and Bullock also asserts that the decline in the number of seats in crucial and elite positions in politics can be attributed to the dismal percentage of nominees among republicans (761). What is striking is that women who held more experience have a high probability of getting elected whereas voters pick men who are less experienced than women with less experience (Gaddie and Bullock 97). Nevertheless, women are still hesitant to run for office (Dolan in Wolbrecht 1-10). This only illustrates, that for women to achieve equal representation in the elite political circles, more women should run for office and gain further experience. In addition, there are factors that hinder women from achieving equal power and representation in contemporary political life. Although politics held a significance place for women before their enfranchisement, the realization of women's suffrage came after nearly a century of struggle. Yet this lengthy struggle only brought forth gender equality and equal citizenship but not equal representation and power in politics. (Wolbrecht, 6). Moreover, although women serve in different areas of politics, especially in legislature where their chances of increasing influence is considerable, this service is not matched by an increase in authority and power as they are thwarted by party affiliations, committees and caucuses (Reingold 33). Even Hillary Clinton, the most elite of the female politicians and a former first lady, is considered a mere 'junior senator' whose tenure in office is relatively short in the standard of a male elite politician. This is worsened by the perceived disparity of political focus that exists between male and female politicians. The notion that women enter politics on gender basis and considerations is asserted in the work of Kirkpatrick (242). Scholars observe that politics are different when women are involved (Wolbrecht, 5) and contend that activism plays a major role for decision and policy-making of a female politician. Naples, for instance, purports that the path that most female politician tread is one that center on progressive and

WEEK 4 DQ 7 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

WEEK 4 DQ 7 - Assignment Example Generally, organizational culture helps in enhancing teamwork in the organization. The type of organizational culture adopted and applied in an organization depends on the management and the amount of control that it wants to exercise in the organization (Schein, 2010). The most common types of organizational culture include the collaborative culture, the controlled culture, the competitive culture, and the creative culture. The collaborative culture encourages teamwork and cooperation of activities while the controlled one depends on punctuality and has fewer margins for error. On the other hand, the competitive culture encourages competition between the employees on a daily basis while the creative one allows independence in projects. The culture provides a sense of identity, promotes trust, fosters commitment, and gives the employees a reason to behave in a certain way (Sims, 2002). An organization’s culture is very important because the organization can use it to improve i ts overall performance. This is because the culture determines the mode of decision making in the organization as well as the extent to which the employees can communicate with the management to provide input on certain issues that may be affecting the organization. A good organizational culture can even function as an organization’s competitive

Bsop 434 lab 5 Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Bsop 434 lab 5 - Case Study Example The organization chart depicts this. Both local and overseas operations fall under one VP while separate Vice Presidents would be looking after the other four domains of the company. The current legal, human relations and procurement Vice Presidents will retire in a few months. Therefore, theses posts have been removed. 2) The revised organization chart shows physical presence of the sales and marketing department in Minnesota, Duluth. This is because the main plants were in Duluth. However the headquarters have been moved to Chicago. If the organization structure should focus on sales, then physical presence at Head Quarters and the main plant is important. This is because the largest numbers of sales take place in Chicago. It is the epi-center of all their revenue, hence major presence in Chicago will prove to be very lucrative for the team. 3) The figure shows a centralized structure in which everything is managed from home. The head quarters are in Minnesota and so are the plants in both Minnesota and Oregon. From here, all departments closely manage the affairs of CLPC’s presence in other States such as Chicago, Denver, Atlanta and NY. It is centralized structure because it now has one State operating as the main center and everything micro-managed from that center only. This means all personnel handling, inventory, fore-casting, and packaging will be centralized. In a decentralized structure, there is no center. All major decisions are taken on the field. In the case of CLPC, all operating activities and decisions that fall under their domains will be taken care of them on the field only as shown in the figure. It is not being operated from a core center. Field work is dispersed according to the presence of the company and its operations country wide. 5) Irwin Buchanan could offer his services as a third-party logistics provider to CLPC. The firm’s logistics handling is scattered at the

The North Korean Problem Essay Example for Free

The North Korean Problem Essay American leaders have struggled to deal with communist North Korea for decades. It is a unique diplomatic problem. As China gradually opens up to democratic influence, North Korea remains as one of the few remaining communist stalwarts in Asia. American Presidents have been reluctant to deal with the issue. The militaristic stance of North Korea has forced recent Presidents to develop a diplomatic strategy, however. In general terms, the Clinton approach might be described as a â€Å"reward† strategy. The G.W. Bush strategy, in contrast, is generally seen as a â€Å"punishment† approach. The strategy of both Presidents has been affected by events on the ground and the stance of South Korea. For both Presidents, the issues have proven to be difficult and lacking in clear-cut solutions. Both Presidents have learned, though, that the North Korean issue cannot be ignored. The North Korean Threat There are few places in the world where the contrast between a successful democratic state and a poverty-stricken communist state is so stark. Recently, many news organizations aired a nighttime satellite photo of the Korean peninsula. The southern end was lit up, indicative of a thriving economy and culture. In contrast, the northern end of the peninsula was almost entirely dark. After decades of mismanagement, the North relies heavily on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   international food to feed the population, while continuing to   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   expend resources to maintain an army of over 1 million, the   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   fifth largest army in the world.   1 The Central Intelligence Agency. The World Factbook 2001. Wash. D.C.: Brassey’s, 2001, p.267. North Korea has, in many ways, isolated itself. Its economy is not self-sustaining, even though the country possesses a great deal of natural resources. Government policies have failed to stimulate business and international trade. Modern North Korea has been a dictatorship since its founding. When Kim Il Sung died, he was succeeded by his son Kim Jong Il.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Last October, the North Koreans announced they had reprocessed   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   all 8,000 of their fuel rods and solved the technical problems of   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   converting the plutonium into nuclear bombs. 2 Kim Jong Il maintains his position with an iron grip. He resists overtures from Western countries, fearing that their influence will ultimately weaken his grip on power. In 2006, North Korea exploded what was suspected to be a small nuclear weapon underground. The threat of a poor, desperate, dictatorial nation with nuclear weapons is rapidly becoming a reality. This action has moved the conflict to a new stage. The unpredictability of the North Korean regime is what makes it dangerous. Ultimately, the regime will do whatever it has to in order to survive. This may include selling nuclear technology or materials to terrorists or rogue nations. For its own reasons, the North Korean regime has insisted on staying in the headlines. Feeling ignored while the West fights the war on terror, the North Koreans have accelerated their nuclear program. Very public pronouncements of their success have followed. The pretense of a nuclear program strictly for energy purposes has been dropped with recent bomb tests. It remains unclear exactly what the military capabilities of the Fred Kaplan, â€Å"Rolling Blunder: How the Bush Administration let North Korea Get   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Nukes† Washington Monthly, Available from;   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0405.kaplan.html : accessed   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   12 Dec. 2006. North Koreans are. Even less clear are the motives of its leader, Kim Jong Il. Some believe that the leader is playing a manipulative game of nuclear blackmail. Others believe, worse yet, that the leader is not altogether sane. The lack of clarity makes Western leaders nervous. Kim Jong Il, for his part, may be convinced that the world will not go to war against him. It is a dangerous game the recent American Presidents would prefer not to play. The Clinton approach Like the later Bush administration, the Clinton administration was still trying to gain its footing when the North Korean situation arose. It had suffered very public failures on universal health care and the siege at Waco, Texas. The President was also dealing with withering criticism of his personal behavior.   Increasing tensions on the Korean peninsula presented an unwelcome problem for the Clinton administration. The CIA had been issuing reports for several years similar to this one in 2001:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   North Korea’s long-range missile development and research   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   into nuclear and chemical weapons are of major concern to   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   the international community.   3 An international incident arose when North Korea began to block access of international inspectors to their nuclear facilities. Eventually, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) determined that North Korea did have nuclear weapon capabilities. The Central Intelligence Agency. The World Factbook 2001. Wash. D.C.: Brassey’s,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2001: p. 267. The domestically-oriented Clinton administration would be forced to deal with the issue. Having been chastened by the events at Waco, Texas that year, the administration resisted taking a hard line against North Korea. Michael Breen wrote of the emerging crisis: Analysts drew a comparison between the Branch Davidian   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   cult†¦and Kim Jong Il’s North Korea and made the point that   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   North Korea should not be painted in to a corner. From this   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   point on, the consensus grew that Washington and Pyongyang   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   should talk.  Ã‚   4 There were two primary issues for the United States. The Clinton administration wanted to stop the North Koreans from enriching weapons-grade uranium. Secondly, it wanted to prevent North Korea from developing long range missiles capable of reaching the United States or Europe. The Clinton administration began bilateral negotiations with the North Korean regime. Diplomatic back channels were also used to assist the two sides in reaching a breakthrough. During the crisis, former President Jimmy Carter traveled to North Korea for discussions with Kim Jong Il. Publicly, Carter was portrayed as simply a prominent private citizen hoping to aid the process. In recent years, however, it has become apparent that Carter’s role was much more substantial. In effect, he served as a member of the Clinton administration. In 1994, a document referred to as the Agreed Framework was signed by both sides. North Korea agreed to remain in compliance with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation treaty. In return, the Clinton administration dropped its threat of economic sanctions on Michael Breen, The Koreans: who they are, what they want, where their future lies   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (New York: St Martins, 1988): p. 246. North Korea. North Korea also agreed to shut down one of its old reactors in exchange for assistance building light-water reactors used to generate energy. Inspection and verification of North Korean facilities was part of the treaty, but it was by no means an airtight system. An element of trust was extended to North Korea. It was hoped that the economic incentives would prompt Kim Jong Il to abide by the treaty. The Bush approach During the Bush administration, the North Korean administration seemed intent on presenting itself as a world power that must be dealt with. Early in the Bush presidency, evidence3 began to surface that the North Koreans were violating the Agreed Framework. Bush, like Clinton, preferred not to deal with the issue. Having emerged from a contentious election that was ultimately decided by the Supreme Court, Bush was still settling into office six months in. The events of September 11, 2001 changed everything. After the devastating attack on the United States, the administration took on a war footing. In an effort to define the threats America faced, the North Korean regime was publicly included with the radical Islamic states. North Korea was not pleased to be publicly called out as a charter member of the â€Å"Axis of Evil†. Relations worsened from that point on. The 9/11 attacks made the United States government less likely to take a conciliatory approach with what it saw as rogue nations. It s still unclear to what degree the North Koreans had been cheating on the Agreed Framework. Once accused, however, they ejected inspectors and withdrew from the Non-Proliferation treaty. As a result, the Bush administration faced a similar crisis to what Clinton had faced in the mid-1990’s. World events caused them to address the crisis from different perspectives. For Clinton, the issue was somewhat simpler. His goal was to prevent another dictatorial regime from acquiring nuclear weapons they could use to threaten the world. Bush, on the other hand, was forced to look at the issue through the prism of terrorism. America was under attack, not by a nation, but by an unknown number of religious radicals. North Korea, desperate for money, could sell its’ nuclear technology to radicals who have already proven they are capable of devastating attacks on the American mainland. The Bush administration was inclined to give no quarter to the North Koreans. Kim Jong Il wanted direct discussions with the United States. The Bush administration, overburdened and mistrusting of the North Koreans insist on multi-lateral talks with other Asian countries. Most in the Bush administration regard the Clinton agreement as a failure. For that reason, they do not want to pursue a similar agreement. The Bush approach is to marshal world pressure against North Korea. Meanwhile, the United States is imposing unilateral sanctions. Food aid, once used as an incentive, is now being withheld as punishment.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The biggest bundle came in 1999, with 695, 194 metric tons   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   of food†¦the Bush administration cut back to 207,000 tons   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   in 2002, and drastically cut it to 40,000 tons through the first half of 2003.   5 Since the North Korean nuclear tests in 2006, the United Nations has begun to impose sanctions of its own. The outcome of the standoff remains unclear. A military conflict is possible, though Western nations are extremely reluctant at this point. A major humanitarian crisis is already under way and will likely worsen with international Bruce Cumings, North Korea: another country (New York: The New Press, 2004): 183: sanctions. The increasingly desperate regime of Kim Jong Il is highly unpredictable. The effects of the reduction of food aid on the political situation are not yet clear. The Bush administration hopes that a ratcheting up of pressure on North Korea will bring them back to the negotiating table under Washington’s terms. Meanwhile, the North Korean leader has been making incendiary statements, claiming that the sanctions are an â€Å"act of war† against North Korea. The Bush administration has insisted that North Korea return to the six-party talks which include other countries in the region. North Korea may be starting to warm to that idea, but the outcome is still unclear. North Korea has stated publicly that it wants a security guarantee that the United States will not attack militarily. Presidents Bush and Clinton both resisted that demand, as any President is likely to do. No American administration is likely to agree to this term unless it is tied to a substantial number of concessions and guarantees by the North Koreans. The level to which the Chinese will participate in solving the crisis is still in question. The Bush administration, with its hands full, would prefer that the Chinese step in. Kim Jong Il, however, appears to only want to deal with the United States. The Bush administration has taken a hard line, but the difficulties it is facing in Iraq and other parts of the world may force it to modify its’ approach. Some critics argue that the hard line is just the easy way of avoiding the problem altogether. According to Fred Kaplan of Washington Monthly, â€Å"Bush has neither threatened war nor pursued diplomacy†.6 Neither the Clinton nor the Bush policy has achieved the desired result to date. A third option is clearly required. In forming that strategy, the full participation of North Korea’s neighbor to the south is vital. Fred Kaplan, â€Å"Rolling Blunder: How the Bush Administration let North Korea Get   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Nukes† Washington Monthly, Available from;   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0405.kaplan.html : South and North and the U.S. South Korea is a unique, democratic success story. It is well positioned between Japan, an economic power, and China, an emerging economic powerhouse. The future looks bright for South Korea, but the biggest threat to it’s’ success is North Korea. South Korean policymakers walk a treacherous line When the Berlin wall fell and Germany was reunited in the early 1990’s, South Korean leaders considered the possibility of a reunification of the Korean peninsula. Koreans share centuries of culture. It seemed like a natural idea to state a policy that ultimately favored reunification. Researchers studied North Korea and the emerging democracies in Eastern Europe. They were discouraged by what they found, but not completely deterred. The South Korean government began to realize the scope of the humanitarian problem in North Korea. They concluded that immediate reunification could create unbearable economic stress on South Korea.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   They came to a startling conclusion. If the North were to collapse the economic and social burden of reunification   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   might ruin the South.   7 For this reason, the resulting South Korean policy is somewhat vague. South Korea has been a strong ally of the United States for many decades. The United States would prefer regime change in the North. South Korea is more reluctant, being acutely aware of the fallout from such a change. In recent years, they have taken a more conciliatory tone toward the North. They walk a fine line of diplomacy between the worlds’ only superpower and their desperate, but powerful, neighbor to the north. Michael Breen, The Koreans: who they are, what they want, where their future lies   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (New York: St Martins, 1988): p. 247. The South Korean approach is based on self-preservation. Although there is a natural yearning for reunification, those who have looked at it closely believe that it may not be the right thing to do. Michael Breen writes:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What the South Korean’s want now is reconciliation, not   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   reunification. This does not mean that they oppose reunification   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   entirely, but simply that they prefer postponement.   Ã‚  Ã‚  8 At the same time, the volatility of the situation has prompted South Korea to increase its defense spending, although it is still only a small fraction of that spent in the north. Ostensibly, South Korea is still a nation in the middle of a larger war. No formal treaty has ended the Korean war of the 1950’s. Peace is only preserved by an armistice. The country of South Korea has thrived, despite the constant tension and the permanent presence of a large number of U.S. troops. From its’ perspective, war would be devastating and a collapse of the Northern regime almost as bad. There is no way that any upheaval in the North can leave the prosperity of the South unaffected. At the same time, the prospect of a hostile, nuclear North Korea is daunting.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On a variety of issues, the United States and Korea perceive   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   genuine common interests such as better trade relations and the   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. But fundamentally   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   different political and economic philosophies, military objectives   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   and geostrategic aims have made it difficult for the two countries   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   to act in concert.  Ã‚   9 Michael Breen, The Koreans: who they are, what they want, where their future lies   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (New York: St Martins, 1988): p. 247. John Feffer, â€Å"American Apples, Korean Oranges† Foreign Policy Focus Aug. (2006)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The relationship between the United States and South Korea has been described by some as a sibling rivalry. The United States is the bigger, older brother. South Korea is the younger brother trying to escape it’ older brothers shadow. Like brothers, they sometimes battle. Recent years have seen a cooling in relations between the two. The leaders rarely communicate. Usually, the two make up, but there are other issues to consider. John Feffer, of Foreign Policy in Focus, writes:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The sibling comparison, however, can only go so far to explain   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   the U.S.-ROK dynamic and why the two countries have reached   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   one of the lowest points of cooperation in the 50 year history of   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   their alliance.   10 Kim Dae Jung, the South Korean President, ad initially expected that the Bush administration would continue with the conciliatory approach. He was to be disappointed. Kim Dae Jung, while publicly remaining an ally of the United States, had advocated a more open and conciliatory approach to the North. In 2002, the Japanese prime minister made a visit to North Korea to discuss normalization of relations. This took the United States by surprise, increasing it’s’ anxiety all the more. An element of mistrust has entered the U.S. – South Korean relationship in recent years. The Bush administration cancelled a planned shipment of surveillance technology to South Korea. The reason given publicly was that they feared the technology would be leaked to the North. Analysis For Western nations, managing the threat of North Korea is proving to be a difficult if not impossible prospect. According to author Michael Breen: John Feffer, â€Å"American Apples, Korean Oranges† Foreign Policy Focus Aug. (2006)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   America is the key nation in the Korean question. It has had   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   its’ own reasons to hate North Korea. Barring Iraq in the 1990’s,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   North Korea may be the most demonized state in the American   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   political imagination†¦   Ã‚  Ã‚  11 In order for there to be a solution it seems clear that some level of communication must be established. Near-catastrophic events during the cold war show us the dangers of a lack of communication. The only communication in recent years has been public name calling and threats. Calling the North Korean state â€Å"evil†, for example, does not help the problem. To the North Koreans it is a meaningless insult. Evil is a loaded word in the Korean culture. Bruce Cumings writes of the Koreans conception of evil:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A society like this has no place for evil; in fact, Koreans don’t   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   have a conception of evil. Evil couldn’t exist because Koreans   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   have created a universe that has no place for it.  Ã‚   12 Kim Jong Il can then use rhetoric like this domestically to further solidify his power. In the Korean culture respect for authority is paramount. The American policy, under Bush and Clinton, is to advocate regime change in North Korea. Fomenting a revolution may not even be possible. The country is poor, unarmed, hungry and respectful of it’s’ leader. Much of the military and civilian leadership is composed from loyal families who have held those positions for generations. North Korea is an unwelcome issue for any American administration. Both the Bush and Clinton administrations have been forced to deal with it, however. South Korea, Michael Breen, The Koreans: who they are, what they want, where their future lies   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (New York: St Martins, 1988): p. 245. Bruce Cumings, North Korea: another country (New York: The New Press, 2004): 206. in the mean time, maintains a precarious balance between the two nuclear powers. Any action taken by one of the three parties will invariably affect the other two. Nobody wants another war, but Kim Jong Il believes that by being a threat he can eventually gain concessions. Had it not been for the terrorist attacks of   9/11/2001, the Bush administration may have maintained the framework started by Clinton. North Korea has essentially become part of the war on terror. Seemingly unrelated world events have led to a total breakdown in communication with North Korea. Reestablishing that communication is the first step to creating a workable agreement.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Presidential policies are often influenced by the policies of those who held the office before. In this case, the same would very likely have been true of Clinton and Bush if world events had not intervened. The entire Bush presidency has taken place on a war footing. As a result, all other countries are looked at more suspiciously. When evidence was presented that the North Koreans might be cheating on the agreed framework, the Bush administration was less inclined to negotiate again. North Korea was immediately named to the â€Å"axis of evil†. This, as much as anything, is an effort to engender international support against North Korea.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Clinton administration had unquestionably shown a more deft diplomatic touch in its dealings with North Korea. How he would have reacted given the complicating factors Bush faced is anyone’s guess. In the end, it is questionable whether either Presidents policy could be called a success. North Korea has apparently exploded a nuclear weapon despite all of the attempts to prevent it. Achieving ultimate success in this matter may involve reevaluating our own goals and redefining what success actually is.    Notes The Central Intelligence Agency. The World Factbook 2001. Wash. D.C.: Brassey’s,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2001: p. 267. Fred Kaplan, â€Å"Rolling Blunder: How the Bush Administration let North Korea Get   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Nukes† Washington Monthly, Available from;   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0405.kaplan.html : accessed   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   12 Dec. 2006. The Central Intelligence Agency. The World Factbook 2001. Wash. D.C.: Brassey’s,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2001: p. 267. Michael Breen, The Koreans: who they are, what they want, where their future lies   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (New York: St Martins, 1988): p. 246. Bruce Cumings, North Korea: another country (New York: The New Press, 2004): 183: Fred Kaplan, â€Å"Rolling Blunder: How the Bush Administration let North Korea Get   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Nukes† Washington Monthly, Available from;   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0405.kaplan.html : accessed   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   12 Dec. 2006. Michael Breen, The Koreans: who they are, what they want, where their future lies   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (New York: St Martins, 1988): p. 247. Michael Breen, The Koreans: who they are, what they want, where their future lies   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (New York: St Martins, 1988): p. 247. John Feffer, â€Å"American Apples, Korean Oranges† Foreign Policy Focus Aug. (2006) John Feffer, â€Å"American Apples, Korean Oranges† Foreign Policy Focus Aug. (2006). Michael Breen, The Koreans: who they are, what they want, where their future lies   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (New York: St Martins, 1988): p. 245. Bruce Cumings, North Korea: another country (New York: The New Press, 2004): 206.                Works Cited Breen, Michael. The Koreans: who they are, what they want, where their future lies. New York: St. Martins, 1998. Cumings, Bruce. North Korea: another country. New York: The New Press, 2004. Dao, James. â€Å"Bush Administration Halts Payments to Send Oil to North Korea†. New York Times: 14 Nov. 2002, A01. Feffer, John. â€Å"American Apples, Korean Oranges†. Foreign Policy in Focus. 17 Aug. 2006. Harrison, Selig S. â€Å"Did North Korea Cheat?† Foreign Affairs, Jan/Feb 2005. Hastedt, Glenn P. American Foreign Policy: past, present and future, 5th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2003. Kaplan, Fred. â€Å"Rolling Blunder: How the Bush Administration let North Korea Get Nukes†. Washington Monthly.   Available from; http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0405.kaplan.html : accessed 12 Dec. 2006.