Cold environments may be developed Essay

Cold environments may be developed in a sustainable manner. To what extent do you agree with this statement? I disagree with this statement more than I agree with it. Cold environments in the world that were previously wilderness areas have undergone development, and nearly all of them have proved to be unsustainable. In the alpine areas, the mountains are a major magnet because of the scenery and the wide variety of winter sports that can take place there. The Alps have been developed as a tourist area. Although tourism benefits the area economically, it is socially and environmentally unsustainable. Tradition and culture has been eroded away because many young people now go down the mountains into urban areas in search of jobs. Even though the tourist industry has encouraged many young farmers to diversify out of rural and primary activities, many people still leave. Aside from that, the tourist industry brings with it unwanted pollution and litter and also causes footpath erosion. The tourist industry is also a potential hazard to the mountains and villages because the winter sports activities taking place there may cause avalanches. In the tundra or arctic regions, development has not been sustainable either, also both environmentally and socially. Gold, and particularly oil exploration and exploitation have scarred the fragile landscape. In 1968, the Trans-Alaskan pipeline was built from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez. Not only were there leakage problems of the oil pipeline associated with earthquakes and permafrost, but it also interfered with the migration of caribou on land and salmon in the rivers. Aside from that, in the 1989, there was the problem of the Exxon Valdez oil spill, which polluted the ocean and killed hundreds of birds and marine wildlife. Oil exploration and the invasion of the Europeans into Inuit territory were also socially unsustainable. The traditional way of life was lost as many Inuits were forced to live the ‘white’ way and many Inuit children were taken from their parents and educated in missionary schools. Their traditional ways of hunting were also lost due to severe regulations on gun control and the introduction of currency into their simple economy. The latter was also the cause of excessive and unsustainable sealing and hunting in the tundra and arctic lands. Although the areas around the Southern Ocean have not been developed, vast quantities of natural fish, seal and whale resources have been taken out. On South Orkney Island, seals were completely depleted by 1800. Whaling began in the 1840s but was unsustainable as well, and ended in 1965 because stocks were exhausted. Fish stocks such as cod and krill have also become severely depleted in recent years. Although institutes such as the International Whaling Convention, the Marine Resources Institute and the CCAMLR were set up, illegal fishing and whaling have led to the depletion of natural resources. In Grytviken and Stromness, abandoned buildings have become an eyesore because they were not cleared away. Attempts at developing Antarctica have been made, mainly in the form of tourism. This is the only cold environment development that can be said to be sustainable. Strict IAATO guidelines on tourist behaviour, controlled numbers of tourists and the harsh climate of Antarctica have made the area difficult to develop. Scientific and research stations, although few, have contributed to waste generated in the area, along with footpath erosion. Most of the waste is shipped to the UK for processing, but what remains cannot decompose easily in the cold climate. Due to efforts of the Antarctic Treaty ratified in 1991 and much pressure from the environmental groups however, the Antarctic region has largely remained untouched. Where development takes place, it cannot be said to be sustainable, because changes have to be made to the area to accommodate people and people contribute to environmental degradation at the very least, even if great care is taken not to disturb or disrupt natural environments. The development of cold environments is mainly unsustainable, although tourism in Antarctica seems to be otherwise. Who knows, however, whether it will remain sustainable in the future because of increased tourism, or because of better technology to fuel mass tourism.

Cosmetic Advertisements People Essay

Cosmetic Advertisements People believe cosmetic products are the answers to facial perfection. This often happens because cosmetic advertising creates an illusion that cosmetic products are the source to real beauty. People that are trying to fill that void in their lives took towards cosmetic products to fill the void. People follow cosmetic advertisements in learning that one can achieve true beauty using makeup. Cosmetic advertisements teach that the more cosmetic products a person can wear the more beautiful a person will be. Cosmetic advertisements create an allusion of what real beauty is through lipstick, eyeliners, elongated eyelashes, eye shadows, powder puffs and other cosmetic products. Cosmetic advertisements teach the pursuit of these items will lead to the desired facial appearance that people believe they should have. The truth to this myth is that beauty cannot be determined by the use of cosmetic products because every individual was born beautiful. Still people are naive to the fact that one’s beautiful from birth and they buy what cosmetic advertisements are selling beauty to be. Cosmetic advertisements aim is to demonstrate that one is not beautiful without the use of cosmetic products. One cause of this myth is because it appears that people are at their happiest when they are wearing new mascara or are modeling the newest eyeliner. Cosmetic Advertisements portray that if people want excitement in life people should wear cosmetics. Cosmetic advertisements broadcast how one looks with makeup on. This is telling the public what people are suppose to look like. With examples of societies’ expectations of people; if one fulfills societies’ expectations, then one’s life becomes exciting if one wears makeup. Cosmetic advertisements display how one will have face like Barbie. People now want to become Barbie. â€Å"The power of advertising is indisputable† ( Leslie Ware xii). Cosmetic advertisements have become ideal for what beauty is supposed to be. It no longer is that people wanted to embrace ones natural look, but it come to the point where people now wear cosmetics to bed. People start going out of their way to obtain the necessity to achieve cosmetic beauty; buying expensive makeup, exhaust one’s credit or carrying a cosmetic bag every where one goes. Many people lose understanding of what facial beauty is and make cosmetics their source of beauty. Morals that used to be important in life changed. Generations are losing the value of self appreciation because cosmetic advertising make natural beauty seem pointless to embrace. To enhance one’s beauty a person has to use makeup. As a result people are losing knowledge on how to embrace one’s self without the use of cosmetics. The impact of cosmetic advertisements changed the way people are looking at themselves in recent generations because cosmetic advertisements broadcasting the need for nonessential items that people desire in order to obtain the perfect look, a desirable appearance, rather than the need for items that are essential for life. Regardless if one has the money or not the common belief is for people to have a flawless look achievable with the use of cosmetic products only. Nowadays before children can even say their name correctly they are being introduced to cosmetic products. Young teenagers now persuade their parents in allowing them to wear makeup as cosmetic will catapult their ordinary facial appearance to that of a Barbie. Cosmetic gives teenagers adult appearances if applied properly. Cosmetic advertisements aim to convince society that one cannot function properly without the use of cosmetic products; therefore, cosmetic advertisement affect people by showing what a person should look like and one is inferior if does not undergo the cosmetic metamorphosis. Cosmetic advertisers like Proactiv and Covergirl display compelling messages to sell their cosmetic products. They offer special deals and discounts for more people to purchase their products. These cosmetic advertisements show endless testimonials of their products effectiveness influencing people on the certainty of their bottle beauty. â€Å"Advertisements are more than just appeals to buy; they are windows into our psyches and our culture. They reveal our values, our (not-so-hidden) desires, our yearnings for a different lifestyle† (Six Decades of Advertising 537). Without meaningful standard by which to measure one’s worth, people turns to cosmetic advertisements for affirmation. Cosmetic Advertisements uses makeup as a way of showing what people should look like. Wearing cosmetics show people having flawless faces or immaculate appearances that are perceived to be of utmost importance. Purchasing and wearing these cosmetics are ways of proving to people that one is complete. Cosmetic advertisement send the message that the more cosmetics a person have on the better they are and a way of showing they are more of value than those without. The more time and the more money people spend on cosmetics or makeup make them higher on the list of facial perfection. Cosmetic advertisements prominently attract the wealthy or the ones with low self esteem. People with low self esteem uses cosmetic products to enhance one’s self esteem to be considered as one with an A-list face. Wealthy people with excess money can obtain unlimited makeup and are on the A-list for facial appearance. The ones who cannot purchase unlimited cosmetics to acquire complete facial perfection haven’t made it and are still on the search for such perfection. Despite the fact, cosmetic advertisements always trying to attain more people in favor of cosmetic products; therefore, according to these advertisements people who do not wear cosmetics are considered D-list for facial appearance. As such this becomes people’s constant battle for more cosmetic products because the more makeup someone has the better ranked that person is. In actuality having the best cosmetic or most expensive makeup does not make a person better than another or mean that a person is complete. In actuality these cosmetic advertisements have not accomplished anything of value to benefit the world. Instead they are telling people how unattractive and incomplete they are without the use of makeup. Cosmetic advertising has developed and supported great industries, increased entire economies, and increase the job market. Cosmetic companies such as Proactiv, Maybelline, Clean and Clear, L’oreal and much more, have thousands of employees, vehicles and equipments which contributes to the economic well been. Nevertheless, many people of today’s society are under high stress. They may seem publicly confident but secretly they feel a sense of failure, vulnerability, exhaustion, being overwhelmed, and defeat by society. Apart of being naturally unattractive is the acceptance that, in fact, our age will catch up to us and one will become old. This cause many people to succumb to a state of total and utter depression. Beauty advertising companies hone into these vulnerable feelings and promote their products as though it is a cure for all physical and emotional ailments of human being. Hair dye, creams and wrinkle minimizing makeup are only the start to how far people will go to appear beautiful or young again. Cosmetic Advertisements also portray women as sex objects and define what is popular and what is the â€Å"perfect look†. â€Å"When it comes to cosmetics, advertisements sell very well. Who wouldn’t want skin like Uma Thompson or Queen Latifah as it appears in the plentiful adds of women’s magazines glowing and unlined, without a pimple, crease, or freckle in sight? The desire is even sharper today because women feel younger than their calendar years, and they want to look as good as they feel. † ( Daniel B. Yarosh 31). Modern consumer culture has linked sexuality with beauty to the extent that they cannot be separated. Today, one cannot turn on the television, open a magazine or walk down a public street without being bombarded with images of seductive women or perfectly toned men being used to sell various types of cosmetic products. Why are these images so powerful? These advertising strategies create a desire. How do cosmetic advertisements shape and define the self-concept of both men and women? How does linking beauty with sexuality and desirability influence the way one relates to each advertisement? Finally, Cosmetic Advertisements portray that the void people feel in their lives can be filled through the use of makeup. People loose what happiness is and let Cosmetic Advertisements sell cosmetic happiness. Cosmetic Advertisements are showing people how they should be spending the money they are making in order to obtain beauty. People who do not wear cosmetics are considered to be the losers and the people who wear cosmetics are considered to be the winners. One’s accomplishment should not be judged by how fancy a person’s makeup is or how much cosmetics one has on but by how much a person contributes towards society. Cosmetics products are ultimately dominating people’s lifestyle. Works Cited Laurence and Rosen. â€Å"Six Decades of Advertising† Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum. 11th Edition. Ed Laurence and Rosen. Boston: Longman, 2011: 538. Print. pg 538. Academic Research Completed. 08 Aug. 2013. Daniel B. Yarosh. â€Å" Skin† The New Science of Perfect Skin. New York: Broadway book, 2008: 31. Print. Academic Work Completed. 10 Aug. 2013. Leslie Ware. â€Å"Introduction† Selling It. New York: Norton, 2002: xii. Print. Academic Work Completed. 11 Aug. 2013.

Mentoring & Coaching Essay

Analyse and evaluate the use of Mentoring and/or coaching to support both your own and others,’ development of professional skills and knowledge. In ancient Greek mythology Mentor was the friend of Odysseus and tutor to his son. His name is well-known for a faithful and wise adviser. Today on the athletic field and in corporate offices a mentor or coach can help elevate performance. (http://heartlandbusinessexchange.com/MentorCoach.aspx) There are many definitions for coaching and mentoring. The commonality we can find in these hundreds of definitions of Coaching and Mentoring is that they both aim to support the Coached / Mentees (people that are in a relation with a Coach/Mentor) developing themselves in order to reach specific goals. Coaching is collaborative inquiry into the technical aspects of any activity, most often of work, as well as support for development and performance improvement. Of course, coaching applies to relationships in every setting. Mentoring provides a unique growth-oriented relationship which is the necessary context for risk taking, deep sharing, insights, and growth. Mentoring requires commitment and freely choosing to be held accountable for living out one’s intentions. It also includes coaching, but adds a wide range of strategies for discovering, supporting, and challenging personal, spiritual, and/or professional growth Both coaching and mentoring must be non evaluative, positive, and nonjudgmental if the process is to be authentic and genuine and the results are to be discovery, learning, growth, and improvement. Mentoring and coaching are an investment in another person’s success, you may have experienced this kind of empowering support from parents, a pastor, a teacher, an athletic coach, a friend, perhaps even a boss or your spouse. Often, people like these care so much about you that they will go the â€Å"extra mile† and do all they can to help you succeed. We might call this f orm of support â€Å"intuitive† mentoring or coaching because it is well meaning folks, doing the best they can, based on common sense and what they feel is best. www.businessmentorcenter.com A mentor can enter into a truly collaborative, trusting, positive, and support relationship . He can make you feel comfortable and make a person see the benefits of an open sharing of his feelings and dreams for his life, help to  learn to see oneself more objectively and how to gain the personal insights one needs to succeed, assess one’s natural tendencies and gifts and how their interactions may create internal confusion and dissatisfaction. It helps a person to set goals and develop plans and the self discipline to achieve his goals and more over he helps to solve and understand the problems and conflicts one confronts and move on. Coaching and Mentoring are then aimed to promote the development of an individual in order to be successful in the fulfilment of their tasks (at school, at work or in their personal lives), reinforc ing and strengthening their competencies and self-confidence. Coaching and Mentoring are to be considered as the two extreme of the line. Between these two extremes exists many different and flexible possibilities for support, using Mentoring and Coaching as appropriate to the situation.

Marketing Report Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Marketing Report - Research Paper Example By the fifth year, the company should have gained 27,500 customers (5500 *11), resulting in a total of about 77,500 clients. 2. Gain a 15% market share in the STEM toy segment for CircuitTree by 2020. At the moment, Mega Brands has an 8% market share in the STEM category, while Lego has a 5% market share in the same category; this totals to 13% for the two leading brands. Other smaller brands have a total market share of 16%, meaning 71% of the market is still unexploited. A 15% market share means that Voltree will have 76,819 (0.15*512129) customers by 2020. This is closer to its target of a 77,500 customer base within 5 years. 3. Retain 50% of customers gained within the first five years of operation. Currently, CircuitTree is Voltree’s only product, yet STEM toys market data shows that parents between the ages of 25 and 34 perform multiple purchases every year. However, the probability of a parent buying more than one game is 0.5%, because half of them are likely to acquire other games in their next purchase. CircuitTree supports learning and entertainment in a sustainable and balanced manner. Technical and educational practitioners who understand the correlation between entertainment and learning developed the product after intensive research. The Core Product is what consumers pay for. In this case, entertainment and learning are combined into one product: a game that will improve children’s academic potential but still keep them animated. This element comprises the actual physical or virtual features of CircuitTree. The product is imaginative, inspiring, and incorporates high-quality design and styling. It also comes with latest software updates that support long-term usage. The branding, packaging and labeling aspects of CircuitTree are congruent with the company’s strategic objectives. For example, the packaging (both primary and secondary) is environmentally friendly while the labeling is explicit and multilingual to

Immoral sex and religion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Immoral sex and religion - Essay Example The bounds of morally had not been tested more than the present times.And among the compelling issues,practiced by most,are premarital sex, prostitution, homosexuality,and other forms of immoral sex.When people don’t really understand the real meaning and purpose of something they do it indiscriminately without prejudice. Human’s limited understanding on the purpose of sex resulted to the above immoral acts. Even worst, despite knowing the purpose, they do it beyond the limit. Premarital sex and prostitution are not new to the society.By nature, since the record of Biblical history, humans are always tempted by these sinful acts. But by the gift of God man was given a moral way to satisfy his sexual needs. The apostle Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, addressed these words to the converts from Corinth, who, being used to Roman customs, were fond of using prostitutes as sex partners and engaging sex without marriage â€Å"Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband. Let the husband render to his wife the affection due her, and likewise also the wife to her husband† (1 Corinthians 7:2-3).These passages of the New Testament reinforced the fact that prostitution and premarital sex is immoral and that there is a better way to fighting this immoral acts – that is through marriage. Being converts into Christianity, the old sinful people were given the chance to straighten their acts by entering into Christian marriage before engaging sex and to have a single spouse as sex partner. By sanctifying the bond of relationship the couple accepted by the society can exercise their physical needs within them. By subjecting themselves to marriage allows them to enjoy married life and sex in a moral way according to the plan of God. Premarital sex as accepted norm But because of human's ignorance or deliberate neglect of the real plan of God for mankind, and the importance of sex in this plan, they look at it as a simple biological desire that can be enjoyed to the fullest. Most people do not consider sex as a gift that can only be used within the bounds of marriage. They look at it as a civil right that everyone can freely use. Several articles and studies published have shown that premarital sex had been accepted in societies throughout the world. Report from Finer (73) showed that the 2002 survey indicate that by age 20, 77% of respondents already had sex and 75% of which are premarital sex. The study further revealed that among those who abstained until at least age 20, 81% had had premarital sex by age 44. In general, the study showed 80-90% of women in sexually active age had premarital sex in their lifetimes. In a separate study reported by BBC News in the article published in January 23, 2008, "The British Social Attitudes Survey suggests 70% of the 3,000 people polled had no objections to pre-marital sex." These show how societies, so socially advanced yet neglected the fundamental Christian teaching against premarital sex. America and Britain are composed by majority of Christian believers. The abovementioned reports show that sex outside marriage has been an accepted norm, and since majority is doing it, it then becomes moral in the sense. This is a kind of "majority role" which is a sort of mob role. In this case, as always has been, the mob role is not acceptable in well-organized societies. Knowing however that abstinence is a moral solution but difficult to practice, Finer suggested that "education and interventions that provide young people with the skills and information they need to protect themselves from unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases once they become sexually active"(78). The recommendations of Finer is tantamount to saying, "if we can't beat them; join them" even if the practice is immoral. In Christian values, what is immoral is immoral. The Christian teachings in the New Testament and even the Old Testament clearly denounce sexual affairs outside the sanctity

A mother duties Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

A mother duties - Essay Example ace in your life an earthquake would not quite be able to describe until the aftershock – being left with different kinds of ruins with which you are the epicenter. Now this is the time when every bride realizes she actually dedicated all her carefully thought of vows to a routine of feeding, cleaning, gardening with every emotional quotient on the side. As opposed to popular belief, being a mother never makes you only a mother. It only makes you the mother of all trades. If before motherhood you have never imagined the possibility of doing something you think is hard work and at the same time doing something fun without depleting the satisfaction or productivity you can get from both, being a mother will now turn you into a Jedi. Mothers never simply rock a chair to put a baby to sleep. They do the rocking in a much more pleasurable way without having to feel guilty. Mothers may have lost their to-die-for bodies and a calendar full of fun activities but they sure still got the female hormones that need a little bit of tingling. Aside from that, motherhood is not a free-Willy cause where you can just trample in the sea all day long. A lot of mothers today, most of which seem to be a Stepford wife personified, are able to help pay the bills in the house and at the same time manage a family despite the many physical and emotional challenges they face in a daily basis – sometimes the hardest of which would be to tame a wistful second child, the husband. However, one thing I am sure of, behind every successful woman is a bag of dirty laundry. Thus, coining mothers who work a â€Å"working mother† is an implication of redundancy. At home, mothers perfectly exemplify that sleep is not a part of human life. Based on observation and experience, mothers could very well be considered the right hand of God. They are the household omnipresent, omniscient, and all-knowing beings who could very well deliver on every demand of each person in the house that makes the job of

Restorative Justice Principles and Correctional Policies Essay

Restorative Justice Principles and Correctional Policies - Essay Example According to the report findings restorative justice principles are becoming used more often in schools - replacing simple expulsion as an attempt at conflict resolution. According to Carol Chmelynski, â€Å"Restorative practices in schools include peer mediation, classroom circles to resolve problems, and family group conferencing, all involving face-to-face resolution to address the multiple impacts of a student's offending behavior. Those most affected by it play an important role in resolving the incident.† This essay talks that efforts have also been made to incorporate this process into the criminal justice system for adult offenders. In a typical prison environment, offenses are merely punished with no attempt for the offender to understand how he has affected the victim. Although rehabilitation is a stated goal of the prison system, no serious efforts take place to actually accomplish that goal. Using restorative justice, prisoners are allowed to take full responsibility for their actions and improve their self esteem. By attempting to resolve issues calmly rather than allowing problems to escalate - or quietly fester - the offender is motivated towards future improvement. Obviously, the implementation of such policies would not be as practical - or even advisable - for the most serious crimes. It is doubtful that family members of a slain child, for example, would be willing to sit down calmly with the offender to discuss how he can accept responsibility for his actions and attempt to make restitution.

People and Organisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

People and Organisation - Essay Example It is important for any organization to cater to the needs of its employees and ensure they are motivated, competent, and knowledgeable enough to align their personal goals with the organization's goals. This in turn helps in achieving customer satisfaction. In today's every changing dynamic world where the corporate environment is changing every moment, it is mandatory to realize the employees as an organization's most important asset as it is them who make or break an organization. They are competent to handle and properly use critical information and are motivated to handle the responsibilities bestowed upon them. For this purpose, a separate department is designated usually named as the 'human resource' department and this is present in almost every contemporary organization. These departments are responsible to attract the proficient work force present to work in their organization. Human Resource management relates to the activities that are undertaken to attract, develop and maintain an effective workforce within an organization. Over the past decade, human resource management has gotten rid of the 'personnel' image and has gained recognition as a vital player in corporate strategy. To achieve this purpose, managements try to ensure that they inculcate such a corporate culture in the organization that fosters the growth of employees as an individual. It is very important to maintain employee satisfaction because if employees are not comfortable in the workplace and they don't find the space that they need to work effectively, they might not be motivated adequately to work in the cause of the organization. The corporate culture prevailing in an organization indicates how the employees of the organization might react to the changes that are taking or are allowed to react to the changes. ORGANIZATIONAL ANALYSIS Declining sales might be a symptom of a problem that is prevailing in an organization. The real dilemma is not understanding the root of the problem. Organizational analysis helps in the root of the problem that exists in a certain company. Incorrect assessment of the problem might lead to further imperfections. Therefore, correct diagnosis of problem is equally important. There are many tools that are used to analyze and evaluate organizations. The most common ones are SWOT analysis, Scoping, Questionnaires and systematic constellations. These methods mainly use information from the employees and evaluate it to understand the underlying problem that an organization is facing and helps to then map out a strategy for the organization to follow. The real world out there is more complex and intricate then mentioned in the books that we study or come across. It is very difficult to then comprehend the real life situations and evaluate them on the basis of the concepts that have been studied. MANAGING CHANGES IN AN ORGANIZATION Change is a phenomenon that always accompanies major disapprovals by everyone who is being affected by the process. In large organizations, managing a change is gigantic task that is bestowed upon the management for the betterment of the organizati

Disseminating-Evidence Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Disseminating-Evidence Project - Essay Example Conversely, induced hypothermia can also occur through non-invasive means, typically involving the use of a chilled water blanket, leg wraps or torso vests placed in direct contact with the skin of the patient. Previously conducted studies indicate that patients with the potential risk for ischemic brain injuries have immense chances positive outcomes when treated with an induced hypothermia protocol (Binks et al. 2010). This paper will examine the medical protocol of induced hypothermia, discussing its inherent advantages on neurological outcomes. The paper will provide an account of induced hypothermia, describing the different protocols and effects of hypothermia on the human brain. The paper will culminate with a comprehensive dissemination plan that entails a roundtable discussion. Since its inception, induced hypothermia protocols have proved quite effective. Background Medical practitioners have applied hypothermia therapeutically since ancient times. The history of induced hy pothermia dates as far back as the Hippocrates era although the first published medical article on induced hypothermia was in 1945. The world’s initial modern doctor i.e. Greek physician Hippocrates endorsed the packing of injured soldiers using ice and snow. Napoleonic surgeon Dominique Jean Larrey observed that officers kept near fire had lower survival chances than officers kept in cold environments. The study first published in 1945 focused on the impacts of hypothermia on patients affected by head injuries. In the mid 20th century, hypothermia obtained its initial medical application used in intracerbal aneurysm surgery with a view to establish a bloodless field. Notably, most of the initial research into induced hypothermia concentrated on the application of deep hypothermia i.e. applications of body temperatures between 20-25 Â °C. This extreme drop in body temperature produces an array of effects that made the application of deep hypothermia quite impractical. The 19 50s also saw intense investigation of mild forms of induced hypothermia, i.e. 32-34 Â °C. During this period, Dr. Rosomoff exemplified in dogs the advantages of mild hypothermia pursuant to a traumatic brain injury or ischemia. Researchers conducted further animal studies in the 1980s showing the capacity of mild hypothermia to function as a general neuroprotectant, especially after obstruction of blood flow to the brain (Sessler, 2005). In 1999, after a skiing accident Anna Bagenholm’s heart stopped beating for at least three hours during which her body temperature was 13.7 Â °C prior to resuscitation. In addition to animal studies, as well as Anna Bagenholm’s misfortune, there have been at least two landmark studies published in 2002 in the New England Journal of Medicine. Both studies demonstrated the benefits of applying mild hypothermia following a cardiac arrest. Subsequently, in 2003, the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILOR) and the American Heart Association (AHA) endorsed the application of mild hypothermia after cardiac arrest. Presently, a growing number of hospitals worldwide incorporate the recommendations of AHA/ILCOR and embrace hypothermic protocols in their standard care packages for patients who suffer cardiac arrest. Certain researchers further contend that induced hypothermia is a better neuroprotectant after obstruction

The Impact of Employee Participation for Transparency in the Hiring Assignment

The Impact of Employee Participation for Transparency in the Hiring and Promotion Process of Public Agencies - Assignment Example This research will begin with the statement that the problem is that many public agencies are not being transparent in their hiring and promotion practices, and they are not seeking out adequate levels of employee participation throughout the process. The process of hiring and promoting employees is certainly an exercise that takes place almost daily in large institutions, companies, and organization of various sorts. Without transparency and a level of employee participation throughout the process, however, it is often difficult to get rank and file staff members to truly commit and buy into the true vision of the organization. Oddly enough, this is a problem that continues to persist despite numerous attempts to rectify the situation and create more transparency and opportunities for participation on the part of everyone in the organization. Much work still needs to be done in order to shore up the hiring and promotion process, particularly in public service agencies, in order to r educe incidences of hiring and promotion the wrong individual for important positions within the organization. Judging from the fact that the degree of inefficiency continues to persist, not necessarily because of an absence of a sound recruitment strategy, but as a result of the failure of existing strategies, the simple indication that it sends is that it is important to change the processes and methods involved in tackling the situation. The major problem, therefore, has to do with the failed attempt to identify the right approach or method in tackling recruitment in various organizations, most commonly as a result of a lack of transparency throughout the hiring and promotion process.

Exchange Rates Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Exchange Rates - Coursework Example In addition to that, it enhanced the income tax rates, cost of capital, sales growth rate which in return maximized profits. Minimization of transaction costs leverages exchange rates with a target of maximizing profits (Ostrow, 2011). Transaction cost helps in determination of goods and services for leveraging economic exchange rates through the implementation of the minimum prices in the market. Transaction cost consists of the bargaining cost that is regarded as an acceptable agreement for increasing profits. Apart from having economic performance and political stability for seeking out the exchange rate, transaction cost also enhanced investment funds for increasing profits in the U.S. The monetary policy of the U.S. characterizes the economic environment and is aimed at improving the exchange rates between the U.S. and other countries (Mark, 2002). Banks in the U.S and other nations buy the domestic currency so as to make the exchange rates stable. This therefore means that the supply of money is controlled by the economic environment and targets a rate of interest for enhancing economic growth between the U.S and other nations. Mark (2002) claims that the exchange rate is negatively affected by this economic environment. The value of exchange rates between the U.S and other nations was reduced due to irregular flow of currencies and fluctuations in the exchange

Celebrity Endorser Influence Essay Example for Free

Celebrity Endorser Influence Essay Celebrity Endorser Influence on Attitude Toward Advertisements and Brands Bahram Ranjbarian Associate Professor of management, Department of Management The University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran E-mail: Bahram1 [emailprotected] Zahra Shekarchizade Master Student of Business Management, Department of Management University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran E-mail: [emailprotected] Zahra Momeni Master Student of Business Management, Department of Management University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran E-mail: [emailprotected] Abstract Purpose- This study aims to analyze the celebrity endorser influence on attitude toward advertisements and brands. Design/methodology/approach – A theoretical model is developed and tested with a sample of 193 students in University of Isfahan in 2009. Structural equation modeling was used with LISREL 8.50 and the maximum likelihood (ML) method. Findings – The findings show that attitude toward celebrity endorser can influence on attitude toward brand directly or indirectly. In indirectly approach, attitude toward advertisement is as a mediator between attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward brand. On the other hand, attitude toward celebrity endorser has not significant effect on purchase intention. Originality/value – This paper provides a model connecting attitude toward celebrity endorser, attitude toward advertisement and attitude toward brand that has been examined and validated using a sample of students in University of Isfahan. Paper type- Research paper Keywords: Endorsement, Celebrities, Brand, Attitude, Advertisement Introduction Today one of the most prevalent forms of retail advertising is through using of celebrity endorsement (White et al, 2007). In fact celebrity endorsers are being used in about 25 percent of all television advertisements in order to promote brands (Erdogan et al, 2001).These endorsers are being paid by about 10 percent of advertisers budgets (Agrawal and Kamakura, 1995). Marketers invest huge amounts of money in contracts with celebrity endorsers each year, since they believe that celebrities affect the process of selling of their brands or products (Katyal, 2007). A celebrity endorser is a wellknown person (e.g., actors, sports figures and artists) because of his successes in a special field other than the endorsed product class (James, 2004). Celebrity endorsers are used by firms who want to 399 European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) support a product or service (Amos et al, 2008). Since presence of celebrity endorsers affects purchase decisions of consumers positively, producers and retailers have always preferred to use celebrity endorsements in order to sell their products (Stafford et al, 2003; Erdogan, 1999; Kamins, 1990). Kaikati (1987) believes that using of celebrities in advertisements could have many benefits and advantages including: 1) facilitating of brand identification 2) changing or impressing the negative attitude towards a brand 3) repositioning an existing brand 4) global marketing or positioning of a brand or product 5) affecting purchase intentions of consumers. Although using of celebrity endorsers as brand messengers is impressive, but it could have some risks. For instance, celebrities who are known to be guilty because of negative events (e.g., accident) may have harmful effects on the products that they endorse (Lou ie and Obermiller, 2002). Studies reveal that using of attractive celebrity causes to increase attitude towards advertisements. Such attitude towards advertisements is defined as mental states which are used by individuals to organize the way they perceive their environment and control the way they respond to it (Haghirian, 2004). There is a considerable correlation between desirable attitudes with regard to advertising and rating of certain advertisements by respondents as being likeable, irritating, delightful, etc (Bauer and Greyser, 1968). Celebrity endorsers enhance awareness of a companys advertising, create positive feelings towards brands and are perceived by consumers as more amusing (Solomon, 2002). Thus using of a celebrity in advertising causes to influence brand attitude and purchase intentions of consumers in a positive way. Celebrity endorsement has a strong effect on consumers memory and learning approach too. Most consumers are not in a purchasing situation when they are encounter with message of the brand. Marketers use celebrity endorsement in order to help better storage of information in consumers minds which they can easily remember in purchasing situations (Schultz and Brens, 1995). However, there are many studies about celebrity endorser, but it seems that there are limited researches about the relationship between celebrity endorser and attitudes. The purpose of this study is to specify the impact of using celebrity endorsers in Iranian advertisements on attitudes of students in University of Isfahan toward those ads and brands. Literature Review Some properties such as likeability, expertise, trustworthiness and similarity cause a celebrity endorser to become a source of persuasive information and this creates a sense of certainty which has been revealed in many studies (Suranaa, 2008). Also physical attractiveness of the endorser is considerable in effectiveness of a message (Khatri, 2006). Acceptance of a message by a receiver could be influenced by celebrity endorsers as believable sources of information about a product or a firm (Amos et al, 2008). Using of celebrity endorsers to support products is explained by balance theory principles too. According to this theory, successful companies establish an emotional relation between the observer and endorser and a relation between endorser and brand too (Mowen, 2000). Before proceeding conceptual model, we describe the main constructs of this study. Celebrity Endorser McCracken (1998) has defined celebrity endorser as any individual who enjoys public cognition and who uses this cognition on behalf of a consumer by appearing wit in an advertisement. Moreover, celebrity is used as testimonial, endorsement, actor or spokesperson by the firm. Research has demonstrated that celebrity endorsement affects consumers feelings in general and it could affect the attitude of consumers towards the advertisement and brands too. This could result in enhancing of purchase intentions and as a result enhancing of sales. Some properties like credibility, physical attractiveness and likeability of celebrity endorser influence the ability of one person to impact other person (Amos et al, 2008). Source credibility is referred to identifying of communicators positive properties which influences acceptance of a message by the receiver (Ohanian, 1990). This consists of two main dimensions of expertise and 400 European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) trustworthiness. Source expertise refers to the degree which a communicator is perceived to be a source of valid assertion (Roozen, 2008). Source trustworthiness refers to faithfulness and reliability of the spokesperson (Khatri, 2006). Source attractiveness is the personality, likeability and similarity of endorsers to the receiver, thus to the perceived social values of the source (Solomon, 2002). Physical attractiveness of the source include being attractive, beautiful, elegant and charming. According to the studies in this ground, expertise dimension is more significant than physical attractiveness for matching of a brand with a suitable endorser (Brian and Michael, 1998). Likeability is referred to the positive or negative feelings that consumers have towards a source of information. We can define likeability as affection for the source because of its physical appearance and behavior (Erdogan, 1999). Though some research results reveal effectiveness of celebrities as endorsers (Freiden, 1984), but other researches suggest that celebrity endorsement may have different degrees of effectiveness depending on other factors like the fit between the celebrity and the advertised product (Till and Shimp, 1998). Celebrity Endorsers Effect on Aad and Ao Marketers are especially interested in consumers attitudes towards advertisements and brands. Essentially, attitudes are our predispositions with regard to things. An attitude shows whether we like something or not. Attitudes have three basic components: affective, cognitive and behavioral. Affective is related to our liking or feelings about an object. Cognitive is referred to beliefs about an object and behavioral component regards actions we take about that object (Severin and Tankard, 2001). Attitude towards advertisement is defined as a learned tendency to respond in a consistently desirable or undesirable approach toward advertising in general (Haghirian, 2004). On the other side, attitude towards the advertisement (Aad) is whether the consumer likes an advertisement (Ad) or hates it. Determinants of Aad consist of attitude towards the advertiser, assessment of the Ad execution itself, the mood evoked by Ad, and the extent to which the Ad affect viewers encouragement. Assessment of brands could be influenced by attitudes towards Ads. Of course what causes an advertisement to be impressive will change noticeably cross-culturally (Arnold et al, 2004). In performed studies, Aad is focused on as a mediator of advertisers effects on brand attitudes and purchase intentions (Suhere and Ispir, 2009). In recent studies, this issue has been proved that using of celebrity endorsement has a positive impact on attitudes of the consumer towards products and brands with which they are associated brand (Seno and Lukas, 2005). Agarwal and Malhotra (2005) have defined brand attitude as consumers general evaluative judgment of a brand based on brand beliefs. Such beliefs concern product-related attributes, like practical and experimental benefits. A successful endorser is able to enhance intentions and preferences towards brands directly or indirectly. An endorser who has major source factors of credibility (like expertise, trustworthiness and effectiveness) is able to impress purchase intentions of the consumer considerably (Liu et al, 2007). Information from a credible source can impress ideas, attitudes and behavior through a process called internalization (Belch and Belch, 1993). Internalization occurs when the receiver is motivated to have an issue. The receiver learns and accepts the idea of the credible spokesperson, since he supposes that information of this person represents an accurate position on the issue. Therefore, if such spokesperson who is known to be an expert endorses a product, consumers will more probably have a desirable idea about that advertisement and brand and they will consider it in their shopping list the next time they go shopping. Researchers have used the identification process of social influence in order to explain the effectiveness of celebrity endorsers (Basil, 1996). This theory suggests that if an individual identifies with another individual, then he is more likely to accept an attitude or behavior of that individual or a group. The internalization process of social influence is occurred when an individual accepts influence because the induced behavior is congruent with his value system†. An individual accepts the influence, since it provides a solution to a problem (Daneshvary and Schwer, 2000). In the elaboration likelihood model (ELM), individuals level of motivation to process central message arguments is represented which is one of its key factors that affects the relative impact of 401 European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) central and peripheral processing (Petty and Cacioppo, 1986). When applied to an adverting context, ELM suggests that consumers motivation to centrally process brand-relevant aspects of an advertisement is enhanced, the impact of central processing on brand attitudes should be enhanced, the effect of peripheral processing on brand attitudes should be reduced and the effect of brand attitudes on purchase intentions should be enhanced (Lafferty and Goldsmith, 1999). In this theoretical model, the endorser serves as cue just during peripheral processing. Therefore, the effect of the endorser should be reduced while central processing is enhanced. Mackenzie and Lutz (1989) have stated that advertiser credibility is a central processing cue more than any other thing. Credibility of the source is considered important in influence acceptance. A consumer will accept the accurate influence (information) and apply it if t here the source is perceived to be credible. It is accepted because it is demand by ones own values. Therefore, a products endorsement by a credible source may impress purchase behavior (Danwshvary and Schwer, 2000). As a result, celebrity endorsement can increase the process of recalling and consume assessment of products (Khatri, 2006). On the other hand, celebrity endorsement has a severe effect on learning approach and memory. Researchers in the field of marketing and social psychology have studied the manner of impressing of purchase decision by celebrity endorsements. Various hypotheses have been proposed including having recall of the product by celebrity endorsement, celebrities have credibility on expertise that makes the product more desirable or increases perceptions of quality; the celebrity endorsers image is transferred to the product so that those who use the product are associated with the image. Experiments suggest that celebrity endorsement can increase recall and consume assessment of the products in certain situations (Clark and Horstman, 2003). Most of the times, making connection with the brand message is occurred when consumers are not in a purchasing situation. Marketers use celebrity endorsement so that information will be kept in consumers minds better and in the case of purchasing situation, they can easily retrieve it (Surana, 2008). A successful endorser strategy can enhance the level of consumers recalling towards product information, reinforces consumers recognition to endorsed brands, positively influences consumers attitude to low-involved products and even enhance consumers purchase intention and preference towards brands (Liu et al, 2007) Therefore, hypothesizes of the study are as follows. H1: Attitude toward ad is positively affected by attitude toward celebrity endorser. H2: Attitude toward brand is positively affected by attitude toward celebrity endorser H3: Attitude toward brand is positively affected by attitude toward advertisement. H4: Intention to buy is positively affected by attitude toward celebrity endorser Method Data Collection Information was obtained from randomly selected students from University of Isfahan through survey questionnaires during September- November 2009. University of Isfahan is one of the major universities in the fields of science, human science and engineering. A total sample of 193 participants was obtained. The sample was composed of 137 women (71 percent) and 56 men (21 percent). A cluster sampling procedure with age and degree as main control variables was applied. The age of the respondents ranged from 19 to 30 years, with a mean of 24. All questionnaires were self-administered by the participants without interference from researchers. Measures The study uses multi-item scales to measure the constructs in our model. All items in the questionnaire were measured on a five-point Likert-type scale anchored from â€Å"strongly disagree† (1) to â€Å"strongly agree† (5). Some of the measures were available in the literature, though most were adapted to suit this European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) particular context. To measure attitude toward celebrity endorser we used ten items. Attitude toward advertisement and attitude toward brand were measured with six items and five items, respectively. In order to measure reliability of questions in the questionnaire, 30 questionnaires have been pre-tested through pilot studies. Then, amount of confidence coefficient has been calculated by method of Cronbachs alpha for which 0.83 % is obtained. This number shows that the applied questionnaire enjoys confidentiality or in other words the necessary reliability. Results Measurement Model Measurement model Structural equation modeling with LISREL 8.54 and the maximum likelihood (ML) method was used to analyse the data.. LISREL is a structural equations modeling technique that traces structural relations in a set of data (Eriksson et al, 2004). Structural equation modelling was used because it allows to estimate multiple and interrelated dependence relationships and unobserved factors can be represented in these relationships. Additionally, measurement error in the estimation process is accounted for (Hair et al., 1998). The model is assessed with the comparative fit index (CFI), standardised root meanresidual (SRMR), root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), and Akaike’s (1987) information criterion (AIC). The measurement model provided a good fit to the data: (CFI = 0:98, SRMR=0.058, RMSEA = 0.015 and AIC =396.22). All values of CFI, SRMR, and RMSEA meet the standards suggested by Hu and Bentler (1999): 0.95 for CFI, 0.08 for SRMR, and 0.06 for RMSEA.There are no Guidelines for the AIC but lower values indicate better fit. The fit of the structural model is good and is reported in Table I. In the following we will test our hypotheses and consequently report the standardised path coefficients. As shown in Table I, three of hypotheses are empirically supported and one of them is not confirmed. The effect of attitude toward celebrity endorser on attitude toward advertisement is significant (standardised path coefficient = 0:49). This shows that the higher the attitude toward endorser, the more the attitude toward advertisement. Attitude toward celebrity endorser also have significant effect on attitude toward brand (standardised path coefficient= 0.24), but this effect is comparatively weaker than its effect on attitude toward advertisement. On the other hand, the effect of attitude toward advertisement on attitude toward brand is significant (standardised path coefficient = 0:56). This clearly shows that attitude toward advertisement has the highest standardized path coefficient and therefore has the strongest influence on attitude toward brand. The results show that the effects of attitude celebrity endorser on Purchase intention is not significant (standardised path coefficient = 0.11). This means that attitud toward celebrities, does not necessarily always translates into purchase intentions. Discussion The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship among attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward advertisement and brand. Effects of a celebrity endorser on respondents assessments about advertisements and products endorsed by celebrities have been studied previously. There are some interesting findings for using of celebrity endorsers in Iranian advertisements. Attitude towards a celebrity endorser has a direct positive effect on attitude towards advertisement. Attitude towards advertisement has important effects on attitude towards brands, too and its effect is comparatively stronger than the effect of celebrity endorser. But the effect of attitude toward celebrity endorser on purchase intention is not considerable. Results of this study demonstrate that attitude towards celebrity endorser has an indirect effect on attitude towards brand. This result confirms outcomes of the previous research by Agarwal and Kamakura (1995), Till and Busler (1998), and White et al (2008). When there is a fit between the   European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 13, Number 3 (2010) endorser and the endorsed product, endorsers image helps construct the image of the brand in consumers minds. In fact, using of an attractive endorser has a positive impact on consumer attitudes towards a brand, because attractive endorsers have a tendency to get more attention than less attractive ones. On the other hand, experience of celebritys negative information can have an undesirable effect on the endorsed product. Transfer of negative information between the celebrity endorser and the endorsed product could be facilitated through cognitive relational pathway. We have considered social position of artists because people have more positive attitude towards artists. So, they distribute attitude towards artists to attitude towards endorsed brand. The association between attitude towards celebrity endorser and attitude towards advertisement has been shown in numerous studies, as the relationship between sports celebrity endorsements and retail products adverting are reported (White et al, 2008) and sports celebrity endorsements are being used in advertisements to impress brand selection. It is recognized in one study that attitude towards advertisement is considered as an interagent that influences attitude towards brand (Suhere and Ispir, 2009). Results of our study reveal that attitude towards advertisement is as an interagent between attitude towards celebrity and attitude towards brand. In our opinion, Iranians are interested in artists and know them as credible sources. So, ads makers use artists as celebrity to impress viewers attitudes towards advertisement and thereupon attitude towards brand. According to previous studies about the effect of the celebrity endorser on purchase intentions, such as Kamins (1990), Ohanian (1991), Liu et al (2007), we expected that positive attitude towards celebrities impressed purchase intentions. But results of this study confirm research outcomes of OMahony and Meenaghan (1997). According to this study, attitude towards celebrities does not necessarily always interpret in to purchase intentions. It seems that Iranians consumer tendency for buying is influenced by other various items such as age, gender, income and education too. Limitation This study has some limitations. The primary limitation of the present research relates to generalizability. The sample was restricted to students in University of Isfahan and this limits our results to be generalized, too. Another relevant consideration is that numerous girl students in university of Isfahan are more than its boy students. Also, this study relied exclusively on questionnaires to assess influence attitude toward celebrity endorser on attitude toward advertisements and brands, whereas this relationships need to be more investigated. On the other hand, this paper could not estimate effect of attitude toward celebrity endorser on purchase intention. In addition, our results are relational and not causal; therefore, it can not be concluded from this study whether attitude toward advertisement and brand is only cause or result of attitude toward celebrity endorser. Conclusion In this study the goal was to indicate the influence of using celebrity endorsers in Iranian advertisements on attitudes of students in University of Isfahan toward those advertisements and brands. The result of this study showed that the positive and significant relationship between attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward advertisements and brands. By analyzing the output resulting from testing hypotheses, it can be concluded that attitude toward celebrity endorser has directly or indirectly influence on attitude toward brand. Consequences suggested that attitude toward advertisement was as a mediator between attitude toward celebrity endorser and attitude toward brand. On the other hand, attitude toward celebrity endorser hadn’t significant influence on purchase intention. So, future researches should put more effort into making strong believable explanations for how celebrity endorsers are able to have significant influence on consumer intention for purchase. References [1] [2] Agrawal, J. and Kamakura, W.A. 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Clinton, A., Gary, H. and David, S. (2008), â€Å"Exploring the relationship between celebrity endorser effects and advertising effectiveness, a quantitative synthesis of effect size†, International Journal of Advertising, Vol.27 No.2, pp. 209–234. Daneshvary, R. and Schwer R.K. (2000), â€Å"The association endorsement and consumers intention to purchase†, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 17 No. 3 2000, pp. 203-213. Erdogan, B.Z. (1999), â€Å"Celebrity endorsement: a literature review†, Journal of Marketing Management, 15(3), pp. 291–314. Erdogan, B.Z., Baker, M.J. and Tagg, S. (2001), â€Å"Selecting celebrity endorsers: the practitioner’s perspective†, Journal of Advertising Research, Vol. 41 No. 3, pp. 39-48. Eriksson,K., Kerem,K. and Nilsson,D. (2005), â€Å"Customer acceptance of internet banking in Estonia†, International Journal of Bank Marketing,Vol.23 No. 2, pp. 200-216. Freiden, J.B. 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Kamins, M.A. (1990), â€Å"An investigation into the ‘match-up’ hypothesis in celebrity advertising: when beauty may be only skin deep†, Journal of Advertising, Vol. 19 No. 1, pp. 413. Lear,K.E, Runyan,R.C. and Whitaker,W.H. (2009), â€Å"Sports celebrity endorsements in retail products adver tising†, International Journal of Retail Distribution Management, Vol. 37 No. 4, pp. 308-321. Katyal, S. (2008), â€Å"Impact of Celebrity Endorsement on a Brand†, Chillibreeze writer, available at www.chillibreeze.com/articles/ accessed on 12th, July. Khatri, P. (2006), â€Å"Celebrity Endorsement: A Strategic Promotion Perspective†, Indian Media Studies Journal Vol.1 No.1. July-Dec. 405

Why performance appraisal is important

Why performance appraisal is important The aims of the performance appraisal are to provide the employees with the feedback on their performance. Performance appraisal also helps in identifying the training needs of the employees. The performance helps the organization provide the proper rewards and recognition to the deserving employees. It also provides the opportunity to the organization for the diagnosis and development. It also helps the organization to better the communication between the employees and the administration. (Thomas F. Patterson,1987). There are various methods that are employed to measure and evaluate the performance and appraise the employees. The appraisal system of the organization may have the common practice of measuring the performance of the organization in the form of the numerical or the scaling system. (Armstrong, Michael,2006). The managers are asked to assess the individuals on the scale on the various objectives and attributes. In many companies employees may receive the assessment from their peers, managers, subordinates and customers which is also known as the 360 degree performance appraisal. (Smit, Martin E.J.H.,2006). Tuckman and Oliver, 1968 : This study illustrate how feedback is the efficient tool which valued the most for crucial decision making process. Receiver will be benefit from the various people surrounding him by feedback system if the sources have ample of knowledge about task performance of the recipient. According to study conducted student versus supervisor feedback to teachers proved that students were more effective efficient to improve the performance of the teacher rather than the supervisor. In explanation the author says that teacher spend more time with the students rather than the supervisor. Along with that multiple feedback system correctly shows the potential of the person by reducing biasness or malice practice which is usually part of the corporate. Seniors or supervisor generally or constantly focus on the scope of the improvement, underestimating the achievement. DeNissi and Mitchell, 1978: According to him middle upper management spend a huge amount of time with their peers. Hence the peers have maximum opportunity to know about attributes, qualities rather than supervisor or the boss. Hence its more important who spend the maximum time as well as who observe the concern person in many different dimension of work behavior that persons opinion is quite important. Mintzberg (1973) : This literature review gives us details about how manager use the opinion of the staff, supervisor or peers as effective tool to evaluate or appraise of the employee which is completely unbiased in the nature. According his study middle level manager, peers and subordinates are more qualified to evaluate the performance rather than supervisor because the they have more information about the working style, working environment rather than the supervisor. It helps to enhance the supervisory behavior. Hegarty, 1973: Many experimental studies already proved that multiple feedback not only improve the supervisory quality but also brought transparency in the complete appraisal system. According to him top level people think that peers were at best position to evaluate the personal traits as well as personal achievement. Implementation of 360 degree employee assessment is fair practice which help to reduce the discrimination biasness help to motivate the the employee to perform better productive. Implementation of multiple feedback system helps to improve to qualities in individual level as well as professional level. Bernardin (1986) : Though peers subordinates were in the best position to evaluate the performance but major challenge is the problem of anonymity. Its very difficult to share the correct information about the peers with whom you have a good rapport. Hence some time the multiple feedback system become ineffective biased. The Essence and Functions of Performance Appraisal Systems by Newman, Warren McGiIl, 1987: Job performance evaluation is an integral part of an any organization. It is basically management decision to control the organizations which consist of the control standards, measurement, and corrective actions. Control Standard is the first foremost thing which based primarily upon the mission of the organization or individual short term goal of the every department. It indicates the crucial contribution of the performance appraisal system in the organization. Measurement which is a quantitative analysis or process depends upon many steps like appraisal criteria/ technique consist of the attributes or parameters, appraisal timing. The appraisal criteria are predefined by the organization which varies from organization to organization. The appraisal method or technique plays a crucial role in this process. Generally appraisal depends upon the performance of the candidate along with lot of qu alities like team skill, soft skill, analytical skill, domain knowledge and so forth. Feedback is most crucial essential part of the appraisal process which cannot ignore any time. Corrective measures are taken after feedback receive from the different sources. The appropriate corrective action should be taken to if there is any discrepancy between actual performance and performance standard. It not only a check guard for an employee to attain certain standard or level but also help to motivate the employee to perform better and productive manner. It built or reinforces trust among the team members or employees. According to this study it creates a value which help to motivate the employees to perform better. Ilgen, Barnes-Farrell, and McKellin (1993): According to authors four important aspects should be considered to appraise the performance of the individual, those are purpose of the performance appraisal, characteristics of the rates, nature of the scale used for the rating purpose and the impact of influence of this appraisal on the organization as whole. Chu (2002): Though his study compare performance appraisal system in two industries i.e. manufacturing and service industry but it widely applicable to all the industry. According to him comprehensive framework of the performance appraisal include six category which are purpose of appraisal, personnel whom to appraise, criteria or attribute for the appraisal, methods involve for that, appraisal timing, feedback of the appraisal. Cleveland, Murphy and Williams (1989): According his study there is a positive correlation exist between the organization characteristics and the performance appraisal. Organization culture and structure are two ingredients of the performance measurement system. When organization more leans towards to the decentralization, performance standard more concentrates towards the results, where organization is centralized one it more leans towards process of management functions. Jobber, Hooley Shipley (1993): According to them, a large organization and small organization adapt different methods for performance evaluation. Pre determined performance standards which are more formalized and quantitative in nature adopted by the large or multinational organization where as small organization generally follow qualitative and informal appraisal methods. According to this study, the performance appraisal system differ from industry type to industry type but still there is a relation between organization characteristics and function of performance appraisal system. Ouchi (1981): The study carried out the performance appraisal system in region wise rather than industry type wise. According to his study American organizations are more focused about individual performance, while Japanese organizations are more focused about group or team performance. 2.2 The Performance Appraisal Process Performance appraisal is planned, developed and implemented through a series of steps, Establish performance standards: Appraisal systems require performance standards, which serve as benchmarks against which performance is measured. To be useful, standards should relate to the desired results of each job. In situations pertaining to embarrassment, performance standards must be clear to both the appraiser and the appraisee. The performance standards or goals must be developed after a thorough analysis of the job. Goals must be written down. They must be measurable within certain time and cost considerations. Communicate the standards: performance appraisal involves at least two parties; the appraiser who does the appraisal and the appraisee whose performance is being evaluated. Both are expected to do certain things. The appraiser should prepare job description clearly; help the appriasee set his goals and targets; analyse results objectively; offer coaching and guidance to the appraisee whenever required and reward good results. The appraisee should be very clear about what he is doing and why he is doing it. For this purpose, performance standards must be communicated to appraisees and their reactions should be noted down right away. If necessary, these standards must be reviesed or modified. As pointed out by De Cenzo and Robbins, too many jobs have vague performance standards and the problem is compounded when these standards are set in isolation and do not involve the employee. Measure actual performance: After the performance standards are set and accepted, the next step is to measure actual performance. This requires the use of dependable performance measures, the ratings used to evaluate performance. Performance measures-to be helpful-must be easy to use, reliable, and report on the critical behaviours that determine performance. Four common sources of information which are generally used by managers regarding how to measure actual performance are personal observation, statistical reports, oral reports and written reports. Performance measures may be objective or subjective. Objective performance measures are indications of job performance that can be verified by others and are usually quantitative. Subjective performance measures are ratings that are based on the personal standards or opinions of those doing the evaluation, and are not verifiable by others. Subjective criteria include ratings by superiors, overall goals, and socio-cultural values of the environment. Compare actual performance with standards and discuss the appraisal: actual performance may be better than expected and sometimes it may go off the track. Whatever be the consequences, there is a way to communicate and discuss the final outcome. The assessment of another persons contribution and ability is not an easy task. It has serious emotional overtones as it affects the self-esteem of the appraisee. Any appraisal based o subjective criteria is likely to be questioned by the appraise and leave him quite dejected and unhappy when the appraisal turns out be negative. Taking corrective action, if necessary: Corrective action is of two types: one puts out the fires immediately, while the other destroys the root of the problem permanently. Immediate action sets things right and get things back on track whereas the basic corrective action gets to the source of deviations and seeks to adjust the difference permanently. Basic corrective steps seek to adjust the difference permanently. Basic corrective steps seek to find out how and why performance deviates. 2.3 CONFIDENTIAL SYSTEM AND OPEN SYSTEM OF APPRAISAL 2.3.1Confidential System In most of the organizations confidential reports are considered to be confidential documents. The individual is communicated if there are any adverse ratings or remarks in C.R for a particular year. Communication aspect does not work well in most of organizations due to reluctance on part of assessor to communicate to employee about what he thinks of him. The greatest advantage of the confidential system is that it fails to honor the right if the individual to be heard in matter in which he has very high stakes. 2.3.2Open System The open system suggests that all aspects of assessment should be processed with the full knowledge of assesses. This will help him to understand his deficiencies and he will be able to appreciate what the organization is doing for his development. Whatever system suits the organization depends on culture and social conditions of the organization. In times to come, the confidential system will gradually give the way to open system. The need for involving assesses in the process of appraisal can be seen from different angles. One is the need to allow participation by the employee in the process of evaluation. Another need is involving him in setting his goals or targets. Whether the individual should be given an opportunity for self-appraisal as part of reporting process or whether this opportunity should be given to him through an appraisal interview is matter of policy for an organization. What is that opportunity should be given to have a say as to what he himself thinks about his own performance. The chances of getting a good report or bad report are same, as there is no guarantee that the assessment reports would be written on basis of real performance. Often a reporting officer who wants to give a good report about a poor performer would Emphasize the potential aspect of the individual while a very potential may get an adverse report based on his performance. However, a person who is initially connected with day-to-day work of employee concerned should do performance appraisal. This immediate superior should have an important say in evaluating his performance. Self-appraisal should not form the sole basis for any final decision. Self-appraisal should only form part of a sound appraisal system. 2.4 METHODS OF PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL The performance appraisal methods may be classified into two categories, namely the Traditional and Modern methods, TRADITIONAL METHODS MODERN METHODS Graphic Rating Scales 1. Behaviorally Anchored Ranking Method Rating Scales Paired Comparison Method 2. Assessment Centre Forced Distribution Method 3. Human Resource Accounting Checklist Method 4. Management by Objectives Critical Incident Method 5. 360 degrees appraisal Grading Method Forced Choice Method 2.4.1 TRADITIONAL METHODS Graphic Rating Scales method is a printed form which is used to evaluate the performance of the employee. A variety of traits may be used in these types of rating devices the most common being the quantity and quality of work. The rating scales can also be adapted by including traits that the company considers important for effectiveness on the job. From the graphic rating scales excerpts can be obtained about the performance standards of employees. The rating scale method is the most common method of evaluation of an employees performance today. The graphic rating scale may however, suffer from a long standing disadvantage, i.e., it may be arbitrary and the rating may be subjective. In Ranking Method: the ranking of an employee in a work group is done against that of another employee. The relative position of each employee is expressed in terms of his numerical rank. It may also be done by ranking a person on his job performance against another member of the competitive group. The quintessence of this method is that employees are ranked according to their relative levels of performance. While using this method, the evaluator is asked rate employees from highest to lowest on some overall criterion. Though it is relatively easier to rank the best and the worst employees, it is difficult to rank the average employees. Under Paired Comparison Method the appraiser ranks the employees by comparing on employee with all other employees in the group, one at a time. This method results in each employee being given a positive comparison total and a certain percentage of the total positive evaluation. Forced Distribution Method is developed to prevent the raters from rating too high or too low. Under this method, the rater after assigning the points to the Performance of each employee has to distribute his ratings in a pattern to confirm to frequency distribution. Check list Method consists of a list with a number if statements about the worker and his behavior. Each statement of this list is assigned value depending upon its importance. Both statements and their values are derived from preliminary research in which the pooled judgments of persons familiar with the job are used. No restrictions are put on the rater as to the number of statements he should mark. The workers final rating is taken as the average of the scale values of all statements that his superior has checked in rating him. Under Critical Incidents Method, the supervisor continuously records the critical incidents of the employee performance or behavior relating to all characters (both positive negative) in a specially designed notebook. The supervisor rates the performance of his subordinates on the basis of notes taken by him. Grading Method, this method certain well-defined grades are established in advance. Generally; three different grades are used i.e., out standing, satisfactory and unsatisfactory. Employee performance is compared with the defined grades and each employee is allotted a grade that best describes his/her performances. The main limitation of this method is that the rater may rate most of the employers on the higher side of their performance. Forced Choice Method, J.P Guilford developed this method. This method contains a series of statements and the rater rates how effectively a statement describes each Individual being evaluated. The main limitation of this method is that it takes a lot of time and effort to construct several evaluating statements. Under Group Appraisal Method, an employee is appraised by a group of appraisers. This group consists of the immediate supervisor of the employee, other supervisors who have close contact with the employees work, manager or head of the department and consultants. The head of the department or manager may be the chairman of the group and the immediate supervisor may act as the coordinator for the group activities. In Confidential Reports Method, superior appraises the performance of his subordinates based on his observations, judgments and intuitions. The superior keeps his judgment and report confidentially. 2.4.2MODERN METHODS Behaviorally Anchored Rating scales (BARS) method combines elements of the traditional rating scales and critical incidents methods. BARS are a sophisticated method of evaluating employee performance based on employee behavior rather than attitudes or assumptions about motivation or potential. BARS are numerical scale that is anchored by specific narrative example of behaviors that range from very negative to very positive descriptions of performance. BARS are difficult and time-consuming scale to develop. Each job must be analyzed and a list of critical incidents developed by the experts in the job. Once the critical incidents are developed, they are then scaled from effective to ineffective performance. The BARS technique offers high degree of inter rater reliability and objectivity because of its emphasis on behavior. In the Assessment Centre Method, individuals from various departments are brought together to spend two or three days working on an individual or group assignment similar to ones they would be handling when prompted. Observers rank the performance of each and every participant in order of merit. The Human Resource Accounting, deals with cost and contribution of human resources to the organization. Cost of human resources may be taken as standard. Employee performance can be measured in terms of employee contribution to the organization. This technique has developed and still it is in the transitory stage. The concept of Management by Objectives, requires the management to set specific, measurable goals with each employee and then periodically discuss the latters progress towards these goals. This technique emphasizes participatively set goals that are tangible, verifiable and measurable. MBO focuses attention on what must be accomplished rather than how it is to be accomplished. It is, thus a kind of goal setting and appraisal programme involving six steps: Set the organisations goals Set department goals Discuss departmental goals Define expected results Performance reviews Provide feedback Under 360 degrees Appraisal, The 360 degrees appraisal method was first developed and used by General Electric Company of USA in1992. Today, the Indian companies like Wipro corporations, Infosys, Reliance Industries follow this method. In this method, his superiors, subordinates, peers and customers with whom he interacts in the course of his performance appraise an employee. All these appraisers provide feedback on employee by completing survey questionnaire designed for this purpose. And then reports are prepared, and then presented to the employees being rated. 2.5 ESSENTIAL CHARACTERS OF AN EFFECTIVE APPRAISAL SYSTEM Performance appraisal system should be effective as a number of crucial decisions are made on the basis of score or rating given by the appraiser, which in turn, is heavily based on the appraisal system. An effective appraisal system should possess the following essential characteristics: Reliability and validity Job relatedness Standardization Practical viability Training the appraisers Open communication Employee access to results 2.6 MULTI-SOURCE RATINGS IN TEAM PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL Recent trends in organizational behavior and the structural changes of organizations have facilitated an increase in the use of teams (Fisher, Schoenfeldt, Shaw, 2003). As traditional bureaucratic hierarchies have been replaced by flatter structures, teams have become commonplace in most organizations (Cascio, 1998). As with individual performance appraisal, performance rating in team settings is complicated by a host of issues regarding the most appropriate method for measuring it, including the appropriateness of rating sources. Team performance appraisal is further complicated through working with others as a necessity for the successful completion of work. The performance dimensions relevant to team performance differ from the task-specific performance typically evaluated in individual performance appraisal. In general, interpersonal aspects of contextual performance become more relevant, if not necessary, for successful team performance (Levy Steelman, 1997). Most conceptualiz ations of team performance integrate contextual performance dimensions into formal appraisal. Across the literature, a lack of agreement exists regarding what the specific targets should be in team performance appraisal and how the ratings should be applied. Although the teams effectiveness is the ultimate goal, the performance of individuals and the team as a whole should be evaluated. Levy and Steelman (1997) argue that the traditional supervisor-rated methods of performance appraisal are not appropriate for team settings. Ratings should instead come from all sources in cases where they have adequate opportunity to observe the teams behaviors. Aside from opportunity to observe, the raters relationship with the team may influence his or her perspective; in other words, whether the rater is a team member, team supervisor, customer, etc. Regarding the effectiveness of each rating source, each has advantages and disadvantages. The criteria evaluated by the majority of the literature were inter-rater agreement, agreement with hard criteria, and rating acceptance. From the literature reviewed, the majority of research on rater effectiveness in team settings evaluates rater congruence. This may not even be an appropriate measure of effectiveness, since multi-source appraisal generally proposes that each source affords a unique perspective for evaluating the targets performance. Therefore, rating sources may not agree and still be accurate (Murphy Cleveland, 1995). Overall, the effectiveness of multi-source ratings in team performance appraisal has yet to be definitively answered through empirical research. Of the various theoretical models and empirical studies, one common area of agreement is that team performance should be appraised using multiple raters. Still, a lack of research exists regarding the effectiveness of each rating source. In general, the practice of team based performance appraisal has far outpaced empirical research (Jones, 1997). Research in the domain of team performance appraisal is filled with questions and characterized by a lack of agreement on many fronts. Overall, team performance management is a research area with a great demand for future development.

The Performance Management At Hewlett Packard Commerce Essay

The Performance Management At Hewlett Packard Commerce Essay   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hewlett-Packard is believed to be one of the most popular companies in the universe. It markets all over the world and distinct locations. Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard founded HP in the year 1939. The company has its own philosophy to attain success and stand different from its competitors in the market. Management by Objectives (MOB) is one of the successful trends carried out by HP Company to measure its performance management and appraisal system. Therefore many companies were following this method for evaluating their performance management. The objective of this report is to identify the performance management effectiveness and frequency of appraisal and also recognize the strength and limitations at HP Company and to make recommendations regarding their limitations and possible ways to overcome them (Armstrong 2005). Hewlett-Packard   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Hewlett-Packard (HP) is a multinational company marketing allover the world. The company offers a wide range of consumer and IT products such as personal computers, Laptops, printing machines and services, Ink, Toner paper, Monitors, Accessories and softwares, Scanners, Smart Phones etc. The HP Way   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The HP way is not entirely different from other companys management philosophy. But the company has got its own principles and management frame implemented by its founders in approaching the top to bottom level management in distinct way. It implies that the company should trust and respect every individual and they believe in their employees intelligence leads to company success and they followed decentralized system (Peter Burrows business week 2004). This leads HP Company to retain the second top most places in the hardware industry globally (Hardware Top 100 2010). System Aim Performance management is a process carried out by organizations in order to attain the organization goals by identifying their employees performance individually and in teams (Armstrong Baron, 2005). The management levels may differ from organizations to organizations thus every management has its own performance appraisal system to identify, support, ascertain problems, develop and appreciation to the employees regard their work performance (Sims 2002a, p. 81). Performance management evaluates the companys performance of the employees, which helps to give effective feedback in order to improve their employees working performance and to succeeded organization targets. The organizations targets are considered to be the long-term goals and to attain that performance appraisal system are to be carried as short-term goals. Controlling process, which is the most important role of any organization to monitor the individual employees performance and this helps to compare the employees per formance and to analyses the overall management performance (Sims, 2002a). The basic need for controlling system is to initiate performance principles, observing performance of the employees and comparing it with the primary principles framed by the organization and finally taking required action to manage the performance. Hewlett-Packard applies the quality management therefore their organizations aim and objective is concerned about the ultimate customers. Therefore, HP employees practice the scheme called Management by Objectives (MOB). This scheme has structured the company objectives into two elements as long-term objectives and short-term objectives. These objectives were discussed between their distinct management levels that are communicating the performance criteria with the individual employees and as department vise were negotiated. The Management by Objective (MOB) scheme finds how the employees complete their task successfully, which indicates the process of mentoring and coaching. This process is made efficient by interconnecting the monitoring process at all levels throughout the HP Company. MOB also involves in the strategic planning of HP Company as a part that describes the aim or goal of the company. The companys top management involves in performance management system and introduces the performance appraisal process to the employees and given chances to fix their goals. Even the workers at bottom management level are encouraged to participate in the process of decision making by suggesting their views for attaining targets successfully this process is carried out for every six months between all levels. The Mobs objectives are to serve as day-to-day to help in making decision for tremendous growth of the company. Dave Packard believe in if HP made every individuals understanding their company objectives and goals and what the company planning for, then they could easily get every employees narrow attention towards attaining the goal. This is known as the HP Way. Frequency of Appraisal:   It is a process of identifying the employees characteristics during the working period that basically indicates quantitative and also qualitative features of management performance. This can be identified by adopting certain appraisal methods in order to find how the employees work efficiently and perfectly. Accordingly performance appraisal has goal setting and performance evaluation as arching targets. These targets are combined because of the performance management criteria used by the managers/supervisor in order to encourage the employees by giving proper command about how to transfer results to compete distinct levels of performance. 1. Goal Setting In HP Company they traditionally practice the HP Way, according to it they give respect and importance to each individual employee, therefore people in top-to-bottom level management have determined their goals. According to Bill Hewlett (co-founder of HP) a organizations performance should be measured by setting up of Goals also that should be measurable in both qualitative and quantitative terms for efficient management performance (mystrategicplan). 2. Performance Evaluation In Hewlett-Packard, the performance evaluation method is implemented as a basic development device. The company conducts frequent meetings by mixed up with all level of management people at one roof to evaluate about the management performance quarterly. According to the HP Way the employees are given full freedom to place their requests and ideas in the meeting and their suggestions are strongly supported. They practice an informal way of approaching to the analysis the performance of its management by giving feedbacks to the employees on an ongoing basis. This reflects and made the company to introduce 360-degree and MOB appraisal method as measuring the companys performance. Method of Appraisal Management of Objectives In HP Company their managements performance is analyzed by carrying out the management of objectives appraisal method. Through this method the company find their employees rating during the work time and those who attain top rating are awarded with promotions and offers on the other hand the employees who got poor performance rating will be taken necessary actions to make them correct accordingly. This appraisal scheme followed by the Hewlett-Packard Company measures both the qualitative and quantitative aspects of their employees performance. The company follows a quality management hence their objectives

Mastering Takeaway Leadership :: essays research papers

Mastering "Takeaway Leadership" Effective managers remove obstacles for employees -- and then step aside to let them do their jobs The recent flurry of CEO firings (Hewlett-Packard's (HPQ) Carly Fiorina, Merck's (MRK) Raymond Gilmartin, Boeing's (BA) Harry Stonecipher) has again raised the issue of leadership. It's tempting to ask: Has the job of CEO for a megacompany become too complex to handle? Is it asking too much of just one person to expect him or her to build fruitful relationships throughout an industry and the financial community, deliver revenues and earnings that excite the stock market, launch ambitious initiatives for the long term, and avoid product, financial, and sexual scandals -- all while presenting a perennially pleasant personality? The answer is no, it isn't expecting too much, in part because all of that comes second to a CEO's paramount responsibility. That should be to shape the organization's goals, to communicate them through many levels to the people who are charged with getting the work done, and to demand -- and reward -- behaviors that demonstrate the company's ethical values and standards. This is one of those "simple, but not easy" tasks, and it's a critical one to master. Often, CEOs get credit for everything good that happens in a company when, in fact, their greatest impact comes from influencing the people who report to them. OBSTACLE REMOVER. I had a boss, John, who understood this well. I haven't heard a better description of leadership than the one he shared with his team at an offsite meeting. He said: "As your president, I'm here to help you be successful. You already know the company's goals and how your job fits into that picture. If any of that is unclear, I'll expect to hear from you. My job is to take away any obstacles that keep you from succeeding. Then, it's just you and the goal line. If there's an obstacle between you and any of our targets, I need to know about it." What sorts of obstacles was John referring to? Things like red tape, office politics, hierarchical nonsense (a vice-president won't return a director's phone call, for instance), disagreement about direction, territorial disputes, and so on. John's speech was short, but it left three critical impressions: 1 Everyone knew that the usual complaints and excuses (the guy wouldn't call me, I couldn't get the information, I was held up by HR) wouldn't fly in John's organization.