Essay on Developing a Business Plan - 708 Words

Our plan is to have various t-shirt designs promoting â€Å"going green†. We also plan to have these designs printed on other things as well such as recycled bags. Our main colors that we are most definitely going to use are green on white, so that the green is very bold and simple, but we will offer other colors as well. We will use the best quality t-shirts and bags so that they will last for a long time and will be worth your money. The benefit for selling these shirts is that the customers will be our prime donator to our charities because their interest in our store is going towards our selected charities. The designs we select will be chosen carefully and selectively. We want our designs to appealing so that other people would want to buy†¦show more content†¦We would also like to build a website where our products will be catalogued and viewed by our prospective customers and buy from there for an easier access. Survey has been successfully practiced for a long time. It serves its purpose in getting data from a certain number of people that represents that population. The first step for this process is by asking the customers, it can be either yours or your competitors. By asking them, the owner will get an idea for new approaches to attract more prospective customers. Second, gathering data from the store’s own records. Identifying which products sells the most and which one does not. From there, the people in charge of marketing will figure out how to develop the products. A new way of selling products today is internet shopping. It has become popular due to its easy accessibility and process. We would also like to give our customers an option of whether they would want to visit our store or our online shop. The advantage of the online shop is that, our new arrivals can first be seen on the site. People are realizing that things can be recycled; it saves money and helps the environment. These factors are what we’d like to express to our customers through our products. Our store benefits our customers by letting them finally have a green store to go to, a place to learn more about recycling or recycled products, and a small percentage of our income will go to benefit our charities. We plan to have ourShow MoreRelatedBusiness Plan For Developing A Business2092 Words   |  9 PagesDeveloping a business plan is an important way to find out a lot about your company along with taking an inside look at how you will plan for the future. Of course developing a business is a lot of work, but if you have a legitimate blueprint for success you will find the journey to not only be rewarding but also worthwhile. Creating a business plan can be achieved by following a few, but important steps. Inside each of the criteria you will need to develop questions and answers that will pertainRead MoreTypes Of Business Plans : Developing A Business Plan778 Words   |  4 PagesTypes of Business plans Developing a business plan is crucial to the long term success of a business. A business plan can provide direction and guidance to the organization as it grows over the years. Business plans can be written to focus on the specific requirement of the project at hand or as an outline for the business for the next few years (Moskwa, 2014). Effective business plan allows the entrepreneur or the business to think about what is necessary to run the business, such as equipmentRead MoreDeveloping And Implement A Business Plan2269 Words   |  10 PagesDevelop and implement a business plan Introduction Dong’s China Bar would like to establish its business operation in Little Bourke Street to expand its business images. 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Sports For Kids Sports - 1540 Words

Sports for Kids Sports is a major emphasis in American culture, even in sports at a young age. This occasionally leads to coaches being too intense, resulting in injuries/health problems. Combined with the issue of expense it takes for children to participate in sports, the question of whether kids should play sports or not comes up. Even though playing sports at a young age has its problems, it also teaches children life lessons, improves their health, and helps them to continue their education. Playing sports at a young age teaches kids life lessons that can help them in their adult lives. When playing a team sport one learns about teamwork. Athletes are taught that there is â€Å"no I in team†, and that even if they feel like they are the†¦show more content†¦A lot of times adults do not want to go into work, pay the bills, clean the house, etc., but adults do because they need to make money, keep power on in the house, and keep the house a livable environment for their families to live in. Playing sports is also good for children’s health. Most kids now a day just want to watch TV or play on their phones as soon as they get home from school. When kids participate in sports they have to go to practice after school and do physical activities. This helps lower kids blood pressure, keeps them at a healthy weight, keeps their heart healthy, helps keep their digestive system healthy, and increases their lung capacity. Even though sports benefit kids healt h, there are also health considers such as injury. When playing any sport, there is a chance of getting injured, especially when kids are pushed too hard by coaches that are too intense. An example of this is when the eight year old, Adien Cullen, passed out on the field but his coach let him continue to play when he regained consciousness because he was the star player; resulting in Cullen developing a disease that causes server pain and it is developed partially from being pushed too hard in sports (Plaschke). Even though sports organizations are working fervently on lowering the risk of concussions in sports and reducing the amount of side effects after experiencing a concussion, the issue of concussions inShow MoreRelatedAre Sports Bad for Kids?599 Words   |  2 PagesSports in Schools Do you think sports are bad for kids? There are many reasons that kids shouldn’t play sports, but there are also many good reasons to show why sports are good. Sports are good not just for health but for life! 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Representation of Adolescence Through Fiction Free Essays

Representations of Adolescence through Fiction According to Kate Legged, an Australian Journalist, young adult novels are too dark and pessimistic, as she states in the following quote: Father bashes mother, mother abandons children†¦ Violence, drugs, suicides. The novels of some top writes of young people’s fiction have never been bleaker or more explicit†¦ (Kate Legged; The Australian Magazine; 1998) ‘Tomorrow, When the War Began’ by John Married and ‘Ugly by Constance Brioche both involve issues which could be considered bleak and disturbing. They tell stories of violence, one in a war situation while the other in the form of child abuse. We will write a custom essay sample on Representation of Adolescence Through Fiction or any similar topic only for you Order Now However, young adults are represented in an optimistic light in both novels, becoming responsible and able to persist and show resilience through the circumstances they are faced with, making them able to overcome these challenges. These books promote the awareness and understanding of issues, and show that hope is what the characters cling to in their time of need. The main characters in both books are adolescents who develop and become stronger in their difficult situations. Constance (Clare), in ‘Ugly, writes an autobiography of her life of eating and neglect by her mother. Elli, the main character in ‘Tomorrow, When the War Began’, writes a diary about guerilla warfare in an invasion where her parent’s are prisoners of war. Therefore, both are put in a position of responsibility whereby they must look after themselves without parent’s being there for protection. They are represented in a positive light which contrasts with their negative surroundings. ‘Ugly presents violence which is directed at Clare in the home environment. Clare suffers physical abuse (even leading to hospitalizing) and sexual harassment which re consequential of adults in the book, in particular her mother Carmen. Her treatment of my sisters was certainly very different from her treatment of me. They did not get the unkind words I got, or have their nipples pinched, and they were not beaten or punched. † (Clare; Ugly; p. 8 -9) Although Clare is unaware why she is victimized by her mother, it is possibly because she is darker skinned than the rest of the family. Carmen abuses her daughter through verbal abuse, neglect and physical harm. Her self-esteem is lowered through name calling such as the following: Lord, sweet Lord, how come she so ugly? Ugly. Ugly. If I hadn’t given birth to her, sweet Lord, I would have sworn she was a fraud. Heavenly Jesus, sweet and kind, why have you given me a swine? (Carmen; Ugly; p. 52) Child abuse is intolerable in our society. As the reader sees the pain and suffering that Clare experiences, they respond to the torment by feeling sympathy towards Clare and disgust towards Carmen. So readers are positioned to admire Clare for her courageousness in persevering with life, fending for herself, her determination to become a barrister and her continual study and work ethic to achieve this goal. At the end of the book a spirited Clare visits her mother and lets her know what she thinks: You made me (Clare) hate you (Carmen), and I do. You know what? I don’t think that you should ever have had children. And not that bad after all. (Clare; Ugly; p. 08) When Clare finally confronts Carmen, readers feel relief and thrilled for Clare because she has moved on from her mother’s cruelty, to lead a better life and become a successful proud woman, unlike Carmen. From a horrible background, this young adult is able to achieve her lifetime goal. Unlike ‘Ugly, where personal violence is the main issue, ‘Tomorrow, When the War Began’ conveys violence which is directed at the whole country in a war scenario. Elli, the protagonist, records the story of fighting the enemy for her country and family. The characters in ‘Tomorrow, When the War Began’ also grow throughout the novel and become fighters for others’ lives, rather than always putting themselves first. While ‘Ugly has one main character, ‘Tomorrow, When the War Began’ features a group of seven friends, who are able to support one another throughout the war which the group discovers has broken out while they are on a camping trip. From innocence, the group is suddenly faced with a massive change in their lives: We believed we were safe. That was the big fantasy. Now we know we’re not, and like you said, we’ll never feel safe again, and so it’s bye-bye innocence. (Elli; Tomorrow, When the War Began; p. 107) Readers can associate with these characters as they are typical Australian teenagers, which is seen through their behavior and country town in which they live. Although they are from a variety of different backgrounds, they show true Australian qualities, making them likeable to the reader as they hold the name values. The characters become more cautious and realize how important friends and family are. War has meant they are no longer innocent and must grow up and fend for themselves, becoming more responsible and independent with every minute, which is illustrated in this quote: We’ve got to stick together, that’s all I know. We all drive each other crazy at times, but I don’t want to end up here alone†¦ (Elli; Tomorrow, When the War Began; p. 284) These young adults (Elli, Homer, Lee, Carrie, Kevin, Robin and F’) find the strength to live on while their country has been invaded ND their families captured. As with Clare, the reader is positioned to admire these characters because they show traits that most readers would can relate to and respect such as courage, commitment, independence, responsibility and family values as seen in the following quote. ‘It’s our own families,’ said Carrie. ‘That’s what everyone’s worried about, isn’t it? I guess I’d fight for my country but I’m going mad wondering what’s happened to my family’. (Carrie; Tomorrow, When the War Began; p. 172) One goal remains throughout which is to fight for their families and country ND their own survival. Through the representations of personal and social issues which are explored in the two books, readers are positioned to view the world as bleak and disturbing, which supports the view of young adult novels presented in Ledge’s quote. However, the representations of young adults in the novels suggest that they are very capable of dealing with immense problems and overcoming them. Young adults in the novels are able to move past these issues because of their resilience and a small ray of hope in their lives, so they can continue to work towards a better life. How to cite Representation of Adolescence Through Fiction, Papers

Importance of Social Analysis-Samples for Students-Myassignment

Question: Why is it Important to engage in Social analysis when trying to understand or examine a Social Problem? Answer: Social analysis is important as it helps an individual or a group to examine the various aspects of a social system deeply and accordingly plan out interventions to modify them in a positive manner. This is also important as with the presence of this ability, one can determine the changes required in the system and develop SMART goals for achievement of the best results. One can portray an example to make it clearer. For example, accidents are occurring among teenagers while they are drinking alcohol and driving cars at the same time. The numbers have increased resulting in death of many young lives. This is a social problem. Therefore, it becomes extremely important to undertake social analysis in order to identify the root causes that are making such people vulnerable to choose these kinds of activities and therefore social analysis helps to reach the root of the main issues. Thereby social analysis helps to reach to a conclusion about the amendments that are needed to be included in the society so that the problem gets addressed and hence social analysis needs to be conducted. The social analysis is also important as it helps in recognizing the issues leading to such problems and thereby helps in planning interventions accordingly to handle the social problem effectively. Social analysis often uses different philosophical concepts to analyze the different issues associated with the problem and thereby develop a proper understanding of the main reasons that gives rise to the problem. Social analysis is also important as it helps the policy makers o participate in a collaborative approach with the sociologists, so that correct amendments can be made in regular practices of ordinary citizens for the social issue and the factors leading to the social problems can be kept in check.

Economic Consequences Of Software Crime Essays -

Economic Consequences of Software Crime In 1996 worldwide illegal copying of domestic and international software cost $15.2 billion to the software industry, with a loss of $5.1 billion in the North America alone. Some sources put the total up-to-date losses, due to software crime, as high as $4.7 trillion. On the next page is a regional breakdown of software piracy losses for 1994. Estimates show that over 40 percent of North American software company revenues are generated overseas, yet nearly 85 percent of the software industry's piracy losses occurred outside of North America. The Software Publishers Association (SPA) indicated that approximately 35 percent of the business software in the North America was obtained illegally. In fact, 30 percent of the piracy occurs in corporate settings. In a corporate setting or business, every computer must have its own set of original software and the appropriate number of manuals. It is illegal for a corporation or business to purchase a single set of original s! oftware and then load that software onto more than one computer, or lend, copy or distribute software for any reason without the prior written consent of the software manufacturer. Many software managers are concerned with the legal compliance, along with asset management and costs to their organizations. Many firms involve their legal departments and human resources in regards to software distribution and licensing. Information can qualify to be property in two ways; patent law and copyright laws which are creations of federal statutes, which are subject to Constitutional authority. In order for the government to prosecute the unauthorized copying of computerized information as theft, it must first rely on other theories of information-as-property. Trade secret laws are created by provincial law, and most jurisdictions have laws that criminalize the violations of a trade-secret holder's rights. The definition of a trade secret varies somewhat from province to province, but commonly have the same elements. For example, the information must be secret, not of public knowledge or of general knowledge in the trade or business. A court will allow a trade secret to be used by someone who discovered or developed the trade secret independently if the holder takes adequate precautions to protect the secret. In 1964, the National Copyright Office began to register software as a form of literary expression. The office based its decision on White-Smith Music Co. v. Apollo, where the Supreme Court determined that a piano roll used in a player piano did not infringe upon copyrighted music because the roll was part of a mechanical device. Since a computer program is textual, like a book, yet also mechanical, like the piano roll in White-Smith, the Copyright Office granted copyright protection under the rule of doubt. In 1974, the government created the Natural Commission on New Technological Uses (CONTU) to investigate whether the evolving computer technology field outpaced the existing copyright laws and also to determine the extent of copyright protection for computer programs. CONTU concluded that while copyright protection should extend beyond the literal source code of a computer program, evolving case law should determine the extent of protection. The commission also felt copyright was the best alternative among existing intellectual property protective mechanisms. CONTU rejected trade secret and patents as viable protective mechanisms. The CONTU report resulted in the 1980 Computer Software Act, and the report acts as informal legislative history to aid the courts in interpreting the Act. In 1980, the Copyright Act was amended to explicitly include computer programs. It now states that it is illegal to make or to distribute copies of copyrighted material without authorization, except for the user's right to make a single backup copy for archival purposes. Any written material (including computer programs) fixed in a tangible form (written somewhere ? i.e. printout) is considered copyrighted without any additional action on the part of the author. Therefore, it is not necessary that a copy of the software program be deposited with the National Copyright Office for the program to be protected as copyrighted. With that in mind a copyright is a property right only. In order to prevent anyone from selling your software programs, you must ask a (federal) court to stop that person by an injunction and to give you damages for the injury they have done to you by selling the program. The Software Rental Amendments Act was approved in 1990. This Act prohibits the commercial rental, leasing or lending of software without the express written permission of the copyright holder. Another amendment to the Copyright Act was passed in 1992. This amendment made software piracy a federal offense, and instituted criminal

Examples of Social Facts and Their Negative Impact

Examples of Social Facts and Their Negative Impact Social fact is a theory developed by sociologist Emile Durkheim to describe how values, culture, and norms control the actions and beliefs of individuals and society as a whole. Durkheim and Social Fact In his book, The Rules of Sociological Method,  Durkheim outlined social fact, and the book became one of the foundational texts of sociology.   He defined sociology as the study of social facts, which he said were the actions of society. Social facts are the reason why people within a society seem to choose to do the same basic things; e.g., where they live, what they eat, and how they interact. The society they belong to shapes them to do these things, continuing social facts.   Common Social Facts Durkheim used many examples to demonstrate his theory of social facts, including:   Marriage: Social groups tend to have the same ideas toward marriage, such as the appropriate age to get married and what a ceremony should look like. Attitudes that violate those social facts, such as bigamy or polygamy in the Western world, are regarded with disgust.  Language: People living in the same area tend to speak the same language. In fact, they can develop and pass on their own dialect and idioms. Years later, those norms can identify someone as being part of a particular region.  Religion: Social facts shape how we view religion. Different areas have different religious strongholds, with faith being a regular part of life, and other religions are considered foreign and strange.   Social Facts and Religion One of the areas Durkheim explored thoroughly was religion. He looked at the social facts of suicide rates in Protestant and Catholic communities. Catholic communities view suicide as one of the worst sins, and as such, have much lower suicide rates than Protestants. Durkheim believed the difference in suicide rates showed the influence of social facts and culture on actions.   Some of his research in the area has been questioned in recent years, but his suicide research was groundbreaking and shed light on how society affects our individual attitudes and actions.   Social Fact and Control Social fact is a technique of control. Societal norms shape our attitudes, beliefs, and actions. They inform what we do every day, from who we befriend to how we work. Its a complex and embedded construct that keeps us from stepping outside the norm.   Social fact is what makes us react strongly to people who deviate from social attitudes. For example, people in other countries who have no established home, and instead wander from place to place and take odd jobs. Western societies tend to view these people as odd and strange based on our social facts, when in their culture, what theyre doing is completely normal.   What is a social fact in one culture can be abhorrently strange in another; by keeping in mind how society influences your beliefs, you can temper your reactions to what is different.

Workplace Motivation Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Workplace Motivation - Case Study Example Mitsubishi Motors is the leading car manufacturer operating on the global scale. During 1990s, the company experienced problems with workers motivation which influenced productivity level and product quality. The main sources of resistance were lack of skills and low morale, low personal commitment and fear of technological changes (Mitsubishi Motors 2007). The corporation has to deal with motivation from the standpoint of the environment, that is, the various kinds of rewards and pressures within which people operate at work. Also, the corporation pays attention to motivation from the standpoint of the individual himself: his needs and purposes and how he acquires them. In order to increase productivity, Mitsubishi Motors develops new management strategies based on intrinsic motivation. As the most important, they underline manager's role in motivation and commitment. The key to a productivity-motivated workforce is a supervisory style which enhances the workers' proprietorship of their jobs. Management has too often approached the problem negatively, by depriving workers of control in order to forestall stoppages and goldbricking. Mitsubishi Motors pleads for a positive approach, for delegating this control in order to make the satisfactions of self-discipline possible (Scheuer, 2000). The morale changes occurred after men begin to think of themselves as belonging to a group. Part of the bargain is a worker's passive acceptance of any method that management might choose for organizing his work, even if this meant fragmenting his job to the point of tedium and regulating it to the point of puppetry (Scheuer, 2000). As a result, the men feel that they are important rather than taken for granted; each man knows that the group's record would suffer if he slackens, and most are determined not to let this happen. It is important to note that productivity is the goal, and control is merely one of several possible means to achieve it. The way to achieve the greatest profit is to remove the artificial impediments to productivity rather than to impose a regulatory system, no matter how tidy. A consistent record of excellence would then become a matter of personal pride rather than a meaningless exertion for somebody else's gain. The key to linking the individual's most pote nt aspirations to the goals of his company is his membership in a group which participates in its own management -- a group in which the role of the supervisor is changed from that of an enforcer or overseer to that of an expediter, an information giver, and above all an ego supporter. (Robbins, 2002). Security in the past and fear of change are another problems faced by Mitsubishi Motors. The 1990s were marked by technological and information changes, so many workers were afraid of negative consequences of these improvements. For a worker, the principal advantage of the old system is that he knows it well; it is at least predictable and that, for him, is not a small advantage by any means. He will not welcome change, but he is not likely to resist it very much, either. He considers resistance useless, and besides, he expects that in the long run all systems will work out about equally for him. Mitsubishi Motors introduces extensive training programs for assembly workers (off-job and on-job training). Also, the company proposes financial benefits for

The author of choice Is Langston Hughes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The author of choice Is Langston Hughes - Essay Example By looking at works by DuBois, Booker T. Washington and Frederick Douglass, some of the history and literary context can be established while other authors such as Minnick and Wolfram help to provide insight into the technical elements, such as the use of dialect, used in Hughes’ writing. Spearman and Moore expand knowledge of Hughes the man as well as the lesser known writings while Mogan’s analysis of â€Å"Cubes† helps to illustrate the strong connections between Hughes’ poetry and the world around him. Hughes, Langston. (1995). The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes. New York: Vintage Classics. This book is exactly what it claims to be, a collection of poems written by Langston Hughes. What makes this book unique is that the editors have worked to gather together all of Hughes’ known poems and present them in chronological order by approximate composition date as well as in the final rendition as it had been left by Hughes. By presenting the poems in this way, the reader can begin to trace the prevalent themes of the major eras of Hughes’ life, including the ‘race’ poems, the ‘protest’ poems and the ‘children’s’ poems. At the same time, the concentrated presentation brings forward the sense of music that is built into Hughes’ work, preserving this element of the culture in the cadence and language used. This book is helpful to the present research in that it informs the reader of what was most important to Hughes a t differing stages of his life. In combination with his journalistic works when applicable, the poems highlight the differences between Hughes’ vision and those of his predecessors or contemporaries and captures the sound and cadence of the black people of Harlem at this point in history. By telling the story in their own ‘language’ or linguistic style, the poet is able to preserve more of the intended meaning and nuance expressed within his culture and therefore convey much

The Marketing Planning Process Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

The Marketing Planning Process - Essay Example Brick game developed by Lego is an ideal example of healthy toy that leads to develop creativity of children. However, this game is at its declining stage due to decreasing popularity among the emerging consumers. The word ‘Lego’ is a Danish word that means ‘play well’. The company was founded by the Ole Kirk Kristiansen who was also the inventor of world famous brick game. Since last 80 years, the company is operating and it has expanded its business in entire Europe, USA and some countries of Asia-Pacific region (Lego-b, 2010). Primarily, the company has developed its four objectives to meet its overall corporate objectives. These are â€Å"play promise – joy of building pride of creation†, â€Å"people promise – succeed together†, â€Å"partner promise – mutual value creation† and â€Å"planet promise – positive impact† (Lego-c, 2009). The progress report of the company distinctly describes specific areas of objectives. However, consumer satisfaction and safety is the first priority for the company and it is able to meet higher level of consumer satisfaction that makes it world’s fifth largest toy manu facturing company (Lego-d, 2010). Michael Porter developed the concept of value chain that includes entire activities of a business for improving firm’s overall value. â€Å"He referred to the internal chain of work process that deliver value to the immediate customer of the company, whereas the deliver value to the end customer was termed value system† (Andersen, Fagerhaug and Onsoyen, 2008, p.39). The following figure shows a model of value chain that is fit for toy manufacturing business of Lego. Lego has developed its entire value chain to meet its long-run and short-run objectives. Lego has developed its new â€Å"radical value chain management framework† (Valcon, n.d.). For manufacturing high quality and innovative games, the company has set up its plants in Denmark, Czech Republic, Mexico and Hungary. Many products and

Eutrophication Process Steps

Eutrophication Process Steps Eutrophication is world-wide environmental issue environmental problems that are related to high concentration nutrients. It is the process due to increment of algae productivity which affects adversely aquatic life and also human and animal health. It is mainly influenced by humankind activities that include agriculture and sewage effluent due to creating high amount of nutrients. The mechanism of eutrophication is briefly described in Figure 1. Large amount of nutrient input to the water body is the main effect and high level of phytoplankton biomass results that lead to algal bloom. Consumption of oxygen close the bottom of the water body is the result. The other effects of the process can be divided two categories that are related to: nutrient dispersion, phytoplankton growth Nitrogen and phosphorus are two main nutrients for aquatic life. In addition, A silica is also necessary for the diatoms. Nutrient concentration in the water body changes during eutrophication. The nutrient is the limiting factor, if it is not be available for algae develop. The sufficient factor to determine limiting factor is the ratio of nitrogen to phosphorus compounds in the water body is an important factor for control mechanism. (Table 1). Phosphorus is generally limiting factor for phytoplankton in fresh waters. For large marine areas frequently have nitrogen as the limiting nutrient, especially in summer. Intermediate areas such as river plumes are often phosphorus-limited during spring,but may turn to silica or nitrogen limitation in summer. The enrichment of water by nutrients can be of natural origin but it is often dramatically increased by human activities. This occurs almost everywhere in the world. There are three main sources of anthropic nutrient input: runoff, erosion and leaching from fertilized agricultural areas, and sewage from cities and industrial wastewater. Atmospheric deposition of nitrogen (from animal breeding and combustion gases) can also be important. According to the European Environment Agency, the main source of nitrogen pollutants is run-off from agricultural land, whereas most phosphorus pollution comes from households and industry, including phosphorus- based detergents. The rapid increase in industrial production and in in-house consumption during the 20th century has resulted in greater volumes of nutrient-rich wastewater. Although there has been recently a better management of nitrogen and phosphorus in agricultural practices, saturation of soils with phosphorus can be noted in some areas where spreading of excessive manure from animal husbandry occurs. Nutrient removal in sewage treatment plants and promotion of phosphorus-free detergents are vital to minimize the impact of nitrogen and phosphorus pollution on Europes water bodies7. Since 1980, nitrate concentrations in major EU  rivers have generally remained constant. There is no  evidence that reduced application of nitrogen fertilizers  to agricultural land has resulted in lower nitrate  concentrations in rivers. Indeed, concentrations in  some regions in Europe, such as Brittany, or Poitou in  France, and Catalunya in Spain, are still increasing. More detailed information on nitrates are to be found  in the companion pamphlet in this series nitrate and  health and in the E.C. report mentioned in (6). wastewater treatment and less phosphorus in household  detergents. Phosphorus release from industry  has also fallen sharply (Figure 3) whereas phosphorus  from agriculture, despite a reduction in the consumption  of phosphate fertilizers in the EU, remains an  important source of phosphorus pollution.   Unfortunately, due to the main role of nitrogen in the  eutrophication process in summer in the coastal zone,  the reduction in the discharge of phosphorus from  rivers into the sea has not been visible, except in very  specific sites. In most cases the phosphorus released  by the sediments into the open sea is sufficient to  allow eutrophication to occur, although external inputs have sharply decreased. In fact, only the Dutch coast  has benefited from the improvement of the water of  the Rhine, everywhere else the situation is stable or  has worsened. Some activities can lead to an increase in adverse  eutrophication and, although they are very specific,  they should be noted: Aquaculture development: Expansion of aquaculture  contributes to eutrophication by the discharge of  unused animal food and excreta of fish into the  water; The transportation of exotic species: Mainly via the  ballasts of big ships, toxic algae, cyanobacteria and  nuisance weeds can be carried from endemic areas  to uncontaminated ones. In these new environments  they may find a favourable habitat for their diffusion  and overgrowth, stimulated by nutrients availability; Reservoirs in arid lands: The construction of large  reservoirs to store and manage water has been  taking place all over the world. These dams are built  in order to allow the collection of drainage waters  through huge hydrographic basins. Erosion leads to  the enrichment of the waters of these reservoirs by  nutrients such as phosphorus and nitrogen Factors supporting the development  of eutrophication Besides nutrient inputs, the first condition supporting  eutrophication development is purely physical it is  the containment (time of renewal) of the water. The  containment of water can be physical, such as in a  lake or even in a slow river that works as a batch  (upstream waters do not mix with downstream  waters), or it can be dynamic.   The notion of dynamic containment is mostly relevant  for marine areas. Geological features such as the  shape of the bottom of the sea, the shape of the  shores, physical conditions such as streams, or large  turbulent areas, and tidal movements, allow some  large marine areas to be really contained, exhibiting  very little water renewal. This is known as dynamic  containment. In other cases, due to tidal effects, and/or streams,  some areas that would seem to be prone to containment  see their waters regularly renewed and are not  contained at all and are therefore very unlikely to  become eutrophic. Other physical factors influence eutrophication of  water bodies. Thermal stratification of stagnant water  bodies (such as lakes and reservoirs), temperature  and light influence the development of aquatic algae. Increased light and temperature conditions during  spring and summer explain why eutrophication is a  phenomenon that occurs mainly during these seasons. Eutrophication itself affects the penetration of  light through the water body because of the shadow  effect coming from the development of algae and  other living organisms and this reduces photosynthesis in deep water layers, and aquatic grass and  weeds bottom development. Main consequences  of eutrophication The major consequence of eutrophication concerns  the availability of oxygen. Plants, through photosynthesis,  produce oxygen in daylight. On the contrary, in  darkness all animals and plants, as well as aerobic  microorganisms and decomposing dead organisms,  respire and consume oxygen. These two competitive  processes are dependent on the development of the  biomass. In the case of severe biomass accumulation,  the process of oxidation of the organic matter that has  formed into sediment at the bottom of the water body  will consume all the available oxygen. Even the oxygen  contained in sulphates (SO4  2-) will be used by  some specific bacteria. This will lead to the release of  sulphur (S2-) that will immediately capture the free oxygen  still present in the upper layers. Thus, the water  body will loose all its oxygen and all life will disappear.  This is when the very specific smell of rotten eggs, originating  mainly from sulphur, will appe ar.   In parallel with these changes in oxygen concentration  other changes in the water environment occur: Changes in algal population: During eutrophication, macroalgae, phytoplankton (diatoms, dinoflagellates,  chlorophytes) and cyanobacteria, which  depend upon nutrients, light, temperature and water  movement, will experience excessive growth. From  a public health point of view, the fact that some of  these organisms can release toxins into the water or  be toxic themselves is important.   Changes in zooplankton, fish and shellfish population: Where eutrophication occurs, this part of the ecosystem is the first to demonstrate changes. Being most sensitive to oxygen availability, these species may die from oxygen limitation or from changes in the chemical composition of the water such as the excessive alkalinity that occurs during intense photosynthesis. Ammonia toxicity in fish for example is much higher in alkaline waters. Effects of eutrophication The effects of eutrophication on the environment may, have deleterious consequences for the health of exposed animal and human populations, through various pathways. Specific health risks appear when fresh water, extracted from eutrophic areas, is used for the production of drinking water. Severe impacts can also occur during animal watering in eutrophic waters. Macroalgae, phytoplankton and cyanobacteria blooms Algae display varying degrees of complexity depending on the organization of their cells. Macroalgae, phytoplankton and cyanobacteria may colonize marine, brackish or fresh waters wherever conditions of light, temperature and nutrients are favourable. Cyanobacteria have been largely studied in fresh water systems, due to their ability to proliferate, to  form massive surface scums, and to produce toxins that have been implicated in animal or human poisoning. Some species of algae may also contain toxins, but incidents where fresh water algae are at the origin  of cases of human or animal illness have very seldom been reported. Coloured toxic tides caused by algal overgrowth have been known to exist for many centuries. In fact the Bible (Exodus, 7: 20-24) states all the water of the Nile river became red as blood and fish which were in the river died. And the river was poisoned and the Egyptians could not drink its waters. Algal blooms were observed in 1638 by fishermen in north west of Iceland. Fjords were reported to be stained blood red and during the night produced a kind of phosphorescence. The fishermen thought that the colours could be due to the blood of fighting whales or to some marine insects or plants (Olafsson and Palmsson, 1772). The first scientific report of domestic animals dying from poisoning as a consequence of drinking water that was affected by a blue/green algae  bloom was in 1878 in lake Alexandrina, Australia. In coastal and estuarine systems, however, where  conditions are less favourable to the proliferation of  cyanobacteria, which need oligo-elements such as iron, toxic algae such as dinoflagellates have been observed and have been at the origin of health  troubles. There is growing evidence that nutrients,  especially nitrogen, favour the duration and frequency  of such toxic blooms, and concentrations of toxin in  the cells. Health effects linked to toxins of cyanobacteria in  fresh waters Some cyanobacteria have the capacity to produce  toxins dangerous to human beings. Toxins can be  found either free in the water where the bloom occurs  or bound to the algal or cyanobacterial cell. When the  cells are young (during the growth phase), 70 to 90%  of the toxins are cell bound, whereas when the cells Cyanobacteria have been largely studied in fresh  water systems, due to their ability to proliferate, to  form massive surface scums, and to produce toxins  that have been implicated in animal or human poisoning. Some species of algae may also contain toxins,  but incidents where fresh water algae are at the origin  of cases of human or animal illness have very seldom  been reported. Coloured toxic tides caused by algal overgrowth have been known to exist for many centuries. In fact the  Bible (Exodus, 7: 20-24) states all the water of the  Nile river became red as blood and fish which were in  the river died. And the river was poisoned and the  Egyptians could not drink its waters. Algal blooms were observed in 1638 by fishermen in  north west of Iceland. Fjords were reported to be stained  blood red and during the night produced a kind of  phosphorescence. The fishermen thought that the  colours could be due to the blood of fighting whales or  to some marine insects or plants (Olafsson and Palmsson,  1772). The first scientific report of domestic animals  dying from poisoning as a consequence of drinking  water that was affected by a blue/green algae  bloom was in 1878 in lake Alexandrina, Australia. In coastal and estuarine systems, however, where  conditions are less favourable to the proliferation of  cyanobacteria, which need oligo-elements such as  iron, toxic algae such as dinoflagellates have been  observed and have been at the origin of health  troubles. There is growing evidence that nutrients,  especially nitrogen, favour the duration and frequency  of such toxic blooms, and concentrations of toxin in  the cells. Health effects linked to toxins of cyanobacteria in  fresh waters Some cyanobacteria have the capacity to produce  toxins dangerous to human beings. Toxins can be  found either free in the water where the bloom occurs  or bound to the algal or cyanobacterial cell. When the  cells are young (during the growth phase), 70 to 90%  of the toxins are cell bound, whereas when the cells fresh waters. People may be exposed to toxins  through the consumption of contaminated drinking  water, direct contact with fresh water or the inhalation  of aerosols. Toxins induce damage in animals and  humans by acting at the molecular level and consequently  affecting cells, tissues and organs (Table 3). The nervous, digestive, respiratory and cutaneous  systems may be affected. Secondary effects can be  observed in numerous organs. Age or physiological  conditions of the affected individual may determine the  severity of the symptoms. A variety of symptoms,  depending on the toxins implicated, are observed  such as fatigue, headache, diarrhoea, vomiting, sore  throat, fever and skin irritations. Cyanotoxins can be classified into three groups: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Hepatotoxins. These are the most frequently observed cyanotoxins.  Experiments using mice indicate that they cause liver  injury and can lead to death from liver haemorrhage  and cardiac failure within a few hours of exposure at  acute doses. Chronic exposure induces liver injury  and promotes the growth of tumours. Questions remain concerning the effects of repeated  exposures to low levels of toxins. Animal experiments  have shown liver injury from repeated oral exposure to  microcystins, the most frequently observed cyanotoxins. It is thought that the high prevalence13 of liver  cancer observed in some areas of China could be due  to the presence of microcystins in water supplies. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Neurotoxins. These are generally less common and act on the nervous  system. In mice and aquatic birds, they cause  rapid death by respiratory arrest, sometimes occurring  in a few minutes. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Dermatotoxins. These induce irritant and allergenic responses in tissues  by simple contact. The global toxicity of a cyanobacterial proliferation is  not constant in time or space, making it difficult to  assess the health threat although some acute poisonings  have led to death (Tables 3 and 4). The release of cyanotoxins in water has been at the  origin of several outbreaks affecting animal or human  health (Case studies p. f12). About 75% of cyanobacterial  blooms are accompanied by toxin production. The presence of cyanobacterial toxins after potabilization  treatment represents a health threat for patients  undergoing renal dialysis treatment. Monitoring of eutrophication   Monitoring is useful if it is performed for a purpose. The main reasons for monitoring a water body for  eutrophication are: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To prevent the occurence of eutrophication; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Early warning purposes. Public health authorities  need to know when eutrophication is likely to start in  order to allow them to implement preventive actions; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To know the level of development of the process, and have a precise picture of the quality of the water. This is mostly relevant for water companies, which  have to deal with eutrophic waters; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Research. The reality is that monitoring systems are often multipurpose. Monitoring and management  of cyanobacterial growth in fresh waters  for public health purposes Chorus and Bartram (1999) have proposed the following  monitoring and management scheme to water  treatment plant operators and managers as an alert  level framework. It provides a graduated response to  the onset and progress of a cyanobacteria bloom. This tool initially comes from Australia. Three response  levels are defined: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Vigilance Level is defined by the detection of one colony, or five filaments, of a cyanobacterium in a 1 ml  water sample. When the Vigilance Level is exceeded,  it is recommended that the affected water body is  sampled more frequently at least once a week, so  that potentially rapid changes in cyanobacteria biomass  can be monitored. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Alert Level 1 is initiated when 2,000 cyanobacterial  cells per ml or 0.2 mm3/l biovolume23 or 1 ÃŽÂ ¼g/l chlorophyll- a24 are detected. Alert Level 1 condition  requires an assessment to be made of the total toxin  concentration in the raw water. A consultation should  be held with the health authorities for on-going  assessment of the status of the bloom and of the suitability  of treated water for human consumption. Monitoring  should be conducted at least once per week. It may also be appropriate at this time to issue advisory notices to the public through the media or other means. Government departments or interested authorities or those with legal responsibilities should also be contacted, as should organizations that treat or care for members of the public with special needs. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Alert Level 2 is initiated when 100,000 cells per ml or 10-mm3/l biovolume or 50 ÃŽÂ ¼g/l chlorophyll-a are detected, with the presence of toxins confirmed by chemical or bioassay techniques. This density of cells corresponds to an established, toxic bloom with high biomass and possibly also localized scums. In this situation there is a need for effective water treatment systems and an assessment of the performance of the system. Hydro-physical measures to reduce cyanobacteria growth may still be attempted. If efficient water treatments are not available (see technical annex), a contingency water supply plan should be activated. In extreme situations, safe drinking water should be supplied to consumers in tanks and bottles. Media releases and contact with consumers should be undertaken via mail of leaflets informing that water may present danger for human consumption but is still suitable for the purposes of washing, laundry and toilet flushing. National water quality monitoring programs Few national water quality monitoring programmes include parameters which indicate eutrophication or a risk of algal or cyanobacterial overgrowth. In Europe, North America, Japan and Australia, local monitoring plans which check the occurrence of toxic species in areas where shellfish or fish are consumed, are implemented. This is based on sampling at strategic points and analysis of phytoplankton and/or shellfish. The frequency of sampling generally depends on the sea- son. Table 6 summarizes the monitoring systems in some EU Member States. They only allow the monitoring of toxic blooms, which are only a part of the eutrophication consequences. Technologies such as satellite imaging can be used to monitor large water bodies. The same technique can be applied to monitor the extent of high chlorophyll-a concentrations reflecting the phytoplankton biomass of the upper layers of the eutrophic area. Possible parameters used for monitoring purposes According to the definition of eutrophication, it is clear that formulae such as an increase of x grams of bottom macrophytes per square meter or y micrograms chlorophyll-a per litre are not suitable to define a threshold, which, when exceeded, will describe eutrophication. Such unique parameter does not exist. Moreover, in order to define the magnitude of eutrophication, two measurements are required: That of the system in its reference conditions, and in its current or predicted future condition. As baseline data for a site is the exception rather than the rule, this makes it difficult to test eutrophication using a case-by-case approach. Nevertheless, as the first signs of adverse eutrophication is a decrease in the oxygen concentration in the lower layers of the water body of stagnant waters, and an increase in pH due to photosynthesis (CO2 depletion), these parameters, together with direct microscopic observations, are likely to be the only ones that can help forecast the likelihood of the start of such a process as long as a model integrating physical conditions, nutrient inputs and biological effects has not been locally validated. Prevention25,26 The causes that drive eutrophication are multiple and the mechanisms involved are complex. Several elements should be considered in order to assess the possible actions aimed at counteracting nutrient enrichment of water supplies. The use of computerised models now allows a better understanding of the role of each factor, and forecasting the efficiency of various curative and preventive measures. The best way to avoid eutrophication is to try to disrupt those mechanisms that are under human control; this clearly means to reduce the input of nutrients into the water basins. Such a control unfortunately does not have a linear effect on the eutrophication intensity. Integrated management should comprise: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Identification of all nutrient sources. Such information can be acquired by studies of the catchment area of the water supply. Knowledge of industrial activities, discharge practices and localization, as well as agricultural practices (fertilizer contribution/plant use and localization of crops) is necessary in order to plan and implement actions aiming at limiting the nutrient enrichment of water. The identification of sewage discharge points, agricultural practices, the nature of the soil, the vegetation, and the interaction between the soil and the water can be of great help in knowing which areas should be targeted. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Knowledge of the hydrodynamics of the water body, particularly the way nutrients are transported, and of the vulnerability of the aquifer, will allow determination of the ways by which the water is enriched with nutrients. Anthropogenic nutrient point sources such as nontreated industrial and domestic wastewater discharge can be minimized by systematic use of wastewater treatments. In sensitive aeras, industries and local authorities should control the level of nutrients in the treated wastewater by the use of specific denitrification or phosphorus removal treatments. Diffuse anthropogenic nutrient sources can be controlled by soil conservation techniques and fertilizer restrictions. Knowledge of the agronomic balance (ratio of fertilizer contribution to plant use) is very relevant to optimize the fertilization practice and to limit the loss of nutrients. Diffuse nutrient losses will be reduced by implementation at farm level of good practices such as: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Fertilization balance, for nitrogen and phosphorus, e.g. adequation of nutrients supply to the needs of the crop with reasonable expected yields, taking into account soil and atmospheric N supply. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Regular soil nutrients analysis, fertilization plans and registers at plot level. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Sufficient manure storage capacities, for spreading of manure at appropriate periods. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Green cover of soils during winter, use of catchcrops in crop rotations. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Unfertilized grass buffer strips (or broad hedges) along watercourses and ditches. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Promotion of permanent grassland, rather than temporary forage crops. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Prevention of erosion of sloping soils. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Precise irrigation management (e.g. drip irrigation, fertilisation, soil moisture control). In coastal areas, improvement in the dispersion of nutrients, either through the multiplication of discharge points or through the changing of their localization, can help to avoid localized high levels of nutrients. Reuse and recycling, in aquaculture and agriculture, of waters rich in nutrients can be optimized in order to avoid discharge into the water body and direct consumption of the nutrients by the local flora and fauna. Water resources are environmental assets and therefore have a price. There are market-based methods to estimate costs and benefits, and these make it possible to use cost- benefit analysis as a useful tool to assess the economic effects of abatement of eutrophication or other pollution problems. Benefits range from higher quality drinking water and reduced health risks (Photo 29) to improved recreational uses (Photo 30). The effects on human health from the lack of sanitation and the chronic effects of toxic algal blooms are two of the many indirect effects resulting from eutrophication. Numerous cost-benefit analyses of pollution abatement have clearly demonstrated that the total costs to society of no pollution reduction is much higher than at least a reasonable pollution reduction. Consequently, it is necessary to examine the prevention of pollution and restoration of water quality in lakes and reservoirs from an economic standpoint. The result of such examinations should be appli ed to assess effluent charges and green taxes. International experience shows that these economic instruments are reasonably effective in improving water quality and solving related water pollution problems. Thus, effective planning and management of lakes and reservoirs depends not only on a sound understanding of these water-bodies as ecological systems but also of their value to people as recreational areas and water resources. In the past, several management strategies were developed and applied to solve problems of decreasing surface and groundwater quality. These were often a response to acute critical situations resulting in increased costs of water. The demand for good quality fresh water was only solved partially and locally; this was because too few resources were allocated too late to solve the problems. Early prevention is by far the cheapest method to avoid later pollution. Eutrophication Management Recognizing that the specific needs of policy-makers and administrators are usually different from those of the strictly technical audience, the primary purpose of this digest is to provide quantitative tools for assessing the state of eutrophication of lakes and reservoirs; to provide a framework for developing cost-effective eutrophication management strategies; to provide a basis upon which strategies can be tailored for each specific case according to the physical, social, institutional, regulatory and economic characteristics of the local area or region; and to provide specific technical guidance and case studies regarding the effective management of eutrophication. The approach presented in this document (Figure 1) also is sufficiently general that it can be applied, with relative little modification, to the assessment of other environmental problems and to the development of effective management strategies for such problems. An approach for achieving the basic objectives stated above consists of the following components, applied approximately in the order presented: identify eutrophication problem and establish management goals; assess the extent of information available about the lake/reservoir; identify available options for management of eutrophication; analyze all costs and expected benefits of alternative management/control options; analyze adequacy of existing institutional and regulatory framework for implementing alternative management strategies; select desired control strategy and distribute summary to interested parties prior to implementation; and provide periodic progress reports on control programme to public and other interested parties. designation of bad (unacceptable) versus good (acceptable) water quality in this digest is based on the specific intended use or uses of the water resource. That is, water quality management goals for a lake or reservoir should be a function of the major purpose(s) for which the water is to be used. Obviously, there are water quality conditions to be avoided because of their interference with water uses. Ideally, for example, a lake or reservoir used as a drinking water supply should have water quality as close to an oligotrophy state as possible, since this would insure that only a minimum amount of pre-treatment would be necessary to yield a water suitable for human consumption. For such a waterbody, the content of phytoplankton (and their metabolic products) in the water should be as low as possible to facilitate this goal. Further, if the water is taken from the bottom waters of a lake during the summer (usually the period of maximum algal growth), it should be free of interferring substances resulting from decomposition of dead algal cells. Eutrophic lakes and reservoirs also could be used as a drinking water supply. However, extensive pre-treatment would be necessary before the water was suitable for human consumption. Some water uses may require no treatment at all, regardless of the existing water quality. Examples are fire-fighting purposes and the transport of commercial goods by ship. Further, in areas with extremely limited water resources, virtually all of the water may be used for various purposes (with or without treatment), regardless of its quality. Therefore, although humans can use water exhibiting a range of water quality, there is a desirable or optimal water quality for virtually any type of water usage. Though it is not quantitative in nature, a summary of intended water uses and the optimal versus minimally-acceptable trophic state for such uses is provided in Table 3. In addition, an example of the values of several commonly measured water quality parameters corresponding to different trophic conditions, based on the international eutrophication study of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (1982), is provided in Table 4. Thus, it is possible to identify acce ptable or optimal water quality for given water uses. Given these factors, a prudent approach in setting eutrophication management goals is to determine the minimum water quality and trophic conditions acceptable for the primary use or uses of the lake or reservoir (Table 1), and attempt to manage the water body so that these conditions are achieved. In a given situation, if the primary use or uses of a waterbody is hindered by existing water quality, or else requires water quality or trophic conditions not being met in the waterbody, this signals the need for remedial or control programmes to achieve the necessary in-lake conditions. 21 the problem? The governmental role It is recognized that a range of different forms of government, as well as economic conditions, exist around the world. Consequently it is difficult to provide general guidelines regarding the role of the government in environmental protection efforts that will cover all possible situations. However, virtually all nations also contain some type of civil service infrastructure which, if properly used, can be an effective instrument with which to address governmental concerns. Even so, as noted earlier, not all

Link these jobs with these jobs skills & qualities needed :: Business and Management Studies

Link these jobs with these jobs skills & qualities needed Personal Qualities While certain jobs will require specific skills, there are a number of personal qualities that must employer look for in an employee regardless of job role. These skills are:  · Communication Skills  · Manual Skills  · Using Initiative  · Flexibility  · Reliability  · Enthusiasm  · Problem Solving  · Motivation  · Intelligence  · Honesty  · Time Management  · Team Working Skills  · Dependability  · I.C.T Skills Communication Skills Ability in the areas of language understanding, communicating expressively, and practical language skills is needed in most basic job role. Communication is the art of successfully sharing meaningful information with people by means of an interchange of experience. E.g. Coaches wish to motivate the athletes they work with and to provide them with information that will allow them to train effectively and improve performance. Communication from the coach to athlete will initiate appropriate actions. Manual Skills Many employers will look for employees who have some basic manual skills. Manual skills workers should be able to lift boxes, carry large packages, mop the floor, and climb steps and ladders to reach files or products. E.g. A shop assistant should be manually skilled so that when customers ask for products that are on the top shelves he/she can get it. Using Initiative Employers want staffs that get on with their work happily without complaining. The employees should use their own brain power. E.g. If an employee keep on asking his/her senior about everything on the work she/he is doing that means she/he is not using their initiative. Honesty Employees should be honest to their employers instead of lying to and not coming to work. Making excuses not to come to work saying that I fell off sick, I had to go to an appointment. Even if an employee takes money out from the organisation without asking the employer that is not honest. E.g. an employee in the HSBC bank took out money from the bank without asking. Efficiency Efficient employees have to work at a high standard as possible and

The American Gangster

Hollywood by far is one of the most lucrative industries of USA. It generates billions in revenue and the great thing about it is that the raw material or resources never run out. Globalization has made Hollywood is now a house hold name all across the world and not only in America, Hollywood is riding the waves of success all across the world. The crime-drama genre of movie making in Hollywood has a long and lucrative history.In the past from God Father, to Scarface or Stanley Kubrik’s A Clockwork Orange, till Martin Scorsese master piece The Departed today, this austere genre of movies has attracted a huge number of audiences, mainly adults. Movies of this genre take little liberty from the creativity of the writer and rely mainly on the elements that are closer to life and that people can relate to. They show the eternal battle between good and the way it’s been fought in reality. That’s why most of the stories from this genre are either true or close to truth . Ridley Scott is among one of the finest film maker Hollywood has ever had.His unique vision, his ability the select the right man for the right role and his stories that touches the hearts of audiences is simply astounding. He pretty much became a house hold name after making the epic hit, Gladiator and lifted Russell Crowe to the heights of stardom. His last movie â€Å"The American Gangster† was released in November 2007 and turned out to be a box office hit generating more than 250 million dollars. With an Oscar winning, A-list cast, great producers like Brian Grazer and Mark Jacobson and Steven Zaillian behind the script, the movie was suppose to and turned out to be a nothing less than a timeless classic.On of the primary reasons for choosing this movie for analysis is the outstanding names attached to it, and chiefly, American Gangster represents the true face of an American age and society. It alleviates the differences between the age old good and bad schism and ass erts that intelligence and integrity combined can either make or command both the element of good and evil. First and foremost, Ridley Scott does the most important task in bringing the movie to life beside the script and that task in casting.Since the movie revolves around the life of Harlem’s drug lord Frank Lucas and the FBI agent hell bent on getting to him Richie Roberts, and since all the characters are pretty much real, so to say inspired by actual events and people, Scott had to be very careful in casting these two iconic roles that not only portray the characters of their real life counterparts, but also adapt those characters into themselves so as to bring out an outstanding combination of script and reality and give the audiences an anachronistic feeling.Scott had already worked with Russell Crowe in the legendary Gladiator and A Good Year so he was selected for the role of Richie Roberts. As for the protagonist, who else could play the role of an African American than the iconic Oscar winning Denzel Washington. Both actors studied hard to get into their respective roles buy adapting accents and body languages of their real life counter parts and the work paid off. Both veterans totally dominate the screen with not only their charisma but their out standing true to life performances.Since American Gangster is a period movie, an authentic look of United States and the City of New York had to be modeled after the era of late 60s and early 70s. specially the Harlem where most of the movie takes place is shown in the movie is shown relatively shabbier and crumbling to catch the look of late 60’s. Scott has utilized most of the actual locations of Harlem by toning them down to get the 60’s look. The attention to details is amazing. The scene where Lucas walks down the streets of Harlem along with his brothers gives a very authentic retro look.The puddles on the street, people wearing vibrant colored shabby dress on the crumbling side walks, the derelict apartments with cloths lines and small dingy shops by the streets gives sincere glance almost 40 years back. The costume design is amazing; with only Washington wearing more than 64 costumes throughout the movie that represents the fashion of the era. The dresses his wife Eva wears the first time Frank tries to woo her is simply as astounding with elegance and a pinch or nostalgia.The characters appear perfect in each and every attire. Richie (Crowe) adapts this sweaty and scruffy look to portray his underpaid and tough as nail job. Whilst Frank (Washington) evolves in his looks and personality through out the movie. His costumes move from servile and obsequious looking right hand thug to the rich elegant drug lord who wants to spend money, but not letting go of his dignity. The script and screen play are one of the prime elements of the movie.Based on the article by Mark Jacobson and molded into a seemingly perfect screenplay by the Oscar winner screen play writ er of the â€Å"Schindler's List†, Steven Zaillian, the movie is adequately paced with adequate amount of time for all the characters to bloom to their full potential. The character of Frank Lucas is by far the heart of the movie as he rise of a second rate right hand man to this powerful and ingenious entrepreneur who takes full advantages of the Vietnam war.Shown as a gentle and family man who loves his mother, wife and brothers, but at the same time a furiously ambitious man who guns down his opponents in the broad daylight if the occasion calls for it. The character of Richie though intense doesn’t get enough space to reach its full potential and very much remains the same. The screenplay takes some fictional liberties to a real life story worth of being watched. Pietro Scalia, has done a commendable job in the editing of the movie.The film has been trimmed down to the point where it runs a comfortable 157 minutes without making the story lag. Scene transitions are done amazingly and build a sort of suspenseful tension for the viewers as the story lines deftly shift from Frank to Richie. Aside from the sharp editing, the movie has been toned down in its graphic content to be suitable for audience and not letting the violence predominate the story line.Sound may not be the brightest of American Gangster’s features as the dubbing and sound effects lags behind the other elements of the movie. They dubbing is a bit hollow sounding where the voices seems to unnaturally echo. Filmed against the obstreperous background of Harlem, an attempt has been made to let the sounds of the bustling streets and traffic gets mixed with the voiceovers of the actors, but the result isn’t as sonorous. The sound effects are rather choppy, expect for the gun shots that reverberates throughout the whole theater.The film has the original score music of Marc Streitenfeld, and the songs of Jay-Z, Anthony Hamilton, and classics like Sam and Dave and Mavis St aples which gives the movie a typical African American look and feel. Cinematography by far is one of the most beautiful elements of the movie. Harris Savides has done a remarkable job to in capturing the true essence of a bleak and derelict Harlem. From the gritty looking daylight lit streets to the after dark gloomy and distant feel of Harlem, Harris has made sure to make everything look real rather than artificially lit sets.From the dimly lit Lucas’s drug locals to the diner where he has his breakfast as the sunlight hits the table illuminating everything brilliantly, each shot has its own visual treats. The faded and muted tones of the seventies also invoke a sense of melancholy or bleakness to parts of the film, which gives it a weight and depth. Incorporating all the quintessentials of great film making, the proper utilization of talent and an unparalleled vision is what makes The American Gangster, a success.Ridley Scott, even though too constricted to work on a proje ct as such as this one, has done an outstanding in rendering this movie as close to life as possible along with a superb cast who have done justice with their roles, specially Denzel Washington for out shining everyone in the movie. What makes this movie stand apart beside a great story and performance is the cinematography as Savides has tried to outdo himself by trying to capture the visual essence of an era four decades ago, which is one of the standing and most crucial elements of a period movie.

Camps essays

Camps essays In Russia Bolsheviks established concentration camps for suspected counter revolutionists in 1918. During the 20s, criminals were held in the Northern Special Purpose Camps in the Solovetskie Islands in the White Sea and near Arkhangelsk; while in the 30s and 40s a system of corrective camps were situated in the Soviet Union. These people were arrested in the privacy of their own home and then taken to these camps. During Stalins reign, he initiated something very similar to the holocaust on the entire professional and educated population. These special people were then deported to forced labor camps in Siberia along with more than one million seven hundred innocent civilians of Poland. These people included farmers, Volga Germans populations deported from Polish and Baltic territories, Axis prisoners of war and Russians returning from German captivity. They were victims of arrest and werent killed on the spot, but were then transported to a prison camp (one that was called Solovetsky Special Purpose Camp (SLON). They realized that the prisoners could be used for labor at practically no cost to the state. These workers required no pay, and suffered sub-standard living conditions. They were forced to work until they passed out of exhaustion or would just die. As in the case of Ivan Shukov, he was working 15-hour shifts on little food, wasnt getting paid and was in awful living condition s. He would almost freeze to death every night. Camps were usually in isolated areas, many in the vast expanses of Siberia, where the climate and the land were brutal. This is clearly depicted in Ivan, especially when he is outside and you can actually feel how cold he is. After Stalins death in 1953, many inmates were released and the camps continued on a smaller scale. This was a difficult time for these people. These prisoners didnt deserve to be through all that hard workin...

Community Outreach I Disability Attorneys I Disability Attorneys of Michigan

Community Outreach I Disability Attorneys I Disability Attorneys of Michigan Disability Attorneys of Michigan Participate in a Volunteer Day Helping Southwest Solutions, Beautification Day. The Neighborhood Beautification Day is an essential part of Southwest Solutions effort to â€Å"engage partners, residents and other volunteers in an effort to activate lots, create community gardens and art, spruce up parks and combat blight and decay.†Erika Riggs and staff members of Disability Attorneys of Michigan, recently volunteered in the â€Å"Southwest Solutions Beautification Day.†Southwest Solutions is an organization near and dear to our firm as many of our clients have received invaluable treatment there for a variety of mental health impairments at little to no cost.Southwest Solutions is also known for their housing and workforce assistance programs, veterans’ services, and youth mentorship.This year’s Beautification Day spruced up 15 different areas of Southwest Detroit, including:Bennett ParkCabrini ClinicCorktown ViaductGo-Getters Drop-in CenterHousing Resource CenterHubbard Farms Community GardenLafayette Park (UNI)Larkins/McGraw Early Childhood OfficesMatrix Theatre Company Community GardenMichigan Avenue Business AssociationSaint Anthony’sSouthwest CornerstoneSpringdale/Woodmere Block Club Community GardenStanton ParkWilshire ApartmentsWith the help of hundreds of community volunteers, including staff members from Disability Attorneys of Michigan each of these sites were beautified.Thank you to everyone who came out to support Southwest Solutions and our community!Disability Attorneys of Michigan. Compassionate Excellence. community events, Community Outreach, DA Michigan, Disability Attorneys, Disability Attorneys of Michigan, social security disability attorneys, Southwest Solutions

Child Welfare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Child Welfare - Essay Example This is one major social problem the child encounter as a result of abuse or neglect from drug addicted parents. Due to the nature of this intervention, statistical collection of data and facts associated with child abuse and neglect becomes difficult. To determine how much it could cost to resolve it through the various stages of model that could be required. The well-being of the child is important. Although when parents usually the women take in alcohol and seems not to be abusive and not dependent or addicted to drinking. It is still possible the conditions under which she drink may still put the child welfare at risk. A child welfare worker should be concerned about the nature of parent exposure to alcohol and drug use. As noted by The American Psychological Association, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV/DSM-IV-TR) that a woman should not take in more than seven drinks within a week or three drinks at a time. Child safety is an important issue in our society and factors that may bring about polluting or exposing the child welfare at risk are not lightly taken. Children are meant to be around adult so as to caution and comfort them in their growing years. Children are good observers and adult should be more caution what they do in their presence. This is part of protecting the child welfare. ... Significantly, the child welfare worker should be more concerned with the case of child neglect and abuse by identifying the factors of drug abuse and alcohol exposure. Child welfare worker should be able to support parent influenced by these factors to obtain adequate treatment in understanding of the recovery concept in the view of child safety. With the child welfare worker understanding the connection between the impact of alcohol and the effect of drug services can be a very good advantage for the child welfare worker and the Adoption and Safe families Act in fulfilling the safety of the child as well as the child wellness. When a child who have been in a foster care in fifteen months out of twenty-two recent months enters foster care and actions to terminate parental rights over the child is initiated, it is then the Adoption and Safe Families Act will require a permanency plan of twelve months. Considering the fact that twelve to fifteen months can seem to be a long period of time to a child, it's not enough time to consider in the process of recovery with parents who have been exposed to alcohol and drug. In a critical case involving substance abuse demands that adequate alcohol and drug services should be established with immediate effect in processing the parent's treatment. Effectiveness in doing this can be achieved by child welfare worker in asking questions on a routine basis regarding the nature of substance use relative to its abuse, treatment required and recovery time expected. His understanding of dependence and abuse of alcohol and drugs is also an advantage. It is alarming to know that out of the many people treated for only alcohol issues amounts to the same level of population of people that were

New Product Deployment Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

New Product Deployment - Research Paper Example This makes the company strong in thinking globally and act locally. Further to gain grip over the local markets it spends significant amounts on social responsibilities (http://www.unilever.com). The consumption of quantity of tea is followed by the consumption of drinking water. On an average about 3 million metric tons of tea is produced in the globe. The largest producer-countries are the largest consumers as well, and the rest is traded either directly to value-added resellers in other countries or bought through auction on the open market (http://shop.jaxteacompany.com). 'The UK is the largest per-capita consumer of tea averaging about 3.5 to 4.0 cups per day. India and China are the largest consumers of tea on the basis of total leaf used, and this consumption is largely from internal production.' (http://shop.jaxteacompany.com). Tea brands are more and more number of people drink tea in the globe. 'It is revealed that tea is the most preferable drink after water' (http://www.unilever.com). Many flavours (as per local and global preferences), different sizes (such as 1000 Gms, 500gms, 250 Gms, 100 Gms, 50 Gms dip tea bags) are brought by research and by the firms including Unilever. There are different blends of tea namely; premium blend which is costly and tasty where as regular blend is cheap and not so strong and tasty. Similarly leaf teas, yellow tea, green tea, iced tea, ice tea are also in the market. Earlier days tea used to be served in hot and now tea also is served in cool. Further 'all teas - black, green, oolong or white provide with an antioxidant boost and just one 200ml cup of Lipton Yellow Label will provide you with around 135mg of antioxidants' (http://www.unilever.com). a) Core product description and potential for differentiation Tea is mostly available in powder format packed in vaccum evaporated packing system. Most of the parts of the globe tea is served hot. Household customers buy and pour in their bottles or containers at the time of using. With this the customers can not take the benefit of packing. Size reduction (form of sachets), to some extrent, solves the problem but increases the cost of the product and is inconvenient to stock the prooduct (unhygenic) after using partially as each sachet can be used for 4 cups of tea to be served hot.. b) Expected product

Writing homework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Writing homework - Essay Example It is not as if progress cannot happen in a state controlled protectionist system, and be competitive with a free market system. However, the author’s assertions that free trade is superior to protectionism generally is a convincing argument overall. To move from national politics to a more global perspective, it is also important to understand the role of labor in other countries in contrast to its role in the US, and Roberts concentrates mostly on a global workforce. For example, the role of labor unions in Europe is more totalized than it is in the United States. In the U.S., unions represent exact and specific parts of industries and call for more benefits and worker’s rights to be brokered with individual companies. In Europe, unions represent the entire industry because their groups are put together and are more powerful. They call for less specific issues, since they are representing an entire industry in Europe, though. More sweeping changes are possible this way, but the changes are less specifically geared to the immediate concerns of workers in a certain segment of the industry. In terms of labor participation in management, this was unheard-of many years ago, but is becoming more common both in the U.S. and in ternationally. Employees are more frequently being included in the decision-making process and communication is growing between employees and managers, despite political setbacks and setbacks in the US involving union membership and union density. â€Å"The real choice is between a dynamic world and a static world---a world of encouraging people to dream and acquire the skills to make those dreams come true and a world of encouraging people to be content with what they have and to dream less† (Roberts, 2000). The argument for and against international economics is basically a reflection of bigger argument about theoretical issues of protectionism and free trade, which was mentioned above. In this international argument,

The strategic plans of Procter and Gamble Essay Example for Free

The strategic plans of Procter and Gamble Essay INTRODUCTION   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This study is being undertaken in order to review the strategic plans of Procter and Gamble. The Human Resource activities of the company will be identified including their estimated costs and benefits. Also, the study will identify the strategic activities and how it match the strategic goals of the company.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Finally, this study will formulate recommendations on how the organization might better match its human resource activities with its strategic benefits. COMPANY BACKGROUND   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Procter and Gamble Company is a U. S. based global corporation based in Cincinnati, Ohio. It manufactures a wide range of consumer goods. The company is the 25th largest U.S. company by revenue in 2007. It is the 18th largest by profit, and 10th in Fortune’s most admired companies list as of 2007.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The company was founded by William Procter, a candle maker, and James Gamble, a soap maker in 1837. These two men were immigrants from England and Ireland respectively. The company grew tremendously and throughout the twentieth century, it continued to prosper. The firm expanded into other countries and introduced Tide laundry detergent in 1946 and â€Å"Prell† shampoo in 1950. In 1955, the company began selling its first toothpaste to contain fluoride which is known as â€Å"Crest† (Dyer et al., 2004).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Currently, the company is ranked in the top ten by the Harris Interactive/Wall Street Journal list of companies with the world’s best reputation, the number one ranking in Fortune’s U.S. Household and Personal Products most admired list. It is ranked number two on the Hay Group list of Best Companies for Leaders, and the Market Sector Leader for Household Products in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (PG Annual Report, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   PG ranks among the top companies for Executive Women (National Association for Female Executives), African Americans (Working Mother and Women of Color Magazines), Working Mothers (Working Mother Magazine), and Best Corporate Citizens (Business Ethics Magazine) (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Supplier diversity is a fundamental business strategy of the company. In 2007, the firm spent over $1.9 billion with minority-and women-owned businesses. It is a member of the Billion Dollar Roundtable, a forum of 14 corporations that spend more than $1 billion annually with diverse suppliers (Ibid). Overview of Operations   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The business of Procter and Gamble is focused on providing branded consumer goods. The company’s goal is to provide products of superior quality and value to improve the lives of consumers around the world. The company believes that this will result in leadership sales, profits and value creation, allowing employees, shareholders and the communities in which the company operate to prosper (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The firm’s products are sold in more than 180 countries mainly through mass merchandisers, grocery stores, membership club stores and drug stores. It is continuing to expand their presence in â€Å"high frequency stores,† the neighborhood stores which serve many customers in developing markets. The firm on-the-ground operations in over 80 countries. The market is highly competitive, with global, regional and local competitors. In most markets and industry segments wherein the company is selling their products, it compete against other branded products as well as retailers’ private-label brands. In addition, many of the product segments in which it compete are differentiated by price. Essentially, Procter and Gamble compete with premium and mid-tier products and are well positioned in the industry segments and markets in which it operates. It is most often holding a leadership or significant share position (Ibid). Organizational Structure   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Currently, the organizational structure of the company was comprised of three Global Operations Units (GBUs) and a Global Operations group. The Global Operations group includes the Market Development Organization (MDO) and Global Business Services (GBS). The heads of the three GBUs and Global Operations each would report to the Chief Executive Officer (Ibid). Global Business Units   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   During 2007, the three GBUs were Beauty and Health, Household Care and Gillette GBU. The main responsibility of the GBUs is to develop the overall strategy of the brands. They identify the common needs of the consumer, develop product innovations, marketing and sales. In the United States, the business units comprising the GBUs are integrated into seven segments: Beauty; Health Care; Fabric Care and Home Care; Snacks, Coffee, and Pet Care; Blades and Razors; and Duracell and Braun (Ibid). Growth and Strategies   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Procter and Gamble’s sales have grown from $39 billion to $76 billion in the past seven years. The firm have more than doubled the number of brands that generate $1 billion or more in sales each year, and now have 23 of these leading billion-dollar brands in its portfolio. The company also have more than quadrupled the number of brands that generate at least $500 million in sales, and today have 18 of these brands poised to be the next billion-dollar brands. The firm have nearly doubled the number of countries in which it generates a billion dollars or more in sales each year, and now have 12 billion-dollar countries (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Procter and Gamble (PG) have more than a billion dollars in sales each year with seven retail customers, up from two in 2001. PG have generated more than $43 billion in net earnings and $50 billion in free cash flow. PG’s   market capitalization has increased more than $100 billion since 2001. Currently, the company is among the ten most valuable companies in the United States (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Procter and Gamble designed a diversified business portfolio to grow consistently and reliably. It designed its core strengths to win in the industry. It designed strategic, operational, and financial processes that ensure discipline to deliver. It also designed a management team and organization to lead (Ibid). 2007 Results of Activities   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The year 2007 brought results to the company’s strategic plan for growth. It was the most demanding year that the company faced since the beginning of the decade. As energy and commodity costs continued to rise, competitive pressure also intensified. Nevertheless, the company continued to grow well and attained its target growth range. The following were the highlights of its operations: Net sales increased 12% to $76 billion. Organic sales increased 5%. Diluted net earnings per share increased 15% to $3.04. Free cash flow from operating activities was $10.5 billion, or 101% of net earnings. Fabric and Home Care grew organic sales 8%, with double-digit growth in developing markets and mid-single-digit growth in developing regions. The key growth drivers included Tide Simple Pleasures, Gain Joyful Expressions, and Febreze Noticeables. Blades and Razors organic sales grew by 8%. Beauty organic sales increased 5%, led by strong growth in feminine care, prestige fragrances, and hair care. Billion-dollar brands Always, Olay, and Head Shoulders each grew sales double-digits for the year. Health Care organic sales incremented 6% which is driven by very strong growth in oral care. In the United States, Crest extended its category market leadership to 38% behind the success of the Pro-Health line. Baby and Family Care organic sales increased 4%. This growth was due to the continuing expansion into developing markets and robust results on Pampers Baby Stages of Development and Baby Dry Caterpillar Flex products in North America.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Growth across geographic regions was also broad-based. This was led by mid-single-digit organic volume growth in North America and double-digit organic growth in developing markets. Also, it made excellent progress on the integration of Gillette. This was the biggest acquisition in the consumer products industry and in the history of the company (Ibid). Growth Strategies, 2001-2007   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The basic strategy is to grow from its core competence. This is done through maximizing on its leading brands, big markets, and top customers. Specifically, this strategies are as follows (Ibid): Volume up 7% on average, for PG ‘s 23 billion dollar brands; Volume up 8% on average, for PG’s top 16 countries; Volume up 8% on average, for PG’s top 10 retail customers. Develop faster-growing, higher-margin, more-asset efficient businesses and this is done specifically through: Beauty sales doubled to $23 billion profit more than doubled to $3.5 billion; Health Care sales more than doubled to $9 billion; profit increased 6-fold to $1.5 billion; Home Care sales up nearly 85% profit more than tripled.   Ã‚   Accelerate growth in developing markets and among low-income consumers as follows: Developing market sales up 18% per year; Over one-third of total company sales growth from developing markets; Developing market profit margins comparable to developed market margins. New Strategic Design   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The first element of the company’s strategic design is a portfolio that balances growth and consistency.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the 1990’s, two businesses accounted for 85% of all the value created by the firm through the decade. Today, the firm have a much stronger and more robust business portfolio. It is competing in 22 categories that include a balanced mix of faster growing, higher-margin asset-efficient businesses, such as beauty or home care, and large, foundation categories such as laundry, or baby care. PG also have an attractive geographic mix, with about half coming from the rest of the world. The firm is focusing on achieving disproportionate growth in fast-growing developing markets. These markets have contributed more than a third of the company’s top-line growth over the past five years, and their contribution has been accelerating. Nearly 40% of PG sales growth came from developing markets this past fiscal year, and it is expected that the contribution would be even greater in the year ahead. The company’s diversified portfolio reduces exposure to single and competitive events, and maximizes future growth opportunities. Traditional businesses, like fabric care and baby care, are strong and growing in their own right, and they create scale that makes PG’s beauty and health care businesses more competitive (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Geographically, the firm’s North America home base is rock solid, with dependable growth that allows them to invest in developing markets. Also, the breadth and diversity of the firm’s businesses and the breadth and diversity of the technological expertise that supports these businesses enable the company to transfer technologies from one business to another. For example, Crest Whitestrips was created by combining bleach stabilization technology from laundry care with film technology from corporate Research and Development (RD) to provide in-home teeth whitening. The Swifter Wet Jet pad combines absorbent cores from feminine care with flexible surface lawyers from baby care. Olay Daily Facials combines structured paper from family care with skin conditioning and mild cleansing from beauty to provide a mini-facial in the home. The company’s ability to combine technologies from so many diverse businesses cannot be rivaled in the industry because no other consumer products company has the scope of science and technology found at PG. The firm’s business portfolio is not static. It uses the operating total shareholder return (TSR) delivered by each business to continuously ensure its portfolio is maximizing shareholder value. TSR is a cash flow return on investment (CFROI) model that measures sales growth, earnings growth and cash flow to determine the rate of return that each business earns (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The firm’s researchers and entrepreneurs around the world working in areas that are relevant to their business. They are establishing the company as the preferred commercialization partner for these external innovators, and it is making a huge impact. The firm’s ability to innovate is most evident in the net present value of its innovation pipeline and the organic incremental sales growth generated by innovation. Innovation-driven value creation for shareholders and incremental sales growth from innovation have nearly doubled in this same time period (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   These are just two examples of how the company designed an institutional capability to grow. The firm’s core strengths create sustainable competitive advantages, and it is continuing to get stronger in every area.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The third element of the company’s design for growth is the disciplined way it managed its business. Discipline is part of the company’s culture and it is applied to every aspect of the business: strategic, operational, and financial. The company set and stick with clear strategies. It does its homework before going to market with new products and ideas (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The second element of the firm’s design for growth is its combination of core strengths. Early in the decade, the firm determined that it did not have sufficient competitive advantage in the five areas that are critical to winning in consumer products: consumer understanding, brand building, innovation, go-to-market capability, and scale. It invested substantially in every area and it is paying off. For example, the company invested more than a billion dollars in consumer understanding since 2001. It transformed one of the industry’s more traditional market research organizations into a consumer understanding powerhouse. Its external benchmarking indicates that the company has the industry’s strongest suite of proprietary consumer research tools and methodologies. These tools make the firm learn faster and more effectively, and it helps discover the often unarticulated needs and aspirations that lead to breakthrough innovation (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Innovation has always been the firm’s lifeblood, and it created significant advantage in this area. It has the best-in-class expertise in about a dozen technology areas that are the foundation for innovation in the industry, including enzymes, perfumes, and flavors, polymers, structured substrates, and surfactants. The firm multiplied this internal capability through an effort we call â€Å"connect + develop,† which is proving to be an enormous source of innovation and competitive advantage. It has about 8,500 researchers within the company and another 1.5 million outside the company (Ibid). Strategic Focus   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The growth strategy of the company will exploit opportunities focusing on these areas: PG’s Core. The firm is widening its share advantages versus competition. For example, in fabric care, it is the number two player worldwide in the early 1990s. Today, the firm has a 34% share of the global fabric care market, almost double the next competitor, and its share has grown for six consecutive years. There are plenty of opportunities to keep growing all of the company’s billion dollar brands. It is proving in category after category that a leading share, even a relatively high share, is not a barrier to growth. The company aims to continue leverage its brand line-up and category-leading innovation to keep core businesses healthy and growing. Faster-Growing. Higher-Margin Businesses. The company has even greater upside in businesses such as beauty and health care. The beauty and health categories in which PG competes are   a combined $360 billion market today, and are projected to grow 3% to 4% a year for the balance of the decade. The firm has almost doubled its share of beauty and health over the past decade although the firm’s share of this combined market is only about 10% globally. Developing Markets and Lower-Income Consumers. The firm can still grow significantly in developing markets by increasing household penetration and consumer usage frequency, and by entering categories   where it has not yet competed. For example, the average U.S. householder buys five to ten times as much PG product per year as the average household in developing markets. In addition, there is a large number of households in developing regions that do not yet purchase any PG product. Closing this gap, the company is confident that it can do it over time. It will continue to drive strong growth for years to come. There are significant bottom-line growth opportunities as well. The firm will continue to leverage its economies of scale. It will reduce overhead costs by simplifying work and eliminating duplication between global business units and market development organizations. It will be more effective and efficient in how it will manage smaller country organizations and brands. It will continue to increase productivity in all of its businesses. It will continue to improve gross margins. The company’s current margin is about 52% (Ibid). Human Resource Management   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Procter and Gamble have the most diverse and broadly experienced leadership team in its history. The top 45 leaders came from a dozen countries, and most of them have experience leading businesses in both developed and developing markets (PG Annual Report, 2007).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The firm is proud that they have recognized as one of the world’s best leadership development companies. PG have been ranked as one of the three best companies for leaders. Human Resources Executive magazine ranked PG as the best company among the Fortune Most Admired for â€Å"management quality†(Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Human Resource department of PG have developed advanced leadership training or senior managers. The new General Manager College is targeted to the 135 general managers who run PG businesses globally. GM College focuses on Purpose and Value, leadership strategy, capabilities, systems, and culture. They have also designed a sequel to GM College which is called the Executive Leadership Program. This program is targeted to the most-senior managers in the company and focuses on agility and flexibility, embracing leading change, and sustaining growth (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The firm is concerned with getting the right people into the right jobs at the right time is always a primary responsibility of management. Also, equally important and more difficult is the need to anticipate leadership capabilities that will be required in the future, and ensuring that managers get the experiences and coaching they need to be ready (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   One of the most visible example of the company’s ability to develop strong leaders is the number of former PG employees who are now CEOs of major companies. The president of PG himself is personally involved in succession planning for every organization in the company. They review succession plans and the progress of key leaders with the Board once a year, and with the senior management team three times a year (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The human resource management values and culture of PG is reflected in their principles as follows (www.pg.com): We show respect for all individuals. We believe that all individuals can and want to contribute to their fullest potential. We value differences. We inspire and enable people to achieve high expectations, standards and challenging goals. We are honest with people about their performance.   Ã‚  Ã‚   The interests of the Company and the Individual are inseparable. We believe that doing what is right for the business with integrity will lead to mutual success for both the Company and the individual. Our quest for mutual success ties us together. We encourage stock ownership and ownership behavior.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   We are Strategically Focused on Our Work. We operate against clearly articulated and aligned objectives and strategies. We only do work and only ask for work that adds value to the business. We simplify, standardize and streamline our current work whenever possible.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Innovation is the Cornerstone of Our Success. We place great value on big, new consumer innovations. We challenge convention and reinvent the way we do business to better win in the marketplace.   Ã‚  Ã‚   We are Externally Focused. We develop superior understanding of consumers and their needs. We create and deliver products, packaging and concepts that build winning brand equities. We develop close, mutually productive relationship with our customers and our suppliers. We are good corporate citizens. We incorporate sustainability into our products, packaging and operations.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   We Value Personal Mastery. We believe it is the responsibility of all individuals to continually develop themselves and others. We encourage and expect outstanding technical mastery and executional excellence.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   We Seek to be the Best. We strive to be the best in all areas of strategic importance to the Company. We benchmark our performance rigorously versus the very best internally and externally. We learn from both our successes and our failures.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Mutual Interdependency is a Way of Life. We work together with confidence and trust across business units, functions, categories and geographies. We take pride in results from reapplying others’ ideas. We build superior relationships with all the parties who contribute to fulfilling our Corporate Purpose, including our customers, suppliers, universities and governments.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As such, it is very clear in â€Å"Our Principles† of PG that they really value their human resources and that they value the individual, the team and their development to become leaders and their corresponding search towards excellence (www.pg.com). Employee Benefits   Ã‚  Ã‚   The company sponsor several post-employment benefits throughout the world. These include pension plans, both defined contribution plans and defined benefit plans, and other post-employment benefit (OPEB) plans, which is comprised mainly of health care and life insurance for retirees (PG Annual Report, 2007). Stock-Based Compensation   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The company have a primary stock-based compensation plan under which stock options are granted every year to key managers and directors with exercise prices equal to market price of the underlying shares on the date of grant. A total of 229 million shares of common stock were authorized for issuance under plans approved by shareholders in 2001 and 2003, of which 73 million remain available for grant. An extra 20 million shares of common stock were authorized for issuance under a plan approved by Gillette shareowners in 2004 and assumed by the firm in conjunction with the acquisition of the Gillette Company in October 2005. A total of 14 million of the shares remain available for grant under this plan. There are also five million shares available for grant under this plan. There are also five million shares available for grant under Future Shares Plan approved by the Board of Directors in 1997. This plan will terminate in October 2007. Grants issued under the firm’s shareholder approved plans since September 2002 are vested after three years and have a 10-year life. Grants issued under these plans from July 1998 through August 2002 are vested after three years and have a 15-year life, while grants issued prior to July 1998 are vested after one year and have a 10-year life. In addition to the key manager and director grants, the company makes other minor stock option grants to employees for which vesting terms and options lives are not substantially different (Ibid).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Total stock-based compensation expense for stock option grants was $612 million, $526 million, and $459 million for 2007, 2006 and 2005, respectively. The total income tax benefit recognized in the income statement for these stock-based compensation arrangements was $163 million, $140 million and $125 million for 2007, 2006 and 2005, respectively. The company also makes minor grants of restricted stock, restricted stock units and other stock-based grants which are generally expensed at grant date was $56 million, $59 million and $65 million in 2007, 2006, and 2005 respectively (Ibid). Defined Contribution Retirement Plans   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Procter and Gamble have defined contribution plans which cover the   majority of U.S. employees as well as employees in other countries. These plans are fully funded. The firm generally make contributions to participants’ accounts based on individual base salaries and years of service. The main U.S. defined contribution plan comprises the majority of the balances and expense for the firm’s defined contribution plans. The contribution rate is set annually. Total contributions for this plan approximated 15% of total participants’ annual wages and salaries in 2007, 2006 and 2005. Procter and Gamble maintains the Profit Sharing Trust and Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) to provide a portion of the funding for the D.C. plan in the United States as well as other retiree benefits. Total defined contribution expense was $273, $249 and $215 in 2007, 2006, and 2005, respectively. The accumulated benefit obligation for all defined benefit retirement pension plans was $ 8.6 billion and $8 billion at June 30, 2007, and June 20, 2006, respectively (Ibid). MATCHING OF HUMAN RESOURCES WITH STRATEGY   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The development of key managers through the General Managers’ College of PG matched its strategy of growth and diversification as discussed above. The continuous growth of the company requires a constant supply of managerial talents. The employee benefits also matched the strategic goals of the company since these benefits are the motivators that will make the employees and managers work hard since the company spends a lot of money for their insurance, health care, pension plan, and stock-based compensation wherein the company spends billions of dollars.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Also, the â€Å" Our Principles† of the company as discussed above is also supportive of the strategy of the company wherein these principles promote a culture of independence and at the same time work as a team. It also encourages hard work and excellence for employees in their jobs. RECOMMENDATIONS   Ã‚  Ã‚   PG is an excellent company. Most of its strategic management practices are state of the art as well as its HRM practices. However, in order to match the strategic goals of the company, the human resources function should do the following: Conduct intensive training to all of its employees and not only their candidates for senior managers. These trainings should be in line with their respective functions of the employees in their respective divisions, and In order to motivate employees, the stock compensation option should be offered to everyone and not only for key managers.   PG’s infrastructure requirements consist of those functions and activities necessary for the effective management of a companys human resources. The major purposes of these activities traditionally have been to attract, retain, and motivate employees. We refer to them as human resource management (HRM) practices (Schuler, 1984), and the key HRM practices include: Human resource planning Staffing, including recruitment, selection, and socialization Appraising Compensation Training and development Union-management relationships   Ã‚  Ã‚   The result of effectively managing human resources is an enhanced ability to attract and retain qualified employees who are motivated to perform, and the results of having the right employees motivated to perform are numerous. They include greater profitability, low employee turnover, high product quality, lower production costs, and more rapid acceptance and implementation of corporate strategy. These results, particularly if coupled with competitors who do not have the right people motivated to perform, can create a number of competitive advantages through human resource management practices. CONCLUSION   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Although there are many ways by which companies can gain a competitive advantage, as MacMillan (1983) has suggested, one way often overlooked is through their human resource management practices. HRM practices enable companies to gain a competitive advantage in two major ways: One is by helping themselves and the other is by helping others. So there appears to be a significant benefit from having HRM considerations represented in the strategy formulation stage rather than only in the implementation stage. Once the strategy is formulated and the appropriate HRM thrust identified, specific HRM practices need to be developed. These practices, such as staffing and compensation, are the ones that actually create the competitive advantage for the company. In addition, selection of the most appropriate practices should be appropriate to the strategy and lead to behaviors that are supportive of the strategy; for example, if cooperative behaviors are needed among employees, then group or organizational level compensation incentives should be provided rather than an individual-level incentive system. If product quality is critical, quality circles and union-management cooperation should be developed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Once the strategy is formulated, the determination of the needed behaviors comes from job analysis. The HRM practices that stimulate those behaviors must be identified. They must be implemented so as to ensure consistency across HRM practices. It is this hard-won consistency which will help ensure that a competitive advantage through HRM practices is gained and sustained because of the barriers we have just discussed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In addition to using their HRM practices on themselves, companies can also gain a competitive advantage through using their HRM practices on others. Specifically, companies can gain a competitive advantage by helping their suppliers, customers, or servicers/distributors with their practices     Ã‚      REFERENCES    ^ a b http://www.pginvestor.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=104574p=irol-fundSnapshot ^ CNN Fortune ranking ^ http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/mostadmired/2007/top20/index.html ^ Dyer, Davis; Frederick Dalzell, Rowena Olegario (2004). Rising Tide: Lessons from 165 Years of Brand Building at Procter Gamble. Harvard Business School Press. ISBN 1591391474. ^ Wherrity, Constance. Dial Agrees to Buy PG Deodorant Brands, Pierce Mattie Public Relations New York blog, 2006-02-21. Retrieved on 2006-09-06. ^ John G. Smale: He rebuilt PG and city, too, The Cincinnati Post, 11 October 2005. ^ 2007 Annual report, pg 71 ^ Reasons for Selection, 2007 Canadas Top 100 Employers. ^ Trademark of the Beast by David Emery, June 10, 1998 ^ Trademark of the Devil by Barbara Mikkelson, snopes ^ Mikkel MacMillan, I. C. Seizing Competitive Initiative. The Journal of Business Strategy, 1983, pp. 43-57. Peters, T. J., and Waterman, R. H. Jr. In Search of Excellence. New York: Warner Books, 1982. Schuler, R. S. Personnel and Human Resource Management (2nd ed.). St. Paul, MN: West Publishing, 1984. Skinner, W. Big Hat, No Cattle: Managing Human Resources. Harvard Business Review, September-October 1981, pp. 107-118. Schulerson, Barbara and David. 2005 December 31