Moral absolutism Essay

The choices we make in our everyday life all have to do with our ethics. In this paper the topic will discuss the similarities and differences between virtue theory, utilitarianism, and deontological ethics. In order to understand the similarities, and differences of virtue theory, utilitarianism, and deontological ethics we must first define them. Virtue theory is defined as a moral excellence. It is a positive trait quality demand to be morally good and is valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being. It takes the viewpoint that in living your life you should try to cultivate excellence in all that you do and all that others do. Utilitarianism is a theory that suggests that an action is morally right when that action produces more utility for the group than any other alternative. We need to understand what our consequence would be based on our choice. When we make the right choice we will get a positive consequence and are acting morally; if we make the wrong choice the consequences will be acting immorally. Deontological moral is focused on loyalty to independent moral rules or duties. To make the right choices we need to comprehend what our duties are and the rules of our moral perspective. This is a matter of what we view to be moral or immorally based on our beliefs. The similarities between the three theories represent the good in people and how they strive for excellence. The differences are with virtue theory describes a person’s character, cultivating excellence in all we do. Utilitarianism addresses ethical and morality issues by addressing the balance of good over bad consequences. The morality associated with this theory suggests actions that produce a total utility for the group. Deontological ethics have a definition of a definition of a person’s dedication to recognize moral duties. In my current position as an assistant manager I am often put in a situation that includes some type of confidentiality with an associate that falls under me. If I am told about a certain situation that an associate is having in their personal life I have been told in trust and this be unethical for me to tell everyone else what is going on. Also when I have to write up any associate for work performance, that should be kept between me and that associate. For me to be able to keep my word about a particular situation involving any of my associates consist of moral concepts. Values, virtues, and ethics distinguish those actions as being morally right or morally wrong.

My first impression

My first impression looking at your resume is that it has a lot of information that no one ever reads because of the presentation. Graphically, your resume is simply to gray. It needs more use of white space and better formatting to call attention to the highlights of your experience and your background. Next, I was struck by the use of the courtesy title â€Å"Dr. † in the opening information.If you are wanting to teach, this could be appropriate, but otherwise instead of emphasizing your educational background (which is a good thing) and your perseverance in earning a Ph. D. in business administration, it makes people think medical doctor. Forgoing the honorific and moving you education to a more prominent place in your resume may be advantageous. Additionally, I think your resume needs to be focused regarding the job that you are seeking. While your CDL and HVAC licensing is interesting, it left me wondering how it qualified you to run a business (I believe international ma nagement is the goal, right? )I like the idea of making this an executive level resume with a separation out of core competencies and key achievements, but I think this resume falls short for a few reasons: 1) There are a lot of buzz words with specifics to back them up. I like the 36% increase, but you should not for whom. 2) There is a lot of information in this resume and not a format that makes me want to keep reading it. We need to find a more appealing presentation.I would suggest considering a more curriculum vitae type format, replacing the academic experience section with management experience. The format is cleaner and provides employers with a greater image of you as their executive. Finally, and this is only because I live in southern Illinois, I noticed that the address is Indiana, but both the phone numbers listed have a 618 area code. Is that correct? Thank you for using our evaluation services. I hope this will aid you in your career development.

Annual Report of Alto Metals Limited Free-Samples for Students

In your Evaluation of the Company’s Performance, you should take account of Relevant Information in the Annual Reports Explanations for the level of Profits generated from assets and how the level varied annually between 2014 and 2016. The overall assets of Alto Metals are mainly evaluated in the essay, where the company’s overall return on assets is being evaluated. The overall annual report of Alto Metals Limited is mainly identified as the most viable document, which depicts the financial position of the company. However, the company mainly aims in discovering and acquiring gold mines for improving its profitability mining company. The company also aims for searching uranium object, which could develop more uranium mining facilities. The company has mainly conducted projects for search new depicts and mining for gold. Moreover, the revenue of the company has mainly increased from 2014; however, a sudden decline was witnessed in 2016. The company does not have any kind of constant revenue, which could support its constant increase in expenditure. The overall return on assets of the company has mainly improved from 2013 to 2016. Where the first ROA was mainly at -11.39%, -44.04%, -97.04% and then in 2016 it reached to -25.82%. This overall return on assets has mainly depicted efficiency of the company to utilise its assets. In addition, the improvement of ROA is mainly identified during 2016, where a decline in retune on assets from -97.04% went to -25.82%. The improvement in return on asset is seen to increase by 73.4% in 2016 as compared to 2015. This mainly suggested that increased improvement depicted by ROA states the effective measures taken by the company to support its activities. Weygandt, Kimmel & Kieso (2015) stated that investors by using the return on assets could effective identify efficiency of the company to attain the required revenue by using the same capital. On the other hand, Damodaran (2016) criticises that ROA does not allow the investors to determine the risk associated with investment and only portray the level of revenue attained by deploying certain fixed assets. The three-asset category and one income statement category could be evaluated, before actually seeing the return on assets of the company. The asset class, which needs effective inspection, are cash, property, and inventories. The evaluation of these three categories is mainly essential by the investors before seeing the return on assets. In addition, the income statement that needs to be evaluated is the sale of goods and products.   The overall evaluation of cash, property, and inventories could mainly help the identifying the financial capability of the company. Vogel (2014) mentioned that evaluation of inventory could mainly allow the investor in identify the overall capital blockage in inventory store. On the other hand, Damodaran (2016) criticises that the evaluation of inventory does not allows the investor to detect the actual financial position; instead it helps in depicting ht cash generating capacity of the company. There is relevant different scale from 1-10, which could be used in valuing the overall return on assets of Alto Metals Limited. In addition, the return on assets of Alto Metals Limited is mainly at -25.82%, which could be rated in the scale of 1. This scale 1 mainly depicts that overall results of retune on assets is very unsatisfactory. This unsatisfactory outcome is mainly due to the negative ROA of Alto Metals Limit. The company has not being conducting any kind of sales from 2012 to 21016, which is mainly declining its ability to utilise its assets. In addition, relative decline in total assets could also be witnessed, which is due to the sales of asset conducted by the company during 2016 fiscal year (Vogel, 2014). There are relevantly no ratios, which could be identified from annual report of Alto Metals Limit in 2016. This financial information of the company has effectively reflected in the real world, as no revenue was generated from operations, which led to loss. The company effectively uses Accounting policies which is been laid down by AASB. There is not significant change in the overall accounting policies. Furthermore, the Director and CEO Reports mainly depict the loses, which is continuously incurred by the company due to non-commencement of adequate operations. There is no limitation of the financial statement of the company as, it complies with all the relevant accounting method, which is been depicted by the AASB (Brigham & Ehrhardt, 2013). Brigham, E. F., & Ehrhardt, M. C. (2013).  Financial management: Theory & practice. Cengage Learning. Damodaran, A. (2016).  Damodaran on valuation: security analysis for investment and corporate finance  (Vol. 324). John Wiley & Sons. Deboeck, G., & Kohonen, T. (Eds.). (2013).  Visual explorations in finance: with self-organizing maps. Springer Science & Business Media. Overview, C., Secretary, D., Directory, C., Shareholders, T., Governance, C., & Information, I. et al. (2017).  Focus on gold exploration in Australia | WA Mining.  Gold Focussed WA Mining Exploration Company. Retrieved 29 April 2017, from https://altometals.com.au/ Vogel, H. L. (2014).  Entertainment industry economics: A guide for financial analysis. Cambridge University Press. Weygandt, J. J., Kimmel, P. D., & Kieso, D. E. (2015).  Financial & Managerial Accounting . John Wiley & Sons.

Analizes of a case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Analizes of a - Case Study Example The company always used outside the box thinking in its business strategies such as buying idle production time from manufacturers in other industries. One of the reasons for the success of the firm in the furniture business was its introduction of self-assembled furniture. This concept help the firm reduce its prices because it eliminated two of the highest cost drivers in the industry which are assembly and delivery. The company’s managerial philosophy is to have an open system in which nobody is superior to others. Input from the employees is always welcomed at IKEA. The management process stressed simplicity and attention to detail. Being cost conscious was also a part of the business culture of the firm. IKEA penetrated the United States marketplace in 1985. In the 1990’s the company was exposed to bad media when a revelation was made to the public that IKEA was dealing with suppliers in Asia that used child labor. Stakeholders Ingvar Kamprad – Founder of th e firm. His values and beliefs are embedded in IKEA’s culture. Using child labor goes against everything he stands for. He does not want to hurt the reputation of the company through a child labor scandal. Marianne Barner – IKEA business area manager for carpets division. She is responsible for finding a solution to the problem. Shareholders – The shareholders of the firm are worried about the problem of child labor because its occurrence will hurt the image and reputation of the company which will negatively impact the price of the common stocks of the company. Asian children – The children population in Asia are at risk due to employment exploitation by IKEA suppliers. The children are the biggest victims in this scandal. Issues By the mid 1990’s the company had grown tremendously. IKEA had 98 stores across 17 countries worldwide. Its supply chain had become extremely complex since the firm had almost 2,300 suppliers. It had become extremely diff icult to monitor the actions of its suppliers. To make things worse those 2,300 suppliers were scattered across 70 countries. The firm was sourcing around 11,200 products. During the 1980’s environmental problems occurred with some of the products IKEA sold. In the 1990’s a new and extremely serious issue occurred as the company was accused of doing business with suppliers that used child labor. Child labor is a growing problem in our society with over 250 million children working in the labor market (Humanium, 2010). IKEA in the 1980’s faced new regulations from the Denmark government that redefine the limits of formaldehyde emissions permissible in product building. At concentration above 0.1 mg/kg in air this material caused watery eyes, headaches, burning sensation in throat, and difficult breathing. The company was fined by the government of Denmark and it was heavily criticized by the media. IKEA sales in the aftermath of this scandal drop by 20% in Denmar k. The company reacted quickly to the problem by establishing stringent requirement regarding formaldehyde levels. At first the problem was not simply to attend since suppliers bought from sub-suppliers that were exposed to formaldehyde. The firm resolved the problem by dealing directly with glue producing chemical companies. A decade later the firm was once again facing issues with formaldehyde in Germany. Its best selling bookcase series had high levels of

Team Taghleef company Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Team Taghleef company - Essay Example The lockout has the ability to secure energy isolating devices by locking the system in lock mode (Gustin 32). Bill Oliver also talked about the importance of safety audits, which he defined as the means used to identify potential issues prior to their having an impact on the plant’s safety. It entails a systematic examination to determine whether arrangements related to safety of processes comply with the required standards, as well as whether they are effectively implemented (Gustin 44). Taghleef also uses safety audits to ensure that they have required staff competency in facility and equipment operations, adequate performance of equipment to expected levels, and the adequacy of arrangements for any emergencies. Finally, the issue of behavior in the facility was touched on, especially behavioral-based safety. Bill Oliver contended that this is a controversial method of ensuring safety and that it needs to be applied correctly. To do this, Taghleef Company ensures that management and employees are involved in its formulation; they clearly define the expected behaviors at every level, observe the target behaviors, attain feedback the target behaviors, and derive their target behaviors from their safety

Problem Resolution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Problem Resolution - Essay Example he first important issue to be answered is whether the position of an administrator has indeed the authority to approve any cancellation of privileges and credentials of a medical staff including that of physicians and the authority to approve their termination from employment. On a side issue which must also be determined but however must be answered primarily by Dr. Clark, is whether a chief of the medical staff has the authority to cancel privileges and credentials of a medical staff and to terminate them from employment of the hospital. These issues are important since the Dr. Clark’s proposed action is premised on his claim that he has the power to cancel Dr. Kirk’s privileges and credentials and also the power to terminate him. Dr. Clark also claims that this proposed action could be done if there is approval from the administrator which is given such great weight. Hence, an examination of applicable laws, rules and regulations including an examination of the hosp ital handbook or policy is important to answer this issue. The second issue is on the validity of the employment contracts which serve the basis for any physician’s employment. In the cited scenario, physicians are employed by means of employment contracts. Its validity serves as a basis for either party in defending a discharge or termination of a medical staff or the basis for a claim on the part of the medical staff claimant (Shepard, 2007). Hence, it must be determined whether the employment contract is in accordance with the Constitution, applicable laws, statutes, policies, rules and regulations governing employment in healthcare organization, to be considered as a valid contract. Otherwise, the contract may be declared void for being against the Constitution or against the applicable law, rule, regulation or hospital policy, and may not be used by either parties for their respective claims and defenses. Other relevant laws, rules and regulations would then apply. If there is a valid

Management Report 3000 words Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Management Report 3000 words - Essay Example 4 Obstacles/ resistance to change†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 5 Strategic Change & Culture†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 5 Bottom up / Top down Strategic change †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 5 Role of Change Agents†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 5 INTRODUCTION†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 6 SONY: Visionary leadership†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 7 Pioneer advantage†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 7 Analysis and Teamwork †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 8 PART 2: Industry’s growth†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 10 Innovation†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 11 External environment†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 12 Competitive Pressures Exist within the Industry†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 13 Brief Statement of the Current & Future Strategic Issues†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 13 Recuperate Focus†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 14 Promote marketing to the boardroom†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 14 Brand oriented leadership†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. ... 18 Appendix A Supporting Data†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 18 Appendix B Sources†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 20 Part 1: Strategic Management Process & Context: The nature of strategy: Strategy of any organization I build that reveals how to respond to the customers, environments, competitors etc. the strategy of a company also helps in describing what kind of relationships to be made with the dealers, raw material vendors, customers, competitors, business partners, workers and also tells how to survive in the business market( Kazmi , 2008). Viewing strategy from multiple perspectives, different issues this reveals: The process that explains the process and functionality of any organization is strategic management process. This provides a roadmap for an organization to achieve its set goals and objectives( Kazmi , 2008 The influence of culture on strategy: The culture has a g reat influence on strategy. The strategies of a business would be building according to the cultural in order to meet customer’s requirements as culture greatly affects the demands of a nation (Witcher,   Chau 2010) . Strategy Lenses/ Strategy Safari†¦ & other concepts/ models/ theories to understand the significance of perspective: Different models are used to understand the significance of strategy. There are different models used within different organizations (Witcher,   Chau 2010) . Some of the key components are knowledge creation, transfer, utilization, exploration, tacit knowledge. etc. Managing Strategic Change: The need for & process of strategic change: There are no valid theories about business and the failure and success of the organization cannot be considered theoretically (Ungson ,  Wong 2008) .The processes

Whole Body Vibration and Bone Mass.Effects Of Whole-Body Vibration Research Paper

Whole Body Vibration and Bone Mass.Effects Of Whole-Body Vibration Exercise On Lower-Extremity Muscle Strength - Research Paper Example Method: Randomised controlled trial involving 16 elderly women, randomised into experimental group (n=8) and control group (n=8) based on strict inclusion criteria. They were exposed to whole body vibration on a vibrating platform for 24 sessions 3 times a week. On the vibrating platform, both the groups performed two dynamic exercises and one static exercise, and the frequency of vibration was progressively increased in the exercise group to 20-32 Hz while the control group always received 10 Hz. The outcome measures were serum PTH, calcium, phosphate, and beta crosslap along with anthropometry and a 30-second chair test. Results: The serum PTH concentration increased significantly in the experimental group by 44.3%, but the responses of blood calcium, phosphate, and beta-cross lap had no significantly demonstrable change. In both the groups, the 30-second chair test showed significant changes in the strength level of both the groups with considerable change in the experimental group. Anthropometric data demonstrated usefulness of training in the experimental group. Critique: The details of the power calculation have not been given, and given the small size of samples in each group, the reader have a chance to doubt the reliability and validity of the data collected. The exclusion criteria given tend to exclude any other confounding factors that may influence PTH, calcium, phosphate, or vitamin D metabolism.... The exercise regimens and workup schedule also indicate involvement of all the muscle groups. The details of the WBV training sessions had been given in separate tables, and the results have been discussed. Appropriate statistical analysis has been undertaken with complementary pre-post test analysis of physical condition and anthropometry with statistically significant changes demonstrated through increase in PTH levels. The effects lesser intensity WBV had no significant effects, although there were no increases in circulating calcium or phosphate levels. It can be argued that this study could have determined the time variations in calcium and phosphate levels with the changes in the PTH levels, but the design did not incorporate that. As a result, it is not possible to say whether these changes in PTH could at all lead to bone mineralisation. The authors admit that as a limitation of this study that this study could not determine whether the rise in PTH level with WBV could achiev e its main objective of accomplishing improvement in bone mineralisation. The rise in PTH may also lead to increase rate of bone demineralisation, but concurrent estimation of pro-collagen I levels do not show bone degradation. The small sample size poses another limitation, which confounds the effects of exercise in improving the strength of the muscles; however, despite these limitations, this study reveals the positive effects of WBV in bone mineralisation in the elderly population (Martna et al., 2009, 1-6). 2. Effects of Whole-Body Vibration Exercise on Lower-Extremity Muscle Strength and Power in an Older Population: A Randomized Clinical Trial. Rees, SS., Murphy, AJ., Watsford, ML., (2008). Aim: To investigate the effects of vibration exercises on

Dewey has a concept of body-mind very different from Plato. What is Essay - 1

Dewey has a concept of body-mind very different from Plato. What is body for Dewey- what is soul Explain how Dewey attempts to account for human intelligence, and why he rejects old notions of dualism - Essay Example In philosophy, the word dualism is used to represent the differences between body and mind. â€Å"In dualism, ‘mind’ is contrasted with ‘body’, but at different times, different aspects of the mind have been the centre of attention†(Stanford encyclopaedia of philosophy-Dualism). Famous philosopher Rene Descartes has put forward the idea of dualism. He believed that mind is a non physical substance whereas body is a physical substance. He argued that brain is the origin of intelligence and the mind, the origin of consciousness and self awareness. Plato, another famous philosopher, supported and elaborated the arguments of Descartes. He argued that our perceptions of distinct and immaterial objects are nothing more than shadows. Even though Plato succeeded in defining soul as an entity imprisoned in the body, he failed to give a clear answer to the question; what binds a particular soul to a particular body. The questions like; ‘what happens to th e soul and mind once the body faces death’ and ‘what happens to the soul and mind if all the materials used in the making of our body is substituted with some other materials from another planet’ are difficult to answer with the help of dualism theory. John Dewey rejected the dualism theory because of the above concerns and argued in favor of a single entity consisting of body, mind and soul. Dewey has elaborated his arguments with the help of following example. The being who eats and digests is also the one who at the same time is sorrowing and rejoicing; it is a commonplace that he eats and digests in one way to one effect when glad, and in another when he is sad. Eating is also a social act, and the emotional temper of the festal board enters into the alleged merely physical function of digestion. Eating of bread and drinking of wine have indeed become so integrated with the mental attitudes of multitudes of persons that they have assumed a

Shares and Joint Stock Companies in the New Economic Model Essay Example for Free

Shares and Joint Stock Companies in the New Economic Model Essay Introduction Good morning, dear colleagues. I’m glad to see everyone here. Thank you for your coming. Let me start by introducing myself. My name is Elena Torlopova. I’m a freshman of the State University of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation. I study at the department of the international economic relations. My aim for today’s presentation is to give you information about Shares and Joint Stock Companies in the New Economic Model I plan to be brief. My presentation will last only 5 minutes. As you can see, my presentation is divided into 3 main parts. At first I would like to give you the basic concepts and characteristics of joint-stock companies. Then I would like to take a look at benefits and lacks of joint stock companies. Lastly we are going to discuss the definition of blue chips and consider a situation where they are used. Please interrupt me if there is something which needs clarifying, otherwise there will be time for your questions at the end of my talk. The main information about joint stock companies Joint-stock company (JSC) is a company, the authorised capital of which is divided into a certain number of shares owned by shareholders. Shareholders bear no responsibility for its obligations and run the risk, within the value of shares belonging to them, of losses associated with the companys activity. A joint-stock company in which shares can be  traded freely and which may have unlimited number of shareholders is an open joint-stock company. A joint-stock company which shareholders have a pre-emptive right to buy shares sold by other shareholders is a closed joint-stock company. Such a company has no right to hold a public subscription to its shares or for that matter offer them for sale to the general public. Advantages and disadvantages of joint stock companies The company provides so many advantages that it is widely popular all over the world. The main advantages are: Huge resources A company can raise large amount of resources from the genera public by issuing shares. Limited liability The liability of the shareholders is limited to the extent of the face value of the shares held by them or guarantee given by them. Diffused risk The entire business risk of a company is distributed over a large number of shareholders. Thus, the risk is reduced for each shareholder. Despite the above advantages, the company form of organisation also suffers from certain demerits. Oligarchic management It is controlled by a small group of Board of Directors who hardly protect the interest of other shareholders. Lack of secrecy It is very difficult to maintain business secrecy in a company because of every business strategy is discussed in the meeting of the Board of Directors and the annual accounts are published and compliance to Government. Fraudulent management The directors and managers may function for their personal gain overlooking the interest of the company. â€Å"Blue chips† Blue chip stock constitute shares or securities of large reliable companies with stable indices derived from income and dividends paid. In essence, the term blue chip is employed in the stock markets by analogy to describe the actions of well-established entities. The term was coined by Oliver Gingold of Dow Jones Company in 1923. It is reported that  the term was born when Gingold was taking note of several businesses with shares priced at $ 200 per share or more. And went on to indicate intentions of writing an article about the blue chips. Thus the term was born. Typically, blue chips are indicators of the overall market. Blue chip shares are the most liquid securities market. The list of blue chip stock changes periodically, but there are always those that manage to stay on top for years. Examples of the western blue-chip companies are Apple, IBM, The Coca-Cola Company, Ford, Google, etc. In Russia blue chips occur mainly in the oil, gas, energy and telecommunications companies. In particular, the blue chips include such companies as Gazprom, Lukoil, Norilsk Nickel, Rosneft, Sberbank, Rostelecom, RusHydro, Polyus Gold, etc. These companies typically have leading positions in the RTS and MICEX. As you can see on the pie chart 15 percent of blue chips belong to Gazprom. It means that Gazprom shares are the most liquid in terms of sales and account for 15 percent of the total trading volume on the market. The second largest sales shares owned by Lukoil. They constitute 14, 02% of total trading in the market. Sberbank is the third after a Gazprom and Lukoil amounts to 13.88% of sales of its shares on the market. Norilsk Nickel and Rosneft makes 7.56% and 7% of sales in the market, respectively. And finally Surgutneftegas and VTB Bank constitute 4,82% and 4,28% of sales in the market. Thus the total weight of seven securities in the index is 67%, which implies that it is these securities provide direction and determine the dynamics of the Russian market as a whole. Conclusions We gave the definition of the concept of joint-stock company and it basic characteristics. Then we looked at the advantages and disadvantages of joint stock companies. And in the end we discussed the stock market, and specifically the blue chips and looked at the dynamics of the sales of seven major blue chips Russia. So, in conclusion I would like to say that joint-stock form of entrepreneurship plays an important role in the formation of normal conditions of operation of enterprises, allows shareholders to raise funds for its activities, and each worker can become the owner of the company, through acquisition of shares, each shareholder reduces the risk of losing a significant amount of money (each at risk only to the extent of its sum shares) allows you to work more efficiently, since  all are interested in making profits and dividends It should be emphasize once again that the joint stock company is a unique form of collective ownership of the implementation, where everybody i nterested in the results of its operations. Bibliography * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joint-stock_company * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_chip_(stock_market) * http://www.bukisa.com/articles/444625_basic-overview-of-blue-chip-stock

The Issue Of Legalising Homosexuality And Prostitution Philosophy Essay

The Issue Of Legalising Homosexuality And Prostitution Philosophy Essay The issue of legalising of homosexuality and prostitution was investigated by the Wolfenden Committee headed by Sir John Wolfenden.   The Report claimed that it is not the duty of the law to concern itself with immorality. This gave rise to a debate on morality and social norms. Lord Devlin and Professor Hart argued extensively attempting to define morality. Is society able to enforce its own morality or ought morality to be enforced by law? Devlin appealed to the idea of societys moral fabric. He argued that the criminal law must respect and reinforce the moral norms of society in order to keep social order from unravelling. Societies disintegrate from within more frequently than they are broken up by external pressures. There is disintegration when no common morality is observed and history shows that the loosening of moral bonds is often the first stage of disintegration, so that society is justified in taking the same steps to preserve its moral code as it does to preserve its government the suppression of vice is as much the laws business as the suppression of subversive activities. Devlin argued that immorality is what every right-minded person considered immoral. Devlin argued that there could be no theoretical limit to the reach of law; no acts are none of the laws business. Breaches of the shared morality do not cause harm to other individuals in the way that murder and assault do, but none the less they harm society by undermining its moral structure. Even acts like homosexuality between consenting adults in private can threaten the existence of society, and therefore society has the right to suppress them. Devlin believed that the limits of tolerance are reached when the feelings of the ordinary person towards a particular form of conduct reaches a certain intensity of intolerance, indignation and disgust. If, for example, it is the genuine feeling of society that homosexuality is a vice so abominable that its mere presence is an offence, then society may eradicate it. Moral laws or enforcing morality is much wider than one thinks, if we base it on the survival of our society then what is classed a society? Individualism of individuals come together with common interest and form communities but not every community is common to each other. Although they might share common moral issues, there are still some immoral practises within their communities by which other standards might be considered moral. Professor Hart argued with Lord Devlin over issues of enforcing morality. Lord Devlin in his book, The Enforcement of Morals in one of his essays quotes; it argues from the majoritys rights to follow its own convictions in defending its social environment from change it opposes. Does this mean that the majority rules even if they are wrong? A society made up of like minded individuals being the majority, there, must be toleration of the maximum individual freedom that is consistent with the integrity of society. Is Lord Devlin saying that society consist s of the majority of like minded individuals and that the majority enforces their morals on every other individual that would not otherwise take part in the thinking of the majority Rule, forcing individuals to think in the same way as the majority of society. Going back to the question of whom and what is a society? Is Lord Devlin referring to the powers that have been given to certain individuals that represent society (Not necessary the majority) to enforce morality? Taking South Africa for example during the Apartheid era were a minority class enforced immorality on its majority. Lord Devlin believed that society is entitled to preserve itself without vouching for the morality that holds it together. Professor H.L.A. Hart responded to Lord Devlin, If one holds anything like a conventional notion of a society, he said, it is absurd to suggest that every practice the society views as profoundly immoral and disgusting threaten its survival, Professor Hart went on to say that this so silly as arguing that societys existence is threatened by the death of one of its members or the birth of another. Professor Hart goes on to say that Lord Devlins argument fails whether a conventional or an artificial sense of society is taken. Lord Devlin in response to Professor Hart comments, I do not assert that any deviation from a societys shared morality threatens its existence any more than I assert that any subversive activity threatens its existence. I assert that they are both activities which are capable in their nature of threatening the existence of society so that neither can be put beyond the law. The two main issues that are argued between Lord Devlin and Professor Hart is firstly the freedom of choice and secondly the privacy of morality. Lord Devlins is of the opinion that you can not have Law without morality à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦destroys freedom of conscience and is the paved road to tyranny. Devlins argument centres on what he regards as an important function of the criminal law in enforcing the generally shared moral values of a society which are associated with its important institutions. The case for the laws enforcement of societys shared morality is based on several different considerations, most of which are embodied in two doctrines which Hart has labelled the disintegration thesis and the conservative thesis respectively. According to the disintegration thesis, a shared morality is what holds a society together, and hence the enforcement of this morality is necessary to prevent society from collapsing, or at least weakening. On the other hand, the conservative thesis maintains that the majority have a right to follow their moral convictions that their moral environment is a thing of value to be defended from change. Lord Devlin in his works refers to man reason or reasoning. Is man able to be rational? This I find is important and integral makeup for human beings to be moral. Unfortunately both Devlin and Hart in their arguments are attempting to establish or determine what the glue is that holds society together? Where Professor Hart is being more liberal and believing in the very nature of man, Devlin being more conservative saying that man is not capable of being rational. Drinking, drug-taking, homosexuality, abortion, suicide and fornication may cause serious social problems if they are indiscriminately practised. But so also would birth control, or the very practice of having very large families, or even, as Devlin himself acknowledges, celibacy. It is therefore not breaches of the shared morality that certain activities can become harmful to society, and hence their being harmful does not in any way support Devlins disintegration thesis. Devlin writes of harm to society as opposed to harm to individuals, On this account harm to individuals is constituted by injury to specific individuals such as is caused by acts of homicide, assault, and robbery. On the other hand, public harm consists of the impairment of institutional practices and regulatory systems that are in the public interest. Devlins disintegration thesis, with its notion of harm to society, is really an application of the public harm principle that coercion is necessary to prevent public harm. If this is the case, then there is no disagreement of principle between Devlin and Mill, for Mills principle of harm, embraces both private and public harm. If Devlins claims are correct, then even on Mills liberty principle there is a case for the legal enforcement of the shared morality. Devlins disintegration thesis, the harm which justifies legal intervention is not identical with the mere feelings of intolerance, indignation and disgust which arise when the majority in a society learn that their moral values have been breached. However, when one moves from his disintegration to his conservative thesis, the notion of public harm is either dropped, or else it is transformed in such a manner as to be indistinguishable from the mere feelings of intolerance, indignation, and disgust in the majority. In either case the conservative thesis is incompatible with Mills liberty principle. Hart warned against the dangers of populism.   Why should the conventional morality of a few members of the population be justification for preventing people doing what they want? This is based on the theory that most peoples views are coloured by superstition and prejudice. Hart reiterated Mills harm principle, Hart pointed out that societies survive changes in basic moral views. It is absurd to suppose that when such a change occurs, to say one society has disintegrated and been succeeded by another. Both Hart and Devlin raise important issues. Devlins view is practical and focused on the majority rule. Harts is more human and individual. Dworkin suggests that we should abandon the Hart-Devlin debate and concentrate of Liberties.   If a behaviour is a Basic Liberty like sex, this should never be taken away, even if someone has a different way of doing sex e.g. R v   Brown (1993) HL, general liberties could be restricted if they cause harm.   But, it is not clear how you tell the difference between a basic and a general liberty? Thomas Hobbes explains that morality is determined by reason and that reason has as its goal self-preservation seems to lead to the conclusion that morality also has as its goal self-preservation. But it is not the self-preservation of an individual person that is the goal of morality, but of people as citizens of a state. That is, moral virtues are those habits of persons that make it rational for all other people to praise them. These habits are not those that merely lead to an individuals own preservation, but to the preservation of all; i.e., to peace and a stable society. Thus, Good dispositions are those that are suitable for entering into civil society; and good manners (that is, moral virtues) are those whereby what was entered upon can be best preserved. In the state of nature, people have no education or training, so there is continual fear, and danger of violent death, and the life of man, [is] solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short. But real people have been brought up in families; they are, at least to some degree, civilized persons, and how they will behave depends on how they are brought up. Hobbes does not say that society is a collection of misfits and that this is why we have all the trouble that we do a position congenial to the psychological egoist. But he does acknowledge that many also (perhaps most men) either through defect of mind, or want of education, remain unfit during the whole course of their lives; yet have they, infants as well as those of riper years, a human nature; wherefore man is made fit for society not by nature, but by education. Education and training may change people so that they act out of genuine moral motives. That is why it is one of the most important functions of the sovereign to provide for the proper training and education of the citizens. I believe that this is by far more relevant than attempting to impose laws on society to control individuals or communities. Law as Morality is just one of the many laws that differentiate between state to state but this one also differentiates from person to person. Law as morality is a law that comes from what you think is morally correct. Morality is the choices we make, and the actions we take. Moral people behave according to personal and public ethics. Immoral people deviate from established behavior. Since the purpose of laws is to condone one type of behavior and condemn another, the making of laws impacts our actions. In a situation such as a set of twins whom are connected at birth and one is going to have to die to save the other. The only thing is, is that one of the twins is healthier than the other, so which one do you kill? Law and morality play a large role here, mainly because there is a legal issue and a moral issue associates with the predicament. The reason law has a part is that after the decision is made; it will be examined legally and must be accountable for the consequences. Morali ty has its place because many will find it morally wrong to take ones life despite any justification. Morality is based off of right and wrong and good and evil and people have different opinion as to what is right and wrong due to their different upbringings and socialisation. Summary If, like Hobbes, we regard morality as applying primarily to those manners or habits that lead to peace, then his view seems satisfactory. It yields, as he notes, all of the moral virtues that are ordinarily considered such, and further, it allows one to distinguish courage, prudence, and temperance from the moral virtues. Perhaps most important, it provides, in almost self-evident fashion, the justification of morality. For what is it to justify morality but to show that reason favours it? Reason, seeking self-preservation, must favour morality, which seeks peace and a stable society. For reason knows that peace and a stable society are essential for lasting preservation. This simple and elegant justification of morality does not reduce morality to prudence; rather it is an attempt, in a great philosophical tradition stemming from Plato, to reconcile reason or rational self-interest and morality. To summarize Hobbess system: people, insofar as they are rational, want to live out their natural lives in peace and security. To do this, they must come together into cities or states of sufficient size to deter attack by any group. But when people come together in such a large group there will always be some that cannot be trusted, and thus it is necessary to set up a government with the power to make and enforce laws. This government, which gets both its right to govern and its power to do so from the consent of the governed, has as its primary duty the peoples safety. As long as the government provides this safety the citizens are obliged to obey the laws of the state in all things. Thus, the rationality of seeking lasting preservation requires seeking peace; this in turn requires setting up a state with sufficient power to keep the peace. Anything that threatens the stability of the state is to be avoided. Margaret Thatcher once declared, Theres no such thing as society, there are individual men and women and there are families. Civility is not just good manners; it is part of democracy and respecting people that are different from ourselves with whom we differ maybe even very sharply. But maintaining a balance in which we can have respect for the rights of other people who have different views.

Creatine :: essays research papers fc

Creatine and Ephedrine Bill Romanowski, Shannon Sharpe, and Mark McGwire, are just a few of the professional athletes that use and endorse fitness supplements such as Androstendione, Creatine, and other products. Every on camera interview that you see Shannon Sharpe he is wearing an EAS mock turtleneck. EAS is one of the leading manufacturers of Creatine and other supplements. The hottest supplement in Hollywood is Ephedrine; an herbal based drug designed to increase fat loss. Why do so many athletes use supplements? Who is using the supplements? How can I get supplements? Those are a few of the questions I have tried to answer in this report. Purpose of the Study The purpose of this study is to educate. To educate not only the athletes using the supplements such as Creatine and Ephedrine but to also educate the governing bodies of collegiate sports. Answers were sought to the following questions: 1. Who is using Creatine and/or Ephedrine based products? 2. Why are they using supplements? 3. Are these prod ucts easily available? 4. Should the NCAA increase regulations on supplemental usage? Methods and procedures used to formulate this report I used primary and secondary research methods. I used the Internet as a focal point for my research. There were many sites devoted strictly to supplement usage and education on subjects related to the supplements, Creatine and Ephedrine. I also used muscle magazines and books for research. For primary research I gave forty questionnaires (see appendix 2) to twenty women and twenty men from Husson College. Background on Creatine What is Creatine When I think of Creatine I don’t think of a body building supplement I think of an aid to recuperation. Like an aspirin you take if you have a headache, an athlete takes Creatine if they have chronic sore muscles from continuously working out. Creatine is a compound that can be made in our body. It is taken as a strength supplement. The chemical name for Creatine is methyl guanidine-acetic acid. The organ that produces the bodies Creatine is the liver. The amount of natural Creatine in the body can be increased or decreased depending on our diet(Absolute). How much Creatine do we have in our body? A 160-pound person would have approximately 120 grams of Creatine stored in their body (The Beg†¦). The reason Creatine is such a hot commodity is because 95-98% of the Creatine in our body is stored in our muscles.

Teenage Life Essay -- essays research papers

People who are nostalgic about childhood, were obviously never children. Few people can remember the truth about adolescence. Their minds "censor" their memories; and have them believe that being a teenager was was one big party, free of cares and responsibilities. Well let me say this, you couldnOt be more wrong if you had a lobotomy. There aren't that many adults around who realise what adolescence was really like. The anguish, the fear, the anxiety, the stress. People don't remember those problems because they want to forget them. The truth of the matter is, is that being a teenager is hard, right from the beginning, and it doesn't get any easier. We are such easy prey for big name companies who advertise using the pressure of popularity, looks and sex to force us to buy their product that, as it turns out, we never wanted or needed in the first place. Our lives are filled with stress. One of the greatest sources of pressure is school. Where we are herded like cattle from room to room, chewing on our cud, while the hay of knowledge is force fed to us as we are trying our hardest to gulp it down as more and more is shovelled in. Another great source of pressure is ourselves. We try our hardest to be accepted among a certain group or circle. Whereas most of the time we are rejected and we become depressed. Depression, another problem, along with ignorance and apathy that thwarts our lives. A wise man when questioned about his view on ignorance and apathy, said &...

Taxes on Cigarettes :: Essays Papers

Taxes on Cigarettes The article â€Å"Smoke Signals†, by the New York Times and the New Jersey Sunday edition, presented an overview of for the state of New Jersey’s recent decline in cigarettes bought in the last year. The article starts off by explaining to the reader how smokers took a financial beating at the cash register every time they went to a convenience store to buy cigarettes. In a smokers reduction movement the state of New Jersey doubled the sales tax on cigarettes forcing smokers to spend an extra forty cents on every pack they bought. Len Fishman, the state commissioner of Health and Senior services, stated that the tax increase was meant to drive down the consumption entirely. As Mr. Fishman traveled around the state he discovered that many people were already trying to quite smoking, they just never had the right physical motivation to pursue their goal. These people explained that the dramatic increase on tax was the finale straw that broke the camels back, and provided the right motivation for them to quite smoking. The tax increase put New Jersey behind only Hawaii and Alaska at $1 a pack, and Washington state at 82.5 cents a pack. Over a six month period the revenue collected from cigarette sales had dropped by 12 percent. For 1998 the revenue earned by cigarette sales should have been roughly 54.2 million cartons, but with the tax increase that number had been dropped to 47.4 million cartons. This gap represents a 6.8 million carton difference, an outstanding decrease in cigarette sales. To all smokers the tax increase means a substantial amount of money will be necessary to maintain their habits. Some smokers will go through great lengths to save as much money as possible, even if it means traveling to other states to buy their smokes. Both Pennsylvania and Delaware reported a significant increase in cigarette sales over the next six months after the tax took affect. Over a one year period Delaware even had a ten percent increase, manly due to the tax increase in New Jersey. The state of Massachusetts raised their tax 25 cents a pack in 1992 and reported a 12.5 percent decrease in sales the following year. Certainly a more alarming statistic is not necessarily how much the tax has decreased the sales of cigarettes, although very impressive and healthy, but rather the percent of under aged children and high school students who already smoke and who are beginning to smoke.

Compare the relationships of the two sets of sisters from Howard’s End by E.M Foster and Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

In the books Howard's End and Sense and Sensibility there are two different sets of sisters. I will be looking at the older sisters in each of the books. In Howard's End there are just two sisters, they are very close in age and very alike in the ways in which they show their feelings. In Sense and Sensibility there are three sisters the elder two of the three are very close in age and the youngest is a lot younger than the middle sister. All three have similar qualities and different views on their livelihood. One of the families is the Wilcoxes who are high in the society and well known through out Britain. The mother of the family Ruth becomes very attached to Margaret as she shows concern and friendship towards her in her last few months of her life. Ruth is gentle, selfless, loving and in a way strangely omniscient. Ruth dies in the first half of the novel leaving her husband Henry a widow. Henry is a prominent businessman in London. He is Stuffy, conventional and very chauvinistic, as he points out that woman are in the world to look after the family and bring up children, but also makes sure the Wilcoxes are not seen badly in anyone's eye. Henry then marries Margaret not long after Ruth's death. Also read The Story of an Eyewitness Essay Analysis Henry and Ruth had three children. Charles, Paul and Evie. Charles is the eldest son – self-centred, aggressive man who has many morals that he intends to keep. He represents all the negative sides of the Wilcoxes that they would like to keep hidden away in the cupboard. Charles marries Dolly and she gives birth to a boy who they name Tom. At the end of the novel Charles gets sent to prison for 3 years from killing Leonard Bast. Their second child is Paul the youngest son, who travels to Nigeria to make his fortune after he shares a passionate kiss and brief romance with Helen Schlegel. The youngest of the three children is Evie who is a self centred, petulant girl. Evie marries to Charles uncle in law at the young age of 18. The second family in the novel is the Schlegels. The Mother and the Father of Margaret, Helen and Theobald (Tibby) Schlegel are both dead in the novel right from the beginning. Margaret is the chief protagonist of the story as she encounters many problems and joys. She is a 29-year-old and has English and German heritage like the rest of her family. Margaret is imaginative and committed to relations in the family. She organises most trips and dictates to the others what's happening. Her practical abilities, inner strength and emotional perceptiveness enable her to appreciate the Wilcoxes and strive for a finer life. Helen the second oldest is 21. She is passionate and a very fickle girl she lives for art, literature and human relations like any other upper class woman in the early 20th century. Helen represents the idealistic, intellectual and cultured side to the Schlegel family. Helen is prettier than Margaret is and more prone to excessive and dramatic behaviour as she tends to do before she thinks. In the novel she ends up pregnant with Leonard Bast's child. Lastly there is Theobald nicknamed Tibby who is relatively younger and more intellectual than the girls and only 16. In the book he grows up and ends up going to Oxford. He likes to indulge in luxury and is extremely lazy. Mageret and Helen will be one set of sisters I will be looking at. They are both caring and look after each other by making sure they are truly happy and that the wont marry into the wrong family. The Schlegels are well respected in their town and are in the middle of the middle class in society. Read also Intro to Public Relations Notes They have a lot of money and are wise with all their actions. The Schlegels are also a very conventional family as they do attend social gatherings this is shown when they are returning from a performance of Beethoven's 5th symphony at the beginning of the book. Finally there is one more set of people in the story, the Bast's. These people prove to give the story an unexpected twist, light humour and more depth. Jacky Bast is an extrovert with a sense of people around her. As a former prostitute she had had an affair with Henry Wilcox 10 years ago in Cyprus. Leonard is a poor insurance clerk he has little money – barely enough to live on. He is obsessed with improving himself and reads books constantly to try and improve his education and get a better job. Leonard wants to do a lot better with his life. He has learnt to appreciate that he is alive and to try and get the most out of it he is trying to improve himself so he will be higher and more renowned in society. Sense and Sensibility written by Jane Austen also shows us a strong and well-built relationship between the sisters – Marianne and Margaret Dashwood. Again in this story there are many important characters. It too is set around families and brings and joins them all together in the last few chapters of the book, giving it a wonderful and unpredictable ending. The main family in the novel is the Dashwoods. They are introduced right at the beginning of the novel and the whole story follows the sisters Marianne, Elinor and Margaret. Mrs. Dashwood the kind and loving mother of the three young girls becomes a widower at the beginning of the novel when her husband Henry dies. Mrs. Dashwood inherits nothing from her late husband except the un-known wish from her husband to John that he is to make sure her and her children are looked after and will live well. Mrs. Dashwood only wants what is best for her daughters and goes out of her way to accomplish this for them; she also has a romantic side to her and enjoys her daughters being whisked off their feet by romantic callers. Her eldest child Elinor is 19 years old and the heroine in the story, going through many difficulties and trivia's. Elinor is very composed and affectionate to all living things, when she falls in love with the Mr. Edward Ferrars she loses all these traits as she falls in love. She comforts and supports her sister Marianne when she is let down by Willoughby. Marianne is 17 and shines out with her spontaneity and great sense of life. Her romantic idealism leads her to fall in love with John Willoughby even when he disappears and leaves her high and dry. After this change of heart she marries her admirer – for many years – Colonel Brandon. The youngest of the Dashwood daughters is Margaret, she has a great sense of humour and at 13 she already shares her sister's great passion for romance and is stunned by Willoughby's romantic ways. The Dashwoods are a very close family and tell each other everything about relationships and daily walks. They depend on each other to fall back on and are all very well mannered. Throughout the novel the young and beautiful Dashwoods fall in love with many people. The most famous and most loved of all being Edward Ferrars particularly admired by Margaret. Edward is sensible and the older brother in his family. He falls in love instantly with Elinor but escapes from her for a while and is involved in a four year secret engagement to Lucy Steele but in the end turns up and marries Elinor as he as always wanted. His younger brother Robert manages to be the escape route for Edward to get back to his only one true love Elinor, as Lucy falls slowly in love with Robert and ends up marrying him instead. Marianne's first love in the novel is John Willoughby. He is an attractive young man but who deceits Marianne's heart by greedily leaving her for the wealthy Miss Sophia Grey leaving her traumatically distraught. The unexpected Colonel Brandon finally gets his wish when Marianne returns his unrequited love. Colonel Brandon is a retired officer who falls in love with Marianne when he first lays eyes on her. He constantly tries to impress her but is always beaten away by Willoughby. He acts kindly, honorably and graciously towards the whole family throughout the novel, making the family more than glad that Marianne marries him in the end. In Howard's End you notice from the beginning the very strong relationship between Margaret and Helen. In their relationship Margaret takes on the stereotypical role of being the mother because she is the oldest out of the pair. This seems natural to Margaret as her mum and dad have died leaving her and her aunt Juley to look after Helen and Tibby. Margaret feels it is her duty to protect Helen from any pain or embarrassment on her part. We can see this when Margaret and Ruth meet for the 1st time since they meet in Germany. Both the Adults agree it is better that Helen and Paul do not meet, and that it is good that they have no chance of meeting at the moment as Helen is in Germany unaware that Paul is in Nigeria. As they meet Margaret is happy that they both feel the motherly love for the two love lost â€Å"children†. ‘†You've been worrying too! † exclaimed Margaret, getting more and more excited, and taking a chair without invitation. † How perfectly extraordinary! I can see that you have. You felt as I do: Helen mustn't meet him again†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ In Sense and Sensibility Elinor also take the role of being the more organised and the mother of the sisters. She two looks after her younger sibling Marianne, thinking that she knows best and tries to do everything for her. When Mrs. Dashwood exclaims that it may be months before they hear anything of Willoughby again Marianne is angry and says that it is more like a matter of weeks. This pleases Elinor because although Marianne is angry at the thought. Marianne has spoken and that means she is on her way to being mended ‘ Mrs. Dashwood was sorry for what she had said, but it gave Elinor pleasure, as it produced a reply from Marianne so expressive of confidence in Willoughby and knowledge of his intentions'. The quote also tells us that Elinor is not only glad that she had finally spoken, she is also glad that she is able to speak of her and still has faith in him in returning – making that whole family believe that he will return and make her happy and well again. Helen and Margaret are very alike in the way that they are both representing the Schlegel family and household, which represents the intellectual aspect of middle class citizens. When Margaret first excepts the marriage proposal from Henry she presses on him whenever they are in the company of Helen to go and talk to her and make friends. She is determined that they should be friends as they will be in the same family but is very anxious for them to like each other as they are the most important people in her life. If they weren't friends she couldn't see how she could deal with it. She likes Helen so much she can't see why Henry wouldn't. Helen is also very passionate about her relationship with Margaret. When Helen turns up at Evie's wedding she annoyed with Henry for giving them wrong advice. When she is saying this to him she is expecting Margaret to take her side but instead Margaret doesn't have much input. When the Argument had calmed down a little Margaret says to Helen ‘ I am to marry Henry I must take his side' this is the last time they speak until Margaret sees Helen pregnant. Helen is very upset with this because Margaret is he sister she feels like Henry is taking her and their friendship away from her. She feels lonely and befriended and this is why she doesn't contact her because she feels that she is no longer needed as Margaret has someone else now, Margaret as a husband. When Helen leaves for Germany for the second time Margaret is unaware of their fight being so big to her. After not really hearing from Helen for a while apart from in telegrams and postcards she realises something must be wrong. To her it doesn't seem like it is Helen writing. When they meet Helen feels that Margaret can get her anything. This is natural as you expect the mother figure able to get you what you want and need. She asks by saying at Howard's End ‘But it would give me great pleasure to have one night her with you'. Margaret sets out and risks her marriage to get her dear sister this. Their love for each other is so great they will risk anything to keep their friendship from ending. In Sense and Sensibility, Edward comes back to Barton Cottage when Lucy marries his brother instead realising that he has always been in love with Elinor without admitting or realising it. When he lets it be known to the family that he is not married to Lucy and they have all been mistaking, Elinor acts out with joy ‘She almost ran out of the room, and as soon as the door was closed, burst into tears of joy, which at first she thought she would never cease'. Marianne is very happy that her sister has finally found happiness as it means there will be no more worry in the family for her. Marianne could only speak her happiness only be tears. Comparisons would occur – regrets would rise – and her joy, though sincere as her love for her sister, was of a kind to give her neither spirits nor language'. Meaning that she could not speak of her love for her sister as it was too great and too meaningful that there are no words too describe it. In both the novels it ends up that there love for each other finds ways to make them stay together throughout and both sets of sister's end up living near each other. In Sense and Sensibility the novel ends with the sisters being reunited at the colonel Brandon land. With Elinor and Edward working for him in the parsonage that had been promised to Edward months before. After pursuing and courting Marianne she finally recognised his kindness and agreed to marry him. They moved to his estate and once again by fate the sisters were brought together. The two sets of new families brought happiness to Mrs. Dashwood knowing that the sisters were within walking distance of each other, so they could look out for each other as they always had. ‘Between Barton and Delaford, there was that constant communication which strong family affection would naturally dictate †¦ hat though sisters and living almost within sight of each other, they could live without disagreement between themselves, or producing coolness between their husbands'. This means that they can now live practically together without getting into any fights or disagreements because their relationship is so strong. With it being so strong it means that their husbands have become friends and everyone has put all the trivia's of the past behind them and now look forward to enjoying time with each other in the future. In Howard's End it ends with Helen having her baby at Howard's End with Henry and Margaret. They all live together looking after each other. ‘Helen rushed into the gloom, holding Tom by one hand and carrying her baby on the other' This shows that the families are united together as Helen has her baby as well as taking care of Henry's only grandson. This is showing that she has been trusted with their family in her hands. The book ends with Helen saying that the field has been cut and the crop of hay will be the best ever ‘ We've seen to the very end, and it'll be such a crop of hay as never! This could be a metaphor for their life, the sisters have been together throughout all their problems and now they are going to have the best time ever. The relationships between the sisters are strong. The older sisters Elinor and Margaret have very much in common they both look out for their younger siblings taking on the stereotypical role of being the mother figure. The Dashwoods and the Schlegels are very similar as they both at the end put all there differences behind them and love and learn from the past and each other. Throughout the novels they have fights and instances which make them hate each other. One of the differences between the Dashwoods and the Schlegel sisters is that the Dashwoods encounter many relationships and support each other in relationships and urge them to go ahead and comfort each other when they fail. The Schlegels keep by their thoughts and Helen despises Henry for taking Margaret from her and is jealous of there relationship where as in Sense and Sensibility Marianne urges Elinor to go ahead with the relationship as she wants to see her happy more than be happy her self. When they are in relationships the other sister can sense when it is right or wrong to intervene sowing how close the families are. In Sense and Sensibility when Willoughby leaves Elinor knows best not to jump in right away and leaves Marianne so she can have some time to herself. You get the same feeling from Howard's end when Helen becomes pregnant Margaret stands back and allows Helen to make up her own decision on what to do, but when Helen decides to stay with Margaret she is only to happy to have her to stay and welcomes her with open arms.

Portfolio Management of Research Projects Essay

1 Introduction More and more, organizations rely on research projects in order to stay updated on new technologies, processes and practices on their fields. Through them, they remain ahead in the competition and sustain their competitive advantages. This is specially the case for organizations that are on the top of their industry and which other organizations follow closely to benchmark their strategic moves. This seems applicable for private organizations, however research and development also plays a big role in public organizations. In the last few decades there has been an increased belief that organized research and development could stimulate economic growth and contribute to improving economic welfare. Given this, governments provide research and development (R&D) funding in order to promote scientific and technological development. With the increased need for production of scientific and technological knowledge in the public sector, there has been an increase in R&D activities performed by private organizations in order to match these production needs. Whether they are of a public or private nature, organizations rely on projects as means to deliver results. This derives in the tendency to engage in several projects simultaneously. Organizations group these projects in portfolios which should be managed in order to decide its composition and strategic moves. This managerial task is known as Portfolio Management which applied to R&D projects is defined as:  Ã¢â‚¬Å"a dynamic decision process, whereby a business’s list of active new product (and R&D) projects is constantly updated and revised. In this process, new projects are evaluated, selected, and prioritized; existing projects may be accelerated, killed, or deprioritized,; and resources are allocated an reallocated to the active projects. The portfolio decision process is characterized by uncertain and changing information, dynamic opportunities, multiple goals and strategic considerations, interdependence among projects, and multiple decision-makers and locations† (Cooper, Edgett, & Kleinschmidt, 2001). Portfolio Management of Research Projects in the Public and Private Sectors The aim of the present thesis is to gain a better understanding on how this process is applied in both a public and a private setting. The thesis work focuses on the analysis of one public organization and two private organizations. While the sample may not be representative to completely understand the behaviour of organizations and their portfolio management, it provides an opportunity to model the process in these settings. The project is lead through a series of iterative literature review supported by interviews and document analysis. The research questions represent the point of reference to start the research. This project is approached with an open mind, which allows re-evaluating the initial assumptions of the thesis and gives flexibility to the researcher. A more in-depth description of the  methodology followed in this report can be found in the fourth chapter of this project. The motivation behind this master thesis developed from previous studies on project management of research projects. During these studies a less known topic came up: portfolio management of research projects. It appeared that, while it was a less known topic, it was not of less importance. Through discussions with professionals from both research institutions and industrial organizations, it became evident the relevance of the topic. I was motivated by this relevancy which is present in both the public and private sectors. 2 Trondheim, NTNU MSc in Project Management, Thesis 2 Problem Formulation This master thesis aims to present a description and comparison of the process of portfolio management of research projects undertaken in a public and a private organization. The major focus in this regard is to identify the commonalities and differences of the organizations’ practices with respect to portfolio management and obtain a better understanding on how the process works in both organizations. This understanding and thesis will hopefully be helpful for organizations that seriously consider R&D and for researches who will work on this topic in the future. There may be several research questions that can be studied in connection with portfolio management of research projects. I choose to consider some important research questions within the scope of this master thesis. The research questions are presented and explained below. 2.1 Research Questions The focus of the investigation behind this project is based on the following  questions: How do organizations perform the portfolio management process? How do organizations select which research projects should make up their company’s project portfolio? How do public and private organizations define success in research projects? What drives the difference across firms, if any? 3 Portfolio Management of Research Projects in the Public and Private Sectors The model is based on my assumption that organizational strategy plays a major role in the way an organization proceeds to lead the activities associated with managing its portfolio of research projects, which in turn have the main purpose of generating knowledge and possibly bring competitive advantages to the organization. Based on this understanding the research approach, as will be explained in a later section, was developed in order to study to what extent the model reflects reality. Though the terms strategy and knowledge are not explicitly mentioned in the research questions, both terms are underlying aspects that reflect on the research questions and hence this study. The research questions and research model are connected to each other and complement each other in such a way to highlight the topic this thesis. 2.3 Importance of Thesis As part of a previous project for the Specialization Course of the Master in Project Management at NTNU, I got acquainted with the challenges and  uncertainties associated with research projects. During the research phase and in discussions with interviewees from research institutions and industrial organizations, peers and professors it became evident that one area of interest in R&D for those developing in the R&D environment is the one related to portfolio management of such projects. While portfolio management is an important topic in the literature of Project Management, there are fewer investigations that link this topic with specifically research projects. This may be because only recently the interest in research projects has been growing and this discipline is now seen as a potential tool for business success and competitive advantage. It became clear that organizations rely more on projects as a means to deliver results. Organizations arrange projects in portfolios according to their goals and strategy. Research projects, which may be among the projects in the portfolio or be the sole elements of the portfolio as will be explained later, help organizations keep updated in new technologies, methodologies, processes, etc. However, in private organizations investing in Research projects, whether internally or externally obtained, may seem as an unnecessary expenditure given the focus on day to day processes. On the other hand, there are public 4 Trondheim, NTNU MSc in Project Management, Thesis  organizations specifically dedicated to generate or fund research projects in order to generate knowledge and development of public interest.  Either way, both private and public organizations that wish to remain competitive have a tendency to undertake research projects. The nature of both organizations may lead to different approaches on how to manage their portfolios. This could develop into managerial activities that while work on one setting may not be useful on the other and vice versa. Getting to understand how these managerial activities are performed in the public and  private settings can give future researchers and organizations interested in R&D projects an insight on some of the current practices in these settings. 2.4 Research Approach Once the importance of the topic was clarified the topic was better delimited through literature review and brief discussions with academics and professionals knowledgeable in the area. Literature review includes basic theory of portfolio management, research projects, portfolio management of research projects. Furthermore I used theories on portfolio evaluation and selection and tools and techniques for portfolio management. This general literature provides a framework within which I could look at and describe portfolio management of research projects. Portfolio management of research projects can be seen in two ways. One is when a company has a portfolio that includes all types of projects (IT, construction, R&D, etc.) and makes selection, resource allocation or termination decisions considering all of these projects. I will call this a Mixed Project Portfolio (Figure 2: Project portfolio), where Project (P) 1, 2†¦ N, coexist with Research Project (RP) 1, 2†¦ N. Figure 2: Project portfolio consisting of mixed projects The other way of looking at portfolio management of research projects can be when a company either undertakes only research projects or they simply manage them Yolanda Yebra Aguado 5 Portfolio Management of Research Projects in the Public and Private Sectors  independently of the projects which support day to day activities (IT, procurement, etc.) In this case, it is possible to talk about a Portfolio of Research Projects (Figure 3: Portfolio of research projects), in which activities of portfolio management are done only considering the interdependencies of research projects within the portfolio. Figure 3: Portfolio of research projects For purposes of this project, the focus is on this second way of looking at portfolio management, where the organizations’ portfolio consists only of research projects; hence the context of this study. This research study is based on an iterative process – a learning cycle – which helped refine the course of the study and further investigation. Based on this an interview guide was created; this interview represents the basis for the qualitative approach in this paper. The interview, as it will be explained later, is a semi-structured interview allowing the researcher to address the issue with an open mind as well as giving the opportunity to direct the interview in the desired direction or adding relevant topics. In addition to the interviews, document analysis is also used to support the topic. The analysis of the document is done adhering to the same premises and perspective of the interviews with the aim of finding important and relevant information. This process helped create a framework within which it was possible to operate in a flexible manner. Through this, the research questions were refined and fine-tuned in order to emphasise the main elements of the research topic. To complete the research, I present an analysis of the findings. Whenever comparisons are possible, they will be presented. Finally conclusions that resulted from the analysis will be drawn. Further information on the methodology followed for this project is explained in the following chapters. 6 Trondheim, NTNU MSc in Project Management, Thesis 2.5 Scope and Limitations The major limitation associated with this project comes from the amount of time dedicated to the investigation. The project is developed during the spring semester of 2011 as a master thesis for the Project Management program. Due to this time limitation, the number of cases to be analysed will be limited to three organizations. Though the sample may not be representative to fully understand the behaviour of organizations and their portfolio management, it provides an opportunity to look at some kind of pattern in organizations’ practices with respect to portfolio management of research projects. Furthermore, this thesis can be used as a base for further research in the matter; a stepping stone to go further. In the cases where specific literature regarding research and development projects was hard to find or of no access, general literature on portfolio management and project management is used as a source to discuss relevant issues. The same applies to models and tools consulted on the matter. Regardless of these limitations, I believe that a better understanding on the topic will be possible through this study to reach conclusions and provide a base or reference for academics, practitioners as well as general public who are interested in the topic. 3 Theoretical Background This chapter presents the theoretical background of the report. To begin  with, the concepts associated with the main topic Portfolio Management of Research Projects (PMRP) are presented. The objective of this is to get acquainted with them, to have a better understanding of what is discussed by different authors and to choose specific definitions to work with. Once the main topics and definitions are introduced, three main concepts related to PMRP are presented. The first one is the influence of Strategy in PMRP and why organizations choose to rely on strategy to support it. The next section deals with the Selection process and presents some methods and criteria for project evaluation and selection suggested by the literature available. The third concept is project Success, which is explored from an overall project management perspective and more particularly from a public and private organization perspective. The concept of success is looked at in order to understand what organizations perceive as successful and how it impacts their business in future strategy, project selection and other areas. 9 Portfolio Management of Research Projects in the Public and Private Sectors 3.1 Basic concepts of the Portfolio Management of Research Projects This section presents the definitions of the basic concepts associated with the report. First, I begin by briefly introducing the evolution of research and development projects and their nature. Next, the definition of portfolio management is presented. After these two presentations, other relevant topics are described. Finally the main topic of the research, portfolio management of Research projects, is introduced. 3.1.1 Research and Development Projects: a Private and Public Approach David et al. (2000) present a very comprehensive analysis of the development of R&D research in the US. According to the authors the end of the 19th century marked the beginning of organized research and development activities upon  the productive resources for societies. Since then, the percentage of national gross product directed by both private and public organizations towards increasing the scientific and technological knowledge has increased. The same study claims that during the 1930s, the  Ã¢â‚¬Å"total R&D expenditures in countries such as the US, the UK and Japan remained in the range between two-thirds and one-quarter of one percentage point of their respective national product figures.† (David, Hall, & Toole, 2000). Since then there was an increased belief that organized research and development could stimulate economic growth and contribute to improving economic welfare, which led governments to create public institutions supporting civilian science and engineering. This gave way to an expansion of government agency research programs in non-defence as well as military technologies, and established models for the performance of governmentfunded R&D by private sector contractors. With the increased need for public production of scientific and technological knowledge, there was an increase in R&D activities performed by private organizations in order to match this production needs. This is given that technology is the most crucial factor for the progress of a nation’s economic development and living standards (Chang & Hsu, 1997). In order to promote scientific and technological development, governments provide R&D funding. As a result, support for selective development of specific industries is provided through direct, project-oriented subsidies. Government policy concentrates resources on long-term R&D problems and on expensive basic research that could not be undertaken by industry. Whether they are of a public or private nature, organizations rely on projects as means to deliver results; this tends organizations to engage in several projects at a time. The nature of these projects varies from  marketing to IT, environmental issues, procurement, new product development and research and development (R&D). More and more, organizations rely on research projects (R&D, new product development, innovation) in order to stay updated on new technologies, processes and practices on their fields. This is how they remain ahead in the competition and sustain their competitive advantages. This is specially the case for organizations that are on the top of their industry and that influence other organizations to follow them closely to benchmark their strategic moves. In order to maintain competitive advantage, organizations need to develop successful product and process innovation (Archer & Ghasemzadeh, 1999; Mikkola, 2001) for what they turn to R&D projects to achieve this. However R&D projects have a very particular nature. Research projects are characterized for being associated with a high degree of uncertainty and unpredictability (Balachandra, K, & Pearson, 1996). Therefore, large scale R&D projects require large budgets and high risk and long term programs (Chang & Hsu, 1997). This is mostly due to the fact that the outcome of a research project, such as knowledge generation, is intangible and hard to measure through standard project evaluation. 3.1.2 Portfolio Management Given the importance of developing research projects, organizations are faced with the task of conforming portfolios of projects. For practical purposes, this report considers project portfolio as: â€Å"a group of projects that are carried out under the sponsorship and /or management of a particular organization† (Archer & Ghasemzadeh, 1999). The task of selecting which projects should be a part of the company’s project portfolio is an important activity in many organizations. It is presented in the following definition. Portfolio Management is defined as the strategic choices, resource allocation, project selection and balance of the pool of projects available for organizations to undertake (Cooper, Edgett, & Kleinschmidt, 2001; Linton D. & Walsh T., 2002; Wang & Hwang, 2005). However this activity is not an easy one to do. Managers find challenges in deciding which projects to undertake, how to allocate resources to them through their whole life cycle and how to balance the portfolio once projects are completed or have to be terminated. Project Portfolio Management (PPM) is a critical task in company performance. Some key questions to be considered before deciding to do project portfolio management are known as â€Å"Five Ws and One H† (The Enterprise Portfolio Management Council, 2009): Who can use the PPM process? Everyone from Chief executives, heads of department, managers, supervisors, portfolio, project and program managers, to systems engineers. What should PPM be used for? To manage multiple projects, programs, assets, software applications, resource allocation, products.  When should PPM be used? When there is more than one project or program or decisions must be taken when it comes to proposal ideas competing for a slot in the portfolio, whether projects or programs should go forward or terminated, resource allocation, strategic changes, mergers, acquisitions or joint ventures to mention some. Where is PPM used? In both profit and non-profit organizations, government agencies, universities, investment firms.  Why should PPM be used? To ensure that projects and programs are aligned with strategies, goals and business objectives, to communicate project and program details, to manage projects and programs as a whole. PPM is a holistic, systems approach to business projects. How to decide whether to use PPM or not? Conversations and discussions between executives, managers, project and program managers and experts are encouraged in order to assess the situation and define the business case. Screening, Selecting and Prioritization Reprioritiza tion of projects Allocation and reallocation of resources according to priority Figure 5 Managerial activities related to PPM, based on (Blichfeldt & Eskerod, 2007) p. 358. Literature on PPM has widely focused on these managerial activities of project screening, selection, prioritization, balancing and resource allocation, while most recently focus has shifted to actual day to day management of the portfolio. Theories and literature have gone from focusing on tools, techniques and methods to a more managerial approach of how the activity is actually done. Thus, this thesis studies documented techniques and methods PPM, but keeps in sight the importance of the actual activities undertaken by the institutions. 3.1.3 Portfolio Management of Research Projects Global market changes and the interest of business organizations to remain ahead of their industry, tend organizations to rethink their competitive  strategy more often than before. Firms that cannot supply innovative products faster than competitor, lose competitiveness. R&D projects are used as a source of strategy, because they help target the increasing complexity demanded by shorter life cycles of products and services that wish to remain ahead and up to date (Mikkola, 2001). Most importantly, organizations have an increasing interest in evaluating their R&D projects from a portfolio’s perspective; in which project selection, resource allocation and balancing remain the main activities to be performed. According to McNally (2007), managing R&D is considered as one of the three core business processes.  Perhaps the most comprehensive definition of Portfolio Management of Research Projects, and the one to be considered for this thesis, is given by Cooper, et al. (2001). The authors describe the term as: â€Å"a dynamic decision process, whereby a business’s list of active new product (and R&D) projects is constantly updated and revised. In this process, new projects are evaluated, selected, and prioritized; existing projects may be accelerated, killed, or deprioritized,; and resources are allocated and reallocated to the active projects. The portfolio decision process is characterized by uncertain and changing information, dynamic opportunities, multiple goals and strategic considerations, interdependence among projects, and multiple decision-makers and locations.† This is an important and critical task to be undertaken because it requires a considerable amount of human resources and opportunity costs incurred as projects go from the selection phase to the implementation. At the same time this is a difficult task because decision makers have to work relatively fast with little reliable and highly changing information. Therefore the selection and development of successful innovations has a high degree of risk associated with it (Nesse & Velde, 2010). In order to manage portfolios of research projects, organizations rely on different tools or techniques. Literature (Wang & Hwang, 2005) points that R&D portfolio decisions are hard to take given the nature of R&D projects and environment. On the one hand, R&D projects have long lead times, and on the other hand, market and technology are so dynamic that it makes information for portfolio management seem unavailable and unreliable. All organizations that wish to engage in R&D are faced with the problem of managing the portfolio of research projects, where projects have to fight for a limited pool of resources. At the same time project selection becomes a complicated task because the decision maker has to determine which new proposals should be funded, which existing projects should be continued and to what extent a resource should be involved in the selected project of the portfolio (Chien, 2002).

Outine Presentation Essay

Introduction I. According to a report by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organizations, India has the highest population of illiterate adults at 287 millions amounting to 37% of the global total. II. By using of some my research, I would like to share with all of you the topic that I interest which is the facts of illiteracy. III. Today, I would like to focus on three interrelated issues which are causes, effects, and prevention of illiteracy. (Transition: Now, let’s start by taking a closer look at the problem) Body I. There are several different causes as to why illiteracy is such a problem in certain countries. A. About 29.8% of our population lies below the National Poverty Line which indicates they are do not have access to basic requirements of essential commodities including food and water. 1. Education is one of the luxuries that they cannot afford. 2. Mostly, majority of population in countries suffer from high percentage of illiteracy comes from poor people. 3. They will let their children to escape from school and go to labour for work to collect money and help them in life costs. B. Individual disabilities are person who has physical or mental conditions that do not allow them to educate themselves easily. 1. For example, a dyslexic child will find it hard to remember the letters of the alphabet and to interpret it. 2. A blind child also difficult for them to read without assistance. (Transition: Now, ladies and gentlemen I will explain my next point) II. Illiteracy has given some effects towards countries and people involved. A. These can make the countries develop slowly. 1. As a result of illiteracy, people find it so difficult to have a job without the ability of reading or understanding simple documents. 2. Therefore, the illiterates become a burden of society causes to make the nation poorer. B. Illiteracy also effects on people in the society. 1. Illiterate parents cannot get good jobs to support their family and this  will turn affects their lifestyle and their needs. 2. This also will lead to their children where their children get many of parents’ views and ideas to survive. 3. If parents do not feel that education is an important of success, these feelings will be carried over to their children. (Transition: As causes and effects of illiteracy, I will continue to discuss about how to prevent illiteracy) III. We have to cooperate to clear this problem which is holding back. A. Parents play important roles to educate their children. 1. According to Kerka, 2003 learning styles, learning disabilities and life experience may all contribute to low academic achievement or problem behavior. 2. Parents need to educate their children at an early age, so their children do not fall behind in recognizing letters and words. B. Opening new modern training centers. 1. As we know, it is difficult for persons in their 40s to 60s to use the same educational method as used for children. 2. It is also to help individual disabilities to educate further. 3. By using technology and modern education theories helps everyone inside educational progress. Conclusion I. As we see, illiteracy is a social evil that shall encircle our country in darkness and downfall if not curbed. II. As you know, I have focused on causes, effects, and prevention of illiteracy. III. What I have mentioned before about Kajani should be take strict action to make sure they can be an educated person. IV. It is also to make sure the statics I tell before can be release.

Boundryless Org Essay

1. Identify some of the problems likely to occur in a boundaryless organization like Newskool Grooves. What are the Advantages of boundaryless organizations? Some issues that have occurred at the Kiev offices, managers there said that their computer programmers find working with little structure is uncomfortable. They are used to the idea of a strong leadership structure and well-defined work processes. Trying to reach co-workers in other offices who practice boundaryless organization has become an issue for some managers. They said that when they call the office they say to wait until their meeting day which is an issue because they have an immediate issue and cannot always wait until they decide to get together. Developers working on hardware in different locations had a communication breakdown which required many hours of discussion to resolve which could have been avoided if they were all on the same track. The developers seldom met face to face and all made progress but all of them moved in different directions with the product development. An advantage of boundaryless organizations: Boundaryless organizations communicate mainly through email, phone and other virtual methods rather than more traditional face-to-face communication. The freedom to telecommute with international employees removes geographical barriers to productivity and allows for schedule flexibility. By organizing expert employees in groups and giving them decision-making authority, these companies can change quickly to meet needs and function efficiently in an ill-defined hierarchy. Employees no longer work in isolation but work as part of a team on broad, company-wide projects, quality management, just-in-time methods, lean production, and supply-chain management,† reports US Legal. To be successful, you should feel comfortable in a chaotic free-form workplace and have an ease of working with people to orchestrate the incredible amount of networking required. When employees manage and coordinate their own projects, it fosters a sense of pride in the ability to change and meet the demands of the situation fostering a strong work ethic. 2. Consider some of the cultural issues that will affect a company operating in such different parts of the world and whose employees may not be representative of the national cultures of each country. Are the conflicts you observe a function of the different types of work people have to perform? In this boundaryless company, headquarter in Berlin, Germany, structure outsourcing company in Kiev, Ukraine, marketing in Los Angeles, so many different employees with different cultures are all collaborate working together to achieve organizational goals. Employees are also very diverse in values, personality, and work preferences which are deep-level diversity. Some cultural issues that are sensitive will rise in the workplace and create unpleasant things among employees. Employees might not be working together well as they will have fighting in the decision making. A good research in understanding various biological characteristics like gender, race, ethnicity, age, or disability, will better the surface-level diversity. Almost all employees are creative and like to accept challenges. Therefore, in this similar personality and work preferences, they should be emphasized in working with others as a team. Training for team building with different cultures people will be quite important. Looking at the conflicts in Newskool, like the difficulties in decision-making and employees fighting to do what they perceive is better compare to the others. It takes time for the company to come with one decision as all of the employees can participate in decision making. People that are so diverse will suggest different solutions, reflecting their different cultures. Maybe it will be good to have a proper discussion in decision making, and only few managers can have the power in making decision in the discussion. It is not a function of different types of work people have to perform. As people from different areas or departments can contribute their opinions and ideas in the same work that require one decision. Another conflict will be inefficiency. Yes, different people must perform different tasks in their organization, but Newskool is boundaryless. When Gerd, the founder and the CEO does not satisfy, he asks his employees to redo the work tasks. It will cause a waste in resources as Gerd perceive something differently from his diverse employees. Sometimes, it is good to have hierarchy as people can know who to refer, which department to function and so on. This conflict is a function of different types of work people have to perform. The employees that are sometimes so dominant and think their works are correct, refuse to listen to Gerd and do things according to their own way. 3. Based on what you know about motivation and personality, what types of people are likely to be satisfied in each area of the company? Use concepts from job characteristics theory and the emerging social relationship perspective on work to describe what might need to change to increase employee satisfaction in all areas. Types of people are likely to be satisfied are competent, anxious, empowered and open people. This based on self efficacy theory; this theory refers to an individual’s belief that he or she is capable of performing task. People who posses self efficiency believe that they are capable in behaving in a way that produce that outcome they want. In Newskool Groovers, their employees are participates in decision making and innovation, creative and competent people. Because technology plays a major role as a communication medium in the boundaryless organization, much work is done from a distance via e-mail, phone, and fax. Less work is done in traditional face-to-face settings. Virtual collaboration makes it easier to use the expertise of a broader range of individuals. With telecommuting, international employees are more easily made a part of all business processes. Employees often like the freedom that boundaryless work offers them, particularly with virtual teams and more flexible work plans, arrangements, and schedules. Due to that, employee in company satisfied with the area of the company. Characteristic employees in company are likely competent and strong team skills. Concept job characteristics theory a model that proposes that any job can be described in terms of five core dimension: skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy and feedback. Based on this theory, to ensure employee satisfaction in all area in Newskool Groovers are by creating and maintaining a common task and group climate to focus groups and teams on the tasks at hand and on overall strategies, focus is on how to move ideas, information, talent, and decisions where they are most necessary, increase individual skill to do a task, hence he or she is encouraged to do it, regardless of title or position, jobs are rewarded on the basis of doing the jobs, not for accomplishing the necessary work. Thus, personal accountability for the work is discouraged at the expense of accountability for the job. Boundary-less Organizations An organization has external boundaries that separate it from its suppliers and customers, and internal boundaries that provide demarcation to departments. This rigidity is removed in boundary less organizations, where the goal is to develop greater flexibility and responsiveness to change and to facilitate the free exchange of information and ideas. It is made up of self-managing and cross-functional teams that are organized around core business processes. The teams include employees from different functional areas as well as customers and suppliers. Advantages Boundary less organization is able to achieve greater integration and coordination. They are able to adapt to environmental changes. Disadvantages However, it can be difficult to overcome political and authority boundaries. It can be time consuming to manage the democratic process to coordinate the efforts of many stakeholders. Companies are moving toward network structures, a group of organizations which coordinate activities via contracts, not a hierarchy. Companies are using outsourcing, transferring activities to outside organizations such as suppliers, manufacturers, and distributors. Network structures are becoming complex. Nike keeps R&D in-house but outsources other functions to companies around the world. Advantages of Network Structures 1.Production costs reduced through partners with lower costs 2.High bureaucratic costs avoided with a flat structure 3.Organic organizational behavior 4.Partners replaced for unmet performance expectations 5.Access to low-cost foreign sources of inputs and expertise Disadvantages of Network Structures 1.Coordination problems emerge, followed by lack of cost reduction and improved quality 2.Difficulty in replacing partners and keeping proprietary information from competitors 3.Difficulty in obtaining ongoing learning to build core competences The Boundaryless Organization The boundaryless organization connects people by computers, faxes, video teleconferencing, and computer-aided design systems. Functional experts join an organization to meet a contract and then go to another project, but unlike members of a matrix structure, they are not part of the organization. Outsourcing offers increased flexibility and reduced costs. Designing an organizational structure is an increasingly complex management activity.