Culinarian Cookware: Pondering Price Promotion Essay

As a market leading brand primarily focusing in designing, manufacturing, distributing and marketing premium cookware, Culinarian Cookware takes pride in its outstanding product quality, advanced performance technology and the strong dealership with retail stores established throughout the years, which Donald Janus, the VP of Marketing believes makes Culinarian stands strong in its competitive industry. In regardless of Culinarian’s usual practice of avoiding price discounting, an official price promotion program was launched in 2004, which was later concluded by a consultant firm that these promotions had a negative impact on profits. There are different views toward the price promotion strategies and the corresponding report in the senior management: Janus felt price promotions were unnecessary, potentially damaging to the brand image, and possibly encouraged retailer hoarding; Brown believed the promotions strengthened trade support, improved brand awareness, and stimulated sales from both new and existing customers. While Janus trusted the report results, Brown believed the study assumptions were flawed and required further analysis, suspected the promotions had actually produced positive results. In November of 2006, debates among the senior management team had been going on regarding the pros and cons of price promotions for the company’s premium cookware products. A decision is needed to be made in terms of how price promotion can be utilized in Culinarian’s marketing strategy. Key Issue The urgent and key question is whether to run a price promotion in 2007 and, if so, to determine what merchandise to promote and on what terms. The broader issue is what strategy Culinarian should pursue to achieve its sales growth objective, and what role, if any, price promotion should play. Clearly there are attractive advantages and draw-backs with significant consequences for a price promotion program. The final recommendation will need to be in line with the four strategic objectives of the company: (1) Widen its distribution network; (2) Increase its market share of the premium cookware segment; (3) Preserve its prestigious image; (4) Capture its  revenue growth of at least 15% while maintaining pre-tax earnings margins of 12%. Possible Alternatives (1) No Price Promotion This alternative would means there will be no official price promotion, only occasional free gifts would be given out with purchase of items at regular price. There are least risks associated with this option but the company will need to seek other ways to maintain their competitiveness. (2) Discount on Slow Growing Items The second option would be to apply a 30% discounted price to the slow growing items like what the company did in 2006. (3) Price Promotion Campaign (Discount on selected premium items) To invest in a comprehensive price promotion campaign. Discount price will be applied not only to the cheapest and slow growing items but to selected items from all lines. The campaign will be assist with edgy advertising methods to create a â€Å"hype† to the price cutting. The Recommendation Alternative 3: Price Promotion Campaign The recommendation to pursue the third alternative was made based on a decision matrix with the following set of criteria: risk; ability to widen distribution network; positive impact on brand image; ease of implementation and financial return. The Rationale Price promotion is superior to a gift incentive in the following ways. As Culinarian is heavily relied on retailers for distribution, their opinions carry a certain weight of important. Many of the retailers expressed that a free gift approach often confuse them as to how many gifts to order. These 0 value-carrying gifts also occupy valuable inventory spaces and thus are generally not welcomed by these distribution channels. When looking at the company strategies, one should realize that the current very low brand awareness among the target groups (HHI $75,000+) is a big issue (Exhibit 4). Discounting merchandize can effectively attract attention and raise awareness, broaden its customer base and stimulate excitement for the brand among the customers. When looking at the analysis of Culinarian’s target group – the households with income over $75,000, 30% cited price as the most important criterion in selecting cookware; 30% of these consumers would be motivated to buy new cookware because of a price discount versus 20% being motivated by a free gift; 20% would intentionally wait for a sale and â€Å"Price† is ranked top 3 in the criteria of choosing a cookware. These study result show that the customers value a price promotion and even actively seek these promotion out. Clearly a cut in price will generate increased sale volume. Indeed it is true that there are uncertainties in whether the price promotion in 2004 was profitable or not. A report by a consultant firm concluded that the promotion program was not profitable. However, one group in the management team including Brown believes there are significant flaws exist in the analysis due to the following errors: the normal sales figures being too high; variable costs including overhead cost incorrectly; the cannibalization costs and inventory savings which, instead of being left out of calculations, were included and estimated inaccurately. Another argument being that when you look at the figures provided in the case exhibit, one could see that sales volume drop right after the price promotion in both 2004 and 2005, thus easily hurry to conclude that a price promotion does not benefit the company. However it is possible that the failure of these programs is due to other factors affecting the profitability including the level of discount rate, the ordering size allowances etc. execution considerations. Thus, these calculations cannot serve as a proof against a price promotion. Because of the above rationale, a price promotion would be appropriate to be run in 2007. Janus’s worries of the disadvantage of a price promotion could  be counteracted by the recommendation of the second alternative, which were recommended with two major objectives in mind: raise brand awareness (while maintaining a leading prestige image) and widen distribution network (which potentially serve as a gateway to increase market share and profit). The major concern of Janus was the potential negative impact to the brand’s premium image especially when the two direct competing premium cookware brands do not use price promotion. However this generally happen only when discounted items was focused on the cheapest line or the slow growing ones (which exactly was what happened in 2004 and 2005). In the new price promotion campaign, a limited number of premium items will needed to be selected for a discount to maintain the prestige and premium image of the brand while specific communication campaign will be employed to increase customer satisfaction on buying the premium product with a discount price. Expanding the discount to more expensive line could also The next question would be how the promotion will be executed. The Implementation Again a limited number of premium items (eg. PROX1) combine with cheaper lines (eg. CX1) will be selected for a discount. In fact, the selection will cover specific items of all 4 lines. A communication campaign will be employed to call out the message to the public: â€Å"Here is the premium brand, and we are selling it for a lower price so that YOU can also try out these high-quality cookware† (â€Å"Quality† remains the top motivator for choosing cookware). The discount period will still be around April and May to avoid direct competition with the other big cookware brands. In terms of the problem of retailers placing over-size trade orders and eating up the difference, Culinarian can counteract this by pre-print or attaching a discount notification on the product packaging and limiting each order size during the pre-discount period. In conclusion, Culinarian should implement a price promotion campaign in reaction to the demand of customers. Discount price will be applied to items based on the direction of boosting relationship between the company and retailers, and raise consumer awareness to the prestige brand name. With the appropriate calculation of discount rate and promotion tactics, market share is likely to increase and the profit margins will be brought to the new height.

Hca Case Study

I. Introduction The business-level strategy is acombined and synchronized collection of the obligations and actions that are used by the firms to attain a competitive advantage. The firms try to consume core abilities in certain product markets. Under this strategy, the firms stipulate their choices on that how they plan to strive in individual product markets. It’s important that every firm should improve a business-level strategy to generate the differences between its own place and its competitors’ places.The bond between the customers and business-level strategies is very important because the customers are main cause of the strategy’s success. The bond that a firm develops with its customers creates the value and profitability. There are five business-level strategies that a firm shouldor can practice to create and support its chosen strategic position against competitors. These include the variation, the cost leadership, the focused cost leadership, focused differentiation, and the unified cost leadership/differentiation. In chapter 6, it argues these five strategies and side by side with the risks that are associated with each other.In chapter 6 they also argue corporate level strategies. The corporate-level strategy has emphases on the actions that a firm takes to attain a competitive advantage by choosing from and handling a collection of different businesses competing in different product markets. These strategies help the firms in choosing on new strategic positions that are likely to increase the value. The product diversification is avital type of the corporate-level strategy. The diversifications also can differfrom the low levels to the high levels. Well normally, the diversification strategy is used to raise the firm’s value by improving its whole performance.It is essential that the managers should attentive to their firm’s internal organization and to its external environment when making decisions regarding t he most advantageous level of the diversification. In chapter 7 there is discussion of mergers, takeover, and acquisitions. A merger is formed when the two firms mix their businesses with each other. An acquisition is a strategy that involves when one firm purchasing the bulk or all interest into another firm with the aims of making it into a subsidiary company within its own group.A takeover is a type of acquisition where the acquired firm does not ask for the capturing firm’s proposal. Acquisitions are used for thenumerous reasons, which contain increasing in the market power and conquering the entry obstacles to new markets. Sometimes a firm must restructure its self in order to change its pool of businesses or financial procedure. This can be done through the downsizingor leveraged buyouts. A firm’s major goal for restructuring is to improvement or successful in strategic control. II. SWOT Analysis A. External environment The U. S. healthcare industry is one of the biggest industries in U. S. The U. S. ospital industry is split with thevarious ownership and noticeably different revenue sources with a small number of the main firms. The HCA was operating in a conservative industry where their aremany challenges and financial constraints. One of the major aspects that affected HCA is the increased quantity of the uninsured Americans citizen. The Columbia/HCA’s goal was to emphasis on the providing beds for insured patients to have the profits up. As the number of uninsured Americans citizen increased, it made it harder to keep the beds at full capacity. The increases in health care costs also played a role in the HCA’s actions.The Tenant and Triad Hospitals are recognizedas the big competitors for HCA. The HCA’s business strategy also puts them in competition in the urban areas mainly against autonomous non-profit hospitals. Many do not have the equal financial performance aims and this helped HCA to be the market leader. B . Strengths and Weaknesses The HCA’s strengths involvedarethe leading position in the hospital market, thespacious and infinite service offerings. The HCA developed such a strategy that dedicated on a main group of market-leading hospitals by utilizing its own financial resources, medical related, and management proficiency personnel.At current, the HCA still utilizes this whole operating strategy. The HCA controlledits advanced business practice. After selling its non-hospital business and the other facilities that did not resemble with its strategy, HCA is still persistent to focus on the providing of high quality healthcare. The company also has some weaknesses including its negative past and spoiled public image that included charges of the fraud, which headed to the federal government investigations. Over the years, the organization’s strengths have mostly remained same, except the fact that HCA does not provide the spacious amount of required services.The HCA mad e a clever choice to focus on only giving the hospital services in order to increase its quality and not to be putteringthemselves in other industries. The HCA still is known for its previous corruption, but still remains the prominent firm in the hospital industry. C. The Case of HCA 1. The HCA’s core capabilities consist of the greater patient care and its functioning strategy it that has been using for many years. It’s other core capabilitiesare includesthe financial resources, medical background, and the management proficiency.These competencies build the value for the company by specializing in the removal of excess capacity and the gratitude of the economies of scale. The HCA’s organizational resources add the unique value for the firm. In 1968, the HCA was founded and they operated under aunited cost leadership/differentiation business-level strategy. There was achance in the hospital industry to create the low cost services with differentiated qualities, and this is what HCA desired to implement in their system. The HCA was able to adapt quickly to the new technologies and fast changes that arose in the external environment of the HCA.The company focused on two resources of competitive advantages-cost and the differentiation in various aspects. The HCA establisheda strong network with physicians and with other healthcare practices under this strategy (HCA, 2011). 2. The HCA’s arepurchase of many small rural hospitals and the opposing investor-owned health care companies created a positive return on the firm’s invested capital in market. The HCA acquired these health care facilities in the faith of revolving them into the most profitable hospitals and control the industry for that specific region of state.There were problems of the recruiting in small rural hospitals, but HCA’s investments in the equipment and facility renovation have signified improved the firm’s ability to gain the support from small ru ral physicians. The external factors, such as the great unemployment in the certain or various locations and in the farming communities affected the purchasing of said facilities. The acquired hospitals constantly had the small staff in contrast with their competitors. However, the HCA focused on modification of the bed size. The acquired hospitals also had a good amount of oard-certified experts in comparison with their competitors. The HCA focused on main renovations and developments for the acquired hospitals for the creation of financial economies. 3. The HCA used both horizontal and vertical integration for the cultivation of mergers and acquisitions. The Columbian &HCA had such an acquisition strategy in place and the purchasing facilities and in building new facilities that prohibited its offers to purchase. In the firm’s own integration strategy, the company simply acquiredthe physician practices where HCA were not steadfastin its investments.The company fixed admissi on goals for the acquiring of physicians. The company then owned the coarsely 2,700 medical practices, and these acquisitions then began purchases by nonprofit competitors. 4. The HCA did not aspect too much integration because of its management proficiency. The company established a working strategy to obtain its goal and to succeed in gaining market authority. However, the management appeared to be too focus on the acquisitions and obtaining total power, which landed the company in such trouble that, consisted of a federal investigation for fraud.The company had lost focus on the point of quality of service. The firm also had become too huge due to acquisitions. Before the downfall of the Columbia/HCA, it had 2,700 medical practices, many of which were the non-hospital practices (Goldsmith, 1998). The HCA soon understood that the focusing on size was not really a good strategy for the success path. Overall, the HCA was between the 60% of failures in the merger/acquisition strategy . The merger with Columbia and the hostility to go into the several acquisitions was one of the reasons of HCA’s downfall. III. My Impressions of the CaseThe HCA had a great operating standard of the concentrating on patient care, but they lost focus by pushy to control the health care industry. Their business-level strategy primarily started off well but some are developed into one that only attentive on profitability of success of the company. The company soon lost sight of the main goal of satisfying the customer to achievethe value for the company. The HCA focused on the developing acquisitions and mergers to gain more profitability and variation in market. This caused the company to enlarge beyond its ethical operating means.It took the benefit of integration systems in order to take over the industry. This case revealed how a firm can negatively and positively usesthe acquisitions, mergers, and leverage buyouts. Overall, this case was one of a decent case to transmit to Chapters 4, 6, and 7 of the text. References Hitt, M. , R. Hoskisson, D. Ireland. (2012). Strategic management: Competitiveness & globalization. (10E ed. ) Mason, OH: South-Western,Cengage Learning. Montague Brown, Ph. D. (April 1, 1992). Physicians and Management in Health Care. Jones and Bartlett Learning. April 1, 1992.Jeff Goldsmith. (1998). Perspective: Columbia/HCA: A Failure Of Leadership. Health Affairs, 17, no. 2 (1998):27-29. Retrieved November 21 2012 from: http://content. healthaffairs. org/content/17/2/27. full. pdf HCA Holdings, Inc. (2011). Our History. Retrieved November 21 2012 from: http://hcahealthcare. com/about/our-history. dot McCosh, Jonathan G. (2003). A Strategic Analysis of the Hospital Industry and HCA Incorporated. Journal of Applied Management and Entrepreneurship. Retrieved November 21 2012 from: http://www. highbeam. com/doc/1P3-1178660521. html

Culturally Diverse Students Essay

Today our classrooms, just like families, are becoming more unique and blended. Teachers are tasked with effectively teaching students with disabilities and diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. In order for educators to meet the needs of their students, key strategies must be implemented that will positively affect their students academically and behaviorally. This paper reflects on the experience of one of these families and identifies key strategies to maximize the potential of cultural and linguistically exceptional students. Background I was lucky enough to interview a family that I have worked with over the years as a nanny. For the purposes of this paper and the anonymity of the family I am using the names Lucy and Chris (to refer to the mother I interviewed and her husband) and James (to refer to the exceptional child). Because I have been working in this family’s home for a number of years I am able to give an accurate overview of their socioeconomic status. Lucy and Chris self-identify as African-American and live in San Pedro, CA where the population is 76,415 with 59% identifying as Caucasian and 8% identifying as African American. The town can be classified as predominately middle class as the median household income is $62,422 (City Data, 2011). Lucy completed some college and works full-time as a manager of a credit union. She lives in a three-bedroom house with her oldest son, her younger son, James, who is now 15, and her husband. James is a lively young man with autism who is on the moderate/severe side of the spectrum. He is an exceptional swimmer and participates in his high school general P. E. program. He struggles with social interactions and has very little expressive language. He has learned to use a GO TALK to communicate functionally. James is very sensitive to his environment and sometimes becomes overwhelmed by loud noises and crowded spaces. Autism affects 1:88 children and the prevalence is on the rise. It is the fastest growing developmental disability in the U. S. It is five times more likely for boys to have autism than girls. It is characterized by language delays, social delays, and repetitive patterns of behavior (Facts About ASD, 2012). Lucy knows that I am in the process of getting my special education credential and that my own family member has DS-ASD. When she was interviewing me for the nanny position years ago she was nervous and unsure about letting anybody come into her home. After I told her about my background and how much I have learned from my brother she began to open up and become more comfortable with me. She has since then told me how thankful she is for me and how nice it is to have someone that understands her son. Discovering and Reacting to Disability It all started in preschool school. The teacher kept telling Lucy, â€Å"I don’t think he can hear. † And Lucy kept saying, â€Å"He can hear just fine! † The teacher kept saying the same thing so finally she took him to the doctor. This experience supports the research on professionals in early education or elementary school programs being the parent’s initial source of information about their child’s special needs (Turnball et. Al, 2011, p. 77). Denial was the first phase in the process of Lucy learning to accept her son’s autism. Lucy also said other members of her family were in denial, including her husband and father. Her father told them they â€Å"were not disciplining him enough† on multiple occasions. She did not talk about any anger, bargaining, or depression phases before finding acceptance (The Grieving Process ppt, 2013). Lucy has immense inner strength that I truly admire. After a doctor diagnosed James, Lucy and Chris told their family and her mother pushed her to get extra support. Lucy tells me she probably wouldn’t have ever done gone for it if it weren’t for her mother because they have always worked for everything they had and lively comfortably and didn’t want to ask for help. A person’s culture may affect treatment decisions and is often associated with certain socioeconomic or geographical constraints related to accessing care† (Mandell & Novak, 2005, p. 113). Reaching out for support was not something the family wanted to do and because they lived in San Pedro, accessing the right services often required traveling long distances. Educators must recognize the relationship between status and our society’s symbols of success (holding a job, having a place to live, and being independent). As an educated service provider, I am always caught off guard by a family’s hesitation about pursuing services (even my own family never sought out extra help). My professional experience has ingrained in me the importance of early intervention. Many â€Å"African-American families seek help from family, friends and church groups before they will get professional help for their child (Dyches et al. , 2004)† (Litten, 2008, p. 5). Lucy’s perspective and her mother’s reaction had both been influenced by her experience with her sister, who was developmentally delayed as well. She said her mother wished she had gone and gotten services for her. But when they were growing up, Lucy said, â€Å"It wasn’t something you did. Our family was poor. We did whatever we did to survive and both of my parents worked. † Educators need to keep the roles of culture, poverty, and historical perspectives in mind as we work with these families because they have an impact on the attitudes and behaviors of families with exceptional children. In Lucy’s family growing up, there was a lack of awareness about the availability of services. As educators, we must consider the lack of awareness and the socioeconomic factors that prevent certain families from taking advantage of the services that they are entitled to. We can’t expect them to advocate if they aren’t aware of what is available. We must take on this role. Teacher strategy #1: Fairness is When a Child Gets What He/She Needs Over the years, Lucy and James struggled with the school’s changing James’ placements. It wasn’t until she came to the school to observe him and found him sitting in a corner of the classroom, on a couch, rocking back and forth for hours with no attention or demands placed on him that she decided to pull him out of the district completely. During their search for a new junior high school they came across programs that were solely focused on vocational skills. Lucy and Chris felt their son had more important academic skills to obtain before teachers started teaching him how to get a job. They didn’t expect him to be a scholar, but they did want him to have access to general reading, writing, and math curriculum. Education, rather than life skills, was more of a priority for them. They added an inclusion goal in his next IEP. James would participate in general P. E. and math or computer class. According to Kathryn Pitten, â€Å"Cultural mores may determine which treatment goals families will accept and which goals they will decide not to work towards. Also, parenting style will determine which goals are viewed as important. † (Pitten, 2008, p. 4). Teachers must be responsible for developing a classroom program that fosters the understanding and respect for individual differences and discusses what fairness means to each student. Teacher strategy #2: Develop a Positive Collaboration Between Parents and Teachers Lucy admitted that she did not take an aggressive approach to getting James all of the supports he needed. Most of the things she learned she â€Å"stumbled upon† through conversations with other parents, teachers, and paraprofessionals (all of which have worked out in their favor). She believes she has done the best she can for her son. Once again, awareness was lacking and because of that this family did not get the support they needed until much later on. This is consistent with literature addressing service accessibility in that ethnic minorities typically access services at a much lower rate than their Caucasian counterparts (Balcazar, Keys, & Balcazar, 2001). Learning how the school system could work for her son was a significant stressor for her. If educators embraced the full reality of the student’s and family’s life and committed to supporting emotional and academic needs (Turnball et. Al, 2011, p. 147) this could help to bridge the gap between home and school. Letting parents know that you believe in their child is sometimes all it takes to give your family’s hope. Teacher strategy #3: Implement Culturally Responsive Teaching Ford (2012) points out that African Americans are the only involuntary minority group. African Americans live in a society where race affects every aspect of their lives. â€Å"The overrepresentation of Black students in special education has been dissected, discussed, and debated† (Ford, 2012). We need to understand the negative effects racism has on our children and be sensitive to the history of previous schooling of exceptional students. Some Moderate/Severe students, like James, are moved from program to program (several times a year). Teachers need to understand that not all children in their classroom have learned the same things and they can’t be taught in the same environment at the same time. We need to differentiate and individualize our instruction by providing a wide range of materials and utilizing several learning strategies. School strategy # 4: Ensure Each Student Can Identify With Someone One of the best things to happen to James in his freshman year of high school was joining the â€Å"Big Brothers and Sisters† program in his local community. Having a role model; someone to look up to, relate with, and rely on has made such a meaningful impact on his life. Lucy reflected on the first time James was invited to watch the local football team; â€Å"His face lit up. He jumped up and down and couldn’t contain his excitement. † Teachers need to facilitate healthy inclusive relationships school-wide. It is our job to spread awareness about disability and help all students to become sensitive to the beauty of differences. Conclusion James’ family hopes that one day he will be able to live in a supported living community with roommates but like many families with exceptional members, the future is uncertain. Teachers need to take an active role in the transition planning process and remember that culturally diverse families do not have the same values as those of the dominant culture. (Turnball et. Al, 2011, p. 89). These families deserve our utmost respect and attention. Showing parents that you are interested in their story can lead to unexpected successes. In order to truly do our jobs we must make our professional story a part of their family story.

Property law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 2

Property law - Essay Example Besides, in law the husband and wife scenario brings about the presumption of a resulting trust. However, according to the obiter of Lord Diplock in the case of petit v petit, he articulated that the resulting trust presupposition is obsolete. This view appears to be the case in regard to the Court of Appeal’s ruling in regard to Barbara’s husband, given that there is no appropriate evidence to demonstrate that this opinion can not be refuted by Barbara as would be illustrated by this application. As an alternative, the Court of Appeal has formed a prejudiced state of affairs for Barbara’s husband in regard to his position as a husband and not permitting this plead would be a violation of his human rights laid down in the European Court of Human Rights as integrated by the Human Rights Act 1998 to a just trial Article 6(1) as well as discrimination in Article 14. Barbara’s husband made a full payment for the purchase of Sunrise Lodge. This creates a scenario where he is regarded as the sole owner of Sunrise Lodge. Nevertheless, as Barbara then contributed 30% to the overall total cost makes it legally acceptable for the couples to be considered as tenants in common in regard to the given purchase money. Moreover, by the virtue of providing money to the mortgage, Barbara’s intention meets the basic principle of equity whereby the resulting trust would be presumed. Eventually, Albert sold off Sunrise Lodge and used the proceeds to make a full purchase of another freehold property, Greengables of which the legal title was placed into the joint names of Albert, Barbara and Charles. The registration of the property under the names of all the three parties gives rise to joint tenancy of both the legal and equitable estates. The position at this stage was that both the equitable and the legal estates were held jointly by Albert, Barbara and Charles for he had attained the

Analysis on Race (Black) and Representation in Media Essay

Analysis on Race (Black) and Representation in Media - Essay Example While the society has made giant strides towards toppling black discrimination and segregation, significant barriers still remain, reinforced by perceptions created in the media. This paper will look at how these perceptions are perpetuated, especially in music videos in the mass media. The video begins at what looks like Lil Wayne’s residence, and features static Major as his house guest. They seem to be preparing for a night out and are sprucing themselves up in front of a mirror, adjusting their gleaming jewellery and enquiring from each other on how they look. After they are done with their preparations, they leave the house and board an International TXT limousine. They are ushered into the limousine by a scantily clad woman who gives them a secretive glance. Once in the limousine, they seem surprised to find it filled with seemingly intoxicated and similarly scantily clad women. They proceed to make themselves comfortable among the women, who seem to be taken in by the t wo men, with Lil Wayne rapping along and miming to the song’s lyrics. They drive through Las Vegas and Lil Wayne also climbs to the top of the car to play a guitar. Stereotyping of black males in videos acts to serve various purposes, especially motivational and cognitive (Park et al. 159). A desire for the justification of the status quo acts to give life to activation and formation of stereotypes. Stereotyping in the media industry is as a result of the need to give information on the featured characters and to show the audience what to expect of the actions of the character. The media portrayal of black males, especially in music videos, creates an impression of what the society associate them with. In Lil Wayne’s Lollipop video, he is seen dressed in expensive clothing with overly extravagant jewellery. The image created from this video plays on the stereotype of black, ignorant characters, which Lil Wayne seems to enjoy portraying and thus creates an impression th at he is that stereotype. This, in turn, creates an impression in society that all rich black males live in that manner. Society at large then expects this same characterization, in real life, and this becomes a handicap to African Americans since they will be gauged using these same stereotypes, in job interviews and elective posts. It is not uncommon to see covertly racist media adverts, which play on these stereotypes, during elections, since this stereotype has already been endorsed, by powerful rappers, who have a lot of influence, in the African American society. African Americans are, therefore, not treated as seriously as other candidates in elections, and job interviews, where the interviewers may not have had close contact with African Americans, thus have their opinions formed by the stereotypes depicted in the videos. Representation of black males in music videos consists of exaggerated racial portrayals identifiable as parodies of stereotypes (Park et al. 161). Most mus ic videos will have black males from the ghetto wearing gang colours and flashing gang signs. While this is possible, gang affiliations are a crime in America and thus this can be misinterpreted to show African American young men as violent and unrepentant of the pain caused by gang wars. The media industry is flooded with representations of black males as members of

Employability and Consulting Skills Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Employability and Consulting Skills - Assignment Example Burberry has positioned itself as the most pioneering fashion brand in numerous product lines such as coats, leather goods, shoes, belts, jewelry, outwear, fragrance, beauty products. The company also provides licenses allowing third parties to manufacture and distribute products under the Burberry trademarks (Burberry Group plc, 2014). External Environment Post 2008 financial crisis, the current external environment is extremely challenging. Unemployment in the UK and the other developed economies is ruling at between 8-9 percent. Global competition has intensified in last couple of years and customers have been highly demanding in the sense that mass customization at competitive rates is a need of time. Overall, investments in Europe and the UK are not picking up restricting demand of the products. Moreover, Burberry has to compete with several established global brands such as Polo, Gucci, Armani, Coach and many others in fashion segment (Jacobson, 2012). Positioning and Customer Base Burberry competes with many fashion brands such as Polo, Gucci, Armani, Coach. The company competes with Polo in clothing business. Burberry has captured the upper-end market in comparison to Polo. Coach and Gucci are more focused on accessories while Armani and Polo target more on Apparel market; however, Burberry has been able to penetrate in both apparel and accessory market of the luxury goods. It can be said that Burberry's positioning is extremely competitive among other fashion brand products.

Pizza home delivery business Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5750 words

Pizza home delivery business - Case Study Example Our Objective: The objectives of Pizza Home delivery are to generate a profit, grow at a challenging and manageable rate, and make a margin of 15% within the first year of operation. The long term objective is to expand and become and become a leading Pizza home delivery service within the UK The timing is right for starting this new venture. In phase of the collapse of the traditional family settings and the London Olympic coupled with stringent and 'difficult credit facilities offered by banks' regulations set forth by regulatory bodies, this firm has come to give its prospective clients just the services they much desire. The demand from our clients, as well as our ambition and passion for Pizza making business, and the procurement of highly professional and qualified chef, has made this venture one of great potential. Pizza home delivery is a new business venture. It is an establishment to be based in Cambridge the sole distribution of Pizza at peoples home a private home delivery Pizza service and restaurant for affluent young families (parents and children). A "third space" for mothers and fathers who can relax in their houses and with a phone call they are served. It would be positioned as a home away from home, without being too far away. There is no other offering in Cambridge, United Kingdom at the moment. It is a for-profit business that provides a range of tailored services to new and young families all under one roof. It is envisioned that the usage of the services will be working and busy people of all works of life within different age groups however when fathers/male carers use the restaurants and the facilities, they must feel comfortable, welcomed and entertained. We will provide three class of pizza and sizes, for individuals, family, and for parties. The Pizza home delivery services will be facilitated by our home delivery vans. The Market There is definitely a market opportunity for Pizza home delivery restaurant services. The size of the market right now in terms of finances is sitting at there are 2241 businesses within the ABS Classification of Interest Groups and over the last 4 years has experienced an average growth rate of 4%. The total revenue in for this industry has been estimated by an independent market analyst to be more than 1billion GBPs. In terms of customers there are more than 6,735 families living withing the target market Cambridge that comprise our target market; couples with young children under the age of 10 with a household take home income of over 750GBP per week on average. It is estimated that the potential market share will be 10% with projected member take up of 500 members in the first year due to pent up demand. Continued growth

Knowledge of Human Cognitive Abilities and How it Can Help People to Coursework

Knowledge of Human Cognitive Abilities and How it Can Help People to Learn Computer Systems - Coursework Example And cognitive abilities are the processing skills of a brain to carry on a particular task. As Per (Michelone) â€Å"Cog ­ni ­tive abil ­i ­ties are the brain-based skills we need to carry out any task from the sim ­plest to the most com ­plex. They have more to do with the mech ­a ­nisms of how we learn, remem ­ber, problem-solve, and pay atten ­tion rather than with any actual knowl ­edge†. Generally speaking, cognitive abilities are the mechanism by which our brain operates to accomplish different tasks of our daily life. An in- depth study of cognitive skill greatly help a person to improve his learning capacity and task performing ability. Any learning or activity task can be segregated according to cognitive functioning and process can be made simpler and convenient accordingly. Everyone today knows that our world is operating extensively with the support of computers .And obviously, learning and performing computers tasks requires ample amount of c ognitive abilities and skills. So, if a person could enhance his cognitive abilities he can very well upgrade his level of understanding about the working system of computers. It not only essential for him to perceive thing systematically but also should be able to clearly differentiate every functions to make the learning process easy and less complicated. Learning computer is not a very easy task; it needs extensive use of memory, logic and cognitive skills. In computer learning there are different stages in which the learner pass through to achieve successful learning. Mainly the basics of computer learning may not require intense cognitive skills or capabilities. But as one cross the basic level and enters in to more complex learning session, the knowledge of cognitive skills becomes necessary and helpful. In advanced level of computer learning, like software development and data processing, high scale of information processing skills and decision making ability is required. Acc ording to (Singley,24) â€Å"When students are gives tasks beyond their skill level, the variability among students decreases. The better students are able to span the gap; the worst students are not†. Learning of programming and applying reasoning ability in the decision making process requires a great deal of memory, logic and brain processing. If a learner has knowledge about his cognitive abilities and have deeper understanding about the way in which brain operates, then he can learn things faster and easier. Decision making skill and problem solving skills are important in computer learning and if a learner understands his cognitive abilities he can gain much confidence in his learning process. Most Psychological theories consider that cognitive skills are multi faceted and are correlated with other abilities of an individual. It is usually seen that some people understand, grasp and solve things more quickly, while others require more time and energy. The understanding of personal cognitive ability is very essential for a person to develop his ability in learning process of computer systems. One should understand how the brain perceive things, process information and store information in short term and long term memory. The stability, diversity and growth of our personal mental processing and use and transformation of our external and internal information to think, learn and communicate are highly related. If we understand well the mental processing and brain mechanism then the learning of computer systems can be made simpler and less time consuming. It is very essential to understand the cognitive abiliti

The Adjusting Process discussion Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Adjusting Process discussion - Assignment Example In certain cases, the records are not reorganized except at the closing stages of the period. The adjustments are updated because certain expenses are never recorded on a daily basis, certain revenues and operating expense are acquired as business transpires rather than as a detached transaction and certain revenues and operating costs may not be recorded. The four categories of accounts that require adjusting entries include; prepaid expenses, accrued expenses, unearned revenues and accrued revenues (Warren, Carl, James, and Jonathan 105). In accordance to ethics, there are dictations that a commodity ought to have a precise date by which money ought to be recompensed to the buyer in cases where the commodity has not been utilized as a charge up to the moment it is either utilized or recompensed. This means that the gift card ought to have an expiry date to ensure that fairness is dictated. A gift card assures that the buyer’s money is not used up at the same situate where they purchased the card. The implications are that accounting for the cards transaction offers an evolving reporting for vendors. The accounting for the previous transaction for the cards cannot reveal any reputed worth but rather a legal responsibility for overdue profits and the unused cost creates problems in

Democracy and Capitalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Democracy and Capitalism - Essay Example Great Britain had slowly emerged as a country that was dominated by classical liberalism as it evolved during the seventeenth and the eighteenth century. Capitalism was inadvertently further developed by two events of the late fifteenth century and the early years of the sixteenth century, namely the discovery of the New World and the Protestant Reformation. The Portuguese and Spanish colonisation and economic exploitation of their New World empires in Asia, Central America, and South America were responsible for greatly expanding global trading links. New World silver and gold alongside the Atlantic slave trade boosted economic development greatly. The wealth exported to Portugal and Spain prompted competition from the Dutch, the English, and the French for colonies and trade England and later Britain was the state most responsible for developing the global capitalist economy. Capitalism, liberalism, and the Royal Navy were a virtually unstoppable combination.1 When Britains economic and military power declined after the Second World War its position of the global promoter of capitalism and democracy was taken over by the United States. In 1945 the United States was the worlds only nuclear power as well as having the largest economy. During the Cold War period the United States certainly promoted capitalism and anti-communism even if it did always further democracy. During the Cold War era capitalism and democracy became even more closely linked together than before. Capitalism whether in its traditional liberal form, or the Keynesian version with its mixed economies dominated Western Europe, North America, Latin America, and Japan. The Americans were not averse to interfering in other countries if their democratic choices threatened capitalism, for example in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Guatemala, and Iran. Unlike Russia in

Community colleges is the best choice for students Essay

Community colleges is the best choice for students - Essay Example In addition, they provide students with precise sets of skills that facilitate specialization immediately after one leaves college; their locations also ensure the students can easily access them without leaving home. (Crawford and Jervis, 2011). For many international students, community colleges do not carry the prestige that universities do and this tends to discourage them from applying to them. In many countries outside the United States, degrees from community colleges are not recognized since they are considered to be of lesser value than those from universities. One would agree with this assumption because; â€Å"degrees from community colleges tend to be quite limited, and this may create a problem for the holder if he or she wants to diversify into another profession† (Kisch, 2012). University degrees, on the other hand, are quite flexible, meaning that the holder may choose to leave the field they are working within and move to another without any problems. However, international students who are interested in going to community colleges should get to know the educational requirements of the companies, within their countries, before applying. While some companies do not hire community college graduates, there are others, which may be interested in what they have to offer, and it is, therefore, the responsibility of international students to find out whether the degrees they earn will be of any use to them before applying. As aforementioned, community colleges are seen as inferior to universities especially since their graduates are not always accepted by some employers. A contributing factor for this can be traced back to the erosion of the education quality in high school. Retrospectively, high school graduates were equipped induction into the job market. The high school education system of the United States has become so much eroded that it has now become necessary for students to go to college in order to attain jobs. In view of

Review of Patient Safety Standards for Hospitals by Joint Commision on Healthcare Essay Example for Free

Review of Patient Safety Standards for Hospitals by Joint Commision on Healthcare Essay The safety goals outlined for hospitals are intended to stimulate greater awareness of the elements of vulnerability or risk associated between patient and worker. Ultimately, patient safety, worker health and safe practice methods can have a positive influence on saving lives, reducing risk and controlling costs. The goals attempt to outline a uniform standard. When adopted by a health care organization, a successful culture of safety that benefits everyone has an opportunity to develop. The following are the Commission’s patient safety goals with respect to hospitals. The first goal is to improve the accuracy of patient identification. Patients are given the wrong medications, taken to the wrong surgical rooms, and specimens get contaminated or mixed up. To address this issue and achieve improved accuracy, implementation of two patient identifiers attempts to reduce these errors. First, the patient should be identified reliably by their name, telephone number or other number that is person specific. The second is to verify that the treatment matches the patient. The verification of the identifiers should be done with two individuals checking the same patient or having one person identify the patient, with a second verification assisted by the addition of a technology item, like a barcode. The second goal is to improve the effectiveness of communication among caregivers. Each clinical aspect of healthcare utilizes a different vocabulary. A patient may be seeing a psychiatrist, a physical therapist and a cardiologist at the same time. While each profession has a foundation of science that is designed help them communicate in a uniform manner, each clinical area will have specific language and understanding that may not translate from one specialty or discipline to another. Critical results of tests and diagnostics that are outside the normal range and indicate a life threatening situation must be communicated. Reports must be delivered and critical results given on a timely basis so the patient can be treated as soon as possible. Third, is the goal to improve the safety of using medication. Medications that are not labeled properly or medications that are similar in name or packaging can obviously lead to a 1 deadly consequence. Suggested ways to achieve this goal is to make sure all medications, and containers are labeled correctly. Some of the specific suggestions to achieve this safety goal are to adopt the use of oral unit-dose products, prefilled syringes, or premixed infusion bags when these products are available. The fourth goal is to reduce the risk of health care-associated infections. Many people are in fear of going to a hospital. They may feel at risk of getting a communicable disease. And while that is a possibility, few are aware that they may experience infections directly associated with the delivery of the medical service or treatment. The simplest and most obvious way to protect the patient from infection is to feverishly adhere to the Centers for Disease Control or World Health Organizations guidelines for hand washing. The late physician and scientist Ignaz Semmelweis would be astonished to see this method universally adopted. Although, with as much science that has since validated his pioneering work, he could be annoyed to see a lack of compliance, considering the volumes of evidence published which supports his early theory. Patients are acquiring hospital based infections at an alarming rate, according to an NBC news story which was based on data from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. And a brief review of the CDC report from 2011 on rates of infections clearly shows a link between number of days in the hospital and acquired infections. The longer a patient is in the setting, the more likely it is that the patient is at risk. The likelihood of risk depends on the kind of treatment the patient receives. Risk assessment tools are essential to understanding which staff, providers, or independent practitioners need to be educated to understand the types of infections and their origins as they relate to their practice area. The families and patients must likewise be educated to understand the risks, complications and microbial hazards that are inherent to the treatment or service they are receiving. Finally, goal fifteen is for the hospital to identify safety risks inherent in its patient population. This goal is a contributing factor to why Patient Safety Coordinators and certifications to become one are becoming more popular. Particularly, the goal speaks to the population that is at risk for suicide. While this goal is stated to apply only to psychiatric hospitals and patients being treated for emotional or behavioral issues, most all hospitals have at least a small population that could fit into this category. While not every hospital has a psychiatric floor, or even a psychiatrist on call, patients that appear or make a statement that they fear harming others or themselves may be detained temporarily at the discretion of the medical staff. The terms and length varies from state to state. Georgia’s law, O. C. G. A. Â § 37-3-41 allows basically for a forty-eight hour detainment period. But, that can be extended indefinitely if the treating physician deems it necessary and appropriate based on their examination.

The California Water Crisis Philosophy Essay

The California Water Crisis Philosophy Essay Water is an essential ingredient to life. It is used everyday throughout our daily lives, and it is no where short of irrelevant. It is also important to us Californians, and we must treat it this way. The California community however, is facing a water crisis, one that will affect our community negatively if we dont put this problem into realization and act to prevent it. All the water that will ever be is, right now (National Geographic Spokesman). That means that what we have now is all we have. Not only that, but just about everything on Earth uses water is someway or another. Clearly, it is important to man, so it deservers to be treated as such. This however is sadly not the case. The respect it deserves doesnt seem to be the respect that is given to it. Filthy water cannot be washed (West African Proverb). That means if we dont respect it now and allow it to become worthless, it will stay worthless. Many of us around the world know, but do we as Californians know? For many of us, we are unaware of the growing danger. It spreads quicker and faster, yet we do nothing to stop it. The California water crisis is one that our community must take head on to change the path of our future. Common Social Injustices Communities Face No community is considered perfect. They may come close, but will not be one-hundred percent. In order for a community to function however, it takes people. People are basically the community itself, and without people it is nothing. A man not only needs to know how to fish, he needs to have the freedom to do it. Thats where community comes in. We have to help each other, and we feel government has a very important role there in. (Bill Ayres). Problems can occur however. A community can be full of hard working people, but viewed in a different perspective by others. This is how communities can face social injustices, and be seen as gang ridden, filled with violence, or discriminators against people. Problems like this can really break a communitys image down. The California community itself faces these similar issues. Problems in My Community The Californian community is leaning towards disaster. Our community is already harmed by budget problems and gang violence. Our image is bad enough, and it will become worse if we let severe issues like this slip through are hands. The water crisis is a problem in which our water is quickly being depleted, as well as water improperly stored. Not only is there a as well as our money drained from our pockets. Not only is our water being affected, but everything that has to do with water is in danger. This includes crops as well as materials made from water. This creates an unwelcoming future for California and is something as a community that we cant let happen. Our water supply is quickly depleting more then expected. This is due to poor water storage techniques. The amount of water wasted because of faulty storage techniques is more than ridiculous. Not only are we losing water, but we are losing money. Money that could have gone towards schools and healthcare becomes money that is spent on spilled water, just because we cant keep it in its container. Another major issue of our water crisis is our Californian government. They are seen as weak decision makers, as well as weights that drag us down from our goals. The disappointing part is how its true. Because of how they make decisions, our water has to suffer. Budget cuts caused by our government dims the light of healing our water crisis. Education that is needed may not be given, provoking kids not to aim high or even make them join gangs. This appears to be a cycle that we are not breaking, and is in well need of repairs. Poor water storage leads to less water. Less water means less water for our farms. Agriculture is a big part of California, producing many types of fruits and vegetables. Though the climate is perfect the water is not. When we damage one of Californias biggest industries, it has to come with consequences. Farmers could be put out of jobs and produce prices could increase. Also, the money we make from selling these crops will not be as much. This shows just how far this problem can spread. Action is another problem. When we dont enforce our actions, no change will come. We must enforce the change. It is important, since the only way to solve this crisis is action. There simply not enough water to go around. Cities too need it, and we can only divide water so much. Communities in California must see that we may come to a situation where the government issues a water mandate. There is no doubt that this situation must be avoided. Solutions to the Problem Though we are headed in such a dark direction, it is not too late for change. Minor alterations are all it takes to lead our community to a brighter future. Simple changes are all it takes. One of them includes watching our government. Though there job is to help us, they arent doing a very good job of it, and we simply stand idle as they do nothing. Better monitoring of the people we put in charge can go a long way. Another solution includes limiting our supply of water. Many Californians are wasteful when it comes to water. When our water is at stake, we must watch how we use our water. My Recommended Solution In My Opinion, the best possible solution for this problem is action. When we act, we get closer to the solution. Not many people in our community realize that this is becoming a bigger and bigger problem everyday. When nothing is done, nothing is accomplished. Simple fixes to this problem will carry Californian communities a long way if we simply do it. Not only must we take action, but we need to watch the people in charge. That means our government. What they do is entirely our business. When they make changes to things important to us such as water, we must look twice and make sure there making the right decisions. When they were creating certain water protection policies, we knew that it didnt seem right. It was heavily flawed and filled with loopholes. Not only did we know what was going on, but they managed to get away with it. It goes to show that you are only as strong as your actions, not just thoughts alone. CONCLUSION Though we are facing quite a problem, we must again to continue to act to fight against it. Our community has faced many challenges in the past, and we must continue to succeed in solving these issues. If we learn what the problem is and act accordingly to it, much can be accomplished. The California water crisis is a threat to us and everything that has to do with water. The threat is real, and we are the only ones capable of fixing this. Though it seems that there is no light at the end of this tunnel, we must keep digging towards it. WORK CITE Wilson, John M. A crisis we cant ignore.  CaliforniaWater.  1 Jun. 2007. WEB. 7 May. 2010.

Factors for Motivation at Work in Nursing

Factors for Motivation at Work in Nursing Is motivation at work for nurses in two NHS hospitals dependant on job satisfaction or financial incentives? The National Health Service was described in a BBC News article in 2000 (BBC, 2000) as an organization in crisis as it analyzed various factors impacting the agency. The report indicated the new government mandate titled, â€Å"The NHS Plan: A Plan for Investment: A Plan for Reform† (NHS, 2000) consisting of billions committed to improving the services across a wide breathe of areas which included the following concerns as brought forth via consultation with NHS staff members and the public (NHS, 2000). The consultation consisted of interviews and surveys with 58,000 staff members and 152,000 members of the public, with the following ten areas the top concerns the public and staff members voiced: Table 1 – Top Ten Concerns Voiced by the Public and NHS Staff Members (NHS, 2000): Public Staff Members 1 More staff members with higher pay scales, the foregoing includes increased doctors, nurses, scientists and therapists, More staff, with the top concern mentioned as increases in this area and higher pay, 2 a reduction in waiting times for appointments as well as on trolleys and casualty, additional training along with an improvement in management shills across all staffing levels, 3 an improvement in the ways or working with â€Å"bring back the matron† (NHS, 2000) mentioned as one aspect of the foregoing an increase in what was termed as ‘jointed-up’ working with social services at the community as well as primary care levels, 4 focusing care that is centered on the patients with action to be taken on operations that have been canceled as well as providing more convenient services, reduced bureaucracy, consisting of less administration along with an improvement in funding systems, 5 a higher quality of care provided with cancer and heart disease mentioned prominently, more action and information on prevention to reduce the causes of ill health, 6 better medical facilities consisting of cleaner locations with a better quality of food and attention to getting the basics correct, improved working conditions along with increased aids for recruitment as well as staff retention, and more flexibility in working patterns, 7 an improvement in facilities for NHS staff, with rewards and recognition for the work done by staff members, a reduction in waiting times, 8 an improvement in location services along with improvements in local hospitals as well as surgical facilities, patient centered care, with staff frustration concerning the system being too focused on itself and its needs without meeting individual patient needs 9 an end to the postcode lottery and the assurance of higher quality in all locales, Increased performance as well as accountability systems to reduce variances in care in different locales 10 increased prevention along with better assistance on information and help on healthy living An increase in autonomy for local services to provide them with more control over their organization and a reduction in control from Whitehall The preceding indicates the similarity of views and concerns between the public and NHS staff in 2000 at the inception of the government’s â€Å"The NHS Plan: A Plan for Investment: A Plan for Reform† (NHS, 2000). In June of 2004 the Department of Health reported on the â€Å"NHS Improvement Plan† (Department of Health, 2004) which detailed the progress made in the NHS since the year 2000. The ‘Forward’ to this document by Prime Minister Tony Blair summarized the achievements and status of the NHS and the following calls attention to those areas as indicated in Table 1 Top Ten Concerns Voiced by the Public and NHS Staff Members: Under the ‘Plan’ thousands of additional doctors and nurses, representing a 22% rise in doctors, 21% increase in nurses and a 27% rise in scientific staff, new incentives for staff and pay contracts have been implemented, incentives have been created to reward staff for service commitments and improvements, dozens of new hospital facilities have been opened under the ‘Plan’, there has been a reduction in waiting times, from 18 months to under nine months, outpatient appointments have been reduced from 26 weeks to 17 weeks, cancer and heart disease death rates have been reduced, new services such as NHS Direct and Walk-in Centres have been implemented, patient care has been improved with faster diagnosis and treatment times clinical governance has aided in aiding in evaluation and overall service improvement as implemented under â€Å"The NHS Plan: A Plan for Investment: A Plan for Reform† (NHS, 2000) The preceding represent a summary of the status report on the improvements in the NHS since the adoption of â€Å"The NHS Plan: A Plan for Investment: A Plan for Reform† (NHS, 2000). The foregoing information is endemic to the examination of whether motivation at work for nurses is dependent upon job satisfaction or financial incentives as the NHS is a countrywide operation and the overall system impacts upon each hospital and staff member even in the best of situations. Thus, the overall climate and atmosphere of the NHS is an important factor in understanding the context of this examination. The underlying facts are that in terms of health care expenditures and other areas the United Kingdom spends just $1,813 per resident as compared to $2,387 for France, $2,780 for Germany, $2,580 for Canada and $4,500 for the United States (OECD, 2003). And the foregoing is further exacerbated by the fact that the United Kingdom has just 2 physicians for each 1,000 in population as compar ed against 2.8 in the United States and 3.3 in Germany and France (Stevens, 2004, pp. 37-44). And while the shortfall of physicians represents a major NHS problem, it is the nurses who see to the multitude of tasks and daily patient care which makes the hospitals run and the shortage of these professionals is a critical component in better health care. A BBC News article in 1999 pointed out that some of the reasons for the shortage of nurses in the NHS are due to poor pay as well as conditions that have affected retention as well as recruitment (BBC News, 1999). The sub-standard pay scale was illustrated through a survey that found that one fifth of all health workers had taken on a second job to enable them to meet expenses, and that one third worked an average of two weeks per year without pay as a result of extra overtime work (BBC News, 1999). The article (BBC News, 1999) added that pay was not the only factor in the nursing shortage problem, the nurses mentioned conditions and a lack of job satisfaction due to the long working hours, heavy pressure, under staffing and lack of recognition. This document shall examine the crisis confronting the NHS with respect to nurses from the standpoint of whether the motivational factor for these professionals is dependant upon job satisfaction or financial incentives. This examination shal l utilize secondary survey sources as well as a primary survey to equate these aspects along with theoretical research and opinions. Chapter 2 – Literature Review In examining the question of whether motivation for nurses in the NHS is dependant upon job satisfaction or financial incentives, an understanding of various motivational theories is critical to this review. A central subject in the study of psychology, motivation was equated by Sigmund Freud who thought that a good part of the behavior of human beings was based upon unconscious motives and or irrational instinctive urges (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2006). Behavioral psychologists, however, stress that the importance of external goals plays a huge role in prompting action, and humanistic psychologists believe that it lies in felt needs (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2006). A major study conducted by the Kings Fund (2002) pointed out that the government’s commitment to add an additional  £9.4 billion in funding to improve NHS services to bring the agency into closer proximity with the spending of other European countries, as well as the additional of more nurses, therapists and cons ultants in and of itself was not enough. The Report stressed that the problems of staff retention and recruitment have their roots in good morale and motivation, and that the foregoing is an essential component in order to have a healthy workforce as well as to aid in the attraction as well as retention of nurses (Kings Fund, 2002). The Report went on to state that the NHS needs to have a better understanding of both the positive and negative factors acting upon motivation and morale, as these aspects need to be addressed as part of improving the overall state of service delivery in the NHS (Kings Fund, 2002). The preceding implication has been borne out in an article by Margaret Callaghan (2003, pp. 82-89) who conducted a study on morale amongst fifty-eight nurses, 30 were females and 28 were male) regarding morale and career concerns. The study found that morale was extremely low among the respondents with a large number of the group surveyed seriously thinking of leaving the profession. More importantly, the feelings among the surveyed group were so strong regarding the negative aspects of nursing in the NHS that they indicated that the majority of those surveyed indicated they would discourage others from entering the profession, citing disillusionment, limited advancement opportunities, job insecurity, limited resources and the lack of support for furthered education, which equate to motivational issues, as well as low pay (Callaghan, 2003, pp. 82-89). Interestingly, the findings of the study indicated that recent increases in the pay scale had helped to improve staff morale however; this development only partly offset other factors (Callaghan, 2003, pp. 82-89). Additional information on the importance of nursing morale, motivational factors and job satisfaction are addressed in Chapter 2.1 the Broader Survey, which includes a number of surveys’s and studies. 2.1 The Broader Survey The annual RCN membership survey conducted in 2003 (Ball et al, 2003) found that the overall nursing population is getting older, with the media age increasing to 41 from 39 just five years ago. The respondent field consisted of a mailing of 15,917 RCN members with a 61% response rate, or 9,700 returned forms, thus the survey covered a broad number of members and it can be concluded that the sampling is an accurate cross section representing meaningful numbers that precludes bias. The significance of the foregoing with respect to the theme of this study is that the drop out rate for nursing students now stands at between 15% to 20%, with one out of ten of those surveyed indicating that they would not elect to work for the NHS (Ball et al, 2003). The findings indicated that the work hour demands placed on NHS nurses represents a real factor in dissatisfaction with their jobs in that 64% work full time averaging 44 hours per week as opposed to just 20% for GP nurses (Ball et al, 2003). The significance of the foregoing in the context of this examination is that nurses indicated that they want greater choice and control over their working hours and cited this as a major factor in moving into agency and bank work where they work for a lower rate of pay, and usually the same hours and the same settings as NHS nurses. This represents an interesting correlation in that nurses elect these options even though they complain about the lower rates of pay for the same work and grades, however, they are more positive about their experience in bank and agency work than their NHS counterparts (Ball et al, 2003). The foregoing is borne out by the fact that nurses in NHS hospitals are less satisfied with their choices over shift lengths, as noted by 40%, as compared to 26% of GP practice nurses and 22% of agency and bank nurses, thus representing a key job satisfaction issue. The preceding is further evidenced by NHS nurses working in excess of their 37.5 contracted hours, averagi ng 44 hours per week. 2.2 The Critical Review The RCN study uncovered that career prospects and the opportunity to progress are limited as three-fifths indicated that it was difficult to advance from their present grade, with E grade nurses as the most pessimistic (Ball et al, 2003). The lack of definitive job advancement opportunities represents a hurdle to motivating NHS nurses as well as recruitment, as do the survey findings regarding the following areas (Ball et al, 2003): Table 2 – NHS Views of Workload and Staffing (Ball et al, 2003) Disagree Strongly Disagree Agree Strongly Agree Do not spend too much time on non-nursing duties 17 37 23 2 There are sufficient Staff to provide a good standard of care 21 40 23 3 I am not under too much pressure at work 19 37 16 1 My workload is not too heavy 23 39 13 1 The RCN study indicated that in terms of nurse’s issues, pay scales were not the overriding issue as factors such as workloads and hours worked played a large part in their perceptions. The study found that the respondents rated good pay as an important aspect by 75% of those surveyed, and 90% of the respondents stated that staffing was an extremely important issue and was one of the most cited areas by nurses to improve job satisfaction (Ball et al, 2003). The findings strongly indicated that as a result of dissatisfaction with working conditions that nurses were prepared to leave NHS jobs for less pay to gain control over their personal lives indicating the importance of job satisfaction as a key area. The lack of adequate opportunities for advance also rated high on the list of concerns and complaints voiced by respondents as 47% indicated that they were not graded appropriately (Ball et al, 2003). Pay scales are the outgrowth of the preceding thus naturally the attitudes t owards compensation rated high on the list of replies. Table 3 – Views Regarding Pay (Ball et al, 2003) Disagree Strongly disagree Agree Strongly agree I could not be paid more for less effort if I left nursing 35 39 10 1 Nurses are not paid poorly in relation to other professional groups 54 36 3 2 Considering the work I do I am paid well 23 48 11 1 The replies in this area are consistent with the complaints regarding poor pay as voiced by NHS nurses as well as uncovered in numerous surveys and articles on this area, and nine of ten nurses feel that they are poorly paid in comparison with other professions (Ball et al, 2003). The importance of adequate pay was indicated by 75% of respondents, with 80% stating that receiving promotions based upon merit as equally important which represents a job satisfaction issue. Equating the factors representing motivation, job satisfaction and financial incentives in the nursing profession is an exceedingly complex task owing to the highly skilled nature of the work as well as the differing positions, grading and assignment variables involved. A significant measure of job satisfaction is the movement of staff in and out of the NHS. The study found that 25% of NHS nurses had changed jobs in the calendar year compared against 15% in the GP practice sector, and 17% involved in nursing and nurse education. Table 4 – NHS Nurse Turnover 1996 – 2002 (Ball et al, 2003) Year Percent 1996 23% 1997 21% 1998 18% 1999 19% 2000 20% 2001 23% 2002 24% 2003 25% It is important to note that in equating the preceding figures that a change of job does not always mean that one has left their current employer, as it could also mean a promotion, transfer or lateral move within the same organization. The survey revealed that 51% of the indicated changes in job represented a change in employer and that 13% of all nurses engaged in this practice during 2003 (Ball et al, 2003). The sheer overall size of the NHS means that most employment changes entailed jobs within the NHS system, with 96.5% of the nurses changing jobs who were in the NHS remaining in the NHS even though they switched or changed jobs (Ball et al, 2003), and these job changes can also entail the NHS bank. An important determinant of job satisfaction and motivation is what nurses plan to do in the future with regard to their employment. 29% of the surveyed nurses indicated their intention to leave their employer in the next two years, with NHS nurses indicated this intention at 27% (B all et al, 2003). Those nurses who indicated that they intend to stay at the present employment cited that they felt that their work was valued as the primary reason, 63% (Ball et al, 2003). Nurse’s views regarding motivation along with job satisfaction can be also equated via morale which describes their views as well as attitudes. The survey uncovered that 73% of respondents indicated that they did not desire to leave nursing as a profession, and of the 27% who expressed a desire to leave only 22% indicated that they would recommend nursing to others as a career (Ball et al, 2003). 74% indicated that the career prospects in the profession have increasingly become less attractive and a higher percentage would opt to leave the profession altogether if they could think of a suitable alternative after the years they invested in the career (Ball et al, 2003). Table 5 – Respondents Indicating They Would Leave Nursing If They Could (Ball et al, 2003) Strongly agree Agree Neither Disagree Strongly disagree Work is valued score 3.5 3.05 2.75 2.4 2.1 Table 6 – Respondents Indicating They Want to Leave Nursing Percentages (Ball et al, 2003) 20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55 and over Would leave 14.7 23 31 32.5 27 33 30 26 Planning to leave 5 9 10.5 9 7 7 11 34 The survey uncovered that the respondents who indicated a desire to leave the profession if they could was correlated strongly with their perception of a lack of advancement and or promotion opportunities. And those who feel that their work is valued indicated that they would either stay or did not indicate an intention or consideration of leaving. The preceding seemingly points to job satisfaction as the more important factor among nurses, feeling appreciated and valued, rather than low pay, which is cited often as a problem as well as advancement opportunities. Morale as well as being or feeling rewarded thus tends to fall closely with feeling valued and or appreciated as a reason for motivating nurses. In terms of correlating the information and findings uncovered as a result of the RCN membership survey conducted in 2003 (Ball et al, 2003) the Kings Fund survey of ‘Morale and Motivation’ in the NHS represents a interesting manner in which to compare results to determine whether motivation for nurses is dependent on job satisfaction or financial incentives. The Kings Fund survey indicated that while it is difficult to measure the way in which individuals feel regarding their work, the survey indications pointed to morale as well as motivation in the NHS as being low. The Kings Fund survey identified three distinct factors that affect both moral and motivation (Kings Fund, 2002): whether of not the staff feel they are valued, the working environment, and resources and pay scales These same three aspects were correlations reached in the RCN membership survey conducted in 2003 (Ball et al, 2003) and thus provides a strong case for the fact that job satisfaction seemingly represents the key motivational factor for nurses in the NHS. The Kings Fund summary indicated that nurses as well as doctors have elected to leave their positions in the NHS as well as to retire early in large numbers (Ball et al, 2003). The preceding has been found to be in huge part that NHS staff members feeling that they are not valued by the government as well as the media, which has been critical of their performance and quality of service, which reflects in shaping public perceptions to a great degree. The Kings Fund (2002) survey points to the example of hospitals in the United States that have been successful in the attraction and retention of nurses which studies have attributed to their including staff in decision making aspects to increase their perception of value and worth as we ll as involvement and control. The Kings Fund study indicated that the major factors that affect morale as well as motivation are as follows (Kings Fund, 2002): Working Environment The study found that the quality of the working environment which respect primarily to the staffing levels, speed of reform and the depth of same are major factors affecting morale as well as motivation. It indicated that too much change as well as too much political control represent de-motivating factors and represent key reasons that individuals indicate as desiring to leave employ in the NHS. Feeling Valued The RCN membership survey (Ball et al, 2003) strongly indicated the importance of ‘feeling valued’ in the workplace representing an extremely strong factor in job satisfaction. The Kings Fund study stated that the value which nurses as well as other staff members perceived as a result of groups outside of the NHS such as politicians, the public as well as the media were highly important in this equation. The Kings Fund study indicated that like the American hospitals, those NHS facilities that involve nurses in decision making, planning and policy have a happier and higher motivated workforce with lower turnover rates. The Kings Fund study also included focus group discussions out of which ‘feeling valued’ emerged as the key determinant defining morale and motivation. The critical issues identified from these sessions where as follows: Perceived Worth The study uncovered that the general consensus among those in the focus group was that they did not feel valued as professionals by members of their own profession who had higher educational achievements or degrees, as well as the public. Levels of Support Staff members indicated that they feel that they are not supported by politicians as well as employers, citing that the public perception of the NHS had changed after the government blamed NHS staff for service quality. Importantly, those focus group members who reported and or felt they were listened to felt motivated. Recognition and Treatment The status of treatment, in terms of recognition and support was indicated as an important consideration by members of the focus group study with regard to their feelings concerning their job and satisfaction with it. Job Satisfaction Job satisfaction is a category that is in lock step with morale and motivation, according to the Kings Fund study, and represents reasons linked with the intention to leave or as to why they have left employment. The foregoing includes factors such as the nature of the work, if there are advancement opportunities and other factors linked to job satisfaction. Resources and Pay In this context, resources referred to how well the service segment of the hospital facility is resourced overall as well as the manner in which staff members are rewarded. The foregoing highly influences morale as well as motivation as reported by medical managers and doctors. While some of the preceding areas seemingly do not correlate as being endemic to the examination of motivation and whether job satisfaction or financial incentives are the key to involvement for nurses, it was deemed important to draw a larger picture of the context to thus magnify the areas of importance within this context. The foregoing approach enables the research findings to draw upon additional information from which to support the rationales as well as aid in the formulation of the conclusion that the data suggests and points to. The foregoing also aids in the analysis of the primary research survey which represented a sampling of just 22 individuals. Chapter 3 Methodology The methodology utilized in equating the examination as to whether motivation at work for nurses in the NHS is dependent upon job satisfaction or financial incentives was conducted utilizing primary research in the form of a small survey as well as secondary research surveys as conducted by the RCN, the Kings Fund, Margaret Callaghan (2003, pp. 82-89), and ‘The NHS Plan: A Plan for Investment: A Plan for Reform’ along with varied theories on job satisfaction and motivational factors. The utilization of five differing survey and studies on the subject were conducted to ensure that the conclusions drawn from this information was based upon having enough information from which to read into the examination. The secondary surveys and studies were both comprehensive as well as large and the topic field, while not specifically devoted to the examination as posed herein, did contain enough data, questions, elements and points to enable their use as viable information sources. Gr aph data was converted to tables herein to present the data in a more comprehensive and readable format. The utilization of various articles and news sources aided in identifying the past as well as the current temper of conditions, moods and attitudes in the NHS from the perspective of nurses as well as governmental actions and public opinions. The preceding enabled the establishment of an historical perspective, and the legislative actions undertaken by the United Kingdom government in the form of the â€Å"The NHS Plan: A Plan for Investment: A Plan for Reform† (NHS, 2000) and the â€Å"NHS Improvement Plan† (Department of Health, 2004). The consensus of the overall effect of these plans is that the government has indeed made some progress in the hiring of additional nurses, doctors and technicians as well as introducing pay scale incentives, however, as stated by the BBC (2003) the NHS is still threatened with a shortfall of 50,000 nurses who are due to retire over the next five years despite the hiring of 40,000 extra nurses since 1997. The historical research utilize d as part of the methodology provided background information on the internal problems of the NHS which includes the fact that a large proportion of the 40,000 hired NHS nurses were obtained through foreign recruiting and that the pay incentive measures only reached 15,000 nurses in terms of the 12% pay raise (BBC News, 2003). Wheatcroft (2006) summarized the preceding in stating that all of the additional funds that have been provided to the N

Seamus Heaney Essay -- English Literature

Seamus Heaney Seamus Heaney was born in 1939 in Northern Ireland into a rural farming family. The family where Catholic, living in a predominantly Protestant area of the country. I can relate to this as I come from South Africa where the tension between the black and white people is high, this has helped me to choose my first poem "Docker". The second poem I am going to analyse is "Follower" which tells the story of a young boy who grows up admiring his dad but as time ticks by, things change and people age. The third and final poem I will analyse is "Digging" which also is about a young lad who admires his dad for his skill, but feels bad because he isn't as skilled as his father is and therefore chooses to dig with his pen in the form of poetry. The poem Docker starts off with "there, in the corner" from this it can be seen that the man is a lonely man who does not want to be bothered, all he is doing is staring at his drink. "Speech clamped in the lips, vice" this use of metaphor indicates that he is a anti social person with the word "vice" once again describing the mans power and strength. The Docker is then described as a hard and tough man, "Cowling plated forehead and sledge head jaw" because he is compared with very hard objects, such as a sledge head which is made out of steel. "That fist would drop a hammer on a Catholic" this verse is of a violent nature which confirms the Docker as a violent aggressive man who clearly does not like Catholics. The mans dislike for Catholics is emphasised even more in the following verse "The only Roman collar he tolerates, smiles all round his sleek pint of porter". From this it can be said that even the white foam made by his beer reminds him of Cath... ...ss. "I wanted to grow up and plough" this proves that like with all little boys, he wanted to be just like his dad when he grows up. He follows his father all round the farm "In his broad shadow" which again describes the mans huge build and strength. In this poem, the first five stanzas represent the past, whereas the last stanza represents the present. "I was a nuisance, tripping and falling" The boy, who is now a man, comes to realise he was clumsy and unskilful who was always bothering his father "Yapping always". "But today" is the main contrast between past and present, "It is my father who keeps stumbling behind me and will not go away" His father has obviously aged and become enfeebled while his son has now grown up and become more powerful and skilful than what his father is. It is his father who follows him around now and will not go away.

Individual and Society Essay -- Essays Papers

Individual and Society Medicine Since 1715 Medicine has been a great advancement in society. Without the advancement in medicine, we would not have the lifestyle that we do today. Many different nations and individuals within those nations have contributed to this progression. Medicine has greatly increased the life- span of humans. We are where we stand today because of the many great people we have had in our history who contributed to and performed medical advances. The tests and theories of these people have been a major contributing factor. William Cullen said, "Every one nowadays pretends to neglect theory, and to stick to observation. But the first is in talk only, for every man has his theory, good or bad, which he occasionally employs; and the only difference is, that weak men who have little extent of ability for, or have had little experience in reasoning, are most liable to be attached to frivolous theories."1 William Cullen's expression concerning the importance of theories was proved to be correct due to the many contributions of the theories of those who studied medicine. In 1790, the birthrate was high, along with the death rate. The majority of deaths occurred among the infants and young children. The death rate of the population as a whole was higher than today. Although children born had only a 75% chance of surviving past the age of five, the beginning advances in medicine aided the population growth causing the population to increase in England. The medical schools, hospitals, medical societies and journals, medical knowledge, and doctors of 1790 did not perform life- prolonging therapeutics. In Science and the practice of Medicine in the Nineteenth Century, it was concluded that "many laymen, and... ...Sheikh, Eastern and Western Approaches to Healing (New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1989), 65. BIBLIOGRAPHY Sheikh, Anees A., and Katharina S. Sheikh. Eastern and Western Approaches to Healing. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1989. Proctor, Robert N. Racial Hygiene: Medicine Under the Nazis. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1988. Bynum, W.F. Science and the Practice of Medicine in the Nineteenth Century. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994. Taegu. "Yakryongshi-Market of Herb Medicine." Websites in Taegu. (c) 1996, JAC. n. pag. Online. Internet. 21 March, 1999 Available http://www.taegu.co.kr/h_045 .html "History of Medicine and Health." n. pag. Online. Internet. 21 March, 1999. Available http://ihs2.unn.ac.uk:8080/hhist.htm "Anatomy of an Epidemic." n. pag. Online. Internet. 21 March, 1999. Available http://library .advanced.org/11170/

Christmas Song Essay -- Analysis, Christmas Carol

To many people a warm crackling fire brings about memories of the Christmas season. By listening to some of the Christmas carols played throughout the festive holiday season, it is easy to pick up on this. In one such Christmas carol, they mention â€Å"chestnuts roasting on an open fire† in this line fire is the provider of warmth light, and good spirits. By roasting the chestnuts the fire gives food and allows people to share with one another in a warm comfortable atmosphere. A second popular Christmas carol that mentions fire it â€Å"Let it Snow†. In this song, one of the main verses is â€Å"Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful, And since we've no place to go, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow†. In this verse fire is representative of the winter time and gives delight, along with warmth and light, to the person singing the song. Light is something that goes hand in hand with the Christmas holiday, but something that is not a common thought when it comes to Christmas is darkness. The example of fire and light also holds true for Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. Before the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by the spirits of his seven years dead business partner Jacob Marley, and the Ghosts of Christmas’s past, present, and future, he despises Christmas and everything about it, almost forcing his clerk, Bob Cratchit to work Christmas day. Even his always cheerful nephew Fred cannot seem to break through the hatred. But while Scrooge worked as an apprentice for Mr. Fezziwig, the hatred was not present. But through the series of events that happened in his life. Scrooge grew to hate the whole Christmas season. After he is shown what will happen to him if he doesn’t change his ways, Scrooge wakes up the ne... ...Christmas Carol reflects how much love and generosity of spirit are present among people: the greater the â€Å"good cheer† the brighter the scene, the more greed, self-centeredness, or hostility, the more absolute the darkness. An example discussed in the novel was the amount of light and therefore, spirit, love and generosity, present in the moor where the miners work. In contrast to the miners light, was the gloom surrounding Scrooge before he was visited by the three ghosts. Although Scrooge was surrounded by murkiness, greed and self-centeredness before the ghosts visited him, by the time he went to his nephew Fred’s party there much more light, love and generosity present. Fire light and warmth play an important role in The Christmas Carol but darkness and gloom play an equally important role in representing the characteristics of people in the scene.

Theory of Communication

Theories of communication A theory is a set of ideas that can be used to understand, explain and make predictions about something. Theories of communication provide ways of analysing communication between people and give care practitioners an insight into what works and why. Michael Argyle (1925–2002) was a social psychologist who researched and developed theories about human communication and interpersonal interaction. He focused on both verbal and non-verbal communication, carrying out experimental research to test and develop his theoretical ideas (see Argyle, 1967, 1969 and 1975).Argyle’s ‘communication cycle’ theory sets out to understand, explain and predict how communication occurs between people in one-to-one situations. In The Psychology of Interpersonal Behaviour (1967), Argyle proposed that communication is a skill that needs to be learnt and practised like any other skill. Argyle’s (1967) claim was that human communication is essentially a two-way process that involves people sending, receiving and responding to each other’s verbal and non-verbal messages.The receiver of the message keeps the communication going by responding to or by giving feedback to the original message. This process then repeats and builds into a communication cycle. Care practitioners need to have an understanding of group processes and patterns of group behaviour in order to interact and communicate well in the various group situations that they experience. Understanding how groups form and then develop is an important part of this. Bruce Tuck man (1965) outlined a model of group development based around a number of stages, or a sequence, of group activity.Tuck man’s (1965) theory suggests that groups must go through these stages to be effective and that the pattern of communication in each of the four stages is different 1. Forming involves group members coming together and asking basic questions about the purpose and aims of t he group, each member’s role within it and commitment to it. In this first stage of group development, members tend to feel quite anxious, often prioritise their own interests and may feel ‘disorientated’ in their interactions with others. A leader usually emerges in this early stage. . Storming, the second stage, is a period of conflict within the group. Members may argue over the purpose of the group, may contest its aims and sometimes resist the authority and role of the leader. In this stage, power and control are the main issues. Eventually, the purpose of the group and the roles within it become clearer as power and control battles are won and lost. Without tolerance and patience at this stage, the team will fail. Co-operation between members should begin to develop towards the end of this phase. . Norming is the stage when the group’s identity develops. A strong set of shared values, norms of behaviour and a group ‘culture’ emerge. The group arrives at one goal and agrees a shared plan to achieve it. The group becomes more cohesive and group members tend to work together to resolve conflicts. 4. Performing is the stage when the group finally matures and gets down to working effectively. Members tend to focus more on the overall goal rather than on relationships between themselves.Relationships have, by this stage, become more comfortable and are based on trust and mutual support. Reflect A group may or may not reach the performing stage: effective, high performing teams do but other less effective groups may get stuck at one of the earlier stages, particularly if they are unable to resolve the challenges or crises associated with that stage of group development. Effective communication within a group situation is a key influence on whether a group reaches the performing stag Theory of Communication Case Study Theory of Communication Introduction to Communication Good communication and interpersonal skills are vital for success in business. The ability to communicate clearly and persuasively is often seen as the key characteristic of the effective manager or administrator. High level communication skills are also essential in specialised functions, such as marketing, human resource management, public relations and secretarial. Communication is the means by which individual employees convey their wants, ideas and feelings to others,( not only managers or specialists). Process of Communication ContextMedium/Channel Message Feedback Noise Communication can be defined as the process by which, ideas, information, opinions, attitude, and feeling are conveyed from one person to another. The communicator or sender is the person who initiates the conversation by sending a message. The receiver is the person who receives the messages and completes the communication by responding to it. Mo st communication is two way and has to have both a sender and receiver, either face to face or by other means such as telephone, letters, e-mails etc. Body language also plays a big part in communication. Sender EncodingReceiver Decoding Communication codes * Written language * Spoken language * Dress * Body language * Pictures, photographs and graphic illustrations. * Sign language, Braille. * Numbers * Computer language Communication Medium The medium is the means used to transmit the message. Media can be categorised into five headings; written, oral, visual, electronic and mass. Written media can provide a written record, can relay complex information, can be carefully thought out and mistakes can be edited. It takes time to produce and is more impersonal than speech. * Letter * Report * Memo * Press Release * Company magazine Advertising leaflet Oral media is more direct and personal, feedback is immediate. Oral media can be supported by body language. But there may be no recor d of what is said and if you say something you don’t mean you cannot take it back. * Conversation face to face or telephone * Interview * Meeting * Presentation * Oral briefing Visual media can have an immediate impact, it can support verbal presentations. * Nonverbal * Diagrams * Charts * Photographs * Models Electronic media provides fast communication over long distance, can carry both verbal and visual information. * Video * Telephone * E-mail * InternetMass media is an important source of information; it can reach a large number of people and can be used for advertising. * Television * Radio * Press * Film Channels of Communication The channel is the air that carries sound waves between speaker and listener such as: * Television channels * Radio * Postal system * Computer networks * Courier services * Telephone Barriers to Communication Effective communication is difficult and mistakes are often made. We see this in everyday life, we complain when someone doesn’t respond to our messages in the way we expect, they do not understand what we really meant to say.In business, difficulties with communication can cause disruption. Good business opportunities can be lost or disastrous management decisions made. A serious breakdown in communication can put the very future of a company at risk. Communication errors can never be completely eliminated. Nevertheless, we are likely to be more successful communicators if we are aware of the factors that cause communication to fail. Some obstacles stand in the way of communication and some of these can be avoided or overcome. Physical Barriers Among these barriers are poor hearing or eyesight, illness, tiredness, or stress.Other barriers can be, distractions such as an office that is too warm or too cold, uncomfortable seating, poor telephone connection or the noise of traffic heard from outside. If a person has a medical problem this may be sorted by a visit to a doctor. If the office is too hot or too col d the thermostat may be altered and maybe closing the window would help to block out the noise. Language Barriers To convey a message correctly it should be written clearly in a language that the receiver will understand. Mistakes in spelling can harm communication.Sometimes local jargon can disrupt good communication; it may be acceptable in a specialised trade or profession. Slang or local accents may be difficult for outsiders to understand. Nonverbal Barriers Facial expression, posture and eye movement all reveal our feelings and attitudes to the receiver. When there is conflict between a verbal and non verbal signal, it is the nonverbal signal that tends to be believed. A person may say that they are outgoing and confident but this might be contradicted by nervous body language. Poor Listening Good listening is often the most important part of communication.Listening give us a better understanding of the other persons point of view, maintains friendships and helps business coll aboration. When not listening properly, we often miss an important point in a conversation. Problems with Perception Perception is how we make sense of ourselves and the world around us. We perceive the world through the senses of sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell. We also have some physiological based perceptions such as sensation of pain, heat, cold etc. We have mental perceptions such as thoughts, daydreams and fantasies.The brain registers these different stimuli and organises them into shapes and patterns that we can understand. Mistakes can arise if we think other people perceive things the same way that we do ourselves. Often they don’t and this is a common cause of communication failure. Attitudinal Barriers Stereotyping, prejudice and unwanted attribution are among the attitudinal barriers that can do the most damage to our ability to our ability to relate effectively to others. * Stereotyping: We stereotype other people when we assume they will behave in a cert ain way just because of their appearance, role or a particular social group.We may be surprised to find that conservatively dressed people have radical views or that the big person wearing a studded jacket and driving a Harley Davidson turns out to be as gentle as a lamb. Judging by appearance gives an incomplete and often distorted picture of what a person is really like. * Prejudice: Prejudice is an attitude of hostility based on faulty generalisations, such as stereotypes. It may be directed at individuals or groups. Prejudice can be damaging to communications if a person believes that another person is inferior, subversive, threatening, not fully part of the community and so on.If we consider another person less than ourselves, we are unlikely to value what they have to say. Prejudice is often a part of ignorance but maybe better education will improve this. * Attribution:Even when we avoid stereotyping, we still make the mistake of judging people on flimsy evidence. We should n ot listen to what other people say, this can sometimes be misleading. Having an accurate picture of people is vital for effective communication, but it is something that can only be built up slowly through time, insight and regular contact. The Principles of Effective Communication As a Communicator 1.Think carefully about your objectives before communicating. What do you want to achieve? Do you want to inform, persuade, advise or consult the receiver? What kind of response do you hope to get? When you have answered questions like these then you can think about the content of the message and how you define it. 2. Put yourself in the communicator’s shoes. The receiver’s perception may not be the same as yours. They may think differently or have different opinions. You may need to communicate with tact and sensitivity. 3. Choose the right medium or combination of media. Difficulties can arise if the wrong medium is used.If you try to describe a complicated process by spe ech alone the audience may not understand it. A combination of words and graphics may work better. 4. Organise your ideas and express them carefully. Take time to structure your ideas in a logical sequence. When choosing your words, take into consideration the receivers understanding and linguistic ability. Try to use words that the receiver will understand. Use language suitable to the communication taking place, informal language that may be used on the shop floor may not be suitable or appropriate for a business meeting. 5.Consider the context, breakdowns in communication often occur because the receiver is given information at the wrong time or place. Even important messages can be forgotten if the receiver is busy or preoccupied with something else. 6. Check for feedback, make sure your message has been received and understood. When speaking face to face look for signs of puzzlement in your listeners, be prepared to explain if necessary. Although the main responsibility for com municating a message rests with the sender, the receiver also has to listen and make sure they understand and relay the message to the right person. As a Receiver 1.Give the message your full attention. Many messages are misunderstood because the receiver is not concentrating, they are daydreaming, or there are too many distractions. 2. Interpret the message correctly. This requires effort and proper listening, if you are unsure of what is said; ask for it to be repeated. Check the meaning of unfamiliar words or references. In spoken communication listen actively and with empathy. Be alert for nuances that may subtly alter the meaning of the message. 3. Keep an open mind, you should not allow dislike of the communicator, or disagreement with their beliefs to influence your judgement.Make an objective assessment of the message no matter what your relationship with the sender. 4. Record information you are likely to forget. You should write down any information you are likely to forge t such as, telephone numbers, names, dates etc. The information should be recorded properly in a secure place, not on a scrap of paper that can get lost among other papers on a busy desk. 5. Respond appropriately to the communicator by providing feedback, following up enquiries or whatever action is necessary.