HG Wells, From the war of the worlds (1898) and All you zombies Essay

HG Wells, From the war of the worlds (1898) and All you zombies - Essay Example On the other hand, All you Zombies seems to revolve around the idea of time. Both the two stories are written in a rather journalistic style. As for the case of The war of the Worlds, the almost factual description of the invasion of the aliens helps to provide some logic to the story. Both the two stories have adopted the first person narration style with the narrators giving a firsthand account of most of the proceedings, a style that further enhances the provision of a fairly wide perspective of the unfolding of events. In the War of the worlds, the aliens first appear in the country in the form of space-going simulated cylinders which when opened they seemed to emit some octopus-like creatures which would also pull in some human beings (Wells, 1988). This leads to the commencement of a war between the army and the Martian’s three legged fighting machines referred to as the tripods that used a combination of a ray of heat and certain chemical components. However, the aliens prove to be more powerful than the army whom they defeat with ease before proceeding to attack the communities surrounding they crater where the cylinders first landed. Being a follower of a Darwinian supporter, Wells seems to display some element of support for the theory’s assumption of the existence of some natural forces of selection in the evolution of organisms. The illustration of the battle that ensues between the army and the aliens from mars can be pointed as a struggle that is almost similar to the theory of natural selection. The fittest in this context are the Martian aliens who are able to outdo the human race due to their development of far more superior intelligence exhibited by their ability to produce highly developed weapons than those of mankind. On the same note, the invasion by the aliens in the war of the worlds seems to explain the ever continuing process of evolution. The narrator depicts the Martian aliens as possessing rather overdeveloped brains c omplemented by a reduced ability to make use of their emotions. In the human context, this therefore implies that in just the same case, the human brain may develop to the extent that it surpasses the rate of overall body development. Thus, mankind will remain to be more of a thinking man rather than an action based creature that would therefore rely on other mechanical devices just as the Martian three legged creature. In All you Zombies, time travel paradoxes seem to be a persistent technique in the plot of the story. In such techniques, more often characters within the story can meet themselves in time or inadvertently change the course of history in such a manner that their trip back to their original time is almost impossible. The story takes place in an unspecified future where space travel is a fact of life and attitudes toward sex and prostitution are very different from what they are today. In the story, the central character is a member of a certain group of time policemen disguising himself as a bartender with the aim of gaining the services of a sob story writer. The customer incidentally reveals the story of his life to the bartender explaining that he was born a girl before later getting pregnant and while giving birth, the doctor asserts her that she was a hermaphrodite. Since there were some complications while giving birth, she had to be removed her female organs which therefore made her

Theory and Evidence-Based Practice of Nursing Essay Example for Free

Theory and Evidence-Based Practice of Nursing Essay Introduction Evidence-based nursing is acknowledged as an approach to nursing care that guides to enhance patient outcomes. Qouting McEwen (2002) Kelly L. Penz and Sandra L. Bassenski pointed out that in nursing practice, formalities, remote, unsystematic clinical experiences and ungrounded opinions, and traditions as the basis of practice should be de-emphasized by incorporating into clinical practice evidence-based approach to nursing care. In explaining what evidence-based approach means, Penz and Bassendowski cited Estabrook’s (1998) explanation that evidence-based nursing â€Å"is a discipline in which nurses make clinical decisions using current best research evidence, which is then blended with approved policies and clinical guidelines, clinical expertise and judgment, and patient preferences† (Penz Bassendowski 2006, p 250). In other words, evidence-based nursing practice is more than just a research; it is more than a theory or practice. However, evidence-based practice of nursing is currently subject of debate among nursing scholars and educators. Gail J. Mitchell (1999) contends that the concept of evidence-based practice â€Å"is not only a barren possibility but also obstructs nursing process, human care, and professional accountability† (Mitchell 1999, p. 271). Mitchell argued that the usefulness of the evidence has been â€Å"wrongfully cast in the context of legitimizing nursing as a profession instead of describing evidence as one possible resource for supporting client’s decision making† (Mitchell, p. 271). The Relationship between Theory and Evidenced-Based Nursing Practice In nursing practice, theory is a pattern of knowing, Jacqueline Fawcett noted that theory comes from Greek word theoria, â€Å"To see† which means to reveal phenomena that is previously hidden from our awareness and attention. Deborah Upton (1999) pointed out that theory, practice, and research identify the science of nursing. Upton emphasized that theories embrace nursing as a science, which, in the case of evidence- based practice, the basic tenet is on sound information anchored on research findings and scientific development. Fawcett pointed out that theories constitute much of the knowledge of a discipline and theory and experiences are the lenses through which we conduct inquiry. The outcome of the inquiry comprises the evidence that finds out the adequacy of the theory. In nursing practice, theory guided practice means the traditional scientific approach to clinical care while in evidence-based practice a nurse can decide on the relevance of the evidence for the patient care. According to Penz and Baseendowski evidence-based practice fills the gap between theory, research, and practice. It means that theory alone or evidence alone is insufficient basis of clinical care, but combining the two make a useful clinical approach that has potential â€Å"to improve patient care in all clinical practice setting† (Penz Bassendowski p. 251). The relationship therefore of theory and evidence-based nursing practice is that evidence-based practice absorbed theories and incorporating it including research, patient’s preferences, and other approved guidelines of the clinical practice. Penz and Bassendowski noted the study of Alligood and Tomey (2002) suggesting that theoretical knowledge when blended into the practice of nursing, results to enhanced professional autonomy. Alligood and Tomey pointed out that when nursing theory is used to direct clinical opinion and decision making , nurses can comprehend what they do and why, and they are capable to explain this to other health professional.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Further explanation of the relationship between theory and evidence-based practice can be established in the meaning and purpose of theory it self. Lynn Rew pointed out that it is theory that framed or determined what really count as evidence. Based on the premise that â€Å"theory is the reason for and the value of the evidence,† Rew provided a framework based on three factors: Components, Purpose, and Outcomes, which depicts ideal relationship between theory and evidence-based nursing practice. Rew pointed out that the components of theory are concepts and statement, while practice, is phenomena of concern and problems to be solved. The Purpose of theory is to organize ideas, while Practice delimits ideas, the Outcomes are theory construction framework for practice, and policies while in practice, evidence-based practice, generalizable programs, and interventions. She explained that concepts of theory reflect the phenomena of concern in a practice discipline, while the definition and purpose are abstractions of the practical problems to be solved in the practice arena. The outcomes of theory construction guides practice and policy development. Thus theory is highly related to evidence-based practice by virtue of determining the evidence. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Despite of the different emphasis of theory based nursing and evidence-based nursing practice, the aim of both camps is to advance the clinical care of the nursing practice for the benefit of the patient. However, the conflict of emphasis threatened to abolished the long established processes of clinical care in favor of evidence based nursing practice which are not really completely proven very successful in clinical treatment. Tracing therefore the relationship between theory and evidence-based nursing practice helps not only to understand what the conflict was all about but also it gives proper understanding of the nursing practice particularly the evidence-based nursing. Whether theory guided practice or evidence-based nursing practice, what is important is that the nursing practice should be understandable to nurses and to the patient.    Reference Fawcett, J.; Watson, J.; Neuman, B.; Walker, P.; Fitzpatrick, J. (2001) On Nursing Theories and Evicence. USA: Sigma Theta Tau International. http://classes.kumc.edu/son/nrsg750/articles/nursing_theories.pdf Mitchell, G. J. Evidence-Based Practice: Critique and Alternative View. Penz, K. L. Bassendowski, S. L. ( 2006)Evidence-Based Nursing in Clinical Practice: Implications for Nurse Educators. Canada. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing. Vol.37, No. 6 (November/December) http://www.orthonurse.org/portals/0/EBP%20Clinical%20Practice.pdf Rew, L (2005) Adolescent Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Theory, Research. United States of America: SAGE Publication Upton, D. J., (1999) How Can We Achieved Evidence-based Practice if we a Theory- Practice Gap in Nursing Today? Journal of Advanced Nursing Vol. 29 (3) England: Blackwell Science Ltd.

An Introduction Of Hrm And Shrm Business Essay

An Introduction Of Hrm And Shrm Business Essay A lack of clear direction prevails in global HR research which is expressed by scholars and practitioners across a wide front as a concern for the profession, including the resultant role personnel ought to play in organizations objective achievement (Goshal 2005; Hendry 2003; Holbeche 2006; Morris, Snell Lepak 2005; Meisinger 2005). Various researchers have pointed out during the last few years (Browning Edgar 2004; Becker, Huselid Ulrich 2001; Birchfield 2002; Brewster , Dowling , Grobler, Holland Warnich 2000; Mayrhofer Brewster 2005; Nel 2007; Ruona Gibson, 2004; Storey, 2001) that a revised approach to Human Resources Management (HRM) is evolving. This includes the strategic role and functions of the HR profession as business partners in organizations and the way they ought to direct personnel to optimize their contributions to the organization. Transformational leadership expressed in terms of the high-level capabilities and management skills are also assuming a significant place in the future of the HR profession in organizations as well as the ability to add value. Human Resource Management is an approach to the management of employees, it involves the process of employing people, developing their skills/capacity and utilizing their services. The traditional aspects of HRM methods are more towards the selection of recruitment process and imparting training. This HRM process does not have any specific riles for different areas like recruitment, training and utilizing the services. SHRM is defined by Little (2003) as the process of achieving the best possible alignment of personnel behavior with the organizations strategy and hence align with the profit and loss in the short and long term. The personnel behavior-strategy relationship is dynamic because it changes as the environment changes and as the precise goal and performance requirements of the strategy emerge. As the term itself denotes, Strategic HRM deals with strategic aspects of HRM. Unlike HRM, Strategic HRM mainly focuses on the programs with long-term objectives. Though HRM and Strategic HRM focus on increasing employee productivity, Strategic HRM uses many strategic methods. Unlike HRM, Strategic HRM uses a more sophisticated method for improving the overall employee motivation and production as well as it focuses on the sage of more systematic tools to achieve focus on partnerships with internal and external customers through the development of long term goals. Little (Little 2003) has argued that the organization is independent of personnel it then follows that the central questions are: First, since the organization is separate from personnel, then what are the factors intrinsic to the organization that can be identified as most influencing the behavior of personnel? Second, once the intrinsic organization factors have been identified, how do they link to influencing behavior? Third, once identified, how can the factors intrinsic to the organization that most influence behavior then be better managed to improve human performance and so improve alignment of personnel behavior with the goals and aim of the organization? Fourth, what are the intrinsic psychological factors personnel bring to the organization that will impact managements effort at improving the alignment of behavior with organization goals and aims? Introduction of how the role of HR in the 21st century is becoming increasingly vital. HR Departments are increasingly expected to operate as a business within a business rather than as a disconnected and isolated set of HR Practices. As such, like many business, the HR Department must have a vision of strategy that defines the way they are headed, a set of goals (objectives, outcomes and deliverables) that focus the priorities for the work and investment essential to carry out this vision and an organizational structure for the HR to accomplish these goals. The new focus for the HR department is to create value (Ulrich and Brockbank,2005) for the key holders. The goals and outcomes of the HR Department has been well documented, the value of HR contribution has traditionally been measured by the quantity of cost of activities (eg: How many people hired over period of time, training given to the employee or the financial cost of delivering employee benefits) Instead of focusing on the relatively easy to measure activities of staffing, training and other functional operations, HR departments are better assessed by the outcomes created that support the companies objectives. These outcomes generally may be defined as the capabilities an organization requires for its strategy to succeed on a sustained basis (Ulrich Smallwoord,2004) The diversification of the HR Departments role towards adapting to the 21st century can seen through the requirements of the organizations for competitive superiority and speed to market, collaboration, cultural exchange, efficiency, service, innovation, accountability or even leadership branding. These and other capabilities represent the organization for what it is known for and the identity of these practices can be enhanced by the HR practice is aligned to the desired focus of the company. With a HR vision of value and outcomes of capabilities, a HR Department can now focus its attention to how it can and should be organized to deliver the vision to reach the desired outcomes (Chirstensen,2005) The diversification from traditional HR practices is a major requirement for companies to adapt to the changes and be focused on the mimicking of the business organization on which it operates and from there it should focus on adopting a concept to reflect the vision and direction of the company in order to stay in line with the charter of the company itself. Introduction of the organization Duty Free Shop (DFS) in Malaysia are licensed under Section 65D, Customs Act 1967. DFS typically operates at international airports, seaports, downtown and at borders. DFS is set up for the purpose of promoting the tourism industry in Malaysia, especially to foreign tourists. Foreign tourists as well as eligible local tourists are able to purchase goods free of duty and GST at any DFS The QM Group of Companies offers a broad assortment of premier liquor, wines and spirits including prominent global brands. Its extensive variety of goods is gladly presented at its diverse duty-free outlets at Bukit Kayu Hitam, Padang Besar as well as in Langkawi. The QM Group of Companies also offers numerous other premier duty free products such as stylish apparels, perfumes, cosmetics, cigarettes, tobacco, confectionery, souvenirs etc as well as locally finished handicraft. The Qm Group of Companies has also diversified into private bonded warehousing operations with the inauguration of its first private bonded warehouse facility at Prai, Penang offering abundant storage, distribution and logistics services as well as other value adding activities. The QM Group of Companies, led by its main corporation QM Sdn Bhd is a fast growing stable of dynamic companies with its core focus involved in the duty-free business dealing in wholesale and retail. QM Sdn Bhd is today an recognized industry leader and key player in the country`s duty-free industry. The QM Group of Companies has been able to build its achievement upon its decades of industry knowledge, proven reliability and stringent vow to giving only the best quality products and services to both visiting tourists and business travelers to discover a truly new dimension in duty-free shopping. Evaluate how the HR practitioner should proceed in ensuring that alignment between business and HR strategies is effective. The HR professional has more challenging roles to perform under SHRM the emergent business partner model. Unlike the traditional HRM, which is transactional in nature and is concerned with administrative activities, SHRM is a value-added core responsibility that aligns the HR system, policies and practices with business strategy to gain sustained competitive advantage for the firm. In performing the new challenging roles, the HR professional must think outside the traditional organizational box of HRM and develop a more systematic and radically different approach to manage the human element to effectively support the firms business strategy formulation and implementation. For successful implementation of the business partner role, the HR manager needs to understand the companys business direction and its competitive position in the market place. Apart from this, to become a successful strategic partner, the HR manager must have competencies that have to do with the business issues i nvolved in strategy and strategy development, and ability to contribute to organizational design and change management (Lawler, III and Mohrman, 2003). The HR function, according to Rowden (1999) must change from a staff function that delivers prepackaged HR services to a service that helps managers create customized strategic plans to influence the effectiveness of company performance. The HR manager can play an important role in the formulation of strategy and providing the human resource required to support various strategies and strategic initiatives in the organization. He provides the leadership role in developing the human capital and the necessary capabilities to enact the st rategy and drive the implementation and change management processes to success (Lawler III Mohrman, 2003). Good human capital management is a prerequisite for successful execution of business strategies. According to Ulrich (1998), the modern HR professional must perform four complementary roles. The first role, administrative excellence, is important because it is an immediate way of contributing to the overall efficiency of the organization. As administration expert, he must rethink how work is done throughout the organization. The second role HR professionals must realize is that of employee champion. The HR manager must play the crucial role of employee advocate. He should be the employees voice in management discussion, offer employee opportunities for personal and professional growth; and provide resources that employees need to meet the demands put on them. The new role might also involve suggesting, that employees be given more control over their own work schedules. This is the issue of employee empowerment. Two additional roles the modern HR professional must realize are those of strategic partner and change agent. Being a strategic partner calls for an ongoing evaluation of the alignment between current HR practices and the business objectives of the firm, and a continuing effort to design policies and practices that maximize this alignment. HR practitioner should be held responsible for defining an organizational architecture that is, identifying the organizations way of doing business. Such framework as looking at the organizational components strategy, structure, rewards, processes, people, style and shared values may be adopted. This new knowledge will allow HR to add value to the executive team with confidence. Being a change agent the HR manager must play a key role in implementing and managing organization change, assessing potential, sources of resistance to change, and collaborating with line managers to overcome these barriers. The HR professionals role as a change agent is to replace resistance with resolve, planning with results and fear of change with excitemen t about its possibilities. These last two roles strategic partner and change agent are of particular interest to us because they represent the emerging strategic dimension of HR function SHRM. In addition to the above roles the HR practitioner needs to be a model and take on the specific role of integrating people strategies with business strategies in a way that advances the bottom line. Metzler (1998) adds that: the HR manager must play an active and guiding role in enabling the organization to choose its human resources well, invest in these people, support that growth and respect their needs, while fostering innovations needed to achieve the strategic business objectives. The HR professional operating under the SHRM system must chart roles that include early and active involvement in key strategic business choices. He must become the partner of decision makers in the organization, and sharing accountability for organizing and performing work. He must carry out effective monitoring to see that everyone in the organization, and at every organizational hierarchy, stay focused on share strategic priorities. He must challenge old ways and constantly promote innovation to enhance corporate performance and the firms competitiveness. Critically analyze how Human Resource Management achieves competitive advantage and what factors limit Human Resource Managements ability to act. Use the current organizational practices as reference. Johnson (2000) details, best practices or high performance work practices are described as HR methods and systems that have universal, additive, and positive effects on organizational performance. These practices maximize their influence on Companys performance through increased customer satisfaction, productivity, innovation and development of favorable reputation, HR planning, Recruitment Selection, Training and development, compensation, Performance management and employee relations are some such practices Why are employees in some companies happy to stick with the company while others look for a change? The reason is that some companies know how to take good care of their employees and provide a working environment that helps them retain their identity, while proving themselves and growing along with the company. HR practices encourage the growth of the organization as employees after all play a major role in the well-being of a company they deal with enhancing competencies, commitment and culture building Pfeffer (1998) proposed HR practices which according to the literature, can be expected to influence the firms performance. In his seminal work, Pfeffer (1998) proposed the following seven HRM practices:- (1) Employment Security (2) Selective Hiring, (3) Self-managed teams and Decentralization of Decision making (4) Comparatively high compensation contingent on Organizational performance, (5) Extensive Training, (6) Reduced status distinctions and barriers, including dress, language, office arrangements, and wage differences across levels, and (7) Extensive sharing of financial and performance information throughout the organization. A number of contemporary and good HR practices have resulted in effectively managing human resources, managing attrition problems and keeping them happy. Some of the best HR practices that are worth mentioning that have helped organizations in the creation of a highly satisfied and motivated work force may be identified as:- Selective Hiring- practice can ensure that the right people, with the desirable characteristics and knowledge, are in the right place.. Training and Development- may be related to firm performance in many ways. Firstly, training programmes increase the firm specificity of employee skills, which, it turn, increases employee productivity and reduces job dissatisfaction that results in decrease in employee turnover Job Security- creates a climate of confidence among employees which cultivates their commitment on the companys workforce. This develops a feeling of confidence and employees commit themselves to expend extra effort for the companys benefit. Flexi-time- Flexi-time is a practice, wherein an organisation gives its employees the opportunity of a flexible working hours arrangement. Performance-linked Incentives and Bonus- Every good performance is appreciated in the form of a pat on the back, bonuses or giving some other compensation for a job well done. The incentives can be implemented at the individual as well as the team level and it has been seen that this works wonders in getting the best out of the employees and boosts their morale. Performance Evaluation- A good evaluation and a fair evaluation system links the employees performance to the business goals and the priorities of an organization. Highlight Performers- High performers get better results, faster and closer to the targets. Organizations create profiles oftheir top performers and makethem visible through their intranet, display boards etc. Open House Discussions Rewarding Ideas- Employees are the biggest source of ideas. Successful organizations nurture ideas and they understand that employees who are actually working and know the business can provide the best ideas. Through this system, talented employees are identified and developed. DLF and Infosys have implemented the I4 Teams ( Ingenious, Idea, Incubation Implementation). Rewards and Recognition- recognition of talentis highly important, the primary goal of rewards and recognition is to improve performance of employees. Non-monetary recognition can be very motivating, helping to build feelings of confidence and satisfaction. Another importantgoal is increased employee retention and encourages others to give their best. Coaching and Mentoring Organisations use coaching and mentoring to train managers to address specific skill deficits, enhance performance and grow into expanded leadership roles. Cross-Functional Training- Organisations foster and harness talent by imparting in-house cross functional training to make their professionals multi-skilled and multitalented. Many organizations encourage their employees to be multi-skilled and add value to other functional aspects as well. Employees Assistance Programmes-These programmers are offered by many organizations in the corporate sector for the employees benefit. Every employee is challenged by personal problems and concerns. The EAPs are intendedto help employees deal with their personal problems that might adversely impact their work performance. Clearly Defined and Measurable KRAs- KRA is an acronym for `Key Results Area. Knowledge Sharing -Knowledge sharing sessions are periodically organized by the organizations to widen knowledge base of their employees and improve their effectiveness. Work Environment- A safe an]d happy workplace makes the employees feel good about being there. Each one is given importance and provided the security that gives them the motivation and incentive to stay. Providing equal employment opportunities for all, value of trained human resource, providing flexibility to employees especially to women at various life stages, sabbatical from corporate life, and extended maternity leave promoting practice of entrepreneurship by employees within the organization. Human Resource Management has taken a leading role in encouraging CSR activities at all levels. Companies like Wipro inculcate CSR values amongst its workforce right at the beginning during the induction process. The focus and attention of HRpractices today are on creating HR policies based on trust, openness, equity and consensus .Creating conditions in which people are willing to work with zeal, initiative and enthusiasm; make people feel like winners. Fair treatment of people and prompting redressal of grievances would pave the way for healthy work-place relations, prepare workers to accept technological changes by clarifying doubts External factors affecting Human Resource Planning Human resource planning can be defined as the process of identifying the number of people required by an organization in terms of quantity and quality. All human resource management activities start with human resource planning. So we can say that human resource planning is the principle/primary activity of human resource management. 1. Employment :- HRP is affected by the employment situation in the country i.e. in countries where there is greater unemployment; there may be more pressure on the company, from government to appoint more people. Similarly some company may force shortage of skilled labour and they may have to appoint people from other countries. 2. Technical changes in the society :- Technology changes at a very fast speed and new people having the required knowledge are required for the company. In some cases, company may retain existing employees and teach them the new technology and in some cases, the company have to remove existing people and appoint new. 3. Organizational changes :- Changes take place within the organization from time to time i.e. the company diversify into new products or close down business in some areas etc. in such cases the HRP process i.e. appointing or removing people will change according to situation. 4. Demographic changes :- Demographic changes refer to things referring to age, population, composition of work force etc. A number of people retire every year. A new batch of graduates with specialization turns out every year. This can change the appointment or the removal in the company. 5. Shortage of skill due to labour turnover :- Industries having high labour turnover rate, the HRP will change constantly i.e. many new appointments will take place. This also affects the way HRP is implemented. 6. Multicultural workforce :- Workers from different countries travel to other countries in search of job. When a company plans its HRP it needs to take into account this factor also. 7. Pressure groups:- Company has to keep in mind certain pleasure. Groups like human rights activist, woman activist, media etc. as they are very capable for creating problems for the company, when issues concerning these groups arise, appointment or retrenchment becomes difficult. Elaborate on what HR strategies can be implemented in this organization, to meet or exceed employees psychological contract in SOME (two or more) differing HR areas like HR planning, Reward Management, Performance Appraisals, Career Development, Recruitment, Training and Development and Industrial Relations. Psychological Contract A psychological contract represents the mutual beliefs, perceptions, and informal obligations between an employer and an employee. It sets the dynamics for the relationship and defines the detailed practicality of the work to be done. It is distinguishable from the formal written contract of employment which, for the most part, only identifies mutual duties and responsibilities in a generalized form Selective Hiring -The respondents were also asked to rank these practices in order of importance given to them by the organizations to each of them. 85% of the respondent agreed that Selective hiring was given most importance by their employers. Selectivity in recruitment is an important practice and is undertaken by almost every organization. This perhaps is the first step in achieving edge over others. Organisation follow the approach of selecting the right person with the right attitude and personality make up to provide the right kind of abilities and capabilities to take the organization toward higher growth. This is an aspect of talent retention as it implies matching a persons inherent skills, traits and personality to the jobs. Moreover when employees go through a rigorous selection process, they feel that their knowledge, experience, abilities and capabilities have got them the jobs in the organization. They feel valuable and high responsibility for performance is created , and the message i s that person matters. They are selected as they possess the desire to succeed and have the capacity for growth, learning and develop skills and capabilities beneficial to the organization. Reward Management 99% of the respondents agreed that good performance should be highlighted as it is motivating and leads to better performance.People are motivated by recognition and fair treatment. Higher the motivation higher will be the performance. When this performance is clubbed with adequate rewards employees are further motivated to perform. Such practices induce other employees to traverse on the same route of performance and reward, taking their firm on a path of growth and gaining competitive advantage. This dictates that people are responsible for enhanced levels of performance and profitability. However rewarding performance should be fair and equitable based on and linked to the performance of an employee Training Development 60% rated training and development as next important activity followed by knowledge sharing and job security in the order. However all the respondent agreed that training was extremely essential for their growth and development. 92% respondent that training should be need based and specific to the employees need and requirements. Worker autonomy, self managed teams, and even a high salaries are practices that equip and provide employees to make changes and improvements in products and processes . However, training will produce good resultsonly if the trained workers are permitted to employ their skills. If employees are to be given more information about operations, they need skills in employing that information to diagnose problems and suggest improvements. Training is an attempt to improve current or future employee performance by increasing an employees attitude or increasing their capabilities. Training provides the opportunity to raise the profile development activities in the organization. Training increases the commitment levels of employees and reduces the perceived growth inequality. Development reduces the turnover rate of employees provides advancement opportunities and also reduces absenteeism conclusion list of references

Seamus Heaneys Portrayal of the Loss of Innocence :: Poems, Poetry

Heaney particually portrays the theme of 'loss of innocence' as a child through his peoms, 'Death of a Natrualist', 'Blackberry picking', 'Poem' and 'Personal Helicon'. Death of a Naturalsit of the first of Heaneys poems to really express this theme. 'All year round the flax-dam festered in the heart -------------------------------------------------- of the townland;green and heavey headed --------------------------------------- Flax rotted there.' In the first stanza Heaney uses rich imagery and purposeful child-like language such as 'festered' and 'warm thick slobber'. These create a sense of the childlike adventure to be found in the surrounding area and time that he had as a child. The language and images created by Heaney help to engage the readers senses. These, although not always pleaseant images portray the excitement to be found as a child. They are also positive and fresah. As the poem progresses into the following stanza there is a destinct change in the mood of the peom. 'The air was thick with a bass chorus' Agaijn Heaney uses rich imagery to explain his point. Phrases such as 'angry frogs' tell how his feeling towards them as a child has changed and now they seem 'angry' rather then the 'nimble swimming tadpoles' that thery were before. Heaney expresses this change in nature as the change of season as wel for him as the actual changin from childhood into adult life. Once innocent and stimulating images have changed into aggressive and threatening things. The title of this poem in itself holds the theme strongly. 'Death of a Naturalist' suggests his interest in nature dying and being replaced with more adult feelings. 'Death of a Naturalist' also liks closely to Heaney's poem 'Blackburry picking'. The poem follows the similar two stanza approach, with the first being full of childhood positives and the second folloing on to more nagative images n nature. This poem however focuses in more on nature itself and his perspecive. 'you ate that first one and its fleesh was sweet'

Mahatma Gandhi and his non-violent struggle

Mahatma Gandhi and his non-violent struggle against the British Empire was a result of the political situation in India. Prior to World War II, the world has witnessed the rise of the Soviet Union in terms of political and military power. We also saw the rise of popular national liberation movements across the colonized world. In most colonies, the way of gaining independence from Western colonialism has been through the waging of armed revolutions, such as the struggle of the Chinese and the Malaysians, led by Mao Tsetung and Sukarno, respectively. However, such a type of struggle for Indian independence was essentially difficult in Indian society where a strict and clearly defined caste system was in place. The caste system hindered the creation of unity of Indians as a united people while transcending class divisions. More so, divisions between the ranks of the Indian people became more pronounced as fighting between rightist Hindu fundamentalists and left-wing communists never stopped, with both espousing violent means of securing Indian independence. All of these confused the majority of a people who continued to wallow in poverty and desolation. In all of these, Mahatma Gandhi emerged to present an alternative viewpoint, a seeming middle-ground between the pro-people radicalism of the left and the religious conservatism of the right. Related article: Favoring Pragmatism Over Principle It was founded on the principle of non-violent struggle. It dismantled all previous ideas that political power comes from the barrel of a gun. Gandhi turned the idea of revolution on its head and succeeded in doing so. While a major factor for their triumph was the waning power of the British empire after World War II, their struggle through non-violent means inspired other civil libertarians the world over to give peace and non-violent struggle a chance prior to the taking of arms. As can be seen from above, Mahatma Gandhi was clearly faced with almost immense tasks, particularly leading the Indian people in the path to independence, despite the power of the British Empire and the ethnic tensions evident in Indian society. At a time when almost the entire colonial peoples of the world were engaged in armed struggle, Gandhi decisively implemented his idea of non-violent struggle to force the British Empire to recognize their demands for sovereignty and independence. He utilized creative forms of protest, such as the non-payment of taxes, peaceful marches to the sea, even if these actions were met with brutal force by British security forces. One of the great things about Gandhi was his ability to present his vision of a free and independent India to the masses in very simple terms which could be clearly understood and grasped. More so, he fully understood that Indian culture was still basically rooted in Hinduism. He believed that the application of foreign theories such as Marxism and nationalism might isolate the independence movement from the vast majority of the people. He was also a very simple man, who embraced the entire cross-section of Indian society, even the so-called untouchables, to the extent of earning the ire of the elite Brahmin caste. As such, his own person was a concrete mobilizing force to move the Indian people into action and determine their destiny. On the other hand, a minor weakness of his leadership was the seeming personality cult that ensued even years after his death. This is shown by the absence of second-liners to continue his work in building a just and peaceful Indian society. While all the mass actions were joined by Indians from different castes, the focus was always primarily on Gandhi’s thoughts and decisions. Such a personality-based leadership, while effective in inspiring people into action, cannot work in the long-term insofar as empowering the people and sustaining the gains of Indian independence. This is due to the lack of a concrete organizational structure to effectively implement the ideas of Gandhi. Lastly, Mahatma seemed to favor speaking in very mystical and vague language, which tends to confuse his followers as to the exact meaning of what he wants to articulate. Nonetheless, his leadership style was still very effective in mobilizing almost a billion people to demand their independence from the British Empire. Being a charismatic leader, he used his gift of astute yet mystical articulation to convince all sectors of Indian society about the necessity of seeking independence. The clearness of vision and objectives, and the creativity of his means of action of pursuit of these goals, were also indispensable factors of his success in leadership. More so, his propensity for personal sacrifice, at the cost of his life and liberty, in pursuit of his goals are very high on the list of his outstanding leadership qualities. Years of imprisonment and the beatings he received from the British security forces did not deter him from continuing his leadership. This is a crucial part of his leadership style, especially when not many leaders in the world are prepared to do sacrifices like such. Usually, leaders are hidden above their ivory towers and palaces, to the extent of alienating themselves from the people they serve. Gandhi, however, was different, as he was like the common everyman, save that it was his leadership of commitment and sacrifice that helped his people achieve independence. In terms of my own personal leadership style, I accede to the leadership traits of Gandhi, in terms of his clarity of vision and propensity for sacrifice. In any organization, these are very fundamental because these will determine how the followers will appreciate their role in the organization. If the vision and goals are clear, the followers can quantitatively measure, in a given amount of time, the progress of the organization and their individual development as well, relative to the vision and objectives. It ensures that the organization does not operate in limbo, without any purpose or necessity of existence. Gandhi’s propensity for sacrifice can also be incorporated in my leadership style. It is important for followers to see and realize that the leader himself is willing to lay himself on the line in pursuit of the vision and goals of the organization. Such a leadership trait reassures the followers that the leader is serious about the success and development of the organization and dismantles notions that the leader’s only interest is to make his people follow orders and deliver results. However, my leadership style differs with Gandhi insofar as adopting a pragmatic and realistic view on plans and actions. I would accede more, in this regard, to the Leninist maxim of â€Å"concrete analysis of concrete conditions†, instead of the Gandhian mode of relying heavily on a notion of non-violence in the face of difficult odds, as I still contend that the success of Gandhi and his movement was also based on external factors (e.g. British losses after World War II) than his non-violence alone. I even surmise that without the world wars and the decline of the British Empire, his non-violent movement would never have been successful. Nonetheless, the above mentioned leadership traits of Gandhi are included in my notion of the ideal leader – clarity of vision and goals, and propensity for sacrifice. In analyzing situations and challenges, and making decisions, it must include the Leninist maxim of â€Å"concrete analysis of concrete conditions†, without, of course, prejudicing the principles and objectives inherent in the organization. A leader must always seek to create candor and camaraderie among his followers, to drive home the point that no unseen barrier exists between them. More importantly, the leader must always seek ways of empowering his people and training new second liners, based on the idea that leaders, no matter how great they are, will always have to step down and be replaced by new blood. If possible, the leader must shun micro-managing the affairs of the organization, especially when competent persons have been assigned to ensure the success of projects and goals. However, while being democratic and consultative as possible, the leader must exercise full control of the more important decisions of the organization, based on the notion that his experience and vision will always be beneficial for the future of the organization. Works Cited: 1. Gandhi, M. (1962). Essential Gandhi. Edited by Louis Fischer. New York: Vintage   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Books.

Analysis of Report to Wordsworth

Report to Wordsworth, a poem by Boey Kim Cheng, is one that speaks of the path of destruction through nature that man is leaving behind him. I personally find the poem powerful and extremely convincing, in the sense that it manages to challenge the reader very objectively. ‘You should be here, Nature has need of you’ involves the reader directly, and the use of a Capital letter personifies nature in such a way it makes one feel her pain. The following lines are significantly symbolic, as the words ‘sky slowing’ can be interpreted as the world itself turning much slower than before, the life and vibrancy leaking out of it. The reference to a ‘dying clock’ may make the reader believe that nature has very limited time remaining and that death is at its doorstep. ‘Smothered by the smog’, this line refers directly to, I believe, the harmful smoke and gases that spoil our air, literally smothering us. This description has the impressive effect of creating a feeling of suffocation, accurately reflecting the idea that is trying to be communicated. References to the great ancient Greek gods of the seas, Proteus and Triton create an incredible effect, notably the one that depicts two of the most powerful beings in existence struggling and suffering at the hands of man. ‘All hopes of Proteus rising from the sea have sunk’, this direct allusion to the tons of pollution man creates is particularly strong as it sends a message along the lines: our oceans are so polluted even the sea god is forced away. Triton’s notes struggle to be free†¦horns are choked, his eyes are dazed’ The idea of man being able to cause such suffering to the gods themselves emphasises all the more the idea of them causing massive destruction to nature. ‘Neptune lies helpless as a beach whale, while insatiate man moves in for the kill’; the adjective ‘insatiate’ depicts man as being merciless and cruel. The following lines may be interpreted from the point of view of poets, who often sit and write of what they see around them, watching the ocean, or wide fields of green countryside. They are now failing as these things that were once so beautiful are slowly being destroyed. Cheng here presents an interesting image, notably that of a ‘wound widening in the sky’, which personally makes me think of our ozone layer getting worn away by pollution, leaving the world at mercy. There is also here a discreet allusion to the poem Composed upon Westminster Bridge, the poem by William Wordsworth (Cheng’s poem is a response to this particular piece of work). God is labouring to utter his last cry’ is, I find, the perfect ending to the poem, as it once again alludes to God himself struggling against what man has caused to the world. The poem’s tone is considerably morose, along with a rhythm that I would compare to a funeral march. The atmosphere is quite deep and the voice could be that of surrender, as the poet does not indicate any possibility of mankind being capable of turning this situation around. I feel that this poem can be morally challenging and is very successful in making us understand the gravity of the world’s condition.

Toyota Production System and 5s Essay Example

Toyota Production System and 5s Essay Example Toyota Production System and 5s Essay Toyota Production System and 5s Essay Introduction Brief outline of the organization Implementation of 5S with respect of TQM and complement ISO Organizational culture and change undertaken in implementing 5S Content Define 5S Importance of 5S in the organization Culture that supports the 5S in the organization Methodology of 5S implementation How it can complement TQM and ISO certification Recommend organizational change that can to be undertaken to further improve quality Conclusion Outlook of 5S for the organization Evaluate the organizational culture and change in implementing quality. Management prospective on 5S in regards to quality. An example of 5S by Toyota Definition of 5S 5S, the brainchild of Hiroyuki Hirano from Japan, is widely considered as being the basis for Lean Manufacturing as it is concerned with stability and standardization to bring about improved safety, quality, delivery performance and cost control. Why a basis for Lean? Lean Manufacturing is a methodology derived from the Toyota Production System TPS) which originated in post World War II Japan. It came about when Kiichiro Toyoda and Taiichi Ohno amongst others explored means of making a high variety of quality cars at minimal cost, given the lack of capital expenditure available at the time. The fundamental principle of TPS is to increase productivity and generate product flow through the value stream by a disciplined and focused effort on eliminating waste. The foundation for TPS is stability, i. e. minimal process variation, this being achieved by standardization of work practices. What is Waste? Waste (Muda) in lean terms is described perfectly by Wikipedia as being any expenditure of resources for means other than the creation of value for the presumed customer. Waste can include anything from excessive motion and transport of materials to defects, over-production and inventory. Most literature now describes the 8 wastes, although Toyota have classified many more. What are the 5Ss? 5S is a systematic approach to workplace organization. The 5Ss are: 1. Sort (Seiri) sort out what is needed and get rid of what isnt 2. Set (Seiton) a place for everything and everything in its place 3. Shine (Seiso) clean and maintain so always looks like the photo 4. Standardize (Seiketsu) make it the standard and instill discipline 5. Sustain (Shitsuke) audit the system and improve it (start again) It should be mentioned for accuracy that Toyota uses 4S. Sustainability, the fifth S, is already encompassed within the TPS continuous improvement culture. Beside the improvements on safety, quality, delivery and cost mentioned above, there are also additional behavioral benefits associated with 5S, such as increased pride and sense of ownership in the workplace, increased discipline and higher employee motivation. Where does 5S succeed? Hirano is reported to have said that good workplaces begin with 5S and bad workplaces fall apart beginning with 5S. So why is this? 5S only works when there is top-down commitment from senior management to operator level. Without this any 5S program is doomed from the outset. Also there needs to be an infrastructure in place for sustainability and continuous improvement (time and resources, ideas scheme etc. ) otherwise the best youll achieve is 4S before the system stagnates. 5S will not work if it is not correctly understood. It is not simply a tidying up exercise and if it is believed as such then the program will only succeed to the second S before eventually being considered a failure. It works when management understand 5S as being fundamental to good performance rather than secondary to it. 5S succeeds in environments where there is discipline and self regulations in place to ensure standards are kept, this being owned by the workforce itself. Standards are typically maintained through a simple daily auditing system of different areas, or zones, with a person or small team being responsible for each. Even with all this in place, long term sustainability will only be possible if the system is continually measured and improved and if members of senior management carry out periodic inspections of each area. One common error by senior management is never being visible on the factory floor. How to Implement 5S 1. Sort The first step, Sort, begins with selecting a dedicated area for focus (could be an office environment, not only a factory floor) and assigning red tags to items that are either no longer needed or their usefulness is unknown. A quarantine area needs to be assigned for all red tagged items if they cannot be thrown away immediately, or if there is a lot of uncertainty as to whether items are still required. This both frees up space in the workplace and provides time to decide whether to keep or discard the items in question. Theres a tendency at this stage for magpies to want to hang onto stuff that hasnt been used for a long time. Critical reflection is required to ensure that emotional ties do not get in the way of logic. 2. Set The second step, Set, involves finding a place for everything that is left over after Sort, keeping in mind work place effectiveness, safety and ergonomics. The following questions should be answered: Where should the item be located? Ease of access is required. Keep passageways clear and avoid cables and piping on floor. How large and heavy is the object? Avoid reaching, bending and lifting where possible. How frequently is the item used? Organize by frequency of use and keep frequently used items close to hand. Set involves providing means for organizing items such as shadow boards, shelves, cabinets and containers. It also involves implementation of visual management to highlight to anyone whether a normal or abnormal state exists. The simplest of examples is a petrol gauge in a car. Green signals good, red signals bad. Another would be floor markings and labels indicating where an item should be found if not being used. 3. Shine The third step, Shine, requires items and the workplace to be cleaned and in a good state of repair. It is also about inspecting, as during inspection you will tend to find risks to safety and quality, for example due to damaged tools or faulty equipment. Shine does not just apply to material objects, but also people. Ensuring good condition of the correct clothing and that the correct PPE is being worn is equally important. For example gloves, hard hats, safety glasses and steel toe caps. 4. Standardize The forth step, Standardize, is about putting in place procedures and ensuring that a workplace is always how it should be. It provides visual management aids and daily checks in order to easily recognize whether the standard developed in the first three steps is being maintained. Visual management display boards in the work areas, creation of an address system and labelling of all equipment are key parts of this step. 5. Sustain The final step, Sustain is essentially about involving and motivating all members of the organization in assuring that the standards are applied and improved through employee empowerment and autonomy. Lean Manufacturing is as much about engaging and empowering the full intellectual capacity of the organization as it is about tools and methods. The PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) or Demin Cycleis the methodology adopted by most lean organizations for continuous improvement activity. Sustain not only involves daily auditing of the workplace by those that work in it, but also periodic inspections by all management levels. For example by local managers on a weekly basis to ensure all check sheets are signed off, and by the senior managers on a monthly basis. Many companies have recognition or reward schemes in place to encourage healthy competition between work areas or between factories within the same organization. This also serves to help generate and turn improvement ideas into action.

New England Colonization essays

New England Colonization essays My name is Professor Kelly Griffin and I am thirty years of age and am presently a professor at the Harvard University in Massachusetts. I am enamored with the finer things if life as being a professor of the first university founded in the New World can do During the last decade of times we as Americans have seen the likes of trial and tribulations which we as Americans had to face. We have been involved in a most difficult war with the English for our independence which through battles and bloodshed we were able to claim. Now we are faced with yet another difficult task of uniting this glorious country so that we may be able to thrive for centuries to come. Recently, members of each state in our country came together in Philadelphia to form a document called the Constitution. There has been much debate as to whether this document is the proper solution to forming the framework which our country will use for centuries to come. My position on this issue is I would favor the ratification of this document for the betterment of our society. However, I would prefer the architects of this document be quick to include a section which will protect the rights of all people in the country and we do not have a central government too powerful for the people of this country to control. I feel the Constitution should be ratified by the delegates of each state because the guidelines stated about the distribution of the government powers be separated into three branches of government would in my opinion be able to check the power of each branch which would keep from having a single powerful government head. I also feel the establishment of the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches to control each sections of government would be beneficial to the success of keeping the states in the country unified. We will be able to use the Constitution as the framework of how this country ...

Is Your State Governed by Daubert or Frye Term Paper

Is Your State Governed by Daubert or Frye - Term Paper Example by using experience and common sense, professional witness give conclusions on the basis of the knowledge and practices beyond the average judge’s comprehension (Suzanne, 1996). Consequently, statement by unpoliced professional witness can possibly have a biased effect on the judge, who might tend to be more inclined to believing that that the statement is exclusively based on the expert status of the witness. How can the trial jury be in a position of determining whether the professional is just speculating, or even whether the proof on which the professional is basing their statement is adequate to support the ruling? Certainly, the lay witness is prevented from speculation by the jury and can direct rulings when there is adequate evidence in support of a finding. Then is the screening of professional witness by a judge different from this practice? This is a question that poses weighty issues regarding the nature of the role of the judges. In order to be in a position of ma king an informed judgment concerning whether to admit a professional, the jury would appear to require at least a modicum of professionalism in the field of witness. In Robinson, which involved a professional testimony regarding whether a DuPont fertilizer harmed the pecan trees of Robinsons, we find that the Supreme Court of Texas maintained that the Texas’ Civil Evidence Laws not only need a professional witness to be qualified, but also to offer statement that is relevant and also on the basis of a credible foundation. Nevertheless, in so doing, Robinson sufficiently adopted the standard of Daubert. The main difference in the case of Robinson was the fact that the Supreme Court of Texas had never adopted the ‘general acceptance’ standard of Frye that was particularly dismissed in Daubert, but instead had used an examination of whether the professional testimony ‘helped the fact’s trier’ under the 702 Rule. However, the Supreme Court of Texas perceived the credibility and

Criminal Procedure Variation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Criminal Procedure Variation - Essay Example "1. The punishment cannot be invariably disproportionate to the crime. Applying this principle in Coker v. Georgia, the Court held that the death penalty was grossly disproportionate to the crime of rape of an adult woman. 2. The statute should be carefully drafted to ensure adequate information and guidance to the sentencing authority. For example, the Court struck down the death penalty statute in Lockett v. Ohio because it improperly limited the range of mitigating circumstances available for consideration. 6. Appellate review by a court of statewide jurisdiction should be available. Although Georgia's scheme of proportionality review may not be required, the system must guard against sentences wantonly or capriciously imposed."( http://www.law.ua.edu/colquitt/crimmain/crimmisc/colquitt.htm) After the passing of this law, starting in 1983, Alabama has executed 34 people in the history of its death sentence program. Four people were killed in the first 9 months of the year 2005 alone (http://blogs.amnestyusa.org/death-penalty/archive/2005/09/).

Business and Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Business and Economics - Essay Example Basically, implicit costs are associated with the relinquished gains of any transaction. In its simplest form, an implicit cost takes place when the person misses out on satisfaction in search of an activity and is not compensated by money or any another form of fee; it starts and concludes with the act of foregoing the gains and satisfaction (McConnel and Brue 392-393). Another good illustration is when one decides to go to a university as a full-time student instead of working on a $20,000 job, this meant giving up earnings of $20,000. The potential earning being "sacrificed" is the implicit cost while explicit costs would be the books, basic tuition fees and laboratory charges, board and lodging and other conventional miscellaneous payments expected when taking a university education. On the other hand, explicit costs are the noticeable types of costs like rents, water and electric bill payments and expenditures on daily food maintenance (McConnell and Brue 410); in a business world scenario, these are the 'out of pocket' or cash expenditures a commercial enterprise incurs to outsiders who supply them resources. A business organisation is said to be making normal profit when total revenues equal aggregate expenditures. This takes place in situations of perfect competition when economic equilibrium is achieved. Economically speaking, normal profit is considered as a cost and acknowledged as one of the two elements of the cost of capital. Basically, this is the opportunity cost of employing consumerist capabilities in the creation or manufacture of a good or the profit that could be obtained by entrepreneurship in another commercial undertaking. Just like the opportunity costs of other resources, normal profit is subtracted from revenue to determine economic profit (Pyle and Larson 157-158). Since normal profit is economically a cost, there is no economic profit at equilibrium.. Is Economic Profit a Cost of Production Yes, by definition, economic profit is equivalent to the amount of output multiplied by the difference between the average cost and the price. This is what remains after all opportunity costs associated with production, are subtracted from the revenue generated by production. In a single-goods scenario, a positive economic profit occurs when the enterprise' average cost is below the value of the product or service at the profit-maximising output. Fundamentally, an economic profit crops up when its revenue surpasses the total (opportunity) cost of its inputs, noting that these outlays comprise the cost of equity capital that is gathered by normal profits (Albrecht 409). In essence, economic profit is the 'conceptually correct' idea of profit employed in economics, that is, if profit is revenue minus cost, then economic profit is the measure of profit. In the recession year of 1998, a lot of country A's residents who found themselves out of a job and short of money organised barter networks for goods and services. If such barter networks covered a significant quantity of goods and services, would measured GDP in 1998 be a good estimator of the actual value of goods and services produced during the year No, it will not be a good or an accurate estimator of the

Sibling separation Annotated Bibliography Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sibling separation - Annotated Bibliography Example In the article, there are the effects of sibling separation like trauma, extreme sense of loss and anger. The article also clearly states the repercussions of sibling separation like making it difficult for the siblings to heal, development of a healthy self image and making personal; attachments to people. In the article, there are the reasons for the placement like lack of resources and the needs of the siblings, and the factors to consider when carrying out the exercise like determining the level of attachment between the siblings. Lastly, the article looks into the ways in which the sibling can be adjusted during the process. The article expounds on the implications of sibling separations and relationships in child placement practice. The article gives details of how the relationship and bonds developed by the siblings can be monitored and understood. According to the article, the sibling placement process is multidisciplinary area requiring inputs from family therapy, rivalry, adult siblings, incest and siblings from poor families among others. The article also explains the importance of maintaining relationships and bonds during the sibling separation process. The article also gives recommendations on how to make the process of children placement in foster care successful. This book gives the details involved in children adoption process and lists the groups involved in the process. The book also explains on the measures prerequisite to enable the process to be a success. The book also explains the implications of the children separation from their friends and family on basis of various age brackets. The book also explains the various types of adoption and the implications on the sibling of each category of adoption. In the book there is a list of the social policies to be followed to make the process legal and ensure that the process has less negative impacts on the sibling, the siblings new family and the former family. The

Barclays CoCo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Barclays CoCo - Essay Example instrument, debt is reduced, and it qualifies as a Tier 1 capital increasing the book value of the bank’s equity capital before the occurrence of the trigger event. When a CoCo triggers, there are two things involved; the losses involved are absorbed by the CoCo either by suffering a principal write-down or by transforming into common equity. In the case of principal write-down, the bonds are written down to equity that matches the extent of liabilities released thus generating exceptional gains that are allocated to the bank’s retained earnings (Stefan, Anastasia & Bilyana, 2013). In cases where the CoCo is convertible, when a trigger is met, the bond automatically converts to common stock as a prearranged percentage. As the CoCo bond market unceasingly grows, investors are exposed to various risks and rewards. One of the appalling risks faced by investors in CoCos is the systematic risk. The CoCos market is vulnerable. A conversion or coupon deferral may soon occur causing a fall in price upto 9% and a significant drop in conversion circa -15%. This could put CoCo holders in a worst/unfortunate position than shareholders (Stefan, Anastasia & Bilyana, 2013). Moreover, there exists information asymmetry in the CoCos market where investors have little knowledge regarding the operation of the CoCos while the issuers are fully aware of their credit fundamentals. For instance, the PONV (point of non-viability) as a language has been hard for many investors to comprehend thus upsurging the risks of them losing their cash by investing in unfeasible CoCos. According to Stefan, Anastasia and Bilyana (2013), this coupled with the complexity of CoCos, and the flawed CoCo rating methodologies presents a majo r risk to investors and might lead to unfathomable losses. Nevertheless, CoCos are rewarding as they provide a high yield of 4.5%-10% that is better than the average yield of circa 4.2% for high yield sectors in the U.K (Chorafas,  2015). These high returns continue

Political Science; Democracy- Immigration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Political Science; Democracy- Immigration - Essay Example I have at times in the past felt that no illegal immigrant had any right to complain if they were caught and deported. They know they are entering a country illegally and that they should obey the law and take their punishment if they are caught. From the discussion on the video, I can see that it just isn’t this cut and dried. Almost all illegal immigrants have family back home depending on the income they make in America. That income is a lifeline and a deportation means an abrupt stoppage of that remittance income. Arresting and deporting illegal immigrants affects many more people than just the illegal immigrant. The video also made me aware of the economic impacts of illegal immigrants. I know that economics drives immigration. There is no other reason for people to leave their friends and family than seeking a better life. I have always heard about the costs of illegal immigrants. Many people are quick to point out that illegal immigrants fill up schools with their kids, show up at the emergency room without health insurance and pay no taxes for government services. But illegal immigrants also provide cheap labor for various industries and segments of the national economy. The overall feeling I got from the video is the need for comprehensive immigration reform from the federal government. It is not an issue that the states should be able to address because this will just leave us with the patchwork of immigration laws that we currently have. States are going to step in to the void created by the federal government that seems unable to deal with the current situation in any comprehensive way. Advocates for illegal immigrants are very convincing in the video, but I feel that they may actually be doing more harm than good. Compromise needs to be made on all sides if a workable immigration reform is to be made. Some illegal immigrants may need to come out of hiding or may even need to return home.

Sibling separation Annotated Bibliography Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sibling separation - Annotated Bibliography Example In the article, there are the effects of sibling separation like trauma, extreme sense of loss and anger. The article also clearly states the repercussions of sibling separation like making it difficult for the siblings to heal, development of a healthy self image and making personal; attachments to people. In the article, there are the reasons for the placement like lack of resources and the needs of the siblings, and the factors to consider when carrying out the exercise like determining the level of attachment between the siblings. Lastly, the article looks into the ways in which the sibling can be adjusted during the process. The article expounds on the implications of sibling separations and relationships in child placement practice. The article gives details of how the relationship and bonds developed by the siblings can be monitored and understood. According to the article, the sibling placement process is multidisciplinary area requiring inputs from family therapy, rivalry, adult siblings, incest and siblings from poor families among others. The article also explains the importance of maintaining relationships and bonds during the sibling separation process. The article also gives recommendations on how to make the process of children placement in foster care successful. This book gives the details involved in children adoption process and lists the groups involved in the process. The book also explains on the measures prerequisite to enable the process to be a success. The book also explains the implications of the children separation from their friends and family on basis of various age brackets. The book also explains the various types of adoption and the implications on the sibling of each category of adoption. In the book there is a list of the social policies to be followed to make the process legal and ensure that the process has less negative impacts on the sibling, the siblings new family and the former family. The

Political Science; Democracy- Immigration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Political Science; Democracy- Immigration - Essay Example I have at times in the past felt that no illegal immigrant had any right to complain if they were caught and deported. They know they are entering a country illegally and that they should obey the law and take their punishment if they are caught. From the discussion on the video, I can see that it just isn’t this cut and dried. Almost all illegal immigrants have family back home depending on the income they make in America. That income is a lifeline and a deportation means an abrupt stoppage of that remittance income. Arresting and deporting illegal immigrants affects many more people than just the illegal immigrant. The video also made me aware of the economic impacts of illegal immigrants. I know that economics drives immigration. There is no other reason for people to leave their friends and family than seeking a better life. I have always heard about the costs of illegal immigrants. Many people are quick to point out that illegal immigrants fill up schools with their kids, show up at the emergency room without health insurance and pay no taxes for government services. But illegal immigrants also provide cheap labor for various industries and segments of the national economy. The overall feeling I got from the video is the need for comprehensive immigration reform from the federal government. It is not an issue that the states should be able to address because this will just leave us with the patchwork of immigration laws that we currently have. States are going to step in to the void created by the federal government that seems unable to deal with the current situation in any comprehensive way. Advocates for illegal immigrants are very convincing in the video, but I feel that they may actually be doing more harm than good. Compromise needs to be made on all sides if a workable immigration reform is to be made. Some illegal immigrants may need to come out of hiding or may even need to return home.

Case Brief Essay Example for Free

Case Brief Essay Mr. David R. Bullock filed an appeal from his convictions for attempted statutory rape, and attempted sexual exploitation of a minor. David R. Bullock put himself in numerous conversations via email and chat rooms with a Newton County Deputy Sheriff who was conducting a sting operation against pedophiles. The Deputy took on a persona of a thirteen year old female by the name of â€Å"Ashley Anne†. Many of the conversations that took place between Mr. Bullock and â€Å"Ashley† were of a sexual nature. During conversations between Mr. Bullock and â€Å"Ashley†, he discussed how he would like to engage in certain acts (sexual) with her and her friends (girls of younger age) and how he would like to video those acts. He informed â€Å"Ashley† that the conversations about meeting with her and her friends should not be discussed because it was not legal for them to meet. Eventually a meeting was scheduled for a time and a place to meet and specific instructions were given to â€Å"Ashley† on how the meeting should take place. â€Å"Ashley† was told that upon her arrival to the specified location, she should meet Mr. Bullock in a specific area of that location. History On October 18, 2002, Mr. Bullock and the decoy â€Å"Ashley† were present at the specified location, along with computer and video equipment in his vehicle, which ultimately leads to the arrest of Mr. Bullock. At the time of the arrest, Mr. Bullock did not deny having conversations with â€Å"Ashley† but explained that if she would arrive, he just wanted her to be counseled by the authorities on the dangers of meeting strangers on the internet. Mr. Bullock argues that his case is a case of entrapment and that he took no â€Å"substantial steps† towards committing the crimes he has been charged with. Issue: The sufficiency of the evidence is challenged and Appellant claims an entrapment defense for the reason that he was not predisposed to engage in the charged offenses, we shall set forth in greater detail a series of sordid internet and telephone communications between Appellant and the purported 3 victim than we usually would. Holding First, Appellant does not admit that he committed the crimes for which he was convicted and, second, there is no evidence that Appellant was not predisposed, ready and willing to commit these crimes.   Appellant did not meet his burden of injecting into the case a proper case for entrapment. Rational Appellant tendered four jury instructions alleging the affirmative defense of entrapment.   Appellant cites to the evidence that Ashley induced Appellant to take the â€Å"substantial step† of committing the crimes of statutory rape and sexual exploitation of a minor when he was not otherwise so inclined.   Appellant contends that he was only willing to express his fantasies, which was not a crime he was charged or convicted of, and he was not willing to act upon his fantasies without the inducement by Ashley.   He notes that Ashley initiated the majority of contacts with Appellant; specifically, he claims Ashley initiated seventeen of the nineteen instant messages and four of the eight e-mails between her and Appellant.   Appellant indicated the portions of the conversations where Ashley first proposed that Appellant come to Diamond and persisted in trying to set a firm date; he claims he was reluctant to act on his desires.   Appellants cla im that he would not have committed the charged offenses but for the enticement by Ashley is not supported by the evidence.

Globalization in the Gulf Cooperation Council

Globalization in the Gulf Cooperation Council Chapter 3 Globalization in the GCC: a political and economic analysis Political Aspect The creation of the GCC was a direct result of regional political events of that time. The idea of the need for the union of the major independent states of the gulf had been floating around since the early 1970s. Three main reasons leading to the formation of the gulf cooperation council included: Border disputes between Arab states and the royal families. The Iranian revolution The invasion of Iran by the Soviet Union. The Gulf States apart from Saudi Arabia are small population states. First we look into border disputes. The creation of Bahrain and Kuwait was lead to the demarcation of boundaries which the families Arab ruling families did not like. The strained relations were held together only by their common links religion and language. The ruling families had close bonds with families of other states and therefore they did not like the idea of having to confine their selves to a border (Bà ©atrice Maalouf, 2006). Secondly, the Arab peninsula felt safe from Iran as long as the Shah of Iran was in control. This was because America (an Arab friend) was dictating the policies of Iran during the shah’s rule. After the Iranian revolution, came the religious leaders. They had a different set of ideology and religious beliefs than the Arab states. Since Iran was a regional military strength, this further made the Gulf States insecure and further highlighted the need for a united front by the Arab peninsula (Bà ©atrice Maalouf, 2006). Lastly, the invasion of a Muslim Afghanistan by the atheist Soviet Union was viewed as a threat as Yemen was also a socialist country and capture of Afghanistan meant that the communists were gaining strength and this was another form of insecurity for the region as the Arab states had supported the USA in the cold war which made them rivals of the Soviet empire. The Soviet threat had to be faced collectively and therefore it was imperative that a union of the Arab states be created. The last straw was the Iran- Iraq war which started in 1980. It affected trade routes of the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Also Iraq, which was a friendly Arab country, was being affected. And this threat needed to be faced collectively, therefore in 1981, the Gulf States, united themselves in the form of GCC (Bà ©atrice Maalouf, 2006). The charter known as the cooperation council charter was signed by all the member states, including Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and Oman. The charter listed cultural, social and political and economic reasons along with commonality of religion, language and customs for this union. The articles in the charter defined the need to develop independence and self sustainability in political, economic and financial affairs (Bà ©atrice Maalouf, 2006). Since the creation of the council, the GCC has gradually tried to instill its authority in the region and work for change for the betterment of the states. The council states have developed at remarkable pace in the fields of media technology, developmental projects, financial institutions and security of the region (Bà ©atrice Maalouf, 2006). The first visible of the impact of the unified common GCC policy was visible globally during the Iraq invasion of Kuwait in 1990. The council made possible it’s liberation, through the help of the world’s help, The council called for a meeting of the organization of the Islamic conference (OIC) and this lead to GCC requesting for and then passing resolution in the united nation’s security council, UNSCR 660 (1990). The council since the 1990 has tried to help in conflicts resolution in many countries, including Somalia, Palestine Israel, Lebanon Israel etc. the GCC is also in the forefront in helping the countries in need of economic aid for rebuilding. The countries insisted on the rebuilding of Iraq through donations, On the country basis, the GCC have planned free trade agreements with China, Pakistan and India. They already have FTAs with Lebanon, Turkey and Syria in the region and Japan in the East Asian region. The GCC also has signed pacts and agreements with regional organizations like the European Union (EU). The EU and the GCC have signed declarations of cooperation with each other and are working toward a FTA (Bà ©atrice Maalouf, 2006). Non-governmental, international and regional organizations The economic and developmental transformation of the GCC countries along with other Arab countries of the region has been due to assistance from international institutions and donor agencies of the region. These agencies have been providing, financial, technical and organizational help to the states for formulating better strategies for stable development of the Arab states specifically and the gulf region in general. The United Arab Emirates has enough financial capital for funding the preparation of NES and NEAP. Even so, the gulf state has been seeking and receiving technical help from international and regional organizations in order to ensure that their developmental programs are stable and sustainable. To ensure stable growth and development in the gulf and Arab countries, availability of financial assistance is important, especially for countries not exporting oil (Khordagui H, 2004). â€Å"International donor organizations working in the region include: Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Arab Fund for Economic and social Development (AFESD) Kuwaiti Fund for Development (KFD). † (Khordagui H, (2004). Apart from development on the infrastructure level, certain organizations have been providing the gulf countries with help in a wide range of activities including capacity building, legislative drafting, policy analysis etc. Usually the assistance concerning the capacity building assistance measures is being undertaken by the regional organizations in order for there to be regional benefits of these national initiatives (Khordagui H, 2004). â€Å"These institutions include: â€Å"METAP: a cooperative initiative between the Commission, the European Investment Bank, UNDP (the Arab Bureau the Capacity 21 Unit), the WB – has provided capacity building assistance to the Mediterranean region for nearly the past decade† (Khordagui H, 2004). â€Å"Med-Policies Initiative – part of the METAP program, but funded by the WB in coordination with ESCWA – is building national capacity regional awareness on economic environmental policy-making† (Khordagui H, 2004). â€Å"The Center for Environment and Development in the Arab Region and Europe (CEDARE) is an independent, nonprofit regional institution is working to increase the capacity of national institution to enhance environmental management and SD† (Khordagui H, 2004). Social Development and Civic Society Saudi Arabia is the biggest member of the GCC. It has the largest population and the biggest oil reserves. Therefore one would expect that with all in the capital inflow, political reforms would follow and that would lead to maturation of the state toward a free society. In Saudi Arabia, monarchy rules the state. There is no parliamentary system and there were not political parties, trade unions or voluntary associations before 2003. There is a counsel of chambers of commerce and it acts as an umbrella between the government and the society as a whole (Democratic governance Arabia, 2008). â€Å"The UAE is fast becoming the economic hub of the GCC. Therefore there needs to be civic reform and State’s institutional development needs to be the foremost priority of the state. There can be no assembly of public nature without prior government’s approval. The first human rights organization was first formed in the country in 2006. Its founding members include people of diverse professions from far corners of the society.† (Democratic governance Arabia, 2008) Political parties are still illegal in the kingdom. Any person or organization which tries of voice an opinion against which is against or different from that of the monarchy is quickly shut down. There are two opposition movements working from outside Saudi Arabia. These include the Committee for the Defense of Legitimate Rights (CDLR) and the Movement for Islamic Reform (MIRA), in Saudi Arabia. Activists who attempted to demonstrate in a peaceful manner against the monarchy were arrested and their activities deemed unislamic (Democratic governance Arabia, 2008). In order to conform to the rest of the world and also due to the internal needs and external pressures led the Saudi government to initiate the civil society creations in the kingdom in 2003. Unlike Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates are governed by both a traditional as well as a modern form of a government. The UAE is at an advanced level of institutionalizing their government departments. The political system of UAE can be thought of a flexible system conforming and adaptive to the democratic ways of governance. The UAE does not allow the existence of political parties per say, but the ruling elite and their positions in the government are determined even today by their positions in their respective tribes and dynasties. In order to keep their authority and position the rulers are required to ensure that they retain the people’s loyalty which has to be ensured by keeping with the principle that the people should have easy access to the rulers and they could voice their opinion or grievances in meetings. This tradition of holding assembly of citizen’s frequently is still active today and ensures that people are not neglected. Decisions made in these meetings sometimes even determine policy changes at the highest levels. On the other side, the modern institutions are capable of dealing with more complex and large scale problems and concerning the state. Therefore the dual mode of governance in the UAE has molded itself in the past decades to optimally suite the citizens of the state as well as the state itself (Democratic governance Arabia, 2008). The Saudi Journalist’s association was founded to look after the interests of the journalists of the country, it is mostly an independent organization and works without any governmental interference. A media regulatory authority has been in place since 1982 in Saudi Arabia. Even though the print and the television media is well developed and well circulated in the kingdom, it is mostly government regulated. The ministry of information has the authority to appoint the editor in chief of all the circulating newspapers and can remove anyone they feel does not conform to their standards. Moreover, the government owned Saudi Press Agency and the ministry of information control the print and the Broadcast media. An independent organization to look after the human rights abuses paved its way into formation in 2004 in the kingdom. It is called The National society for Human rights and it has the job of keeping track of abuses related to employment, judiciary, domestic violence, prisons etc. There has been a history of complaints in the gulf about the human rights abuses related to non payment of wages to the workers and maid, mal treatment sexual harassment. Since 2005, the ministry of labor of Saudi Arabia announced that it was ready to receive complaints of the above mentioned nature from anyone and would be ready to prosecute anyone found guilty of the offense (Democratic governance Arabia, 2008). Unlike Saudi Arabia, UAE does not posses any human rights groups and independent trade unions are still banned in the state, its chamber of commerce and UAE Women’s Federation are umbrella organizations with the responsibility to keep checks and balances of all sorts. The latter is assigned to prepare the women population, which makes constitutes a larger chuck of the population, to face the challenges of the 21st century and to train them to become active participants in the society (Democratic governance Arabia, 2008). The gulf countries are enjoying economic boom from the high oil prices and they are taking advantage of this by using this capital for development of their respective states and region in general. Local and international corporate businesses have established themselves well into the societies. With this comes corporate social responsibility. This means that businesses have the responsibility to encourage and participate in any way they can, in the social development of the region. The term corporate social responsibility (CSR) can be explained as the commitment by the corporate sector to behave in an ethical manner and participate in the economic development along with providing a better quality of life for the workforce, their families and the society at large (Democratic governance Arabia, 2008). â€Å"In the GCC, although there are initiatives of corporate contribution to the society as a whole, there is still a greater need of formalizing it to ensure that the pace of development in the education, health, and housing and environment sectors is improved on sustainable grounds. A major factor in CSR activities is the governments strategy. There are governments within the GCC region that feel that social sectors such as education, health, housing and environment are the sole responsibility of the governments or rulers, resulting in little effort by the corporate sector in these areas. A very relevant example of this is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the largest country within the GCC, where there are hardly any well-managed CSR initiatives† (Giving Back: Corporate Social Responsibility in the GCC, 2007). Political Reforms The political systems of the gulf countries are in their infancies. Neil Patrick a senior analyst noted in a seminar about political reform in 2006, that there was a need to identity and treat all the GCC countries individually and recognize that the political structures and in different stages of maturation in each of these countries. For example, political reforms were first initiated by Kuwait, and currently, the have a well established working parliament. In contrast, the UAE has only recently started raising the idea of electoral participation. Other countries including Oman, Qatar and Bahrain etc all have political councils, whose members are usually sheikhs or members of the royal families. These councils are mostly advisory councils with limited mandates (Political Reform in GCC countries, 2006). Historically the infrastructure and organization required for the development and reform have been absent from the GCC states and royal families have been the only rulers in most of these states. According to Neil Patrick, the monarchies and the â€Å"Sheikdoms† operate in away in which taxing the citizens have become very difficult. They continue to use the earnings from the oil profits to satisfy the civilian population and run the state and this ensures at least in the short term that their rule will not be challenged. As the society within these countries has become more and more educated, and as the states have gradually opened up to the democratic world, the world, the need for change or reform has been seriously felt. Over the past couple of decades, the younger generations, unlike those of the past have become more educated, more aware of their rights as members of the society. This passive but steady demand for reform and more freedom has applying internal pressure on the ruling elite for change. On the other hand, opening up of the country for investment and development has lead to the democratic forces in the form of USA and the EU to exert multifaceted pressure on the Gulf States for democratization and liberalization. â€Å"Moreover, globalization, and particularly economic globalization, intensifies pressures on rulers to be more transparent and accountable in the administration of state resources† (Political Reform in GCC countries, 2006). It has been noted that over the past two decades, continued economic growth, wealth distribution and emergence of a middle classes with a strong voice has been the cause for gradual change towards liberalization and reform. â€Å"Economic change effectively creates alternative bases of power and constituencies that will contest the political status quo and claim a voice in the decision making process. It is therefore important to assess whether the distribution of rent in the Gulf States has led to an accumulation of wealth in a middle class with an interest in reform and enough power to begin making political demands† (Political Reform in GCC countries, 2006). Access to information International community has promoted information and communication technologies in the recent past as a means of providing a source of liberalization in the gulf countries. It has been thought that by integrating ICT in their developmental projects for these countries, the monopoly of the state on media and information control. The results although have been a success to some extent, but have failed to influence the society as the west once hoped. Case in point the spread of news channels like Al jazeera from Qatar. The coming on air of this and other channels has had an impact of providing the society with free uncensored and uninhibited view of the Arab views and feelings. The aim of the west was to ensure that the liberalization and opening up of the gulf would lead to the Gulf States, conforming to their west’s likings. This opening of the media has lead to voice to the civic society but their views of the west have not softened as the west had hoped. The governments still have control over other aspects of the information. This is clearly seen in the case of provision of the internet. Even though the states provide internet access, this is limited and poorly distributed. On the pretext of conserving cultural and religious values, the states like the Saudi Arabia have been exerting media filtration and censorship by using filtering software and denying access of any information which might influence their society’s view of them. The economic aspect Trade and investment liberalization Human development It has been long claimed that the gulf country rely heavily on their revenues from oil production to support them. Globalization is fast becoming the new reality in the GCC countries. This is has led to the gulf countries to tread on uncharted territory. The trend towards globalization and the threads attached to it can have an effect on the very lives of the citizens these countries cater for. Globalization can bring the promise of open markets and opportunities to have access to all the tools a country needs for development. On the other hand, globalization can also lead a country towards marginalization. â€Å"The relation between human development and globalization can be visualized in the following manner: the effects of globalization on a developing economy, such as the Arab Gulf countries, could be backwash effects or spread effects. The backwash effects means that globalization could contribute to and the source of human deprivation through processes of marginalization (of the country) and social exclusion (of individuals and groups based on social, ethnic, occupation/ skill, age or gender grounds)† (Jiyad, A. M, 1998). On the flip side, globalization can also lead to multitude of benefits. Globalization, through investment and production, can lead to jobs creation and greater choices for the public in terms of consumption and all of this can further enhance the human development. Globalization leads to foreign direct investment FDI, which in turn leads to capital inflow in the country and this can be used for developmental projects in a developing country. The steps towards globalization include: Liberalization of the local economy. Liberalization of state property ownership (privatization). Regionalization and multilateralism. Step 2 or privatization in the Arab countries has been a result of old as well as new policies. The privatization policy became a national policy in Oman in 1996. Information and communication revolution â€Å"The policies include provision related to what to privatize first (productive service sector), partial privatizations, transparency, competition, FDI, protection of the environment, public relation, and privatization proceeds. The guidelines include provisions related to bids selection, public offering, taxes, loans, employees and management†(Zineldin, M, 1998). The Saudi Arabia had been considering privatization and policy since early 90s. The 1990-1995 development plan envisioned a privatization process, a stock exchange for trading, privately owned construction and development companies, privatization some banks etc. In 1997 the ministry of commerce decided to expand the role played by the private industry in the kingdom’s economy by privatizing and selling government held assets worth more than $7 billion. The main aim for privatization and liberalization was to encourage private investment in the country’s economy, to provide lucrative opportunities for local as well as foreign companies to invest in domestic ventures. They also aimed to provide jobs to the ever increasing number youths in the country and to bring the unemployment rates down. They wanted to broaden and diversify the economic base and increase its markets competitiveness level to meet the standards set by the WTO for its membership (Jiyad, A. M, 1998). Abu Dhabi and the UAE have highlighted the need to privatize approximately 40 or so industries. After a study conducted by the World Bank, it recommended that Kuwait privatize at least 7 small enterprises, whose total vale was more than $3.6 billion. By 1995, Bahrain had also privatized at least partially, its, aluminum industry, small enterprises from the food manufacturing industry. Industrial investment by the private sector in this small state was more than $4.4 Billion by the end of 1996. (Jiyad, A. M, 1998). The campaign to private in order to make the institutions more efficient and productive has led to inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) in these countries. Oman, Dubai (UAE) and Bahrain etc have allowed their private investors to gain complete ownership of their investment and industry. (Jiyad, A. M, 1998). The past 3 decades have led to an unprecedented growth in the GCC countries. The cost oil per barrel has risen from $12 to $100 and beyond. The financial profits that have been gained from this boom as been used to modernize infrastructure, improve social indicators, develop infrastructures as well as maintain foreign currency reserves while keeping external debt at a low level. â€Å"Life expectancy in the GCC area increased by almost 10 years to 74 years during 1980–2000, and literacy rates increased by 20 percentage points to about 80 percent over the same period. Average per capita income in the GCC countries was estimated at about $12,000 in 2002, with their combined nominal GDP reaching close to $340 billion (more than half the GDP of all Middle Eastern countries†. (Fasano U and Iqbal Z, 2003). Globalization and Human development Globalization, through the process of privatization leading to increase in resource allotment and can lead to increased focus towards human development. Improvement and competition leads to increase in the standards in the health and education sector. Privatization in the education sector can lead to improvement it its standards and it can structurally transform itself to cater to the needs of the market. â€Å"In other words private involvement in education and health sectors could bring with it more investment, more competition, better service, and wider choices. Successful liberalization and privatization programs could also accelerate growth, boost domestic investment and attract foreign capital generate employment and increase (per capita) income† (Jiyad, A. M 1998). The performances of the GCC countries towards human development have been weak in the past few decades. Great progression was seen in the early 70s and 80s but investment towards human development seems to have become stagnant in the 90s. Case in point is Saudi Arabia which compared to the public spending of $81.4 billion in 1985, only spent $82.7 billion in 1995. This and other indicators like these demonstrate that investment in the future development of the people had been ignored in the decade of the 90s. † (Jiyad, A. M 1998). Another problem which still needs tending to is the increase in the population in most of the GC countries. The high growth rate along with increase of women in the work force due to opening up of the society in the GCC countries has produced another problem of unemployment. The GCC wok force is growing at a rate of 4% per year and if this keeps up, the unemployment rates will soon follow suite and create another burden on the society. The GCC countries have been trying to initiate and grow in the non oil industry sector to create jobs for its people and to be able to sustain their growth rates. †Government services in many GCC countries are provided free or at highly subsidized prices, particularly water and electricity, while non-oil taxation is low, consisting mainly of income tax on foreign corporations except in Oman, where local corporations are also taxed. Some of these countries have recorded overall fiscal deficits over the years, reflecting volatile global oil prices and relatively high levels of current expenditure† (Fasano U and Iqbal Z, 2003). This can be seen by the indicators in the following charts below. â€Å"All GCC countries share sound and well-supervised banking systems. Banks are well-capitalized and profitable. Their supervisory framework has been strengthened and is largely compliant with international standards and codes. Moreover, GCC countries have gradually taken a number of steps toward implementing a market-based monetary policy, though direct instruments (such as interest rate and credit ceilings) continue to play a role in a few of these countries.† (Fasano U and Iqbal Z, 2003). Deepening of the regional economic integration Even with their high visions and plans of development to create sustainable non oil based economic power houses, the GCC countries have fell short of their aims for the past decades. These goals can still be achieved. The key for realizing such gains is in the collective integration and regional advancement. These collaborations have to be inline with the WTO policies and regulations. Since the GCC countries already enjoy free trade agreements with each other, the next step would be in the form of creating custom union. This can be beneficial for the GCC countries involved in the union as well as during multilateral trade deals. Giving the world a single regional front can only be beneficial as this means that there will be unified tariffs across the countries. The negotiations with the WTO any aspects would be held through a collective front rather than of the members negotiating individually. (Yousif Khalifa Al-Yousif ) Other benefits that can be achieved by the GCC countries integrating themselves further include providing a unified local market to the world to deal with. This means that the smaller countries like Bahrain can gain access the behalf of large ones like Saudi Arabia into the western markets. Deepening ties will further lead to reduction in internal conflicts and maters of miniscule value. Since integration into a regional bloc like the GCC has already led to and will further lead to open access to each others markets therefore inter GCC trade will only allow the local industries to grow further and provide employment to local work force along with allow growth in the human development sector. Millennium goals indirectly leading to economic and developmental Stability The GCC countries are a bloc of wealthy countries on their way to regional integration and providing a unified and developed front to the goal. Therefore it is suitable for them to cater to and provide assistance to the less developed Arab countries in the region. The countries have set out goals for the future and are working towards them at a steady pace. Eradication of poverty: the spread of wealth even with the population of the GCC is unevenly distributed. The gulf countries are working hard to implement policies which would lead to ensuring that all the people are provided with food and shelter. This can be done by providing jobs. Broadening the industrial base is the priority. This will lead to creation of jobs for the people. In this way wealth can be spread and distributed evenly. Energy Accessibility and Efficiency â€Å"Despite the vast energy resources of the region, in 2003 only 78.6% of the Arab population had access to electricity, ranging from almost 100% in the GCC countries to under 8% in Low Developed Countries (LDC). The region’s overall energy efficiency (kilogram (kg) oil equivalent per $1,000 GDP (PPP)) has improved unevenly in the past decade. In 2002, the GCC countries reported the highest energy use (504 kg oil equivalent per $1,000 PPP), followed by those of the eastern (262 kg oil equivalent per $1,000 PPP) and the western (some 137 kg oil equivalent per $1,000 PPP). Data available data on energy use in the Arab LDCs are inadequate.† Regional Progress towards the Millennium Development Goals in the Arab Region (2006). Education: the literacy rate of the local population in some of the major GCC countries is quite low. Steps are being taken to ensure to ensure that that the new generation is provided with education to be able to work as a contributor for the development of the society and the country as a whole. Gender equality: it has been long an issue, that the Arab countries in general have a poor record for gender equality and women empowerment. The GCC countries have moved leaps and bounds from where they were a couple decades ago. Currently female integration is in every corner of the work place. Few of the major multinational companies are owned and run by business women in the gulf. Still female literacy rates are low and the gulf government’s aims for the near future are ensure that they become equal participants in the work force as they comprise around 50% of the total population. References and Bibliography Bà ©atrice Maalouf, (2006). The GCC: A Union to Be Reckoned With. Congress of the Czech Political Science Society in Olomouc [internet], Available from: [Accessed 4 April 2008]. Democratic governance Arabia (2008), United Nations Development Program. [Internet], Available from: [Accessed 4 April 2008]. Fasano U and Iqbal Z, (2003).GCC Countries: From Oil Dependence to Diversification. International Monetary Fund. [Internet], Available from: [Accessed 4 April 2008]. Figure 1, Fasano U and Iqbal Z, (2003).GCC Countries: From Oil Dependence to Diversification. International Monetary Fund. [Internet], Available from: [Accessed 4 April 2008]. Figure 2 Fasano U and Iqbal Z, (2003).GCC Countries: From Oil Dependence to Diversification. International Monetary Fund. [Internet], Available from: [Accessed 4 April 2008]. GIC Produces Comparative Data on GCC Economies Showing Solid Upturn in 1999 GDP. (2001),