Letter

Douglas M. Stillwell Vice President, Human Resources Memorial Health Center Stockton Falls, Ohio 43210 Dear Mr. Stillwell: Please accept my application for the Assistant Administrator position that appeared in this month`s ACHE Job Bank. Recently I served as an Administrator in Training for Marion House Health Care Center (add where that is). As my attached resume describes, I worked with that organization from October 2005 to October 2006. I am prepared to assume the greater management challenges at a larger health care facility like yours.   My experience during my association with Marion House Health Care Center, included planning, implementing and evaluating many of the facility`s programs and activities. I reported my observations and activities to my direct supervisor, the facility administrator. Two of my academic courses proved especially useful while I served as administrator in training. The HSA 571 Medical Informatics Masters course gave me the knowledge and skills necessary to participate in planning, implementing, managing, and evaluating health care information systems for the facility. HSA 685 Special Topics: Quality & Cost & Consumer Issues in Health Care Masters course helped me develop a better awareness of the concepts and emerging issues in quality, cost containment and the growth of consumerism in health care. Thank you for all your time and consideration. Your listed position offers an ideal fit with my professional background and career goals. I would appreciate an opportunity to interview for the position. I will telephone at the end of the week to discuss this opportunity further. Sincerely, Tejesh Patel, MHSA Letter I have already uploaded our family pictures on our new Website. Practically took the time segregating and scanning the images by page and by year. I was also thinking about your move to run as Governor while browsing the site. There are good things and bad things associated with its duties and responsibilities but I firmly feel in my heart that you can overcome all the bad things that come with the position especially during the campaign. I have reared you to be a brave man of honor. Run as you see fit and serve your country, your countrymen and our God well. Always remember to practice accountability. Make it your personal policy to keep a detailed statement of your expenditures. When your separate accounting software is ready I can guarantee you my full support in tracking and monitoring expenditures, people and results. You need to personally check the flow of your transactions, money and the results to avoid sabotage. Keep your antennae out for information to safeguard your integrity in carrying out public duties. It is always a good thing to be transparent and honest. Treat your friends and your opponents with tact and respect. Always perform deliberate acts of kindness. Loyalty is never paid. Loyalty is being given out of deep respect for you as a person, of your vision and hard works. Never rely on loyalty that does not last long. You do not aspire to win for fame. Your goal is to win to help people. Ask respected higher ups for counsel periodically and spend time alone to think before you make any decision. A council is good but you are to pray for guidance from the most High One alone. God shall lead you as to how to perform your duties and how to help your people. Your basic strategy is to aim to do good, serve with compassion and do your works with passion. Make sure everyone knows you did the work by maintaining press releases, emails to higher ups and newsletters from your office. People have the right to be informed of how things are being run and you have every right to claim the good works that you have done. We are not to be silent with politics attacks on good works. But you are to be silent on politics attacks and smear campaigns on personal issues. We want to let you know that we can be silent with all the anticipated negative campaigns directed to us and to you. A man who damages the reputation of another man is a man that cannot be trusted. Remember my son to be careful not to do that in your political campaign no matter how tempting. Always be transparent and deal with the issues in an objective way. You are a man, be always a man. Friends come and go so choose well. Listen with your heart and not your ears. Choose the ones that will serve you with great dedication and loyalty. Real friendships are hard to find. Feel their honesty and seek for their commitment through good works. The most effective way to conquer the hearts of your people and conquer the respect of your opponents is by beating your opponents through good works. You are an open target to an open world. You are to protect yourself and your people as long as you can. You have your mission from God, you have work to do and we’ll always be here to wait for you to come home when you fail and feel like life seems to tumble down to keep you company. I will not ask any questions for any failure you may encounter. I am your mother who will always keep you in my heart and love you forever as my child. God speed my son. Do what you have to do for the love of God. Loving you always, Your mother

South African Airways Case Analysis

South African airways Presented by: Hadeir Shahin Khaya Ngqula, the CEO of South African airways is facing a big challenge, which is the striking of SAA ground staff and cabin crews, this action won’t affect only the overall performance of the company and slows down operations, but it will have a negative long term consequences as well, it may affect the company’s reputation, and thus affecting it’s prominence and perceived quality in the mind of the public.The major problem of SAA is the lack of trust, justice, ethics and commitment in the company, as the employees don’t trust there mangers, they believe that the decision making process is not fair, and managers are always violating the accepted norms of morality within the company.Firstly the absences of the authority’s trustworthiness negatively affected the employees, as mangers failed to show employees there capability of taking over the helm specially that executive’s lack aviation back ground, also employees didn’t perceive the authority to be benevolent or to have integrity, and that was clear when Ngqula decided to cut his management stuff in half to control costs, and suspending four managers for misconduct and failure to prevent wasteful expenditure, at the same time he was criticized by the media for incurring luxury travel expenses, more over his strategy revolved around efficiency, growth and outstanding service, without emphasizing about being helpful, supportive or loyal to his employees apart from any selfish or profit motive, all those factors resulted in the fact that SAA’s employees lack of trust to their managers. Secondly the country’s history over the past years regarding the racial discrimination influenced the companies’ policies which resulted in the feeling of injustice and a biased code of ethics among employees, in addition to, the pay raise issue. Despite of the good performance and the growth of the company, mana gers are referring to the fuel price as a constrain that preventing them from raising the pay, as a result employees belief that the decision outcomes are not allocated using the proper norms because they have contributed to the company’s good performance and they deserve more outcome specially that the company had a year profit of $155 million and can easily afford the wage increase, also knowing that there managers are spending money on helicopter travels and luxurious hotel rooms made them feel that they are not receiving distributive justice. As a result of the former problems, employees don’t feel committed to the company, and therefore Ngqula has to fix those problems by regaining employees trust and treating them fairly, this can be done by: approving the 8% increase in wages and start to implement an evaluation performance plan, in order to keep track of employees performance, and lay a roadmap for planning and development.He should include employees training p rogram in his development strategy, this program should not only stress on their skills but, on the importance of positive communication and culture of kindness in the company as well; to increase SAA’s employees commitment. It’s known that integrity should come from the top managers first, that’s why telling the truth to the employees and sticking to promises will be a good start to regain their trust, also the company should introduces a solid code of ethics that prohibits racial discrimination, protects employees’ rights and preventing the misuse of the companies’ resources. Finally introducing different ways to keep employees motivated such as bonuses, pay raise and recognition, this way employees performance will increase, they will be more competitive, creative and committed to the work.

TWC and Miramax

ETC creates and distributes entertainment throughout the world. Miramar Is part of the conglomerate, Colony Capital and Qatar Holding, which creates movies, among other products. By virtue of a contract, ETC has exclusive rights to distribute Miramar movies in the U. S. , the largest market (in terms of revenue). ETC uses its monopoly power to pay a lower price for Miramar movies than do other distributors. Is this sufficient justification for Colony Capital and Qatar Holding to buy out ETC?Expiate. (1 point) This is not sufficient justification. It certainly is an avenue to consider, however, the only way to truly Justify purchasing ETC is to weigh the other option available which is to start their own distribution company. If the cost of starting their own distribution company teamed with a higher cost to distribute the movies brings In a higher revenue than the cost of purchasing ETC teamed with distributing the movies at a lower cost than It would be better to start their own dis tribution company and vice versa. . In each of the following situations, why are firms likely to benefit from vertical integration? (1 point each) a. A grain elevator is located at the terminus off rail line. Owning grain elevator(s) is beneficial to the rail line because it allows the rail line more control over the grain elevator which in turn allows for more efficient planning and stream lined logistics as oppose to attempting to plan along with a separate company. B.A manufacturer of a product with a national brand-name reputation uses distributors that arrange for advertising and promotional activities In local markets. Vertical integration in this respect can allow the company to gain valuable insight onto the markets and in learning what they want through advertising and promoting can turn around and update their product or create new products to meet the various market needs. C. A biotech firm develops a new product that will be produced, tested, and distributed by an establ ished pharmaceutical company.The vertical Integration of a biotech firm owning a pharmaceutical company Is similar to the grain elevator and rail line In that communication, planning and logistics becomes easier and possibly more cost effective by owning the established pharmaceutical company. ND delivering each episode of the 1st season of the new series based on â€Å"Shakespeare in Love. † Suppose further that the contract included certain script requirements for background music decided upon by Miramar, and ETC spent an additional $20,000 per episode to meet those requirements.Then suppose that after pre-screening 3 episodes, Miramar claimed that Tic's efforts failed to live up to their contractual agreements. (2 points each: 1 for explaining the concept, and 1 for applying it correctly) a. Was either party earning rent? What assumptions do you have to make to assert this? ETC would be earning the rent. Their rent would be the profit ($20 million less the cost of producin g the episodes, including the additional cost per episode to meet the musical requirement. ) b.Was either party earning quasi-rent? What assumptions do you have to make to assert this? ETC would be earning quasi-rent assuming that they are able to see the episodes to another company or if they are able to come to an agreement with Miramar at a lower price than the original $20 million that they originally agreed upon. Their quasi-rent would be the difference between their rent (question a) and their new mount of revenue. C. Could ETC have held up Miramar? And/or could Miramar have held up ETC?Explain. ETC could definitely hold up Miramar by turning around and refusing to provide them with the episodes at the agreed upon price. This leaves Miramar to consider the costs and time involved with getting another affiliate to complete the Job or paying ETC the requested amount. Miramar can likewise hold up ETC through refusing to pay the agreed upon price. This leads ETC to choosing betwee n providing the episodes at a lower price or seeking another buyer who may not pay as much as they hoped.

Dependence of Suppliers on Multimodal Transport Essay

Dependence of Suppliers on Multimodal Transport - Essay Example As the supply chain lengthens and transport distance increases ICs must find more cost effective methods of shipment. In this competitive market, customers expect fast delivery and quality product and services at the lowest price possible. "Trade and transport are inextricably linked: efficient transport services are a prerequisite to successful trading" ("Multimodal "UN 2006, screen 1). To compete, ICs are turning to MTO operators to handle the complexity of logistics required to accomplish timely delivery of the finished product, a marketable product with an economic value to the customer ready to be used without the requirement of further alteration of its form, ("Product" 2005) also the most critical, direct link with the customer. The complexity of international transportation of finished product, goods and services shipped to the end user, has resulted in a lengthening international supply chain (ISC) comprised of economic, technology, social/legal and environment issues and innovations necessary to improve efficiency and effectiveness. (Trienekens et al. 2003). Figure 1 demonstrates an ISC Flow Chart. The main intent of the ISC is the smooth integration of suppliers and customers within one process from raw materials receipt to delivery of finished goods (end user product) to the customer. The continuum of the supply/demand cycle and increased innovations throughout the ISC create a two way dialogue at all stages of the chain increasing efficiency and effectiveness. Figure 1: ISC (Marlow 2004) As seen in Figure 1, the expanded ISC encompasses all process within a company and has further expanded to include vendors and customers all working in tandem: to maximise buying; materials management; production; and shipment to customers. This increased efficiency is accomplished through information sharing and seamless coordination of transportation - land, sea, rail and air, and of storage and handling between each phase of the transportation chain all handled by the MTO. Multimodal transport is the door-to-door service from supplier to customer in another country utilising multiple modes of transportation to effectively and efficiently ensure delivery. ("Multimodal" 2006;"Intermodal" 2006). The Multimodal Transport Operator is "any person whoconcludes a multimodal transport contract and assumes responsibility for the performance of the contract" ("Implementation" 2001, p.5). Critical Analysis: The Inter- Dependence of Finished-Product ISCs and MTOs Companies are relying more and more on MTOs which offer door-to-door service to meet customer needs while coordinating all logistics involved in multimodal use. (Coyle et al. 2003) One factor leading to the development of the MTO was containerisation, placing smaller units inside larger containers for shipment. (Hoyle et al. 1992) The last area to define is the MTO hub, centralized

The Song at the Scaffold by Gertrude von Le Fort Essay

The Song at the Scaffold by Gertrude von Le Fort - Essay Example She has a most uncharacteristic nature which is totally unsuited to her social standing, being fearfully timid and frail. She chooses Carmel of Compiegne as her saviour from the fears and terrors of life. At the sanctuary the character of Sister Marie of the Incarnation is introduced as one which embodies confidence yet humility and faith in the church, but feels that Blanche is unsuited to the rigorous lifestyle of the Carmel. The unfolding events of the French Revolution, bring a drastic change in Blanche’s circumstances from glory and comfort to distress, taking away the one sanctuary she trusted most; the Carmel at Compiegne. The author presents her uniqueness to us as she willingly steps out and joins the sisters who are being led to the guillotine, showing a superb transformation from fear and horror to unimaginable courage. This transformation is the epitome of her faith and belief in God bringing her to a point where the darkness of her fears Surname2 is encompassed an d destroyed by the one and only ultimate source of light ; her love of God. Sister Marie who has a strong, wilful and quite an eloquent personality, has all the makings of a heroine, manages to flee from the executioners for greater service to the Lord and mankind. She realizes that bravery and piety do not necessary come from great acts of heroism. Weak and insignificant beings are chosen by God to become vessels of the working of the Divine. Surname3 The novella has a very interesting character in the form of Blanche de La Force. She was the daughter of Marquis de La Force. Her birth in the nobility did not in any manner reflect in her demeanour. She had a frail disposition and lived in a constant state of fear, which according to her father, was the result of the circumstances at the time of her birth. She would surely have been beautiful considering the lineage she belonged to, had not fear overcome all other senses. She always wore a pinched expression on her face, reflecting i nner turmoil. The other interesting character of the story was that of Sister Marie of the Incarnation. She was the opposite of Blanche in appearance. She was stout and strong. Her demeanour reflected her state of confidence and strong belief in God. She showed a stoutness which bordered on overconfidence. Blanche and Sister Marie had the love of God as the most marked similarity in their personalities. Apart from that, Blanche had a timid and nervous personality. She showed signs of an extreme insecurity complex from a very early age, when she would reconfirm from her nanny that the stairs would not slip from under her feet, or when she would tremble at the sight of a new servant as if she had seen a ghost. As she grew up and sensed the ridicule aimed at her from all quarters, these insecurities only added to her agonizing fear of all things known as well as unknown. Such a disposition had a profound effect on the girl’s personality putting her apart from others of her age g roup. The reason might have been the demise of her mother at childbirth, who might have in other circumstances soothed and calmed her by giving her a confidence which the Jacobean father could not and did not. Sister Marie ,on the other hand showed a self-assurance which seemed to stem from her strong Surname4 faith. She had absolute belief in her own

Legal Issues - Medical Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Legal Issues - Medical - Essay Example A healthcare provider is considered a covered entity. The health care providers shall include the following only: doctors, clinics, psychologists, dentists, chiropractors, nursing homes, and families† (HHS.gov). Thus, in this given problem, Doctor Williams is considered to be included in the list of covered entity, due to the fact that he is a doctor of medicine who disclosed the medical report of his former patient. In the case at bar, it is clear that Dr. Williams committed a medical practice during the abortion services done to one of his patients, Joan. For fear of being sued for medical malpractice, he asked his friend’s advice by showing the medical records of his patient, who told him to talk to a medical malpractice insurer to help him overcome this problem. The act of divulging a patient’s medical record is contrary of the provisions of the HIPAA which provides: â€Å"The Privacy Rule protects all  "individually identifiable health information"  held or transmitted by a covered entity or its business associate, in any form or media, whether electronic, paper, or oral. Therefore, undoubtedly, it can be concluded that Dr. Williams committed a violation of the HIPAA. Here, there was no showing that he requested for permission from his patient to allow him to disclose the PHI. Instead, he used the information as a defense to a potential suit for medical malpractice. By giving out the information to the medical insurance carrier to, he can save himself from help him from any criminal liability for the error committed against patient for the mistake he committed. Since the doctor has identifiable health information, he may face a â€Å"criminal penalty of up to $50,000 and up to one-year imprisonment.   The criminal penalties increase to $100,000 and up to five years imprisonment if the wrongful conduct involves false pretenses, and to $250,000 and up to 10 years imprisonment if the

Genocidal rape in Bosnia-Herzgovina Research Paper

Genocidal rape in Bosnia-Herzgovina - Research Paper Example Systematic mass rape and forced impregnation of women to cause pregnancy was related to the policy of â€Å"ethnic cleansing† of the Serbian genocide. Methods used in the campaigns of ethnic cleansing included but were not limited to torture, murder, detention, arbitrary arrest, sexual assaults in general and rape in particular, extra-judicial executions, forcible removal, confinement of the civilians into the ghettos, civilian deportation and displacement, exposure of the civilians to deliberate military attacks, and property destruction. Widespread ethnic cleansing was accompanied with the outbreak of war from 1992 to 1995 in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Bosnian Serbs forced Bosnian Muslims in large numbers along with some Bosnian Croats to flee their homes. There was also a small population of Bosnian Croats that conducted similar campaign against the Serbs and the Muslims, though they were far outnumbered by the violent Serbs. In the start of 1991, Balkans saw political upheava ls displacing a total of nearly 2,700,000 people, 700,000 of which sought refuge in Europe. There was an obvious military intent behind the systematic policies of rape in conflict with the International Humanitarian Law adopted by the Serbs. Giuseppe Zaccaria, an Italian journalist, summarized the Serb army officers’ minutes of meeting conducted in late 1991 in a Belgrade suburb in which he noted that the explicit policy of the Serbs was meant to target the children and women, they being the most vulnerable part of the social and religious structure of the Muslims. The reason why Bosnian Serbs targeted women and children can be summarized in these words: â€Å"Our analysis of the behavior of the Muslim communities demonstrates that the morale, will, and bellicose nature of their groups can be undermined only if we aim our action at the point where the religious and social structure is most fragile. We refer to the women, especially adolescents, and to the children. Decisive intervention on these social figures would spread confusion among the communities, thus causing first of all fear and then panic, leading to a probable [Muslim] retreat from the territories involved in war activity† (Zaccaria cited in Alien 57). In spite of the media reports discussing the mass killings, the secret camps, the destruction of architecture of Bosnia and mosques, most of the global community showed indifference to them. In response to such media reports, the UN implemented economic sanctions upon Serbia. The first UN peacekeeping force during the Yugoslav wars in Bosnia and Herzegovina was the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR). Mandate of the UNPROFOR for Bosnia and Herzegovina was to keep the people alive as the war reached its end. In an attempt to supervise the food and medicine distribution among the Muslims, the UN deployed its troops. However, these troops were not allowed by the UN to make any sort of military interference against the Serbs. UN had its own reasons not to stop the Serbs from killing Bosnian Muslims; the UN security forces thought that this was not their war and so they should not risk their lives trying to stop the Serbs from committing the atrocities. In addition to that, some soldiers of the UN security forces were held hostage by the Serbs. The safety and security of those captured UN soldiers was the prime concern of the UN securit

Interview questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Interview questions - Essay Example The best way of having the employees to follow those codes is by following them themselves. Managers are faced with ensuring they treat all the employees equitably and within the organizational policies in spite of the employees’ diverse strengths and weaknesses. There is also the task of dealing with uncooperative employees, some of whom may claim discrimination such as age. The penalties are usually high should an employee prove that the HIM manager failed to provide him/her with fair and equitable treatment based on age. The patient’s information could also be faulty, or lack the means to pay after the billing. Sometimes an employee could also be admitted as a patient (LaTour, Kathleen 2006, pg 13). I think it does. However several guidelines should be implemented that are more focused towards providing health care in the privacy and comfort of the patients’ home. This is in terms of encouraging the patient’s independence and improving his/her quality of life, providing reliable, dependable assistance focused on the patient’s needs and that would bring about the general well being of the patient. According to the Mercy Medical Center’s website (http://www.mercymedicalcenter.info/news/pressreleases/69.html), the policy dictates that a patient must be provided upon admission with a notice of privacy practices that â€Å"explains the purpose for which the medical center may use and disclose the patient’s Protected Health Information (PHI) without the patient’s authorization, the policy must also inform the patient of their rights to privacy and explains the Center’s legal duties under federal privacy laws and regulations†. Ensuring that one keeps at bay the broad unethical practices that affects the profession’s main values and establish a set of ethical principles to use in guiding decision making as well as taking actions. Learning to identify the

Asian Commercial Dominance Annotated Bibliography

Asian Commercial Dominance - Annotated Bibliography Example This is politically, socially and economically. Its dominance economically is represented by countries in this continent. Singapore, Indonesia, Japan, China, India and South Korea are some of the countries that contribute to its economic stability. It is the annual GDP from these countries that has enabled the continent to compete actively with Europe. Other countries like Mongolia, Pakistan, Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand have also grown tremendously in the economic sector. All this coupled with the minerals in some of the Asian countries ensures that it expands economically. Minerals are found in abundance in Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia amongst others. This has enabled the economic exchange between this continent and many others (Levinson, p 34). The European continent has over the years held the helm in economic stability. It is ranked the highest in relation to current GDP. This position is threatened by the continued dominance of the Asian continent. Th e above mentioned countries have contributed in their own way to overall Asia’s economic dominance. China has grown steadily over the years to ensure that it is the second largest economic powerhouse in the world. It strongly competes with the nation of Japan. This is in relation to many manufacturing plants. Japan is a powerhouse for very many industrial companies all over the world. It is famous for worldwide brands that include Samsung, Toshiba, Sharp, Phillips, and LG amongst many others (Higham, p 45).

Congress Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Congress - Essay Example Thus, the veracity of the claim of the ‘broken branch’ and the possible solution for fixing the ‘broken branch’ are discussed in the discussion which ensues forthwith. What Organizational Changes Congress Might Make To Work More Effectively It is true that in light of the limitations prevailing upon the Congress, there are some changes that can be ratified to make the Congress more effective. One of the changes which the Congress can make to work more effectively is instituting a room for the selection of an effective party leader with juniors working under this party leader. Another way to fix the US Congress is to build a better and more dynamic electoral system. This artifice can be achieved by establishing open primaries which would end gerrymandering among politicians. This is because, gerrymandering effectively provides politicians with a leeway which they use to pull away from their own districts. There cannot be proper representation in the event tha t politicians make a dereliction on their own jurisdiction. Conversely, amendments can be made to the rules of the Congress to make Congress function more effectively. The crux of the matter herein is that experts such as Mann and Ornstein contend that the problem besetting the Congress is not really about the representatives in the Congress, but the outdated traditions, procedures and rules which govern the operations of Congress which bar legislative processes and progress. Particularly, Article 1, Section 5 of the American Constitution reads that each House has the capacity to determine the Rules of its Proceedings. In this light, in the event that an incumbent Congress finds the rules, traditions and rules of its predecessor [to be] unproductive, archaic or inhibitive, members of the Congress may move in to amend these laws (Mann and Ornstein, 48). Amendments can also be made so that the remunerations of Congressmen can be tied to their performance. While some such as Vermeer ha ve christened this move as No-Budget-No-Pay principle, there is a strong push to this effect to bar Congress from getting paid, in the event that Congress fails to make budget spending and decision in time. The need for this move is underscored by the fact that since 1952, Congress has passed budget planning and spending bills in a timely manner, only four times. Despite this state of affairs, the gravity of the matter is underscored by the dire financial and political situations which stem from the failure of the Congress to pass budget spending and planning, as was seen on October 1, 2013. In this case, the US government came to a sudden halt when the House Republicans failed to agree on their efforts to link the passage of the 2014 budgets of the federal government since they were fighting against the implementation of the healthcare reform. Consequently, 40% [800,000 workers] of the US’ public service was temporarily forced out of work, while 1 million federal American em ployees were made to work without payment (Vermeer, 220). It is also important to have the Congress [to] have all presidential nominations either conformed or rejected within 90 days, after that the Senate receives the presidential nominations. The importance of this proposal has its underpinnings in developments which have taken place in the US Congress. In 2011, more than 200 positions that had been presidentially appointed remained unfilled, following the senators’

Article Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Article - Essay Example The article suggests that ,Vogan firm assisted an accused named Julian Green , who is arrested for storing child pornography images on PC to go free . According to Montaldo ,(2013)â€Å"Almost all pedophiles have a collection of pornography, which they protect at all costs. Many of them also collect "souvenirs" from their victims. They rarely discard either their porn or collections for any reason†. At the Julianne Green's home enormous numbers of child porn images were found, which led to the accusation of being a pedophile. The images stored in his computer were a firsthand proof to the police to accuse him as a pedophile. The convicted Julian Green is saved by Vogon, due to latter’s professional approach and eye for detail. The hard disk of Greene acquired by Vogon is detected for virus infection to understand whether the pornographic images were downloaded and stored due to malware functioning. As per American Associated Press (2009) â€Å"Of all the sinister thing s that Internet viruses do, this might be the worst: They can make you an unsuspecting collector of child pornography†. Green could have been unaware that the images stored on his PC could lead to his arrest. The Effort of Vogon in releasing Greene Greene is acquitted of pedophile act on the basis of evidence found on his PC which was 172 images of child pornography. The police arrested Green on the basis of the evidence they collected from his computer. The pictures were unknowingly harbored by the Trojan virus in the PC but Green is imprisoned for 10 years for this abusive act. The solicitor Chris has approached Vogon to confirm the reason behind the storage of child porn images, as they were suspicious that it could be the act of virus .The hard drive of Greene is cloned and processed to understand presence of Trojan which infected his pc with images. The computer specialist unraveled this malware in the hard drive of Green with utmost care and skill. The real culprit detec ted by the software specialist was the unsolicited e-mails opened by Green. The computer specialist Gibbs detected 12 Trojan programs on Green’s computer and this was a solid evidence for the solicitor to prove Green’s innocence. According to Kaspersky(2013)â€Å"A common scenario is that a person receives what looks like a perfectly legitimate e-mail or computer update, often from a trusted source. When the user tries to open the file, it seems that nothing happens. In fact, they may have installed a Trojan horse on their hard drive†. Only on the basis of this strong professional evidence, the court decided to drop this case. The credit for Green’s relief from acquitting solely goes to the Solicitor and Vogon Forensic laboratory. According to Forensic Control Limited (2013) â€Å"Computer forensics is the practice of collecting, analyzing and reporting on digital information in a way that is legally admissible. It can be used in the detection and preven tion of crime and in any dispute where evidence is stored digitally† The pedophile cases on Trojan and its consequences The author explains that, a person named Karl Scofield escaped accusation of being a pedophile on the basis of Trojan infection. Apart from this, Aaron Caffrey , the teenage hacker who is accused of crippling Houston web -based system

Bipolar Mood Disorder Essay Example for Free

Bipolar Mood Disorder Essay Many people ask, â€Å"Is Bipolar disorder real?† Some people believe that Bipolar Disorder is not real since having mood swings is a common factor in one’s life, especially in adolescence. They also say that all people in one point experience sadness, even the happiest people. But Bipolar Disorder is real. The illness isn’t just about being a little depressed once in a while. Bipolar Mood Disorder, or manic depression, is a serious mental disorder that causes a person to have dramatic changes in his/her mood, ability to function, and energy level. It can cause damaged relationships, risky behaviors, and even suicidal tendencies in one’s life if left untreated. The illness consists of the changing of mood between two emotional stages; mania and depression. Although the person alternates between these two episodes, at one point he/she may experience normal moods. Bipolar Disorder Bipolar Disorder was first noticed in the second century, making it one of the oldest known illnesses. The first symptoms of mania and depression were recognized by Physician Arateus of Cappadocia, an ancient city in Turkey. He felt that mania and depression could be linked to each other and that they both were different types of the same disease. Mania is one of the symptoms of bipolar disorder. It divides into two categories; hypomania and mania. Hypomania is a less severe form of mania. During hypomania, one may feel extremely good, excited, and excessively happy. One feels like they can accomplish anything. â€Å"At first when Im high, its tremendous ideas are fast like shooting stars you follow until brighter ones appear All shyness disappears, the right words and gestures are suddenly there uninteresting people, things become intensely interesting. Sensuality is pervasive, the desire to seduce and be seduced is irresistible. Your marrow is infused with unbelievable feelings of ease, power, well-being, omnipotence, euphoria you can do anything but somewhere this changes.† This phase does not last forever. For someone who is bipolar, hypomania can evolve into actual mania, or depression. During Mania, one can go from being happy to feeling furious, irritable, and aggressive. Some symptoms of mania include increased reckless behaviors, talkativeness, sudden shifts from being happy and joyful to being hostile, restlessness, racing thoughts, and excessive energy. Aside from mania, the other symptom of bipolar disorder is depression. During depression, one may feel sad, guilty, anxious, hopeless and/or worthless. Other symptoms of depression include loss of energy, loss of interest in things one used to enjoy doing, difficulty concentrating, feeling restless and agitated, insomnia, changes in appetite, and thoughts of death and attempting suicide. Types of Bipolar Disorder There are many types of Bipolar Disorder; Bipolar I, Bipolar II, Cyclothymic disorder, and rapid-cycling bipolar disorder. In Bipolar I, one goes through severe mood shifts from mania to depression. Bipolar II is a milder form of Bipolar II, containing milder episodes of hypomania that then can evolve into severe depression. Cyclothymic disorder consists of brief periods of depression that last shorter and less extensive than full episodes of depression. Last is rapid-cycling bipolar disorder. The illness is described as rapid-cycling when one has more than 4 episodes in less than a 1-year period. The shift of polarity from mania to depression in rapid-cycling can be in one week, or even as short as in a day. The rapid-cycling pattern can increase severe depression and suicidal thoughts. Causes of Bipolar Like any other psychological disorder, there is no exact cause of Bipolar Disorder. It can contribute from many different factors, the main ones being biological, genetic, and environmental. Scientists believe that primarily it is caused from biological factors. This is because in people who are bipolar, some of their brain’s neurotransmitters, which are the chemical transmitters of the brain, don’t function properly. Another factor that contributes to Bipolar Disorder is genetics. Bipolar Mood Disorder tends to run in families, so if one’s parent has bipolar disorder, he/she is 15-25% more likely to inherit the illness. The last factor that causes bipolar is environmental influence. Factors in life such as major stress or a life-changing event can trigger a biological reaction, thus making one develop Bipolar Disorder. Treatment Treatment is available to anyone who suffers from Bipolar Mood Disorder. The illness is often treated with medications. When prescribed medications, the patient is required to take daily medications such as mood-stabilizers. They are the most effective solutions for Bipolar Disorder, along with Lithium. Psychotherapy also plays an important part in treating the illness. If considering counseling, you can consult your family doctor. They may recommend psychotherapy, and prescribe medications for the disease. Other professionals one can visit are psychologists, psychiatrists, and therapists with a professional degree in the field of the brain. Mood Stabilizers Mood Stabilizers have the ability to decrease the severity of depression and mania, and also decreases the frequency in which they happen. The most common type of mood stabilizer is Lithium, which has been known for helping people who deal with mood swings for years. Conclusion Bipolar Mood Disorder is actually a serious mental disorder which causes one’s mood to shift dramatically in a period of time. The symptoms of bipolar include mania, which is the high, and depression, which is the low. The illness can affect one’s mood, behavior, and way of living, and can also make concentrating difficult. Depending on the type of the disease, one can change mood in months, weeks, or in days. Bipolar Disorder can be caused from many factors, including genetic, biological, and environmental. Many people suffer from this illness, but luckily there is a solution to improving it. With medications and psychotherapy, one can regulate their mood swings and their severity, making Bipolar Disorder easier to deal with.

Relations in Small and Medium Enterprises

Relations in Small and Medium Enterprises Employee Relations in Small and Medium Enterprises A Non-union Approach Introduction The term SME or small and medium business enterprise is often used to describe a business enterprise that has anywhere between 10 to 15 employees for a small business whereas anything under 250 would be a medium enterprise. However, the number of employees is not the only classification that is used, and can be as diverse as turnover, industry, or business structure. According to a survey carried out by the Department for Business, Innovation Skills (BIS) in 2004, the UK had 1.16 million private sector firms with fewer than 250 employees, representing 94 per cent of all employers in the UK economy.1 These SMEs employed a total of 8.66 million employees (36 per cent of all employees in the UK) and they accounted for 47 per cent of private sector employers turnover. This suggests the apparent importance of these enterprises. The other important aspect of SMEs is their ability to be innovative, and adaptive to the constantly changing market environment, creating employment opportunities in the economy, and contributing to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). SMEs vary in size depending on the industry, and skills. A biotechnology firm is likely to have fewer highly skilled employees where as a cleaning services firm will have more unskilled workers. Nonetheless, the fact that a significant fraction of the working population is employed by an SME, it is necessary to understand how these enterprises are managed, and how human resources policies regarding recruitment, training, performance evaluation, and day to day employee relations are adopted and practiced. Management and employment relations in an SME A typical structure of an SME is largely business, product or process orientated, with little specialist involvement in areas outside the remit of the business, human resources for instance. Managers have little expertise or qualifications to conduct personnel management task, most managers tend to rely on their past experience in managing relationships. This is interesting because it provides a unique opportunity to study management issues and strategies that can be anywhere from non-existent in a small firm to informal and semi-formal in a medium firm. Tradition management styles that have been identified in Fox (1974) and Purcell and Sisson (1983), relate to management perspectives with regards to employee relations in an industrial setup. The classifications were based on the type of views held by both management and employees, where both could be either unitary or pluralist. Marchington and Parker (1990) point out that these differences were in relation to how management viewed unions and their involvement on issues like employee participation and conflict resolution. These assertions are applicable in a large complex organisation but may not necessarily be true in a small setup where human resources and employee relations may be absent altogether. Goss (1991) found that management styles at small firms were likely to be characterised by how the owner-manager experience relative disposition of power, and identified four types of management control Fraternalism, Paternalism, Benevolent Autocracy, and Sweating . The distinction was based on how much independence employees enjoyed for every degree of dependence the employer possessed. A host of studies conducted in the UK (WERS, 2004), Europe (EIRO, 2006), and Canada (CFIB, 2004) give an idea of what management practices are adopted in the SME sector generally and how working hours, training, remuneration, and employee representation are handled. A key observation found synonymous in all the studies was that employee representation, although significant, was conducted in informal settings through individual contracts and concepts of collective bargaining and unionisation were largely absent in smaller firms but rose with firm size. And where a non-union employee structure is prevalent, it is difficult to compare or comment on the effectiveness of such a structure, as all previous studies go only as far as determining the type of employee participation practiced but do not assess their quality of impact. Non-union employee participation According to Guest (2001), a non-union workplace lacks formal human resources or industrial relations departments which interface between management and employees. Dundon et al., (2005) describe a non-union workplace where the importance of union is not recognised in determining employee issues such as pay and work conditions, as opposed to whether or not employees are members of any union. They also point out the reasons, incentives, and motivation for managers for choosing a non-unionised interaction with the workforce. Guest and Hoque (1994) went on to classify the various non-union employer types, differentiating them on the basis of a range of human resources attributes. They banded employers as either good, bad, or ugly depending on these attributes. Although some counter arguments to this classification were on the grounds of methodology selected and if it collected information on employee views on their employers, and the lack of motivation and incentive, if any, from the emp loyees in preferring to be non-union (Dundon, et al., 2005). Although type of employee participation and representation is seen as an important part of the relationship between management and employees, it is interesting to understand how these become part of the culture. Freeman and Medoff (1984) describe employee representation, or employee voice, as having both consensual and conflictual connotation, and showed how participation could impact quality and productivity, whilst on the other it could help resolve disputes. Managers in a relatively small workplace are likely to view non-union participation more favourably because they may not have experience of dealing with unions and may feel more comfortable dealing with issues locally and informally. As the workforce becomes larger and larger, the advantages of a non-union representation diminish and firms tend to seek a formal approach to interaction as seen in larger firms. Ackers et al., (2004) suggest that direct communication with the employees is also one of the most significant concept of a non-union employee representation, adding that managers would be more willing to share information relating to the business, work arrangements, staffing and job prospects directly with employees. Collective bargaining, remuneration, and workplace relations The concept of collective bargaining is more or less relevant to a union based employee representation, where the propositions are deemed to be in the best interest of the entire workforce as opposed to a single employee or groups. Since the relationships between management (owners, managers) and employees are less formal, such discussions can take place individually and would reflect the firms position vis-Ã  -vis a particular employee. On the other hand, managers responsible for personnel matters may be involved in other tasks and is likely to spend more time on such tasks than those in similar positions in larger firms. Wage determinations and remuneration discussions are similarly done, and could be either set unilaterally by the management or negotiated on an individual basis. Therefore it would be common to assume a variable pay structure either by merit or performance, and the likelihood to profit-sharing. Pay reviews could be less regular in such a setup and may often requir e to be initiated by employees. Recruitment, training, and personal development The recruitment process at small firm may be less formal or rigorous compared to large organisations because of the level of expertise and sophistication available within the firm. A lengthy recruitment process can be costly, and can be counter productive to the immediate requirements of the business; hence employers may be willing to make quick decisions on the basis of the incumbents skills alone. WERS (2004) suggest that training and development opportunities were dependant on firm size, the larger the firm the more likely they were to offer on or off-the-job training. This can be true for two reasons, firstly cost implications, and second, the option to hire an already trained worker. In a non-union workplace this can be both beneficial and disadvantageous at the same time, since over-simplification could get the job done but may not necessarily represent the best interests of employees. Conflict resolution Irrespective of the size of the firm, grievances can arise and depending on the relationship an employee involved has with their manager, it could be dealt with informally in the first instance, and small and medium firms would adopt such a process not because they may not have a formal grievances and conflict resolution procedures as seen in large firms. Majority of employers have such procedures for regulatory purposes, but how effectively these are used varies from firm to firm. Since SMEs are not labour intensive collective disputes are unlikely to emerge requiring collective resolution through means of a union representation. This can be viewed as an incentive for managers to have a non-unionised employee representation to avoid the hassles of dealing with the union when a dispute arises (Dundon, et al., 2005). Employee attitudes The WERS (2004) survey reveals that managers in SMEs were more likely to involve employees in workplace related decision making processes and employee influence was greater in small firms than larger ones. Guest and Hoque (1994) suggest that employees that feel better appreciated were more likely so see their employer as good non-union employers and may be even motivated to discourage a unionised workforce which would tend to reduce their influence on management decisions. The employees perception of workplace and management being the same, changes as firm size increases. This is significant enough incentive for managers to cultivate a non-unionised workplace. To this extent there is a big difference between employees expectations for collective representation and employers willingness to subscribe to one. On the whole, the management is in a position to decide what type of representation they would like, and what mechanisms to utilize. Conclusion Small and medium-sized firms are vital for the growth of the economy, and play a significant role in providing employment to the population. The size and nature of products and services offered by these firms varies distinctly, and so does their management and employment practices. Size of the workforce does influence the type of management style that will be adopted, but it also depends on managers (owners) past experience and their perception of how work should be managed based on a set of beliefs. Small businesses have been seen to be less formal and tend to follow a close contact with their employees, and do not conform to hierarchal structures of management that are predominant in large organizations. These structures of relationships tend to get more formal as the firm size increases. Employees, on the other hand, find little or no difference between their workplace and management, an important distinction observed in larger firms which clearly distinguish between the firm and the management. Although employee relations in small and medium sized firms tend to be more informal they can be inflexible to changes in the workplace. Managers may lack the necessary experience and expertise in issues like performance appraisals and dispute resolution; they tend to rely on their experience and prefer to engage the employees directly. Issues of pay determinations and other forms of compensation are set out by managers but it allows employees to engage with management over discussions, without the necessary involvement of collective employee representations like unions. The dialogue is less formal and gives the management opportunity to consider personal circumstances of employees. Similarly conflict resolution and grievances are accorded an informal process, whereas any disciplinary action resulting from such discussions may be formal and follow a traditional approach. And because managers prefer to have a less formal involvement of employees the concept of non-uni onized representation is favoured as management sees more flexibility in running the business and find to have less control when a collective representation is sought. Formality in relationships increases with firm size when management wants to have more distance between owners and employees in order to maintain a consistent level of control through decentralization. The degree of formality exercised may vary within the firm itself, for instance management may adopt a more formal approach to employee training and development, but at the same time conduct performance appraisals informally. In regards to SMEs the nature of employment relations is not always straightforward and management practices, which may appear simple and unsophisticated, are influenced by a variety of factors and have evolved as a response to a particular need as the industry and business requirements, or regulations, evolved over time. References Ackers, P., Marchington, M., Wilkinson, A. and Dundon, T. (2004), The management of voice in non-union organisations: managers perspectives, Employee Relations Vol. 27 No. 3, 2005 pp. 307-319 Atkinson, J. and Meager, N. (1994) Running to stand still: the small firm in the labour market, in J. Atkinson and D. Storey (eds.) Employment, the Small Firm and the Labour Market, London: Routledge. Bacon, N. and Hoque, K. (2005) HRM in the SME sector: valuable employees and coercive networks, International Journal of Human Resource Management, 16, 11: 1679-99. Benson, J. (2000), Employee voice in union and non-union Australian workplaces, British Journal of Industrial Relations, Vol. 38 No. 3, pp. 453-9. Beresford, R. (2003) Trade unions and small firms, Federation News, 53, 2. Blackburn, R. (2005) Researching the employment relationship in small firms: what are the contributions from the employment relations and small business literatures?, in S. Blyton, P. and Turnbull, P. (2004), The Dynamics of Employee Relations, 3rd ed., Macmillan, London. Bolton Report (1971) Report of the Committee of Inquiry on Small Firms, Chaired by J. E. Bolton, Cmnd. 4811, London: HMSO. Bryson, A. (1999) The impact of employee involvement on small firms financial performance, National Institute Economic Review, 169: 78-95. Bryson, A. and Millward, N. (1997) Employee Involvement in Small Firms: A Review of the Literature, London: Policy Studies Institute. Carroll, M., Marchington, M., and Earnshaw, J. (1999) Recruitment in small firms: Processes, methods and problems, Employee Relations, 21, 3: 236-50. Chaplin, J., Mangla, J., Purdon, S., and Airey, C. (2005) The Workplace Employment Relations Survey 2004 (WERS 2004) Technical Report (Cross-Section and Panel Surveys), London: National Centre for Social Research. Charlwood, A. (2003), Willingness to unionize amongst non-union workers, in Gospel, H. and Wood, S. (Eds), Representing Workers, Trade Union Recognition and Membership in Britain, Routledge, London. Cosh, A. and Hughes, A. (2003a) The British SME sector 1991-2002, in A. Cosh and A. Hughes (eds.) Enterprise Challenged: Policy and Performance in the British SME Sector 1999- 2002, Cambridge: Cambridge University Centre for Business Research Cox, A. (2005) Managing variable pay systems in smaller workplaces, in S. Marlow, D. Patton and M. Ram (eds.) Managing Labour in Small Firms, London: Routledge. Cully, M., Woodland, S., OReilly, A. and Dix, G. (1999) Britain at Work: As Depicted by the 1998 Workplace Employee Relations Survey, London: Routledge. Dundon, T. (2002), Employer opposition and union avoidance in the UK, Industrial Relations Journal, Vol. 33 No. 3, pp. 234-45. Dundon, T. and Rollinson, D. (2004), Employment Relations in Non-union Firms, Routledge, London. Dundon, T., Grugulis, I. and Wilkinson, A. (1999) Looking out of the black hole: nonunion relations in an SME, Employee Relations, 21, 3: 251-66. Dundon, T., Wilkinson, A., Marchington, M. and Ackers, P. (2004), The meanings and purpose of employee voice, International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 15 No. 6, pp. 1150-71. Forth, J., Bewley, H., Bryson, A. (2004), Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Findings from the 2004 Workplace Employment Relations Survey, Routledge, London Freeman, R. and Medoff, J. (1984), What Do Unions Do?, Basic Books, New York, NY. Gall, G. (2004), British employer resistance to trade union recognition, Human Resource Management Journal, Vol. 14 No. 2, pp. 36-53. Goss, D. (1991), Small Business and Society, Routledge, UK Guest, D. (2001), Industrial relations and human resource management, in Storey, J. (Ed.), HRM: A Critical Text, Thompson Learning, London. Guest, D. and Hoque, K. (1994), The good, the bad and the ugly: employment relations in new non-union workplaces, Human Resource Management Journal, Vol. 5 No. 1, pp. 1-14. Lavoie, A. (2004) Work-life balance and SMEs: Avoiding the one-size-fits-all trap, CFIB Research: 10-12 Lewin, D. and Mitchell, D. (1992), Systems of employee voice: theoretical and empirical perspectives, California Management Review, Vol. 34 No. 3, pp. 95-111. Marchington, M. (2005), Employee involvement: patterns and explanations, in Harley, B., Hyman, J. and Thompson, P. (Eds), Participation and Democracy at Work: Essays in Honour of Harvie Ramsay, Palgrave, London. Marchington, M., Goodman, J., Wilkinson, A. and Ackers, P. (1992), New Developments in Employee Involvement, Employment Department Research Series, Paper No. 2, HMSO, London. Marchington, M., Wilkinson, A., Ackers, P. and Dundon, T. (2001), Management Choice and Employee Voice, CIPD Publishing, London. Pfeffer, J. (1998), The Human Equation, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, MA. Ramsay, H. (1977), Cycles of control: workers participation in sociological and historical perspective, Sociology, Vol. 11 No. 3, pp. 481-506. Rose, E. (2008) Employment Relations, 3rd ed., Pearson Education Limited, UK: 58-95, 273-331, 334-420.

A Comparative Book Review

A Comparative Book Review Ethics are agreed codes of behavior adopted by a group or association. Ethical behavior is being honest, responsible of your acts and how you treat others in all aspects of your life. It respects the dignity, diversity and rights of people. Ethical behavior is applying standards to ones behavior. This essay discusses how ethical behavior will pay off in the long run. Ethical conduct means that there are standards of morality that individuals should observe and is important for everyone. One obvious reason is that it sets the standards for management, employees and creates a tone for the organization as a whole. Ethical standards depict behaviors morally accepted as good and right as opposed to bad or wrong in a particular setting it is particularly crucial for the business for a number of reasons. For example, murder and robbery are not only illegal but are universally regarded as wrong, while dishonesty , while not necessarily illegal, is usually thought to be immoral. They are created and adopted by people who are interested primarily in ensuring there are guidelines for behavior for the group members. For example, doctors and lawyers have ethical codes of practice which they sear to uphold as part of their professional practice. An ethical decision is one which typically involves choosing between what you have agreed not to do and what you find yourself wanting to do. For example, is it ethical to pay a bribe to obtain a business contract? Is it ethical to allow a company to withhold information that might discourage a job candidate from joining the organization? Is it ethical to ask someone to take a job that is not good for their career progress? Is it right to do personal business on company time? It might not be considered ethical for an organization to put the health of its employees at risk, or defraud its shareholders, even if there was no chance that the organization would be found out. These examples highlight why there is a need for maintaining high standards of ethical behavior and moral standards at work place. It is the expected conduct that organizations want their employees to hold while at work and important because every individuals conduct affects the relationships within an organization th us unconstructive on the overall performance of an organization. Most business experts suggest that establishing a code of conduct can help the company to behave ethically. A codes of conduct is a formal document stating the principles and the ethical rules it expects the employees to follow in the organization. Ethical standards protect the business from scandals and prevent them in the future. Ethical statements imply the employees, business associates, and the larger community a framework of the companys operating principles (rules and regulations) which needs to be followed, why the company exists, what the company believes, and how it acts to be in compliance with its professed beliefs. Caring out active reviews of these strategic plans and objectives will ascertain that they are not not practicising unethical acts. In addition, reviewing the standard operating procedures and performance measurements will ensure the business owners and managers that it is well structured and does not encourage unethical behavior. Studies has shown Joel and Jennifer Supeck2010-11-29T10:20:00 Which studies are you referring to?that organizations are now increasingly take account of ethical considerations, there has been a shift from traditional profit and free market business approach to ethical approach, in favor of consumer interests. A business that behaves ethically focus their involvement on activities in meeting all responsibilities to employees, customers and suppliers is awarded with a high degree of loyalty, honesty, quality and productivity in the long run. Ethical investments is one way of responding to issues of social responsibility in business decisions and activities and avoiding to be self serving. Ethical investors are essentially concerned with how profit is made and looks to maximise profit at the same time trying to minimise and avoid negative social effects . On the positive side, the public will begin to recognize and to honor individual companies for their contributions to solving most obdurate problems. It also aligns the interests of shareholders, when the interests of both parties are focused on the long term health of the company. The proponents of shareholder value take this long term focus for granted, they assume that for its own future well being, a company will want to be responsive t o its employees, consumers, and the public, and that this is the best way to realize true shareholder value. Socially responsible factors in areas of public concern include the environment, sustainability, globalization effects for example exploitation, child-labour, social and environmental damage anywhere in the world, corruption, armed conflict and political issues, staff and customers relations, for instance education and training, health and safety, duty of care, etc. It also includes the locals and other impacts on people such as their health and well-being. For example, Dell started recycling of computers at no cost and Shell started to work together with environmental groups. They set a company record by giving back to the society. Behaving ethically also improves the quality of work life and enhances the role of every employer in creating an environment where employee pride blossoms and theft losses disappear. When employees are valued as individuals and treated with fairne ss, equality, respect and dignity there is reduced corruption as they take pride in their organisation. Positive results are achieved when employees are given a basis for trust and respect to live by. If employees believe all are held to similar high standards, they likely will feel better about themselves, their colleagues, their organization and behave ethically when dealing with customers and business associates. Employees are more likely fiercely loyal, hard working and productive. Ethical companies have improved customer service and relationship building, an advantage over their competitors. Research proves that consumers are used to buying products from companies that have public recognition, a company record or being promoted. Enhancing customer loyalty to the brand is probably the single most powerful incentive for convincing companies to adopt ethics as a way of life. Another advantage of behaving ethically is that it promotes better staff retention and attraction, good organisations cannot function without good people. Ethical organizations have increased commitment by employ ees as good employees want to work with responsible and ethical employers. When a company fails to be a good employer they lose good staff because and it reduces the possibility of attracting good new-comers. This increases costs of recruiting new candidates and damage efficiency and performance. Ethical standards also help in protection of company assets, employees that have respect for their organization , tend to respect and protect the assets of that organization. Many business want employees to behave ethically because such a reputation is good for business which in turn can mean larger profits. For example, the workplace dictates the dressing protocol (the uniform) for employees, which indicate the employees opinion for their organization. Employees are required to conduct themselves with dignity at the workplace. How one behaves in the workplace helps them in building a good reputation and praises over the years to come. Similarly, encouraging employees to act ethically can save money by reducing employee theft, down time and lawsuits. Because many unethical acts are also illegal, a firm that allows workers to engage in unfair practices might be prosecuted. it is noticed that employees not having respect for their organization and co-workers encourage many forms of theft such as personal long distance phone calls on company accounts, padding of labor charges and expense accounts, taking office supplies home. Conversely, employees who are st eadfastly ethical avoid practices such as breaking areas and rest rooms, untidy work areas, excessive breaks or sick days from work and improper use of machines and equipment e.g. the photocopier, computer and personal use of company vehicle. In addition, an employee with little self or organizational pride not only causes lost supplies and equipment but can bring the organization to losses in production, time, professionalism, overhead charges, initiative, reputation, attitude, enthusiasm and customer respect. It is important that employees have a clear understanding of their organizations ethical standards and a feeling of management support for acting within those standards. Teaching ethics to an employee is not always effective. Management must set examples by their personal alignment with ethical standards and principles. It is my firm belief that behaving ethically is good for both the individual and the enterprise in the long run apart from setting a border between right and wrong. Ethical behavior means being morally responsible and adhered to accepted behavior in the place we work. Maximum productivity and creativity is achieved when individuals operate regarding the ethical considerations of their position. On the other hand, practicing unethical behavior results in reduced success and diminished effectiveness. Question 2 Every community needs a leader to show the way, for motivation and for things to happen in a controlled manner. An ethical leader stands up for what is right and knows what is worth doing, they benefit the individual, the team, the organization, and society as a whole. This essay will discuss the impact on society that leaders can make. Ethical leaders are those who behave ethically and are concerned of how their decisions have an impact on others. They respect each other, are honest, trustworthy, avoid corruption and violence, have a fair play and practice all acts of decency, a basis for human civilization. Ethical leaders work with social and emotional intelligence and are a source of human well-being and happiness. Such leaders base their behavior on moral grounds, respecting the rights of people and treating everyone in the society equally. They are honest, trustworthy, fair and just and show the way by practicing what they preach. Ethical leader therefore play an important role due to their quality of being people oriented. They focus on the needs of the people and do no not fulfill their self interest at the expense of others. This characteristic creates a relationship between the followers and leaders and inspires the people to be committed and work towards accomplishing a common goal. This is why the distri bution of ethical leaders is important throughout the society for good, happy and healthy relationships between humankind and productivity measures improve in every way.   Good ethics means good business. Non-corporation with the evil is as much a duty as is co-operation with good Mahatma Gandhi. Ethical leaders influence citizens to act with compassion, sympathy and noblest spirit towards others. If these values are honored by the society, it will benefit them in many ways. However, if these values are broken it will bring negative impact that will not only affect the violator but also the innocent people. The negative impact leads to lack of cooperation, faith and rise in corruption, crime, pollution and social unrest amongst the society members. Factories have long been found to pour untreated waste into rivers, poisoning fish and causing offensive smells. The same goes for smoking factory chimneys, and everyone accepts the desirability of that sort of control. Ethical commitment is important to get rid of these behaviours to defend the right to spoil other peoples enjoyment of life. This is accomplished by having ethical leaders in the business and society as a whole to set limits and minimise the amount of negative behaviours and controls the damage to life and environment. For example, in 2000 Christine Loh the chief executive of Civic Exchange, (non-profit public policy) was the prime mover of the issues of pollution, climate change and corporate social responsibility in Hong Kong. Other examples of ethical leaders include Chris Harrop and Bill Clinton. Chris Harrop the marketing director of Marshalls, the UK stone company reduced child labour in India for the quarrying sandstone. Bill Clinton the former US president played a key role in 2007 in pushing companies and governments to come up with innovative solutions for tackling the problem climate change and other areas such as HIV/Aids. Today businesses are expected to have good ethical values and act socially responsible as an example of ethical behavior. A social responsibility also develops a good image to the company.  In enhancing social responsibility it is important for organizations to employ good and best workers with individual sets of ethics. When individuals act ethically they work with energy and pride bringing maximum productivity and creativity. On the other hand, behaving unethically individuals engage in deception, thus there is diminished effectiveness and reduced success. Research also shows that destructive effects occur when the leaders or employees of a company behave unethically. This is because sometimes employees are unethical as they feel that they can gain from it, or that they think they can they can justify what they are doing. If employees see other colleagues not being penalized for unethical behavior, then they can feel that they can escape it to. Some employees can make a poor choi ce and feel the need to make more choices to cover it up. However, once bad decisions are made, they start to get worse until the employee gets caught. Ethical behavior should be modeled at the top level management, so that employees also ensure ethical standards are maintained. Organizations can aslo facilitate good ethical behaviors by not punishing employees when they come forward with problems but should be allowed to communicate problems. Companies show social responsibility when they go beyond what is optional, and intend to create a benefit for others besides themselves. They focus on giving back to the society. Some examples of socially responsible behavior are raising money for research on diseases, raising money for needy people, sending workers to do voluntary work within the community and promoting recycling. Every society therefore needs leaders who take personal responsibility for their decisions. People want to know if they can trust their leaders and many long for the times when it was easy to see for the difference between good and bad. Ethical leaders ensure to avoid serious consequences on the well being of others by exercising the necessary discipline required as members of society. They promote right actions and act to inspire that establishes the performance of individuals and the culture as a whole.  If the people in the society practice integrity, fairness, decency and enthusiasm, they will be empowered to work with their best performance and creativity. They contribute to the success of the society and influence the choices made by individuals and businesses in carrying out day-to-day activities. Secondly, organizations prosper when leaders take responsibility and ensure that works are performed ethically. Without ethical leaders the world would not have been a peaceful pla ce to live in.

Free College Essays - The Mood of Othello in Shakespeares Othello :: GCSE Coursework Shakespeare Othello

The Mood of Othello  Ã‚      Othello is a play that evokes many emotions from a reader’s mind. The mood is changing, yet throughout, it demands a lot of contempt for the villain, Iago. Beginning with act one, there is an immediate setting for suspicion which will remain characteristic throughout the whole story. There is a touch of happiness for the newlyweds, Othello and Desdemona, which quickly disintegrates with the mighty villains lies and deceit. There is a feeling of empathy for Othello when his extreme, yet falsely founded jealousy causes him to lose his mind, and his beloved wife. The mood is sad and frustrating when poor innocent Desdemona is being punished for a crime she didn’t commit. And at the end there is a slight feeling of satisfaction that Iago’s plan was revealed, yet the mood is overwhelmingly depressing because Othello and Desdemona both suffered severely and died. Iago introduces suspicion in the very first scene. He is discussing how he hates Othello, yet he must feign loyalty for his position. This is already a clue to the reader that Iago cannot be trusted. This feeling of mistrust is vital in the mood of the play because it is most ironic that Othello trusts Iago as much as to murder his own wife. This ironic plot creates a frustrating feeling for the reader which is felt throughout the play. The mood is tense when we find out that Brabantio is angry that Othello has taken his daughter. He i s determined that Othello must have tricked Desdemona into loving him. Othello defends his love for her, and she in turn vows her love for him. This situation of a forbidden relationship is romantic, it makes the reader feel a great deal of respect and happiness for their mutual love. When Iago begins poisoning Othello’s mind with false suspicion of Desdemona’s fidelity, the mood is extremely frustrating. The reader is aware of Iago’s lies, yet Othello is being easily led to believe them. This also evokes anger towards Iago, he is evil in his constant lying, yet he is referred to by Othello as kind and honest. This irony is painful to the reader because it is so blatant. Othello’s extreme jealousy causes the reader a combination of emotions. Jealousy is a very painful emotion, and the reader sympathizes with Othello. Yet, since the reader is aware of the falseness in the roots of the jealousy, they feel a little disgusted by how easily Othello is being tricked.

Good and Evil in Beowulf Essay -- Epic of Beowulf Essays

Good and Evil in Beowulf   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Beowulf, the conflict between good and evil is the poem's main and most important aspect. The poet makes it clear that good and evil do not exist as only opposites, but that both qualities are present in everyone. Beowulf represents the ability to do good, or to perform acts selflessly and in help of others. Goodness is also showed throughout this epic as having the ability to cleanse evil. Even though evil is presented by Grendel, Grendel's mother, and the dragon, who are filled with a desire to act against people and ultimately destroy them. Even pride, a human quality, is presented in Beowulf as a sign that evil exists.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Beowulf takes it upon himself to announce several great deeds that he will perform to help countries in need. One of these deeds is his offer to King Hrothgar, in which he proposes to slay Grendel. Beowulf states, "Single-handed I'll settle the strife!" In this statement, Beowulf is simply stating that he will kill this evil creature, Grendel. Another selfless act Beowulf states is that he will slay Grendel's mother. Beowulf declares, "And I give you pledge, She (Grendel's mother) shall not in safety escape to cover." Beowulf promises to see to it that Grendel's mother will be killed. After Beowulf becomes king in Geatland, he shows his great ability once more by pledging to kill the fire-dragon. "The ring-prince scorned to assault the dragon," the poet said. Beowulf is said to have pled...

Sociology as a Science

More†¦ The case for sociology as a science * 1. The Case for Sociology as a Science 1. Introduction In this paper, I try to put forward several points in favor of sociology as a science. In the course of argument, I will also discuss the problems of † value free† sociology and scope of sociology. 2. What is science? To answer the question if sociology is a science or not, first we need to know what is science, otherwise the question does not make much sense. Actually current philosophical views on the nature of science are diverse, and largely liberalized from previous views.First, they no longer accept strong criteria of falsification as a scientific method. There are several ways to formulate falsification, but her e I mean something like this: scientific theories should make observable predictions and we should discard a theory if we find only one discrepancy between a prediction of the theory and an observation. Because even physics cannot meet such a strong crit eria, now philosophers like Lakatos (1970) admit tolerance to such failure to some extent. Another new movement in philosophy is the attack on the universal laws.Cartwright (1983) argued that seemingly universal physical laws are not really universal, from logical point of view. This and other reasons (note1), Cartwright (1983) and Hacking (1983) presented a new view of science in which piecemeal â€Å"models†, instead of universal laws and theories, play the central role of scientific investigation . Here, â€Å"models† means oversimplified mental pictures of structure. For example, planetary model of atoms is long known as an oversimplification, but still it is widely used by chemists as a convenient way for thinking about chemical reactions. Feature Article –  Sociology TestI do not have enough space to give a definition of science, but these considerations will be enough to help our judgment on the status of sociology. 3. Is sociology a science? With the analysis of science in the previous section in mind, let us turn to sociology. Early sociologists tried to establish sociology as a science, and their arguments are mainly on the methodology of sociology. Comte claimed that sociology uses four different kinds of methodologies, namely observation, experiment, comparison and historical research as a special case of comparison (CST pp. 9-90, SCS pp. 42-54). These are the methodology used in several other scientific fields, especially in biology. So if his sociology had really followed these methods, it would have been a strong case for sociology as a science. But actually he never did empirical research (CST p. 110), so we cannot take his argument at the face value. But his argument influenced on other sociologist s, especially Durkheim. For Durkheim, sociology is a study o f social facts (CST p. 185). A social fact is † a thing that is external to, and coercive of, the actor† (ibid. emphasis original). Because they are external, social facts cannot be investigated by introspection (ibid. ). We should use empirical research. A typical use of this methodology is in his analysis of suicide (CST p. 195). Durkheim used statistics on suicide rate to establish his argument that suicide is a social phenomenon. He refused alternative hypotheses because their predictions did not agree with the actual statistical data. This is an admirable attempt of empirical research of society, but there are several problems.Durkheim applied too strict criteria of falsification to rival accounts. Adoption of these strict criteria is suicidal for sociology, because it is hard for a sociological theory to make a precise prediction, let alone to make a precise and correct prediction (and without this, the f alsification criteria do not work). Another related problem is in his reject ion of introspection as a sociological method. This restricts the scope of sociology too narrowly, and in fact even Durkheim's own study becomes impossible.For example, Durkheim's definition of suicide is â€Å"any case of death ‘resulting directly of indirectly from a positive or negative act of an individual against himself, which he knows must produce this result'† (ED p. 32). But, without using introspection, how can we decide if ‘he knows' the result or not, from external evidence only? I think that Weber's methodology provides an answer to these problems. His key word in this point is â€Å"Verstehen,† a German word for â€Å"understanding† or â€Å"interpretation† (CST pp. 222 -224, FMW pp. 55-56).According to him, we can â€Å"understand† other people's motivation through introspection of our own intentions, and this kind of knowledge is necessary for s ociology. This is exactly what Durkheim denied as a method of sociology, but as we saw above even Durkheim himself used this â€Å"understanding† in his actual work. But, o f course, the problem is if this is permissible as a scientific method. Strong falsification of a theory is almost impossible by such â€Å"interpreted† facts, because if an interpreted fact runs counter to the theory we can just change the interpretation.But, as we saw in the last section, such strong falsification is given up by philosophers of science as too strict a criteria. Moreover, the arbitrariness of interpretation is not as great as one might worry. For example, Comte's three stage theory (the detail of the theory does not matter here) has no follower today because there is no way we can reasonably interpret the evolution of society as obeying such a law. In this case we can say that Comte's theory was falsified.As far as we have this minimal possibility of falsification, we can admit â⠂¬Å"Verstehen† as a scientific method of sociology, thus † interpretive† sociology as a science. Before we proceed to next section, I would like to make a brief remark on the use of models in sociology. One of the reason people may argue against sociology as a science is the lack of the sociological theory. We have Marx's theory, Durkheim's theory, Weber's theory and so on, but none of them are shared by all sociologists.This seems to make a strong contrast with other fields of science where scientists agree on the basic theories. But, as we saw in the last section, some philosophers think that even in other scientific field what scientists are working on are piecemeal models, not a universal theory. And as f or such models, we can find abundant models shared by many sociologists. Actually, this is what Weber called â€Å"ideal types† (CST pp225-228). Ideal types are constructed through exaggerating some features of real cases. By comparing with ideal types we can find characteristics of each real case.These ideal types are useful conceptual tools for sociology just in the same sense as the planetary model of atoms is a useful conceptual tool for chemists. So, in this point, the difference between sociology and other scientific fields is not so great as it seems to be. 4. On â€Å"value free† sociology. To talk about â€Å"value free† sociology, I introduce a distinction made by philosophers recently (e. g. Laudan 1984). This is the distinction between â€Å"epistemic values† and non-epistemic values. Epistemic values are related to a special type of question â€Å"what should we accept as knowledge (or a fact)? Logical consistency, empirical adequacy, simplicity etc. are the criteria to answer such a question, and they ar e called epistemic values. On the other hand, other values are supposed to be used to answer the broader question â€Å"what should we do? † These are non-epistemic values. With this dist inction, we will find that the claims of † value free† sociology made by ea rly sociologists were actually the claims for independence of epistemic values from other values in sociology (even though they are not conscious about this distinction). First, let us see the case of Spencer.Spencer distinguished several kind s of emotional biases, and claimed that we should exclude these biases from sociological research (CST pp. 124-125). None of these biases are epistemic value as characterized above. Moreover, the Spencer's claim that we should exclude these biases is a value judgment, but this is an epistemic value judgment, and as far as this claim itself is not affected emotional biases, to apply such a value to sociology should be O. K. So Spencer's argument agrees with my definition of â€Å"value free† sociology. The same argument applies to Weber.Weber says that teachers should not exploit the circumstances in a lecture room to imprint upon the students his per sonal political views (FMW pp. 146-147), because the task of teacher is to teach his students to recognize† facts that are inconvenient for their party opinions† (FMW p. 147). Again this is a value judgment, but epistemic one. Apparently sociology (or any other science) cannot be free from all values (because the ideal of â€Å"value free† sociology itself is a value), but at least it can be free from non-epistemic kinds of values, when we decide what is a fact and what is not.I guess even Marx can agree this notion of â€Å"value free† sociology to some extent. Of course in Marx's theory the value judgment and the theory are inseparably related, but his actual arguments show that he distinguished these two things. For example, Marx criticizes Ricardo in â€Å"Theory of Surplus Value,† but the primary reason he criticizes Ricardo is not that Ricardo is capitalist, but that Ricardo's conceptual scheme is insufficient because it cannot deal with certai n cases (KM pp. 398-409). Thus the criteria for this judgment is pistemic values, not other kinds of value. I think that this way of argument gives Marx's theory its persuasiveness. Of course I admit non-epistemic values and sociology have many interrelationships. For example, the choice of research topic is influenced the sociologist's personal values, and sometimes a result of sociological research has immediate normative implications (e. g. Marx's analysis on alienated labor; KM pp. 77-87). But still, I think, at the point of accepting something as a fact, we should be free from non-epistemic values. 5. On the scope of sociologyComte thought that sociology is the study of social statics (social structure) and social dynamics (social change) (CST p. 94). Durkheim thought that sociology should deal with social facts. Simmel claimed that â€Å"everything which was not science of external nature must be science of society† (SCS p. 29). Does any of them have the right answer? I don't think that there is anything right or wrong on this topic, but my own preference is Simmel's answer quoted here. I think that Comte's and Durkheim's answers tried to restrict the subject fie ld of sociology to establish sociology as a independent scientific field.But now no one would doubt sociology is an independent field (even though someone might object that it is not a â€Å"scientific† field). In this situation, such a conscious self restriction of subject matter is nothing but an obstacle to interdisciplinary cooperations with psychology and other neighbor fields. This is why I like Simmel's answer. 6. Conclusion According to the liberalized philosophical view on science, there is nothing wrong with admitting Weber's â€Å"Verstehen† and â€Å"ideal types† as scientific method, thus admitting sociology using these methods as a science.Recent distinction between epistemic and non-epistemic values makes the claim of â€Å"value free† sociology intelligible, and I think it is a reasonable position if taken in the sense I defined. I also briefly talked about the scope of sociology, and argued that we should not be restrictive on the subject matter of sociology. For example, even in physics, the scientists in closely related fields sometimes accept mutually inconsistent theories in each field and have no problem. This shows that

Women In Leadership: The Place Of Assertiveness And Recognition Of Human Rights

Introduction The assumption that women leaders tend to be aggressive has been largely upheld, in Africa. That is not to say that all women leaders in Africa are aggressive; arguably, however, most women leaders tend to exhibit aggressive behaviour creating an impression of aggression within women leaders regardless of the reality. Assertiveness is a key quality expected from leaders or managers (Philips, 2002; Ames and Flynn, 2007) particularly those who have a lot of responsibilities. Those who aspire or are appointed as leaders are expected to posses and exhibit such qualities creating a self fulfilling prophecy. Assertiveness is, therefore, viewed as a dimension describing the tendency by people to speak for, defend, and act in their interest, values, and goals (in Ames and Flynn, 2006). A leader therefore, should be capable of planning, strategically; communicating clearly to other members of staff and rendering support to staff for effectiveness and success, but that is not always the case, particularly when it comes to female leaders. The questions, therefore, are; what are the factors responsible for lack of assertiveness among women leaders, in Nigeria and why this often manifests itself as aggression rather than effective assertivenessA further question Is raised as to whether it is only seen as an issue for Nigerian women leaders, or is it a general disposition of the female genderThis essay, therefore, will give a brief chronological account of my career, identify the problems encountered that informed the choice of assertiveness and recognition of human rights (which are interconnected) and will therefore be discussed as part of one concept, namely, assertiveness. Related literature on assertiveness will be discussed and the factors responsible for its absence in women leaders. The importance of assertiveness for women in leadership positions will be reiterated. An action plan for my career will be highlighted and then concluded. It is worth stating, at this point, that the entire essay is going to be based on my personal experience and my context, except where otherwise mentioned. The essay will refer to females as women and males as men, because the essay is gender related. My career I started my teaching career at the age of twenty three, in a nursery and primary school, in Kaduna state of Nigeria. I had just finished a diploma course in Special Education at the University of Jos, in Nigeria, and was enthusiastic about joining the teaching profession. Although the school where I was employed to teach was neither a special nor a mainstream school, I was eager to put my teaching skills to good use. It was an unpleasant start, as I had to write and teach thirty-six lessons every week; the lesson notes must be ready by the end of Friday, because the head teacher will mark them over the weekend and then give them back to teachers, on Monday morning. Although the work was demanding, my major problem was the relationship between the head teacher and staff. I eventually left on health grounds. My second experience was after my undergraduate studies at the same University. After my undergraduate studies, I went through the one year compulsory National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) which I completed in Kaduna Polytechnic and was offered employment a year after the exercise. I served under a male Head of Department (HOD), during my NYSC, but met a woman head when I was employed as a staff member. I had a heavier work load than most senior teachers, which the HOD attributed to my level and the fact that I did not have other responsibilities. This alerted me to the notion that leaders were often perceived t ho ave ‘different’ responsibilities In short, while the HOD made me the departmental secretary, welfare committee secretary, assistant registration officer and assistant exams’ officer, the work load did not change showing a lack of leader understanding of the precise role. She eventually finished her tenure and another woman was elected. The third experience I had was another woman HOD who was elected into the position by other members of staff of the department, in conformation with the new rule in the institution; previously, headship was by appointment by the school management team. I had thought, at this point, that I would be relieved of some of my responsibilities, if not all. However, when the new head assumed duty, instead, my duties increased as she would call me to do just about anything, if was within sight and would then show no appreciation for the work done. This raised issues of how work was attributed to staff and how leaders look towards achieving a balanced workload for all staff, something which had been lacking in my experience. Problems identified The previous paragraphs have given a brief account of my career; this paragraph will focus on issues I consider problematic in staff relationships with women leaders. I have observed, from a distance, that the behaviour of women leaders, across the board, (e.g. church, unions, societies, etc.), in combination with my personal experience and have come to the conclusion that most women leaders are unnecessarily difficult to work with and often aggressive. I have heard some men endorse that opinion, as well. The three women I have worked with have a striking similarity in their behaviours all ultimately leading to aggression, which is characterised by being domineering, sarcastic, hard-edged, strident, impatient and blaming others. Furthermore, they were not assertive in their relationship with staff; they had no respect for staff, although they demanded respect from the staff, in turn. They acted as if they were superior beings who wanted to be revered; they were, in my opinion, ruthle ss to other colleagues and staff, generally. They were aware of their powers and exercised them to the fullest. Such women leaders tend to favour those they liked and victimise others. My first head teacher would tell staff members to report her, if they had the nerve; she knew nothing would be done about it; she always had things her way. These leaders make derogatory statements to staff, oblivious to who is listening; it was a common occurrence. Sometimes it happened right before the students; which could engender disrespect for teachers by their students, a situation that is avoidable. This was seen as a consistent way of operating by female leaders. I recall my first day at work with amazement; I was disappointed at the way in which I was handed some necessary items I needed and a list of dos and don’ts by the stern looking head teacher. It felt as though it was purely an exercise of power, although I had thought that the head teacher might have problems at home, but came to realise that that was how she operated, in general. With my second employment, the HOD just collected my letter of employment and acknowledged it and that was all. I was not assigned an office, nor was there an orientation of any kind; I had to learn by trial and error or by asking other members of staff. I felt, from inception, that there was an enormous problem regarding leadership. This is because there was a lot of manipulation and no room for collaboration. In one of the cases, there was an outburst from the teachers when the HOD’s attitudes became unbearable; almost all staff members passed a vote of no confidence in the HOD and forwarded it to the school management. Although they had their good sides, it was however outweighed by their aggression. These kinds of dispositions seem to make staff members become emotionally exhausted and stressed, especially those who are passive, which affects the productivity of staff as a whole and does not create a team mentality. Literature Review Having given a brief history of my career and also identified what posed as challenges for me and other staff members, because of the disposition of the head teachers, it becomes imperative to look at what literature says about the assertiveness of women in leadership. Assertiveness is a critical issue, in Nigeria’s leaders; however, there is little or no literature in that regard concerning the concept, generally, and in regards to women, specifically. Assertiveness is a concept that are hardly mentioned and likewise the need for well managed assertiveness and the ignorance exhibited in this regard seems to affect the majority of the people, to a large extent, which leaders use to their advantage. These two concepts of assertiveness and human rights, as mentioned in the introduction are interconnected and inseparable, because assertiveness is all about knowing one’s rights and acknowledging the rights of others. It is this latter factor that is particularly relevant in the discussion. For instance, Back and Back in Armstrong (1991) stated that assertiveness is â€Å"standing up your for own rights† and, at the same time, taking into account the rights of others. In other words, know your rights and your limits, in order not to violate another person’s rights. The two concepts will therefore be discussed as one, namely assertiveness. Assertiveness is the ability of an individual to act clearly, honestly, and to communicate directly (Dickson, 2012) and is considered a critical component of leadership effectiveness (Ames and Flynn, 2006). In other words, for leaders to succeed and advance in their leadership roles, they must be assertive. As stated earlier, one outstanding quality of assertiveness, I believe, is being aware of one’s rights and respecting the rights of other people; its importance in the work place and in life generally cannot be over emphasized. Despite this there are difference between assertiveness and aggression which needs to be recognised in this discussion. Assertiveness can be proactive (acting rather than reacting) and reactive (responding rather initiating), both verbal and non-verbal (by means of words and action) (Ames and Flynn, 2006; Ames, 2009), depending on the situation or circumstance. Ames and Flynn (2006), in research which they carried out (not specifically on women) tried to establish the relationship between assertiveness and leadership and came up with some interesting concepts; high and low assertiveness. High assertiveness, they opine, results in what they term instrumental reward, meaning that leaders compromise their relationship with colleagues and subordinates in order to attain goals. Low assertiveness, on the other hand, results in social reward, which involves compromising attainment of goals in the quest of maintaining a good relationship with staff. Belonging to either of these two levels of assertiveness is already a challenge, as the leader in question would have to compromise one thing, in other to achiev e the other; presumably the two are of utmost importance. The question is, if being assertive is a positive quality that leaders should possess, what are the factors or barriers that prevent leaders from exhibiting assertive behaviours? Factors responsible for women’s lack of assertiveness Internal and external stimuli (Oplatka and Tamir, 2009) are words used in describing reasons for women leaders’ lack of assertiveness, according to research carried out by Oplatka and Tamir. They posit that women who aspire for leadership positions (internal stimulus) are more likely to exhibit assertiveness and display more confidence than those who have waited for the positions to be offered, or were asked to apply (external stimulus). One factor, according to these researchers, that stands in the way between women and assertiveness is their unwillingness or unpreparedness to be leaders or school heads. Furthermore a lack of understanding of the role of a head may also create difficulties in harnessing natural leadership skills towards creating an efficient team working environment. Another factor, as suggested by Coleman (2002), is family responsibilities. Married women have enormous family responsibilities; leadership in the work place adds to it and seems to affect their advancement in the office in a way that a male counterpart may not experience. It would not be strange for a woman to walk into the office and pick on the first person she sees, not because of anything they have done wrong, but possibly as a result of a pending issue with spouse, children or any family member; it happens frequently in my context. Contrary to Coleman’s suggestion, Hall (1996) in a study of six women head teachers, in the U.S, found women leaders (American) to be effective in their roles as leaders. Hall discovered that these women, although in different schools, showed some similarities in their leadership styles, which he attributes to family experiences from childhood, especially roles they played as girls who were taught by their mothers. These school heads had a smo oth working relationship with their staff; there was collaboration, openness, and shared decision-making, with no attempt made to dominate; they use this strategy, only when other means have failed (Hall, 1996). This distinction between the US experiences and the experiences in Nigeria could be due to the fact that the US is generally more accepting of women in powerful positions and society supports full time female workers in the US in a way that is not as available in Nigeria. Fear of failure and insecurity, according to Oplatka and Tamir (2009), is another impediment to women leaders’ advancement and exhibiting qualities considered to be assertive. What are they afraid of or insecure aboutGender related insecurities, because of male dominance, ( Oplatka and Tamir, 2009), gender stereotype, hostility towards women (Bickel, 2001) were identified as possible reasons responsible for the non-assertive behaviour women leaders exhibit. Poor self-image was suggested as affecting women’s attitude and effectiveness as self-confidence is largely linked with the developmental process and experiences an individual encounters, is exposed to, has interacted or associated with (Morgan et al, (1981); Mathipa and Tsoka, 2001); which Mathipa and Tsoka argue is, to a large extent, dependent on the type of education women receive. The type of education either builds an individual’s confidence or creates a lack of confidence, which heightens fears and inse curities among women. Creating a greater general acceptance of women in management roles would reduce the need to be overly aggressive when asserting the management position. Mathipa and Tsoka (2001) reiterated that women are not born with a poor self-image, but are culturally educated to respect and uphold others. This is especially true in Africa, where a woman is supposed to be ‘seen and not heard’. However, those who live in urban areas exhibit more confident behaviour than those in rural areas. In consonance with this, Mathipa and Tsoka, Milgram (1970 in Ames 2009) stated that assertive behaviour differs between those in urban and rural settings and within regions of a country depending on their experiences within society (Cohen and Nisbett, 1994, in Ames, 2009). This is a clear pointer to the role culture plays in the issue of women leaders’ assertiveness. Discussion of issues The amount of literature available on the issue of assertiveness of women leaders is an indication of the challenges faced by women leaders. The discussion will, therefore, be centred on the themes revealed in the literature. Women leaders have two main issues to contend with; the fact that they are women and also the need to be accepted as effective leaders. The world is a man’s world, as is the common belief, in certain regions, which is why the disposition of a woman in leadership is crucial. In an article based on South African women, lack of assertiveness was mentioned as a barrier to women’s advancement to leadership positions, particularly in the education profession (Mathipa and Tsoka, 2001). In my opinion, the same is applicable to Nigeria. Women would naturally not prepare and plan for leadership, in Nigeria; however that is not to say that some women do not aspire to leadership roles. There is a perception that a ‘woman’s place is in the home’; most women were brought up with that belief, with the constant reminder that the man is the head (natural leader) of the family. The underlying fact is that they do not plan nor prepare for leadership (Oplatka and Tamir, 2009). I would argue, therefore, that men do not go through any formal training or even plan (sometimes) to be leaders, but their approach to leadership is different; again, that is not in any way saying that all men are good leaders or heads. A male head, for example, would hardly come to the office in the morning with an attitude, because of an incident that happened in the home. The male leader is also more comfortable in their position as it is perceived to be more ‘normal’ and there isn’t the same desire to prove the mselves as the leader from the outset. My course mate shared with me her experience about her encounter with a head teacher in one of the schools, who shouted at her because she went to get the keys to a particular room, to pick a musical instrument which she was supposed to play for the children (she was not told until that morning). Women appear to be very emotional, which may be responsible for the way they behave at times. For instance, my HOD summoned me, on one occasion, and was abusive in her words, only to discover that she was wrong because she accused me, wrongly; however, she did not apologise; she was the head. My rights were trampled upon, but being a passive person, it was impossible to respond. Being prepared for leadership is necessary, which I suppose is responsible for the creation of the National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) in England, in 1997, which is a mandatory requirement for headship (Bush and Oduro, 2006). Assigning responsibilities to teachers was also suggested (Mangin, 2009), in order to begin to prepare teachers for future headship responsibilities. This may not fit well, in my context, as most of those in leadership have held other responsibilities in lesser capacities, before becoming head teachers. All these strategies are helpful; however, in my opinion, assertiveness is not just to be taught, but is a skill to be learned. Furthermore it is contended that having greater confidence in themselves will reduce instances of unecesary aggression as they will be content in their role without the need to trample others. Family responsibility is another factor responsible for women’s lack of assertiveness and can be highly influential to their role in the workplace. From my experience, acknowledging that it is not easy for a woman to be a leader, yet if she has a family, is necessary as it is an important part of how she has developed as a leader. The woman is typically responsible for everything that happens on the home front, in addition to other responsibilities outside the home. The experience of this head teacher is to buttress this assertion. This head teacher leaves her house as early as 5.00am, in order to beat the traffic, that is, after she has prepared breakfast for her husband (no children yet). She leaves the office and arrives home around 7.00pm, because of the traffic. Her husband faithfully waits for her return, to cook his meals (he has no job) which involves her working within the home as well as at work; this she does everyday. She pays all the bills and provides food; her h usband does nothing and would not help even with house chores (he is the head of the family). This social limitation places greater pressures on the female leaders I went to see one head one morning; immediately she saw me she broke down and wept. This is one scenario out of so many that women go through. This may be an extreme scenario, but there are a lot of women heads who do not experience up to a fraction of this and yet lose control in the office, resulting in unnecessary conflict; surprisingly, the head teacher in the story above is not aggressive, neither is she passive; one would not even have the slightest inclination that she had a problem, if she had not opened up to discuss it. This behaviour is unique to her, as not every woman can tolerate that without reacting; this, I would argue is the result of individual differences in people. Individual differences in assertiveness are also crucial in how leaders are perceived and their success as a leader (Ames and Flynn, 2000) . The notion about the upbringing of the girl child that translates into assertive behaviour is also worth mentioning. There was a practice, in earlier times, that is still being practised by some families, in Nigeria. When a boy wants to get married, his parents secretly inquire about the girl’s family; the purpose is to find out the norms and values of her family; this they believe will tell them the kind of behaviour the girl is likely to exhibit. That will inform their decision on whether the boy should marry the girl, or not. Although the research was carried out on American head teachers, the girl’s childhood upbringing is also taken seriously, in Nigeria. However, it does not always follow; as parents would do everything possible and children will grow and choose their own path. That is not in any way implying that the girl child’s upbringing has no influence in adulthood. Having such a strong parental influence is relevant as this may impact on the way that a woman perceives herself and a female that has not been encouraged to carve a career for herself may face increased personal barriers to showing well placed assertiveness. Lack of assertiveness in women heads tend to create fear and make them insecure in their role. It could be because they feel intimidated by other colleagues, or lack confidence in their ability to carry out their responsibilities. Although leaders tend to put on a good front, they become emotionally exhausted in trying to stay on top of their game, something which is exacerbated when they also have family pressures. I recall with disdain how my head would add her workload to mine and demand I meet the deadline; with authority of course. Other staff members claimed that she saw me as a threat and was trying to frustrate me; it was almost the same experience with the other three women heads I worked with. The question is, if one is insecure, why take out their frustrations on other peopleAlthough the heads behave almost in the same way to all staff, men find it extremely difficult to tolerate such behaviours from female leaders. In the African culture, it is natural for men to be leade rs and awkward or strange for a woman to be leaders, where there are men; culture has placed the woman below the man. Unassertive behaviours by women leaders only strengthen the assumption that women do not posses leadership qualities. However, there are women who are outstanding in their leadership roles. According to Dickson (2012), the issue of equality is one of the most important characteristic of assertiveness. My action plan Having discussed the findings based on the available literature, it becomes imperative to map out a plan, based on my reflections of the module, especially regarding the aspect of assertiveness and training of potential female leaders. Although I do not like taking on the role of a leader, I am, most of the time, assigned responsibilities. As a passive person, I need to prepare myself for the future, especially in the aspect of assertiveness if this is not to create insecurities within myself. Conclusion Assertiveness seems to be a significant aspect of leadership; however, it would appear that little or no attention is accorded to the concept or acquiring skills associated with . It is one thing to be a leader and another to be an effective leader. Women in leadership positions have considerable challenges for the singular reason of being women. Exhibiting aggressive, passive or manipulative behaviour will only add to their challenges and the suppression of the male dominant figure of authority. The woman is known to possess a naturally soft, accommodating, friendly and gentle nature. Where a woman leader decides to be domineering, in order to command respect like men, she meets with conflict which is responsible for the unnecessary emotional stress and exhaustion leaders and their staff experience, which can be avoided. If women leaders can express strong feelings, without being aggressive, accept that they are not omnipotent, and compromise, sometimes without insisting on winning all the time, respect the feelings, privacy, and opinions of others, it is most likely that they will have a serene environment to work in, with full support from staff. Whenever people feel supported or acknowledged, there is likely to be advancement and also an indication that a situation has been handled assertively. 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