Bull market or bear market Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Bull market or bear market - Essay Example Additionally, as the national income increases, so is the demand for stock is the stock market. Over the next two years, earnings by companies will increase substantially as the demand for goods and services within US increases. The rate of interest in US is low, which results in an increase in the value of stock. In other words, the rate of interest and the prices of stock have a direct relationship (Murphy 18). When the rates of interest are low, the earnings from bonds decreases, and the stock bec0mes more attractive compared to bonds. Another reason why there is a bull stock market is that many companies have fully recovered from the 2008 global financial crisis and are buying back their stock. The increase in the demand for stock grows the prices for the stock. As the number of companies that have fully recovered increases, so is the demand for the stock, thus the increase in their

Life Cycle Stages Essay Example for Free

Life Cycle Stages Essay There are four stages in the financial life cycle of an individual. The accumulation, saving, pre-retirement and retirement stages. Judging from the financial ratios of Winston and Yvonne, we concluded that Winston and Yvonne are in stage 2: the savings stage of the financial life cycle phase. This stage of the life cycle is usually characterized by the increase of assets, net worth and the decline in the use of debts, as by this stage Winston and Yvonne have already accumulated more assets over the years and would seek to protect their wealth and priorities and at the same time seek to be more risk adverse than before. People in this stage are usually concerned in saving for the future like children’s education, retirement etc. As the savings Ratio can be easily explained by the amount of money a person saves as a percentage of their total income. The level of savings as a percentage of Winstons and Yvonnes income is 60.41% as calculated is expected of the couple in their mid 30s falling in this stage of the life cycle as it portrayed high savings planning for the future of their children’s education. In the savings stage of the life cycle, we could expect an increase in net worth and assets as those had been accumulated before reaching conservation phases in that cycle. The increase in assets meant that Winston and Yvonne have a relatively high net worth as calculated at 74.51%. As Winston and Yvonne have a relatively high net worth ratio, their financial solvency is lower as most of their funds are being tied up with their fixed assets and their high net worth ratio also showed that their investments and commitments are being funded by debts and trade payables that are not proportionate. Winston and Yvonne might also face problems such as liquidity problems as their high ratio meant that they do not have immediate access to their cash. Therefore any decline in value of their investments or in any aspect that is relevant to their assets would cause them to have the inability to pay back their debt, thus lead to bankruptcy. Winston and Yvonne should seek to lower their net worth ratio by diversifying their funds in lesser fixed assets like property, home contents and education funds as lowering the ratio of their net worth would help them have more f inancial flexibility and ability to meet their financial payment obligations. http://smallbusiness.chron.com/interpret-assetstonetworth-ratios-57281.html. http://www.accountingtools.com/net-worth-ratio. As Winston and Yvonne are in their wealth protection phase, we explained that there would be an indication of a high net worth and a decrease in the use of debts. The debt Service ratio is the monthly debt commitments in comparison to total income and expressed in a percentage. In other words it is the ratio of the ability to repay loans over a period of time. If a debt service ratio is too high it would mean that one is too highly leveraged and has a high amount of loan and in the long run might run into difficulties in repaying off the loan commitment in the future. In this stage we expected financial prudence and a high risk adversity. The low debt service ratio of Winston and Yvonne at 14.21% indicated the low dependability on debt and increases their ability to service their debt, reducing the risk of them not being able to continue going in the long run. This could be expected of them as they are seeking to save for the future and make sure that they are able to service their l iabilities in the long run and not exhausted halfway through by limiting their commitments and slowly getting a debt free approach when it comes to their retirement. http://www.e-conomic.co.uk/accountingsystem/glossary/debt-ratio.

Risks And Benefits Of International Trade Economics Essay

Risks And Benefits Of International Trade Economics Essay Political environment, which is more important especially large international business, requires high investment. More consumers sought after more goods, more service and besides last pay back time. The political systems have two types namely; democracy and totalitarianism. Economic environment, which is required in home country, host country and world economics, are supporting or objection for international business and relation to suppliers. Economic growth affects on politics social and lows, the found political system and situation politics in country, and the world has direct affects on economic and business. Social and culture are foundation of living and work for humans, they has an impact on characteristic to work and every day life. For lows, it is convention for country activities including economic activities and business. Therefore economics, political, social and lows are closely bound in terms of relationship. Technology environment refers to new knowledge factor in the world such as sciences or engineering and including strategic management because marketing competition enforce each country to invent new knowledge or know-how benefit for its own business development. Each country that has new knowledge must create new products; have low capital and high efficiency in order to keep pace with the international competitors and to respond the customers needs in the international market. When the country enters into international business, they must encounter risks in international business, which can be listed as four categories as following; Country risk is associated with intervening of the government, protectionism, trading and investing barriers, social disturbance and instability of politics, economic malfunction and unorganised, unsatisfied of foreign companies in legal sanction, bureaucry, managerial postponements and bribery, and deficient legal acts for trespassing property rights. Commercial risk is correlated to inability of partner, management failures, timing factor, competitive intensity and poser execution of strategy. Currency (Financial) risk is related to currency exposure, asset valuation, foreign taxation, inflationary and transfer pricing. Cross-cultural risk is consisted of cultural differences, negotiation strategies and ethics. The four types of international business risks are omnipresent; the firm may encounter them continuously. When these risks cannot be simply avoided, they can be efficiently anticipated and managed by preparing to confront the risks mentioned above. The important two types of focal firms in international business: the multinational enterprise (MNE); and small and medium-sized enterprise (SME). The multinational enterprise refers to a huge company, which possesses plentiful assets, manages numbers of business activities by communicating through a network of subsidiary companies settled worldwide. While MNEs are among the leading participants, international business is not the domain of large, resourceful firms alone. Many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are participated in the business as well. Overall this step to international business, it is significant to study international business to every parts, such as global economic and interconnectedness, contributor to national economic well-being, a competitive advantage for the company to sustain a competitive advantage in the necessary skills, knowledge, competence and etc. According to Dr. B. Warner, the determinants of national competitive advantage can be divided into four determinants namely, the factor conditions; demand conditions; related supporting industries; and structure of firms and rivalry. The factor conditions are used in various ways by means of upholding the economic competitiveness among business and country. In order to advance the employees ability in working with efficiency and handling the higher-tech goods, the employees are trained and educated according to their factor conditions. Another way to use the factor conditions as a determinant of national competitive advantage is that the business must provide more funds in researching or buying the high-tech discoveries and other improved efficient appliances that may facilitate better products and services in order to compete with opponents (Warner). Secondly, the demand conditions is a significant determinant of national competitive advantage, for it assists in upholding the maintenance of economic effectiveness and it empowers the business to possess the well-built local market, which eventually pave the company better way in advancing the goods and services quality for the international market. Warner suggest an example to illustrate this point that French customers give the reasonable feedbacks to the local wine makers in order to help them improving their wine-making for selling world-wide. Furthermore, Warner remarks that related and supporting industries are important because of its benefits in providing low-cost inputs and offering information concerning on the industry environmental issues and changes that support MNEs. To illustrate this point, it is noteworthy to look upon example given by Warner Italian tiles companies are informed continuously by their suppliers who notify them about any technological changes, the inputs and developments of factors in the industry. Besides the determinants mentioned above, the firm strategy is remarkable determinants for those companies that eager to maintain the economic competitiveness. The firm strategy smoothes the progress of a company catching up the competitors game, then the company knows how to fight and how to activate marketing plan. Making the decisions with well-organized firm strategy enable the company to empower its economical reliable. Take company competitiveness in the German chemical industry as an example. A particular simple structure may complete a firms requirement, whereas the same simple structure may fail to answer another firms needs, which concerns on the complexity of particular design. As for the German firms, for instance, they are hierarchically organized to make them appropriate for personnels needs. In addition, the rivalry of firm should not been overlooked because of its important in uplifting the firms to take as much chance in sharpening their skills and eventually turning out to be even more challenging to compete among the international business. Japanese car manufacturers are the case that Warner provides in his article. The Japanese car manufactures increasingly develop its economic competitiveness among the international businesses and happen to be the unignorable competitor, because their economical development progressively rises upon those car manufacturers in the U.S. and in Europe. In conclusion, it is remarkable for those companies who are able to take the challenge in encountering the international business risks. As mentioned above, the four determinants are both significant and correlated. Moreover, these determinants have particular impacts on others determinants and vice versa. In short, the firms rivalry is affected by the demand conditions, and the number and type of related and supporting industries are impacted by the factor conditions. References: Cavusgil, T. Knight, G. and Riesenberger, J.(2007) International Business: Strategy, Management and the New Realities. New Jersey: Pearson prentice hill. Katsioloudes, Marios I. and Hadjidakis, Spyros. International Business: A Global Perspective. Oxford: Elsevier, 2007. Kuntonbute, C. Assoc. Prof., Ph.D. (2006) International Business Administration. (3th edition), Chulalongkorn University Bangkok Press, Chulalongkorn Publishing. Hill, C. International Business: Competing in the Global Marketplace. (international Edition), New York, NY: McGRAW-HILL, 2007. Warner, B., Ph.D. International Business and Policy: Seminar Two.

The Road to Happiness - Original Writing :: Happiness Essays

My name is Bob Thomas. My life has been one hell of a roller coaster, with enough ups and downs to make anyone nauseas. I guess I shouldn’t complain, because that is a common lifestyle for most people. It all started when I was a teenager and it is a familiar fact that every teenager has their fair amount of rows, with there parents. However, one argument was just one to many for me. It was actually quite pathetic; I look back and laugh at what I was arguing about. This sounds silly but I was quarrelling, with my mum, on whether I could wear my suede boots to school. It all ended up with me storming out of the door saying that I was deprived of my freedom and opinion. I could remember hearing my dad in the background, shouting at the top of his lungs, that I shouldn’t dare step foot out of the house. But I did. I was confused and angry, so I just wanted to be as far away from home as possible. Using the money I had on me, I took a train to London without even realizing or noticing how dim-witted I was being. At that point all I wanted to see was that lousy excuse for a mother, dead. The area I picked in London was an awful mistake. I was living on the streets with no money, no job, nothing. And to add to that, these unpleasant people would come up to me and stare. And then there were the occasional perverts hanging around, but I kept myself hidden when I saw them lurking about. I tried to make life work, by scavenging for anything I could get my hands on. I couldn’t think of asking my parents for help, it was just out of the question. I had been gone to long, I could imagine the angry looks on their faces, describing the pain I had put them through. What if they didn’t even want me back? They seemed quite content with my sister. They had probably forgotten

I Never Worry About the Future Essay

Albert Einstein Some people are trying to live a carefree life, they say that they ‘’go with the flow’’ and are not preoccupied with the future. Others think about tomorrow and the day after it so much they are constantly under stress. So which is better, to worry or not to worry about the days which are ahead of us? Planning our days in advanced is somehow necessary these days. Our world is spinning so fast that one has to know what he is doing or he ends up doing nothing. Good example of that is choosing which school or even more important, which university to enrol in. When doing that we have to consider our interests as well as which occupations can our future degree provide us. When enrolled into a school we have to study in order to have good grades or we just might not end up having expected degree and doing the job we wanted. Therefore thinking about future is good when it keeps us trying hard to achieve our goals. On the other hand being concerned about what might happen has bad affects on our health and attitude. Few days before the exam of which results may have an impact on their future, some people are so worried that their immune system does not function as it should and they become ill. What is more, stress can also enable their abilities to learn and concentrate. And last but not least because of constantly worrying those people can express their frustrations with yelling on others and their relationship with them can get worse. To conclude I would like to state that thinking and worrying about the future is something that we all do, some less, others more. The important thing is that worries do not affect on our lives so much that we cannot enjoy the moment we are living in but are still present enough to force us try and make our dreams come true.

Religion Clause in Amend. essays

Religion Clause in Amend. essays Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. Two clauses in the First Amendment guarantee freedom of religion. The establishment clause prohibits the government from passing legislation to establish an official religion or preferring one religion to another. It enforces the "separation of church and state". The free exercise clause prohibits the government, in most instances, from interfering with a person's practice of their religion. In determining weather the a governmental practice is violate the First Amendment Establishment Clause, the Courts have developed the "Lemon Test." The Lemon Test organized in the Court's 1971 Lemon v. Kurtzman, is a three-pronged inquiry: 1) Does the challenged legislation or activities have a legitimate secular purpose? 2) Does the legislation or activity have a primary effect that neither advances nor inhibits religion? and 3) Does the legislation or activity excessively entangle government with religion? Several cases that demonstrate the use of the Lemon Test are Zobrest v. Catalina Foothills School District argued February 24, 1993 Decided June 18, 1993. The issued raised was whether the State may refuse to pay for a deaf child's sign language interpreter in a parochial school. The school district has successfully argued in the U.S. District Court and in the U.S. Court of Appeals (9th Circuit) that permitting a government-funded interpreter to work in a Catholic school would have the primary effect of advancing religion by constituting public aid to a religious institution, which violates the effects prong of the Lemon test. It was also held that paying for the sign language interpreter in a Catholic school would create, in the eyes of Zobrest' ...

Mali Empire in Africa History Essay Sample

Mali Empire in Africa History Essay Sample Mali Empire in Africa History Essay Example Mali Empire in Africa History Essay Example Looking at Africa today one is likely to believe that civilization, governance and trade are new concepts introduced probably in the late 19th with the advent of colonialism. Africa was the most underdeveloped region in the world. In terms of civilization, though they have made progress in the use of technology especially mobile phones, the other sectors remain largely infant or nonexistent. In the 21st century the largest income earner and highest contributor to the GDP of most African economies remains to be agriculture. These are centuries after the agrarian revolution. Trade in most African countries is restricted to their former colonial masters with hardly any interstate trade going on. As for governance most African countries are young democracies, some of them were suffering from cruel dictatorship and others locked in never ending civil wars. The current situation is not a true representation of the African continent before the 15th century. On the contrary historical and ar chaeological evidence present a totally different picture. Medieval Africa was almost at par with the rest of the world as far as civilization is concerned. There existed many African Kingdoms and Empires that were governed properly complete with ministries and trade and foreign policies. These empires often formed as a result of military conquest, traded with other empires in Africa and also out of Africa with people in continents like Asia; they traded with Arabs and Chinese people and Europe with the Spaniards and the Portuguese. These empires were at the forefront of developing and using technology and their citizens lived quality lives for that period of time. This paper studies the rise and fall of the empires that thrived on the western coast of Africa before the 15th with a specific focus on the Mali Empire. The work discusses the factors that led to the rise of Mali Empire taking into account economical, geographical and political factors. It also examines how the above asp ects led to the decline and eventual collapse of the Mali Empire. Brief History of Early Kingdoms in Africa In medieval Africa, most people were either farmers, hunters and gatherers or livestock keepers. Their economic activities dictated where they settled. For instance, farmers settled in area with fertile lands and adequate water supply either through rainfall or close to water bodies such as ocean and lakes. Hunters and gatherers settled in areas near forests or grasslands where wild animals could be found easily. The herders preferred grasslands with adequate pasture for their animals. Economic activities were determined by the people’s tribes. Hence individuals of one tribe would settle together in an area, which favored their economic activity. As people settled, their numbers increased due to reproduction and often they would fight for the available resources. As a result of these conflicts, they needed someone to mediate and solve them. This led to the development of governance (McKissack, 1994: 190). They thus selected a person, in most cases the individual was a religiou s leader to mediate and gradually this person became the political chief. As people believed the religious gifts were hereditary, often the sibling of the religious persona would succeed him as a leader of the people. These tiny organizations normally grew in size to form kingdoms with kings and even a council of elders to advise the king in the governing of the people. They would further be divided into chiefdoms headed by chiefs who were the king’s representatives in the chiefdoms. It was possible to find many such kingdoms existing concurrently in an area, living as neighbors and intermarrying and even trading (Mann, 1996: 67). Over time one of the kings may develop a larger, more organized army whose military power exceeded those of the other kingdoms. Such a king would engage military warfare against his neighbors conquering them. In so doing he would force the other kings to pay allegiance to him; they would continue to rule their kingdoms as before, only this time they had to pay a fixed amount of revenue to him (McBrewster 85). The revenue came from the products produced in the kingdoms. The king of the strong kingdom hence merged a number of small kingdoms to form an empire and he became an emperor. Most empires then continued with the expansion by acquiring land and people from other kingdoms and through economic activities such as trade they grew in might. Most empires collapsed when due to weak governance or civil strife the individual kingdoms fought and achieved their independence. Many such kingdoms existed in Africa from the north to the south and to the east and west. To the east, kingdoms suc h as the Buganda kingdom flourished, the south had kingdoms such as the Zimbabwe Kingdom and the west had several great kingdoms including; Ghana, Mali and Songhai Kingdoms. The Mali Kingdom followed the above pattern and its rise and fall is discussed below. The Rise of the Mali Kingdom The rise of the Mali Kingdom was facilitated by a number of factors, which cut across all sectors ranging from geographical, political and economic factors. Geographical factors that led to the rise of the Mali Kingdom Mali had several geographical advantages over Ghana and the other kingdoms that enabled it to grow. First its proximity to the river Niger improved its transport system. This is as with the river, using canoes they were able to move not only more goods but also bulky ware that they would not have been able to if they had relied on then available transport means of horses, donkeys and oxen. The river also increased the pace of their transportation as it is faster that the beasts of burden used for those purposes. Transporting more goods and at a faster rate increased the volume of their trade and hence the capital available to them for expansion enabling it to rise as an empire. Another geographical position that enabled Mali to rise as an empire was its location on the lower banks of river Niger. The latter flooded periodically depositing fertile silt its banks. The silt was fertile facilitating the growth of crops. The river also provided water for the crops planted and hence the Mali Kingdom had adequate food supply. They also traded in food crops. With adequate food the empire could focus on other aspects of growth as they were spared of the severe bangs of hunger leading to starvation that affected the other kingdoms (Conrad, 2005: 93). Mali Kingdom unlike Ghana had actual gold mines in the Kingdom at Bumbuk and Bure. Hence increases its revenue from gold not just from transporting and facilitating its trade but also from the actual exploitation through selling of the gold that they mined. This helped them develop a stronger economy facilitating its rise. The trade routes for the Trans Saharan trade shifted eastwards and hence they fell in the Mali Kingdom. This leads to the rise of Mali as the empire, thus gaining a lot of revenue from the trade through the taxation of the traders. Revenue is important as it was used to support and fund the military and the royalty governing the empire enabling it to conquer more regions and hence rise. Political factors that led to the rise of the Mali Empire Several political factors led to the rise of Mali as an empire. The key among them includes the collapse of the Ghana Kingdom. When the Ghana kingdom collapsed, the individual kingdoms attained their independence and Mali was one of them. Together the Kingdoms were unassailable and strong but on their own they were weak and could easily be captured. When Mali gathered a sizeable army and the support of a few of its neighbors it became the strongest among the weak Kingdoms and was hence able to conquer them to submission thereby leading to its growth as an empire. If the Kingdom of Ghana had not collapsed then Mali would not have risen as an empire (Mann, 1996: 118). Another political factor that led to the rise of Mali as a Kingdom was the cruel leadership of Somanguru. The latter had ceased power upon the collapse of the Ghana Kingdom. He was cruel and ruled in a tyrannical manner killing people carelessly. When Sundiata a Mandinka prince was approached he accepted to rule the military and he did so successfully winning the battle of Kirina (McKissack.1994:77). That act united several kingdoms to the upper banks of the Niger River, which later became the Mali Empire. Hence that act led to the rise of the Mali. The governance of Mali Kingdom also led to its growth. This is so because under the Mansa (emperor) Sundiata came up with an efficient organizational structure that facilitated proper governance hence leading to Mali’s rise. Under this structure, the kings that had sworn allegiance to him and his descendants were appointed as commanders, they ruled their own kingdoms just as before, but this time they paid tribute to the empire. He also established a parliament like organization. This organization called the Gabra decided on the cases and the rules for the empire (McKissack, 1994: 91). He also initiated land reforms in that he divided land portions ensuring people owned land within the empire. He came up with documentation that regulated the interrelationships between people. This effectively reduced the conflicts in the region. Some other reforms initiated by Sundiata included proper and humane treatment of slaves and the prisoners in the kingdom. These led to the rise of the kingdom. Another emperor Mansa Musa also effected political changes that facilitated the rise of Mali Kingdom to reach its peak. Musa made political changes such as dividing the entire into administrative units that can be liked to provinces. He then appointed rulers for these provinces. The latter were further broken down to towns ruled by the equivalent of today’s mayors who were called â€Å"mochrif† (Conrad, 2005: 174) . Mansa Musa also led to the rise of the empire by expanding its territories far into the west. He did this by establishing a huge well trained army, which was used to expand the territory of the empire. It was also used for peace keeping in that whenever there was a rebellion in any of the small kingdoms, the army would be sent to quell it hence facilitating the rise of the Mali Empire. The army also facilitated trade by protecting the traders as they engaged in the trade and as they traded. Another political factor that led to the rise of the Mali Empire was the fact that the kingship was hereditary. Upon the death of one king, succession disputes were reduced by the fact that people knew his heir to the throne. This prevented power vacuums as people tried to choose a new leader. Smooth transition of power was a key factor in facilitating the prosperity of the nation. Except if a few cases where the heirs were overthrown. All the above factors led to the rise of the Mali Empire (McBr ewster, 2009: 29). Economic factors that led to the rise of the Mali Empire The Mali Kingdom like the other kingdoms in West Africa, though established by military conquest, thrived on trade. Therefore, economic factors played a big role in their rise and subsequent falls. In the Mali Kingdom the economic aspects that led to its rise include presence of such minerals as gold, copper and salt. Mali Empire has three gold mines within its borders. These facilitated the trade in gold. It improved the gold trade of the Mali Empire beyond that of Ghana Kingdom. The Empire also had other minerals such as bronze and copper. The latter was mined and traded in Takedda (Conrad, 2005: 245). Agriculture is another economic activity that enabled Mali to flourish. Through it Mali was able to trade in agricultural products like rice. The Niger River economically facilitated the growth of Mali, thus helping people transport goods along the trading routes that it passed through. Another economic factor leading to the growth of Mali kingdom was its location along the trade routes. Some of Mali’s major towns were located conveniently along the trade routes enabling them and hence the empire to grow. For instance, Taghaza town where people traded in salt. In Takedda people exchanged copper for gold. The government also had effective economic policies that led to the rise of the Mali Empire. The policies included taxation. The government taxed all the people trading in the Empire as well as ones who brought gold into the empire. This provided them with adequate funds to properly run the empire hence facilitating its growth (Mann, 1996: 105). The government intervened economically to stimulate the growth of the empire through the implementation of the monetary policy. This is evident that the empire or the place was the only custodian of gold. They received all mined gold and exchanged it for gold dust. This action prevented inflation and hence led to the rise of the Mali Empire, which had a good foreign policy, especially during the reign of Mansa Musa (McKissack, 1994: 87). This was because when he made the pilgrimage to mecca passing across Egypt and other countries he displayed his affluence and generosity attracting a lot of people. He made the rest of the world realize the existence of Mali and came to trade with them, thus resulting to high volumes of trade. He also personally brought scholars and doctors among other experts from around the world revolutionizing Timbuktu into a learning town. This attracted a lot of visitors, especially from North Africa and Asia, and hence improved the revenue of the country leadi ng to its rise. During Mansa Musa’s reign, Mali reached its peak; it was at its largest size about one point two million square kilometers. It had the largest trade volume and military strength. The Fall of Mali Empire Just like the Ghana Kingdom before it and The Songhai Empire after it, the Mali Empire fell, though it was gradual. Just like the rise, the fall of the Mali Empire is attributable to economic, geographical and political factors. The main political aspect leading to the collapse of the Mali Empire was succession. Upon the death of Mansa Musa the empire lacked a strong leader (McKissack, 1994: 74). His sons fought over the succession, since each of them desired to be the ruler. As a result, they fragmented the kingdom into smaller kingdoms. The latter also wanted their freedom as they desire to participate in the trading of gold and salt and to reap direct benefits. They thus revolted. Without an organized strong army to quell the rebellion, they succeeded in declaring and establishing their independence. Some of this Kingdoms such as the Songhai actually acquired enough military strength to conquer towns in the original Mali kingdom such as Goa and Timbuktu. Aside from political facto rs, economic and geographical ones also led to the fall of the Mali Empire (McBrewster, 2009: 109). New goldmines were discovered to the east and the trade shifted eastwards. As the economic base of the Mali Empire was gold, the shift hurt the economy leading to the eventual fall and final collapse of the Mali Kingdom. Conclusion The Mali Empire lasted several centuries. It was on an upward trajectory from the early eleventh century to the late 15th when its fall began. Factors such as good governance, favorable economic conditions and proper geographical location led to its rise. Its fall was caused by poor governance and a change in economic patterns. It had a structure similar to those of the other West African Kingdoms with an Emperor at the head and kings at the provincial level. At its peak it was the second largest empire in the whole world and was a model of civilization. Through the use of iron in the daily lives for purposes such as farming and fighting (spears) it achieved the success that had never been attained before. Its collapse however, was as a result of majorly poor governance. From this paper we can learn that authority is the key ingredient to a successful nation. Despite examples from Mali and Ghana subsequent Kingdoms in West Africa also fell as a result of poor governance and greed for power. Even in the 21st century African countries continue suffering from poor governance.

Students with Asperger syndrome

Students with Asperger syndrome Students with Asperger syndrome demonstrate poor social skills and fail working with their peers. If students with Asperger syndrome enroll in general classroom, teachers who working with them should find special approach to their education. In this paper, we are going to provide an annual educational goal and three functional objectives for a student with ASD (K- 12).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Students with Asperger syndrome specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The annual goal: the main goal of education of a student with Asperger syndrome is to develop his/her social skills, such as develop communication skills, learn dealing with obsessive routines, and overcome physical clumsiness. In this regard, a teacher should focus on the student’s interests and create an appropriate and predictable individual schedule (the tasks should consist of a number of simple steps with detailed instructions understandable fo r a student). At the same time, instructions should be constructed so that they could be implemented within classroom activities among other students. Thus, the annual goal is to assist student becoming an independent member of the social environment, developing student’s social skills and enhance interaction with student’s peers through engaging him/her in structured social activities and providing step by step reinforcement of social behavior. The annual goal is related to emotional and communicational domains. The learner, under consideration is a student with Asperger syndrome who does his study in general classroom. Mark is 15 years old and according to ICD-10 criteria, he has the syndromes that follow: lack of any clinically significant general delay in language or cognitive development; qualitative impairment in reciprocal social interaction as in autism and a restricted pattern of interests and behavior. The presence of clumsiness, although not an established f eature of the syndrome (Ghaziuddin, Metier, Ghaziuddin, Tsai, Giordani 1993). Considering his diagnosis, interests and current academic performance, the target behavior for this student is better interaction with peers in classroom, engaging in non-referential topics with other students, as well as with adults; student will be also developing expressive language skills and receptive language.Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The conditions for such behavior are: thoughtful structure of setting assignments (Mark will be working cooperatively with other students in small groups); helping Mark understand the rules, educating parents, teachers and students in the classroom how to behave with mark. Functional objectives Mark will develop understanding of dependence between his words and actions and their effect on other students, as well as parents and people with whom he commun icates in daily life. Mark will engage in appropriate social activities and interactions initiated by his peers and will allow them to make changes in the activity. Mark will develop expressive and receptive language while relating information taken from different books and providing background statements without paying attention to details. Factors considered when selecting this goal for the student include: Mark’s poor social adaptation, interest to reading books, hardships with providing general information. The goal is functional because they presuppose students’, teachers’ and parents’ active participation in their realization, and encourage Mark to take practical actions to implement these goals. Long-term goals for Mark’s education are further development of social and communication skills in order to help Mark become an independent member of society and teach him handle with his syndrome. They are related to the annual goal because they ar e related to the same (emotional and communicational) domains and present the final goal of Mark’s education. Reference List Ghaziuddin, N., Metier, L., Ghaziuddin, M., Tsai, L. Giordani, B. 1993. â€Å"Three Siblings with Asperger Syndrome: A Family Case Study†, European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 44-49.

The Relevance of Social Networks for Ethnic Entrepreneurs Essay

The Relevance of Social Networks for Ethnic Entrepreneurs - Essay Example Scholars emphasise evidence that demonstrates the capacity of personal networks or social capital to consolidate important resources for the development of ethnic entrepreneurship (Etemad & Wright, 2003). This essay discusses the relevance of personal networks among ethnic entrepreneurs in the current business environment. The discussion emphasises the significance of social capital in surpassing major challenges to entrepreneurship. Several researchers exploring ethnic enclaves have reported that social capital largely contributes to the business success of ethnic entrepreneurs. These researchers have a tendency to place emphasis on the importance of social capital as an alternative to dealing with established political and financial entities rather than on how dominant development resources and community may work together (Cavinato, 2012). The primary finding is that several ethnic or immigrant groups are quite successful in their use of personal networks to attain economic success es. It is a fact that ethnic entrepreneurs require skills, financial resources, and social support in order to survive and thrive. Personal networks can have favourable economic outcomes by enhancing other community resources. One of the greatest relevance of social capital to ethnic entrepreneurship is in the arena of public policy, policymaking, and political institutions (Cavinato, 2012). For instance, social capital has indirectly influenced development of financial resources by first influencing public policy and political perspective. Social capital can influence development of physical resources. It has the capacity to affect public policies associated with human capital and wages, like livelihood policy (Light & Bonacich, 1991). And it can influence the market policies that oversee business development and entrepreneurial prospects. Beginning with the research on ethnic economies, social scientists and entrepreneurship scholars have placed emphasis on several core variables that seem to partly explain the consolidating attributes of ethnic entrepreneurs and communities into enclaves. In this field, analysis of behaviour unavoidably includes descriptions of personal networks, social embeddedness, and social capital (Saegert, Thompson, & Warren, 2005). Lately there has been heightened emphasis on the importance of exploring the dynamics of ethnic entrepreneurship and how its economic mechanisms are attached to governance, cultural, religious, and social forces that finally determine the characteristic of an ethnic community. Personal Networks, Social Capital, and Ethnic Entrepreneurship Ethnic entrepreneurship emerges today in various societies and cultural contexts. Nowadays, ethnic entrepreneurs are a part of a business environment in almost all nations across the globe, drawing much scholarly interest. Enclaves of ethnic entrepreneurs can be seen in the United Kingdom and other Western countries. Ethnic entrepreneurship is generally regarded an import ant component in the economic structures of Western countries and the revitalisation of the small business community (Piperopoulos, 2012, p. 84). However, it would be misleading or inaccurate to lay down a single, strict definition of the concept of ‘ethnic entrepreneurship’ or ‘ethnic entrepreneur’. Ethnic entrepreneurs are commonly defined in the literature as â€Å"sojourners who work harder, save money, spend less by living frugally, have preferential access to

Japanese Movies Attempt to Change Reality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Japanese Movies Attempt to Change Reality - Essay Example Japanese movies does not only show the culture of a people but they also brings with it lessons that need to be learned. Moreover, it also attempts to enhance the good characteristics of people through the characters used in the stories and to change those which are not desirable. â€Å"I Live in Fear† on the other hand approaches the audience with a delusional main character. Due to such characteristic, the protagonist is considered rather lightly but his great wealth being in danger of getting squandered by the deranged man made a rather frantic circle of family members. Upon examination though, the people involved in the case then reconsiders the fears of the old man. The messages are quite hidden behind the symbols which are used in the film to call for change. The paradox of the old man’s fears which are extremely realistic to him are considered as unfounded claims by his family which actually shouts to the audience quite loudly that what could be thought as insanity is the most sane thought after all. This presentation calls for viewers to open their eyes and become very observant about the things that are happening around them. It shouts that people need to do something about the things that endanger their lives and not just take them ligh tly as the old Nakajima’s family did. The reconsideration of Dr. Harada about Nakajima’s mental capacity encourages viewers to be critical about the things that are happening around them and think about the possibilities of the fears of other people. Still, using another technique, â€Å"Sing a Song of Sex† also attempts to call for a change among the viewers by using conceptions made in the mind. The mind is a powerful part of one’s being because it is the source of ideas which could be put into action. The fantasies of the students were later accomplished in the movie. The teacher who was supposed to become the model of the young people instead became the very person who taught them to become rebellious. This part of the

Synthesize a biology topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Synthesize a biology topic - Essay Example The DNA is the repository of information relating to an organism. Forensic science has utilized this fact to conduct DNA testing of blood samples, which identifies a person without any room for ambiguity. The importance of DNA in studies relating to medicine and evolution is cardinal. DNA and genes are consequential for inheritance, disease, evolution and biodiversity. Specifically, I have been much impressed by DNA replication which could provide a cure for a number of incurable or intractable diseases. Several breakthroughs in cancer therapy have been achieved, on account of DNA replication. DNA replication has great significance for the heredity. In the furtherance of this function, a cell has to utilize hereditary information. Replication ensures transmission of such vital hereditary information. On occasion, hereditary information is not transmitted verbatim, and some changes are effected to the DNA. This results in biodiversity and evolution. At times, such change makes it possible to even find cures for chronic ailments. Thus, the practical value of DNA replication is undeniable. The transmission of hereditary characteristics from one generation to another is effected by genes, which in turn consist of DNA. Replication of the latter results in the copying of genes, which is a semi conservative process that uses just one strand as a pattern for subsequent new strands. Deviations in the replication process have profound effects on human health, and could even lead to diseases like cancer. DNA technology has resulted in crops and vegetables that have higher yield, are more nutritious, better able to withstand disease and drought, and have a longer shelf life. The stability of the genome is not possible in the absence of accurate DNA replication; and the S – phase checkpoint mechanism stops this process, immediately on detecting errors. Resumption of replication is dynamically controlled by the protein Ddk. Any inaccuracy in the DNA

Supply, Demand and Equilibrium Price Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Supply, Demand and Equilibrium Price - Essay Example She does nothing but allows the market forces to increase the prices. This way the market demand curve will move from D to D2. A new equilibrium will now be formed as consequence where Supply curve meets D2 curve. At this stage the quantity will be great than the initial equilibrium quantity demanded will be 8000 and the prices will be greater $4.5 depending on the strength of the market demand. Some of the increased demand will be absorbed by the increase in price and equilibrium quantity supplied to the market will remain 8000 pies. This will result in increase in revenue for Mrs. Acres and consequently the increase the profits. Therefore, Mrs. Acres will choose this option if other options are not yielding better results than this one in terms of profits and revenue. However, by choosing this option her position will be vulnerable in the long-run and she can expect to lose in the broad perspective. In the long-run, high prices will encourage competition to enter the market and tak e some of the market share by keeping prices lower than competitors. As a result of this, in the long-run, her quantity supplied will be less than 8000, as charging high price will result in market share being lost to consumers. Similarly, as a result her sales may also experience a negative trend and she may lose out in the long run by raising prices. In other words, after the initial gain of increased revenue followed by increased, prices she may end up inviting a lot of competition to the industry and may lose out in the long run. The price of the pies will decline and come back to the normal equilibrium price of $4.5. In the long-run, the equilibrium price and quantity will be different because new companies can enter the market, whereas in the short-run, no new firms can enter the market. As a result of this long-run effects of this will be different than short run effects. Case 2: Mrs. Acres decides to increase supply to meet additional demand Case 2: Mrs. Acres meets the Market Demand In this option suppose, the initial quantity is again 8000, represented by the label q1 on the diagram at a place where demand and supply meet. However, in order to meet the demand, Mr. Acres decides to increase the staff and in turn the supply. This will mean that there will be not increase in the price but the quantity demanded will now rise to q2, which is greater than 8000 pie. In the long-run, her sales and price will remain constant depending on the market trend and depending on the type of competition that exist in the market. However, since she is meeting demand there is no room for competitors to enter the market unless they come up with an extraordinary product. Therefore, by choosing this option she is discouraging the competition in the market which is going to keep her profits and revenues constant in the long run also and she may continue to enjoy the success in the long-run also. And the best thing here is that she will have to share profits with no one like she has to do in the option 3. Here, in the long-run, no new company can enter the market because there is no space in the market as Shelly Acres is operating under the efficient conditions of both allocative and productive efficiency as a result in the long-run, there will be no other effect and short-run conditions will prevail. If the

PET HOUSE Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

PET HOUSE - Coursework Example This report aims at conducting an analysis of Mungo and Maud with respect to its mission, vision and team structure, along with other factors that may impose considerable effects on its adopted process of New Product Development (NPD). The report also presents a reflection upon the structure, performance, innovation and creativity of Mungo and Maud during the process of NPD with due significance towards the benchmarking techniques used by the company. Vision is a statement about what or how a team would like the things to be. It can be regarded as a brief picture of future possibilities and attainments that the team shall be striving to create in due course of time (Grusenmeyer, 2014). Correspondingly, the vision considered developing the NPD process of Mungo and Maud, and accordingly for the team will be concentrated on preserving the uniqueness of the company and its brand image among the worldwide customers that are suitable for the pets’ comfort. Hence, three key elements will be considered as important in the vision of the team, i.e. uniqueness, quality and availability. A mission statement, in general, can be defined as the strategic direction to achieve the determined goals with proper usage of the available resources, in combination with the pre-defined vision of the team and the organisation (Grusenmeyer, 2014). Accordingly, in the context of Mungo and Maud, the mission of the team will be to ensure that the customers are served with superior quality of products, which are diversified in various market segments and product lines including human clothing and stationeries, pet products and gift items for humans and pets. Moreover, the team will also strive to offer its products in a quality assured by reasonable price to satisfy customer affordability. Team structure is referred as the group of professionals with various

Various Assignments Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Various Assignments - Essay Example In the background there are vague figures of men seemingly in animated discussion and others are presented as passive onlookers two men appear to be smiling and others are looking on with blank, unrevealing expressions (Danzer, De Alva, Krieger, Wilson, and Woloch). The artists uses colors to symbolize the Northern perspective of the caning of Senator Sumner. Although the cartoon is in black and white, Senator Sumner is dressed in black with only a slight view of an undershirt which appears to be white. His assailant is dressed in white and appears to wearing a black cape and the onlookers in the background appear to also be wearing primarily white or light colors. The black cape appears to symbolize evil of the sort that is associated with villains. The senator’s black suit as he is reposed in a defenseless position suggest sadness and in many ways superiority. Superiority is also expressed in the quill and papers that Senator has. These items may also be seen as weapons of i ntellect and reasoning, the factors that provoked Senator Sumner’s caning. Moreover, the quill and paper are juxtaposed against the cane wielded by the attacker and therefore representing the savagery and backward thinking of the attacker and the coercive slavery that he wanted to defend. ... The North was anti-slavery and the South was anti-abolitionist. While the attack emanated from Sumner’s speech in favor of abolishing slavery and asked if Kansas would be admitted into the union as free state or a slave state, there were conflicts in the streets of Kansas over the issue of slavery. For the Northern Republicans, the senate was a place of free speech and a place where cooler heads should prevail. The fact that a Democratic member of Congress seized the opportunity to attack a Northerner representing an opposite view meant that the savagery of slavery was the method by which the South wanted to govern (Finkelman and Kennon). If the Southern senators thought that they had beaten Sumner into submission, they were mistaken. Although Sumner had been beaten nearly to death and took a leave of absence, once he returned to the Senate he continued to speak out against slavery and advocate for its abolition. He became a radical senator to the extent that he argued for the immediate emancipation of the slaves. This only served to sustain the divide between the Southerners and the Northerners as Senator Sumner had demonstrated a resolve not to compromise on the issue of slavery. The beating had outraged Sumner’s colleagues they would take a rather protective stance and while advising him to mind the words he used in his speeches, he insisted on using harsh and sarcastic words to demean the institution of slavery. Thus the beating only empowered and supported Sumner’s stance against slavery and ensured that the civil war would be the only way to resolve the differences and tensions brewing in the Union and on the floor of the Senate ( Finkelman and Kennon). Question Two: Interaction with

Supply, Demand and Equilibrium Price Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Supply, Demand and Equilibrium Price - Essay Example She does nothing but allows the market forces to increase the prices. This way the market demand curve will move from D to D2. A new equilibrium will now be formed as consequence where Supply curve meets D2 curve. At this stage the quantity will be great than the initial equilibrium quantity demanded will be 8000 and the prices will be greater $4.5 depending on the strength of the market demand. Some of the increased demand will be absorbed by the increase in price and equilibrium quantity supplied to the market will remain 8000 pies. This will result in increase in revenue for Mrs. Acres and consequently the increase the profits. Therefore, Mrs. Acres will choose this option if other options are not yielding better results than this one in terms of profits and revenue. However, by choosing this option her position will be vulnerable in the long-run and she can expect to lose in the broad perspective. In the long-run, high prices will encourage competition to enter the market and tak e some of the market share by keeping prices lower than competitors. As a result of this, in the long-run, her quantity supplied will be less than 8000, as charging high price will result in market share being lost to consumers. Similarly, as a result her sales may also experience a negative trend and she may lose out in the long run by raising prices. In other words, after the initial gain of increased revenue followed by increased, prices she may end up inviting a lot of competition to the industry and may lose out in the long run. The price of the pies will decline and come back to the normal equilibrium price of $4.5. In the long-run, the equilibrium price and quantity will be different because new companies can enter the market, whereas in the short-run, no new firms can enter the market. As a result of this long-run effects of this will be different than short run effects. Case 2: Mrs. Acres decides to increase supply to meet additional demand Case 2: Mrs. Acres meets the Market Demand In this option suppose, the initial quantity is again 8000, represented by the label q1 on the diagram at a place where demand and supply meet. However, in order to meet the demand, Mr. Acres decides to increase the staff and in turn the supply. This will mean that there will be not increase in the price but the quantity demanded will now rise to q2, which is greater than 8000 pie. In the long-run, her sales and price will remain constant depending on the market trend and depending on the type of competition that exist in the market. However, since she is meeting demand there is no room for competitors to enter the market unless they come up with an extraordinary product. Therefore, by choosing this option she is discouraging the competition in the market which is going to keep her profits and revenues constant in the long run also and she may continue to enjoy the success in the long-run also. And the best thing here is that she will have to share profits with no one like she has to do in the option 3. Here, in the long-run, no new company can enter the market because there is no space in the market as Shelly Acres is operating under the efficient conditions of both allocative and productive efficiency as a result in the long-run, there will be no other effect and short-run conditions will prevail. If the

Various Assignments Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Various Assignments - Essay Example In the background there are vague figures of men seemingly in animated discussion and others are presented as passive onlookers two men appear to be smiling and others are looking on with blank, unrevealing expressions (Danzer, De Alva, Krieger, Wilson, and Woloch). The artists uses colors to symbolize the Northern perspective of the caning of Senator Sumner. Although the cartoon is in black and white, Senator Sumner is dressed in black with only a slight view of an undershirt which appears to be white. His assailant is dressed in white and appears to wearing a black cape and the onlookers in the background appear to also be wearing primarily white or light colors. The black cape appears to symbolize evil of the sort that is associated with villains. The senator’s black suit as he is reposed in a defenseless position suggest sadness and in many ways superiority. Superiority is also expressed in the quill and papers that Senator has. These items may also be seen as weapons of i ntellect and reasoning, the factors that provoked Senator Sumner’s caning. Moreover, the quill and paper are juxtaposed against the cane wielded by the attacker and therefore representing the savagery and backward thinking of the attacker and the coercive slavery that he wanted to defend. ... The North was anti-slavery and the South was anti-abolitionist. While the attack emanated from Sumner’s speech in favor of abolishing slavery and asked if Kansas would be admitted into the union as free state or a slave state, there were conflicts in the streets of Kansas over the issue of slavery. For the Northern Republicans, the senate was a place of free speech and a place where cooler heads should prevail. The fact that a Democratic member of Congress seized the opportunity to attack a Northerner representing an opposite view meant that the savagery of slavery was the method by which the South wanted to govern (Finkelman and Kennon). If the Southern senators thought that they had beaten Sumner into submission, they were mistaken. Although Sumner had been beaten nearly to death and took a leave of absence, once he returned to the Senate he continued to speak out against slavery and advocate for its abolition. He became a radical senator to the extent that he argued for the immediate emancipation of the slaves. This only served to sustain the divide between the Southerners and the Northerners as Senator Sumner had demonstrated a resolve not to compromise on the issue of slavery. The beating had outraged Sumner’s colleagues they would take a rather protective stance and while advising him to mind the words he used in his speeches, he insisted on using harsh and sarcastic words to demean the institution of slavery. Thus the beating only empowered and supported Sumner’s stance against slavery and ensured that the civil war would be the only way to resolve the differences and tensions brewing in the Union and on the floor of the Senate ( Finkelman and Kennon). Question Two: Interaction with

The Holidays Essay Example for Free

The Holidays Essay The Holidays The meaning of holidays is essentially a time we embark moments and share time with love one’s. In the United Sates, holidays are a very superior time that many of us embrace. Many can think back on holidays that they’ve encountered and recollect favorable moments. For many, it is the time of the year when people seem to grasp inside of one another and distinguish the best of things. Clearly, to some amount the â€Å"holiday season† gives people a sense of pleasure. Halloween and Christmas are two holidays that many people choose to rejoice. Indeed, they are both the most decorated holidays of the year, and both originate from Christian beliefs. But there’s something about the two that have mystified throughout their existence. Halloween and Christmas share similar attributes, but they are also vastly different in history, culture and traditions. On October 31, many people celebrate the eve of All Saints Day; better known to the world as Halloween. When people think of Halloween, they think of a day filled with frights, terror and fun. There are many cultural influences that have prompted to the holiday e now call Halloween; such as Day of Dead and All Souls Day. Halloween is refrained by death, but this doesnt make the holiday wicked. In fact, its a time of celebration for greeting spirits that have departed from past years. Some beliefs include wearing costumes so spirits would think that the living coexisted with the dead. Consequently, decorations on Halloween entail of skeletons, ghost, witches, and pumpkins. Simply, the idea is to decorate your house as daunting as it can be. As a tradition, children are able to stroll at night going oor to door, and receive as much candy as they can fit into their pillowcases. By the end of the night, children compete with siblings and friends to see who received the most candy. Halloween is the only holiday kids receive so much candy; it can last the entire year. It is clear that children take a joy on this event. Also, in today’s modern time it’s the only day out of the year a person can dress up as a character. However, Christmas is a sacred religious holiday; celebrated on December 25. The yearly centenary of the Christian church to memorialize the birth of Jesus. Though the original concept of Christmas is for the church service to celebrate the birth of Christ; people celebrate Christmas Day in many ways. Our culture has formed it more around giving gifts to loved ones and spending time with family. Subsequently, there are many types of decorations that are displayed during Christmas time that contain whites, reds and greens. Decorating houses with bright lights, mistletoe’s, bells, snowmen, angels and stockings is a traditional act. As for kids, they await for Santa Clause to arrive, so they can open gifts on Christmas morning. Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, is a historic, legendary and mythological individual. Believed by numerous children to bring gifts to the homes of well-behaved children. The iconic Santa Claus has been in existence since the early 1800’s who’s been portrayed as a stocky, joyful, white- bearded man with red rosy cheeks, wearing a red coat with black leather boots. Furthermore, receiving gift is one of the most exciting aspects of modern Christmas. Gift are usually items that were asked for throughout the year. In all, many citizens take the time to enjoy time away from work and dearly spend it with love ones. We come across many holidays that contribute to a social phenomenon like religion, beliefs and traditions. Despite the similarities among Halloween and Christmas, they are more different than people may present. Overall, I think people can view both in a positive or negative way, but some may agree that all holidays always have a very special meaning. A holiday give people time to experience and learn; that is how they can differentiate holidays

Motivation factors of the Workplace in Thailand

Motivation factors of the Workplace in Thailand This proposal paper will attempt to discuss the view and application of what effects motivation has in the low hierarchical or flat organisation workplaces for the firms or companies doing business in Thailand; small organisations that have less than 50 staffs fit this description. What are the factors that motivate the employee to succeed, is it money, job promotions, perks? Once the findings have been reached, would they be able to apply to similar organisations? With todays fragile economic situations along with fierce competitions in virtually all market places, small size companies need to be able to compete and respond to the ever-changing environment in a much faster pace. To be able to compete effectively, companies need to cut through Red Tapes or bypassing unnecessary bureaucracy and adapt quickly to the ever-changing surroundings in the business environment. In Thailand, there are no differences when it comes to compete and compete fiercely they do. The aim of this proposal is to focus its findings especially on small multinational companies doing business in Thailand. The reason being that multinational companies who are conducting business in Thailand, similar to their subsidiaries in other countries, would like to see their returns on investment and realize their profits on a yearly basis and expecting growth every single year followings. Efficiency is one of the keys for multinational companies to compete effectively. This propo sal will also address how motivation theories are being used to in these organizations where vertical promotions are virtual non-existence. No corporate ladders to climb for most employees. If this fact does not exist, then what motivate employees? The study will focus on the research theories based on Herzbergs Motivation Theory that he and his colleagues wrote about motivation 50 years ago. The study will attempt to design questionnaires to address the question on Hygiene factors as well as the others motivation factors which will be hypothesized on their actual application in the work place in Thailand. One of the hypotheses will focus on monetary compensation factor that it is or it is not the major influence in motivation for such a flat or low level hierarchy organizations [Prendergast, 2002]. This study will be based in Thailand small size multinational companies where there are approximately three levels of the hierarchy and there are less than 50 people working full time. For the purpose of the study, 5 multinational companies will be chosen. Main criteria are: the firm needs to be a  multinational company; they employ less than 50 staff, and that they have no more than three functioning levels in the hierarchy for five years. Moreover, 95% of the employees must be Thai nationals. To solidify the study, companies need to be operating in Thailand for no less than 5 years and that the organisational structure must fit the criteria of equal to or less than three levels. Major objective Productivity, profitability, efficiency are just some of the key drivers that companies are expecting from their oversea staffs and enforce them firmly in order to survive. To be productive and efficient for small size multinational organisations, flatter and less hierarchical levels have been adopted. It cuts down decisions times and increases more action time which suits the small multinational companies profiles. However, this efficiency also has its drawbacks when it comes to job promotion or others traditional motivational factors. With flatter organisation, there are fewer ladders for employees to climb. Which posts another question that job promotion is a major key to motivating people in any organisation? The findings based on this study will help answer some of the questions General Managers, Human Resources Managers or just plain manager/supervisors in many small size multinational companies in Thailand. With that benefit in mind, managers will be able to manage their personnel more effectively, properly and with something to reference with. The findings, however, may offer other benefits to other organisations that themselves are a part of a large organisation that job promotion within the organisation is limited or do not exist; they can apply the findings to their own environment. Further, a large size companies whose hierarchical are quite limited and/or job promotion are scarce, the findings based on this proposed study could benefit the management in those organisations as well. Many managers are seeking the answers to the question of How to keep people motivated in today organisation where good effective people are hard to find and retain. To both apply the motivation at the same time seeking retention, are one of the human resource organisation goals. To get some of these answers, questionnaires based on the Employee Satisfaction Survey (ESS) will be used. This survey is being used by many firms. However, there are many version of ESS. The ESS was first documented by The National Business Research Institute or NBRI [NBRI, 1982]. It is used to gauge the satisfaction of the job of the employee has with the current company, compensation, recognition, relationship, environment, etc [Prendergast, 2002]. The questionnaires in this study will be designed to cover many areas in the organization as possible in an attempt to derive at the answers about what caused motivation and the effect it has to the organization. How would the managers in similar organizations b enefit from the findings? The answer lies in the fact that there are many similar structure of organization although do not engaging in the same business as the firm chosen, however, with the background of the Thai people in this study, the author wish that it can be applied beginning with the people in Thailand. Another objective of this study is to touch on the fact that organisation needs people who are dedicated, intelligence, diligence and productive to grow the company. Is he or she possessing the right backgrounds, has the right educations, does he or she has the proper attitude toward the company, the workplace and the culture? Of course, brief interview with any potential candidate for any job cannot determine the candidate is the right for the job. Job probation concept was designed to filter out the wrong choice employees. Although it is not in the scope of this proposed research, the fact remains that you need to motivate these people first and try to retain the ones the firms want to keep; hoping that might be able to somehow bring those qualities out of the potential candidates [Herzberg, 1987]. Objective The study in this paper will be utilising part of Frederick Herzberg the Hygiene Factor Theory of Motivation as part of the design of the questionnaire. The Survey questions (see sample in Appendix I) are specifically designed to fit the size of the organization and to reflect the needs to find out on whether or not the employees are satisfied with their jobs in general and will also use the results to derive what are the motivation factors the employees in the small, low hierarchical organizations have in common. This will also present an opportunity if the findings can also be applied to other similar in the requirements organisations. Further, based upon the Hygiene Factor of Herzberg motivational theory, the findings will also either to reinforce or challenge his theory? With the results obtained, although limited in size proposed at presence, it does not mean that the study cannot be extended to further the study in the future. The assumption is that mainly the Motivation is the Independent variable. With the right kind of motivation applied, productivities increase. The job itself or the results, the growth of the company becomes Dependent variable. Limitations of the Research This research proposal is focused on small size, multinational companies who has approximately three levels in the current organisation that must be in functioning order for the last 5 years. The sample size is also a limitation of this study since the proposed study call for small size companies that has approximately 50 employees or less. This proposal is also limit to five companies. The total number of employees is 250 employees in approximation. Due to the fact that some of the nature of the companies chosen which contained field personnel who might not be available for the time of the questionnaires is being distributed, hard copies will be used in combination with emails to the individuals. The consolidation of the data will be collected after two weeks of distribution and will be using SPSS Regression method to help calculate the results in a quantitative presentation. In order to get the individuals of these companies cooperate with the study, a formal letter will be written and addressed to the General Managers and/or Human Resources Managers of each firms asking permission to conduct a survey for the research study on what motivation has on their employees. The results of the findings will be made available for the management of the firms to conduct further studies if chosen. Significance of the study The study is design to study what motivation factors employees have in the low hierarchical organization taking into consideration that there are virtually a lesser amount of corporate ladders to climb, in the traditional sense, comparing to the organizations of old. There are numbers of similar size of these companies conducting their businesses in Thailand and more so in the neighboring countries that may benefits from this paper once the findings are presented. In addition to the lesser levels in the current organizations, there are other factors that companies need to prepare themselves in competing equally with others. Companies of this size pride themselves to be lean and effective organizations; also the nature of the multinational companies forces them to be extra efficient while conducting business in other countries. Returns on Investment (ROI) are always on the Senior Management minds, motivating people caused them to be productive, hence generate more profits. One of the requirements that 95% of the employees in each companies need to be Thai nationals, this will present clearer pictures of the motivation factors. One of the assumptions that one of more of the management of these firms is expatriates running the businesses in Thailand. However, due to the limitation of the study that the proposal called for five companies to be conducted, expatriates managers for these firms are not required. Even though this fact will help see the contrast when comparing to Thai nationals management team, this is not a major requirements in this study. Educational backgrounds of the individual employees are not the major factors since some of these firms possess field personnel. However, this is significant since the employees at this level have even less corporate ladders to climb, hence, job promotions with title and responsibilities may not be adequately suit their culture norms for Thai workers. The study will then attempt to focus also that the monetary reward s which will be part of the questionnaires used in the surveys. Once concluded, the findings will be made available to the firms that give permission to conduct the study so they may benefits from the findings. In most of the multinational companies should already have some sort of employee study surveys, however, the one directly related to what effect motivation has to the employees in the low hierarchical organizations may be scarce. Literature Review The paper used in this study was written by Nigel Bassett-Jones, Oxford Brookes Business School, Oxford, UK and Geoffrey C. Lloyd, Rajarata University of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka. The paper was published in the Journal of Management Development in 2005. The paper seeks to examine the issue of Herzbergs two-factor motivation theory which will be used as reference theory in this paper. The paper referred to the challenges in today organisation factors such as downsizing led ways to focus on employee empowerment [Bassett-Jones et. al, 2005]. Bassett-Joness paper raised the question about the problem to motivate people to contribute ideas within the context of work-based suggestion schemes [Bassett-Jones et. al, 2005]. With companies experiencing overwhelming changes after World War II, hence the introduction of globalisation and technological development has prompted the innovation in technology and plethora of new ideas [Ilinitch et. al, 1996]. Parolinis work in 1999 has also been cited by Bassett-Jones [2005] that these ongoing progress prompted workforces to continue to improve products, systems and processes to compete fairly. To support Herzbergs view in financial rewards can be viewed negatively, citation by Hiltrop (1995) was used to stress that psychological contract by employers hinders employment continuity and opportunities for career progression [Bassett-Jones, et. al, 2005]. This finding by Hiltrop (1995) will be used as part of the study in this paper to determine whether or not monetary rewards are not the motivation factor in the low hierarchical organisation in Thailand. This paper based on the survey results obtained, study the statement made in Bassett-Jones (2005) paper cited Hiltrop (1995) that based on their contentious proposition, money does not motivate [Bassett-Jones et. al, 2005]. Bassett-Joness [Bassett-Jones, et. al, 2005] also cited Taylorism in their paper that basically people are lazy and work-shy and stimulation to motivate them comes externally. The authors also cited Hawthorn findings that people are motivate to work well for its own sake, as well as for the social and monetary benefits they received, and this is internally stimulated [Bassett-Jones, et. al, 2005]. In this paper will also use these two findings as based to study further to conclude its findings. Many theorists had been cited by Bassett-Jones in her paper such as McClelland, Locke, Vroom, and Alderfer. Unfortunately, this paper will omit their findings due to the constrained of this paper and its scopes. This paper will use some of Peter and Waterman (1982) work on empowerment and team work as part of the proof of this paper. Bassett-Jones (2005) cited that expectancy theory as well as equity, goal setting and reinforcement resulted in the development of a simple model of motivation al ignment [Locke, 1978]. Important suggestions that once identified and objectives are defined, rewards can be determined next to both serve the organization objectives and satisfied employees [Bassett-Jones et. al, 2005]. On the other hand Herzberg axiom stated that inadequate financial reward can demotivate and money [Behling et. al, 1968] is yet another hygiene factor that could cause dissatisfaction [Herzberg et. al, 1959]. To stress this point further, Herzberg (1959) stated that an improvement in one or more of a range of factors including pay, supervision and prospects for promotion would result in a move towards increased satisfaction, whilst a deterioration would prompt a move in the opposite direction; dissatisfaction was a result of an absence of factors giving rise to satisfaction [Bassett-Jones et. al, 2005]. Sense of achievement, recognition and work itself will be the key focus. Bassett-Jones (2005) wrote that Herzberg suggested that motivation is like self-charging battery and that employees become motivated themselves. Energy or desire must come from within and that motivation, by Herzberg definition, is internally generated not externally stimulated by incentives [Prendergast, 2002]. Most importantly the statement suggested that individuals do not require incremental incentives to drive the internal engine [Prendergast, 2002]. Critical success factors came from and integration of training, appraisal system, promotion and redundancy policies [Bassett-Jones et. al, 2005]. Bassett-Jones (2005) paper concluded that with Herzberg research result, whilst repetition produces frustration and alienation, it can also induce insight and understanding. These results from the research can used to curve the retention and skill dilution and use to improve morale and increase employee voice in the organization. The authors also cited the economy factors as well as socio-psychological perspective to human relations on cultural based and should be understood by management and unfortunately cannot be shared with the people at the bottom of the organization hierarchy [Bassett-Jones et. al, 2005]. This paper also demonstrated that motivators associated with intrinsic drivers outweigh movers linked to financial inducement. Finally the question is raised that whether employee need for recognition has become a hygiene factor in the contemporary employment contest? [Bassett-Jones et. al, 2005] Authors answer is while some inducements can move some employees to contribute id eas; the numbers involved are significantly less than those who are motivated by a desire to overcome frustration and contribute to organizational success. The organization needs to aspire to generate high commitment culture is likely to prove elusive without Taylorist paradigm persistence. In addition, systems and processes that enable employees to work together to define problems and overcome frustrations will resulted in great organization [Bassett-Jones et. al, 2005]. Independent Variable The independent in this study is Motivation. Motivation, as described by Robbins and Judge (2009), is The process that account for an individuals intensity, direction, and persistence of effort toward attaining a goal. To use this description in this study for small, multinational firms conducting businesses in Thailand where the organisational structures are quite flat, virtually no room for vertical promotion upward for employees. So to apply motivation by asking the employees to climb the corporate ladders is out of the equation entirely. The study will turn the focus upon an individual intensity of how to focus the individual is about his or her career direction. The persistence to stay with the objectives to attain the set goal will also be part of the study to find the motivation factors [Locke, 1978]. Dependent variables The work itself and the effectiveness of the workplace will be the dependent variables study toward the conclusion of this study based on the theory related to the study, what motivation technique the author may suggest for management to use in their firms. The effectiveness of work itself can be further compare the effectiveness within the group or individual (Robbins and Judge, 2009). What criteria used to define the level of the effectiveness in the workplace? Based upon effectiveness in a group, certain decision must be made. Obvious decision made would be group decision, the following question is that how could we gauge it accuracy in the decision made by the group. Would it lead to successfully completing the tasks on hand? To be effective, should the group be focus more on faster respond to any changes in the environment would this in itself one of the motivation factors? Would an individual decision making in the small firm studied be widely used instead of group decision? F urther, would group decision lead to creativity, perhaps yes since there are many others with ideas and if goals of organization are the ultimate goal [Locke, 1978]. With these dependents in mind, the study can draw a final framework based on the suggestions and nature of the findings based on the study. The main question that will be focus upon still be the question that what are the motivation factors of the people in the low hierarchical organization? Any attempts made by the management to help motivate their people? The findings hopefully will benefits some of these questions. If they chose to implement them, are there other effective tools or methods to use, perhaps. Would similar structure type organization would benefits from this endeavor, may be. Theory related to Independent Variable There are many theories of Motivation; the author will focus using the Herzberg Motivation Theory and will also mention the Hygiene factors that may cause the dissatisfaction in the job itself, hence lead to employee dissatisfaction or de-motivation (Herzberg et. al, 1959) factors as the base theory to study this subject firm of a small retail market audit in Thailand. Figure 1. Based on Employee Satisfaction Survey (ESS), questionnaires will be designed based generally on this with a major focus to tailor to try to answer the question about motivation in such environment with the requirement in these firms. Factors mentioned in Herzbergs will be tailored to be the major part of the questionnaires; factors such as Company Policy, Supervision, work conditions [Stead, 1972], salary [Behling et. al, 1968], relationship with Boss [Brown, 1976] and peers alike are the key focus areas that the survey questionnaires were designed to focus on these factors. This by far represent only one side of the concepts by Herzberg, others such as Job Satisfactions, Recognition, Achievement, Advancement, Responsibility and job itself will also be tailored in the questionnaires. That raised yet another question, that for companies this size, would this be the motivation factors are used correctly or incorrectly used, do they become the de-motivation factors? Discussion of Dependent Variable Another part of the questionnaires touch base on work conditions, the salary of the employees in these firms, again are they motivation factors, purely, or could it become the opposite factors that drive down moral among the employees. From the results, are relationships with coworkers and the involvement of the manager or senior managers important? Do employees appreciate this [Brown, 1976]? The job itself is the motivation factors? The survey will be touched upon job stimulation and challenging in many areas. Are achievements and recognition for the job well done is the key motivators? Is job quality among the employees frame of minds? Relationship of the Independent variable to the Dependent variables The relationships between the both the Hygiene factors and the Motivation factors can be summed up as correlated [Brenner et. al, 1971]. The hygiene factors such as work conditions [Stead, 1972], salary [Behling et. al, 1968] if not implemented carefully, and then these factors will become hinder to keep employees motivated. The relationship with the peers and the immediate supervisor are they in the acceptable range [Brown, 1976]? Would the educational backgrounds make them closer in the workplace, hence it is one of the factors? Methods to use in this study The questionnaires were designed to cover many areas such as job satisfaction, compensation, recognition, participation, management, relationship, working environment, the quality of work as the key indicators also on how engage the employees are with the organisation. The questionnaires will be sending via emails to the individual employees once the permission letters have to be approved by the firms. For those firms that contain field personnel which sometimes do not have access to computers or email accounts while on the roads, paper forms of questionnaires will be used in lieu of electronics email. The survey questions will base on the Likert system. In the questions about personal growth or invert looking of the employees, Strongly Agree, Agree, Neutral, Disagree and Strongly Disagree will be used to tally the results. Good, Average, Poor and Very Poor will be used in questions about the environment. Questions pertaining to employee engagement will also be used. Do they think th e company treating them right? Would they leave the organisation the first chance they get? Engagement also referred to how the organisation treats its employees. Does it care about basic conditions [Stead, 1972] of the organisation; is it too hot or too cold. Do people get a chance to participated in the decision making process? This aims to measure the retention and the measure if some of the motivation factors are being applied. As mentioned, the questionnaire will be distributed via email to all employees providing that they have access to email. If not hard copies will be used. The employee has about two weeks to complete the questionnaires. The questionnaires are in the Thai language as well as the English language. Once the employees fill the questionnaires in which by the way was design based on the Likert system of scales. With the size of the organisation, the study would expect 100% respond. When the tally is completed the results will be group into each category based on the responses. Approximately 250 responds will be expected and the Regression method of SPSS will be used to determine the results. Results will be representing in Microsoft Powerpoint format for ease of understanding. The presentation file then will be given to the senior manager in charge and actions to be taken discuss. Results- summary of the data to be collected 100% respond is expected since there are small numbers of firms chose and at the same time a small number of employees in each firm. However, the numbers expected in this study should not go below 200 responses to be conclusive to the findings. The data tallied will go through the process of regression analysis to conclude the findings and the final information prepare and present in Microsoft Powerpoint format. Hypotheses H1 Money is a key motivator One of the assumption or Hypothesis is: for the low hierarchical or flat organisational structure the money [Behling et. al, 1968] would be the key motivator H1. Herzberg (1959) in his theory about the money alone does not motivate [Herzberg et. al, 1959]. Would this study prove otherwise? H2 Is Job itself a motivator? Job satisfaction in doing a good quality job itself is self-fulfilling? H3 Advancement, personal achievement a key motivator Career and Training requirement from the employees as well as Responsibility especially in the Authority for decision making, are these key motivation factors. Discussion The working environment is also important. Per Herzbergs (1959) theory, if not implemented correctly, the working environmental would become an issue as a Hygiene factor, hence demotivate the employee or at least caused the level dissatisfaction to rise [Brenner et. al, 1971]. In the small group of people, the relationship in the work place ranked high. Is this due to fact that the majority of the employees are in the same age group and mostly male dominated workplace environment with similar educational background contribute to this fact? Support between divisions and strong working relationship are they have been established? Compensation and other benefits such as bonus have taken any part [Blakemore et. al, 1987]? Usually, bonus for these firms is being given at the end of the year. The fact that most bonuses are profit based, the amount of bonus pool depends on the firm performance for the entire year. Would the motivation factors link to the end results at year end? Further to the amount given to the individual also based upon the results of the Performance Appraisal that is being done twice a year. Department goals and company vision take part in clarity for employees of not? This would indicate that the employers have fulfil their part in the company or division objectives and willing to ensure its success [Locke, 1978]. Conceptual Framework The frame work or this study based it finding on the Employee Satisfaction Survey of a small size of multinational companies conducting businesses in Thailand where the number of employees is approximately 50 people each and 5 of these companies will be chosen. Approximately 250 responses are expected. Once the survey is done, data will be collected and tally for concluding the findings. The question asked will be at any given time what motivates people in a flat or low hierarchical organisation structure in Thailand will be the focal point. The results from the survey will be shared with the management of the firms to help improve the firms. This study can also be used to further study on key factors that employees seek as motivation themselves. Also based on Herzbergs findings and also to view the survey results, this study will also view this from Taylorism point of view in an attempt to conclude its findings. Figure 2. Conclusion To conclude what are the motivation factors in the low hierarchical organization in Thailand, the study need to establish that the firms meet the criteria. Criteria such as small size, no more than 50 employees, multinational organization conducting business in Thailand, three levels of hierarchy within the organization functioning for five years. These are some the requirements. Also the facts that firms chosen have fulfilled their own clarity requirement to their employees are essentials. Even though bonuses for each individual are substantial and should be taken in to consideration as part of the monetary compensation, these facts remain the unknown factors due to the nature of the monetary compensation cannot not be revealed by the firms management [Prendergast, 2002]. Is it doing a good job that what motivate the employees? Does stimulation come from the job nature, this is the question posted. Is a chance to help make a decision a motivation factors? This motivation factor need s further consideration since the company is run by management and by its nature; it cannot afford to be democratic. The closeness in working relationship [Brown, 1976], is it also a factor? The findings in this study hopefully will answer these questions. Aforementioned, if the findings will help the management in the selected firms benefits from its findings, the study will be proven most successful. Further, if the findings can somehow finds its way to help other similar organization, this would be the ultimate achievement. References Bassett-Jones, Nigel and Lloyd, Geoffrey C., Does Herzbergs motivation theory have staying power?, Journal of Management Development, 2005, Vol. 24, No. 10, pp. 929-943 Behling, Orlando, Lobovitz, George, Kosmo, Richard The Herzberg Controversy: A Critical Reappraisal, The Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 11, No. 1 (Mar., 1968), pp. 99-108 Blakemore, E., Low, Stuart A. Ormiston, Michael B., Employment Bonuses and Labor Turnover, Journal of Labor Economics, Vol. 5, No. 4, Part 2: The New Economics of Personnel (Oct., 1987), pp. S124-S135 Brenner, Vincent C., Carmack, Claude W., Weinstein, Mark G.,An Empirical Test of the Motivation-Hygiene Theory, Journal of Accounting Research, Vol. 9, No. 2 (Autumn, 1971), pp. 359-366 Brown, Matha A., Values A Necessary but Neglected Ingredient of Motivation on the Job, The Academy of Management Review, Vol. 1, No. 4 (Oct., 1976), pp. 15-23 Herzberg, F.I. 1987, One more time: How do you motivate employees?, Harvard Business Review, Sep/Oct87, Vol. 65 Issue 5, p109-120 Herzberg, F., Mausner, B. and Snyderman, B. (1959) The Motivation to Work, New York: John Wiley and Sons, Locke, Edwin A., The Ubiquity of the Technique of Goal Setting in Theories of and Approaches to Employee Motivation, The Academy of Management Review, Vol. 3, No. 3 (Jul., 1978), pp. 594-601 Prendergast, Canice, Uncertainty and Incentives, Journal of Labor Economics, Vol. 20, No. 2, Part 2: Compensation Strategy and Design (Apr., 2002), pp. S115-S137 Stead, Bette A., Berlos Communication Process Model as Applied to the Behavioral Theories of Maslow, Herzberg, and McGregor, The

Enlightenment Essay -- History, Slaves, Puritans

The period of Enlightenment in America was host to a society that widely accepted the practice of slavery. It was a custom that was looked favorably upon by most; especially in the South where the economy would have collapsed without it (Davis 1). The slaves were not all cooperative with their bondage however, and there were revolts such as the Stono Rebellion in 1739 (â€Å"Stono Rebellion† Aptheker 1). The treatment of the slaves altered according to their masters severity and the general laws of the area they worked in. Slavery was a struggling debate during the 18th century, and the differing views ended with the Revolutionary War that lasted during 1775 to 1783. Slavery was widely accepted in America during the 1700s. It was an efficient method for farmers and landowners to receive the workers they needed to tend their land and animals. Because of the time period and current immigration boom, slaves often found themselves working with indentured servants. This mostly white majority of people came to America seeking a better life, but were bound to their masters who helped fund their way into the colonies ("New England slavery at the turn of the 18th century." Berlin 1). Indentured servants suffered at the hands of their masters; but unlike slaves, they were not treated as another species or being socially inferior (â€Å"New England† Berlin 1). Many Puritans were uncomfortable with the keeping of slaves and turned to the Bible as a way to justify the practice of human bondage (â€Å"New England† Berlin 1). One of the main conflicts of the Puritans was whether the slaves should be converted to Christianity. Those opposed to this position believed that blacks had no souls to save (â€Å"New England† Berlin 1). They also believed that conversio... ...pears that Jefferson’s gripes are mainly about African Americans rather than their position as slaves, and has the fear of inter-breeding between the whites and blacks. The Enlightenment era was made up of a vast majority of those who accepted slavery, but in the end lost their humanity. It proved a useful tool for farmers and land owners, and it also created much controversy in many topics including religion and human rights. Rebellions were raised and political debates were pursued, and in the end this masterful and inhumane ritual brought a united nation into civil war. Slavery was not a solution for a country so much as it was an ignorance to a race of people. America twisted it’s Puritan values and made them appear supportive of it’s misbehavior. It was not for many years that our nation realized it’s hypocrisy, and it took a war to reach an understanding.