Leading Strategic Change and Business Strategy Case Study

Leading Strategic Change and Business Strategy - Case Study Example (2003) suggest, strategic change can move beyond merely the formulation of strategy by a consideration of the whole process from planning through to implementation. Change management does involve "managing" and thus control, but also the realization that change is often an organic process that develops in unexpected manners. Baloqun's most important idea, one that moves beyond traditional change management, is that it should move beyond the "formulaic" and "linear" process that has previously dominated the models. Context-specific analysis is an interesting variation on the normal modeling process, as it seeks to enable the manager to see that which is specific to her company rather than that which fits into the models. The change kaleidoscope involves dissecting the possible ramifications of change, while always keeping in mind the overall strategy that is in place. The manager must develop what Baloqun refers to as "change judgment": that is, the ability to understand the critical features of a specific change context. The important element here is to recognize what is and what is not possible within change implementation. A manager involved in change management first needs to be aware of what exactly is happening at the given moment within the business, and then needs to be able to extrapolate possible outcomes based upon that awareness. The first premise of planning is having as much knowledge as possible. The type of planning which is now occurring has changed radically from that envisioned in the traditional business model. As John Byrne puts it, "gone are the abstraction, sterility, and top-down arrogance of the old model." (Byrne, 1) Now managers in the most successful corporations are part of a system in which "today's gurus of strategy urge companies to democratize the process", and they do this "by handing strategic planning over to teams of line and staff managers from different disciplines." (Byrne, 1) Often young, junior managers who are noted for their creative thinking are teamed with near-retirement, senior managers who essentially have nothing to lose and so can tell it like it is. So from the most junior to the most senior manager there is a role, both for planning within their own specific area of the business, but also for constant consideration of how that may effect longer-term and more far-reaching plans. This is the democratic and enrolling type of leadership that is increasingly seen as the most successful in the modern business environment in which change is constant. Planning is perhaps the central role of all managers, because all the other functions flow from it and must always consider their relationship to it. A business without a plan has no future, and so all the other functions will be redundant. Organization within a business is essential to planning: in one sense it is one of the tools that may be used to realize a plan. Organization is divided into two basic areas: control/co-ordination of tasks, and the management of information flow within the company. Management of tasks and deciding what information needs to be collated and to whom it should go is essential for business growth, particularly for the vital task of leadership development. Organization involves investing in "human capital, the most important asset inside of organizations today." (Carter, xi) Managers, especially at the highest level, must organize the tasks of their

Abortion should be illegal in the U.S Term Paper

Abortion should be illegal in the U.S - Term Paper Example This simplistic belief is accepted by some women but it is a flawed argument particularly when the compared to the realities of abortion. Research has shown that the majority of women are coerced into committing this heinous act, the killing of a living human being, and that the legalizing of abortion makes them a safe procedure as many are led to believe is very misleading. Pro-abortion proponents usually say that non-living tissue have no rights and that the fetus is not able to feels pain. This paper exposes these falsehoods and others that have been commonly thought are facts. It also speaks to the Constitution’s intent for the legal and ethical direction of American society. Women that are experiencing an unwanted pregnancy have little freedom of choice, especially now that abortion is legal. Under most circumstances women want to have their baby. Other important influences in her life such as friends, parents and especially husbands and boyfriends are usually the ones wh o put pressure on her to end the pregnancy. In many cases it’s the abortion, not the baby that is unwanted by the woman. More often than not, it’s the father of the child who is not wanting to accept responsibility who coerces the women into having an abortion. They may even threaten a woman until she consents to the procedure. â€Å"45 percent of men interviewed at abortion clinics recalled urging abortion, including 37 percent of married men. Men justified (this) being the primary decision maker, regarding the abortion.† (Shostak, McLouth, 1984). This study as well as other research has clearly shown that most women â€Å"choose† abortion against their own principles. A myth advocated as fact is that the fetus is nothing more than a collection of cells, a small piece of tissue unable to experience pain. A growing embryo has a distinctive set of fingerprints and a unique genetic pattern, different from its mother. It is a person. If society defines death as the heart stopping and murder as the intentional stopping of the heart then abortion must also be considered murder. If the beating heart is legally defined as life, then nearly all abortions should be illegal because the heart is fully formed before the third week in the womb. According to a British medical journal when an eight-week-old fetus is stuck with a pin, its mouth automatically opens up in a crying position and it instinctively pulls his hand away indicating pain. â€Å"By week five, eyes, legs, and hands begin to develop. By week six, brain waves are detectable, mouth and lips are present and fingernails are beginning to form. By the eighth week the baby can begin to hear. Every organ is in place, bones begin to replace cartilage, and fingerprints begin to form† (National Right to Life Foundation, n.d.).   ‘Pro Choice’ proponents claim that women should be allowed access to safe abortion procedures, which the government should not force women to resort to unsafe self-abortion procedures. They are working from a false premise again however. Nearly 100 percent of women say they feel extreme pain during the abortion procedure even with local anesthetics. â€Å"Despite the use of local anesthesia, a full 97 percent of women having abortions reported experiencing pain during the procedure, which more than a third described as intense,  severe or very severe. Compared to other pains, researchers have rated the pain from abortion as more painful than a bone fracture, about the same as cancer pain, though not as painful as an amputation.† (Wells, 1991). Although the word â€Å"abortion† is not in the Constitution, the country’s principal legal document remains the source for precedence for this and all other issues. The Court decided to rule based on the

Paraprofessional for Special Needs Children

Paraprofessional for Special Needs Children Paraprofessional for Special Needs Children For the past eleven years I have been a paraprofessional for special needs children. During those years I have learned about the different treatments and intervention techniques used for the various disorders among children. Through hands-on activities at work, various workshops , seminars and my own research, I have acquired knowledge about the different disabilities. I now feel I know what to expect from a student and can make the right judgment calls in different situations in order to facilitate learning. I have learned to manage children in both groups and individually, clerical responsibilities, organizational and creative abilities, , written and spoken communication skills, following instructions given by the teacher, and classroom management. Children with special needs have certain deficits, which warrant special support to â€Å"survive† a day at school. Room preparation and preparation of class materials is very important. The classroom should be set up so that there is a smooth â€Å"flow† to it. From the moment the child arrives in the morning, the daily routine should start. An example of a classroom for special needs children will be found at the end of this paper. Preparation of classroom materials is also important. Children should have a â€Å"bin† of some sort filled with materials to use for their programs and tasks. For example, if John is working on counting, alphabet and colors then the flash cards, manipulatives and picture cards should be in the bin labeled with his name on it. This way,when it is time for him to work everything is ready. Also, if there is an art project scheduled, all necessary materials should be ready. Children with special needs find it very difficult to wait for any lengthy period of time. It is very important to have the day flow as easily and as smoothly as possible. The daily schedule is important aspect in having a successful day. Each child has his own schedule due to the different services that each one has. Not all children receive all services, which may be OT (occupational therapy), PT (physical therapy), or speech. Some schedules may be in pictures and other in words. Not all children are capable of reading and therefore some children may be more adaptable to pictures. The classroom teacher would determine this. All of these supports and organizational aids help in supporting children with special needs especially those with ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and AD/HD (attention deficit/hyperactive disorder). Their information processing difficulties and auditory weaknesses require much support. In addition, their problems in the areas of social understanding make it difficult for them to distinguish between what is important and what is not. Their problems with organizational skills sometimes make them look lazy which is another reason why they need visual supports such as pictoral or written schedules. An example of a child’s schedule is as follows: Independent work Work session 1 Work session 2 Lunch Group work Work session 3 Speech Music All done Pack-up Go home A piece of construction paper is laminated as well as all the instructions. Each instruction is velcroed onto the construction paper. When the child enters the class in the morning he removes the first instruction over to â€Å"Time for†. Then when that task is done the child goes back to his schedule and places the completed task into the pouch marked â€Å"All done† and moves the next task over to â€Å"Time for†. This is done throughout the day. Directing and facilitating attention to the teacher and/or task is another responsibility of the paraprofessional. Children who are more able – those with mild learning disabilities and attention problems – can basically take in and process information that the teacher is presenting and just need to be refocused toward the teacher. Less able students are less capable to take in information successfully so in this case the paraprofessional needs to take a more directive role with regard to instruction. The Para also needs to take on a greater responsibility for using the modifications and supports needed to promote the student’s attention. This is where the role of the Para is extremely important. He/she needs to make effective decision-making in selecting the best supports to aid in the student’s understanding and which promote learning. Another important aspect, which I have learned, is pre and post-teaching. They are the backbones of direct Para support for students with significant disabilities especially in the inclusion classroom, which is at a much faster pace that a self-contained class. (A self-contained class is a class which has only special education students in it.) Pre-teaching is a concept or lesson that helps the student to become more familiar with the materials and activities at their own pace. Therefore when the lesson is given in a group the student will have already become familiar with the topic. It would be like going to Spain without any knowledge of the Spanish language. Your anxiety level would be very high when spoken to and you would have no idea what was said. However, if you had taken a few Spanish speaking classes you would at least be familiar with some of the conversation and able to put the whole idea together. Post-teaching is also very important because it reinforces any question th e student may have. It also promotes generalization, which is one area in which children with ASD have great difficulty. Many children with ASD can learn in one setting but when taken out of that setting they can’t seem to know what was taught in the original setting. The importance, which I have learned, of pre and post-teaching cannot be over-exaggerated because it can help the student become more comfortable and more responsive in the learning environment. In working with ASD children I have also learned that breaking down tasks into smaller units is very helpful because then the task will not be so overwhelming. For example, during a math lesson the teacher will instruct the students to do the twelve problems on a certain page and when they are done the whole class will go over it. For a child with ASD these twelve problems may look like 100 problems. Not able to verbalize what the problem is, the student may act out and become disruptive in the class. It may appear that the student just didn’t want to do it. There may be several solutions to this problem. One may be to cover half the problems with a sheet of plain paper so that visually there are fewer problems that need to be done, or have the student do them at intervals throughout the day. This will result in the student being successful with the task and will also eliminate any behavioral disruption. As a Para, I learned that there are countless ways to adapt and modify the curriculum to help the special needs child perform and participate more effectively. Appropriate materials and the correct environment can also support the child in the learning process. There are long-standing supports such as daily schedules and short-term supports which would be direct instruction modification. The math example, as stated above, is short-term. For the most part, adjustments regarding teaching materials and modifications are the responsibility of the Para. However, it is the duty of the Para to review any adaptations with the certified staff member. We, as Paras, are the support staff. We are under the direction and supervision of the classroom or special area teacher. Any curricular modification directly affects the content of the student’s educational program. I learned data taking is another important responsibility of the Para. Many times, because of frustration, anxiety and the lack of being able to verbalize what the problem is, children with ASD will have problem behaviors. It is important to understand that problem behaviors are different than a behavior problem. If you consider a student a behavior problem than you look no further than the student himself. However, if you view the student as having problem behaviors, you are more likely to look for causes either from the environment or within the student himself. When a Para recognizes that there is a problem behavior, the certified staff member and the psychologist should meet to discuss what behavioral supports may be necessary. You, as the Para, will be asked to take data. This data is called ABC; A-antecedent, B-behavior exhibited and C-consequence. ABC DATA Antecedent Behavior Consequence Math lesson fell to the floor removed from room When the behavior occurs, the Para will write down what occurred before, what the behavior was and what consequence was given for the behavior. How long you take the data is at the discretion of the certified staff and psychologist. Once the data is taken, it is reviewed and a behavioral support plan is put into place. One type of plan is â€Å"if-then† support. For example, â€Å"If you throw your worksheet on the floor, then you will lose time on the computer.† It is very important that the child understands and knows what the targeted behavior and consequence is in order for the behavioral support to work. Another type of behavioral support is a token system. The child is told that when he/she gets five tokens (pennies, stickers, smiley faces, etc.) he gets to choose a preferred activity for a certain amount of time. This type of behavioral support reinforces good behavior. There are many other types of behavioral support plans and it is important to know that no two are the same. The type of plans and how it is implemented depends on each child. If implemented correctly it can have a significant impact for positive behavioral change. One important aspect in problem behaviors is to watch that the inappropriate behavior not be inadvertently reinforced. Some children act out for task avoidance. In reality the student is acting out to be removed from the situation. When this occurs the Para needs to work through the behavior. However, there are circumstances in inclusive settings where the child must be removed because it is too distracting to the typical peers. If this occurs, the child should be removed but the task must be completed in order to show the child that his behavior will not be rewarded and â€Å"get him out of doing his work†. In addition to all, which I have learned, clerical tasks are another aspect of being a Para. One clerical task is to provide a written record of the student’s daily functioning. These records are a part of the student’s programming. Giving the team important information regarding progress, setbacks and an insight into future planning is critical. Another part of the clerical tasks is also keeping data on IEP (Individualized Education Plan) goals. A Para should be proactive in consulting with the teacher to find out the goals and keeping accurate records regarding them. One example of an IEP goal would be: John will initiate game playing with a peer with 80% accuracy. A data sheet with data will show if John is reaching the goal over a certain period of time. The data will also show whether John is having difficulty accomplishing this goal and if so, adjustments should be made to the way in which this goal is being addressed. The daily record and the data on IEP goals ar e very crucial parts of supporting the student and should not be taken lightly. They are essential because they provide records for meetings and will aid the child’s next teacher, and possibly a new Para, in the event you are reassigned. All of the supports, which a Para gives to a special needs child, serve an important purpose. The support given promotes understanding, minimizes anxiety, gives a positive influence on behavior, promotes independence and competence and strengthens the overall student learning. Without these supports, students with special needs are left to help themselves. Under those circumstances stress and anxiety increase and the learning process is compromised. The proper support can mean the difference between success and failure. Through the past eleven years the knowledge that I acquired is endless and ongoing. I’ve learned about different learning disabilities, child development, instructional process for different special needs children, and most of all, working together as a team with the certified staff. As a Paraprofessional I know my role is critical to the successful school experience of the student. When a child has accomplished even the smallest goal it gives me great satisfaction and pleasure to know that I played an important part in making a difference in the life of a special needs child. These are positive steps and make me feel proud of the particular child. What happens as a result is that they themselves become encouraged by their achievement. There are days when it is particularly challenging to help a student complete a task, but these challenges are usually overcome by meeting with the team and following specific suggestions. From the Author Unknown â€Å"†¦it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove†¦ but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a CHILD.†

The American School System: A Rough Road Ahead :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

The American School System: A Rough Road Ahead There are many similarities and few differences between E.D. Hirsch’s â€Å"Why America’s Universities Are Better than Its Schools,† and Benjamin Barber’s â€Å"America Skips School.† The main purpose of both articles is to address the fact that Americans fall far behind in the scholastic accomplishment of their young students. Mutually, the two authors agree that American K-12 students learn more each day outside of the classroom than they do inside the classroom, and that the schools need serious reform. Barber focuses his attention on the financial situation of the schools, as well as the political standpoint that the government just does not care, and the American government has simply given up on its children. Hirsch tackles the idea that if our K-12 schools stay with their current level of teaching, it is only a matter of time before the institutions of higher learning will no longer be considered among the best in the world. At the present time, it seems as though America’s youth have been placed into a category for which they are no longer looked upon as a bright future for our nation as was considered in the past, as Barber has commented, â€Å"Jefferson thought schools would produce free men: we prove him right by putting dropouts in jail† (159). Children today are becoming more street-smart, and feel that there is no need for true knowledge. For example, â€Å"Knowledge is considered less desirable than more ‘practical’ all-purpose goals such as ‘higher order skills,’ ‘self-esteem,’ ‘metacognitive skills,’ and ‘critical-thinking skills† (Hirsch 144). They see it as much more important to look at what society rewards its people with, and that seems to be anything but a good academic background. In today’s culture, the people who are praised in America are the people who are able to make millions of dollars by performing music, acting in front of the camera, playing a sport, and unfortunately in some neighborhoods, selling drugs. Barber concurs that â€Å"When the society undoes each workday what the school tries to do each school day, schooling can’t make much of a difference† (157). Our students think in terms of what is going t o bring them to the peak of the success mountain in this great motherland where everyone has equal opportunity.

The Gifted Children

Started in the 1970†³s, America†s Gifted & Talented programs are used to enhance the curriculum of students included in either category in order to challenge and strengthen their unique abilities. These students are usually provided a separate class with specialized lessons in all areas and a teacher with a special degree in gifted education. I feel that it is important that the teacher was a gifted student who would know what the students must face as â€Å"above average† members of their school. The job market for gifted education offers a wide range of opportunity and gifted teachers are needed all over the One of the earliest programs for gifted and talented students was set up in 1974, at The Old Donation Center, in Virginia Beach. Students scoring within the top 3% of students on an assessment test are referred here to be further challenged. These students are considered gifted and have special teachers and classes to promote development of their talents and minds. Programs like this began to pop up around the nation in the 70†³s; however, gifted students were looked down upon by teachers, parents, and peers. Many people considered them to be â€Å"freaks† because they were different. They didn†t understand the implications of the terms â€Å"gifted† and â€Å"talented†. Most people simply expected gifted students to act more mature or to be geniuses, even though gifted students are the same as other children in their needs as human beings. Some gifted students were forced to grow up too fast and some simply ignored the fact that they were smarter than others, thus, they were lost in the shuffle. The irony of it all is that gifted-ness seems to run in families and the children of these repressed gifted students are, themselves, But what exactly is a â€Å"gifted† student? Students (elementary & secondary) are given a repertoire of tests. These tests check IQ, psychomotor ability, specific academic aptitude/talent, creative and productive thinking, leadership ability, and skills in the visual and performing arts. The main requirement, the IQ, is tested by a standardized IQ test (remember, however, that IQ tests are not always perfectly accurate). Ratings are given to each bracket of IQ scores: If a student receives a rating of â€Å"gifted† or higher (130+), he/she is considered to be a gifted student and is introduced into the designated programs. These students are given the opportunity to choose classes that are meant to teach them how to use their minds for critical thinking, reasoning, and artistic pursuits. Students in these classes are also exposed to culture, literature, and other subject areas that are not usually covered in what they term â€Å"normal classes†. The gifted classes are mainly in an open format allowing the student to create the parameters of his/her work and allowing them to be creative in their learning experience. Each class is presided-over by a teacher that has specialized degrees in gifted education. Almost every school in the United States has a need for a gifted class, making job opportunities endless; there are never Gifted teachers must have both a degree in education (secondary or elementary) and a degree in special education (gifted). These teachers are individuals that must have stamina, people skills, and open minds. It is also important (to the students) that the teacher himself/herself was also classified as gifted. It sets a common bond, shows them that the teacher understands the problems they face as so-called â€Å"smart kids†. These students are often ridiculed by heir peers and looked-down upon by their teachers. They are often separated from others their age by a barrier that can only be described as their â€Å"intelligence†. This is why, often, gifted teachers have degrees in administration, counseling, or psychology. All teachers that I interviewed told me that a continually upgraded education is a must (as are additional degrees). In order to keep up with the students one must attend seminars, workshops, special classes, etc. There is no end to the amount of education that could help you to understand gifted students and the role of their teacher†. Also, if a teacher has extra educational qualifications, he/she could be asked to step up to the position of administrator or, more often, counselor. This means pay raises. Though the average salary for teachers is approximately $27,500 per year, it is â€Å"a worthwhile undertaking† according to Jane Mansueto, â€Å"It is incredible to work with gifted students. They are incredible! † She went on to remark that it is fascinating to imagine that they are of the same level of intelligence as the teacher and what they must be feeling inside. She feels that the students are not othered by what their peers think, but actually tend to understand that other†s opinions mean little compared to their own. Mrs. Mansueto taught at Elm Grove Middle School for 5 years. She commented on her role as a gifted teacher to consist of â€Å"one part mentorship, one part hardship, and one part friendship†. When asked what kind of hours she keeps, she laughed and asked if she was supposed to have time off. According to Mrs. Mansueto, unlike a â€Å"normal† teacher, a gifted teacher has no books to go by or preset material to teach, or, for that matter, a preset subject to teach. They are given a blank page and, using input from students, must draw up lessons from every subject area and constantly challenge the inquisitive minds of the gifted. Jane Mansueto attended Trinity College where she majored in both elementary education and gifted education. Her favorite part of being a gifted teacher is being with the students, working hand in hand with them to plan and carry out projects and trips. Though the pay is average, and there is not much room to be promoted if you wish to remain in the classroom, gifted teaching has its personal rewards. Jeff Simpleton, a gifted teacher as well as a former gifted student, states, â€Å"I really think that by being gifted, I am in touch with what they have to go through. They know that I can understand. † Mr. Simpleton†s class consists of 6 high school students, who have many problems due to the intelligence barrier and a kind of isolation that has built up over the years between themselves and their classmates. They seem to feel that they have a reputation that they must live up to. The students try to please everyone†¦ they push themselves with sheer motivation and determination and drive. Mr. Simpleton feels that this is â€Å"what makes them so great†. He feels that anyone with a sense of adventure and a need for something new day after day would find teaching a gifted class to be the perfect job for Gifted teachers are important to the development of their students minds. They are understanding individuals who must work hard to make the curriculum interesting and challenging. With the proper education it is possible to go far as a teacher of the gifted. Various Internet sites. No info available for documentation.

Ethics †Morality Essay

Introduction Based on society’s ethics, laws are created and enforced by governments to mediate in our relationships with each other. Laws are made by governments in order to protect its citizens. The judiciary, legislature, and public officials are the three main bodies in a government that are assigned to the task of the creation of laws. Laws have to be approved and written by these three branches of government before they are implemented and enforced by the police and the military, with the help of the legal system consisting of lawyers and other government servants. While laws carry with them a punishment for violations, ethics does not. In ethics everything depends on the person’s conscience and self worth. Driving carefully and within the speed limit because you don’t want to hurt someone is ethical, but if you drive slowly because you see a police car behind you, this suggests your fear of breaking the law and being punished for it. Ethics comes from within a person’s moral sense and desire to preserve his self respect. It is not as strict as laws. Laws are codifications of certain ethical values meant to help regulate society, and punishments for breaking them can be harsh and sometimes even break ethical standards. Legal and Ethics Behaviors Legal behavior refers to the variations in the degree of governmental social control of one’s behavior for instance not obeying the traffic laws. Ethical behavior on the other hand is being in accordance with the accepted principles of right and wrong which govern the conduct of a profession. For example dealing badly with your female employees is unethical but not illegal. In an ideal society however legal and ethical standards/laws should be the same. Ethical behavior means characterized by honesty, fairness and equity in interpersonal, and professional academic relationships and in research and scholarly activities. Ethical behavior respects the dignity, diversity and rights of individuals and groups of people. DEFINITION OF ETHICS * In general, ethics is a moral philosophy where a person makes a specific moral choice and sticks to it. DEFINITION OF LAW * Law is a legal system comprising of rules and principles that govern the affairs of a community and controlled by a political authority. Law differs from one country to another. Differentiate in between legal and ethical behaviors. Law| Ethics| * Punishment| * No punishment| * Cannot be enforced independently| * Can be enforced independently| * Legal standards are negative. | * Ethical standards are more positive. | * Control by government| * Guideline from parent or teacher| * Law only doing what is legal. | * Ethics is doing the right thing. | * Must be follow| * Free to follow| * Universals| * Depends On Country| A certain behavior could be legal but not ethical. Example like at below: * Lying. * Abortion. * Artificial contraception. * Sleeping in class when teacher teaching. * Littering in public places. * Loud music when midnight. * Spitting in public places. * Read her/him diary without he/she approve. * Anywhere into other people’s rooms. * Using horn at the area hospital Engineer’s Role in Ethics. Engineer’s role in ethics is hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public. So engineers need learn engineering ethics. Engineering Ethics is the study of moral issues and decisions confronting individuals and organization engaged in engineering. Why Is Engineering Ethics Important? * sensitizes us to moral issues faced in the workplace * engineering Choices can affect public safety * employer or outside forces such as time and cost impact decisions * laws do not cover all areas involving ethical choices * helps one learn to avoid issues before they arise * recognizes there are gray areas governing our behavior. Engineering ethics is the field of applied ethics and system of moral principles that apply to the practice of engineering. The field examines and sets the obligations by engineers to society, to their clients, and to the profession. As a scholarly discipline, it is closely related to subjects such as the philosophy of science, the philosophy of engineering, and the ethics of technology. Engineering ethics also is professional ethics, as opposed to personal morality. It sets the standards for professional practice, and is only learned in a professional school or in professional practice. It is an essential part of professional education because it helps students deal with issues they will face in professional practice. The best way to teach engineering ethics is by using cases—not just the disaster cases that make the news, but the kinds of cases that an engineer is more likely to encounter. Many cases are available, and there are methods for analyzing them. Engineering ethics can be taught in a free-standing course, but there are strong arguments for introducing ethics in technical courses as well. Engineering is something that engineers do, and what they do has profound effects on others. Engineering ethics is an essential aspect of engineering itself and education in professional responsibilities should be part of professional education in engineering, just as it is in law and medicine. Engineering organization’s role in promoting ethical behavior Leader’s ability to motivate subordinates plays a key role in maintaining an ethical organization. Motivation is a force within the individual that focuses his or her behavior toward achieving a goal. To create motivation, an organization offers incentives to encourage employees to work toward organizational objectives. Understanding motivation is important to the effective management of people, and it also helps explain their ethical behavior. For example, a person who aspires to higher positions in an organization may sabotage a coworker’s project so as to make that person look bad. This unethical behavior is directly related to the first employee’s ambition (motivation) to rise in the organization. Recruitment and selection procedures are can use to influence the character of their employees in organization. Conclusion 1. Legal is the law of the Land, Ethic is the law of a Good/ Kind Heart 2. Ethics are rules of conduct. Laws are rules developed by governments in order to provide balance in society and protection to its citizens. 3. Ethics are moral codes which every person must conform to. Laws are codifications of ethics meant to regulate society. 4. Ethics does not carry any punishment to anyone who violates it. The law will punish anyone who happens to violate it. 5. Ethics comes from within a person’s moral values. Laws are made with ethics as a guiding principle. References 1. http://www. linkedin. com 2. http://quizlet. com 3. http://www. ehow. com 4. http://www. differencebetween. net 5. http://engineering. missouri. edu.

When Do College Acceptance Letters Arrive for Regular Decision For Early Decision or Early Action

When Do College Acceptance Letters Arrive for Regular Decision For Early Decision or Early Action SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Applying to college is a confusing and stressful process, but waiting to hear back from the colleges you applied to can be just as anxiety-inducing. When do college acceptance letters arrive? In this guide, we explain when to expect to receive your college decision notifications. We also give you a chart of estimated college acceptance dates for 2019 and offer helpful tips on what to do as you wait for your college acceptance letters. When Do College Acceptance Letters Arrive, Generally? First off, when do college acceptance letters arrive, broadly speaking? While the answer to this question really depends on what colleges you’re applying to, in general most decisions come out in the springtime, that is, in either March or early April. The latest you might hear back from a college will be the first week of April. This is because most schools require decisions from applicants on where they want to attend by May 1. Some colleges work together to release their decisions at the same time. The Ivy League, which is composed of eight highly prestigious colleges, releases its decisions on "Ivy Day," a specific day at the end of March (note that the exact date changes each year). But what if you applied to a college early action or early decision? In these cases, since applications are due earlier (usually in November), you can expect an earlier decision notification as well- usually around December. Some schools offer secondary early decision plans called Early Decision II for which applications are due a little bit later, usually in January. For these plans, decisions should come out around February. Here is a chart showing the general trends of when college acceptance letters come out: Application Deadline Estimated Decision Notification Date November (Early Action/Early Decision I) Mid- or late December January (Early Decision II) February December, January, or February (Regular Decision) March or early April These days, most college acceptance letters will arrive as either an email or application status update on a college’s own application portal. Afterward, you’ll usually receive a hard copy of your acceptance letter in the mail and further updates via email or mail. An Aside: What If You’re Waitlisted? Sometimes, instead of getting a college acceptance letter or rejection, you’ll get a letter stating that you’ve been waitlisted. This means that the college is still considering you for admission depending on how many admitted applicants choose to enroll. As a result, you’ll need to decide (typically by May 1) whether you want to stay on the waitlist to see if you get off it, or take yourself off the waitlist, thereby eliminating your chances of getting in. If you decide to stay on the waitlist, you won’t get a college decision notification until possibly as late as August, right before the school year starts. When you hear back ultimately depends on the school and how quickly it's able to fill up its new freshman class. College Acceptance Dates 2019 We have a general understanding of when college acceptance letters arrive. But when do college decisions come out in 2019? And how do these decision dates differ depending on the college? To answer these two questions, we put together an extensive list of popular schools and their reported or estimated college acceptance dates for 2019. All dates below represent the last day by which you should receive an admissions decision notification (unless otherwise noted); thus, it’s possible you could receive a decision earlier. All schools are listed alphabetically. School Early Action/Early Decision Regular Decision Amherst ED: Mid-December 2018 April 1-7, 2019 Boston College EA: December 20, 2018 Spring Freshmen: December 15, 2018 April 1, 2019 Boston University ED: December 15, 2018 ED 2: February 15, 2019 Late March to early April 2019 Brown ED: Mid-December 2018 March 28, 2019* Caltech EA: Mid-December 2018 Mid-March 2019 Carnegie Mellon ED: December 15, 2018 Early Admission (juniors only): April 15, 2019 April 15, 2019 Columbia ED: December 15, 2018 March 28, 2019* Cornell ED: Mid-December 2018 March 28, 2019* Dartmouth ED: Mid-December 2018 March 28, 2019* Duke ED: December 15, 2018 April 1, 2019 Emory ED I: December 15, 2018 ED II: February 15, 2019 Scholar Programs: March 1, 2019 April 1, 2019 Georgetown EA: December 15, 2018 April 1, 2019 Harvard EA: Mid-December 2018 March 28, 2019* Harvey Mudd ED I: December 15, 2018 ED II: February 15, 2019 April 1, 2019 Johns Hopkins ED: December 15, 2018 April 1, 2019 MIT EA: December 15, 2018 Mid-March 2019 Northwestern ED: Mid-December 2018 Late March 2019 Notre Dame EA: Mid-December 2018 Late March 2019 NYU ED I: December 15, 2018 ED II: February 15, 2019 April 1, 2019 Penn ED: Mid-December 2018 March 28, 2019* Pomona ED I: December 15, 2018 ED II: February 15, 2019 April 1, 2019 Princeton EA: Mid-December 2018 March 28, 2019* Rice ED: Mid-December 2018 April 1, 2019 Stanford EA: December 7, 2018 April 1, 2019 SUNY System ED: December 15, 2018 EA: January 1, 2019 Rolling Tufts ED I: Mid-December 2018 ED II: Mid-February 2019 April 1, 2019 UC System - Mar 1-31, 2019 UChicago EA: Mid-December 2018 ED I: Mid-December 2018 ED II: Mid-February 2019 Late March 2019 UMass Amherst EA: Starting mid-December 2018 Spring Applicants: Starting mid-December 2018 Starting early March 2019 UNC Chapel Hill EA: End of January 2019 End of March 2019 University of Florida - Mid-February 2019 University of Illinois EA: December 14, 2018 March 1, 2019 University of Michigan EA: December 24, 2018 Early April 2019 University of Rochester ED: December 15, 2018 April 1, 2019 University of Washington - March 1-15, 2019 USC Merit Scholarship Applicants: February 1, 2019 April 1, 2019 UT Austin Priority: February 1, 2019 March 1, 2019 UVA EA: End of January 2019 End of March 2019 Vanderbilt ED I: Mid-December 2018 ED II: Mid-February 2019 Late March 2019 Vassar ED I: Mid-December 2018 ED II: February 1, 2019 Late March 2019 Wake Forest ED: Rolling (as early as December 1, 2018) ED II: February 15, 2019 April 1, 2019 William Mary ED I: Early December 2018 ED II: Early February 2019 April 1, 2019 WUSTL ED: December 15, 2018 ED II: February 15, 2019 April 1, 2019 Yale EA: Mid-December 2018 March 28, 2019* *Estimated Ivy Day 2019 based on the patterns of previous years. Ivy Day is always at the end of March. See our guide to Ivy Day for more info about how we came up with this date. Want to build the best possible college application? We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in. Waiting for College Acceptance Letters? 3 Tips for What to Do We've given you the general dates you can expect to receive your college admission decision. But what should you do in the meantime, after you’ve submitted all your applications and are waiting for decision notifications from colleges? Here are three essential tips to keep in mind during this time. #1: Focus on School One of the most important steps you can take is to focus on school and keep up your grades. Try your best not to let senioritis hit you, especially considering that most colleges will want to see your final transcripts before you get to campus- even after they’ve admitted you. If you have any big dip in your grades senior year, a college could rescind your acceptance and reject you instead. Do not take any chances at this time! Continue to work hard, study for all the tests you have, and finish your homework on time. Keep making school a priority. Finally, continuing to do well in school is especially important if you plan to take any AP tests at the end of senior year. You want to keep up your studying so that you can earn a passing score on the tests you’re taking, hopefully earning you some college credit. Resist senioritis- keep up with your studies. #2: Apply for Financial Aid and Scholarships If you know you’ll need some help with money in order to attend college, these months of waiting for decisions to come out are an ideal time to shift your focus from college applications to FAFSA and scholarships. Applying for FAFSA makes you eligible to receive federal-, state-, and/or college-sponsored financial aid, including loans, grants, and work-study. If you’re interested in winning free scholarship money, I'd advise you to do some research on any college scholarships you might be eligible for. These scholarships can be based on merit, such as your GPA and SAT/ACT scores, or financial need (or both). For more tips on how to find and apply for scholarships, check out our financial aid blog posts as well as our most popular scholarship and aid guides: Simple Guide: How to Apply for Financial Aid How to Find Scholarships for College: Expert Guide Top Scholarships for High School Seniors The Easiest Scholarships to Apply For Easy Scholarships to Win: How to Find and Apply The Complete List of Community Service Scholarships Amazing Full-Ride Scholarships You Can Win Complete List: Weird Scholarships You Can Win How to Get a Merit Scholarship: 6-Step Guide #3: Keep Tabs on Your Email and Application Status As you wait for college decisions to come out, it’s important that you routinely check your email (whichever email you put down for your college applications) and application status on the school's website. Some schools will only announce their decisions online through their application portals, some will email their decisions directly, and others will mail their decisions before sending out emails (this is becoming less common, though). Even if you’re not expecting to get a college decision anytime soon, try to keep tabs on your inbox and application status. This will help ensure you’re not missing any application materials and that the college isn’t trying to contact you about any last-minute problems with your application. Conclusion: When Do College Acceptance Letters Arrive? There are many answers to the question, "When do college decisions come out?" In general, most college decisions are released online by email or through an application portal in March or early April. If you applied early action or early decision, you can expect to hear back about your application status in December (or around February if you applied Early Decision II). The latest you’ll get a college acceptance letter is the first week of April, since most colleges require admitted applicants to submit their decisions about where they want to attend by May 1. If you get waitlisted at a college and choose to stay on the list, you won’t receive an official decision until possibly as late as August. Once you’ve submitted your applications and are waiting to hear back from colleges, be sure to take these three steps: Focus on school and continue to keep up your grades Apply for financial aid and scholarships, including FAFSA Keep tabs on your email and application status by routinely checking your inbox and the school's application status page As a final tip, stay positive- you never know where you're gonna get in! What’s Next? What do college acceptance letters look like? Learn what a typical college acceptance letter says and how it looks with our in-depth guide. Got rejected from your top-choice school? Or scared of getting a rejection letter? Read our guide to get tips on how you can get through a college rejection and what you can do to improve your chances of getting in. The key to getting a college acceptance letter is having a great application. And the best way to ensure you have an impressive application is to know what looks good on it. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points? We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Old Oregon Wood Store Essays

Old Oregon Wood Store Essays Old Oregon Wood Store Essay Old Oregon Wood Store Essay We explored three different options, given the need to create a division of work that would maximize the number of tables manufactured per day by either utilizing four or five employees and allowing the employees to either be part of the manufacturing process or manufacture tables on their own. We first decided to combine the finishing step with the packaging step since packaging required a very minimal amount of time and because the employee assigned to this function was being severely underutilized , therefore one employee could handle both job duties. We also decided that Cathy should be excluded from the manufacturing process and George should manufacture tables on his own, since he is the one that can assemble a table using the least amount of time. Using the Assignment method and the different times that it would take each individual to perform each job duty we concluded that it will take 260 minutes to manufacture one table given that assembly was assigned to Tom (60), finishing and packaging was assigned to Leon(90), and preparation was assigned to Randy(110). By utilizing this approach Tom, Leon, and Randy could manufacture 4. 36 tables in 480 minutes( total time available divided by longest job time), given that they work an eight hour shift, meanwhile George could manufacture 2. 09 tables during the same time period. This would allow the whole team to manufacture a total of 6. 45 tables in an eight hour work day. Our second option involved modifying assignments in the first approach. For the second approach we decided to assign each job duty to the person that would required the least amount of time for each different job duty, given that preparation was assigned to Tom, since there was no one else that could do the duty for 100 minutes or less and this was the longest job time from the entire process. We also decided to let George manufacture tables on his own and exclude Cathy from the manufacturing process. This approached equated to a total of 270 hours, given than assembly was assigned to Randy( 80), finishing and packaging to Leon(90), and preparation to Tom(100). By utilizing this pproach Tom, Leon, and Randy can manufacture 4. 8 tables in 480 minutes, meanwhile George manufactures 2. 09 tables during the same given time. This approach would allow the entire team to manufacture a total of around 7 tables per day. For the third option we decided to utilize all five of the employees but still keep finishing and packaging as one job duty instead of two. Since it would only take three employees to manufacture a table we decided that George and Tom could be best utilized if they were to manufacture tables on their own because they are both the fastest at manufacturing a table. After excluding George and Tom from the manufacturing process, we decided to assign preparation to Randy(110), since hes the one that can finish the job the fastest, and because preparation is the job duty that requires the most amount of time. After assigning preparation to Randy, we assigned assembly to Cathy (70), and finishing and packaging to Leon (90). By utilizing this division of work Randy, Cathy, and Leon can make 4. 36 tables in 480 minutes, Tom can make 1. 75 in the same given time, and George can make 2. 09 which would equate to a total number of 8. 2 tables per day.

Biography of Horace Greeley

Biography of Horace Greeley The legendary editor Horace Greeley was one of the most influential Americans of the 1800s. He founded and edited the New York Tribune, a  substantial and very popular newspaper of the period. Greeleys opinions, and his daily decisions on what constituted news impacted American life for decades. He was not an ardent abolitionist, yet he was opposed to slavery, and he was involved in the founding of the Republican Party in the 1850s. When Abraham Lincoln came to New York City in early 1860 and essentially began his run for the presidency with his address at Cooper Union, Greeley was in the audience. He became a supporter of Lincoln, and at times, especially in the early years of the Civil War, something of a Lincoln antagonist. Greeley eventually ran as a major candidate for president in 1872, in an ill-fated campaign which left him in very poor health. He died soon after losing the 1872 election. He wrote countless editorials and several books, and is perhaps best known for a famous quote he probably did not originate: â€Å"Go west, young man.† A Printer in His Youth Horace Greeley was born on February 3, 1811, in Amherst, New Hampshire. He received irregular schooling, typical of the time, and became an apprentice at a newspaper in Vermont as a teenager. Mastering the skills of a printer, he worked briefly in Pennsylvania and then moved to New York at the age of 20. He found a job as a newspaper compositor, and within two years he and a friend opened their own print shop. In 1834, with another partner, Greeley founded a magazine, the New Yorker,  a journal devoted to literature, the arts and sciences. The New York Tribune For seven years he edited his magazine, which was generally unprofitable. During this period he also worked for the emerging Whig Party. Greeley wrote leaflets, and at times edited a newspaper, the Daily Whig. Encouraged by some prominent Whig politicians, Greeley founded the New York Tribune in 1841, when he was 30. For the next three decades, Greeley would edit the newspaper, which came to have a profound influence on the national debate. The dominant political issue of the day, of course, was slavery, which Greeley adamantly and vocally opposed. A Prominent Voice in American Life Greeley was personally offended by the sensationalist newspapers of the period and worked to make the New York Tribune a  credible newspaper for the masses. He sought out good writers and is said to be the first newspaper editor to provide bylines for writers. And Greeley’s own editorials and commentaries drew enormous attention. Though Greeley’s political background was with the fairly conservative Whig Party, he advanced opinions which deviated from Whig orthodoxy. He supported womens rights and labor and opposed monopolies. He hired early feminist  Margaret Fuller to write for the Tribune, making her the first female newspaper columnist in New York City. Greeley Shaped Public Opinion in the 1850s In the 1850s Greeley published editorials denouncing slavery, and eventually supported full abolition. Greeley wrote denunciations of the Fugitive Slave Act, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the Dred Scott Decision. A weekly edition of the Tribune  was shipped westward, and it was very popular in rural parts of the country. Its believed that Greeleys hardening opposition to slavery helped shape public opinion in the decade leading up to the Civil War. Greeley became one of the founders of the Republican Party and was present as a delegate at its organizing convention in 1856. Greeleys Role in Lincolns Election At the 1860 Republican Party convention, Greeley was denied a seat in the New York delegation because of feuds with local officials. He somehow arranged to be seated as a delegate from Oregon and sought to block the nomination of New York’s William Seward, a former friend. Greeley supported the candidacy of Edward Bates, who had been a prominent member of the Whig Party. But the tempestuous editor eventually put his influence behind Abraham Lincoln. Greeley Challenged  Lincoln Over Slavery During the Civil War Greeley’s attitudes were controversial. He originally believed the southern states should be allowed to secede, but he eventually came to support the war fully. In August 1862 he published an editorial titled â€Å"The Prayer of Twenty Millions† that called for the emancipation of the slaves. The title of the famed editorial was typical of Greeleys presumptuous nature, as it indicated that the entire population of the northern states shared his beliefs. Lincoln Responded  Publicly to Greeley Lincoln wrote a response, which was printed on the front page of the New York Times on August 25, 1862. It contained an oft-quoted passage: â€Å"If I could save the Union without freeing any slave, I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves, I would do it; and if I could do it by freeing some and leaving others alone, I would also do that.† By that time, Lincoln had decided to issue the Emancipation Proclamation. But he would wait until he could claim military victory after the Battle of Antietam in September before proceeding Controversy at the End of the Civil War Horrified by the human cost of the Civil War, Greeley advocated peace negotiations, and in 1864, with Lincoln’s approval, he traveled to Canada to meet with Confederate emissaries. The potential thus existed for peace talks, but nothing came of Greeleys efforts. After the war Greeley offended a number of readers by advocating amnesty for Confederates, even going so far as to pay for a bail bond for Jefferson Davis. Troubled Later Life When Ulysses S. Grant was elected president in 1868 Greeley was a supporter. But he became disillusioned, feeling Grant was too close to New York political boss Roscoe Conkling. Greeley wanted to run against Grant, but the Democratic Party was not interested in having him as a candidate. His ideas helped to form the new Liberal Republican Party, and he was the party’s candidate for president in 1872. The 1872 campaign was particularly dirty, and Greeley was viciously criticized and mocked. He lost the election to Grant, and it took a terrible toll on him. He was committed to a mental institution, where he died on November 29, 1872. Greeley is best remembered today for a quote from an 1851 editorial in the New York Tribune: Go west, young man. It has been said that Greeley thus inspired many thousands to set out for the frontier. The most likely story behind the famous quote is that Greeley had reprinted, in the New York Tribune, an editorial by John B.L. Soule which contained the line, Go west, young man, go west. Greeley never claimed to have coined the original phrase, though he later expanded upon it by writing an editorial with the phrase, Go west young man, and grow up with the country. And over time the original quote was usually attributed to Greeley.

E-commerce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 1

E-commerce - Essay Example Clear communication channels and escalation matrix should also be defined. The core team must prepare a methodology and time frame to transfer existing data to the new system. A final launch date should be adhered to or changed depending on project progress. The leadership team must pay special attention to securing staff buy in, so that the new system when launched is embraced by the users. In implementing this strategy various organizational, management and technical issues will need to be addressed. This is discussed below. Organizational Issues In order that a life insurance company moves from a brick and mortar business to an automated environment, strategic leadership is very important. The leadership team may need to evaluate: "Strategy to deal with channel conflict Prevent erosion of margins Assess type of products suitable for web distribution Techniques to strengthen customer relationships and gain new customers online" (Bloor Research). This entails huge investment in IT infrastructure. The leadership team will need to decide the payment method for this investment. One option is to outsource or share costs with a provider while the other is to take costs out of existing operations. For example Allstate Insurance, a US based insurer "restructured its workforce to support a move towards a multi-channel sales strategy encompassing the Internet, call centers and agents. It eliminated thousands of non-agent positions and converted captive agents into independent contractors. These changes reportedly will save the company $600m. Allstate has also reportedly reorganized and consolidated some of its operations to save costs" (Insurance Journal). The life insurance company needs to decide the areas to... This essay evaluates the strategy for a life insurance company to transform from a brick and mortar business to an e enterprise. The researcher focuses on the discussion of the issue of converting a life insurance company to an e-enterprise, that requires not only huge monetary investment, but also investment in keeping the energy and tempo of the employees high so that project implementation is successful. If e launch is successful, some parts of the traditional set up can be replaced by more modern processes. It will turn the insurance company from a mammoth organization to a lean firm. Reduce processing time and control cost, e –commerce and e – business solutions hold great appeal for an insurance company. Josefowicz aptly notes that a life insurance company can â€Å"maintain a small group of e-business experts to provide guidance, consistency and best practices on the five key areas of strategy, education, usability, security and standardization†. The resea rcher states that this will help the company reduce the risk of: re-inventing the wheel for each new initiative, supporting cross-purpose initiatives, lack of training, which leads to lack of adoption and user frustration, divergent interfaces, which increases training expense, and reduces adoption, expensive, unnecessary integration of divergent systems, lack of interoperability, expensive and time-consuming post facto integration. The researcher then concluds that it's competence, clear direction and enthusiasm, that can surely make the project a success.

Studio Photography Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Studio Photography - Research Paper Example This paper analyzes the steps or processes, which should be followed by photographers, in order to produce quality images that satisfy their clients’ desires. The process described in this article is consistent with Ray Parslow’s design process. Ray Parslow and his team design logos for companies, including other graphic works for companies and individual clients. Parslow suggests that, proper communication and understanding of the clients, is the most crucial step in studio photography (Galer 128). This always gives the photographers confidences for designing a process that will result in incredible results. The customers’ desires should not be satisfied only at the end of the design process, but it should be long-lived even after the creative process is terminated. The photographers should be capable of providing their clients with a variety of solutions, which are researched, to aid understanding of how the design process will be decided and executed to completion. After selecting a design process, the clients should constantly be involved in the process, so as to address any change that need to be made in the design process. This will give both the photographer and the client an opportunity to solve issues that were not taken into consideration at the onset of the process (Galer 128). Photographers must always ensure the final prod ucts delivered to their clients satisfy their needs, and reflects the level of their professionalism in this industry. This will also create a long term relationship between the artist and the client. The timing and service fee of the project should be agreed upon at the onset of the design process. This helps in determining the time and costs required to perform activities such as photography, editing, printing and writing. Other photographers such as Jacob of butterfield photography also agree with Parslow that the service fee and

Respons letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Respons letter - Essay Example As such, I credit the way Mike Keefe presented the challenge of Obesity among Americans. Indeed, as Keefe observes, large percentage of Obesity cases in America are related to lifestyle. The â€Å"Higgs Boson† cartoon context indicates that the American Obesity is entirely attributable to the people’s poor feeding habit. I beg to differ with this assumption because the subject of obesity is of controversial implication hence generalized declarations do not respond to its concerns effectively. James & John (34), observes that obesity is caused by numerous factors and indeed, most of the factors that we undermine have a considerable influence. Surprisingly, Keffe disregards the idea of linking Obesity with genetic disorders. This is an irrational observation since James & John (157) identifies that a considerable number of American Obesity cases are genetic based. As such, we need to examine the issue of obesity critically and shun drawing generalized conclusions. The audience of this letter will be all individuals who accesses The Denver Post magazine. This is a diverse audience; therefore, I have used harmonized language to articulate my position. I expect my audience to understand the essence of according reasonable attention to the subject of obesity. However, I also expect that some readers may disagree with my position disregarding it as

Safety Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 5

Safety - Essay Example Before ignition process likewise, it is important that all the personnel on the site should be well acquainted by the attached FMEA. FMEA provides for systematic and qualitative tool, typically created from a spreadsheet during the testing, to assist the personnel anticipate what can go wrong with the process, and then to develop plans to mitigate various risk of failure. It is important to point out that all the debris from the test site must all be cleaned up before setup. Despite the distance, they should always ensure they wear protective gear for both their ears and eyes. This ensures that they are protected at all time with the sound and any unforeseen eye direct infection. However, all these are only done after a 10-12 second countdown to ignition has been in place to ensure every at the site is attentive. The testing is procedural to ensure safety at all times and whenever ignition is not in place, the rocket must be covered by a cap and all materials will be stored safely af ter are disassembled by the in-charge at the site. Likewise, Subscription to all Smart Monitoring System is also provided. All chemical materials containers and must be easily stored and transport availed to and from the test area. Connected to this is the fact that the ventilation system & emergency light must be provided based on site size. Nonetheless, instances misfire are common during testing. In case of such, the first thing to do is to close the remote bottle opener and immediately put off the main power supply. This procedure is important as it ensures deactivation of the closed solenoid. After successfully doing this, it is important to give an allowance of about 70 seconds before anyone can approach the rocket motor housing. Safety before and after the ignition is of importance since if the assumption is made and some of the safety precautions are ignored, it may be risky to the operators and likewise losses may be incurred unnecessarily. When the process

Strategies and Synergies of Tempur-Pedic International's plan to Case Study

Strategies and Synergies of Tempur-Pedic International's plan to acquire Sealy Corp - Case Study Example These two companies had agreed to merge and create $2.7 billion international bedding provision. This agreement entails an acquisition of $242 million and assumption of $750 million in debt by Tempur-Pedic International from Seal Corp. Apparently, Seal Corp had raised its shares up by 9 per cent in anticipation of the acquisition by the rival firm. The shares traded at $2.33. Tempur-Pedic felt threatened by the rapid up scaling of the Sealy Corp and was determined to recapture the market share. Under the agreement, Sealy Corp would continue with its independent operations under its Chief Executive Officer, Larry Rogers. He will report to the Tempur-Pedic’s Chief Executive Officer, Mark Sarvey. Although Tempur-Pedic Corp and Sealy Corp are both bedding companies, they each took separate paths over the past twenty years. Tempur-Pedic that was founded 1992 and later emerged as the biggest manufacturer of mattresses in 2011. Consequently, its sales revenue rose by 28 per cent attaining a $ 1.42 billion point. Sealy Corp has been operating for 131 years but the rise in Tempur-Pedic resulted in the plunging of its shares by more than ninety per cent in 2006. Consequently, its sales revenue was reduced to $1.23 billion during the 2011 public initial offer (Arora & Mukherjee, 2012). Sealy Corp had H Partners Management LLC as its number one shareholder. The New York based KKR and the Bain Capital are other important shareholders. Tempur-Pedic’s shareholders include Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (myNews, 2012). Tempur-Pedic’s strategic rational Tempur-Pedic aims to expand its operations to cover more than eighty countries globally. Its acquisition of the Seal Corp is a movement towards this direction aimed at strengthening its efficiencies. Its long-term goal is to ensure that its expansion strategy will result in value addition to its global customers, shareholders and retailers. By merging with the Sealy Corp, Tempur-Pedic believes that it will create enough synergy that is instrumental to drive it into attaining this goal. Besides, Tempur-Pedic hopes to take advantage of the two companies’ highly regarded technologies, brands, geographic footprints and products to tap into the significant opportunities (Arora & Mukherjee, 2012). Is the current o ffer of $2.20 per share a fair offer for ZZ? The second quarter of 2012 saw Tempur-Pedic’s cashing $134 million and equivalents. This is despite the fact that it operates with debts, both short and long term of $682 million. This places it in a net debt position of $548 million. However, this position would be increased after merging with the Sealy Corp in the $ 1.3 billion transaction to $1.8 billion. The first half of 2012 saw Tempur-Pedic’s revenue generation attain a $713.9 million mark, giving it a net of $85.3 million. This is equivalent to $1.31 for every share diluted. The firm expects to generate $1.43 billion n revenues independent of Sealy Corp. This will create expected earnings of $2.80 for every diluted share. Based on this valuation methodology, it will be appropriate for Tempur-Pedic to offer its shares at $2.80 instead of $2.20 (Empowered News, 2012). Do you think TPX or ZZ shareholders are getting the better deal at this price and why? The $1.3 billio n transaction between Tempur-Pedic International was not fully welcomed by all the shareholders of the two firms. The Sealy Corp shareholders were only entitled to a cash of $2.20 for each Sealy stock share owned. This represents a 3 per cent premium of the past closing stock and unfavorably lower than the fifty-two week high of $2.45. This has potential of undervaluing the Sealy

Mobile Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Mobile Technology - Essay Example Mobile technology has not only simplified the spread of communication technology through elimination of physical medium to reach its destination but it has also added a great value to businesses through simplified and easy implementation. Mobile technology has also revolutionized the field of education, with millions of university students and educators have laptops in class rooms, university lawn and hostels directly connect to the internet and university intranet through high speed mobile wireless technologies. It is not only laptops, even mobile phones and other handheld devices are becoming exceedingly powerful enough to replace laptops and personal computer in educational and business environments. Beyond its common uses mobile technology is now stepping into new domains of ease and accessibility with research and development in the Near Field Communication (NFC) technology which is essentially a mobile technology. NFC is about to change human lives, when mobiles will be used to made flash payments through integrated debit or credit cards at trains, airports and shopping malls. The user will simply touch mobile device with the NFC tag and the payment will be made directly from user’s account. At a hospital NFC tag can collect medical history through mobile device and there will be no need to trace the hospital recodes for patient’s history. This only gives an idea about NFC because very soon NFC enabled mobile phones will carry almost every sort of information that might be used anywhere, anytime. (Kessler, 2011). Like many other modern day technologies, mobile technology is getting more and more space in human lives and has almost reached a point where it will become a necessity. Even today, its multiple uses have comforted human life so much that it has gain indomitable place in areas like businesses,

Strategies and Synergies of Tempur-Pedic International's plan to Case Study

Strategies and Synergies of Tempur-Pedic International's plan to acquire Sealy Corp - Case Study Example These two companies had agreed to merge and create $2.7 billion international bedding provision. This agreement entails an acquisition of $242 million and assumption of $750 million in debt by Tempur-Pedic International from Seal Corp. Apparently, Seal Corp had raised its shares up by 9 per cent in anticipation of the acquisition by the rival firm. The shares traded at $2.33. Tempur-Pedic felt threatened by the rapid up scaling of the Sealy Corp and was determined to recapture the market share. Under the agreement, Sealy Corp would continue with its independent operations under its Chief Executive Officer, Larry Rogers. He will report to the Tempur-Pedic’s Chief Executive Officer, Mark Sarvey. Although Tempur-Pedic Corp and Sealy Corp are both bedding companies, they each took separate paths over the past twenty years. Tempur-Pedic that was founded 1992 and later emerged as the biggest manufacturer of mattresses in 2011. Consequently, its sales revenue rose by 28 per cent attaining a $ 1.42 billion point. Sealy Corp has been operating for 131 years but the rise in Tempur-Pedic resulted in the plunging of its shares by more than ninety per cent in 2006. Consequently, its sales revenue was reduced to $1.23 billion during the 2011 public initial offer (Arora & Mukherjee, 2012). Sealy Corp had H Partners Management LLC as its number one shareholder. The New York based KKR and the Bain Capital are other important shareholders. Tempur-Pedic’s shareholders include Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (myNews, 2012). Tempur-Pedic’s strategic rational Tempur-Pedic aims to expand its operations to cover more than eighty countries globally. Its acquisition of the Seal Corp is a movement towards this direction aimed at strengthening its efficiencies. Its long-term goal is to ensure that its expansion strategy will result in value addition to its global customers, shareholders and retailers. By merging with the Sealy Corp, Tempur-Pedic believes that it will create enough synergy that is instrumental to drive it into attaining this goal. Besides, Tempur-Pedic hopes to take advantage of the two companies’ highly regarded technologies, brands, geographic footprints and products to tap into the significant opportunities (Arora & Mukherjee, 2012). Is the current o ffer of $2.20 per share a fair offer for ZZ? The second quarter of 2012 saw Tempur-Pedic’s cashing $134 million and equivalents. This is despite the fact that it operates with debts, both short and long term of $682 million. This places it in a net debt position of $548 million. However, this position would be increased after merging with the Sealy Corp in the $ 1.3 billion transaction to $1.8 billion. The first half of 2012 saw Tempur-Pedic’s revenue generation attain a $713.9 million mark, giving it a net of $85.3 million. This is equivalent to $1.31 for every share diluted. The firm expects to generate $1.43 billion n revenues independent of Sealy Corp. This will create expected earnings of $2.80 for every diluted share. Based on this valuation methodology, it will be appropriate for Tempur-Pedic to offer its shares at $2.80 instead of $2.20 (Empowered News, 2012). Do you think TPX or ZZ shareholders are getting the better deal at this price and why? The $1.3 billio n transaction between Tempur-Pedic International was not fully welcomed by all the shareholders of the two firms. The Sealy Corp shareholders were only entitled to a cash of $2.20 for each Sealy stock share owned. This represents a 3 per cent premium of the past closing stock and unfavorably lower than the fifty-two week high of $2.45. This has potential of undervaluing the Sealy

Post-traumatic Stress Syndrome, Self-esteem, and Gender Essay Example for Free

Post-traumatic Stress Syndrome, Self-esteem, and Gender Essay Introduction and Statement of the Problem Life is a continuous process of change and evolution. The only thing constant in this world is change. In order for an individual to grow, he needs to make a sound decision about the changes that he is going to adapt. In life one could not avoid having bad experiences. It is part of growing up and there are also some benefits that one could get from a bad experience; learning what went wrong and avoiding the occurrence of it in the future. However, the way an individual cope up with bad experiences differ from one another. There is no exact formula on how unlikable situations should be handled. There are some who are able to come out of it better but there are some who are being hunted by it. When one tries to suppress his feelings and not let others see what they are truly feeling, sometimes this bottled up emotions causes stress. Flashbacks are memories that we try to hide away. These are like bombs that when are lit up, creates vivid scenario of the emotions that one is trying to avoid. Some are unable to handle it this the lack of control of their emotion leads to different kinds of emotional disorder and one this will be the post-traumatic stress disorder. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a term that first appeared in 1980 in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). The development of the concept was said to be with socio economic and political implications as to veterans of war. PTSD is one of the psychiatric diagnoses in which a veteran could accept medical compensation. The diagnosis is highly controversial because of the strong connection with compensation seeking behavior and efforts and the uncertainty about the affect of this on objective diagnosis of those who may have been subjected to trauma (Wikipedia, 2006). Stress theory has defined post traumatic disorder as imbalance of chemicals within the neurotransmitters (Wikipedia, 2006). However not everyone who have suffered painful event could be said to have acquired a post traumatic stress syndrome. There are criteria set and look on by clinical psychologist before one could be diagnosed to have one. Examples of the behaviors that should be manifested by a victim would be constant flashback of the tragic or unwanted event, feelings of detachment, insomnia, exaggerated startled response and difficulty in concentrating (Morgan, 1996). Nowadays the term is associated with any anxiety disorder brought about by flood, earthquake, plane crash, rape, assault, accident, fire or any devastating event that could trigger emotional imbalance. Anyone could suffer from PTSD but the most vulnerable are the young and aged because of their less ability to cope with trauma. A recent survey concluded regarding those who suffered from severe burns, 80% of young children experience post traumatic stress 2-3 years after as compared to the 30% of adults. In the United States, it said that 12% of women and 6% of men of experience PTSD sometimes in the course of their lives. The most cases for women are about sexual molestations and about combat war duty for men (Morgan, 1996). A flashback does not only occur to those with emotional problems but also those that are healthy. The number of occurrence and the intensity of the effect of flashback have an effect for it to be called as an abnormal one. It shakes the mind to its core like the experience of an earthquake. They might be parallel to an epileptic seizure wherein there is no telling when it will occur in a person. It could be attributed in a total chaos felt by an individual that may make his head hurt and have his emotion in total chaos. In such a situation, the subject feels depressed and afraid. He or she feels confused, disassociated from reality and suffers from obsessive thoughts centered on the endless effort of easing the fear (Saito, 2006). This results to the person being in a continuous state of fear, worry and anxiousness. These flashbacks trigger more problems in an individual regarding how he interacts in his present situation. There are times that even if an individual diagnosed with post traumatic disorder is said to be clinically healed, there are still instances that flashbacks will plagued him. The difference though will be in the intensity and since a person is said to be clinically healed from post traumatic stress disorder, he knows how to handle and react when situations like this arises (Saito, 2006). Separation by parent could also have a major negative impact on the emotions of children. Domestic violence is a problem in society that is hard to eradicate. This kind of violence also causes trauma. The effect of depression that a child undergoes because of witnessing domestic violence was look upon. Gender differences in self esteem of forty five school children who are within the elementary grade was analyzed for the study. In this study the result shows that boys who have witness domestic violence have lower self esteem than the girls (Reynolds et al, 2001). Bigger percentage of those that were diagnosed with post traumatic stress syndrome is the children. They lack the proper experiences and they are unable to defend themselves when a bad situation arises. They still don’t know how to handle their emotions; they still lack the necessary skills to cope with the stress brought about by a bad incident in their lives. Social Learning Theory formulated by Bandura explains that learning is done by an individual through modeling a behavior that one gets from the environment. Observational language as proposed by this theory encompasses four important components; attention, retention, motor reproduction and motivation. This theory has been widely use in the study of psychological disorder and behavior modification. Social learning theory has also been use by some social scientist regarding the relationship between self confidence and the learning process of an individual (Ormrod, 1999). When a person is overly exposed in a negative situation, this triggers an imbalance in his emotions. One quality for a person to be diagnosed with post traumatic stress syndrome will be the feeling of detachment and exaggerated response when startled.   Detachment could be defined as the lack of enthusiasm or a very low motivation about interacting with peers or with the environment. Thus there could be relationship between self-esteem of a child and post traumatic stress syndrome. Self-esteem will be how one person looks at himself; his view about his worth and the qualities that he can offer the world. The feeling of detachment has something to do with the level of self-esteem that a child has. The relationship between self-esteem and post traumatic stress disorder will be look on. This could help parents or guardians, and school administrators in checking the status of the children and thus they could employ a way to help, if it is needed. Since children are still unable to establish their personalities, they are the likely candidate for post-traumatic stress disorder. This study will try to examine the relation of having a post traumatic stress syndrome with the gender of a child. They say that women are more emotional than men; this will hold true for adult individuals but how about for a child who has not yet have the necessary emotions to build his personality, there might be a different case thus a different approach to healing should be employed. Statement of the problem The relation of gender to post traumatic stress disorder will be analyzed. The sample will be middle school children. The study will try to check what gender of a child the most needed help to overcome or avoid post traumatic stress syndrome. The relationship between these variables will be analyzed and recorded to check the symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder. How it affects children ages ten to twelve years old will also be look upon. A survey will be utilized to administer the test. The result will be analyzed using regression coefficient test. Research Questions and Hypotheses Hypotheses Self Esteem: H1: There is a relationship between self esteem and PTSD symptoms. Ho: There is no relationship between self esteem and levels of PTSD. Gender: H1: There is a relationship between symptoms of PTSD and gender. Ho: There is no relationship between gender and levels of PTSD Research Question Research Aim: The aim of this research is to show a relationship between self-esteem and gender with level of post traumatic stress disorder that a child experiences. Theoretical construct to be employed will be of social learning theory. The survey from will have questions that are directed will be directed not only with the children but also with the teachers, guardians, parents and friends of the target population that has been said to have experience a traumatic incident and have been diagnosed with a post traumatic stress disorder. Sample Research Question: The names and other personal information regarding the participants will be withheld for their protection. The personal information that will be obtained from them will be their age and gender. Have your child experience a traumatic event in your life? What kind of traumatic event have you been exposed to? When did you experience this traumatic event? How many times do you think you have been exposed to traumatic events? Have you been experiencing constant uncontrollable shaking or heart palpitations? Have you had clinical diagnosis and treatment after the traumatic experience? Did this traumatic event made you change how you deal with other people? Do you find it easy to trust other people now? Are you having problem sleeping at night? Are you having recurrent flashback of the traumatic event that you have experienced? Are you having problems relating your emotions to other people? Did you have problem eating after the painful experience that you have encountered? Do you think your family is giving you enough support in healing the painful experience that you have? Rate your confidence within yourself regarding your emotional capabilities. One being the lowest and ten being the highest. Are you able to focus well on your tasks in school? Do you think you have many or just few friends? Do you think your peers understand you? Are you satisfied with your current status regarding your studies? Are you satisfied with your current status regarding your family? Are you confident about your future, that you will have a good one? Are you able to share the traumatic experience that you have encountered with your friends or family members? How many months before you had felt better after the traumatic event? Definitions of Theoretical Constructs Traumatic events will be defined as an experience that an individual had that causes him to feel emotional disturbances like horror, helplessness and a sense of disrupt equilibrium. Traumatic events could also be marked by an injury to the victim. The injury may be emotional or physical. Some say that a person may be suffering from post traumatic stress disorder if the person’s emotional status will not get better after three months after the incident. This is the threshold month before a person could be said to have an emotional disturbance (CDC, 2005). Self esteem will be the level of confidence that a child has regarding how he can achieve things. This will also be related to how a child interacts with his peers, friends and family members. Self esteem is also how a child sees himself, if he thinks he has good physical attributes, as well as emotional and mental capabilities. Gender is another term for the sexuality of a human being. There will only be two distinction regarding the sexuality of human beings, that will be a person could only be a male or a female. The physical attribute of the person will be the basis for sexuality and not the emotional preference of the child. Social learning theory focuses on how an individual relates to his environment. The way an individual response to different stimuli that has been presented has something to do with the motivations and degree of attention that the person gives to the specific stimuli that has been presented to him. This theory has been employed to better understand aggression and concept of self worth by some individuals. This would be how one sees their worth despite the odds and how they define themselves according to what they have experience. Post traumatic stress disorder is an emotional disturbances cause by negative stimulus that an individual experiences within his environment. Sometimes, too much exposure to this negative stimulus causes a disruption of equilibrium and sometimes the individual will have problem regarding the distinction of what society perceives as right and wrong. Emotional stress might have an affect on the cognitive aspect of an individual. People surrounding an individual who has experience post traumatic stress disorder should keep in mind that they have to help in creating a balance again in the lives of the victims; this could be done by being aware that they need attention and motivation. This could help in making sure that the victim will heal and that his future will not be jeopardize because of a mistake that has harmed him when he was still a child. That is why in the study; those surrounding the children, like teachers, guardians and parents will also be interviewed. The interview with them aims to create an awareness regarding what post traumatic stress disorder is and makes them think about how to help create a better environment for the victims of traumatic events. Research Design A random sample of fifty children age 10-12 will be the target population for the study. The sample will be obtained from three different local schools within the state. Teachers and parents will be interviewed first to check those students who could be use for the sampling. They should be those students who have witness or experience a traumatic event in their life. They may or may not be diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder. The school record of those who will answer the survey will also be checked to. A survey format questionnaire will be given the random sample of fifty children. Ratio of the number of male and female population will also be recorded. The statistical test that will be use to interpret the survey will be regression coefficient of beta and the statistical measure will employ the F test or F equals t-squared. Ancova will be the program to be use to help diagnose the coefficients of the result of the survey. Contributions Self-concept on the other hand for me is a person’s ability to relate them to what they are trying to learn. This means having a clear notion of how one could learn not only by the aid of mentors but also on how we would help ourselves to learn new concepts that are being presented to us. In life there will be instances that a person’s self concept may be put into jeopardize when a person, specially a child, experiences a traumatic event in his life. There could problems regarding how he will interpret the new things that are being presented to him after the traumatic event. A better understanding of what a child goes through after a painful experience will help understand the trauma and stress that is being experienced. This could aid on the right approach that should be employed to make sure that the emotional and intellectual growth of a child is not hampered but he was able to learn and get the lesson in the bad thing that has happened to him. This could also help parents, teachers and guardians by having a correct awareness about post traumatic stress disorder and its effect to their children. It is hoping that after those surrounding the child who is a victim of a traumatic event; they will do the necessary assessment and intervention needed to create an equilibrium within the victim’s emotions. That since they will have better understanding, they will have greater patience to the child if it is showing negative attitudes because of their traumatic experience. That they will give him more motivation to heal himself from the pain that he is experiencing. Life is never easy, painful experiences are part of one’s life but proper knowledge on how to handle these pains will be beneficial on coping with changes and making sure that children grow up healthy, physically and mentally. Reference: Department of Heath and Human Services. CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). (2005). Coping with a Traumatic Event. Retrieved September 26, 2006 from http://www.bt.cdc.gov/masscasualties/copingpub.asp Elklit, A. (2002). Victimization and PTSD in a Danish National Youth Probability Sample. Journal of the American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry. 41(2):174-181, February 2002. Lippincott Williams Wilkins Kurtz, Linda. (1995). A Coping Processes and Behavioral Outcomes in Children of Divorce . University of Alberta. Canadian Journal of School Psychology .Volume 11, Number 1, Spring 1995. Morgan, Barbara J. (1996). Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. p343. Guide to Medical Cures and Treatments, The Reader’s Digest Association Inc. Pleasantville New York, Montreal. Motta, Robert. (1995). Childhood Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and the Schools. Hofstra University. Canadian Journal of School Psychology .Volume 11, Number 1, Spring 1995. Ormrod, J.E. (1999). Human learning (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall Reynolds et al. (2001). The relationship between gender, depression, and self-esteem in children who have witnessed domestic violence. Loyola College of Maryland, Baltimore, USA. MedLine Publication. Saito. (2006). The Best Way to Cure Anxiety Disorder. Saito Therapy. Retrieved September 26, 2006 from http://healmind.com/saitotherapy/flbgraphstt.htm Wikipedia. (2006). Post-traumatic stress disorder. Retrieved September 26, 2006 from . http://www.answers.com/topic/post-traumatic stress disorder.

Company Law of Directors Duties

Company Law of Directors Duties Chapter 1: Directors’ Duties Formulating a system for holding directors accountable has never been easy. As Roach put it, directors’ duties must be gleaned from â€Å"a confusing and compendious mass of case law and the occasional statutory measure.†[1] Given the vast variations in the types of companies that exist, and the types of directors that exist, a universal approach has not always been easy to apply. Nevertheless, the law sometimes seeks to impose a single standard of conduct on all directors, regardless of the nature and characteristics of the company, and the level of involvement of the director. While recent statutes have started to distinguish between private and public companies, and may vary the duties of a director depending on which type of company is concerned, the vast majority of the case law on directors’ duties makes no such distinction and is of general application. There is therefore a complex body of statutory and case law which attempts to both define the duties tha t a director owes to the company, as well as the level of care that must be exercised when performing such duties.[2] As well as statute and case law, a number of standards and codes of practice have also been formulated which seek to define the nature of the duties owed by directors to companies. The first of these to be considered here is the Cadbury Committee, which was established in 1991 following a number of financial scandals that occurred during the previous decade. It was widely acknowledged that reform was needed in company law to allow shareholders and other stakeholders to hold directors more directly accountable for the consequences of their actions. The Cadbury Committee focused on financial control mechanisms to be used by the Board of Directors, and on auditing procedures, and published its report at the end of 1992.[3] The report focused mainly on larger listed companies and its main conclusion was that a Code of Best Practice should be drawn up and which the Boards of Directors of such companies would be obliged to follow. For smaller companies, it would not be obligatory to comply with the code, but if they chose not to, they would have to publish the reasons why they had chosen not to.[4] Adherence to the Code would be made a listing requirement, which would help ensure compliance among listed companies. The benefits of the Code would be to make corporate governance more open and transparent, would make the equities markets more efficient, would make boards more accountable and also more responsive to the needs of the company, and would allow shareholders to exercise greater control and scrutiny over boards. The report was an early supporter of the importance and need of non-executive directors[5] and recognised that executive and non-executive directors play very important complimentary roles. This area proved to be controversial as many saw the creation of two classes of directors as a threat to the traditional unitary nature of boards. However, the report found that non-executive directors could play a vital role in â€Å"reviewing† the performance of the executive directors, as well as taking measures to avoid and deal with â€Å"potential conflicts of interest†[6]. While the report emphasised the importance of financial auditing of companies, it did not go into detail on what should be disclosed in such audits, nor did it consider the controversial area of auditor liability. These were issues which would later become the subject of heated debate. The Report was also an important element in the growth of shareholder activism in the UK, and it concentrated on the steps that institutional shareholders could take to ensure compliance with the Code. In response to the issues raised in the Report, the Institutional Shareholders Committee[7] published its own paper, â€Å"The Responsibilities of Institutional Shareholders in the UK†[8] which dealt with many of the issues raised in the Cadbury report. The paper stated that â€Å"Because of the size of their shareholdings, institutional investors, as part proprietors of a company, are under a strong obligation to exercise their influence in a responsible manner.† This paper marked a new era in UK shareholder activism and promised to make shareholders more involved in making boards more accountable. The paper went so far as to recommend â€Å"regular, systematic contact at senior executive level to exchange views and information on strategy, performance, Board Membership and quality of management†[9]. Regarding the composition of boards, the paper recommended that institutional investors look carefully at â€Å"the concentration of decision-making power not formally constrained by checks and balances† and â€Å"the appointment of a core of non-executives of appropriate calibre, experience and independence.†[10] Therefore, this new investor oversight was taken for granted in the Cadbury report as another force that would improve the governance of large companies. The Cadbury Report has not been without criticism. Many feared that its recommendations, which put a strong influence on non-executive board members, would lead to the creation of a two-tiered board, a development that was seen as unnecessary and inefficient.[11] The voluntary nature of the Code has also been criticised. As a listing requirement, the Code also drew some criticism on the London Stock exchange which was given the task of enforcing and implementing the Code. Concerns led to the establishment of a follow up report prepared by the Hampel Committee, which re-examined the issues at stake, the criticisms which had been raised, and the conclusions reached in the Cadbury Report. The conclusions of the Hempel Committee were strongly supportive of the Cadbury Report and it was not long before the ‘Combined Code’ was drawn up, and implemented by the London Stock Exchange which listed companies were bound to implement, or give reasons for not doing so. The Combined Code now requires that boards implement a â€Å"sound system of internal control† which must consider all significant risks facing the company, the effect they might have on the company, and the costs and advantages of various means of dealing with such risks. The Code also deals with the terms and conditions on which directors are employed, including their pay packages incentive schemes, and termination payments. When speaking of the duty owed by directors to a company therefore, this includes the legal duties imposed on directors by the case law and statutes dealing with the subject, as well as the soft-law measures implemented in the Combined Code. Such duties may be owed to the company itself, or to shareholders or other stakeholders such as shareholders, employees, creditors, and the general public. That said, it must be remembered that in a legal sense, the duties owed by directors is to the company as a legal person, and not shareholders or other stakeholders. The case of Percival v Wright [1902] 2 Ch 421 established beyond a doubt that the duties of directors is to the company. This case concerned a transaction in which a number of directors purchased shares personally from shareholders at a price of  £2 10s. The directors knew that another purchaser wanted the shares and was willing to pay a substantially higher price. The shareholders sought to have the transaction set aside as a breach of duty to the company. Swinfen-Eady J found that the directors had breached no duty to the company, and that no such duty was owed to the shareholders qua shareholders.[12] The case of Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Society Ltd v Meyer [1959] AC 324 also illustrates the point. In that case, a parent company appointed some of its directors as directors of a subsidiary. These directors pro ceeded to act in the best interests of the parent, but Lord Denning pointed out the directors â€Å"probably thought that ‘as nominees’ of the [parent company] their first duty was to the [parent company]. In this they were wrong.† The duty of directors is always to the company they are acting for, regardless of the external relationships that the company, or they personally, may have with other persons. Currently there are proposals afoot to allow directors to act in the interests of a group of companies, as this is what happens in reality in many cases, especially where the shareholders and directors of the various companies are identical. Without shareholders seeking a profit from a company, it can be argued that a company is a meaningless concept, or a piece of paper without a purpose. The law therefore recognises that in most cases, the interests of the company, will be closely connected to the interests of the members of the company, the interest of both being to make a profit. However, as shown above, the interests of the members are not paramount, and difficulties will always arise in equating the interests of the company with the interests of the members due to the fact that in many situations, the members will have different opinions and conflicting interests which cannot all be met. Section 172 of the Companies Act 2006 also adopts the ‘enlightened’ approach which calls for the interests of the company to be interpreted widely and not only as the maximisation of profits at a cost to all other considerations. Employees are one group whose interests the directors must â€Å"have regard† to un der section 172. This is part of the general duty owed to the company and as such, must be enforced by the company, and not the employees. Many have criticised this provision as meaningless, as employees cannot enforce it, however, given that it is a requirement of the Companies Act, it must be expected that the majority of boards will consider the impact their decisions will have on employees, and such consideration will be minuted. While the provision may not prove capable of persuading callous directors to act other than in the interest of profit maximisation, it will certainly support the efforts of directors who do wish to improve conditions for employees. It also remains to be seen how this provision will be enforced by companies and it may transpire that a strong line of case law will develop which will persuade directors to give genuine consideration to the interests of employees. Another group whose interests must be considered under section 172 is creditors. In Lonrho v Shell Petroleum [1980] 1 WLR 627 Lord Diplock stated, at page 634, that the best interests of the company â€Å"are not exclusively those of its shareholders but may include those of its shareholders.† Since it is the members who appoint directors, it would be tempting for directors to seek to promote only their interests, however, as the court recognised, it is often the case that creditors have put significant money into a company and their interests must be taken into account. Lonrho concerned a company that was solvent at the relevant time. The position regarding an insolvent company arose in The Liquidator of the Property of West Mercia Safetywear Ltd v. Dodd and Another [1988] BCLC 250. In this case the Court of Appeal confirmed that when a company was insolvent, its interests include those of its creditors. In Winkworth v Edward Baron [1987] BCLC 193 Lord Templeman found that th e duty was owed directly to the creditors and in Brady v Brady [1989] 1 AC 755 Nourse LJ stated that where a company was insolvent, or its solvency was at risk, the interests of the company and its creditors were identical. According to Finch therefore, the creditors interests must always be taken into account to a limited extent, but as the company approaches insolvency, the interests of creditors must be given greater weight, until the interests of both groups coincide on insolvency.[13] The full extent of the â€Å"success of the company† as it is termed in section 172 of the 2006 Act includes a duty of directors to have regard to â€Å"(a) the likely consequences of any decision in the long term, (b) the interests of the company’s employees, (c) the need to foster the company’s business relationships with suppliers, customers and others, (d) the impact of the company’s operations on the community and the environment, (e) the desirability of the company maintaining a reputation for high standards of business conduct, and (f) the need to cat fairly as between members of the company.† It can be seen that there has been a steady broadening of the concept of the interests of the company to include more and more interests that a pure profit motive would fail to embrace. In March 2000, the DTI Company Law Review Committee stated that an â€Å"inclusive approach† should be adopted.[14] They pointed out that society’s interest in company law was that it promote â€Å"wealth generation and competitiveness for the benefit of all†, and that this can better be achieved if directors are forced to take into account â€Å"all the relationships on which the company depends.† The approach adopted in the Companies Act 2006 towards the creation of a statutory â€Å"general duty† owed by directors to the company is a progression of this concept with section 170(3) stating that â€Å"The general duties are based on certain common law rules and equitable principles as they apply in relation to directors†¦Ã¢â‚¬  At subsection (4) it states â⠂¬Å" The general duties shall be interpreted and applied in the same way as common law rules or equitable principles†. This is clearly maintaining the case law that has built up over the past centuries as the framework on which the new statutory general duties are based. It remains to be seen what effect the new statutory duties contained in section 172 of the 2006 Act will have on this case law. Therefore, in looking at the duties owed by directors, it is necessary to read both the statutory provisions and the pre-existing case law together. These both make a distinction between the ‘fiduciary’ duties that directors owe the company, and their duty to act with ‘reasonable care, skill and diligence.’ Under section 174 of the 2006 Act a director â€Å"must exercise reasonable care, skill and diligence.† The content of this duty has been long ago established by the courts and in The Marquis of Bute’s Case [1892] 2 Ch 100 the limits of the duty were clearly set out. That case concerned the Cardiff Savings Bank, which allowed by tradition the Marquis of Bute to inherit the presidency of the bank from his father. The Marquis in question became president at the age of six months, and in the following 38 years, he attended only one board meeting. He therefore had no awareness of the business or involvement in it, and the court found that he was not expected to be involved. When financial irregularities by the board were uncovered, the court found that the Marquis was not liable due to his remoteness from the business, despite his formal position on the board. However, it appears as if the courts quickly grew stricter and in Dovey v Cory [1901] AC 477 a director escaped lia bility for malpractice but only because he had relied on information given to him by the chairman and general manager of the company, and his decision to do so was reasonable and not negligent. The extension since the Marquis’ case therefore, was the application of a reasonableness test. The standard was further developed in Re City Equitable Fire Insurance [1925] Ch 407 in which three rules were established. These were that: a director must show the skill and diligence that could be expected from a person with his knowledge and experience; his duties are intermittent, and exercised only at board meetings where he participates in decision making; where reasonable, a director is free to delegate tasks and responsibilities to other employees. These rules were affirmed in Dorchester Finance Co. Ltd v Stebbing [1989] BCLC 498 which stated that they applied equally to executive and non-executive directors. One of the features of the standard set out in Re City Equitable Fire Insurance is the fact that the standard is not that of the professional man, but the reasonable man with the skill and experience that the director in question subjectively possesses. This subjective test is useful for most companies as the more complicated the operation and the more money that is at stake, the more qualified the director is likely to be and the higher the standard. The standard will fall short in cases such as the Marquis of Bute, but this is more to do with the fact that a woefully unsuitable candidate has been appointed to the board, such as a six month old baby. In all but such extreme cases therefore, the subjective case set out in Re City Equitable will be sufficient. The second rule only requires the director to attend meetings and make himself aware of the business of the company â€Å"whenever in the circumstances he is reasonably able to do so.† Again this approach gives the law fl exibility to allow for very different types of director, depending on the nature of the business. So for example, you could have an elderly family member sitting on the board because he knows the history of the business, and he will not be required to pay constant attention to the business, but simply offer his guidance when reasonably practicable. You could also have, as most companies do, full time salaried directors who are paid to spend all of their time and attention on the affairs of the company. As both types of director will be useful in various circumstances, the law allows for both, and requires each of them to be as aware of the dealings of the company as is reasonable in the circumstances. The third rule allows directors to delegate responsibility to others, and it might be feared that this will be used by directors to avoid responsibility. However, when taken together with the other rules of the test, it is apparent that a director cannot delegate all of his responsibilities and disallow all awareness of the dealings of the company. He will still be required to be reasonably aware of what is going on and only to delegate tasks which it is reasonable for him to do so, taking into account the nature of business and the circumstances of the case. However, there are many instances in which these three rules will not protect investors or other stakeholders, for example in the Marquis of Bute case, and there have been calls for some time for an objective standard to be introduced into the law. The DTI Company Law Review Committee, in the 2000 report mentioned above, pointed out that an objective standard has been adopted for the protection of creditors by section 214 of the Insolvency Act 1986[15] and in the case of Re D’Jan of London Ltd [1993] BCC 646 Hoffman LJ found that the objective standard set out in section 214 of the 1986 Act reflected the standard that all directors were bound to meet when upholding their general duty. Therefore, the objective standard first set out in the insolvency context became the general standard owed by directors in all cases, and section 174 of the 2006 Act affirms that both the objective and subjective standards apply. At section 174(2) the 2006 Act states that the standard required is that which may be met by a â€Å"reasonably diligent person with (a) the general knowledge, skill and experience that may reasonably be expected of a person carrying out the functions carried out by the director in relation to the company, and (b) the general knowledge, skill and experience that the director has.† Therefore, as a minimum, the director will be required to demonstrate the care and skill that a reasonable director of a company of that type and standard would be expected to demonstrate. This allows for some flexibility as this minimum standard can still vary depending on the business, so that the director of a small family business will have a lower standard than the director of a FTSE 100 company. At the same time, if a director is chosen because of his particular characteristics, which make him qualified above and beyond what one might expect, he will be held to this higher, subjective standard. This standard, which upholds an objective minimum standard, which may be increased if the director in question is unusually highly qualified, seeks to strike a balance between protecting the interests of the company, and allowing directors to feel relatively at ease with the personal liability they have taken on board. A different approach was adopted in the USA, where the Supreme Court of Delaware, in Smith v Van Gorkom [1985] 488 A.2d 858 found the ten directors of Trans Union Corporation liable in the sum of $23.5 million for agreeing to a takeover without first valuing the shares of the company. While this failure seems fundamental, the sale of the company’s shares was set to take place at a price significantly higher then the quoted price of the shares on the stock exchange, and the takeover would undoubtedly have benefited the company. The massive liability was imposed without any allegation of fraud or breach of fiduciary duty and resulted in a marked unwillingness of q ualified persons taking on the role of non-executive director, at least for a time. It also resulted in a number of states, including Delaware where the decision was made, enacting legislation which allowed companies to exclude or limit the liability of directors for negligent breach of their fiduciary duties. Such a situation has not occurred in English company law, and the standard adopted in section 174 is measured to avoid the need for such a development. The second main area of directors’ duties falls under the heading of fiduciary duties. At its most simple, this covers the requirement that directors act bona fides in respect of the company. The case law that developed however sets out a number of common instances in which directors are in danger of breaching this duty, and the 2006 Act has proceeded to specify these situations explicitly. While it is not set out as such, the duty to act bona fides can be seen as an overriding interest, which cannot be breached, even when authorised by the shareholders in general meeting. For example, in the case of (Re Attorney-General’s Reference (No. 2 of 1982) [1984] 2 ALR 447 the directors of the company were the only shareholders. They took money from the company and the interpretation given was that the directors had taken the money with the authorisation of the shareholders. Nevertheless, the court found that this was breach of the overriding duty to act bona fides. The case of R v Phillipou [1989] Crim LR 559 found the same overriding duty and these cases were upheld by the House of Lords in R v Gomez [1992] 3 WLR 1067. Therefore, it can be said that there is an overriding duty to act in good faith and even if a majority of the shareholders approve of the action, the directors may not breach it, and a minority of shareholders, or creditors, and possibly employees and other stakeholders, would be able to have the action set aside. However, it is also possible for directors to breach one of the explicit fiduciary duties, such as using powers for one purpose to achieve a different purpose, which are not dishonest or mala fide. In such cases, the court can find that the breach of the particular fiduciary duty does not place the directors in breach of their overriding duty of good faith, and a majority of the shareholders can vote to authorise such acts. Section 239 of the Companies Act 2006 allows shareholders to ratify breaches of a fiduciary duty, but subsection (7) states â€Å"This section does not affect any other enactment or rule of law imposing additional requirements for valid ratification or any rule of law as to acts that are incapable of being ratified by the company†. Therefore, the previous case law which was upheld by the House of Lords in Gomez still limits the ability to ratify. In fact, the specific fiduciary duties have been described as â€Å"disabilities† and in Movitex Ltd v Bu lfield and Others [1988] BCLC 104 it was upheld that companies could alter their Memorandum and Articles to amend the nature of any fiduciary duty owed by the directors to the company, subject always to the requirement that nothing purported to allow dishonesty. Movitex concerned the concept of self-dealing, which is ordinarily presumed to be a breach of duty. In this case, the company was able to remove this presumption, so that the director was able to engage in self-dealing, but subject to the requirement that he did in fact act in the best interests of the company. A simple example of this would be if a cheese producing company sought to appoint the owner of a supermarket as a director. Self dealing would disable the director from selling cheese to the supermarket he owned, as it would be self-dealing, and very easy for the director to breach his fiduciary duties to the cheese producing company. However, the company could authorise the director to sell to the supermarket concern ed, on condition that he did not abuse this ability and breach his duty of good faith. An ordinarily disallowed activity would be allowed, but would still be subject to the requirements of good faith. The explicit fiduciary duties of the director set out in the 2006 Act are: the duty to act within powers[16]; the duty to exercise independent judgment[17]; the duty to avoid conflicts of interest[18]; the duty to declare interests in proposed transactions or arrangements[19]; and the duty not to accept benefits from third parties[20]. Section 171 requires that the director â€Å"(a) act in accordance with the company’s constitution, and (b) only exercise powers for the purpose for which they are conferred.† This is an area where the courts have been quite willing to excuse directors if they have used a power for a collateral purpose and a majority of shareholders have been in favour of it. For example, in the cases of Punt v Symonds Co [1903] 2 Ch 506 and Piercy v S Mills Co [1920] 1 Ch 77, the court allowed the issue of shares by directors to prevent a hostile takeover and to dilute the influence of hostile shareholders, because the majority of shareholders approved. This was despite the fact that the power had been granted solely to allow the raising of capital. However, in Howard Smith Ltd v Ampol Petroleum Ltd [1974] AC 821 the Privy Council held that where there were two purposes for issuing shares, to raise capital and to prevent a takeover, the proper purpose of raising capital had to be the dominant purpose. In Re Looe Fish Ltd [1993] BCC 368 the directors were disqualified under section 8 of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986 for allotting shares for an improper purpose. Section 173 requires the directors to exercise independent judgment. This is a restatement of the common law duty on directors not to ‘fetter their discretion’. This has acted to reduce the risk of directors being in a conflict of interest situation be disabling them from entering agreements which might prevent them from acting in the best interests of the company in the future. In Fulham Football Clun and Others v Cabra Estates Plc [1994] 1 BCLC 363 the company was paid money in exchange for not opposing property development plans. As the planning process drew out, the question arose of whether the directors had fettered their discretion by agreeing never to oppose such plans. However, the Court of Appeal stated that where a â€Å"contract as a whole [was] bona fide for the benefit of the company† it was valid and the directors could bind themselves to do whatever was required to fulfil it. Section 175 prohibits directors from entering a position where his interests actually or potentially conflict with those of the company. If the constitution of the company permits, the directors can authorise a conflicting situation to be entered into, so long as the relevant director does not vote. Section 175 also requires the director to declare their interests in any contracts, and under section 170, this duty extends after the director has ceased to hold office. The declaration is made to the board. The potential complexity of such situations can be seen in Menier v Hooper’s Telegraph Works [1874] LR 9 Ch D 350 in which the James LJ held that a majority shareholder could not prejudice the interests of the company because of its own conflicting interests. Similarly, in Cook v Deeks [1916] 1 AC 554 the directors sought to conclude the final round of contracts in a large railway development programme in their own names. The court held this was clearly in breach of their duty . In Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Society Ltd v Meyer [1959] AC 324 the directors say on the boards of both a parent and subsidiary company, and as soon as it emerged that the interests of the two companies were conflicting, the directors could not longer remain in that position. As Lord Cranworth said in Aberdeen Railway Co v Blaikie Bros (1854) 1 Macq 461 (HL), â€Å"it is a rule of universal application that no one, having [fiduciary] duties to discharge, shall be allowed to enter into engagements in which he has or can have a personal interest conflicting or which possibly may conflict with the interests of those whom he is bound to protect.† One area that the courts have found difficulty with is when a director comes across a profitable opportunity as a result of his position as director. This situation arose in Regal (Hastings) Ltd v Gulliver [1942] 1 All ER 378 in which a cinema company sought to lease two other cinemas. A subsidiary was formed for the purpose, but the owners of the two cinemas would only agree to the lease if the authorised share capital was paid up. As the parent could not afford to do so, some directors personally purchased shares in the subsidiary. When it came time to sell the shares in the subsidiary, the company demanded that the directors account to the company for the profits they had made, and the House of Lords held that they were liable to do so. This was despite the fact that the company would have been unable to exploit the situation because of its own lack of funds. The same principle was applied in Industrial Developments v Cooley [1972] 1 WLR 443 in which a director learned information which would have been profitable to the company and kept it to himself. He then used the information to secure a position at a rival firm and left his present company. His present company could not have secured this position itself and so could not have benefited in the manner in which the director had. Nevertheless, the court f ound that the director had to account to the company for the profit he had made as a result of information gleaned in the course of his directorship. Gencor ACP Ltd v Dalby [2000] 2 BCLC 734 affirmed that it is no defence that the company would not have exploited the opportunity, although the shareholders can approve of the action and this would justify the director. As a result of the case law and the wording of the relevant provisions of the 2006 Act, it can be concluded that a director is disallowed from entering a position where one of his person