Precise Software Case Analysis

PRECISE SOFTWARE CASE ANALYSIS Problem: When and how to introduce an end-to-end new product to the market? Issues: 1. Should we (Precise) introduce a new product in Open World conference 2000? What could be the impact if we delay to offer an end-to-end solution in the performance management space? 2. What is the best selling strategy for the new product? 3. What is the best pricing strategy for the new product? 4. Should we maintain a single sale force or separate sale force dedicated to the new product? What kind of commissions and how much authority should we set up for the sales force regarding to the new product? 5.How can we deliver the value of the new product to meet our customer expectation and solve our customer problems? 6. How to grow and compete in order to be a leader in the market on a much broader level? Industry/Market Analysis: Database management software referred as performance management market where efficiency and effectiveness are really important. There are a l ot of opportunities due to the need of IT system from the companies. Nearly every company in the industrialized world spent a significant amount of money every year on software purchases ranged from $99 to $10million. The software market estimated to be $4. billion in 2003 compare with $2. 4billion in 1999. However, the market was fragmented. Products were differentiated principally in two ways. On one hand, products differed widely in terms of underlying resources and platforms with they are associated. On the other hand, available products also differed in terms of the functionality they offered. There are few major competitors in this market and the industry need high intensive labor cost. It usually takes long time to develop new product in this industry. Effective advanced technology and product, which can solve the problem for the companies, are very important to success in the industry.Time is another important key to determine whether business will success or fail. Companies in this industry should improve their technology quickly to catch up the ever-changing information technology trend as well as dig the problems of the companies to present the right problem-solve products. One of the largest segments of the market was for software to manage the performance of Oracle databases. A true end-to-end market seemed to be quite large and there was no current direct competition because none of the companies offered an end-to-end solution yet. Consumer Analysis:Database administrators (DBA) are the main targets for Precise. The former usually are well trained thus capable of recognizing the products value. Many DBA’s were authorized to purchase a product range under $25,000. Precise looked for companies had sales of at least 100million and had a business model that required database-intensive applications. DBA need to report to the CIO and need to improve the job performance in order to make performance application efficiently as well as satisfy the b usiness unit head. They are usually budget-limited when they purchase the product.IT Reliability and effectiveness are the other main factors to concern for users. Regarding to the end-to-end management tool service, business firms using enterprise-wide applications have a desired demand. They require the enterprise applications such as ERP and CRM, which were 10million and above. The applications were distributed across many locations and highly data intensive. Firms depended critically on the ability to deliver information quickly, will be the main targets for the new end-to-end product. Competitor Analysis: The three biggest competitors in the software market were Oracle, BMC Software, and Quest Software.Oracle is provides â€Å"Oracle Optimizer† as a part of its basic database package helped to execute SQL statement it received in the most efficient fashion and also offer an add-on package to help measure efficiency. BMC Software has a large range of products. Its revenue grew rapidly since 1998 and Patrol Product line, which target on performance management and availability market, provided timely and accurate data. Quest Software offered around 25 different products, with some of the functions offering products relevant to Precise. Marketing Mix Analysis: A) Product Analysis:Precise offered the software that helped its clients to manage the performance of their information technology (IT) systems. Precise is in the performance management and availability market. Its products are designed to manage the performance applications utilizing Oracle database. The company had focus on a small range of core products but provided users high quality that promised. Precise offered the software license and services. The main products were insight products, SQL and Presto. Precise/SQL accounted for 86% of all Precise’s software licensing fees.The company has strong trained account reps with very strong relationships with key clients. End-to-end response time is extremely important to ensure the system ran efficiently and effectively. All of the available products focused on the performance of each of the components of the system. The sales cycle is 6 to 12 months on average. Precise realized from the feedback of its consumers that they should provide right solutions to its clients rather than the products. However, a full-functionality end-to-end performance tool needs a long time to be developed.It’s going to take six and nine months to get a basic product with purely monitoring only. The fully functional product will accomplish in 2 years. B) Price Analysis: It has one-time license fee with annual maintains and service contracts, priced 15%-20% of the one-time licensing fee. Average price of Precise /SQL had been between $15,000 and $25,000. Precise often offered discounts around 25% which allowed sales force to sell the product easier as well as DBAs can make their decision easily to purchase without approve by the CIO. I n addition, price can be varied greatly depending on the customers and other factors.They charged more for higher-powered computing environments, which means the price is based on the value that the customers receive from the performance management. C) Distribution Analysis: There are three common channels for distributing commercial software applications such as direct sales, value-added resellers (VCRs), and systems integrators. VCRs and systems integrators earned a margin of about 30-35% on the software sales. And original equipment manufacture (OEM) agreement is popular in smaller niche areas. Precise sells its products through a duel-channel distribution system.Internationally, the company sells through both VARs and system integrators in most countries. 17 account executives are hired to do direct sell and also sell through distributors in most countries, and each is paid a salary of $75,000 and a 5%-9% rate high commission. The average sale of each rep is $800,000 annually an d earned $300,000 for the highest. Therefore, the operating expenses are extremely high (sales and marketing is 35% of the total operating expense) and made the operating loss since 1996. About 55% of its revenue comes from the direct channel and 45% come from the resellers.Precise had a client list of about 400 companies and each sale rep was well trained to sell the products. D) Promotion/ Advertising Analysis: Reps in Precise are the main factor in selling the products. Precise purchase industry lists with the names and phone numbers of key contacts in the target firms and give it to reps. Reps can call the main clients and meet them and try to keep a good relationship with the people who make decisions. Reps are high motivated and professional to sell the products because of related training and high commission strategy.They have an effective sales tool that reps can offer to put the product on the potential buyer client’s system to demonstrate what the product would do. In addition, Precise conducted a survey of ten Precise/SQL clients drawn from a range of different business to find main benefits of their products and able to generate an expected ROI for the purchase. Options: A) To launch a new product in 2000 ROI Analysis Pros: – To be the first one get into the end-to-end market and to be able to announce the new product in the conference with many motivated and qualified prospects gathered in the room at one time. Precise will become a much broader level brand. – Gain more revenue at the beginning with no competition so far in the market. Cons: – New products will attract competitors to get in the market. – There is not enough time for reps to be trained properly to sell the products. – If the new product cannot satisfy the clients, it will destroy the brand image as well as make competitors catch up and run over the Precise. – The new product can only be â€Å"generally available† at this time. There will be much more problem and risks.B) To launch after fully-functional Pros: – Have much more possibility to satisfy customers with fully functional product in term of effectively and efficiency – Its reps will be fully trained to get ready to contribute in selling the new products – If consumers satisfied with the products, Precise will be a leader in the market and increase its profits in the long-term. Cons: – Competitors may launch a similar new product in this market before Precise. – A small range of the products may slow down Precise to be a real broader level brand

Aida Play Analysis Essay

The musical Aida was written by Auguste Mariette based on Giuseppe Verdi’s Italian-language opera. 2nd Flight Productions using the stage at Chantilly High School performed the musical. The musical was based on the legend of Aida, the Nubian princess who was captured as a slave to Radames, the captain of Egypt. The performance is divided into two acts and it started with Radames fianci , Amneris, as a statue during the present times in a museum. The museum displayed a tomb with the carvings of a man and a woman buried together. Amneris’s statue begins to sing and tells the tale behind the tomb. The set for the museum was sufficiently constructed for the story. The tomb was realistic and the background sets of Egyptian writing were appropriate to the feeling and style. However, at first it was difficult to grasp who Amneris was when she sang because she was position center right and maybe a little down right of the stage. There were no other props that clearly indicated that she was part of the museum and that she was a statue. There was a back narrow parallel platform that elevated her separate from the ground. The ensemble members were the museum tourists observing the artifacts. However they were on the ground level and there were no indications of them acknowledging her as a fellow artifact of the museum. Throughout the play, Aida is a strong character who deeply cares about her people. In the plot she hides her identity as the Nubian Princess to save her people. The actress did an amazing job portraying those characteristics. Her voice was powerful and so phenomenal that each song she sung moved me. Every emotion she evoked moved the audience through her acting and her singing. There was moment where the actress belted out a song that described the struggles of being a princess of Nubia. Her body language was like a building wearing away and her facial expressions revealed pain and sorrow. Another moment that was very effective was when she finally accepted her love for Radames. Her body language was playful, her voice was light and her facial expression was soft and more youthful. She was the best and most excellent actress in the play. The lighting had its good effects and bad effects. During serious moments, the lighting was used well and isolated the light towards the main characters. However, when the music became lively, the lighting was in all different colors, similar to a disco lighting, which I found unnecessary and sloppy for a historical musical. The costuming was decent as well but I expected more from a community theatre company. The costumes would be acceptable for a high school production but not a community one. The slave clothes were fine and tattered; however, the fabric was new and it appeared new from stage. Since the setting is in historical times, the fabric must invoke that. The costume for Aida throughout the play was in a shiny fabric that was glittery. This was an anachronism since the setting, again, is in historical times. The ensemble was probably the poorest aspect of the play. In every act they were in, they were never in synch with each other. No one seemed to listen or hear each other. The ensembles made careless mistakes with their hands fidgeting, their eyes not focused and the acting did not seem like acting. In acting, the actor must have a purpose or goal to evoke good acting; however the ensemble did not do that. They moved around with unmotivated movement. Their dance, however, was stronger than their acting. At times they were no in synch but they did decent on their dances. I wished that the ensemble danced with more diverse movements. The dances seemed a little parallel and conformed to the same movements at times. The ensemble men were Radames soldiers in the beginning and did a dance routine that had the characteristics of a march. The performance of the ensemble however, was poor. Their entire routine was not in synch and it was sloppy. In order to portray as soldiers, they should have had more cut and dry movements that were sharp and strict. However, they performed as if they were relaxed and bored. It was more of a casual walk than a march. Towards the end the soldiers did an impressive break dance when the song lifted from its austere melody, however I found it unnecessary. Overall the musical was satisfactory as a community musical. The background music was appropriate, the main actors were excellent in portraying their characters and the songs were sung on key. Although there were many errors in setting, and ensemble members, the director succeeded in telling and portraying the story of Aida in a reasonable fashion.

Jetstar

Task 1 a) Executive Summary 1. Brief description of products and services Domestic Air Freight International Air Freight Freighter Charter Ground Handling Retail Fleet and Equipment Online Solution 2. Define Target Market 3. Competative Advantage 4. Positioning Statement 5. Anticipated sales, profits and market share The Jetstar Group is the largest low cost airline in the Asia Pacific by revenue and has flown over 100 million passengers since it launched in 2004.During fiscal 2011-2012, the airline carried more than 20 million passengers, making Jetstar the fastest-growing airline in the Asia Pacific to reach this milestone in seven years of flying. The Jetstar Group has grown from providing employment to 400 people in 2004 to more than 7,000 across the Asia Pacific today. Collectively the Jetstar Group offers over 3,000 flights a week to 57 destinations in 16 countries and territories across the Asia Pacific region with a fleet of around 95 aircraft.Jetstar is a value based, low fa res network of airlines operating in the leisure and value based markets. Jetstar’s mission is to offer all day, every day low fares to enable more people to fly to more places, more often. Strategy and structure Jetstar is part of the Qantas Group’s two-brand growth strategy, where Qantas competes at the premium and business market and Jetstar focuses on leisure markets. The Jetstar Group comprises: Jetstar Airways in Australia and New Zealand (wholly owned by the Qantas Group) Jetstar Asia based in Singapore.The company is managed by Newstar Holdings, majority owned by Singapore company Westbrook Investments (51 per cent), with the Qantas Group holding the remaining 49 per cent Jetstar Pacific based in Vietnam (majority owned by Vietnam Airlines with the Qantas Group holding 30 per cent) Jetstar Japan, a partnership between the Qantas Group, Japan Airlines, Mitsubishi Corporation and Century Tokyo Leasing Corporation Jetstar Hong Kong, a partnership between China Eas tern Airlines and the Qantas Group (subject to regulatory approval). BrandThe Jetstar brand design is based on the Southern Cross constellation, with the orange star representing the smallest star of the Cross, Epsilon Crucis. The airline’s colours, orange, silver and black were chosen for their bold and modern feel. Fleet Current fleet: As of December 2012, the Jetstar Group fleet consists of 96 aircraft, including: 79 Airbus A320-200 aircraft, seat-configured for up to 180 passengers Six Airbus A321 aircraft, seat-configured for 220 passengers 11 Airbus A330-200 aircraft, with two cabins (economy and business) for up to 310 passengers Fleet orders:Jetstar has ordered 14 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, which are due to be delivered in 2013. These new-generation aircraft include features such as larger windows, improved cabin pressure to reduce jetlag and fuel consumption about 20 per cent lower than similar-sized aircraft. In August 2011 the Qantas Group placed an order for 110 Airb us A320s. The Jetstar Group has access to these aircraft to facilitate its growth. This includes 78 A320 NEOs (New Engine Option), which reduce fuel consumption by 15 per cent and will be available for delivery from 2015. In total, Jetstar has about 150 aircraft on back order.Network The Jetstar Group’s network is made up of 56 destinations in 16 countries and territories. Check out our interactive route map to find out exactly where we fly. Low fares Jetstar aims to have the lowest fares on all the routes it operates and backs every fare with a Price Beat Guarantee. Should any customer find a lower fare online, on the same day, same route and at a comparable time, Jetstar will beat the fare by 10 per cent. Customer experience Jetstar customers only pay for what they need. Customers can choose between two types of fares – Economy or Business (on selected international flights).Once a fare is selected, customers have the option to add on checked baggage between 15 †“ 40 kilos per passenger and/or a bundle of extras, which can include seat selection, in-flight products, fare flexibility, lounge access and Qantas Frequent Flyer Points. For domestic flights on Jetstar Australia and New Zealand, passengers may choose to purchase a variety of snacks and beverages. Depending on the length of the flight, hot meals are also made available for purchase. On Jetstar Asia’s short haul flights, a variety of snacks, beverages, hot meals, comfort items and duty free goods are available for purchase.On long haul flights (onboard the Airbus A330-200), economy class passengers can choose to pre-purchase a variety of meals, entertainment, and comfort options to customise their flight experience. Business class passengers enjoy wide comfy leather seats in a separate cabin and inclusions such as meals, entertainment and comfort packs along with seat selection and additional baggage. Business passengers who choose a Business Max bundle also benefit from lo unge access, Qantas Frequent Flyer Points and Qantas Frequent Status credits.Interline and codeshare partners The Jetstar Group has three codeshare partners on select Jetstar routes, being Qantas, Japan Airlines and American Airlines. The Jetstar Group has 25 interline partnerships on select Jetstar routes: American Airlines, Aircalin, Air Canada, Air France, Air Niugini, Air Pacific, Air Tahiti Nui, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Dragonair, Emirates, Etihad, Finnair, Japan Airlines, Jet Airways, KLM; LAN Airlines; Lan Argentina; Lan Ecuador; Lan Peru; Lufthansa; Qantas; Qatar Airways; Royal Jordanian and United.Performance Jetstar has been profitable every year since its launch in 2004. The airline delivered a record Underlying EBIT (Earnings Before Interest and Taxes) of AUD$203 million in 2011-12, a 20 per cent increase on the previous financial year. In the same period, Jetstar grew overall capacity by 14 per cent and carried 20. 6 million passengers, an 11 per cent increase o n the previous financial year. Awards Jetstar Airways Awards: Best Low-Cost Airline – Australia/Pacific 2012 and 2011 (Skytrax) Partner of the Year 2012 – Changi Airline AwardsTop 5 Airlines by Absolute Growth in Cargo Carriage 2012 (Changi Airline Awards) Best International Budget Airline 2011 (About. com Readers’ Choice Award) Best Low-Cost Airline – Australasia 2009 (Skytrax) Top 5 Carriers for Passenger Growth 2009 (Changi Airline Awards) Low-Cost Carrier of the Year 2008 and 2007 (CAPA) Best Low-Cost Airline Asia Pacific 2008 (Budgie$) Best Low-Cost Airline – Worldwide 2007 (Skytrax) Best Cabin Crew – Australia and New Zealand 2007 (Skytrax) Operational Excellence 2007 (Airline Business) Jetstar Asia Awards:Top 10 Airlines by Passenger Carriage – 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008 and 2007 (Changi Airline Awards) Largest Growth in Passenger Traffic from Singapore 2011 (Changi Airline Awards) AsiaOne People’s Choice Award for Bes t Budget Airline in 2010 Best Brand Experience Low Cost Airline in 2008 (Ad Asia Magazine) Best Asia Low Cost Carrier 2006-2007 (Changi Airline Awards) Best Low Cost Airline -Asia and South East Asia 2006 (Skytrax) Low Cost Airline of the Year 2006 Merit Award (CAPA) Best Budget Airline of the Year 2006 (TTG Travel Awards)Jetstar Pacific Awards Vietnam’s most popular e-commerce website 2008 Bruce Buchanan, CEO of Jetstar, admits that new |low-cost airlines would increase competition but Jetstar would thrive through fleet expansion and new marketing strategies. Why have so many airlines that have subsidiaries, including THAI, Singaporean Airlines and Malaysian Airlines, adopted a multi-brand strategy? The Qantas Group's two-brand strategy, utilising both Qantas and Jetstar brands, allows the group to design and grow products that suit the specific needs of a broad customer base.This strategy sees the Qantas brand focus on the premium and business traveller – with produc ts and a route network catered for these groups whilst Jetstar focuses on serving the needs of the leisure and value-oriented traveller. By having â€Å"two brands† the Qantas Group is able to assess different market opportunities and deploy the best product to suit the opportunity and specific market conditions. In Europe, we know that Ryan Air is the biggest low-cost. Who is the biggest in Asia now? How does Jetstar position itself in this market?In terms of revenue, Jetstar is the biggest. In terms of fleet size, we believe AirAsia to be the biggest. It is our intention to continue to grow our Pan-Asian strategy and to be a leading low-fares carrier in the Southeast Asian region. What are Jetstar's plans to enhance competitiveness? Jetstar's Pan-Asian strategy is providing the core platform for our competitiveness. We are currently looking at regional growth opportunities and new services from our growing networks from bases in Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and Vietnam .A key focus for us is looking for network opportunities that allow us to maximise existing networks and complement existing flying as well as looking at brand new opportunities in Asia. The growth in the awareness of our brand really supports the growth of our networks throughout Asia and provides us a strong competitive advantage. As Jetstar matures in the region, our ability to consistently offer the lowest fares on the routes we serve and our ability to focus our marketing and business |model around this core offering continues to provide us with an attractive and compelling customer offering.Our strong association with Qantas and its industry-leading safety standards is also a powerful association as we grow in Asia. What plan does Jetstar have to start new flights to both existing and new destinations? What plan does Jetstar have to expand its fleet? For the remainder of the financial year 2010/2011, Jetstar will add a further eight A320 aircraft and two A330 aircraft into its groupwide fleet for opportunities in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam.This will involve introducing first time long-haul flying from Singapore when the carrier commences direct daily services between Singapore and Melbourne on December 16 and then direct daily services between Singapore and Auckland on March 16, 2011. Jetstar Asia will welcome an additional two A320 aircraft this year for flying from Singapore and an additional A320 aircraft will be added to domestic New Zealand flying. Jetstar's China expansion will continue with flights to Guilin in southern China from Singapore to also soon commence – representing its sixth collective Chinese mainland or wider China destination.In the medium to long term, Jetstar will be looking to grow its existing fleet of nearly 70 aircraft by an additional 50 aircraft over the next five years. In mid-2012, the carrier will welcome its first Boeing 787 Dreamliner, Jetstar becoming the first carrier in the Jetstar group to operate these state-of-the-art aircraft. Jetstar is scheduled to receive 15. What is Jetstar's marketing strategy for the rest of 2010? What new services does Jetstar plan to offer? Jetstar will be expanding services in all markets over the course of the current financial year.In Australia, we will be adding up to 30 per cent additional domestic capacity for the financial year ending 2011. In New Zealand, we have recently announced an additional two A320 aircraft to be based in New Zealand, representing an additional 717,000 seats annually. In Singapore, we will be adding an additional two A320 aircraft to its fleet of 10 based in Singapore by the end of 2010, which is in addition to the commencement of first time value-based long-haul flying from December, which will eventually see two A330 aircraft based in Singapore.At Jetstar Pacific in Vietnam, we are planning the introduction of its second A320 aircraft to join its existing fleet of five B737s and one A320 this calendar year a s part of a fleet renewal process towards a future all-A320 operation. How has Jetstar performed financially, and what are your expectations looking ahead? Jetstar Brands posted an EBIT of $131 million Australian dollar for the financial year ending June 2010. How does Jetstar perceive the competition once Thai Tiger Airways gets off the ground and how will you cope with it given that several low-cost irlines are competing in the same areas. Will price-cutting be the answer? The Thai market has always been a competitive one and we don't expect that to change as new entrants come onto the market. Of all the low-cost carriers, Jetstar is the only one to offer a low fares guarantee which stipulates that should a customer find a lower-fare online on the same date at a comparative time to a Jetstar service, Jetstar will be discount that fare by 10 per cent.

Critically evaluate the impact of social media on the business world Essay - 2

Critically evaluate the impact of social media on the business world and our life - Essay Example es users to interact between each other and exchanging details of their lives such as personal information, biographical data and professional information. The emergence of social media from web 2.0 has created a huge impact on the current scenario of commercial environment. The utilization of social media has changed the way people communicate and human relationship dynamics has taken a new perspective. The history of internet has changed drastically due to the revolution of social media and made internet technologies inclusive. Social media has become largest web presence for many businesses which overtakes email and company websites. It is really hard to find any people who does not exercise any forms of social media which can be application and websites. This essay will follow the statement about the emergence of social media has huge impact on human lives and businesses. Social media has provided people a platform that encourage them to share their views, news and opinions that are happening around the globe. Factor that enables to the growth of this technology is due to their ability of producing user-generated content. At an unprecedented level, social media allows users to connect with each other. It has become inevitable part of human lives. Social media has created a global reach for human beings via internet. The benefit of social media on human lives is enormous as it helps users to share knowledge, information and communicate. Advantages of social media are discussed below: Social media enrich human lives by helping them to communicate effectively and regularly with other people. In earlier days, technology used to be more intensive and it required experts to handle it. But over the period, development of technology and platforms helped users to actively use the services without requirement of any expertise in technological background. Social media acts as a wonderful communication tool for people to interact with each other at any place and time.

Undertake Investments During Recession Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Undertake Investments During Recession - Essay Example Opportunities arise during periods of recession. Many countries experience what is known as ‘liquidity trap’ that develops due to low-interest rates. In reality, near-zero interest rates do not stimulate the economy. At low or near-zero interest rates, firms and consumers should borrow and spend. However, many firms, groups, and individuals focus on either saving or paying debts rather than spending during recession periods. For this reason, near-zero interest rates have less effect on investment and consumption behavior (Bivens 1). As a result, the client should invest during the recession due to the availability of many investment opportunities. Buying assets during recessionary period reduce one’s spending. A potential investor should invest during the recession. The government and individuals sell assets in the recessionary period. For instance, stock prices reduce significantly. Additionally, bonds, real estates, and mutual funds become readily available. Ind ividuals also sell their private businesses at lower prices. For this reason, due to the unfavorable economic environment, investors dump their assets and one can decide to pick them at lower prices. However, investing during the recession requires courage and paying attention to market performance (Bivens 1). The investor should wade through the market by undertaking the mandatory dollar cost averaging plan. The plan ensures that the investor does not spend or pour all capital at once. During the recession, many people lose hope and faith in their government practices. Millions of workers lose jobs while the media spread inaccurate information regarding economic recovery issues. It is paramount for an investor to consider financial education so as to understand the performance of financial markets. Developing and marketing personal brands is another critical area that needs consideration.  

History short paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

History short paper - Essay Example The primary source indicates that during this time period, religion was prevalent and almost all France citizens and residents could identify with some sort of religious belief. The edict was basically addressing religious issues. The law outlines that during this time period, Catholic was the recognized religion, with most of the French practicing or being expected to practice Catholic as a religion, as provided by the edicts and statues. The Edict of Nantes also brought out the fact that identifying with a particluar religion was a cause for religious discrimination. The Protestants were not permitted to worship freely and in public. In addition, it shows that during this time period, the government was biased and did not serve its subject as equals. Apart from denying them their religious freedom, the government did not recognize protestant marriages and termed them as illegal leaving the children to be branded as illegitimate. This, therefore, was a hindrance to property rights and property inheritance. The increased level of discrimination and conflicts among religions resulted into violence in various regions. In France, for example, there were a total of eight outbreaks of violence as a matter of religious differences. The greatest being St Bartholomew’s Day massacre in Paris (Bramlett 2-4). The greatest issue that the Edict of Nantes intended to address was religious freedom. It indeed o recognize that France had many subjects who had different interests. These interests included issues such as worship and it was crucial for them to be allowed to practice what they believed. The other issue that the edict clearly brought out was that marriage had to be legal, regardless of ones religion. This was beneficial for the protestants whose marriages, as indicated above, were not recognized as legal. Legalizing marriages for all religions ensured that all children attained the right to inherit property. The edict, however, still emphasized on Catholic

Analyze the impact of globalization, technology, and the quest for Essay

Analyze the impact of globalization, technology, and the quest for democracy in the Middle East today - Essay Example But in this short essay I will analyze in more detail another existential problem touched upon by both of the authors in their stories, namely, the treatment of the protagonists by the society and their attitude toward the communities they live in. What makes both books similar is a wide, yet quite resembling, range of metaphysical and existential problems the supernatural events of the sci-fi storyboard are covering. The dark side of the protagonists in either Shelleys or Stevensons stories is revealed contrary to their expectations. The depth of the spiritual abyss, which protagonists of both stories found themselves in against their own will as a result of actions made in good faith, led to dire consequences and death of innocent people. Once anyone in a community takes on responsibility for breaking the worlds backbone and defying the laws of nature, the way either Victor Frankenstein in Shelleys novel or Dr. Jekyll in Stevensons novella have done, the payback comes inevitably. Mary Shelley gave her book a title that contains the name of a hero from the ancient Greek mythology as an implication to the bitter end of her story. The legend about Prometheus becomes the key note of the whole book not by chance. According to the Greek mythology, Prometheus was the divine being responsible for creation of humankind. Complying with the desire of the supreme God named Zeus Prometheus made a human being in the image of god and taught men everything he knew. But then Prometheus got corrupted by humans and betrayed Zeus who had punished mankind for their wrong-doings. Zeus took the fire away from humans as a punishment, but Prometheus defied the odds and stole the fire from Zeus to give back to the people. In turn, Zeus decided to punish Prometheus for such impudence and tied him to the mountain to make suffer eternally. Just like in the legend about Prometheus, whose ambitions

Summary of Section 754 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Summary of Section 754 - Research Paper Example Hence, now the owners and managers who pay tax and their advisers now advance towards the transactions with the same concern, as those stated in the historic decrees of subchapter K that the partnerships concerned with tax have been asking for years: why incorporate The substantial increase in the use of partnerships has led to increasing frustration with the obsolete subchapter K regulations (most of which were spread in 1955). Among the most troublesome laws are those which govern the basis for adjustments on the sale or swap (exchange) of a partnership stake (Orbach, 2004). In fact, the laws --which allow the purchaser of a partnership stake to reflect the purchaser's acquiring cost in partnership resources, are among the most perplexed and highly defective aspects of partnership taxation. At the start of the year 1998, to address these problems, the Internal Revenue Service in collaboration with the Treasury issued proposed laws and policies u/s734(b) (basis adjustments on some distributions), section743(b) (basis adjustments on transfers of partnership interests),section 751(a) (the "collapsible partnership rule" requiring recognition of ordinary income on the disposition of certain partnership interests), andsection754 (Depreciation Adjustment). (Internal Revenue Code) The origin of partnership property is usually not affected when a partner sells or exchanges its interest in the business. As a result, if a person buys or ventures into a partnership stake or interest by sale or exchange for a sum that exceeds the transferee's allocation of the adjusted basis of partnership property, the purchase price in excess, is not reflected in the partnership's asset basis, i.e., the purchaser is not able to "push down" its purchase price to the partnership's assets When the business (partnership) makes a an election u/s754 within the stipulated time, however, a transferee partner's share of the partnership's adjusted basis in its assets ("inside basis") is stepped up or stepped down to reflect the partner's basis in the acquired business interest ("outside basis"). Bottom of Form We would proceed by considering an example, in relation to the partnership business, the various transactions that take place in the form of sale and exchange. More importantly, we would focus on the implications of Section 754 of the IRS, which has a major impact with respect to taxation in shaping up these transactions (Orbach, 2004). When an interested party, buys a stake or share of an existing partner's partnership interest, or the interest of a member of a limited liability corporation (LLC) taxed as a partnership, at a value which is said to be its fair value in the market the amount that the purchaser of the interest pays becomes the base for the purchaser's business interest (outside basis). In this transaction at fair market value, the buyer (new partner) assumes the seller's pro rata share of the business partnership's adjusted basis in its assets (inside basis). If the partnership's property or asset value has appreciated sufficiently, the variation between the new partne r's inside and outside basis can be

The encounter between the Europeans and the American Indians Essay

The encounter between the Europeans and the American Indians - Essay Example The first source is divided into three phases. The first phase talked about the exploration and contact of the Europeans with the Amerindians till 1600, the second phase talked about the cultural identities of the New World and the settlement of the Europeans till 1700 and the third phase talked about the events that took place in Native America in the eighteenth century (Castillo & Schweitzer, 2001). On the other hand, the second source talks about the Columbian voyages, the Columbian exchange, the biological metamorphosis of the New World due to their interaction with the Europeans and infectious diseases that arise due to this interaction (Crosby, 1994). The first source did a great job in correcting people’s perspective on the cultural diversity of the Amerindians (Castillo & Schweitzer, 2001), while the second source did a great job in showing the biological transformation of the New World (Crosby, 1994). The two sources showed that it was actually greed that motivated the interaction of the Europeans with the Amerindians as they sought to exploit these people. Though the two primary sources talked about similar and different issues, but the fact remains that, the accounts are reliable as they are coming from renowned historians. They provided ample evidence to support their assertion and this is what adds to the reliability of their accounts. Thus, the accounts of the two primary sources are reliable.

Apartheid Impact on African Women Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Apartheid Impact on African Women - Essay Example Life was so hard but challenging during those times that several documentaries and writings about the time have been made. Such would be the film "South Africa Belongs to us" which focuses on the plight of five women mainly on a wife left in the homelands, a nurse at a family planning clinic, a hospital cleaner who lives in a single-sex hotel, a leader of a squatter's camp and a domestic servant. The black servant in a house owned by whites cannot spend quality time with her children. Thus, separation did not just happen among people with different skin colors but among the members of their race, specifically with their own bloodlines. The same with other female migrant workers who were sort of imprisoned in their workplace as they were not allowed to visit their families. Through apartheid, women during that episode experienced misery while they were away with their loved ones, while some stood as single mothers because of the classification. One of the effects of apartheid then was the destruction of the black family and the existence of displaced families. There is this one woman who lives in one of the unproductive homelands with her more than a dozen children, because she was not allowed to be with her husband who was forced to live in Johannesburg for twenty years. Despite all these, the film depicts of women's battle cry to defy racism. Winnie Mandela, the former wife of Nelson Mandela and one of the women leaders who were interviewed in the movie, symbolizes women power. Among those who also bravely talked in front of the camera were Numisi Kjuzwayo, a young leader of the prohibited Black Consciousness Movement which was against apartheid and Fatimah Meer, an activist. All of these women never stopped opposing the apartheid system no matter what risked their life. A lot of what has done then contributes to what South Africa is at present, that it really belongs to its people. Another film, "Girls Apart" done in the year 1987, shows an interview with two sixteen year old girls, Sylvia who is from Soweto, a town of blackmen, the other is Siska, a rich white girl Johannesburg. Each told the story of their lives in South 3 Africa during the apartheid period, showing how their worlds were apart and that their lives were led according to their skin color. In the film, a picture of apartheid was demonstrated through the contrasts in the lives of the girls. Another documented story about the happenings in South Africa during the apartheid period is illustrated in the book "Not Either An Experimented Doll, The Separate Worlds of Three South African Women". The story is told through the exchange of letters between an Englishwoman named Mabel Palmer and a disturbed teenage girl Lily Moya, who wrote the book herself which was then edited by Shula Marks. Lily, an orphan, looks to Mabel as a mother she never had, pleading to let her go to school in her college. Mabel, on the other hand, gave in to her wish. In fact, she has contributed a lot to the education of South African women. There was this one time when she went out into the winter cold without a jacket just to pay Lily's matriculation. Here in this book, it seeks to show that during the apartheid period, there were still white people who had good hearts to blacks, although Mabel Palmer had a little limitation in her relationship with Lily for fear of the dictations of racial discrimination rules. The third

National Science Foundation and global warming Essay

National Science Foundation and global warming - Essay Example Hence the outcome presented by researchers mentioned by Longley (2006a) indicates that the resulting transfer of heat into the oceans would cause global sea levels to rise another 4 inches from thermal expansion. (Longley, 2006a) In the present scenario where global warming is the outcome of extensive fossil fuel emissions, it would be no use to look upon the main causes of global warming. However, still the onus is on the shoulder of human activities that cause global warming. Central consumption patterns have generated such a rapid worldwide deforestation that a majority of the earth's rainforests have gone early in the 21st century. However, the outcome is in the form of uncultivable land as global warming has made 53 percent of the world's land uncultivable, and desertification had encompassed nearly two-fifths of the earth's surface by the end of the 20th century. Oil slicks on the oceans and the rise in sea level triggered by global warming have endangered more than half the world's coastal ecosystems. According to a UN Report, yet 60 percent of the world's population lives within 65 miles of coasts, relying on those habitats for food and economic livelihood. Among many Governmental efforts to reduce global warming is the committee set up by National Research Council (NRC), which analyzed not only the global warming trend and ratio but also evaluated the extent to which warming in many versatile ways may be hazardous to humans. The committee being consisted of eleven top most researchers and noble prize winners of the U.S after examining concluded that nothing can be done to stop the dilemmatic conditions rising from global warming because of the reason that 21st century human activities are unlike the past centuries when man was not dependant on machines. Global warming, according to Adler is not a serious threat as predictions for future warming are largely based on computer models that are unable to predict even current temperatures accurately. So, how come the world can rely upon such models that predict dangers of greenhouse in the future Since 1979, the so-called highly accurate satellite measurements taken have remained unsuccessful in finding warming trend. And independent measurements from weather balloons corroborate these readings. So, usually measurement near cities show high temperatures in the global climate. (Adler, 1998) Today humans are based upon technical operated machines and computer models, due to which it would be a mistake to continue thinking of processes to reduce global warming. Global warming would continue to rise as long as there is a continuous greenhouse gas emission. (1) Political leaders have always warned of global warming, as the people they led have never bothered about to increase their emissions of greenhouse gases. One very large problem in greenhouse effect refers to the climate

Functional Areas of Business Management Essay Example for Free

Functional Areas of Business Management Essay Abstract A summary of the sales and marketing functional areas of an organization’s structure as an examination of the overall role and responsibility of the managers of each area. The sales manager’s primary goal is the development, implementation and evaluation of the strategic goals they desire to achieve with the sale organization to be able to meet the company’s overall goals. The marketing manager is responsible for indentifying of the market space with respect to the client, client’s needs and the ability of the product to meet the customer’s needs. Marketing managers are also critical for conducting and evaluating the results of a SWOT analysis for the company. This information is vital to the development of corporate goals of the organization. Functional Areas of Business Management There are a number of functional groups that make up an organization’s structure. Each of these business areas or internal organizations within the company provides a vital function or role to the overall success of the business. Some of these functional groups include; finance, human resources, marketing, operations, sales, customer service, research and development to list a few standard functional business groups. The two functional areas of business that will be reviewed and explored with respect to the manger’s roles and associated responsibilities are the sales and marketing functional areas or organizations of a company. There is a strong correlation to these functions within a business organization. Many organizations may separate these two functional groups and others may closely integrate these to ensure the overall goals are achieved through the cross functional interaction of these resources. â€Å"Sales management can be most easily defined as planning, implementing, and controlling personal contact programs designed to achieve the sales and fit objectives of the firm† (Gale, 2006,). As a sales manager the responsibility is instilled upon this person to be the leader of the sale team. As the leader you are responsible for the strategic planning and the overall process of setting the desired goals of the sales organization and it is a vital function of the sales manager. â€Å"Goal setting is usually based on a companys overall sales objectives or targets† (Gale, 2007). These goals may be cascaded down from senior management in a large organization or be developed through the overall profit and growth that the company is trying to achieve. As the manager of the sales organization it will be important to examine the past history of the products you are selling as an initial assessment of the previous success. Once you have reviewed the revenue results you can compare these to the state of the economy and determine if these results were typical of the results that other competitor companies achieved in a similar market under these conditions. Also the manager will have to examine the resources that are available and determine if these resources are similar to that of the resulting period being evaluated. â€Å"The ability of the sales manager to set goals is strongly related to the desires to change past performance—by lifting all sales, high-margin sales, creating sales for new products, etc† (Gale, 2007). Implementing the strategic plans are the next key functions of the sales manager. Depending upon the overall size of the company, size of the territory to cover and the market to cover the sales department may be subdivided into regions. These regions would then have regional managers responsible for each region all working to achieve the overall sales goals and objectives developed within the organization. In developing the plans for implementing, the sales manager may have to answer questions such as â€Å"how should a sales force be structured? How large a sales force is needed† (Gale, 2006) etc. The sales manager will create strategies to be able to achieve the goals. The plans developed for implementation may also include such things as if training is required and if so then what training is required. They will also be concern with determining if there are requirements for new budgets or increases to old budgets to be able to implement the strategic plans and successfully execute the strategy. Marketing is the second functional area to be examined as a manager in the organizational structure. The overall function of the marketing department and the leaders of this organization can be viewed as the research group for determining the business needs of the client and indentifying the market place. (Moorman and Rust, 1999) â€Å"Define the marketing managers as the liaison between the customer and the product†. The marketing manager plays a vital role in understanding the client, understanding the marketing place the client represents and how the product best fits the overall needs of this market place. Once the marketing manager and the through the marketing team has identified the market space and the need for the product in it, they will then focus on creating a plan that best allows the company to successfully introduce or continue to succeed in selling the product in the identified market. The marketing manager will be responsible to set goals that will create a path for the identified product into the identified market and clients. The marketing manager will utilize the SWOT analysis to create the data that supports the need of a customer to buy and use a desired product. In the SWOT process the marketing manager will also typically identify if there is a market for a new product that the company may have interest in developing. This feedback will be relayed to the research and development organization to identify the economical impact of such a new design. This cost to develop the desired product will be evaluated against the potential revenue that can generate. With this information the company will typically decide if the investment will be made to develop the new product or if simply an old product can be modified to achieve the desired results to the client. Once a new product is developed or a current product is improved the marketing organization will determine the most beneficial way to introduce these changes to the desired client base. This method can vary from printed material in magazines, internet, client handouts or simply by the sale organization when directly dealing with the existing and new clients when they interact with them. There is significant correlation between the sale department and the marketing department in many industries today. Often it will be observed that the two roles of sales and marketing can be combined to a product marketing manager with sole responsibilities to a single product or product line. When the two functions are combined the manager will be responsible for the growth and success of the product. This manager will also be required to conduct the market research and develop the most successful path to market for the product. Whether the sales and marketing managers are reviewed individually or as a combined role they both play vital roles in the overall developing, implementing and evaluating of the companies goals. References Moorman, C., and Rust, R.T.(1999). â€Å"The role of marketing†, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 63, pp. 180-197 (special Issue) Sales Management. Encyclopedia of Management. Ed. Marilyn M. Helms. 5th ed. Detroit: Gale, 2006. 778-782. â€Å"Sales Management. Encyclopedia of Small Business. 3rd ed. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2007. 993-996

ULTRA VIRES DOCTRINE OF COMPANY LAW IN ZAMBIA

ULTRA VIRES DOCTRINE OF COMPANY LAW IN ZAMBIA INTRODUCTION This assignment examines the debate on the legal issues surrounding the abolition of the requirement to submit a Memorandum of Association when applying to incorporate a company under the Zambian Companies Act 1994 cap 388 of the Laws of Zambia. This debate has been on the â€Å"Objects Clause† which used to be a requirement under the old Companies Act 1921 and was to remain as part of the Memorandum of Association thereafter until the company ceased to exist. ORIGINS OF THE OBJECTS CLAUSE A company on incorporation under the Companies Act cap 388 gives it a corporate personality which means that it gains the status of a separate legal entity from its shareholders or members.[1] However, as an artificial person, the company cannot make decisions and as such has to rely on humans to make decisions on its behalf. Therefore, the decisions and actions by the company officers, employees or indeed its agents will be taken to be those of the company which shall bear the liability. As such, as the company is to be regarded as an artificial person, the courts developed the view that its legal capacity had to be limited to its objects[2] and on incorporation to include the objects clause in its memorandum of association[3] which formed part of the company’s constitution. This was with a view of safeguarding the interests of both the shareholders and the creditors by way of the doctrine of ultra vires. In summing up, it can be said that an objects clause is that provision in a companys constitution which provides for the purposes and the power to undertake only the activities for which the company was formed as was the case before the coming into force of the Companies Act cap 388. THE DOCTRINE OF ULTRA VIRES The doctrine of ultra vires[4] refers to those acts or decisions that a company may undertake which are beyond the scope of powers granted by the company’s objects clause in its memorandum of association. Ashbury Carriage Company v Riche (1875) The ACC was an incorporated company under the Companies Act of 1862. Clause 3 of the memorandum that: The objects for which the company is established are to make and sell, or lend on hire, railway carriages and wagons, and all kinds of railway plant, fittings, machinery, and rolling-stock; to carry on the business of mechanical engineers and general contractors; to purchase and sell, as merchants, timber, coal, metals, or other materials; and to buy and sell any such materials on commission, or as agents. The company agreed to provide Richie and his brother with finance for the construction of a railway in Belgium but later repudiated the agreement. Richie sued for damages. Held That the contract was void and that ratification, even if it had taken place, would have been wholly ineffective. PRESENT LAW Unlike before, the current Companies Act cap 388, does not have a mandatory requirement for companies incorporated under it to have a memorandum of association which should contain the objects clause. POWERS AND DUTIES OF DIRECTORS The Companies Act Cap. 388 provides under section 215 that: (1) The business of a company shall be managed by the directors, who may pay all expenses incurred in promoting and forming the company, and may exercise all such powers of the company as are not, by this Act or the articles, required to be exercised by the company by resolution. (3) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), the directors may exercise the powers of the company to borrow money, to charge any property or business of the company or all or any of its uncalled capital and to issue debentures or give any other security for a debt, liability or obligation of the company or of any other person. VALIDITY OF ACTS However, section 23 provides that â€Å"No act of a company, including any transfer of property to or by a company, shall be invalid by reason only that the act or transfer is contrary to its articles or this Act† seems to be a contradiction to sections 7 and 22. THE ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION Before the 1994 Act, the articles of association where classed as being inward-looking and having a purpose of setting out the rules governing the running of the company. The articles hence formed an incorporated company’s constitution[5] which may deal with any matters of the company operations. However, the present Act does not, as stated above, make it mandatory for a company to submit a memorandum of association but provides under section 7 as follows: (1) A company may have articles regulating the conduct of the company. (2) The articles may contain restrictions on the business that the company may carry on. This means that there is no need of an objects clause to be included in the articles of association so as to restrict the business operations to conform to the objects and indeed should not specify its general nature of the company business. This assertion can also be inferred from section 7(4) which provides that â€Å"a company on incorporation may adopt the regulations of the Standard Articles† which do not contain a provision for the general nature of the business to be undertaken or indeed any restrictions. Furthermore, section 7(2) provides that ‘the articles may contain restrictions on the business that a company may carry on’, thus departing from the traditional role of covering mainly issues to do with the internal management of the company for which articles of association are often known for. Therefore, it could be inferred from this section that a company on incorporation may restrict its nature of business to be undertaken as agreed by the shareholders. This inference is asserted to by section 22(3) of the Act which provides that â€Å"A company shall not carry on any business or exercise any power that it is restricted by its articles from carrying on or exercising, nor exercise any of its powers in a manner contrary to its articles.† However, the restrictions that prohibit an incorporated company from carrying on any business in its articles of incorporation are on the preferences of the shareholders and as such the doctrine of ultra-vires whilst not being abolished is not mandatory. Therefore, where a company decides to place some business restrictions in its articles of association then that company is prohibited from carrying on any business or exercising any power that it is restricted by its articles. NOTICE NOT PRESUMED 24. No person dealing with a company shall be affected by, or presumed to have notice or knowledge of, the contents of a document concerning the company†¦.. This means that the interests of the third party who deals with a company is entitled to assume that it has the power to do anything it wishes are not affected[6] unless he was actually aware (notice or knowledge) of the restrictions. Therefore, section 24 basically abolishes the ultra vires rule against third parties who have no knowledge of the company’s objects and are meant to assume that the director, agent or company employee they deal with has the power to make decisions. This has been acknowledged in the case of Freshint Ltd Others v Kawambwa Tea Company [2008] ZMSC 26 at (763) where it was held that â€Å"in practice most people dealing with companies rely on the rule in Turquand’s case and do not bother to inspect the articles. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ The company’s authorized agents bound the company to comply with the contract and such liability cannot be avoided†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. NO DISCLAIMER ALLOWED 25. A company †¦..may not assert against a person dealing with the company or with any person who has acquired rights from the company that- (a) any of the articles of the company has not been complied with; (b) a shareholder agreement has not been complied with; (c) the persons named in the most recent annual return or notice under section two hundred and twenty-six are not the directors of the company; (d) the registered office of the company is not an office of the company; (e) a person held out by a company as a director, an officer or an agent of the company has no authority to exercise the powers and perform the duties that are customary in the business of the company or usual for such a director, officer or agent; (f) a document issued by any director, officer or agent of the company with actual or usual authority to issue the document is not valid or genuine; or APPLICATION FOR INCORPORATION Section 6 2(i) provides that an application for incorporation shall be in the prescribed form and shall specify †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. the nature of its proposed business†¦.. This means that all the features which could be found in the memorandum of association have now been incorporated into the Articles of Association including but not limited to: (a) The Name Clause; (b) The Objects Clause; (c)Each subscriber confirming their intention to form a company (d)Each member also agrees to take at least one share (e)Physical address of the office to be the registered office CONCLUSION This argument hence concludes that the requirements for the objects clause have actually been retained in through both the articles of association and Companies Form 2 which requires that the applicants specify the general nature of business to include the principal business and any other business (section 2). It could further be concluded that the filing of Form 2 re-enforces the notion that the doctrine of ultra vires has been retained in Zambia through the provision at section 3 that, â€Å"The articles restrict the business that the company may conduct as follows† after which part these restriction will be specified. BIBLIOGRAPHY Davies, L. P., Principles of Modern Company Law, 8th Edn, Sweet and Maxwell, 2008 Dignam A. Lowry J., Company Law, 4th Edn, OUP, London, 2006 1 [1] Salomon v Salomon Co [1897] A.C 22, HL, at 51, per Lord Macnaughten [2] Ashbury Carriage Company v Riche (1875) [3] Guinness v Land Corporation of Ireland (1882) [4] Ultra vires is a Latin expression which lawyers and civil servants use to describe acts undertaken beyond (ultra) the legal powers (vires) of those who have purported to undertake them. Davies P.L., Principles of Modern Company Law, at p153. [5] Davies P.L., Principles of Modern Company Law, 8th Edn, Sweet and Maxwell, 2008, at p62 [6] Royal British Bank v Turquand (1856)

Kirkpatricks Evaluation Of Training Management Essay

Kirkpatricks Evaluation Of Training Management Essay Kirkpatricks model of evaluation is being applied. This model consists of four levels of evaluation. The first level is the reaction level in which the reactions of the trainees are understood to mean the way in which they perceive and subjectively evaluate the relevance and quality of the training. It attempts to answer questions regarding the participants perceptions Did they like it? Was the material relevant to their work? This type of evaluation is often called a smileysheet. According to Kirkpatrick, every program should at least be evaluated at this level to provide for the improvement of a training program. At this level, evaluation measures the satisfaction of the people who followed the training. In conjunction with that, positive reactions are of critical importance in creating sufficient learning motivation. In this sense, the participants reactions have important consequences for learning (level two). Although a positive reaction does not guarantee learning, a negative reaction almost certainly reduces its possibility. Learning can be described as the extent to which the attitudes of the participants change, their knowledge increases or their skills are broadened as a consequence of the training. This is a second level of evaluation of learning behavior whereby evaluation is intended to measure the progress made in terms of knowledge, skills or attitudes. In other words, evaluation tests the participants to see whether new skills have been acquired. At this point, evaluation can relate to the method used to transfer the knowledge, skills and attitudes. To assess the amount of learning that has occurred due to a training program, level two evaluations often use tests conducted before training (pretest) and after training (post test). Assessing at this level moves the evaluation beyond learner satisfaction and attempts to assess the extent students have advanced in skills, knowledge, or attitude. Measurement at this level is more difficult and laborious than level one. Methods range from formal to in formal testing to team assessment and self-assessment. If possible, participants take the test or assessment before the training (pretest) and after training (post test) to determine the amount of learning that has occurred. A third evaluation level is that of changes in job behavior or performance. This involves studying the change in job behavior which takes place as a result of the training. Evaluating at this level attempts to answer the question Are the newly acquired skills, knowledge, or attitude being used in the everyday environment of the learner? At this point, evaluation sees whether tasks are performed differently before and after the training. In order for positive reactions and learning effects actually to lead to changed job behavior, the transfer of acquired skills to the work situation must especially be ensured. The quality of this transfer is strongly dependent on the support the participant receives after the training, especially from his immediate supervisor or coach. From a study by Bergenhenegouwen, which explain the low effectiveness of training courses, are found in this area in which immediate bosses who have more of a discouraging effect, who themselves do not set a satisfact ory example or provide insufficient supervision. For many trainers this level represents the truest assessment of a programs effectiveness. However, measuring at this level is difficult as it is often impossible to predict when the change in behavior will occur, and thus requires important decisions in terms of when to evaluate, how often to evaluate, and how to evaluate. Level four evaluation attempts to assess training in terms of organizational results. At this point, evaluation checks how the results are evaluated at the end of the training initiatives. An evaluation of the results therefore measures the progress made at organizational level. Frequently thought of as the bottom line, this level measures the success of the program in terms that managers and executives can understand increased production, improved quality, decreased costs, reduced frequency of accidents, increased sales, and even higher profits or return on investment (ROI). From a business and organizational perspective, this is the overall reason for a training program, yet level four results are not typically addressed. Determining results in financial terms is difficult to measure, and is hard to link directly with training. According to Kirkpatrick, the subject of evaluation or the level at which evaluation takes place is dependent on the phase during which the evaluation takes place. In Kirkpatricks four- level model, each successive evaluation level is built on information provided by the lower level. Assessing Training Needs often entails using the four-level model developed by Donald Kirkpatrick. According to this model, evaluation should always begin with level one, and then, as time and budget allows, should move sequentially through levels two, three, and four. Information from each prior level serves as a base for the next levels evaluation. Thus, each successive level represents a more precise measure of the effectiveness of the training program, but at the same time requires a more rigorous and time-consuming analysis. 3.2. Transfer of Training Training transfer generally refers to the use of trained knowledge and skills back on the job. Baldwin Magjuka mentioned that for transfer to occur, learned behavior must be generalized to the job context and maintained over a period of time on the job. Meanwhile, Saks Haccoun views training transfer is the generalization of knowledge and skills learned in training on the job and the maintenance of acquired knowledge and skills over time. According to the transfer of training framework by Saks Haccoun, the transfer of training activities could be segregated into three phases which is before, during, and after training to facilitate and improve the transfer of training. However, for the purpose of this study, only transfer of training after training is being applied. In this case, the management must ensure that trainees have immediate and frequent opportunities to practice and apply what they learn in training on the job. The management should also encourage and reinforce trainees application of new skills on the job. There are many other things that managers do to facilitate transfer such as develop an action plan with trainees for transfer and show support by reducing job pressures and workload, arrange practice sessions, publicize transfer successes, give promotional preference to employees who have received training and transfer, and evaluate employees use of trained skills on the job. The trainer should conduct follow-up or booster sessions following a training program. Trainers should maintain their involvement in the training and transfer process by conducting field visits to observe trainees use of trained skills, provide and solicit feedback and provide continued support and assistance to trainees. Trainees should be able to use new knowledge and skills on the job as soon and as often as possible. At the same time, trainees should meet with their supervisor to discuss opportunities for transfer. Trainees might also establish a network of peers who also attended a training program that can provide assistance and support each other for using their trained skills on the job. Trainees should also set goals for practicing their newly acquired skills on the job. 3.3. Factors Influencing the Effectiveness of Training and Development In the real world, there are some other factors that influence the effectiveness of training and development in an organization. One of them that have been identified by Haywood is the human resource policy of training and development. He mentioned that too many training program place emphasis on ease and the very purpose behind the design of programs namely, learning, skill development and behavioral change, has defeat the original purpose and goals of training are lost and the means all too readily becomes the end. Furthermore, the human resource policy would determine a clear link between training and an organizations career development and reward system in which training might leads to recognition and advancement. Indeed, the trainers capabilities as a subject matter expert would determine the effectiveness of training and development. Training programs can be trivialize if the organization hiring unqualified trainers that could defect the transfer of learning to the employees. In addition, employees attitude and motivation are one of the factors that might influence the effectiveness of training and development. Therefore, the positive attitude should be foster through the constant emphasis on team building program to enhance the employees motivational effort. In relation to this, the employees motivation in transfer and transfer climate are crucial to ensure the effectiveness of training and development. Finally, the commitment of top management to the training and development is critical to its success. Organizations whose top management view training as a way to meet organizational goals by making sure that employees take an active part in the delivery of training and in the planning of training objectives; and by maintaining a financial commitment to training.

Essay example --

Our world is growing! Growing in population that is, but the resources are staying the same. To help with the growing of the population that will be happening in the 21st century, science and agriculture need to work hand-in-hand. They need to stand together to make a break through together, to insure that everyone will have food on their plate. We need to work to have larger yields with the land we have. Some people say that humans need to change their diet, and others say that we should destroy hundreds of acres of wild land. According to Feed Nine Billion website, people feel that the only way things will be improving, is if everyone becomes a vegetarian. But others disagree. The people who think that this is the only way do have a good point. Grains and vegetables do produce so much faster than animal production. Then again, you can’t just assume that everyone will follow, and turn to becoming a vegetarian. Besides think of all the farmers that would be out of a job! These farmers could have been family business, just like a dairy farm that is located outside of our town. R&D dairy farm has been handed down generation after generation. Funding has to become an essential in today’s society for this new advance in technology that will be needed. We aren’t only having problems worrying about feeding the next generation; we should be concerned now. Did you know, that in the last 11 years, six of those years the population has consumed more than what was produced? The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations website, just this year the cereal production has gone up eight percent. Imagine what will be expected in the 21st century. People are demanding more food now, than they ever have. Scientists say that far... ...t too expensive for the farmers. The second step is that broader awareness is required. According to Sarah Alexander, â€Å"different farmers trust different sources, such as vendors, crop consultants, and university extension services.† Farmers are going to need to be open minded to new things, in order to feed the human race. The last step is farmers need the right incentives. Farmers want to know about the good that they are doing. Farmer’s want to know how they are saving the environment, and how they are producing more food, and feeding more people than they were before. If we all work together, feeding the nine will be possible, and even likely. Farmers need to know how much they are needed, for this process and know that new ways of farming will help in the long run. People don’t have to change their diets so everyone can be fed. Together, we can feed the world.

Limitations of Interpersonal Communciation Research :: essays research papers

When taking a limit of an equation in Calculus, a limit does not always exist. However, in the real word there are always limitations to what people can accomplish no matter how hard they work or try. These limitations are evident in interpersonal commuciation research as well. In the article, "Commucication Apprehension Among Secretarial Students," the authors, Melanie Booth-Butterfield and Carol C. Thomas, research and examine the levels of trait communication apprehension among students enrolled in college level office administration programs. In the following paragraphs I will discuss the process and two limitations of the research. In the article, the authors seek to investigate communication apprehension among secretarial students. Communication apprehension is an individual’s level of fear or anxiety associated with communicationg with others (Booth-Butterfield & Thomas, 1995, pp. 39). The methodological framework utilitized by the authors was to administer questionnaires during regular class time in four different sections. This survey included a measure of trait communication apprehension and anxiety across four different areas of interpersonal, small group, meeting and public speaking. In addition, the questionnaire asked for the age and whether the participants have had experience in a co-op role or as a secretary for a regular business. The participants of the questionaire were 117 random students enrolled at a four-year, technical business-oriented college. Of these students, 58 were female students enrolled full-time in office administration courses. The remaining students were not secretarial students but were enrolled in business administration, management, and communication courses. The results of the survey clearly showed a higher communication apprehension among secretarial students than non-secretarial students rergardless of age or job experience. Furthermore, secretarial students showed anxiety in all four areas of communication especially in public speaking. In conlusion to the research, the authors say that the anxiety experienced by many office adminstration students should be observable and will substatntively influence their performance in classes and on the job (Booth-Butterfield & Thomas, 1995, pp. 39). Although this communication apprehension research seems reasonable, limitations include the type of data used and the relationships or generalizations that are drawn between certain variables. To begin with, the methodological framework utilized by the author is in the form of a questionairre. A questionairre is basically a test to see how one thinks of his or herself and is not necessarily accurate. For example, an individual may think he or she is apprehensive to communication but when actually confronted with the scenerio may perform rather well and without any fear or anxiety. Perhaps a better methodological approach in gathering data is to setup an actual communication setting and have the participants perform to the communication task. The data should be based on the performance as well as feedback from the participant to see if the communication apprehension was

The Roman Family: Center of Roman Society :: Ancient Rome Roman History

The Roman Family: Center of Roman Society The Roman family after the advent of Christianity has been widely discussed in Roman History. Different historians have looked at the topic in different ways. There are two articles at hand, which deal with this very topic. Brent Shaw, The family in Late Antiquity: The Experience of Augustine and Douglas O'Roark, Parenthood in Late Antiquity. Both historians are looking at the family in late antiquity, after the time that Christianity was introduced to the Roman society. Through an analysis of the two essays and references to the classical period it can be seen that: The Roman family has always been an important institution in their society, it's composition, roles and the functions changed little after the advent of Christianity. The Essays Each of the historians has a solid central argument, and their essays are laid out well. Shaw seeks to show the structure and the functions of the Roman family in late antiquity. He also seeks to clear up misconceptions of the Roman family. O'Roark's argument seeks to show the closeness of the parents and children in the Roman family. The important thing to realize is that both of these essays are looking at the Roman family in the same period, late antiquity, after the advent of Christianity. Also important to note is both of these essays to not specifically talk about the impact of Christianity on the family. The essays can be used to reference against each other and against the Roman family in the Classical period. Information on the Classical period is given in G. Nathan's article: Two Traditions. With the three essays one can come to a good conclusion about the impact of Christianity on the Roman family. In interest of paper length the essays have been narrowed down to include only central topics. First looking at similarities, then differences. Children This is the first main aspect of the family that both historians look at. The first point Shaw brings up is that main purpose of childbearing. This was for the wife to produce a heir for the husband . The father organized the whole house around this, in preparation a son to take everything over when he died . O'Roark states that a major factor in having children was to love and to care for them . He however cannot deny that before this the realization is that the father must have children to pass everything on to .

Niche Marketing

1) What is niche marketing? The word ‘niche’ is defined as: A special area of demand for a products or service. The word ‘marketing’ is defined as: The opportunity to buy or sell. Niche Marketing means buying or selling a product or service in a special area of demand. All that really means product or service is being sold to the people who are most interested in that particular product or service and not to the world in general. Often time big businesses use niche marketing. For example, a company that makes computers and computers accessories might advertise all-in-one such as copy, printer and scanner to the home computer user while at the same time advertising single function machines to large businesses. One of the things that make niche marketing so attractive to sellers is that their advertising budgets go further. It costs less to advertise to a specialized market that it does to advertise to a broader market. Niche marketing must be designed to meet the unique needs of the targeted audience. Niche marketers must tailor their product to meet those unique needs. Example, I have design a product to make poodle grooming easy enough for the untrained professional to do it, those who own poodles will be most interested in the products. Those who own Blood Hounds or cats will not care so much. 2) As an automobile retailer, what would you propose to increase sales volumes through niche marketing? Toyota is a huge multinational company. At first glance, it appears that Toyota focuses on the auto business as a whole both from a marketing and production standpoint. Notwithstanding this fact, Toyota is excellent when it comes to niche marketing. Toyota will search for niches for which it can supply a product in need. Toyota was one of the first companies to realize there was a group of car buyers who would be very interested in environmentally friendly cars. To answer this need, it came up with the legendary Prius. The Prius is the first mass production hybrid car. Where other car manufacturers saw Toyota taking a huge risk, Toyota saw it as an opportunity to identify a new niche and establish its brand in that niche. In marketing, it is often the first brand on the scene that takes the day. Once Toyota took the plunge, it pursued an effective niche marketing plan. It didn’t promote the Prius in just any media. It focused on media outlets that were watched, read or listened to by people concerned about the environment. For example, it heavily promoted the car through environmental groups and their publications. As the only game in town at that time, Toyota not only dominated the niche. 3) Explain the role of RMI. RMI create brand awareness and communication tools which have been use from any company’s. They publish their own magazine naming Automobil. RMI also responsible for assisting its members with all matters surrounding the motor industry while ensure that members do comply with high level of business and offers a revenue generating device through its unique niche status.

Qualitative article critique Essay

INTRODUCTION on that point ar a number of accompani workforcetors that head to put inively conducting soft look. It is non except choosing the right electron orbit setting or well-formulated look marvel that counts, but withal the reli king of the evidence and the skills of the audienceer make horrific difference to the outcome of a qualitative query. soft explore involves the scrutiny of societal phenomena.(Gubrium and Holstein 1997, p.11-14). Qualitative tecs look beyond the mundane and try to record how actors register themselves or their world.. Un analogous in quantitative seek, when conducting a qualitative schooling, the investigator is considered as the important instrument for entropy befoolion, selective education analysis, and info interpretation (Paisley & Reeves, 2001). The next few p matures en combine critically analyse the qualitative interrogation denominations of Russell, L. (2005) Its a question of swan match the relationship am ongst students and t from each oneers in ethnographic scene of actionword and Kamenou, N. (2008) Reconsidering Work-Life commensurateness debates Challenging control Understandings of the Life Component in the context of intent of Ethnic Minority Womens Experiences(British ledger of Man seasonment, Vol. 19, S99-S109).Look more(prenominal) than(prenominal)problem description essay1. RUSSELL, L. ITS A motility OF TRUST BALANCING THE RELATIONSHIP among STUDENTS AND TEACHERS IN ETHNOGRAPHIC FIELDWORK.THE AUTHOR IS A YOUNG ETHNOGRAPHER queryING TEENAGERS (P.193). WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES HER AGE gear up?In this particular theatre of operations subject field, the mount up of the ethnographer Russell, L. had both a positive as well as a minus impact on the explore. This field look for was conducted in a pictorialism modal value, this counsel that the investigator inquires the lives and perspectives of the tar established population as accurate as possible in their subjective setting (Gubrium and Holstein, 1997). The questioner Lisa Russell was a young, dilettante, female, white, northerly English ethnographer investigating the sensitive consequence of student resistance (Russell, 2005181). Spradley (1979) refers to ethnography as the run for ofdescribing a culture with the aims to understand another look of life from the insepar fit point of view.To sit more trust and good data of the put upvass culture, the more similarities of signs mingled with the ethnographer and the researched would be an advantage beca exercise this could decrease the differences betwixt them. With this as well, the researcher could prep be herself to adapt to the seat that she would be researching. Lisa Russell has the great advantage of her gender, nationality, use of language, size and age to naturally locomote in as a section of the studied separate, because ethnography relies heavily on notifications of actions and interviews with participant s in naturally occurring situation.My age helped me act on in and indeed understand discussions (p.194). making use of her naivety and young age, her give birth own(prenominal) speechless lust and her figure of organism smallness in altitude and name (p.195), which is not often difference with the teenagers (Lisa mentioned her age is between 23-24 at cartridge clip of researched), these personal traits of the ethnographer has resulted in fundamental interaction and a matter of trust that she has see with the students. Lisa Russell adapted the occasion transaction of abject into least adult role in a different way (p.193).As she recaptures her secondary years were not far-off behind her current phase of life, Lisa was not frightened with certain things she perceived as she was able to relate to her own teaching familiarity during those secondary years when she limn my initiate naivety acted as a pull ahead when trying to manage impulsive and sometimes shocking behav iour of students (Russell, p.182). Age alike contributed to the way students react to the ethnographer along with what he or she is and is not allowed to do (Hammersley and Atkinson, 1983). This characteristic has worked in Lisa favor, as the students mat up unthreatened and therefore more give to express themselves. in addition because shadowing and musing is more reliable and efficient if a researcher is unknown and does not affect the carriage of the steering company.Whereas in this study, Lisas age is at advantage to observe the researched group and efficiently gather data collection, as a young ethnographer she go out face the stickyies of being Lisa being in learnd, since acrucial characteristic of ethnography is the characteristic of ho harkenic which promoter interpreting the data as a whole in order to get a basis for explanation rough the gathered information. Assuming that this is her first research as an ethnographer carrying out a field study, subjectivit y is a terminus ad quem of ethnography. The way ethnographers interpret the field study picture forget vary a lot. at that place is not a set list of answers to choose from but rather the use of notes make by the investigator and ulterior interpreted and categorized by the investigator.The limitation of ethnographic research with reliability is caused by the fact that ethnographic research occurs in natural setting and focuses on handlees (Wiersma 1986 and ruin 1994). The accurate replication is very difficult to achieve because an event in natural setting cannot be reproduced. While reflecting to Wiersma (1986) and destroy (1994) or so the difficulties of accurate replication of findings, Lisas age could be a drawback, because she is a novice ethnographer with limited experience and her abilities to process and evaluate her findings and evidence (interviews, field notes and recordings) could be subjective and a intriguing short letter for a novice.1.2 WHEN IS A investig ator NO LONGER A NOVICE? WOULD HER RESEARCH HAVE BEEN BETTER DONE BY SOMEONE WITH MORE EXPERIENCE?A novice ethnographer is a beginner researcher who just started in the field of ethnography. desire in any other rush function, practice is required to become an good in the field of choice. To make errors and mistakes will contribute to further discretion and deeper knowledge. To my understanding, a researcher is no longer a novice when the ethnographer is able to observe and enroll objectively and subjectively in a field research. additionally the ethnographer should be able to analyze and interpret the gathered data effectively.It is difficult to conclude whether an ethnographer with more experience would see done the research mitigate. When considering the fact that Lisa took the role as a participant as observer (Gold, 1958), she had an advantage of her characteristics my quiet, reserved disposition and smallness in height and build influenced the way students and teachers related to me. I faded into the background. Students would often forget my strawman sometimes teachers and other students mistook me for a student. (Russell, p.195). This shows that disdain that at the time of research, Lisa was a novice researcher she was able to transform herself into the participant as observer role, which gave her find to more insights and reliable information. The researched group and the ethnographer established a matter of trust and even build intense relationships (Russell, p.196). Hence, Lisa was able to collect observation and vision of the researched group.Being a qualitative researcher, one should note the important linkages between theories and methods, reviews key qualitative methodologies, and mettlesomelights challenges and the opportunities (Gephart, 2004). Referring to Gephart (2004), one superpoweriness argue that the research data rating would start out been analyzed and linked better by an ethnographer with more experience. Though in my touch, a more experienced ethnographer cogency not cast been able to collect as much insight as Lisa, because the researched group competency have do differently, so if a more experienced researcher would conduct the field work, I suggest it would be best to do it covertly.1.3 IN THIS RESEARCH PAPER WHAT DO YOU LEARN ABOUT A) THE RESEARCH SUBJECTS AND B) THE RESEARCHER?By critically analyzing the research paper, it informs us that the research subjects were studying at trine different sites, namely two in Birmingham and one in Sydney. As the research affair was to investigate the complex and sometimes contradictory culture(s) of student resistance to discipline (p. 181), students aged between 14-16 were selected c arfully elect by the schools.What is significant or so the researched group is that they were skeptical in the beginning when Lisa arrived it had to be made clear that Lisa would not telling, nor report their behavior to teachers. Names like the follower and leec h suggest that during the sign stages the students did not accept Russell as she fly-by-night them all around. But gradually shemanaged to off one of the most vital aspects of the study trust.The researched group proved trust in Lisa because she witnessed inappropriate and illegal activities, such(prenominal) as damage of school property, thievery and taking drugs. The fact that students did change their behavior means also that Lisa became invisible to the researched group.What we have learned close to the novice researcher is that Lisa used an adaptive approach towards the research and considered how various aspects of her personal disposition bear on her entire study. look forers reflections on their actions and observations in the field, their impressions, irritations, detectings and so on, become data in their own right, forming part of the interpretation, (Flick, 20056) The researchers ability to build relationships and develop rapport with subjects is crucial. (Thorpe & Holt, 2008151)In her article, Lisa repeatedly puts an emphasis on her age and naivety, this shows that these facets of her personal characteristics contributed her to engage in discussions and activities with the students, which if she was old(a) wouldnt have been able to do. Her proximity to their age made it easier for both herself and the students to be able to relate and confide to each other. At the same time it was challenging for Lisa to establish the same bond with the teachers and she felt exceptionally uncomfortable in staffroom conversations. In my opinion, she put a lot of commitment and time into cognizing the narratives and behaviors of the students and failed to do the same with the teachers. up to now when she progressed to the third school her heightened confidence and great experience (Russell, 2005188) made it easier for her to relate to and interact with the teachers.2. KAMENOU, N. (2008) RECONSIDERING WORK-LIFE BALANCE DEBATES . BRITISH JOURNAL OF MANAGEM ENT, 19 S99-S109.2.1 THE AUTHOR APPEARS TO HAVE HAD DIFFICULTIES RECRUITING INTERVIEWEES (SEE ESPECIALLY P.S102). WHY, FOR EXAMPLE, top executive AN ORGANIZATION WITHDRAW FROM THE STUDY CLAIMING RESTRUCTURING WAS IN PROGRESS? (P.102).Qualitative research interview seeks to cover both a real and a meaning level, though it is usually more difficult to interview on a meaning level (Kvale 1996, p.32). Work-life balance means that individuals have in(predicate)ly segmental or integrated life and work so as to achieve a satisfying quality of life, overall expiation and less strain or stock around juggling conflicting role demands. (Blyton et al., 20062). The work-life balance equation (Kamenou, 2008S99) is finding accord between of a number of aspects ranging from career, obligations, family, pastime and culture.In this article, the researcher argues slightly the subject on pagan minority womens experiences of managing their work and personal lives. (Kamenou, 2008S99). Nicolin a Kamenou, gathered data via semi structured, in reasonableness interviews earlier with ethnic minority females. Information of ethnic minority men, white women and white men was also collected as comparability.The researcher faced challenging difficulties in obtaining interviewees still three out of the twenty governing bodys that were invited responded positively to the invitation (Kamenou, 2008S102). Ensuing, one of the three fundamental laws disengaged from the research claiming restructuring was in progress. A research by Spencer (1982) suggests that plaques may restrict access to the organization because they perceive it as a put on the line, which might unwrap their reputation. A possible former of withdrawal of the company is that the research topic is delicate and related to companys policies and perspectives concerning ethnicity, culture, religion and class. By granting insights to these sensitive matters, organizations endanger themselves to harmful publicity to the organizations reputation. A noticeable fact is that the organization that withdrew from the research published and considered themselves attractors in diversity (Kamenou, p.102).Hence, this research subject should be of high interest to the organization. Also cooperation to the research could have been positive publicity assuming that the company indeed was a fiter in diversity. Hence, disengagement of the organization could be a result of abstruse narratives of the company, which are not supposed to be revealed. Forexample, Kamenous article reveals Johns opinions (black Caribbean, Application Manager, Heath Trust, age 34) he did not dress in more traditional clothes because he is scared that his colleagues might be threatened or have issues (Kamenou, p.106).This statement made by John could be interpreted as racism within the company, which consequently could lead to a huge scandal or even a lawsuit. Thorpe & Holt (2008) argue somewhat the importance of sensible consent. Participants in a study should be informed about the research objective, participants rights to confidentiality and namelessness and what will happen to the data and what parties will have access to it. I cerebrate that when multitude or organizations are informed about their rights of informed consent, the number of participants in a study will sum up significantly. The large finance company that withdrew from the research might have participated in the research if they could get anonymity and total fastness that the companies name would not be published.2.2 WHAT are THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE PEOPLE IN ORGANIZATIONS WHERE baronial ACCESS HAD BEEN GRANTED AND THE INDEPENDENT root word?Kamenou (2008) invited 20 organizations, of which 2 organizations accepted to participate. Additionally she invited independent groups from personal networks so that involvement of subjects from different sectors, qualifications and occupations could enrich the data. Each group would have t heir own various inputs to the research, and data could be more valid. Personal networking is seen as one of the best ways to get granted access to an organization Carr and worthy (2001). The main obstacle about evening gown access to an organization is that there might be a matter where companies make the employees not to unveil certain information about the company or the narratives in the organization. Subsequently there is a high possibility of fear, where the employees do not inadequacy to disclose information that could threaten their jobs.However, if the brass were that the employee was an acquaintance of the researcher, there would have been confidentiality between the researcher and the interviewee, which would make the interviewee more open and honest during the inquiries. According to Spradley (1979), people who feel comfortable, safe, and valued are more extraverted thanthose who are only considered as sources of information. in that location is definitely a diffe rence between the interviewed groups, in particular the data malodorousness and disclosure of information between the people in organization where formal access had been granted and the independent group determine through personal networking (Kamenou, 2008, p.s102).Qualitative research interviews partly consist of open-ended questions, this allows the interviewer to question and inquire further on the answers and likewise, interviewee can share thoughts and experiences. Kamenou (2008, p.s103) argues that the semi structured, in depth nature of interview conducted with all participants allowed them the time and space to reflect and discuss their experiences in their own words (Harvey, 1990 ODwyer, 2005) and helped to surmount possible bendes in the research process.2.3 WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THE AUTHOR? HOW might THE IDENTITY OF THE AUTHOR HAVE do A DIFFERENCE TO THE RESEARCH?In the article the author doesnt describe herself, neither does she mention on how she could have influen ced the research. The article is different from Russells ethnography paper, which accentuates strongly on personal observation and self-reflexivity but less on the statistical information. Analyzing her own processes during the fieldwork, Lisa claimed the researcher should employ a reflexive attitude to understand how the interaction between the researcher and the researched, and the researchers autobiography, influence the data collected (Russell, p. 197). The individuality and background of the author does have an effect on the research outcome, involving in what is called observers bias. Observers bias is referred to as the aspect to where the researchers know the objectives or the hypotheses and consequently their knowledge affects the observations and gathered data. base on the understanding of the researcher about the issue, they will absorb the observations and interviews in which they are interested. It is also likely that researchers unintentionally coiffe what they obser ve from the participants, and mold it to their own perspectives. Therefore, the potence risk is the possibility of misunderstanding or failure to present the accurate perceptions and opinion of participants about the research subject. A way to decrease observers bias and to overcome the risk ofrevealing misinterpreted data is to use additional observation methods such as imposture experiments, tape records, and multi-observers. Using these extra tools during the field study could be used as evidence of validity or reused as secondary data for another study. cultivationAfter critically analyzing both articles of Russel (2005) and Kamenou (2008), I have learned that qualitative research adopts different and various knowledge claims, research strategies, and methods of data collection and analysis. If the research processes are handled carefully it could provide a deeper understanding of the research topics. Qualitative analysis compiles the study of perception, meanings, emotions and behavior, which aim to present original, truthful insights about various human and cultural phenomena. By studying the papers and participating in the seminars, I gained insight and knowledge about the difficulties and challenges faced when carrying out a field study. The various external and internal influences have a crucial impact on qualitative studies and should not be underestimated.The article by Russel (2005) shows us a research conducted by a novice ethnographer, with accentuate on the uncertainties and challenges of her research. Contrast to Russells article, Kamenous article provides readers with her observations, interviewees view and personal life experience, the various responses and the causes of such behavior. I can conclude that both articles are both very interesting and significant. disdain the fact that there were some errors made during both studies, there is no headstrong guideline of how to conduct a successful qualitative study. In a way we will always tr y to understand the unknown, even though it is obvious that every individual has its own unique behavior and perspectives.BIBLIOGRAPHYBlyton, P., Blundson, B., Reed, K., & Dastmalchian, A. (2006) _Work-Life Integration International Perspectives on the rapprochement of Multiple Roles_, 1st ed. New York PALGRAVE MACMILLIANBurns, R.B. (1994). _Introduction to Research Methods._ Melbourne Longman Cheshire.Carr, E., Worth, A. (2001) _The use of telephone interviews for research. Nurse research 6_ 511-525.Flick, U., (2005) _An Introduction to Qualitative Research_, 2nd ed. capital of the United Kingdom SAGEGephart, R.P. (2004) _Qualitative research and the_ _Academy of counsel Journal_, _Academy of Management Journal_, 47 (4), 454-462.Gold, R. L. (March, 1958) _Roles in Sociological champaign Observations, Social Forces_, Vol. 36 Issue 3, p217Gubrium, J.F. & Holstein, J.A. (1997) _The impudently language of qualitative method_. New York OxfordHammersley, M. and P. Atkinson (1983), e thnography _Principles in Practice_, capital of the United Kingdom and New. York Routledge, page 2, 72 77.Harvey, L. (1990). _Critical Social Research_. London Unwin Hyman.Jensen, Klaus B & Nicholas.W. Jankowski (1991) _Handbook of Qualitative_ _Methodologies for locoweed Communication Research_. London RoutledgeKamenou, N.(2008) _Reconsidering Work-Life Balance Debates._ British Journal of Management, 19 s99-s109Kvale, S. ,(1996) ,_Interviews An Introduction to Qualitative Research Interviewing_, Thousand Oaks, CA sensible Publications,Paisley, P. O., & Reeves, P. M. (2001). Qualitative research in counseling. In D. C. Locke, J. E. Myers, & E. L. Herr (Eds.), _The handbook of counseling_ (pp. 481-498). Thousand Oaks, CA salvia.Russell, L. (2005) _Its a question of trust balancing the relationship between students and teachers in ethnographic fieldwork._ Qualitative Research Vol. 5 (2) 181-199Spencer, G. (1982) _Methodological issues in the Study of Bureaucratic Elites a theatri cal role study of West Point. In Burgess, R.G. survey Research a Sourcebook and Field Manual_. London George Allen & Unwin.Spradley, J.P. (1979). _The Ethnographic Interview_. New York Holt, Rinehart and Winston.Thrope, R. Holt, R. (2008) _The sage dictionary of qualitative management research._ Thousand Oaks, Sage PublicationsWiersma, W. 1986. _Research Methods in Education An Introduction._ Newton Allyn and Bacon.