Management Information Systems Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Management Information Systems - Research Paper Example In this project, the basic idea is to automate the traditional business practices and improve the overall capability and performance of corporation. Business Overview The scenario of the business is that my best friend has bought a small retail business in Central Florida and its name is Bright Moon Store. The business has been doing fairly well but my friend has just found out that the accounting system consists of cash and receipts in a shoe box and there are no reports of anything since everything was kept in the prior owner's head. So in this project, my friend has hired me as a consultant to help him get things organized. Markets The Bright Moon Store deals in general household products that are used in our daily lives. The basic intention of this store is to provide customers with more convenient and easy access to daily used products. Bright Moon Store has a long business history in the market and with the passage of time its overall reorganization has improved. As a result, B right Moon Store wants to improve its overall market reorganization and performance. With the passage of time the business customers are increasing so the business needs to adopt some effective tools and techniques to deal with these growing requirements. Mission/Business Need In order to run its business effectively Bright Moon Store has to fulfill its basic business needs. The effective fulfillment of these needs will effectively support all business areas. In this scenario Bright Moon Store’s basic business needs are outlined below: (Laudon & Laudon, 1999; Turban, Leidner, McLean, & Wetherbe, 2005) Automated product management Rapid management and processing of business resources Staff management Effective supply chain management and automation Efficient and effective customer record management Back-office information management Purchasing management Data security Finance management Data sharing among all store areas like store, purchase counter, etc. Improved inventory ma nagement Timely and accurate business reporting Effective decision support HR management Problems with Current Information Processing Bright Moon Store is currently completing its business tasks using manual ways. In such scenario the overall workload and working style are more rigid, which ultimately causes less effective business performance. The present business data is paper based or semi automated. In this scenario problem is that the amount of data is huge and it cannot be handled without using an appropriate information system. According to (Hoffer, Prescott, & McFadden, 2007; Laudon & Laudon, 1999), â€Å"an information system is a collection of organized components that work collectively, process, store, and distribute information to a variety of departments with the purpose of supporting decision making and control in an organization†. Thus, in the absence of an information system we connect retrieve some valuable information from this data. This data is presently w orthless because the extraction of the valuable facts and figures is much harder. In addition, business of Bright

Colton Jones Inc. Essay Example for Free

Colton Jones Inc. Essay Marion Jones was once the sole shareholder and president of Chempla, Inc.; in 20X1 she sold her stock to Westcoat Industries. She signed an agreement to be a consultant for five years. After being unable to make a profit Westcoat decided to sell their interest in Chempla, but were unable to find a buyer. Westcoat offered Chempla back to Marion Jones and an agreement was reached on September 1, 20X4. Included in the agreement Marion would be majority shareholder of the newly formed corporation. A purchase price was set for the net assets and market values of accounts receivable, inventories, property, plant, and equipment, and accounts payable were obtained. Marion Jones with other investors was able to finance the acquisition of Chemplas net assets. Colton Jones, Inca doped LIFO basis of accounting. Under the U.S. GAAP Codification of Accounting Standards, Codification Topic 805: Business Combinations; Colton Jones accounted for the acquisition of Chempla as they should have. The acquisition method was used as it should have been, one entity was identified as the acquirer, an acquisition date was stated, and the recognition and measurement principals are present. All parts of the acquisition that needed to take place were present in the case.1 1 GAAP Codification of Accounting Standards, Codification Topic 805: Business Combinations Prestone, Riles, Nye Associates Prestone, Riles, Nye (PRN) is a marketing communications company with offices throughout the US and a subsidiary in the United Kingdom and they want to expand into Eastern Europe. In their efforts to do so PRN entered an agreement to acquire outstanding stock of Broadwick Communications, Inc., a firm with contacts in Europe. Brodwick has three shareholders owning 25% each and eight owning the remaining 25%. PRN is responsible to pay $14 million to Broadwick shareholders and form a new entity, BPRN International, Inc. BPRN will conduct the activities of Broadwick and will have two classes of stock, Common A, voting and Common B, nonvoting stock. Income distributions or losses will be shared with the ownership of Common B shares. BPRN will issue 48 percent of its voting stock to PRN and 52  percent to the former Broadwick shareholders. PRN plans to use the equity method to account for and report its investment BPRN. PRN’s decision to use the equity method is supported by APB 18: The Equity Method of Accounting for Investments in Common Stock, which states, â€Å"that the equity method of accounting for an investment in common stock should also be followed by an investor whose investment in voting stock gives it the ability to exercise significant influence over operating and financial policies of an investee even though the investor holds 50 percent or less of the voting stock†¦ an investment (direct or indirect) of 20 percent or more of the voting stock of an investee should lead to a presumption that in the absence of evidence to the contrary an investor has the ability to exercise significant influence over an investee.†1 PRN’s investment in BPRN meets these criteria. The reason for using the equity method is to accurately report PRN’s share of net income from BPRN and for PRN’s investment account to reflect its share of BPRN’s net assets. We agree with PRN’s decision to account for and report its investment in BPRN using the equity method since it meets the requirements of GAAP as stated above. PRN also plans to acquire a majority of the voting stock in BPRN, at which time it will become a subsidiary of PRN. Since the basic accounting procedures for applying the equity method are the same in each case PRN will be able to continue using the equity method if and when it acquires a majority of the voting stock and is required to prepare consolidated financial statements 1 APB Opinion No. 18, paragraph 17. Stanomat, Inc. Stanomat, Inc. plans to acquire the outstanding common stock of Kesser Instruments and make it a subsidiary. An agreement is made that allows Stanomat to acquire 55 percent in two months and will purchase additional shares and outstanding shares will be purchased over a four year period. Stanomat will issue a note to Kesser payable over four years for $20 million with interest 1.5 percent above prime. During the period of the note Stanomat will acquire unissued shares of Kesser and upon complete payment of the note Stanomat will own 100 percent of the subsidiary. At 55 percent of ownership, Stanomat will record its investment at 100 percent ownership. We do not believe it is appropriate for Stanomat to record its investment in Kesser based on the 100 percent ownership that it has committed to purchase. Stanomat will use the equity method to account for its investment in Kesser and prepare consolidated financial statements since it owns more than 50 percent of the company. However, in order to accurately reflect its share of Kesser’s assets and income, it should only record and report the portion that it is entitled to. FASB Statement 141R â€Å"requires an acquirer to recognize the assets acquired, the liabilities assumed, and any noncontrolling interest in the acquiree at the acquisition date.†1 Therefore Stanomat must recognize the noncontrolling interest held by Kesser until such time as it has acquired 100 percent ownership. In business combinations contingent shares are shares that will only be issued under certain circumstances or when certain conditions are met. A predetermined set of events must occur before the shares would be issued to investors. In this case, shares of Kesser stock will only be issued to Stanomat when a payment has been made. Deferred payment shares are issued to the investors in advance of payment. If the Kesser had issued its shares to Stanomat in advance of payment, Stanomat would be able to report and record the investment based on the 100 percent of shares it had received. If Stanomat records the investment in Kesser at the 55 percent level it would not be appropriate or practical to treat the purchase as a step acquisition. Step acquisition is only necessary when the investor owns a noncontrolling interest in the investee and then acquires additional interest giving it significant influence. â€Å"In a business combination achieved in stages, the acquirer shall remeasure its previously held equity interest in the acquiree at its acquisition-date fair value and recognize the resulting gain or loss, if any, in earnings.†2 Stanomat will acquire a controlling interest in Kesser in the first transfer of stock. Therefore it will be using the equity method to record the investment. Upon acquiring additional shares there will be no need to adjust its investment accounts. 1 FASB Statement 141R summary 2 FASB Statement 141R paragraph 48 Falco Industries, Inc. Falco, a supplier of automotive parts, sells its parts to aftermarket segments of the auto industry, including the manufacturer, rebuilder, warehouse distributor, mass merchandiser, and specialist. Falco acquired 10 percent voting common stock in an automotive store, Tidy Automotive, and in the same year acquired an additional 12 percent. Falco has a June 30 fiscal year and Tidy has a year end of October 31st. At year-end Falco Industries wanted to use the equity method to account for the investment in Tidy Automotive Stores. The market value of the investment in common stock on June 30th was 6 percent less that its acquisition cost. During the year Falco acquired a total of 22 percent of outstanding common stock in Tidy, which gives Falco between 20 and 50 percent of outstanding common stock, and therefore Falco’s interest in Tidy is significant. To account for this type of investment, Falco would need to use the equity method. The interest in Tidy would not be significant if Falco had acquired less that 20 percent, in this case Falco would need to use the cost method to account for the investment. If Falco had acquired more than 50 percent they would have to issue consolidated financial statements.

Instructional Leadership Supervision Education Essay

Instructional Leadership Supervision Education Essay Abstract: Leadership is a discussion in every issue and everybody recognize how essential and valuable leadership is. Why some companies, teams, and schools do well as other fails? The credit or fault generally goes to the manager, coach, or principal. In school scenario the principal has to accept these consequences, as he occupies a distinct and key responsibility that has an effect on the quality of schooling. The questions about school scenario are (i) what is the main purpose of school (ii) How their students learn in the school (iii) How he coordinates all the activities i.e. students, teachers and curriculum. The focus of this article was on the theoretical basis of the instructional leadership and to review the model to build up the understanding of instructional leadership. Objectives: Following were the major objectives of the study To explain the concept of instructional leadership To review the James Weber Instructional leadership model What is leadership? Leadership is defined differently by different authors (Terry, 1960) called it the activity of influencing people to strive willingly for group goals. In the context of this definition the knowledge, values, structure, and skills are necessary for a principal as a leader to inspire all members of the school community to work together toward the goal of an excellent education for all students. According to (Thomson, 1980) Leadership is best defined as getting the job done through people. This definition means that two things are necessary for effective leadership: accomplishment (getting the job done) and influencing the others (through people). According to (Weber, 1987) leadership is described as power granted with the will of the followers. It is authority readily invested in a trusted person and thus qualifies as a kind of moral and transformational power over the organization. In most definitions of leadership the two functions are generally considered indispensable to its meaning: setting directions and exercising influence. Each of these functions can be carried out in different ways, with such differences distinguishing the many models of leadership from one another.(Yukl, 1994) comments, leadership influences the interpretation of events for followers, the choice of objectives for the group or organization, the organization of work activities accomplish objectives, the motivation of followers to achieve the objectives, the maintenance of cooperative relationships and teamwork, and the enlistment support and cooperation from people outside the group or organization. He further explained the popular distinction between doing things right (management) and doing right things (leadership) as largely meaningless: accomplishing success as a leader, requires doing right things right. What is Instructional Leadership? (Debevoise, 1984) encompasses Instructional leadership as those measures that a principal takes, or assigns to others, to raise growth in student learning and consists of following tasks: describing the purpose of schooling; setting school-wide goals; providing the resources needed for learning to occur; supervising and evaluating teachers; coordinating staff development programs; and creating collegial relationships with and among teachers. Student Learning Instructional Leadership Supervision Teacher Development Teacher Performance Figure -A The above figure depicts that Instructional leadership consists of principal behaviors that set high expectations and clear goals for student and teacher performance, monitor and provide feedback regarding the technical core (teaching and learning) of schools, provide and promote professional growth for all staff members, and help create and maintain a school climate of high academic press. (Hoy Hoy, 2003) explained that the principal must communicate a clear vision on instructional excellence and continuous professional development consistent with the goal of the improvement of teaching and learning. The instructional leaders are listeners as well as talkers; they are collaborators with teachers and students, whose needs present the most important demands in an instructional role. The leadership process is interpersonal as well as dynamics. Particularly it becomes dynamics when the principals are accountable for whole instructional program. As instructional leader the principal is the pivotal within the school who affects the quality of individual teacher instruction, the height of student achievement, and the degree of efficiency in school functioning. According to (Mendez, 1989) there are three major forces that serve to shape and describe a school the public, the staff and the students and that these forces interact through curriculum. The role of the principal is to manipulate these forces in order to maximize the quality of instruction. The three key elements of learning: Teacher, students and curriculum Teacher Curriculum Student Instructional leadership is a complex task, it means that becoming a leader of leaders- learning and working with others i.e. teachers, students and parents to improve the instructional quality and curriculum. A Model of Instructional Leadership This is a model presented by James Weber (1987) which is based on two assumptions. The principal is the main instructional leader. The principal works with the leadership functions that are sometime shared and sometime not sheared. The functions of the Webers model are as under 1. Setting Academic Objectives A principal who is an instructional leader provides guidance for the school program, and describe the objectives to the general understanding. Vision for success (Leithwood, Doris, Alicia, 1993) and his colleagues found in a study that teachers commitment to change in instructional programs was affected the most by leadership that gave direction, purpose, and meaning to their work, e.g. the purpose of the school is to educate all students to high levels of academic performance. The principals responsibility is to ensure that the school has a clear academic mission and communicate it to the staff, which is focused on the academic progress of the students. 2. Organizing the Instructional Program After setting the goals for the school, the next step by instructional leader is to develop the strategies for bringing that goals into reality by allocating the staff, student grouping, and organizing the curriculum. These also involve the collaborative planning between instructional leader, students and parents. e.g. decision to place a student in one class or another. Certainly, the decision to place a student in one or another classroom, study group, or program is a decision that involves teachers, principals and the parents. The following are the some principals behavior that proved generally effective. Listen actively to staff and faculty ideas and produces opportunities for staff to implement innovative coaching arrangements. Make available resources and a encouraging environment for collaborative planning. Organize planning sessions to discuss grouping and scheduling arrangements with staff. Utilize staff recommendations. Keeps staff informed of policy changes. Expands options by varying periods in school day and days in cycle. 3. Supervision and Evaluation The most important task of principals instructional leadership is teachers supervision and evaluation. Instructional leadership means very little unless leaders are willing and able to observe teachers, offer advice about problems, and make formative evaluations that support and pinpoint areas to improve. Supervisors must have the knowledge of curriculum and instruction to know what to look for. According to (Gardner, 1988) To help others believe in themselves is one of a leaders highest duties. Following are the some tips that are effective for supervision. Classroom observations will be used to observe what is actually going on in the class rooms. What is the teacher and what are students are actually performing. Meets with teachers after each visit to discuss what was observed. Encourages teacher to express feelings and opinions about observational data and class activities. Offers teacher alternatives teaching techniques and explanations of class room events. Give praise for specific development of teachers skill if observed. Recommends resources and training programs in areas in which teacher need to improve. 4. Protecting Instructional Time and Program A study by (Cusick, 1973) found that 200 minutes of a students normal school day were spending on routine or maintenance tasks. He noted that the time spent actively engaged with some teacher over a matter of cognitive importance may not exceed twenty minutes a period for five periods a day. This is a high estimate. I would say that if an average student spent an hour to one and half hours involved on subject matter that was a good day. Teachers use instructional time for taking attendance, distributing materials entering and leaving the classroom, late start or early ending or such non classroom activities as field trips etc. grouping practices, instructional strategies, and the size of the class can all determine how time is spent in classrooms. Finally, achievement and instructional time both suffer when students are not in school or find it hard to concentrate because of disciplinary problems in the environment. Truancy and absenteeism can arise from a great variety of social and personal conditions, ranging from poverty and peer group influence to boredom and poor academic background. Discipline problems often emerge from conflicts, misunderstanding about rules, or the absence of clear boundaries for behaviors. Following are some of the behaviors associated in the research with increasing academic learning time (that is, time spent learning). The list focuses two crucial dimensions for learning time: ensuring c lass attendance and allocated time for instruction. For improving attendance Identify problems in enforcing rules on attendance and discipline observe that policies are clearly communicated to the staff members Put together community support particularly with parents Help teachers to set up a reward system for good attendance Distribute duty with teachers in informing parents of class absence. Allocated time for instruction Holds staff meeting to discuss common problems in instructional planning and offer solutions Protects classroom instructional time from interruption Insists on observing schedule Expects teachers to start and end classes on time, using the full allocated time for instruction Streamlines clerical tasks so that teachers can perform them more quickly. Visits classrooms to observe teachers and students 5. Creating a Climate for Learning All the important factors that appear to affect students learning possibly having the greatest influence is the set of beliefs, values, and attitudes that administrators, teachers, and students hold about learning. When a staff commits to support specific values, the concept of school improvement moves from the future to the present, and from the abstract to the concrete. So important is learning climate that it has been defined as the standard, viewpoint, and attitudes reflected in institutional patterns and behavior routine that improve student learning. The attitude that students shape about academic learning come, at least in part, from the adults in the school. It is clear that the norms for learning come from the staffs requirement of students: the amount of time needed for studying, the amount of work assigned, the degree of independent work that students can do, the degree of attentiveness students feel about the work given to them. High expectations are the fulcrum point that instructional leaders can use to get involved teachers, students and parents away from unhelpful unencouraging attitudes. Following are elements which are used to raise or lower the expectations Amount and quality of praise for correct answers Actual amount of teaching that students receive Content covered Teacher encouragement and support Teacher assistance and willingness to help Wait time Response opportunity factor (No of times students are called on) 6. Monitoring Achievement and evaluating programs It is a primary task of instructional leaders to assess and revise the instructional programs in schools. As in the case of supervising and evaluating teachers, whole programs can be reviewed for planning, objectives, success in reaching the objectives, and particular successes and problems. Ultimately the success of any educational program comes down to the performance of the students. Are they reaching the objectives proposed? Where are they failing and why? The more specifically that problems can be identified, the more successfully the learning problems can be remedied or traced to particular objectives, units, or course activities. Supervision and Teacher Development: Ernest Boyer (in Sparks, 1984) observed that when you talk about school progress, you are talking about people development. Thats the only aspect to improve schools unless you mean painting the buildings and fixing the floors. But thats not the school, thats the shell. The school is people, so when we talk about excellence or improvement or progress, were really talking about the people who make up the building. Focusing on people is the most useful way to change any organization. In fact, it can be claimed that organizations do not change, only persons change. It is only when a sufficient number of people within an organization change that the organization can be transformed. So, supervision means helping workers by offering professional advice and technical support in speed up efficiency and improving effectiveness of the process of production and product itself. Support and evaluation are the two major function of the instructional supervision. Support provides the support to improve the teaching process in terms of effective use of text books helping materials and methodologies needed for the individual needs of the students. Evaluation is the process of collecting the information for improvement in instruction and analyzing the data which then be used to improve the quality. If this assumption that people are the key to school improvement is correct, then it follows that the fundamental role of the principal is to help create the conditions which enable a staff to develop so that the school can achieve its goals more effectively. In short, a key to school improvement is the willingness and ability of principals to assume the role of staff developers who make it their mission to alter the professional practices, beliefs, and understandings of school personnel toward an articulated end. Supervision and teacher development go hand in hand. Supervision provides support and help to teachers. Principals have a responsibility to help teachers, improve their practice and to hold them accountable for meeting their commitments to teaching and learning. These responsibilities are usually referred to as supervision. Supervision enhances teacher development. The principal should keep in mind that what actions should be taken to bring about greater understanding of te aching and learning? Principals must encourage teachers to acquire new skills, support them during the inevitable frustrations, and recognize their efforts. Procedures must be in place to gather data on the impact of staff development initiatives, and principals must publicly celebrate indicators of improvement in order to help sustain those initiatives. Supervision is primarily formative and collegial, being concerned with improving teaching effectiveness. It is also important that principals be committed to continuous improvement. Schools can become learning organizations capable of significant change only if those within them recognize that school improvement is a complex, ongoing process rather than a task to be completed. While it is important that principals celebrate the attainment of improvement goals, it is even more important that such celebrations serve as motivators for staying the course rather than signal that the improvement process has ended. Most importantly, principals must not mistake congeniality with collegiality. They must strive to create a culture in which teachers talk about teaching and learning; observe each other teach; plan, design, research, and evaluate the curriculum, and teach each other what they have learned about their craft.

Assisted Suicides :: essays research papers

Assisted Suicides The Washington Post September 2-8, 1996 Picture yourself in this situation. You go to the doctor for a routine physical. You look fine. You feel good. All those exhausting workouts at the gym are finally starting to pay off and you actually stuck to that low fat, high vitamin diet you're doctor recommended. You have never felt better. You are essentially the epitome of a healthy, fit human being. Then, out of nowhere, you are diagnosed with a disorder of the nervous system accompanied by chronic fatigue syndrome. The illness is permanent and there is no cure. It will only progress and worsen with time, and all you can do is wait. What would you do? If you were 42-year-old Judith Curren, a nurse and mother of two small children, you'd be in close contact with the infamous suicide assessor, Dr. Jack Kevorkian, a.k.a. "Doctor Death," discussing your "options." However, according to an editorial published in The Washington Post, entitled "38 Assisted Suicides," many people believe that when it comes to matters such as life and death, there are no options. The decision to live or die is made by God. Judith Curren didn't agree. With the assistance of Dr. Kevorkian, she died and the retired pathologist presided at his 38th assisted suicide, fairly confident that he will not be prosecuted or even suffer public disapproval. Many of the people who have sought out Dr. Kevorkian have been terribly ill and suffering, with no hope of long-term survival. Their stories offered examples that built public sympathy for this cause. But from the beginning, even among observers who believe that the desperately sick should be given help to die, there have been questionable cases. For example, a woman in her fifties allegedly suffering from early Alzheimer's disease was fit enough to play tennis with her adult son shortly before dying. Another-said to have had a painful, progressive illness-was found to be free of disease by the county medical examiner. The article argued this point, "Is it in any way merciful, compassionate, or 'healing' (a favorite word of Kevorkian fans) to assist in the suicide of a middle-aged woman who is tired and depressed and married to a man whom she recently accused of attacking her and who then delivers her to Dr. Kevorkian? Pain is controllable. Depression and fatigue can be ameliorated by drugs. Violent husbands can be prosecuted and divorced. Suicide in such a case is unreasonable. A doctor's help in that course is unconscionable." I had mixed feelings on this editorial because I take into consideration both sides of the argument.

Pentecostal History Essay

The largest and the most important religious movement to originate from the United States is the Pentecostal Movement. It is considered as the fourth force in Christendom alongside Catholicism, Protestantism, and Orthodox, and its exponential growth rate in terms of adherents is testimony to its appeal. The Charismatic Renewal Movement has some of its roots in historic Pentecostalism, and it is now deeply entrenched in most of the mainline Protestant denominations, in Catholicism, and in some Orthodox. In the 21st Century, the total adherents of Pentecostals and Charismatics probably exceed the combined numbers of Protestants and Orthodox. Pentecostal statistics show a total adherent base of 400 million in 1993,including the 200 million members designated as nominational Pentecostals and 200 million Charismatics in the main Protestant denominations and Catholicism. â€Å"When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them†(Garnett 1987) The Acts of the Apostles, 2:1-3 (Cox 1995) Background History Adherents of Pentecostalism take their name from an incident recounted in Chapter two of the Acts of the Apostles. The story describes how the confused followers of a recently crucified Rabbi whom they all believed to be the messiah of the world, had gathered to mark the fiftieth day after Passover. Suddenly there was a heavenly sound â€Å"like the rush of a mighty wind. † The Holy Spirit filled them, tongues â€Å"as of fire† crowned their heads, and surprisingly they could understand each other’s language although the gathering comprised people from many different countries and different linguistic affinities. Apparently, the ancient curse of Babel had been reversed and that God was creating a new inclusive human community in which â€Å"Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia† could all live together. Origins of the Pentecostal Faith The first Pentecost appeared on the scene in 1901 in Topeka, Kansas in a Bible school conducted by Charles Fox Parham, a holiness teacher and former Methodist pastor. There exists considerable controversy about the origins and timings of Parham’s emphasis on glossolalia; there is general agreement amongst historians that the movement was initiated in the first days of 1901, in the beginning of the Twentieth Century. One of Parham’s Bible School students Agnes Ozman , was the first person to be baptized in the Holy Spirit and she thereafter began speaking in different tongues on the very first day of the new century on January 1, 1901. According to J. Roswell Flower, the founding Secretary of the Assemblies of God, Ozman’s experience was the â€Å"touch felt round the world,† an event which â€Å"made the Pentecostal Movement of the Twentieth Century. Due to the Topeka Pentecost, Parham postulated the doctrine that tongues (glossolalia) was the biblical evidence of the baptism in the Holy Spirit and that it a was a supernatural ability endowed for the purpose of world evangelization. Glossolalia is an experiential phenomenon of an ecstatic, altered state of consciousness, in which â€Å"orgiastic techniques are cultivated to achieve ecstasy in the belief that unusual psychological and physical states are synonymous† with Spirit-possession. He added that since missionaries had the ability to speak in any language, they need not learn any new language for the purpose of evangelical preaching. Armed with this new theology, Parham founded a church movement which he called the â€Å"Apostolic Faith† and began a whirlwind revival tour of the American Middle West to promote his exciting new experience. â€Å"saw an angel coming down from heaven With the key to the abyss and a great Chain in his hand. He seized the dragon and chained him up for a thousand years So that he might not seduce the nations until the thousand years were over†. Revelation 20:1-3 â€Å"Fed by broken packing cases and discarded wrapping paper the fire quickly spread from the boarded-up Casino to the empty Music Hall. From there sparks flew through the arctic night to the roofs of the exposition†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Cox 1995). Prophecy of the Pentecost Traditionally, Americans have always had a strong dose of millenium drilled in to them, covering the time the puritans landed in New England to the revival preachers who traveled the Midwest on horseback, they were continually being told that the last stages of history was unfolding and that America would play a major role in the grand finale. Going in to the 20th century, prophecies and speculations regarding a new Pentecost and a New Jerusalem were rife. And in the last days it shall be, God declares, That I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh† Acts of the Apostles 2:17-19 â€Å"The fire from heaven descended on April 9, 1906, on a small band of black domestic servants and custodial employees gathered for prayer in a wooden bungalow at 214 North Bonnie Brae Avenue in Los Angeles, California†¦. †(Cox 1995) Pastor at Azusa Street Seymour who had learned the tongues-attested baptism in a Bible school that Parham conducted in Houston, Texas in 1905 was invited to pastor a black holiness church in Los Angeles in 1906. Seymour opened the historic meeting in April, 1906 in a former African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church building at 312 Azusa Street in downtown Los Angeles. The happenings at Azusa have fascinated church historians for decades and have never been fully understood or explained (Wackman 1994). For three years thereafter, the Azusa Street â€Å"Apostolic Faith Mission† conducted three services a day, seven days a week, where thousands of seekers received the tongues baptism. Word of the revival was spread abroad through The Apostolic Faith, a paper that Seymour sent free of charge to some 50,000 subscribers. From Azusa Street Pentecostalism spread rapidly around the world and began its advance toward becoming a major force in Christendom. The Azusa Street movement seems to have been a merger of white American holiness religion with worship styles derived from the African-American Christian tradition which had developed since the days of chattel slavery in the South. The expressive worship and praise at Azusa Street, which included shouting and dancing, had been common among Appalachian whites as well as Southern blacks. The admixture of tongues and other charisms with black music and worship styles created a new and indigenous form of Pentecostalism that was to prove extremely attractive to disinherited and deprived people, both in America and other nations of the world(MacRoberts 1988). â€Å"Pentecost has come to Los Angeles, the American Jerusalem. Every sect, creed and doctrine under heaven†¦ as well as every nation is represented. †(Frank Bartleman,1906). The Inter racial Aspect The interracial mingling at the congregations was a stark contrast to the existing racial tensions and segregations of the times. The interracial aspects of the movement in Los Angeles were a striking exception to the racism and segregation of the times. The phenomenon of blacks and whites worshipping together under a black pastor seemed incredible to many observers. The event also cemented William Seymour’s place as not only the most influential black leader in American History, but also as a co-founder of world Pentecostalism(Deyoung et al 2003). â€Å"This is the work of God, and cannot be stopped. While our enemies scold, we pray and the fire burns† Household of God, Nov. 1907 Spread of Pentecostal The Azusa Street movement in 1906, led by the African-American preacher William Joseph Seymour provided the much needed impetus for the spread of the Pentecostal faith, which until then had not really captured popular imagination. The first wave of â€Å"Azusa pilgrims† journeyed throughout the United States spreading the Pentecostal fire, primarily in holiness churches, missions, and camp meetings. In America Gaston Barnabas Cashwell of North Carolina, who spoke in tongues in 1906 was one of the Azusa Pilgrims, whose six-month preaching tour of the South in 1907 resulted in major inroads among southern holiness folk. Under his ministry, Cashwell saw several holiness denominations swept into the new movement, including the Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee), the Pentecostal Holiness Church, the Fire-Baptized Holiness Church, and the Pentecostal Free-Will Baptist Church. Also in 1906, Charles Harrison Mason ,upon his return to Memphis from Azusa Street, spread the Pentecostal fire in the Church of God in Christ. The Church he founded comprised African-Americans only one generation removed from slavery. (The parents of both Seymour and Mason had been born as southern slaves). Although tongues caused a split in the church in 1907, the Church of God in Christ experienced such explosive growth that by 1993, it was by far the largest Pentecostal denomination in North America, claiming some 5,500,000 members in 15,300 local churches. Another Azusa pilgrim was William H. Durham of Chicago. After receiving his tongues experience at Azusa Street in 1907, he returned to Chicago, where he led thousands of mid-western Americans and Canadians into the Pentecostal movement. In 1914, he established the Assemblies of God, which by 1993 had over 2,000,000 members in the U.  S. and some 25,000,000 adherents in 150 nations of the world. Conclusion The Pentecostal Movement has proved to be a major force in Christendom throughout the world with unprecedented exponential growth of adherents. By the Nineties, The Pentecostals and their charismatic brothers and sisters in the mainline Protestant and Catholic churches had turned their energy and resources to world evangelization. The future will reveal the ultimate results of this movement which has greatly impacted the world during the Twentieth Century.

Radio-frequency identification Essays

Radio-frequency identification Essays Radio-frequency identification Essay Radio-frequency identification Essay Capital Safety Is the global leader of fall protection, confined space and rescue equipment. RIFF (radio frequency Identification) Is a wireless data collection technology. RIFF technology has the ability to Identify, track and assign Information to unique items without direct contact or line-of-sight scanning. I-Safe TM consists of passive RIFF tags (transponders) that can be scanned by mobile readers (receivers) that synchronize data to a web-based secure information portal. Abstract 1. The project at hand being studied is on how radio frequency identification yester (RIFF) has been implemented to help better manage capital safety fall protection equipment. The information system being used has become an Important role on how they manage their product to help, cost, Improve safety compliance, reduce risk, and enhance safety within government regulations. Capital safety has become the global leader In fall protection. With the use of radio frequency Identification device they can tr act and malting their equipment In timely manner. 1. 2 Author and Team Member Group Project Assignment #5 Mohamed Mohamed, Lei Thanksgiving Travis Boyd, Each Jones Carl Basilica, Young Yang Table of content 1. 3 Target of study 1. 4 Capital safety Is the organization being studied In our group. They can be identified by their NAZIS and SIC codes that put them In Industries like: oil and Gas, construction, transportation, utilities, wind energy, general and residential fall protection. They are the global leader In manufacturing fall protection for these various companies that are In need of safety protection that are working above ground and below with their confined space equipment . Capital safety sales are Latin America and Australia Capital Safety has to be well organized. That is why they have adopted the radio frequency identification device to help better-manage their products. Capital Safety is the first company to implement radio frequency identification system on their fall protection equipment. When they introduced their software I-safe 2. 0 and then made improvement to I-safe 3. 0 to help scan these RIFF tags. The I-safes. O helps track, maintenance and recall when expired. With the use of radio frequency identification system, improvement to their company meant striving o be the best. The radio frequency identification device helped reduce cost, time, safety and reducing risk has made it more controllable The information system radio frequency identification device RIFF is technology that is easily available in market. Capital safety however uses its own custom designed technology developed in -house. The business process of the system is that each product comes with the circular devices built into the product. The business process of the system is that each product comes with the circular device built into the product. The products are scanned at the factory by the inspector that did the final inspection or person who finalized the devices. Each product is assigned and ID number to the system. The system is able to record and count the products automatically, and alert the company when the products are due for inspection. Use of RIFF Has increased rapidly and can now be found in cell phone, government IDS, Passport, some firearms, packages handled by the postal system Etc. Capital safety is one of the first companies to implement this technology to their fall protection equipment. By increasing the speed and the efficiency in their protection and warehouse areas capital safety has managed to become not only more profitable but also provide better customer service by maintaining proper hands on service and issuing timely recall when needed. Capital Safety has made their company more profitable with the use of radio frequency device. With the use of radio frequency identification device this information system has become a key factor on how they utilize this management tool to help organize their company structure with their product. Executive summary 1. 2 It is highly recommended for other companies to utilize this type of information system to help with the organization of their company product. I know that radio frequency identification device is a very useful tool that could be used in different aspects of business organization. It can be used in different aspects of business, weather the use of ID tags for employees, assembly line workstation, tracing parts, and inventory. Emerson process is another company that has utilized this type of information with their business process. They have radio urgency ID tags for their employees for entrance to and out of the building. They have associated this type of information along with their assembly workstation. They use radio frequency identification device to log in and out of each workstation. That way they know if there is an issue they can tract which employee is associated with that particular assembly. For years RIFF devices have been used in many different areas (Clayton Boyce, 2003). One such area has been as an anti-theft device. Most consumers have purchased products that have held RIFF devices. Stores at the local malls have been using hard plastic tag anti-theft devices on merchandise for at least she knows it is not a good idea to walk to close to the entrance way. Many patrons have suffered the embarrassment of walking around a clothing rack near the front door with items to be purchased and hearing an ear splitting sound. This was caused by the RIFF device on the clothing coming into contact with the electromagnetic field at the door. Other past and present uses for RIFF include: automatic toll booth passes, animal tracking chips, and company access badges.

How to seamlessly transfer your skills from one industry to another

How to seamlessly transfer your skills from one industry to another For most of us, our career paths don’t go in a single straight line. Instead, there are plenty of twists and turns along the way- some expected and others surprising and unplanned- as we develop, grow, and change over time. Sometimes a change in jobs also means a change in industries, which, for many, can be a scary and anxiety-filled proposition- especially if the change isn’t exactly what you were hoping and is instead the result of a job loss or shifts in your current field. The truth is, the prospect of â€Å"starting over† in a new career field can be daunting, especially if you’re fairly established and far along in your current field and are worried that you’ll have to completely start over again- but it doesn’t have to be.The â€Å"not-so-secret† secret to successfully navigating an industry change during the course of your career is to take full advantage of your transferable skills- those finely-honed abilities that youâ€⠄¢ve acquired thus far in your professional experience that you can put to good use in the next industry you work for. Yes, it’s true- many of the skills you currently have are not just helpful at your current job and industry, but rather can help you be effective and successful in your future endeavors as well.Transferring and leveraging these transferable skills from one industry to the next is the key to being flexible and malleable in today’s rapidly evolving and volatile job market- and those who are able to competently do so stand the best chance of staying afloat. Consider using the following strategies to make sure that the skills you’ve built up during your career continue to serve you well as you move from one industry to another.Identify your skillsThis shouldn’t be a major challenge for you, as it’s something you’d inevitably have to do if you were updating your resume or simply looking to transition to a new job in your current industry. This should include skills both large and small- you never fully know what abilities will come in handy when you start a new job, especially if it’s in a completely new field or industry. These include both hard skills (things like knowledge of computers or specific programs or instrumentation, an ability to speak a foreign language, any professional certifications you’ve earned, and basically any other measurable and quantifiable talent that you’ve developed) as well as soft skills (more subjective and harder to measure abilities that you possess but that come in handy at work all the time, such as people skills, motivation, leadership, patience, flexibility, and problem-solving). Both your hard skills and soft skills can potentially come in handy in a new industry.Identify the needs of your target industryNext step is to pinpoint the industry that you’re hoping to move into and do your homework to identify its needs. Research carefully and get a good sense of the successes and pain points in the field and where things are likely to move. Look at the opinions of industry veterans and thought leaders- many of whom are likely leveraging social media to share their ideas. An even better potential strategy would be to identify specific companies in the industry that you’d like to work at and get a sense of their needs- which will help you paint a clear picture of how you can come aboard and be a potentially valuable asset.Make the connectionNow that you have a clear idea of the abilities you bring to the table and what the needs of your target industry are, you can begin to identify the skills you possess that are potentially transferable. Use the information you’ve been gathering in your research to hone and refine your skills to best suit your new industry. For hard skills like computer knowledge or mastery of specific equipment, see if the tools you’ve learned are commonly used; if not, see if learning popular industry software and equipment makes sense for you. Soft skills are more easily transferable and are more malleable and adaptable to new fields.Here’s the bottom line- make the most of the skills you currently possess to meet the needs of the industry you’re looking to move into, fill in the gaps where appropriate and realistic, and be confident that you’re doing all you can to make this transition as successful as possible.

British Airways

British Airways Introduction This report gives a comprehensive overview of the business organization processes of British Airways (BA). Several aspects of the organization’s structure, including the structural style, management style, leadership style, motivation style, organizational design, organizational control structures, and the organizational culture constitute this analogy.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on British Airways specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This assessment will be an interesting analogy of British Airways because the company experienced managerial and leadership changes in the recent past. For a long time, British Airways has been the national flag bearer of the United Kingdom (UK). The airline is the largest airline in the country, based on its fleet size and international presence. It operates in 160 destinations around the globe and has a market presence in more than 70 countries (Ganesh 1999, p. 269) . BA’s inception occurred after four small and large airline companies (BOAC, BEA, Cambrian Airways, and Northeast airlines) merged (Meyer 2007). Before 1987, the government ran British Airways, but in the same year, it was privatized as part of the British government’s efforts to seize control of most of its national corporations (McGowan 2011, p. 3). After the privatization, British Airways was able to expand its operations to new locations and new market segments. Currently, the airline is part of the one world alliance, which is an association of several airline companies including American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Qantas and Canadian airlines (Meyer 2007). British Airways also operates under the International Airlines Group (IAG) and its association with this business outfit marks its participation in the London Stock exchange. Company Structure British Airways is a public limited company with three subsidiaries: British Airways city flyer, open skies and British Airways World cargo (Plunkett 2009). The BA city flyer is a franchise of BA and operates a domestic fleet of airlines in the European market (from the London city airport) (Plunkett 2009).Advertising Looking for report on air transport? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The subsidiary carries passengers, cargo and mail. Open skies is also a fully owned subsidiary of British Airways with operations in France and America. The subsidiary started operations in 2008. Though Open skies was rumored to offer only business class services (during its inception), it also offers economy class (which later upgraded to premium economy class in 2009) (Plunkett 2009). The subsidiary is however not part of the one world alliance (which its parent company (BA) is a member of). Since the aviation market is a competitive industry, BA was motivated by internal changes in the business environment (changes in consumer tastes and preferences ) and external forces (competition) to transition its ownership from a government-run corporation to a private-run corporation (Raktabutr 2007). For example, since BA was a government-run company, it was difficult to change its travel fares according to the market environment. In this regard, it was difficult for BA to compete with its rivals. This transition (from government to private ownership) marked the main legal change for BA but it also set-forth a series of other organizational changes such as organizational culture changes, corporate culture changes, mission statement changes as so on.. Model Application Lewin’s change model is widely applicable in BA’s company transition from a government-run organization to a private-run entity. As noted in previous sections of this paper, the transition from a government outfit to a private organization marked significant changes in the company’s structure. Lewins model explains that, organizations often undergo thr ee stages of transition: â€Å"unfreezing, movement and refreezing† (Cummings 2008, p. 23). These stages have different effects on the organization and their employees. British Airways underwent the three stages.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on British Airways specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In the unfreezing stage (as a response to market changes), BA had to unfreeze its operation patterns which were characterized by strong government control. This was a strategy formulated by the organization’s management to manage change. The second stage of Lewin’s model (movement stage) also occurred in BA’s transition because the organization’s management was determined to disseminate its ideas to lower-level employees. To support this transition, BA introduced a new set of programs such as the employee bonus system and the opening of a new airport terminal at the company’s main oper ating hub (Heathrow) to synchronize employee tasks with the management’s vision. The company also invested a lot of money in purchasing a new training facility at Chartridge house to improve the synergy between the company’s management and its employees (Raktabutr 2007). The last stage of Lewin’s model is the refreezing stage. BA transition is characteristic of this stage because it tried to cement its new organizational changes by creating a new behavioral system to support the changes. For instance, a new performance appraisal system, which was designed to recognize employee excellence (concerning customer service and marketing), was established (Raktabutr 2007, p. 12). By implementing these changes, it was expected that the company’s employees were going to be motivated to implement the new organizational changes to receive monetary rewards. To complement these changes, BA introduced new symbols that were printed on employee uniforms, company aircrafts , and other public places of display to symbolize the company’s new commitment (customer service). The motto â€Å"we fly to serve† was part of the new changes adopted by the company during this transition (Raktabutr 2007).Advertising Looking for report on air transport? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Leadership Control Styles Due to the sheer size and extent of BA’s operations, BA’s leadership has often practiced the autocratic leadership style (Northouse 2009). This autocratic leadership style is the main reason for BA’s poor performance between the year 1996 and the year 2000 (Raktabutr 2007). In fact, BA’s shares plunged by close to 40% during this period (Raktabutr 2007). Basic company values such as customer quality and service excellence eroded because of this leadership style as well. However, with the overhaul of BA’s operations, the company is now synonymous with the transformational leadership style. The company’s CEO, Willie Walsh, first introduced this leadership style because previous systems and procedures were not effective (Rivers 2010, p. 2). Some of the operational changes mentioned in previous sections of this study highlight the changes made by Willie Walsh after he took over the leadership of the company. The rigid h ierarchical leadership structure reduced to reflect the CEO’s vision of operating an efficient company. BA’s hierarchical structure is now very simple. It only has one level of distinction between the top-level management and the bottom-level management (Raktabutr 2007). This management structure supports the company’s transformational leadership style because it has made it easy to pass down the CEO’s enthusiasm of the organization to bottom-level employees. This management framework has also made it easy for the company’s CEO to have a â€Å"detail team† to help him realize the organization’s vision. After evaluating the transition from the autocratic leadership style to the transformational leadership style, we see that BA’s leadership transition is explained by the contingency theory of leadership. The contingency theory explains that prevailing environmental factors determine the type of leadership style to be adopted. Acc ording to the contingency theory, there is no leadership style, which is suitable for one organization (Rivers 2010, p. 2). Different situations demand different leadership styles. It is also from this basis that the contingency theory explains that organizational success does not only depend on the leadership qualities but also the loyalty and performance of the followers (plus the environmental support). BA was initially operating in a highly rigid environment dictated by little or no competition and a lot of government control. This situation supported the autocratic leadership style. However, when the market liberalized and the company was privatized, the company’s leadership style changed to transformational leadership (Rivers 2010, p. 2). This transition is explained by the contingency theory as described above. How Management and Leadership Styles Affect the Direction of the Business BA’s management and leadership styles are bound to affect the direction of the company because they are the main wheels behind the efficiency and productivity of the company. Furthermore, the realization of BA’s organizational goals highly depends on the leadership and management styles of the company (Management Study Guide 2008, p. 1). Considering BA operates in a highly competitive industry, there needs to be constant innovation and improvement of customer service. These elements require a constant change of operational processes but considering BA is a large organization, initiating change may be difficult. It is at this point, where management and effective leadership need exercising to ensure the company implements such changes. This analogy presents a guiding role for management and leadership styles because managers and leaders show the rest of the employees where the company is heading (Management Study Guide 2008, p. 1). Through effective management and leadership, employees are bound to get the confidence to undertake their tasks and ultimate ly realize the organization’s goals. This confidence materializes best if leaders and managers show the subordinates that their roles are crucial for the organization. Furthermore, optimum productivity occurs if management shows the lower-level employees how they can achieve such goals. Complementary to this role is the role of leadership and management to build morale among employees (Management Study Guide 2008, p. 1). A high morale materializes if a sense of cooperation develops between the employees and the management. Leadership styles and management styles create this synergy. Comprehensively, an organization’s direction is outlined by its leadership or management styles because both aspects determine the productive levels of the organization. In addition, an organization’s leadership style is likely to improve an organization’s level of competitiveness because it defines the blueprint of where the organization should be (viz-a-viz its competitors). Company Culture Types of organizational Culture Depending on the nature of organization, different companies adopt different organizational cultures. Tharp (2009) observes that there are four main types of organizational culture: collaborative, creative (adhocracy), control and competitive (market) cultures. The collaborative culture is a friendly and open type of culture. This type of organizational culture is very inclusionary and it perceives leaders as mentors or parents of one big extended family. In this type of culture, group cohesion is paramount and relationships are forged for long-term benefits (Tharp 2009, p. 7). Teamwork, participation and cohesiveness are also highly emphasized in this type of culture because there is a strong concern for people. The creative culture lays a lot of emphasis on innovation and risk taking because the philosophy of â€Å"thinking out of the box† is highly emphasized. Individualism is also encouraged and success is measured by being a leader among many (Tharp 2009, p. 7). The control culture is different from the creative and collaborative cultures because it defines a highly structured form of interaction between employees and their bosses. There is also a lot of emphasis on rules and procedures because stability is perceived to be the ultimate goal of organizations that adopt this culture (Tharp 2009, p. 7). Finally, the competitive culture focuses on job completion. There is a lot of push from leaders that run organizations that adopt this culture because the ultimate goal of such organizations is job accomplishment. The idea of winning is a major unifying factor for employees and managers (Tharp, 2009, p. 7). BA’s Organizational Culture After understanding the above leadership styles, it is important to note that, BA applies the competitive organizational culture. The competitive organizational culture was adopted after the company was privatized. BA’s emphasis now lies on being the best airl ine company in the region. For instance, after privatization, BA changed its corporate mission objective from â€Å"safety† to â€Å"competition†. This is a response to the competition in the aviation industry. Now the company focuses on being effective and high performing. Similarities between BA and Secondary Data Concerning the competitive organizational culture, BA’s organizational culture bears many similarities with secondary research information (regarding the competitive culture). In books, it is mentioned that the competitive organizational culture emphasizes a lot on success and accomplishments while British Airways also strives to show that it is succeeding. For instance, the company now focuses on posting good profits (De-Witte 2000, p. 501). This push to post good profits is part of a move to keep the company afloat, amid growing employee tensions and increased shareholder demands. Furthermore, existing literature outline that, leaders in organizati ons that adopt the competitive culture are hard-driving and demanding. BA’s leadership exudes these traits because it puts a lot of pressure on its employees to show results. Part of the pressure emanates from past periods of failure, which have seen BA suffer significant losses in revenue. Motivational Framework BA uses financial rewards to motivate its employees. This motivational framework is mentioned in earlier sections of this paper where BA’s bonus program was introduced to cement the company’s operational changes by focusing on customer service and quality. This motivational framework defines the scientific management theory, which was advanced by Frederick Taylor (Waring 1994, p. 1). The theory proposes that, people are mainly motivated by financial reward. The theory also maintains that, people are not naturally motivated to work, and they need rewards to boost their productivity. Complementarily, Maslow theory of motivation also outlines BA’s m otivational framework because it explains that workers strive to satisfy basic needs before they satisfy higher-level needs such as safety needs and self-actualization needs. Maslow’s theory categorizes worker needs on five levels as outlined below: (Waring 1994, p. 94) Incidentally, these needs are often satisfied through financial upgrades. For instance, if a worker has already satisfied basic needs such as food, shelter and clothing, they need more money to satisfy the next level of need (safety needs). This motivational dynamic therefore supports BA’s motivational framework because workers strive to improve their productivity to get more bonuses, and consequently satisfy higher-level needs. BA and the workers benefit here. Conclusion Weighing the findings of this report, we can see that BA’s organizational culture and processes are influenced by its transition from a government entity to a private entity. However, BA’s new organizational culture (bas ed on competition), is expected to increase the company’s odds of being an industry leader, as it was before. The competitive organizational culture (coupled with the company’s motivational framework) is set to increase the company’s profitability. The scientific management theory seems to affirm this success because it lays a lot of emphasis on guaranteeing company success if an employee reward scheme is employed. BA’s organizational structures therefore outline the blueprint for its future success. BA can improve its future profitability if it focuses on product innovation strategies to meet varying customer group demands. Most of BA’s competitors (such as Emirates airlines) are reaping huge profits from such strategic shifts. The product innovation strategy has also worked in other industries where a company understands its different customer groups and develops new products to meet these needs. Finally, to improve the company’s profitabi lity, BA needs to adopt more hedging practices. For instance, the unstable price of crude oil may significantly affect the company’s bottom-line. Hedging such a cost is likely to improve the company’s prospects of posting good returns. Such a strategy has worked with other airline companies such as Southwest airlines. BA’s success will be guaranteed in this manner. References Cummings, T. (2008) Organization Development Change. London, Cengage Learning. De-Witte, K. (2000) Organizational Culture. Michigan, Psychology Press. Ganesh, G. (1999) Privatisation Competition And Regulation In The United Kingdom:  Case Studies. London, Mittal Publications. Management Study Guide. (2008) Importance of Leadership (Online) Available at: managementstudyguide.com/importance_of_leadership.htm . McGowan, R. (2011) Privatize This?: Assessing the Opportunities and Costs of  Privatization. London, ABC-CLIO. Meyer, S. (2007) Acquisition of EasyJet Plc. by British Airways Plc. London, GRIN Verlag. Northouse, P. (2009) Leadership: Theory and Practice. London, SAGE. Plunkett, J. (2009) Plunketts Transportation, Supply Chain and Logistics Industry Almanac 2009 (E-Book): Transportation, Supply Chain and Logistics Industry Market Research, Statistics, Trends and Leading Companies. London, Plunkett Research, Ltd. Raktabutr, T. (2007) Analysis of Organization: British Airways (Online) Available at: http://thanabut.blogspot.com/2007/05/1-introduction-this-report-is-written.html . Rivers, M. (2010) British Airways Strike Can Be Averted (Online) Available at: guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/may/10/british-airways-strike-can-be-averted . Tharp, B. (2009) Four Organizational Culture Types (Online) Available at: haworth.com/en-us/Knowledge/Workplace-Library/Documents/Four-Organizational-Culture-Types_6.pdf . Waring, S. (1994) Taylorism Transformed: Scientific Management Theory Since 1945. London, UNC Press Books.

Banking Union in Europe Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Banking Union in Europe - Essay Example The inspiration for a banking union was the delicacy of various banks in the Eurozone, and the distinguishing proof of endless loop between credit conditions for these banks and the sovereign credit of their individual home nations. In some countries the private debts that arose due property bubble were shifted to ascendant liability as an outcome of the banking systems bailout and government reactions to moderating economies post-bubble. It is due to the weakening of credit facilities at the time of the Eurozone crisis and fear of financial instability among the member states. This led to the need for interdependence between financial stability, banking policy and economic integration that saw the need to establish a banking union. Interestingly the banking sector of individual States faces the risk of likely marginalization as other countries in the union are trying to integrate Additionally, the banking union in Europe is immediately needed to revive the stability and credibility of the banks system within the Euro area. There has been a continuous vicious cycle of the sovereign countries in Europe and the banks themselves. For example, some countries are unwilling to participate in the activities of the Banking Union, for instance, the UK. The sabotage by the UK has made some countries too to wish to exit the Union because of numerous challenges. The Europe’s financial banking sector has been going through times of polarised tensions Starting 2014, the banking union primarily comprises of two primary activities, the Single Supervisory, and Resolution Mechanism, are based on the "single rulebook" ,or basic monetary administrative structure. The â€Å"single rulebook† comprises of an arrangement of authoritative writings that every single money related foundation (counting more or less 8300 banks) in the EU must agree to. These principles,

Humans and The origins of civilization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Humans and The origins of civilization - Essay Example In Hebrew civilization, one god is worshiped and revered. The gods protect the society from plagues, misfortunes, thus offering assistance at all times. The gods are worshiped and revered. For instance, when plagues inflict Achaeans, they offer sacrifices in form of blemish goats and lambs to King Apollo in order to get protection. Consequently, when Job loses his wealth and children, he prays and offers sacrifices to god in order to seek forgiveness and protection. Job lost wealth and children as well as got attacked by a dreadful skin disease. However, he prayed and never lamented to God despite receiving pressure from friends. Instead of cursing and abusing God, he cursed the day his mother conceived him as well as the day he was born (King James Version, Job. 1. 3 - 15). Therefore, Job prays to his God while Atrues prays to Apollo who is the god of silver bow. Consequently, Job offered sacrifices to God on learning of the misfortune on his family. Consequently, Greeks consider pe rsistence of plagues as result of continuous provocation of god just like the Hebrews. Moreover, Goddess Minerva tells Achilles to obey the command from the two gods since they hear prayers from people who obey their command (Homer, 2). Agamemnon, the son of Atreus robed Achilles the daughter of Briseus, his prize by offered to him by Achaeans, thus causing misery to her father. The Greek and Hebrew civilizations consider that their gods live in heaven (Perry, 46). They recognize priests and their role, thus, disobedience to them results into misfortune. Therefore, the Greeks and Hebrews value priests and respect their instructions and teachings. Among Greeks, misfortune occurred when Atrues dishonored the priest, Chryses (Homer, 4). For instance, when Apollo attacks Achaeans, they seek help from priests, prophets, readers of dreams. Just like Greeks, Hebrews believes God protects the poor from harm caused by the mighty. Consequently, in replying to the demands from friends, Job ass erts that life, strength come from (King James Version, Job. 1. 20 - 21). Moreover, both Greeks and Hebrews organized feasting parties. Job’s sons organized feasting parties in their houses and invited their sisters to celebrate together. Consequently, the son of Atreus organized purifying ceremonies for the Achaeans after returning the daughter of Chryseis. The ceremony involved slaughtering of goats and bulls without blemish in order to purify society from the plaques placed upon them by King Apollo (Homer, 7). The Greeks and Hebrews also value wealth, children, and servants, seen as gifts and blessing from the supernatural beings. However, there are differences in their values and worldviews. Among Hebrews, God is revered. They also value perfection and upright living with avoidance or shunning of evil (King James Version, Job. 1. 1-2). Conversely, the Greeks recognize many gods and goddess such as Juve, King Apollo, and Pallas among others who they revere and value (Homer , 1). Among Hebrews, there is only one God while Greeks recognize many gods and goddess. Theses gods and goddess have varied powers and strength unlike the Hebrew god who is alone and the very powerful King James Version, Job. 12. 1-14). Greeks consider King Apollo as the most powerful of all the gods and goddess. This is because, gods such as Jove; husband to Juno and son of Saturn, Juno; mother of men and gods and mother to Vulcan, Pallas Minerva and Neptune have varied powers

False Claims and Health Care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

False Claims and Health Care - Essay Example The primary source of fraud in health care is through false claims. False claims are illegal and punishable through The False Claims Act, otherwise known as "Lincolns' Law". This law was enacted during the Civil War, updated by Ronald Regan in 1986 and contains "qui tam" provisions allowing ordinary citizens to sue on behalf of the government and collect restitution. (Phillip and Cohen) Also, under U.S. Code Title 18 Part I Chapter 63 section 1347 health care fraud is punishable by fine, or imprisonment for up to 10 years, or in cases of death a life sentence. There are many types of false claims. Services not rendered is best described as billing for services that were never delivered to patients. Physicians simply add on a few extra services that they did not perform for the patient. A common example would be when ordering a complete blood count (CBC) for a patient to bill for additional blood chemistry tests that doctors hadn't performed. In this very situation, two emergency room doctors were paid $92 million after bringing to light a "whistleblower" suit against Columbia/HCA. (Phillips & Cohen) Lack of Medical Necessity is another term used to describe a situation when a doctor or health care provider bills the insurance for procedures that are not necessary. This type of fraud is combated by practices put into place by the insurance companies such as; yearly benefit maximums, and restrictions on the number of procedures you can have. However, too often illegitimate claims are made. For example, a New York radiologist was sentenced under the False Claims Act to one to three years in prison and excluded from Medicare and state health care programs for 10 years for billing Medicaid for "thousands of medically unnecessary, duplicative, forged and unreadable sonogram tests." (Phillips & Cohen) Kickbacks are another borderline form of health care fraud. This is the most complicated and hidden form of fraud. It involves an improper monetary or material benefit to the health care provider for prescribing or using a certain product or service. In simpler terms, someone pays a doctor per patient he will prescribe a medicine to, or perform an expensive test on. A fine example comes from a group of five hospitals in Kansas and Missouri, which paid doctors per referral to it's "geriatric center". The group of hospitals was sentenced to pay $1.2 million in restitution under the False Claims Act. There is a anti-kickback statue written into Medicare, but often the kick backs are hard to track and difficult to discover. This is an area where "whistleblowers" are most effective as it alerts the proper authorities to a scam operating. Health care fraud will continue to be an issue as long as our current system of health insurance and care is operating. There are many flaws in the system and it is barely limping along. Many other countries, notably France, Australia, and the Netherlands have developed systems that are proven to be much more cost effective than the current American system. Fraud will continue as long is there is opportunity; the solution is to significantly lessen the opportunity and increase the punishment. Bibliography An, Jane Saloner, Romy and Ranji, Usha The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation "U.S. Health Care Costs" Updated January

Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 26

Report - Essay Example However, in the recent past, the sales and fortunes of the Ace manufacturing company has been on the low side. In terms of ranking and order or merit, Ace manufacturing company lost its prestigious position and dropped to the third position. In the conventional sense and ordinary world, the drop would inspire curiosity and the urge to get to know what might have happened wrong to occasion the sudden drop (Sand, Tsitouras, Dimitrakopoulos & Chatzigiannakis, 2014). Thus, as a prospective researcher and an external consultant, it becomes an issue of interest to try to gauge what might have happened wrongly in the course of time and in theli8ne of operations of the company. Thus, this report would present a synopsis and a possible chronology of what might have happened to cause Ace manufacturing company to drop from its prime position as a leading distributor and manufacturer of the leading electronic wares in the country (Papasolomou, Thrassou, Vrontis & Sabova, 2014). Accordingly, it is important to note and mention that this report was drafted and considered after the executives of Ace manufacturing company sought to decipher and realize the root cause of the problem. The problem or the issue being the reason as to why the Ace manufacturing company had recorded a dip into the number of sales and subsequent revenues or proceeds which it would have otherwise recorded or realized under different circumstances and situation. In principle, this logic and argument points to the direction that this is a aim of being self-critical on the part of the management of the Ace manufacturing company in order to try to understand and contextualize the reason as to why their sales and revenues must have dipped in the recent past (Lee, 2014). Therefore, it was imperative on their part to invoke our services as a central research institute to

Assess the impact of Multi- (or Trans-) National Corporations on Essay

Assess the impact of Multi- (or Trans-) National Corporations on international relations. Illustrate your points with examples from the activities of named corp - Essay Example Different markets have welcomes the move taken by such multinational giants but some of them have resisted the affect which has been created by them. Such is the eventual effect by these multinational corporations that many local businesses have winded up in a quick manner, thus putting them out of business in the wake of sheer competitive activity that these multinationals bring with their set agendas. The impact however has been on both sides of the divide – good as well as bad. The results have similarly been lopsided at times, favoring the business regimes in certain cases while bankrupting the parent organization in other instances. The sort of impact these multinational corporations have had on the global relations is something to ponder upon deeply though. This is because it is the international platform which indeed lays the success or failure basis for these multinationals. (Dunning, 2001) The multinational corporations worldwide face a number of challenges when they decide to go global. This is a common problem that they face since they do not have any prior knowledge or understanding of the new territory that they will do their business from. However what best they can do is to find out and research the strengths and weaknesses of this area and hence upon getting the much needed knowledge, base their theories and strategies in a much more effective and efficient manner. This will help one and all to better understand what the new territory, region or country offers the business and the people associated with it. The best thing is that the benefits and disadvantages are determined even before the multinational corporation goes the global way and thus it saves itself from embarrassment which it might face without having proper knowledge and adequate research within it. The significant thing here is to get prepared and be ready for what is to come in the future as

MHE510, Occupational Health and Safety, Mod 2 SLP Essay

MHE510, Occupational Health and Safety, Mod 2 SLP - Essay Example There is a great need to assure this employees comfort as well as avoid injury. Studies presently show that improvements in work work stations for people who work at computers can be made to decrease risk and increase productivity (Smith & Bayehi, 2003). It is important to fit the employees body type to the equipment and furniture that is being used. Step One of our evaluation has to be the overall observation of this office. Step Two would be to assure that good anthropometric evaluations is done of each of the employees using the newer digital photographic tools so an organized evaluation can be done. Step three would be to look at the amount of time that employees are out because of such complaints as back pain and carpal tunnel syndrome, allowing us statistical evaluation for an ROI. Once the evaluation is done , the noted problems should be solved and many of those will be solved with ergonomically based furniture. This furniture of course will need to be fit to each employee. No two workers are alike, therefore no two workstations will be exactly right. This becomes even more important as the workforce ages and the risk of long term injury becomes higher (Smith, 2005). Studies now show that employees who work at computers feel the need to leave their computers at least five times per day to stretch their legs. This affects the productivity of the department (Smith, 2005). It is interesting to note here, and consider as we redesign the furniture in this office that over 60% of employees surveyed note that they would like to be able to stand at least 50% of the time that they spent doing their jobs (Smith, 2005). This may need to be part of this evaluation and change. There are presently newer workspaces that adjust from standing to sitting in a manner that will allow the worker to make that choice. This might keep the worker on the job more

Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 26

Report - Essay Example However, in the recent past, the sales and fortunes of the Ace manufacturing company has been on the low side. In terms of ranking and order or merit, Ace manufacturing company lost its prestigious position and dropped to the third position. In the conventional sense and ordinary world, the drop would inspire curiosity and the urge to get to know what might have happened wrong to occasion the sudden drop (Sand, Tsitouras, Dimitrakopoulos & Chatzigiannakis, 2014). Thus, as a prospective researcher and an external consultant, it becomes an issue of interest to try to gauge what might have happened wrongly in the course of time and in theli8ne of operations of the company. Thus, this report would present a synopsis and a possible chronology of what might have happened to cause Ace manufacturing company to drop from its prime position as a leading distributor and manufacturer of the leading electronic wares in the country (Papasolomou, Thrassou, Vrontis & Sabova, 2014). Accordingly, it is important to note and mention that this report was drafted and considered after the executives of Ace manufacturing company sought to decipher and realize the root cause of the problem. The problem or the issue being the reason as to why the Ace manufacturing company had recorded a dip into the number of sales and subsequent revenues or proceeds which it would have otherwise recorded or realized under different circumstances and situation. In principle, this logic and argument points to the direction that this is a aim of being self-critical on the part of the management of the Ace manufacturing company in order to try to understand and contextualize the reason as to why their sales and revenues must have dipped in the recent past (Lee, 2014). Therefore, it was imperative on their part to invoke our services as a central research institute to

MHE510, Occupational Health and Safety, Mod 2 SLP Essay

MHE510, Occupational Health and Safety, Mod 2 SLP - Essay Example There is a great need to assure this employees comfort as well as avoid injury. Studies presently show that improvements in work work stations for people who work at computers can be made to decrease risk and increase productivity (Smith & Bayehi, 2003). It is important to fit the employees body type to the equipment and furniture that is being used. Step One of our evaluation has to be the overall observation of this office. Step Two would be to assure that good anthropometric evaluations is done of each of the employees using the newer digital photographic tools so an organized evaluation can be done. Step three would be to look at the amount of time that employees are out because of such complaints as back pain and carpal tunnel syndrome, allowing us statistical evaluation for an ROI. Once the evaluation is done , the noted problems should be solved and many of those will be solved with ergonomically based furniture. This furniture of course will need to be fit to each employee. No two workers are alike, therefore no two workstations will be exactly right. This becomes even more important as the workforce ages and the risk of long term injury becomes higher (Smith, 2005). Studies now show that employees who work at computers feel the need to leave their computers at least five times per day to stretch their legs. This affects the productivity of the department (Smith, 2005). It is interesting to note here, and consider as we redesign the furniture in this office that over 60% of employees surveyed note that they would like to be able to stand at least 50% of the time that they spent doing their jobs (Smith, 2005). This may need to be part of this evaluation and change. There are presently newer workspaces that adjust from standing to sitting in a manner that will allow the worker to make that choice. This might keep the worker on the job more

Roles and Responsibilities in Lifelong Learning Essay Example for Free

Roles and Responsibilities in Lifelong Learning Essay Unit 001 Roles. responsibilities and relationships in lifelong learning As Education Officer for the Heritage Service (HS) my Job is to provide inspiring, enjoyable and informative learning that promotes lifelong learning and encourages regular return visits to the councils museums (HS Education Policy), In order to do this in line council and national/international legislation, regulatory requirements and codes of practice. These include the: Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 This act provides for the health and safety of people who may be affected by the ctivities of work including learners and visitors to educational sites. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 All our activities are risk assessed regularly In line with this act _ Data Protection Act (1998) All data taken when booking activities, evaluating activities, taking photos Is kept as stated In the act_ Everyone who Is responsible for using data has to follow strict rules called data protecuon prlnclples_ They must make sure the Information Is: used fairly and lawfully used for limited, specifically stated purposes used In a way that s adequate, relevant and not excessive ept for no longer than Is absolutely necessary handled according to peoples data protection rights kept sate and secure accurate not transferred outside the uK without adequate protection This Is also reiterated in the councils Data Protection Policy. We also ensure that we adhere to The Protection ot Children Act (1999) and the Councils Sateguarding Adults Policy The Equality Act (2010) The Councils Equality Policy Statement says that The council is committed to achieving equality ot opportunity in our employment practices and provision of services. The policy is xplicitly linked to the requirements of the council as an employer and provider of services in adhering to the Equality Act 2010. When devising activities also follow the councils equality statement in line with Equality Act As Ann Gravells (2012) says

Defining Ethical And Moral Standards Philosophy Essay

Defining Ethical And Moral Standards Philosophy Essay Morality is a conveniently flexible term to begin with, one which could be stretched and sculpted according to most anyones ulterior motives. This in turn renders moral standards almost completely irrelevant and they should be regarded with skepticism, especially when it comes to those in power; because what is moral behavior to one person is indignation to another person. I think we can define ethical and moral standards as guidelines for an ethical and moral behavior. And in its turn, ethical and moral behavior of a person (or a group) can be defined as a way of interaction with a society which is the least disturbing, or better, pleasing to the other members of a society. Societies function much more effectively, efficiently, and responsibly when politicians and elected officials are expected to follow the rule of law more so than the rather subjective definition of a higher moral standard. After all, how can so many people glamorize Che Guevara and his noble and moral legacy of fighting for social justice, but turn a blind eye to his ordering the execution by firing squad of hundreds of people, including innocent student protestors, without the due process of law in a single month at La Cabaà ±a prison 50 years ago? And what else other than moral relativity could explain why so many of his T-shirt wearing acolytes claim to be morally outraged by former President George W. Bushs similar crime of the suspension of habeas corpus for Guantanamo Bay prisoners, of which none were executed? Which is why the rhetoric and pseudo-philosophizing of morality is still popular in communist nations such as Cuba whose totalitarian regime continues to push the false and deluded hope that communism will one day triumph again for those with the moral courage to endure needless sacrifice. This morality above reality mindset and rationale is explicitly illustrated in archived film footage where Fidel Castro was asked if he wore a bulletproof vest considering the various attempts on his life. He joked by opening his shirt, proudly displaying his bare chest and belly, bellowing a laugh and responded No, I wear a moral vest. Sure he did. As possibly did other murderous tyrants such as Ho Chi Min, Pol Pot, and Idi Amin to name a few. If their higher moral standards are what people expect to be ruled and led by, we may as well rebuild our collapsing economy by constructing our own concentration camps replete with gas chambers and ovens, and printing our monthly food supply ration booklets, like the ones Cubans carry with them to this day. One would figure they would simply register these via internet nowadays, only they are still not allowed by law to have internet access in their homes. On one hand, we should admit that high ethical and moral standards are probably one of aspects to judge an effective leader. Track back to the history, we can find many famous leaders with high ethical and moral standards. For example, Winston Churchill and Abraham Lincoln they were well known not only because of their marvelous contribution to their nations but also for the good reputation they built. It is the highly ethical manners lead them to serve the people they led in the correction direction. On the contrary, Adolph Hitler, who maybe can also called an effective leader of Germany in World War 2. He conquered half of the Europe and decimated thousands of Jaws with Nazi army, caused great damage to Jaws and the world due to his prejudice and lack of ethical standards. On one hand, we should admit that high ethical and moral standards are probably one of aspects to judge an effective leader. Track back to the history, we can find many famous leaders with high ethical and moral standards. For example, Winston Churchill and Abraham Lincoln they were well known not only because of their marvelous contribution to their nations but also for the good reputation they built. It is the highly ethical manners lead them to serve the people they led in the correction direction. On the contrary, Adolph Hitler, who maybe can also called an effective leader of Germany in World War 2. He conquered half of the Europe and decimated thousands of Jaws with Nazi army, caused great damage to Jaws and the world due to his prejudice and lack of ethical standards. Finally, the effective leaders are also human beings. No human beings could be perfect, everyone makes mistakes from time to time, as a famous saying goes to err is human, and so does the leader. But a few flows such as some personal affairs would not efface the splendid achievements they make as an effective leader. Bill Clinton, the former president of America is the best evidence. Despite the sex scandal and his perjury in court, which nearly resulted in his impeachment, there is no doubt that he is an effective leader in the eyes of American people. He has fight back the economic recession in the U.S. and promoted peaceful progress in Israel-Palestinian relationship. All of these great achievement to U.S. even the world persuasively prove him as an effective leader. Everyone has his/her own pettiness; the leader is not exception either. Hence as long as it is within his/her people tolerance, some flaws on ethic cannot prevent him/her to be an effective leader. It is precisely because of the infinite number of quandaries that a higher moral standard poses that makes such a prerequisite obsolete for elected officials in comparison to their obeying the rule of law. And chances are, if they respect and obey the rule of law to begin with, theyre bound to have higher moral standards that are genuine and socially reciprocal. Most of us, who obey laws, dont just do so because were afraid of being caught if we dont. We do so because they make sense to our survival. Considering how poor a job morality alone has done to ensure our survival, let alone our rights, we need to look further beyond mere moral standards as criteria in electing our leaders. No matter how high a moral standard politicians profess to set for themselves, and much less the rest of us whom they ultimately work for. Finally, the effective leaders are also human beings. None of human beings could be perfect, anyone makes mistakes some times, as a famous saying goes to err is human, and so does the leader. But a few flows such as some personal affairs would not efface the splendid achievements they make as an effective leader. Bill Clinton, the former president of America is the best evidence. Despite the sex scandal and his perjury in court, which nearly resulted in his impeachment, there is no doubt that he is an effective leader in the eyes of American people. He has fight back the economic recession in the U.S. and promoted peaceful progress in Israel-Palestinian relationship. All of these great achievement to U.S. even the world persuasively prove him as an effective leader. Everyone has his/her own pettiness; the leader is not exception either. Hence as long as within his/her people tolerance, some flaws on ethic cannot prevent him/her to be an effective leader. In conclusion, as long as supported by the people he/she serves, the public official does not have to maintain the highest ethical and moral standards, but to do so will make them more admirable. * To be an effective leader, a public official must maintain the highest ethical and moral standards. Finalizing everything Ive said I have to disagree with the original statement. It appears to be not necessary for a public official to maintain highest ethical and moral standards if he wants to be an effective leader. He just have to be able to sufficiently deliver power of organization he represents to the people he suppose to lead.

Education and Virginia’s Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own Essay -- A Room

â€Å"Only the gold and silver flowed now, not from the coffers of the king, but from the purses of men who had made, say a fortune from industry, and returned, in their wills, a bounteous share of it to endow more chairs, more lectureships, more fellowships in the university where they had learnt their craft† (754). This is a quote from Virginia’s Woolf’s essay, â€Å"A Room of One’s Own†. Here she is making a point about universities and the funding that they received from men that had gone to school there. Woolf’s essay takes place during the early nineteen hundreds when most women did not attend a university. There was great inequality of those who attended school because men had control over all the money. The men in society either received money from inheritances, or from industrial occupations, as Woolf mentions in her quote. Woolf’s essay focuses on the inequality of female writers’ recognition compared to men’s . She points out the fact that women writers were not very recognized by society because of their gender. This is true for the time period, but the reason that these women were not recognized is because of educational reasons. During Woolf’s time (the early 1900’s) women simply did not have the same resources that men had in order to be educated. The most important resource that they were lacking in was money. It took lots of money to be educated, and very few women had money of their own to attend a university. For the few that were educated, their education took place at an institution that was much less funded than a man’s institution. This funding for the institution includes the building itself and the quality of education. The quality of the education depends on the teachers that teach the classes and the ... ...an go to the best schools today. I am certain that this trend will also continue well into the future. So what difference does financial aid make? The difference is that now everyone can go to quality university rather than a low quality, low ranking university. Not every person can attend the best university. This is impossible. It is quite sad that female writers were not viewed as being as important in the past. I think that there have been many major changes to make men and women more equal today. The major equality factor is through education. Education is not only more possible for women, but for everyone. The many types of financial aid available make it possible for those who choose to attend a quality university, to achieve their goals. Work Cited Woolf, Virginia â€Å"A Room of One’s Own.† Ways of Reading, Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 1999