Inkwell Limited Essay

1. TERMS OF REFERENCE 1.1 This report reviews and investigates Inkwell Ltd’s accounting system in relation to establishing and setting recommendations in order to conclude that its system and controls are enhanced as well as protected to minimize the risk of fraud. 1.2 The report investigates the main stakeholders of the organization at large both internal and external as well as the information it needs it has from the system. 1.3 Recommended costs and benefits are analyzed together with the risk of fraud towards the organization. 1.4 Lastly the report is part of the AAT level 4 Diploma in Accounting. 2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2.1 The report reviews the internal control within the accounting system of Inkwell Limited and recommendations to upgrade them. Findings are concluded that Inkwell Ltd ought to employ enough, fully trained staff with relevant qualifications and work full time as well as following company’s policies. Training staff results in having competent staff which will reduce confusion and enhance confidence of employees in their work. 2.2 The report recommends that accounting system ought to be improved so as to develop controls for the operations of the organization like password access, authorization and attendance record by purchasing clock cards so that the risk of fraud can be minimized too. 2.3 The report recommends that Inkwell Ltd ought to buy an electronic generator which will act as a reserve during time of power cut such that vital information of the company is always protected even if there is power cut. 3. METHODOLOGY 3.1 A research from books and internet was used as reference in order to come  up with this report and it was based on the case study. 3.2 A fraud matrix was used to investigate the potential of fraud within the accounting system and protecting controls in practice by analyzing them. 3.3 Reviewing the existing accounting system over a period of three months to enable a SWOT analysis to be produced was also used to plan and investigate the report. 4. INTRODUCTION TO THE ORGANISATION 4.1 Inkwell Ltd is a large company in Birmingham supplying complete range of re-manufactured inkjet and laser tower cartridges to small retailers and large trade customers. It is a limited company established seven years ago by two of its controlling shareholders, Paul Farnon and Victoria Dawson. So far it has revenue of over  £16 million, 80% being from small retailers while 20% is from large trade customers. It employs around 180 full time employees and 2 part time staff at the head office. 4.2 Inkwell Ltd has grown since the founders of it realized the need to have more professional Accounting expertise like Finance Director and other diverse clerks. The two of Inkwell Ltd’s directors has experience of dealing with this type of business from their prior companies they have worked for. 4.3 The organization has relatively flat structure with two supervisors reporting to the directors and then further clerks reporting to their supervisors. The leadership style used is consultative where combination of democratic and autocratic is involved. Appendix 1 expands the structure in full. 4.4 The accounts system is a centralized system consisting of 28 computers in head office site and 60 in shops/branches where online shops are opened 24/7.The inventory control system is based around on excel spreadsheet, the sage payroll system for payroll calculations and windows vista operating system is used. The password â€Å"Go Green† has been used and currently in use to log on all the computers of the company. In head office site every member of staff has his/her own computer whether full/part time whereas in branches each computer and printer is shared by 3-4 member of staff that are for part time.10% discount is given against the cost of a replacement cartridges if old one s are brought by a customers. 4.5 External regulation affecting the organization 4.5.1 The Company’s Act 2006-This sets out the way in which financial  statements should be prepared so Inkwell Ltd will have to comply with this Act to mitigate all possible fines that might arise. 4.5.2 UK Accounting Standards-This defines procedures and approaches to the preparation of financial statements that the organization must take. They are either known as Statements of Standard Accounting Practices (SSAPs) or Financial Reporting Standard (FRSs) depending on when they were issued. 4.5.3 International Regulations such as International Accounting Standard (IAS) and International Financial reporting Standards (IFRSs) issued by the International Accounting Standard Board (IASB)-Inkwell Ltd will have to follow these regulations to have confidence in accounting. 4.5.4 The data Protection Act 1998-The fundamental principle of confidentiality is related to this act and this regulates how Inkwell Ltd processes and stores information of customers, suppliers and employees so as to minimize possible penalties. 4.5.5 Late Payment law-Inkwell Ltd ought to pay its suppliers on time as this is set out in the Late Payment of Commercial Debts Act 1998 so as to eradicate the possibilities of being sued and loosing reputation. 4.5.6 Health and Safety Legislation-Inkwell Ltd is obliged to teach its staff how to withstand some of the outcomes that are safety related since harmful substances (Ink) are used and the toner cartridges has some devices that are connected with controlled light and rays. Procedures of dealing with this matter are essential to protect people against any harmful effect. 4.6 Inkwell Ltd-Key external stakeholders 4.6.1 Customers-The customers of Inkwell Ltd are into two categories being small retailers and large trade customers who purchase re-manufactured inkjet and toner cartridges. They expect to be provided with quality service at discounted, reasonable prices. This is happening as they are given 30-60 days of credit after a trial of three months of paying with purchase order. Price lists and credit terms might also be required. 4.6.2 Suppliers-The Company is supplied with re-manufactured inkjet and toner cartridges. Suppliers will require Inkwell Ltd to pay them on time but since Inkwell Ltd operates with relatively small number suppliers, payments period can be extended without complaint. Financial information can be required by suppliers to enable them to decide whether to work with Inkwell Ltd. 4.6.3 Financier/Bank-Producing series of business plans enables Inkwell Ltd to raise enough finance from their banks to expand the business. Financial statements like Income Statement may be needed by the bank. 5. THE ACCOUNTS DEPARTMENT 5.1 Inkwell Ltd has an Accounts Team based in the head office on an Industrial Estate in Birmingham where information from its branches is compiled and processed. All computers are accessed by the password â€Å"Go Green† and reporting does take place to the relevant authorities. The accounts department is highly privileged to have top management like finance director and accountant. 5.2 The purpose of Inkwell Ltd’s accounts department is to complete all activities relating to the production of the accounts including sales and purchases ledgers, payroll and costing. This department has its own weaknesses identified included in appendix 2 and structure in appendix 1. 5.3 The accounts department-Key internal stakeholders 5.3.1 Paul Farnon, owner1(Managing Director)-As the owner and managing director of Inkwell Ltd, Paul will have to strive for the success of the company including managing accounts department. The way Farnon manages will determine where the company is heading. Since Paul has held top position as the UK general sales manager in a major manufacturer of printers (Hewlett Packard), this reflects an advantage to the accounts department and company at large since he has experience. 5.3.2 Victoria Dawson,owner2(Sales Director)-As being another owner, Victoria is obliged to contribute in the success of the accounts department since she once worked as a Marketing Manager for Rymans,a major office supplies retailer in the same industry so Victoria will use previous experience to help accounts department especially in sales of the company. 5.3.3 Anil Gupter, owner3 (Finance Director)-Anil is also expected to deliver a good service looking at the fact that he did not changed his rank of being Fin ance Director unlike other directors when he moved from Epson, a large manufacturer of printer and printers cartridges to Inkwell Ltd. Anil was needed to have more professional accounting expertise since the production of the company was showing that circulation of money has expanded. Anil’s main responsibility is to manage all finance, legal and accounting procedures and system. Gupter has Bsc, FCMA  qualifications. 5.3.4 Michael O’Payne (Company Accountant)-Michael is responsible for managing the work of the accounting technicians and clerks running the transactions accounting system comprising of purchase, sales and general ledger,costing,payroll and personnel database management system. The fact that Michael has been the company’s accountant ever since it was established, it means he understand and familiar with each and every transaction relating to accounts department. Michael has ACCA qualifications. 5.3.5 Michelle Labelle (General ledger & Inventory clerk)-Michelle’s main roles is to keep financial control over company’s inventories, review daily reports from shop manager s, enter all data into general ledger to produce trial balance. Labelle also monitors orders to suppliers placed by Purchase Manager. Michelle has no accounting qualifications but once worked as trainee personnel officer in France. 5.3.6 Liana Khan (Purchase Ledger Clerk)-Liana is responsible for entering all suppliers’ invoices and credit notes into the purchase ledger and arranges payments to suppliers. Liana has foundation level 2 AAT qualifications and is keen in studying for her intermediate level 3 AAT. Khan is employed part time of 20 hours a week and has once worked as Sales Ledger Clerk. 5.3.7 Greg Morris (Sales Ledger Clerk)-Morris input all data into sales ledger and sends monthly statement to trade customers. He once worked for Rymans where Victoria Dawson was working. Greg was a purchase ledger clerk. He has no accounting/credit control qualifications but wishes to have one. Morris is employed on part time 20 hours a week basis. 5.3.8 Alan Cook (Costing Technician)-Alan is responsible for operating Inkwell Ltd’s costing system since the company was formed. Cook has no accounting qualifications and not willing to have one but before joining Inkwell Ltd he was a Purchase and Sales ledger clerk. 5.3.9 Sharon Ward (Payroll & Personnel Database Clerk)-Sharon’s main responsibility is to run Inkwell Ltd’s two payrolls, a monthly payroll for management and salaried staff as well as a weekly payroll for hourly paid staff. She also issues all statutory forms required by HMRC and UK tax authorities and lastly maintain the personnel database. Sharon has BA (Hons) and AAT foundation level 2 accounting qualifications and willing to study for her AAT intermediate exams. Ward once worked as a holiday company resort representative. 6. REVIEW OF THE ACCOUNTING SYSTEM 6.1 This report analyses the accounting system that are used by Inkwell Ltd and makes recommendations to enhance it. 6.2 The weakness have been identified with the aid of SWOT analysis expanded in appendix 2.This section also investigates the system within the context of the financial reports the accounts system should provide to stakeholders like suppliers, financier and whether it is suitable to meet their, and company’s needs. 6.3 Working methods and practices 6.3.1 The system in Inkwell Ltd’s accounts department comprises of 8 computers running on an integrated basis and are all linked to the same printers. Inventory information is operated within excel and the payroll system uses sage payroll to calculated the weekly and monthly wages and salaries.Quickcost is used for costing system. Monthly bank reconciliation statement and receipts is produced manually. 6.3.2 All work within the system is password sheltered, using a general password through the organization ‘Go Green’. 6.3.3 Weakness in the working methods and practices within the system at Inkwell Ltd are detailed in the SWOT analysis in appendix 2 as: -Some of the staffs are part time so this can delay day to day work to be fully completed on time since they are not always present and there is no necessity in place for them to all be in the office at the same time. -Employing incompetent staff exposes the company to a great risk of performing poorly since it will be hard to withstand the changes of the profession like being familiar with international standards. Working overtime by part time staff to catch up with the work will cost the company. This may also accumulate errors within Inkwell Ltd and stakeholders like bank, suppliers may resist dealing with them and the reputation of the company may possibly downgrade gradually. -Having no assistants in the company reflects lack of plan and missing the bigger picture because once an employee is not around it means the work stops since there is no a reserve. Keeping cheques and cash in the premises for more than a night is a great risk. -Tendency of backing up the system once instead of twice provided that the policy states that, this may result in loosing critical information to be used in various cases like verification and this will be regarded as failure to retain records. -The use of same password for the entire company  tend to be a secret uncovered because once one computer is logged on, automatically it is possible to log on the rest of the computers of which is unsafe to the side of Inkwell Ltd. 6.4 Recording keeping system 6.4.1 Weaknesses in the record keeping system were recognized as component of the SWOT analysis in appendix 2. -Errors, assumption, inaccuracy may possibly be found for the reason that there is shortage of skillful staff to cover for those who are absent so employees with inappropriate skills will attempt to cover up therefore causing errors. -Reconciling monthly bank statement by hand may cause errors and it is quite slow to do that compared to using computer. -Insufficient training period makes it hard to use new developed system like payroll so being self-doubting with the use of this new system will automatically generate incorrect information done by employees. -Having no attendance time record like clock cards may perhaps lead to underpaying which can decline the drive of employees and at the same time employees may be overpaid and Inkwell Ltd will have to use a lot of cash to pay overtime that were not deserved. 6.5 Training The SWOT analysis in appendix 2 analyses the weaknesses within the system regarding training as follows: -Incompetent staffs are employed which can cause a massive confusion and inaccuracy particularly when workload boost and latest standards of profession are introduced. -Training periods are too short to maintain and attain new changes of the system like being familiar with the use of new payroll software thus causing lack of confidence upon employees. 7. INTERNAL CONTROL AND FRAUD ANALYSIS 7.1 Internal system of control 7.1.1 Within Inkwell Ltd controls resembling payments to staff is very informal. Dependence is habitually based upon trust. Formal controls will sustain the accounting system and diminish the chance of fraud. 7.1.2 The SWOT analysis in appendix 2 analyses the weaknesses within the system as: -Cash and cheques-leaving money and cheques in the premises until the banking day will definitely attract theft to take place since Inkwell Ltd is a huge company despite whether the money is placed in a save place. -Authorization-There are no effective authorization procedures put in place  regarding matters like attendance records and monitoring payments to suppliers. Approved payments were reversed by employees like Purchase Manager. -Access-Since one password is used by Inkwell Ltd, any member of staff could use this password for personal reasons. -Payments-It’s very risky to let customers pay via internet by giving their debit/credit cards details 7.2 Fraud Analysis 7.2.1 Even though there is no confirmation of fraud having taken place within Inkwell Ltd Ltd, fraud is likely to occur within the system and proper controls ought to be in place to put off them. 7.2.2 The SWOT analysis in appendix 2 analyses the weaknesses within the system as: -Authorization-Some employees may tend to overstate hours worked and this is one way where fraud can occur due to lack of having no attendance time records. Monitoring all company’s expenditures like payments to suppliers are less monitored so fraud can find a way through this root as approvement was reversed by the Purchase Manager. -Password-Inkwell Ltd’s information may be extracted through having flexible access and then used to steal money from the company as critical information like bank details may be interrogated from the computers due to having same password. -Cash and Cheques-Leaving cash and cheques in the premises until banking day may provoke fraud because some of the employees might get tempted to steal due to the nature of being closer to a lot of cash having a thought that it would not be identifiable. -Payments-Collecting payments over the internet can also lead to fraud as its quite risky to give debit/credit card details via internet because some people even employees may pretend as if they are Inkwell Ltd representatives by using different names from there take money for their own reasons not for company. 7.2.4 Each of these possible frauds, the contemporary controls in lay, and the recommendations to develop can be found within a fraud matrix in appendix 3.This matrix also comprises the level of risk to the business. 8. RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE 8.1 There are numerous recommendations that can be utilized to advance the weaknesses recognized over also in appendix 2. 8.1.1 Training-Training periods should be extended such that staff may be fully trained to use the system and operate it effectively. This will help them to gain confidence  and morale in their work and their daily work will move a bit faster which lead to high productivity. 8.1.2 Policies-Since policies are ethics to channel decisions and accomplish rational outcomes and the source for employment contract with staff, all employees ought to comply with policies set to alleviate possible risks like losing vital information if the system backed once instead of twice. Regular meetings and workshops may facilitate to review the policies and mark the weak areas so that they can be strengthened. This will ensure that aims and target are met which is a good thing. 8.1.3 Attendance-The use of clock cards may be useful to record the exact hours worked for. This will prev ent misstatement of time worked thus help the company not to overstate nor understate payments to employees. 8.1.4 Assistants and qualifications-Enough staff with relevant qualifications ought to be employed so that they can act as reserves when others are absent. This will make certain that external stakeholders are confident to invest in a company that is well equipped in terms of adequate and competent staff. 8.1.5 Advanced Accounting-The use of electronic accounting like pastel should be used to alternate reconciling monthly bank statement and entering receipts manually, this will help to save time and minimize errors. 8.1.6 Access-Inkwell Ltd should set a policy which states that each computer should have its own password so as to restrict access to all the entire computers, this will guarantee that company’s information is embraced. 8.1.7 Approve-All approved payments especially including big amount ought to be thoroughly monitored, this will put off fraud of overstating what it has been approved where people will take advantage of that like what the purchase manager did by changing approved deal. 8.1.8 Banking everyday is the best way for Inkwell Ltd rather than waiting until banking day looking at the fact that Inkwell Ltd generates a lot of money on daily basis, so keeping cheques and cash in the premises is a risk. Security Company will also have to be hired to protect all properties like cash. This will guarantee safety in the company. 8.1.9 Payments-Payments from customers when they are away should be done through post where cheques are sent and should be crossed ‘Account payee’. Names, address and business rates reference should be written properly and correctly. This will minimize delayed payments. 9. COSTS AND BENEFITS ANALYSIS 9.1 The recommendations after cost and benefit analyses to employ adequate, full time, qualified staff, purchase attendance record and bank every day. This has been completed as follows: 9.2 COSTS 9.2.1 Appropriate training staff is required for current account packages like payroll and personal database as well as training other accounts clerks like that one of sales ledger. Inkwell Ltd will have to choose the best institution with reasonable prices to train its staff. 9.2.2 There would be an opportunity cost of staff attending the training in that way they would not be available to complete their work but getting paid and therefore they are not generating chargeable hours. 9.2.3 Well qualified staff with relevant qualifications is required to act as assistants. New staff will have to be posted as clerks assistants. They will become a bit confused to operate in a new environment at first and time will be consumed as well but as time goes on they will adapt and adjust to a new working place. 9.2.4 Inkwell Ltd will require clock cards to record the attendance of the employees and the swiping machine for these cards will have to be connected to the system though this may cause a bit of disruption in the offices. Inkwell Ltd should choose a quality machine that is simple to use. 9.2.5 The electronic generator is needed to help during power cut. Connecting it to the entire accounts department will cause interruption as all connections will have to be switched off for a while. Prices and the quality of the generator should be compared from different shops to choose the best one. 9.2.6 Security company with advanced equipments like cameras, alarms is required for security services. Connecting the security system will as well cause disturbance in the offices. The cost, quality, reliability of the security companies should be compared to see which one is suitable for Inkwell Ltd. 9.2.7 Other staff may be unhappy to see other being trained and this might cause less productivity, commitment, efficiency because they will become jealous. Extended induction of new staff can also cost the company as they are not available for work while some preparations are carried on. Finally ongoing training and extended induction will probably cause client’s dissatisfaction because there would be shortage of workforce thus declining reliability of clients to Inkwell Ltd. 9.3 BENEFITS 9.3.1 The benefits the system will bring are less tangible, so harder to value but possible benefits have been quantified as follows: 9.3.2 The first benefit to Inkwell Ltd is that there will be staff competence as employees will now have relevant skills and knowledge thus leading to quality production and effectiveness. Self confidence will also be improved since they are flexible with their work. 9.3.3 The use of clock cards will enable the payroll department to be accurate in most times. This will also reduce queries from staff if their salaries are underpaid and time set for each employee will be utilized efficiently, unproven overtimes will no longer be found thus reducing cost for the company. 9.3.4 Availability of qualified assistants will then fill gap especially when others are not around due to reasons like sick leaves and this will help the production to keep moving. Clients will also be interested to be given professional service at any time. Relationship between two parties is enhanced due to good cooperation found. 9.3.5 The use of electronic generator will create chances of not loosing critical information during power cut. Inkwell Ltd will always have necessary information needed by internal and external stakeholders. 9.3.6 Having a security services means Inkwell Ltd’s properties are secure but not fully due to inherent risks of some assets like cash. The use of alarms and cameras will reduce the chances of employees stealing. The security company will also help in escorting the cash and cheques while in transit to be banked. 9.3.7 Inkwell Ltd’s reputation is enhanced since clients are provided with professional service from trained and knowledgeable staff and at the same time staff feel valued to the investment in training them, their morale is as well improved. APPENDIX 1-INKWELL (LTD)’S ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE APPENDIX 2-INKWELL (LTD)’S SWOT ANALYSIS STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES -Quick delivery from Inkwell Ltd no matter where the customer is. -Employees are paid on time because payroll and personnel database is presented to the bank by the 24th of each month. -There is nonstop trading by online shop since they operates 24/7 -Inkwell Ltd has directors with quality and full  experience of dealing with type of business of printer cartridges. -More professional accounting expertise like accountant, financial director, clerks. -The use of centralized accounting system enables Inkwell Ltd to decide decisions quickly and economies of scale as fewer staff overall are needed to complete work unlike if every branch had its own accounts employees. -Flexibility-employees are given chance of advising management in some areas like Alan Cook advised of variances from target. -Cheques are signed by any two of the company’s authorized signatories. -The use of BACS to pay staff is useful since its quick -Giving staff commission is strength itself because their effectiveness and morale tend to improve. -There is a good credit control taking place since all customers that are overdue with their payments are contacted via telephone, written letter. -Good communication i.e. Michelle usually contact shop managers to know when the inventory gets above three days’ holding. -The use of advanced accounting packages like payroll will minimize the errors. -Shortage of staff as well as employing unqualified staff results in poor performance, productivity. Reputation of Inkwell Ltd is at high possibilities of being destroyed. -Short training periods are not suitable for a big company like Inkwell Ltd this will limit employees’ confidence in their work e.g. one day training is not enough. -Inkwell Ltd’s policies are not followed which means they lack direction for example backup is supposed to be done twice a day rather than once. Lack of attendance time record will results in overstatement nor understating figures of hours worked since no control is to be found to record hours worked. -Payments including big amounts are not well monitored, for example Purchase Manager changed what was approved by management that there were to be no increases in prices conceded this year at all but he reversed that, this reflects that follow up was not involved. -Some of the management become reluctant to attend other matters like that one Chapman where there was discrepancies involving big amount and he failed to attend the matter. -Procrastination of some vital areas-differences were caused because the list of people to have access to the general ledger was not yet set so everyone could access. -Some  management like Purchase Manager is short sighted because purchase order processing module had to be bought so that some details of some transactions may not be deleted but Peter concluded it as a waste of money. -The use of one computer by 3-4 part time employees is too bad because it influences less productivity, efficiency since it cannot be used simultaneously so others will have to wait for other to finish and it discourages self independence in workplace. -Recording receipts and reconciling bank statement manually may possibly accumulate errors and consume a lot of time. -Tension between management like that one of accountant and Finance Director may discourages internal relationship and cooperation(team work).The company will suffer since by the time they are obliged to discuss something important they w ill deliberately become pig-headed. OPPORTUNITIES THREATS -Customers are helped to have no history of poor payments so this may enhance the reliability of customers to the company and more customers will be attracted gradually. -There is an opportunity of training staff meaning by the time of completing those studies they will bring huge input that is acquired from outside. -Inkwell Ltd is given an opportunity by suppliers to pay a bit late and this will help Inkwell Ltd to use the money that was to be paid for other like to pay overdraft if there is any. This will also improve cash position -Data Protection Act 1998-Inkwell Ltd is likely to face penalties of failing to keep records since it has the tendency of not keeping records. -Family commitments-Some employees may have family commitments that force them to take some breaks like when family members e.g. when children are sick. This will mean task at work will have to wait especially when company does not have assistants. Some will even take sick leave. -The use of unqualified staff is a huge threat since customers may possibly report that they are not given complete service that match with what they have paid for. This may be reported to consumer affairs and Inkwell Ltd might be penalized. -Power cut may provoke the loss of vital information and Inkwell Ltd may fail to present relevant wanted by external stakeholders e.g. banks so in this way  the company may miss so many chances of opportunities or either be penalized for failing to present information to be used for legal purposes. -There is possibility of theft to take place in the company since Inkwell Ltd is generating a lot of money. -Trading via online might possibly become because it’s a great risk since some may claim to become part of Inkwell Ltd so that they may receive money that was not entitled to them. APPENDIX 4-INKWELL (LTD)’S TECHNICAL NOTES 1) Income Statement-In the context of Inkwell Ltd this will show the owner of the business, sales revenue/income received as well all the cost incurred in the accounting period which will be deducted from the income to arrive at the profit of Inkwell Ltd.This will help the owner to make right decisions and analysis as costs and revenue that has huge impact in the income statement will be highlighted. 2) Statement of Financial Position-Current, non current assets, short term liability and long term liability like loans will be laid down. All liabilities will be added and deducted from all assets for which the amount should be equal to the capital invested in the company by the owners and profit from Income Statement. This will help in terms of planning of how long will the liabilities be paid and when to sell non current assets, how to control receivables. 3) Fraud Detection- The use of regular checking and investigating all discrepancies to conclude what could have went wrong can be one way of detecting fraud. Forensic accountants can as well be useful where investigations will be carried out scientifically. Effective procedures and strategies that are meant to eradicate fraud can be useful in the organization so owners and employees will not want to be associated with fraud cases. 4) Impact of fraud-Fraud can become strong usually if it’s done by the owners of the business, this will include theft of cash, inventory as well as time meant for businesses’ purposes, owners and employees may use business time for their personal activities and this will reduce profitability, production, and effectiveness in the company. Fraud can become a way of life for a business where trustworthy within the business is eroded. Some will be scared of whistle blowing if they are not protected.

Christian moralists Essay

According to Freud, they are â€Å"fulfillments of the oldest, strongest, and most urgent wishes of mankind; the secret of their strength lies in the strength of their wishes† (Pals 72). For him, the only way to test something is by the scientific method (Pals 72). The believers of religion draw their religion from feelings and emotions (Pals 72). He mentioned that it was a given that religion may have helped build civilizations however, since civilizations were already built, superstition and repression should not continue to be the foundation (Pals 72). According to Freud â€Å"Religion would thus be the universal obsessional neurosis of humanity† (Pals 73). In his perception, mature people are those guided by reason and science and not by mere superstition and faith (Pals 73). God, for this thinker, was not a being that was real (Pals 73). In fact, he saw God as an illusion that was nearly projected by the self because they had a deep longing to overcome guilt and to lessen their fears (Pals 73). Religion may be something that is rooted from the ego to be able to make sense of the struggles that are present in the world. But it is more than just a bunch of feelings and emotions because those fade. Religion has been around for centuries and that cannot be because most of the people around the world have felt like believing in God for all these years. Hope has in fact been seen to be built on nothing but illusion; in reality, it exists because of faith (Palmer 279). Faith cannot exist without religion. However, Christian moralists would still stay true to the fact that with hope in their lives, it would be significant and have moral worth (Palmer 279). Critics of religion would say that morality would depend on the need of a â€Å"psychologically realistic foundation† that calls for human purposes (Palmer 279). Going back to the question posed earlier, if it was about feelings and emotions, then religion should have been replaced by money or by other things. Even though in this secular world, most of religion’s areas are penetrated by such things, it still prevails for a reason; because people have faith. Majority of the people in the world believe in God, does this mean only a part of the human population are mature people? If the strength of religion lies in the â€Å"strength of its wishers,† how come faithless people have come to know God because of the things that happen in their own lives that they would consider nothing short of a miracle (Pals 72). If everything can be tested by the scientific method, it should have tested why people fall in love or why people can risk their lives to rescue someone else. How come students from the direst of neighborhoods can graduate from high school despite everything that could hinder him or her? Was it determination and hope? Where did those qualities come from? Is it the illusion of the people that God had always been able to provide for them even if they felt that all is lost and has ended? Is it an illusion that the sun rises in the morning and that planets are held in their axis and revolve around there orbit? If religion is just something for a person to overcome guilt, how come people have to place such emotions of God while there are a whole lot of other things that are more tangible that people can turn to? Why not you rely on something can see if that means having to have a better concept of that â€Å"illusion. † Religion from Society Following Emile Durkheim’s point of view relating religion with sociology, morality was perceived to be the obligation of each other to others wherein it cannot be separated from religion (Pals 95). Religion and morals mesh together in a social framework (Pals 95). Under his views, the success of the religious leader does not lie in the number of converts he had brought in the congregation but the event that has reinstated a sense of community amongst the people (Pals 95). Durkheim believed that â€Å"Religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say, set apart and forbidden† (Pals 99). When he talked about sacred things he referred to â€Å"unite in one moral community called church and those who adhere them† (Pals 99). Sacred things referred to the issues of the community while those that are not sacred referred to the private things and the everyday things a person encounters (Pals 99). Under Durkheim’s view of religion, it was more like a society. â€Å"The idea of society is the soul of religion† because the concept of religion needed the society in order to exist. It was based on creating a sense of belongingness. Society was formed by the collective commitment of the individuals because without such commitment the society would fail to exist. In the same way, religion exists merely because a lot of people are committed to the fact that it does exist. Like Freud, he referred to Totemism as an example of how society gave birth to religion. Freud saw how religion is exactly just like society, in comparison, the rituals and the rites and the church leaders can be seen as a mere superficial or surface part of religion because it is just a body of collective beliefs and practices that are endowed by such some kind of authority. This thinker also believed that there was nothing neither divine nor supernatural because he saw that it was just society that produced this concept in order to keep people in line and to give emphasis on certain things that the society should value as a whole. Society had survived from civilizations that have started in the past. The question whether how religion was formed was important to answer because defines the further need for it. Is it a mere creation of man that humanity exists? If not, then why did it exist; because of the perseverance of the human spirit? Where did this perseverance come from, more than that, where did the spirit come from? These are things the society cannot really provide for them if the premise is society gave birth to religion. Alienation Karl Marx, of all the thinkers in the past may have presented one of the most scornful and sarcastic contempt at religion (Pals 139). Most of the discussion about religion from this philosopher referred to religion as alienation. He never really just concentrated on discussing religion alone but his works have shown how he had pretty much a heavy opinion about it and that influenced the structure of Communism. It was plain and simple for Marx, â€Å"religion is pure illusion† (Pals 138). Similar to how Freud saw religion, Marx saw it more than an illusion but something that was dangerous and something that should be eradicated from society (Pals 138). He considered religion as the worst kind of ideology because of how it expressed a perceived bunch of excuses dressed as reasons in order to keep society in the manner that their oppression would like them to stay as (Pals 138). Religion is then related to a tool of oppression instead of being a liberating factor that most Christian ideals adhere to. Since he was consumed with how he taught a capitalist society brought about oppression he saw religion as merely another factor to keep people in line and to prevent them from having to go against the leaders of society. Since most of his arguments fall upon his hatred for the Capitalist society, he attacked religion saying it was fully determined by economics that made all the doctrines that was attributed to it to have no merits of their own (Pals 138). Since he had no respect for that kind of system, he did not see much of the structure and nature of religion as well (Pals 138). Marx found a profound parallelism between religion and socioeconomics wherein he saw how both areas of society alienated people from important parts of who they were (Pals 140). While religion took moral values; socioeconomics took productive labor (Pals 140-141). Religion took a way a part of the people, the morality part as humans and attributed it to a wholly imaginary being (Pals 141). Marx saw how it took away the credit from the people and awarded everything to God (Pals 141). On the other hand, socioeconomics took away the fruits of the labor of the people and awarded it to whoever had the money to pay, mostly to the rich (Pals 141). Marx saw how these two concepts were too much alike because of how they were related to each other. Like Durkheim, he saw that the capitalist society created religion as economics was the base for everything. He then moved for the abolition of religion under the Communist ideology as this was considered an illusory happiness (Pals 141). According to him, the abolition of religion was actually required for real happiness to occur (Pals 141). He saw that religion did not help the people, most especially the poor. For him, religion only created fantasies for the people that enabled them to ease the pain they felt from the oppression of society (Pals 141). He saw religion as the opium of the poor (Pals 140). He illustrated religion as nothing more than being addiction to any form of drug (Pals 142). It may be a form of escape that would make a person worry-free for a while but it does not serve anything (Pals 142). He saw religion as pure escapism (Pals 142). Religion, for Marx, only shifted the gaze of the people and their reliance on God instead of having to rely upon themselves for their own well-being (Pals 142). However, he also said that it blinded the people from the real injustice of the material, physical situation they had in society because they were much to focus on fixing their second life or their eternal life in heaven to be worried about their current stature on earth (Pals 142). The fact that religion was seen to oppress can be reflected in erroneous leadership on the part of the Church in the past but it cannot generalize the whole body of believers. If a person works for this current life with disregard for the consequences of the next life, what is he to gain? Is he to be satisfied? No person had ever found the ultimate satisfaction, no matter how hard they work or how wealthy they are, this cannot be attained in the present life. Whoever says he or she can must be fooling him or herself. Reliance on a supreme being is placed in the fiber of human nature for a reason, because they need God. It is not to oppress them to being helpless beings. It actually empowers them to be the best that they can become with the help from their creator. Conclusion No matter what such thinkers present regarding the false hopes and the perception of believers regarding religion, there are still so much areas that remain undisputed. There are still areas in the field of religion that remain to be untouched and simply ignored. The areas that cannot be explained cannot be test by scientific explanation. There are areas that can be denied that they exist even if they dispute that religion does not. If religion was birthed out of society, and there are a lot of atheists that can almost form a community out of themselves, how come they do not just create their own society that could affect the society of believers in the world? The argument about faith and the existence of God had been a long withstanding debate for centuries now and still, the world still contain a large body of believers that are willing to put faith first before reason. Does this make these people unintelligent beings? There had been thinkers as well who had defended the faith that had chosen to believe because they saw how reason cannot overcome everything, only faith can do that. The existence of religion cannot only be out of the desires of the leaders to keep society in line. It takes more than human power to be able to sustain this for centuries. If it was placed in the hands of mere humans, then there must have been a time wherein atheists have struggled for power and took the reigns of society to reverse the mindset. The protection around the concept of religion speaks tons for itself. It takes divine power to be able to stay significant for centuries for different peoples all over the world. Works Cited Pals, Daniel L. Seven Theories of Religion. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996 Palmer, Michael. The question of God: An introduction and Sourcebook. New York: Routledge, 2001.

The Reflection Of Continued Professional Development

This study provides a consisting critical contemplation of my learning advancement. I will discourse the subjects that I found interesting during the bringing of Research in IT faculty and which i logged during my surveies. This study is split into subdivisions which will supply an penetration into assorted subjects including the cardinal theoretical, conceptual and applied larning points that I have researched. It will depict, explicate and analyze how and where my acquisition has taken topographic point and will besides bespeak any events of significance that influenced my acquisition in general and in research methods and information engineering in peculiar I will besides advert the Learning Outcomes and explicate how my acquisition relates to this. I will reflection on my old apprehension and current and explicate what I am able to make better now? What new rules have I understood? What new competencies have I acquired? What inquiries remain? What would I make following clip? What surprised me? Who and what helped?Weekly log for RIT faculty and acquisition resultsBelow is a tabular array of my hebdomadal log that I have learnt during my faculty Lecture. The subjects that interested me are outlined in the tabular array below under â€Å" Important subjects † . The acquisition results are besides mentioned in the 3rd column. Lectureture and Date Important subjects Learning Results 1st Lecture ( day of the month 28.05.2010 ) 1.1How to pull off clip? Schedule an effectual survey program 2nd Lecture ( day of the month 03.06.2010 ) 1.2 How to make work with a squad? What is peer appraisal? Work efficaciously as a portion of squad. Critically appraise the quality of a assortment of given beginning. 3rd Lecture ( Date 10.06.2010 ) 1.3 What is academic research? What is benefit in research? We define clear research aims. 4th Lecture ( Date 17.06.2010 ) 1.4 What is beginning of literature reappraisal? Critically measure the quality of assortment of given literature beginning. fifth Lecture ( Date 24.06.2010 ) 1.5 Conducting the hunt? And What is literature reappraisal? Critically measure the research of literature study. 6th Lecture ( Date 07.07.2010 ) 1.6 What is Research position? What is Socio proficient attack? Argue the instance for a socio proficient attack to analyzing Information System. 7th Lecture ( Date 14.07.2010 ) 1.7 What is unfastened system? I learn about work centred analysis and soft system methodological analysis. 8th Lecture ( Date 21.07.2010 ) 1.8 What is supply concatenation direction? What is client relationship direction? Demonstrate an ability to choose a suited subject for probe appreciates its relationship. 9th Lecture ( Date 28.07.2010 ) 1.9 10 Lecture ( Date 05.08.2010 )1.1 How to pull off clip?In first Lecture I learnt about managing clip and it is really of import in our every twenty-four hours life. There are 24 hours in a twenty-four hours 7 yearss in a Lecture so all this clip how I manage this is called managing clip. Pull offing clip has three phases: ( REFERENCE ) Decide what you want to make Analyse what you are making Bettering the manner you do things Covering with the unexpected As an single I can make up one's mind how I best usage of my clip. From the reasech I have gathered I have devised my ain scheme to pull off clip below: A ) Fix a calendar/ Prepare a Lecture schedule/ Prepare a day-to-day organiser. B ) C ).1.2 How to make squad works? And what is team appraisal?In 2nd talk I learnt about the squad work which is really indispensable for our every twenty-four hours life. Team work: A squad is a group of persons working together to accomplish a common end. From the predating it follows tat squad work is a procedure where by a little figure of people normally 3-10 with complementary accomplishments become committed to a common intent and a range understanding on an specific marks. The all squad members ever maintaining in touch with the identify and unity of Numberss, ( Serrat, 2009 ) . I besides learnt about Peer appraisal. An advanced signifier of appraisal what pupils are involved in the appraisal of other pupils. I besides learnt rules of giving feedback. hypertext transfer protocol: //www.ied.edu.hk/apfslt/v5_issue2/sowm/figure4.jpgFigure 1. There is a chart shown holla which indicates the relationship of the of import qualities of the meaningful appraisal. ( Mui So, 2004 ) .1.3 What is research? How to make a research? and benifit of research? In 3rd Lecture I learnt that about research.Research: Includes any assemblage of informations, information facts for the promotion of cognition is called research. Mention? The Oxford Encyclopaedic Dictionary define research: The systematic probe into the survey of stuffs, beginnings etc in order to set up facts and new decisions. The Higher Education Funding Council For England defined research as original probe under taken in order standing. Three cardinal footings in this definition are deserving exploring- Original Addition cognition From the above definition I think research benefit is – Learning a subject in deepness Ability to work and Think independently In this Lecture I besides learnt research cogency, Research procedure and Research theoretical account besides.1.4 What is the beginning of litateture reappraisal?In 4th Lecture I learnt about literature reappraisal and seeking the literature Literature Reappraisal: This is relevant of description of the literature to a peculiar field in a subject. It gives an overview of what has been said, who the key written are, what are the prevalent theories and hypotheses. Ib nexus. There are two beginnings of litareture which are primary and secondary ( mention ) Primary beginning of litareture are: Reports Thesiss Electronic mails -Conference studies -Some Government Publication -Unpublished manuscript beginnings Secondary literature beginning are -Newspapers -textbooks -Journals -Internet -Some authorities Publication. So from all this beginnings I can happen our literature reappraisal. Aktar, M ( 2010 )1.5 Conducting the hunt? And what is literature reappraisalIn the fifth Lecture I learnt about carry oning hunt and this means†¦ †¦ Conducting the hunt: Restrict the extent of our hunt harmonizing the clip available. In carry oning the hunt I learnt about the cyberspace hunt engines are ( RIT talk? ? ? ) : -Google -Alta view -Ask Jeeves -A11 4 one meta hunt engines -Serious ( medical information ) -BUBL nexus I besides learnt about the pull offing the litaterure Reappraisal: Citation Relevance tree: It is a method for visually mapping the connexion betIen commendation. In each paper or article published by an writer. They will mention other paper and articles written by other writer or themselves and those paper will likewise cite others. As the connexion construct the authoritative nbrancing tree form is formed. I cab build commendation trees by utilizing a commendation index which is identifies how many times a peculiar articles has been cited and by whom. ( From Ib nexus ) From that Lectureture I besides learnt elements of good reappraisal and besides what is composing reappraisal when I write a literature reappraisal I need to care full about some points so our composing literature should be right. So I need to larn about this.6.1 What is Research position? What is Socio proficient attack?6th Lecture: Research Perspectives is really of import subject for research information engineering in 6th Lecture I learnt about research position. Research position: Approachs to and concluding behind, information systems reach become evident when vieId from five positions by moushowitz ( 1981 ) -Technism -Elitism -progress individuality -Pluralism -Radical unfavorable judgment ( From Lectureture notes ) I besides learnt about the Socio Techional Approach Socio proficient attack: -A combination of proficient system constituents and societal system constituents. -Provide counsel on what a better system is and how to accomplish it. -Socio proficient attack works betIen people and engineering. So the socio proficient attack is at that place for able to supply counsel on what a better system is and how to accomplish it. Aktar M ( 2010 )7.1 What is unfastened system? I learn about work centred analysis and soft system methodological analysisseventh Lecture: This Lecture I learnt about the Open system, what is the value of concatenation, what is concern procedure, Work centred analysis Soft Systems Methodology. Open system: An unfastened system is an province of a system in which it continuously interacts with its environment. Open systems contrast with closed systems, a system that is isolated from its environing environment. ( Lectureture notes )1.8 What is supply concatenation direction? What is client relationship direction?In lecture eight I learnt about average client relation direction and supply concatenation direction..Supply concatenation direction: SCM is an Lecture etronic option to the traditional paper concatenation supplying companies with a smarter faster more efficient manner to acquire the right client at the right clip. Example: Dell Company Customer relationship direction: CRM is the conservative and Lecturetive probe of prehistoric and historic remains includes Torahs and patterns deigned to protect present and past civilization resources. Example: Sainsbury, Tesco.ContemplationIn RIT faculty we learn tonss of subjects which related our I will besides advert the Learning Outcomes and explicate how my acquisition relates to this. I will reflection on my old apprehension and current and explicate what I am able to make better now? What new rules have I understood? What new competencies have I acquired? What inquiries remain? What would I make following clip? What surprised me? Who and what helped? Decision: Already the above treatment It is clear that, from this faculty I learn tonss of of import subjects which subjects helps us now and it will besides assist us in our future life. In research Information Technology faculty I have covered alot of subjects which Ire new and which will back up me throughout my surveies. From this faculty I learn how to do a log book and after completing every Lectureture I write our log book so all Lectureture sum-up I have in our log book so easy this log book help us in our assignment and this is besides a grounds this helps in our future life. In our Research Information Technology faculty category our Lectureture learn us about all land regulations for illustration in category clip do n't speak each other, do non eat nutrient or drinks in a category room, exchange our nomadic phone so from this category I all are know about the land regulations and now I all maintain this regulations and this is really of import for a pupil. From this facult y I besides learn how to make group work and what is peer appraisal so This can assist me in my future life when I join for a work so I all plants successfully with my co-workers.

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

Psychology paper - Essay Example One of the first similarities between what took place at the prison outside of Baghdad and what unraveled at the makeshift prison at Stanford is that the people portraying the guards had no previous experience in those roles. The United States soldiers only had experience as soldiers, but they still enforced their authoritative roles on their prisoners, much like the guards in the prison experiment. These roleplaying guards also did not have experience, though that did not stop them from making it known who had the greater power. In both cases, the soldiers and the pseudo-guards conformed to the roles of real prison guards the more that they exercised their power over the prisoners, doing what they could to dehumanize them. The guards and the prisoners alike had no choice but to accept these roles, even though the guards soon began to abuse their power. The abuse itself was similar in nature and in intensity. The purposes behind the abuse in both cases were to degrade and humiliate. The abuse was also used to instill a sense of fear in the prisoners, as well as to make it known who was in charge. The rights and bodies of the prisoners were violated, and they were denied essential aspects of a healthy life, such as food or a healthy environment.

How the Hop Hop Music Culture Spread Into Eastern Countries Essay

How the Hop Hop Music Culture Spread Into Eastern Countries - Essay Example Underground hip hop artists and various rappers and â€Å"hip hopsters† began recording and distributing music across America. Though hip hop/rap music was not considered mainstream American music, the artists and their investors were making profits off marketing the â€Å"underground† releases. Such underground artists include, The Sugar Hill Gangs's 1979’s "Rappers Delight† and â€Å"King Tim III’s Personality Jock† by the Fat Back Band (See Appendix #1 and #2). With underground hip hop and rap music spreading like wildfire throughout the Unitied States of America, it would soon prove to be no surprise that the controversial hip hop/rap music would soon be intorduced into mainstream American music. Its introduction would prove to be nothing short of extraordinary, triggering controversial and mixed emotions among America’s youth, parents, and of course, churches. The introduction of hip hop/rap into mainstream American music will neve r be forgotten, leaving countless mass media and personal stories of the adjustments to the revolution (See Appendix #3). The Induction of Hip Hop Music into Mainstream American Music A New York hip hop group called Run-DMC and Jam Master Jay is accredited with introducing hip hop music into mainstream American Music during the early 1980s. Because any type of change is controversial, the introduction of the hip hop genre was no exception. The new style and genre was for the most part, â€Å"clean-cut†, unlike much of the underground music that had been circling the nation during the 1970s. Run-DMC and Jam Master Jay didn’t rap about drugs, sex, or violence; instead, they rapped about normal teen life and the joys... This "How the Hop Hop Music Culture Spread Into Eastern Countries" essay outlines the phenomenon of hip-hop music's popularity. A New York hip hop group called Run-DMC and Jam Master Jay is accredited with introducing hip hop music into mainstream American Music during the early 1980s. Because any type of change is controversial, the introduction of the hip hop genre was no exception. The new style and genre was for the most part, â€Å"clean-cut†, unlike much of the underground music that had been circling the nation during the 1970s. Run-DMC and Jam Master Jay didn’t rap about drugs, sex, or violence; instead, they rapped about normal teen life and the joys of being a part of America’s youth (Bessie Cherry, 2008). They were the â€Å"good guys† of rap, you could honestly say (Bessie Cherry, 2008). In an interview with Letter Press Publications, Darryl McDaniels told Bessie Cherry, Executive Director of Communications for Letter Press Publications, that Run-DMC and Jam Master Jay’s goal for introducing rap into mainstream American music was to positively unify our youth, not to divide or destory it with lyrical adorations pertaining to sex, drugs or violence. McDaniels said that he is most certainly disappointed in how rap music has evolved and does not approve of the lyrics of so many of today’s American artists and the hip hop industry (Letter Press, 2008). â€Å"Several of today’s multi-million dollar production and networking alliances, are signing and promoting artists whose lyrical themes solely project sex, violence, death and destruction.

Game Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Game Critique - Essay Example In the AA game, the player engages in a virtual squad combat under strict rules of engagement and laws that result in a win and lose situations. The game, designed and published in the year 2002 by the United States Army involves the development of the first person shooter. The game serves to enhance proper communication to the public about the services that the army offers them. The game give the public a better soldier experience that is more educative, creative and entertaining. The game starts by having the player to create a soldier and take him through various military training processes before allowing him to go to the battlefield. The soldier moves through various obstacles as her or she gets trained using various weapons. At this stage, the player earns credit by shooting on target and passes different obstacles. If the player fails to pass all the obstacles, he is unfit to proceed to the next level hence repeats the whole process. The whole game is unfair as the game-play mostly favors the commercial side. Shooting the target to earn the credits is the principal players’ task at this point. The moving background in the game makes it difficult for the player to shoot at the target. The complication forces the player to repeat the process several times to pass the level. The next level of the game, the player takes his or her trained virtual soldier to the battlefield. In the battlefield, the soldier moves across the streets as enemies come from different sides shooting at him. There are also several hideouts for the soldier to protect it from the enemies’ bullets (Neiborg 1). If the soldier is hit by a bullet its life decreases and if it continuous the soldier eventually dies, and the game ends. At this level, the play still favors the commercial side as it has more sophisticated weapons and explosives at disposal unlike the player locked from the

Methodology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Methodology - Essay Example This section of the research will partly adopt Saunders’s research union approach (Saunders et.al 2009 p, 12-17) or model that consists of six stages that including the philosophies, approaches, strategies, choices, time horizons and techniques and procedures. Research Philosophy The most suitable philosophy forour study is pragmatism. Pragmatism enables the researcher to avoid philosophical issues that might arise from choosing either positivism or phenomenology. This will enable the researcher use the most appropriate approach to comprehend the research problem as it is neither constrained to reality nor philosophy (Saunders et al., 2009, p 108-120). Despite this elaborate choice, the research will apply interpetivism and subjectivism. The study will analyze current existing literature from various sources, that is, secondary data. The researcher will also attempt to analyze the data collected to make conclusions. The research will try study available body of knowledge on th e subject with the aim of establishing whether the body of knowledge is valid or not Collis and Hussey (2003, pg.48); this is referred to as epistemology. Since pragmatism is focused on giving solutions to the research questions, it is the most appropriate method to be used in the study. ... In the same view information, information from the various online databases such as EBSCO, Emerald, and Blackwell may be quantitave giving an objective view to the study. This means that a pragmatic approach would be appropriate for the research. Research Approach The research will employ qualitative data to meet the research objectives. This research seeks to explore and comprehend the social problem. The process will involve scrutinizing emerging inquiries and processes. The data will be analyzed in relation to the setting in which it was collected as indicate in the secondary data sources. The research will, therefore, use an inductive approach where the aspects will be built from a particular to a general thesis as the researcher construes of the information. The research data will come from publications, articles, and journals. The research will entail a broad analysis of previous researches in the same topics or those related to our research topic. Once the available literature has been analytically reviewed, the researcher will inductively build on the various aspects that have been or not been looked at by past studies. The study will involve the use of qualitative data collected from libraries such as online databases that the researcher will access to gain more relevant and updated information. These will include websites and databases such as EBSCO, Emarald, and Blakwell. The research will involve analysis of news postings on the various websites during the year. Research Strategy The research will employ ethnographic and archival strategies of research. The archival method enables the researcher to analyze or investigate events from a distance. The research

Plan to Develop a Global Virtual Team Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Plan to Develop a Global Virtual Team - Essay Example Plan to Develop a Global Virtual Team Various factors have led to the rise of virtual teams; in fact, the prime contributing factors are advancement in technology and globalization. At the commencement of a virtual team, there is unexpected bonus, whereby the team’s productivity is increasing, and the productivity of an effective virtual team increases according to the industry and organization. In this case, global virtual teams facilitates garnering of substantial talent from different parts of the world, thus eliminating the expenses incurred on travelling and creating the accessibility of low wage resources. On the other hand, this section of the paper focuses on discussing a plan of developing a virtual team, and these entail three steps. Step 1: Participating in the Selection Process of Virtual Team Members and Leaders Management of talent can help the team leaders in the process of formulating the team through an assessment of employee in contention for membership on a virtual team, in order to determine whether they possess the relevant skills (Ebrahim, Shamsuddin and Taha, 2653). Organizations may expand due to the use of a virtual team, thus evaluating candidate for the skills is relevant in the method of assortment for positioning in the outlook. In this case, forming a virtual team requires professionals to be aware of the skills and competencies that are to be d emonstrated by an assessment of potential virtual leader, in a case whereby they currently possess the skills or they will develop them due to additional training. Step 2: Ensuring Appropriate Selection, Training and application of Virtual Team Technologies Prior to formation of a virtual team, a human resource manager is expected to consider the relevant technologies that are needed to contribute to success. Therefore, the virtual workers may depend on the technologies for facial expression and assessment of nonverbal cues as the fundamental drivers of establishing the trust among the members (Wikibooks, 1). In the process of technology implementation, the team leader is expected to create a chance for the computer system in the organization to use a section of the board, and for the team members to share personal experience. Step 3: Train The virtual team members are expected to have a high level of competence by, thus making the odds that assembles the A-team of the virtual team with members that posses the relevant skills and competencies for effective navigation thought the environment. There are technical experts with the knowledge that is vital for the projects handled by the team and they may possess expansion of the communication skills that are required (Meena and  Kip, 1). On the other hand, there is need to establish an effective communicator with the ability to be a good virtual team leader. Therefore, training is necessary in order to facilitate the success of the virtual team, whereby the HR and the talent manager find it substantial to identify the gaps in skills in a way that ensures training in a way that closes the gaps. Cultural Differences between the Countries that Could impact the Culture and Performance of the Team Cultural differences are adding value and diversity to teams, though in some sections there are problems. Various cultural issues emanate for the global virtual team, whereby there are a bogus perception of similarity, whic h is contradictory insight of teamwork. For instance, South Korea has a position on the scales and index concerning other nations, whereby from dimensions in 2005, there are empirical and parameters that are verifiable in a way that the counties would be classified in a particular category (Malhotra and Majchrzak, 11). In fact, there were independent

Effects of the second war Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

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VALUE OF HUMAN CAPITAL - Essay Example The accountants continue to ignore the value of human capital and stick to the age-old theory of ratio analysis and interpretation of financial statements. Ironically, these too are fraught with errors and can be easily manipulated to deceive the stakeholders. The happenings at Enron are well known when all they were concerned was with maximizing shareholder value and hence they hid debts and overemphasized profits (Gardner, 2006). Dubious accounts were passed and the account that was presented to the public was fraught with discrepancies. At WorldCom the company’s profits were artificially boosted and costs were considered as capital investment, on which they even claimed depreciation (Bhattacharya, 2004). All these helped the company to sustain its apparently smooth and rapid earning growth. The stock prices were artificially escalated and the company loan was used to buy personal properties. Several such instances can be found round the world and such manipulation is possible only with the connivance of the auditors or the accountants. Human capital has become important as it is the source of innovation and strategy. Human capital is the combination of genetic inheritance, education, experience and attitude towards life and business (Bontis and Fitz-enz, 2002). Tacit knowledge is acquired by interacting with others and is connected to life’s experiences. This tacit knowledge has to be converted and retained within the organization so that they can compete in the knowledge-based economy (Marwick, 2001). Human capital adds value, is not substitutable and leads to sustained competitive advantage. At Microsoft, human capital is the greatest asset, is demonstrated by the fact that they form teams to accelerate design and test new software modules. They invest in people and technology and they have learnt how to share knowledge rapidly through out the organization (Edmondson, 2003). They

Thanksgiving Day Celebration Essay Example for Free

Thanksgiving Day Celebration Essay All families have their ups and downs, I would like to say that my family has had more ups than downs but we have defiantly faced many challenges as a family. My family is very small and close and we are a pretty happy family. We have our differences and we get on each other’s nerves now and again but in the end we have shared a lot of very special memories together. My mother is a single mom of three kids and I am the oldest. I have two younger brothers, Aaron who is 12 and DJ who is 6. They are very funny and outgoing kids. It has been my mom, my two brothers and I for a while now and we are doing really well. I have learned to be very grateful for the things I have as well as the opportunities that are given to me. My mom has taught my brothers and me that we should always work for what we get, and that respect is not given but earned. My family has had a lot of bumps in the road but we have always managed to pull through as a family and learn a little more with each bump. Happiness is a non-stop battle that we face as human beings where it is not a constant feeling. I believe that overall yes my family is a pretty happy family but like I said the feeling is not constant, some days we feel sad or mad at one another and for that point in time are not the happiest family. In the end family is always going to be there for you, blood runs thicker than water. I am very thankful for the family I was given, even though they are not perfect I still love them with all my heart. The perfect family does not exist and would be kind of weird if it did.

The wider events of he Crucible Essay Example for Free

The wider events of he Crucible Essay Furthermore, Johns power within the town (and his rebellious attitude) could be likened to that of extra salt in a pot, spicing up the broth; moreover, this line foreshadows Johns impact on the trials later on in the play: his confession to lechery, admittance that he saw the boots of Lucifer and accusation that the court is pulling Heaven down and raising up a whore These actions undermined the authority of the court and so greatly influence Salem; the theme of trial is also prevalent in The Crucible and the actions John Proctor takes in standing up to the court loosely reflect Arthur Millers denouncement of the House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities . In reference to the title of the play, John Proctor putting more salt into the stew is analogous to his actions stirring up the situation in Salem, which can be likened to that of a crucible- a melting pot used to remove impurities from precious metals. Additionally, Johns relationship with Elizabeth is symbolic of the towns puritan culture; it is very mundane and based upon stringent Christian morals. The act of John adding salt to a brand broth indicates his need for a more exciting and zestful relationship- which John finds in Abigail Williams. Elizabeth Proctor is the victim of the sins perpetrated by John and Abigail, and though she is a pious and devout Christian wife she is not wholly innocent and is partially to blame for the deterioration of her marriage. One of the themes throughout John and Elizabeths marriage is that Elizabeth is very cold towards John and that it is this sternness which drives John to Abigail; Miller uses the pragmatics of words to convey this feeling, with phrases such as You ought to bring some flowers into the house and It is winter in here yet Miller demonstrates that John feels that Elizabeth has been cold to him and wants to tell her this- yet cannot, because he doesnt want to anger her (I mean to please you, Elizabeth); he also uses this dialogue to indicate the general atmosphere of Salem as a whole, full of deceit and small talk to mask over the insecurities and sins beneath. John desperately craves forgiveness from Elizabeth and she must absolve him, (because divorce was unthinkable in a deeply religious town such as Salem) but she finds it hard to forgive him because he has committed Adultery, one of the ten commandments and therefore highly important to a devout Christian, and because he has further de nted her self-esteem I counted myself so plain, so poorly made, no honest love could come to me! by sleeping with another woman. John, however, is not the cause of Elizabeths low self-worth- the repressive nature of Salem is. In Salem, women arent allowed to express themselves, which leads to two extremes: one extreme is the kind of wild exhibitionism expressed by Abigail, Tituba (and various others) at the beginning of the play; or the other extreme of self-repression and not letting your true feelings be known, like Elizabeth. Without the ability to experience the things teenagers go through during pubity, Elizabeth is led to believe that no man finds her attractive and doesnt know how to trust them. Ergo, when John has an affair Elizabeth doesnt know how to forgive him and so Miller uses language to make their relationship seem like a trial, with phrases such as Oh, Elizabeth, your justice would freeze beer! (Use of imagery) The magistrate sits in your heart that judges you (Use of metaphor) and You will not judge me more, Elizabeth. In Act 2, when the accusations are just beginning, and have not affected the Proctors, John and Elizabeth feel no passion in their marriage and are struggling to make it work- but as the hysteria escalates, the adversity draws them closer together and rekindles their love. This rejuvenation is foreshadowed by talk of spring in Act 2, and also hints at Elizabeths pregnancy, well see green fields soon. Massachusetts is a beauty in the spring; the reason Miller includes these phrases in the dialogue between John and Elizabeth is to show that John wants a fresh start and is also literally looking forward to the spring time, as well as to provide clues for the audience as to what will happen later in the play. In Act 3, both John and Elizabeth show great courage and both do it to try and do what is best for each other- John confesses to lechery in a bid to discredit Abigails accusations and save his wifes life, even though doing do will ruin his good name and lead to a bad reputation in Salem; Elizabeth lies about Johns infidelity in an act of loyalty to her husband because she wants to protect his good name, even though she is a pious woman and by lying she is committing a grave sin, God damns all liars this shows Elizabeth values her husband more than her God. This scene is ironic because though both John and Elizabeth show great courage and loyalty, they damn themselves because John says that Elizabeth never lied and cannot lie, but she goes on to lie in an act of loyalty- even though telling the truth would have saved him from hanging. Reverend Hale sees that it is a natural lie to tell and that Elizabeth was just showing loyalty to her husband, but Danforth is too bigoted to see this, and is only interested in finding people guilty of witchcraft so he can exert his power. Miller clearly based Danforths character on Senator Joseph McCarthy to show that he sees McCarthy as a bigoted, power-hungry tyrant who is only interested in looking powerful and eliminating people who threaten his position. By Act 4, John and Elizabeth have become united through their ordeal and this is signified in their language, which is far more emotive, John says You are a marvel- Elizabeth, which shows that John is again madly in love with Elizabeth and wants to express how much he cares for her. The progression of their relationship is echoed by the development in the wider events of the story: Reverend Hale has denounced the court and is trying to save [Johns] life because damnations doubled n a minister who counsels men to lie; the people of Salem have started to rebel against the court you wander yet if rebellions spoke? Better you should marvel how they do not burn your province! and they have put a dagger in Parris door. It seems like Salem is being purified, much like gold in a crucible, and all the deceit and pretence is being washed away. Additionally, as the witch trials come to their conclusion, the trial within the Proctors marriage also comes to its resolution and this is the salvation John Proctor is searching for. Miller demonstrates this purification in Johns mind using stage directions, Elizabeth says I cannot judge you, John, there is a pause, and John says What would you have me do with the stage direction simply, a pure question; the word pure here indicates that John feels like he is close to redemption and this is confirmed when he says I would have your forgiveness, Elizabeth. Miller chose to make he dialogue which follows strikingly emotionally charged, because it is when John is finally given forgiveness, there are emotive stage directions such as he stands, as though with physical pain she is on the verge of tears and now pouring out her heart. There are many references back to the earlier themes in the play, of coldness and of trials; Elizabeth admits her faults suspicion kissed you when I did it were a cold house I kept!, gives John the forgiveness he craves, whilst referencing the idea of their relationship as a trial But let none be your judge I cannot judge you John, I cannot! I am not your judge, I cannot be (as though giving him release. ) and even asks for Johns forgiveness herself, forgive me, forgive me, John- I never knew such goodness in the world. The contrast in speech between act 2 and act 4 is staggering, whereas in act 2 John and Elizabeth exchanged pleasantries which cloaked their real feelings of uneasiness between each other, in act 4 they pour their hearts out and shower one another with compliments- it is a very beautiful passage made all the more precious by John Proctors impending death. Galvanised by his redemption and love for Elizabeth, John realises that the only way for him to truly forgive himself and appease the magistrate that resides within his own heart is to accept his hanging and make sure his name is not blighted by the cowardice of a false confession, How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name I do think I see some shred of goodness in John Proctor. Not enough to weave a banner with, but white enough to keep it from such dogs. The bravery John shows here is only possible because of the purification of his marriage and that his death would help cleanse the deceit and repression of Salem. The Proctors final act as man and wife is to share a kiss with great passion, exactly what was missing in their marriage after Johns affair with Abigail. Elizabeth speaks the final line of The Crucible and gives the audience closure on the literal witch trials of Salem, and her own personal trial within her marriage, and gives both herself and John the resolution they both desperately sought, He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him. In conclusion, The Crucible is an exceptionally nuanced play with myriad deep-rooted themes which can only be truly appreciated by absorbing every subtle word which Miller provides us with, and engaging with the pragmatics conveyed by either the actors reciting the play, or conjured by your own brain whilst reading. The Crucible works very well as an allegory for McCarthyism in America, beautifully juxtaposes the Seven Deadly Sins against the Ten Commandments and develops the story in parallel with the relationship of John and Elizabeth Proctor, whilst evoking a real sense of the social, historical and cultural climate of 17th Century Massachusetts. Above all, The Crucible is a fascinating and emotional play which was a pleasure to read and analyse. Kyle Sawhney Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Arthur Miller section.

Cultural Traits Of Lysistrata Analysis Religion Essay

Cultural Traits Of Lysistrata Analysis Religion Essay It is interesting to see how much culture varies from one civilization to another across the world and throughout history, but amazingly enough they all have many similarities. By reading these ancient poems and stories, I can relate too many of their cultural traits. I find the Greek culture to be the most interesting, and through the literature such as Aristophanes Lysistrata, I can see many cultural similarities. From the story Lysistrata, the women of Greece join together to voice their opinion that they should be treated as equals. The Peloponnesian War is taking place during the story and all the women are left at home alone because their husbands are off fighting in the war. The women are tired of their husbands being gone and want the war to end before all of Greece is destroyed. Led by Lysistrata, the women of Greece join together and take over the Akropolis and devise a plan to end the war by withholding sex from the men. From this culture we see that women are presumed to be kind of a slave for the men. Their duties should be the care of the house and the children. Cooking, cleaning, sewing and pleasing the husband were their jobs. Even in our culture today these things are considered to be the womans responsibilities. Their opinions did not matter to the men and were better left unsaid, the same as our culture in earlier years. Even today the opinion of a woman does not matter to som e men. They are believed to be not as intelligent as the man and should only concern themselves with house hold chores, caring for the children, and pleasing the husband. The men of this culture were dominant over the women and fought the wars, took care of the finances and headed the government. All of the decisions for Greece and the people of Greece were made by the men. Through Lysistrata, we can clearly see that the woman of Greece are tired of being treated as thought they were inferior, a common problem that we have had throughout our culture and history and probably always will. They believed they should have some influence in the government as well as the household, and that their opinion should be taken into consideration. In order for the women to be taken seriously, they withheld sex from the men and locked themselves in the Akropolis, vowing not to return home until the war had ended and their opinions be heard equally alongside the men. This fight for womens rights has been seen throughout our cultural history as well and seems, in a way, to still be going on today. The Greek culture and most of our culture has been dominated by the man. Our country was founded and ran by the men, with the women having many of the same responsibilities as the Greek women did in the story of Lysistrata. The Greek men did not believe the women had the right to have a say in the government or with matters of war, the same as the men throughout our cultural history. The same battle that is being fought by the women in Lysistrata for their rights has been fought by the women of our culture. The Greek men finally learned a lesson. They gave into the women and listened to what they had to say and ended the war, vowing that the women would have a say in things. This is similar to our culture in that, since the fight for womens rights has begun, they are now allowed to be government officials, hold jobs outside of the home, and even fight in wars. Another cultural trait of the Greek people was the worship of many Gods. Many of the ancient cultures back then believed in and worshiped more than one God. The people built their lives around these Gods. They lived in fear of these Gods and obeyed all of what they were told. They would have dreams and visions of these Gods or events of the future and believed they would come true since the Gods put it before their eyes. All that they did revolved around the worship of these Gods, even in their battles, they fought the way they believed the Gods wanted. They fought for the Gods with all they had never to do them unjust or have them disgraced. Unlike today where many people in our culture do not even worship a God or either show little in their respect or love for him. Our culture differs from the ancient Greeks, in that we are a monotheistic culture. We only believe in one God where as the Greeks had a dozen or more Gods. While the Greek culture revolved around the Gods, our religiou s culture, it seems, is slowly dying. You can see the importance of these Gods to the Greek culture by the many different statues and monuments they built to honor them. They made separate statues and monuments to worship each one of these Gods. You can also see the importance of the Gods through their literature. Almost every story or poem that I have read from the ancient Greeks has references to the gods and many are written about the Gods. We do not see this in our culture today since most of our literature contains nothing about our God. Our culture as a whole probably shows less respect or loyalty for our God than the Greeks did even for the least important God they had. Though many years apart, it is interesting to see how the cultural traits vary from one culture to the next throughout history. It is clearly seen, by reading the ancient poems and stories of the Greeks, how our culture and theirs compare and contrast. Although there are many different beliefs between our present culture and the ones of the past, many of their traits seem to have been carried over and are still present in our culture today.

Interest Groups and Collective Action on the Internet :: Business Roundtable Papers

Interest Groups and Collective Action on the Internet The Business Roundtable is a unique business-oriented interest group. The BRT was established in 1972, founded in the belief that the chief executive officers of major corporations should take an increased role in political debates and public policy on economic and trade issues. Indeed, the entire membership of the BRT is comprised of CEOs. However, a permanent seat on the BRT is granted to a company, not its CEO. For example, Philip Condit currently fills Boeing’s seat on the BRT, but if Boeing replaced Condit as CEO, his replacement would serve as Boeing’s representative. There are currently 131 corporations with seats on the BRT. This size is relatively small and the high-profile nature of its members makes the organization very influential in political circles. BRT is sometimes criticized as a â€Å"privileged group,† particularly by union-oriented interest groups, such as the AFL-CIO. Another benefit of BRT’s small membership is their capacity to overcome the collective action problem outlined by Mancur Olson in, The Logic of Collective Action. This theory says that political groups with large memberships face a â€Å"free-rider problem.† Each individual member rationally views their own participation as insignificant and therefore, does not actively participate even though they still receive the benefits in the end1. The BRT overcomes this problem through their small membership and their ability to meet face-to-face, once a year in Washington to set their agenda for the year and assign issue-oriented taskforces. Persona lized face-to-face meetings strengthen the relationships between members and reduce the chance of â€Å"free riding.† The BRT has a single stated objective – â€Å"to promote policies that will lead to sustainable, non-inflationary, long-term growth in the U.S. economy.† Although each member speaks as a individual, even before lawmakers, the BRT believes that â€Å"the basic interests of business closely parallel the interests of the American people who are directly involved as consumers, employees, shareholders, and suppliers.† In fact, the 131 members of BRT have a combined workforce of more than 10 million employees in the U.S.2 BRT membership is granted by invitation only. The company is the member and its representative is the Chief Executive Officer. The participation of the CEO is the distinguishing feature of the BRT. The BRT is headed by a chairman, two co-chairmen, a nominating committee chairman, a president and executive director.

Progression of Photography Essay -- History of Photography

Photography is an affection, a craving and an addiction. It is impossible to explain why people love taking photos, but once people are engaged in photography professionally, nothing will stop them. It has always been a great magic and momentous secret which opens the world to the people, which makes us look at the things used to be taken for granted with special attitude, which makes us ponder over the existing problems. Photography can truly be considered a magical act – here is a little black box that can capture the images of people and wild animals, strange places, and loved ones on a rectangular piece of paper that can be viewed days and years later. This is a visual trick that never ceases to delight the members of the audience, the magician most of all (Watson 78). Photography not only depicts life but also reveals things which are usually hidden behind our indifference, business, and pursuit for money. The word photography comes from two ancient Greek words: photo, for "light," and graph, for "drawing"(The History of Photography). "Drawing with light" is an apt way of describing the artistic field of photography. According to a world-renowned photographer, Ansel Adams, â€Å"You don’t take a photograph, you create it.† Each time a photograph is made, light or some other form of radiant energy, such as x-rays, is used to record an image of an object or scene on a light-sensitive surface at a specific time point (Watson 79). In the infancy of photography these recorded images were called sun pictures or heliograph. This was because sunlight was used to create the image. Mankind has been recording images at since the cave paintings of some 20,000 years ago. With the invention of photography, a realistic image that would have ta... ...ain — thereby giving you the ability to experiment with your photos in a way which was never possible with the film camera. So now most of the processing is electronic in the form of 0s and 1s as opposed to the mechanical and chemical operation in the traditional cameras. The cameras that operate based on this principle are known as digital cameras and the art of making digital images is called digital photography. Works Cited "Digital Photography." Digital - Photography - Tips. Web. 18 Feb. 2011. http://www.digital-photography-tips.net/history-of-digital-phtography-early-days.html. "History of Photography." About Inventors. About.com, Web. 17 Feb. 2011. http://inventors.about.com/od/pstartinventionsa/stillphotography.html. "What is Digital Photography." Make Use Of. Web. 16 Feb. 2011. www.makeuseof.com/tag/technology-explained-digital-photography/.

never say never :: essays research papers

"Ok, so let me see if I've got this straight." I was on the phone with my friend Bob. I've known Bob for years. He's a former Navy guy who now does electrician work at Disneyworld. He's seriously bright, but doesn't know squat about computers. And he was trying, once again, to figure out what the heck I was doing with my life. "You're starting another Notes publication?" He stretched out the word "another" so it seemed that he was entirely incredulous of my actions. "Well, yeah," I responded with some enthusiasm. "But this one's on both Notes and Domino." "I think I understand Notes. It's this kinda email, database, group-think thing from IBM, right?" I hadn't heard it described exactly like that, but he was certainly in the ballpark. "But what the heck is Domino? Didn't Kim Basinger play Domino in Never Say Never Again? You're writing about a Bond girl?" I shook my head. Of course, he couldn't see that through the phone. "Uh, no Bob. We're not doing a journal on James Bond, as cool as that might seem. We're doing a journal on Lotus Domino, a very cool server technology, and on Notes. They work together." "So you're not writing about Claudine Auger, who plays Domino Derval in Thunderball. And you're not writing about Kim Basinger, who pretty much remakes the character as Domino Petachi in Never Say Never Again," Bob was spouting Bond flick facts with a scary degree of finesse. "You're just doing another techy journal on this Lotus Domino thing?" "Yep." "But haven't you done this before?" Bob was right. We had done this before. In fact, we'd created no less than four Lotus journals, and a book. Back in 1993, I wrote a book called Lotus Notes 3 Revealed! It was the second book ever on Notes and was quite popular. Based on the success of the book, we did our first journal, Workspace for Lotus Notes. Since we were new to the whole journal publishing business, we partnered with The Cobb Group division of Ziff Davis. Ziff, as you probably know, is the largest independent publisher of computer magazines, and Cobb is their division that produces journals and newsletters. The other part of the "we" in this, by the way, is Managing Editor and Vice President of Publishing, Denise Amrich. While I've been responsible for the overall direction and technical vision of the publications (the editor-in-chief), Denise has been responsible for making it all happen.