Merton Truck Co

Case Analysis: Merton Truck Company Linear programming techniques can be used to not only determine the best production mix, but also to provide clues and data suggesting ways to improve profits. In 1988, Merton Truck Company was searching for ways to increase profits and ultimately its poor financial performance. Options being considered included changing their product mix by either removing or adding a product line, or renting capacity. In the following pages, the product mix and capacity options considered by Merton are evaluated, other factors and alternatives are discussed, and final recommendations are provided. Product Mix Based on the financials in 1988, Merton’s president suspected that discontinuing their Model 101 would result in stronger financial performance. With unit costs of $40,205 (including fixed overhead) and a sales price of $39,000, each sale of Model 101 resulted in a $1,205 loss. However, the president did not consider that fixed overhead (OH) was being allocated across all units, and the discontinuation of Model 101 would increase the overhead applied to Model 102. In reality, the $8. M in monthly fixed overhead exists regardless of the product mix and does not need to be allocated on a per unit basis to determine overall profit or financial performance. Therefore, fixed overhead was not considered until the end of each evaluation. In order to evaluate any alternative, we need to compare to current profit. Utilizing the data from Tables B and C to obtain production costs per unit as well as fixed overhead, Merton is currently making a profit of $1. 9M (Exhibit 1A). Since it was the specific request of the president, the impact of discontinuing Model 101 was evaluated. The first step was to determine the capacity of producing only Model 102, which is as follows based on Table A: Engine Assembly4,000 hours / 2 hours per unit = 2,000 units Metal Stamping6,000 hours / 2 hours per unit = 3,000 units Model 102 Assembly4,500 hours / 3 hours per unit = 1,500 units The resulting capacity of 1,500 units is the same as the current production level, so it was suspected immediately that discontinuing Model 101 would likely have a negative result. Without an increase in sales, discontinuing Model 101 would only result in increasing the fixed costs for Model 102 without increasing the revenue. As seen in Exhibit 1B, this would indeed result in a $1. 1M monthly loss for Merton. This is a phenomenon known as the death spiral, when the discontinuation of a seemingly unprofitable product causes otherwise profitable products to become unprofitable. Merton should continue to use that extra capacity to produce Model 101 to generate additional revenue and help absorb costs. The impact of making only Model 101was evaluated by determining the capacity using Table A: Engine Assembly4,000 hours / 1 hour per unit = 4,000 units Metal Stamping6,000 hours / 2 hours per unit = 3,000 units Model 101 Assembly5,000 hours / 2 hours per unit = 2,500 units As shown in Exhibit 1C, producing 2,500 units of Model 101 results in a $1. 1M loss. However, since the bottleneck is the Model 101 Assembly, additional capacity remains to produce Model 102 units: Engine Assembly1,500 hours remaining / 2 hours per unit = 750 units Metal Stamping1,000 hours remaining / 2 hours per unit = 500 units Model 102 Assembly4,500 hours / 3 hours per unit = 1,500 units Exhibit 1D shows that producing 500 units of Model 102 results in a $1. 4M profit; however, Merton is still better off in its current situation. In the current analysis, it is assumed that Model 102 Assembly cannot be used for Model 101, a logical assumptionsince Merton specifies the department where Model 103 will be made. However, if Model 102 Assembly can be used for Model 101, the bottleneck then becomes Metal Stamping at 3,000 units x $3,000 CM = $9. 0M – $8. 6M = $0. 4M profit. In a similar fashion, the ability to use Model 101 Assembly for Model 102 would also drastically change the impact of discontinuing Model 101. The bottleneck for producing only Model 102 would then become Engine Assembly at 2,000 units x $5,000 CM = $10. 0M – $8. 6M = $1. M profit. So far an improved product mix has not been identified, so linear programming was used to identify the production mix that would maximize profits using the following objective function: To maximize c1x1 +c2x2 Where: x1 = Number of Model 101 trucks to produce x2 = Number of Model 102 trucks to produce c1 = Contribution margin of Model 101 (excluding fixed costs) c2 = Contribution margin of Model 102 (excluding fixed costs) The contribution margins (CMs) were calculated in Exhibit 1 as: c1 = $3,000 c2 = $5,000 Subject to Constraints: Engine Assemblyx1 + 2Ãâ€"2 ? 4000 Metal Stamping2x1 + 2Ãâ€"2 ? 000 Model 101 Assembly2x1 ? 5000 Model 102 Assembly3x2 ? 4500 Negativityx1,x2 ? 0 Each constraint was graphed as a line by setting each variable to zero, and then determining which side of the line satisfied the equation by plugging in points (such as the origin). Once the relevant range of all the constraints was determined, the extreme points were clearly identified. The extreme points corresponding to the non-negativity, Model 102 Assembly, and Model 101 Assembly constraints were easy to identify, and the rest was determined by simultaneously solving the equations of intersecting lines. Exhibit 2 shows the graph, including the values in USD obtained when the extreme points are plugged into the equation. Many of the values were in accordance with expectations as they corresponded to the earlier analyses. The optimal product mix was identified as 2000 units of Model 101 and 1000 units of Model 102, which would generate $11. 0M – $8. 6M fixed costs = $2. 4M profit. The same result was obtained when the analysis was done in Excel Solver (see attached Exhibit 3, Model 101 & 102 Solver Results). The binding constraints seen in Exhibit 4 are no longer the Model Assemblies s seen with earlier combinations, but are now the Engine Assembly and Metal Stamping departments. The optimal product mix for Merton given their current product mix and constraints has been determined, but Merton is also considering the addition of a new Model 103. The values for contribution margin (CM) are given as well as the portion of departmental capacity required to produce 103. Based on the capacity information, it was determined that Model 103 would require 0. 8 hours of Engine Assembly, 1. 5 hours of Metal Stamping, and 1 hour of Model 101 Assembly per truck. The constraints and objective function were modified with these new values and run in Excel’s Solver, which determined that Model 103 should not be produced (Exhibit 5). Exhibit 6 provides a sensitivity report indicating a reduced cost of -$350, meaning that the CM of Model 103 would need to increase by $350 before it would make sense for Merton to begin producing Model 103. Capacity Options Given the capacity limitations seen thus far, it is a fair conclusion that increasing capacity may present an opportunity. In the optimal solution, there are limitations in both Engine Assembly and Metal Stamping. If one or both of these was increased, this could have a strong positive impact on profit. By referring to the sensitivity report for the optimal solution found in Exhibit 7, we see that Engine Assembly and Metal Stamping have shadow prices of $2,000 and $500 respectively, which means that an increase in one unit of capacity would result in the corresponding increase in profit. If Merton can rent capacity for less than the shadow price for either department, it should. Note that for each, this is only true for 500 units before the scenario would require reevaluation (see the allowable increase in Exhibit 7). Also, only one variable or department can be increased. If both are modified, the shadow prices may no longer hold true. Merton also has the option of increasing engine capacity by 2,000 hours using overtime. This would also result in a 50% increase in direct labor or: Model 101$4,000 current from Table B x 1. 5 = $6,000 (reducing CM by $2,000) Model 102$4,500 current from Table B x 1. 5 = $6,750 (reducing CM by $2,250) In the overtime tab (Exhibit 8), we add two additional variables epresentative of overtime production o1 and o2, including an additional constraint representing the maximum of 2000 hours. As seen in Exhibit 8, Solver has determined that overtime should be utilized to produce 250 additional units of Model 102. However, fixed OH has not been included in the calculations until afterwards as it does not impact the optimal solution, only the net profit. In this case however, the fixed overhead increases by $0. 75M to $9. 35M if overtime is utilized. Therefore, the $9. 35M is subtracted from this result and compared to our previous optimal solution net profit of $2. M. This was done in Exhibit 8, resulting in a net profit of less than $2. 4M. Therefore, Merton should not assemble engines on overtime under these conditions. Other Factors, Alternatives and Considerations Merton’s president would like to impose a marketing mix constraint requiring Merton to produce at least three times as many units of Model 101 as units of Model 102. By adding this constraint to the analysis in Exhibit 9, the marketing mix moves to producing 2,250 units of Model 101 and 750 units Model 102, and a net profit of $1. M . The marketing constraint hinders the potential total net profit by $500,000 because at optimal production levels, Merton will be able to produce a total net profit of $2. 4M. There are several other options th at Merton did not consider. Renting capacity from an outside supplier was one alternative, but a similar option would be to simply outsource (at a rate less than the shadow prices discussed earlier). It is also mentioned that at present, demand is great enough that the company is selling everything it produces. How much greater than supply is the demand? If it is much greater, Merton should consider raising its prices to reduce demand. If demand is expected to continue, Merton should also evaluate the ROI of investing in capital and permanently increasing capacity as an alternative to renting or outsourcing capacity. Merton should also consider the impact that learning curves and technology may have on their production process. As the Model 101 and 102 life cycle continues, the company should see a reduction in time and costs associated ith every aspect of the truck manufacturing process as a result of learning curves. It can be reasonably estimated that labor hours per vehicle will be reduced due to learning curves (which result from staff experience and familiarity with the production process), and that Merton will therefore be able to increase the total volume of vehicles produced. Technology could also play an important role in reducing the time and costs needed to produce the vehicles, so it is important that Merton maintain a watchful eye on new production methods and machinery. Investments in technologies can reduce the firm's fixed overhead costs and increase profits and improve productivity. In addition, technologies can help reduce the costs of designing, developing, and manufacturing a product which can help the firm to improve product quality and to charge a higher price. Conclusion Merton’s president was absolutely correct in his supposition that the company could improve its financial performance by changing their product mix, though wrong in his initial thoughts on which actions to take. The value of linear programming techniques in evaluating possible solutions is clear, particularly in that it quickly provides clues of other options to consider (such as adding additional Engine Assembly Capacity). Based on the information provided here, further recommendations for Merton would be to (1) immediately change the production mix to 2000 Model 101s and 1000 Model 102s, (2) evaluate anticipated demand and the impact of a capital investment to increase capacity, and (3) seek quotes for capacity rental or outsourcing Engine Assembly.

Poverty and crime rates Essay

There are people in the world so hungry, that God cannot appear to them except in the form of bread† (Mahatma Gandhi). Poverty is being in a state that is extremely poor and basically inhabitable. The correlation between poverty rates and crime rates has been examined through many different perspectives and by many different people. The majority of people believe that crime rates are higher in more developed countries and lower crime rates in undeveloped countries. Personally, I believe the opposite that crime rates are higher in undeveloped countries and lower in developed countries. There are many factors that affect high crime rates in a deprived country. The factors that affect high crime rates the most are that people in a poor society can not afford what they wish, the crime rates are higher in poor countries because people are not well educated and lastly, the government of a developing country is not as strict compared to the government of a developed country. Therefore the crime rates are higher in an undeveloped country. There are many factors that affect crime rates the major one is poverty. Crime rates are higher in an undeveloped country rather than a developed country since people would tend to steal what they cannot afford. The first factor that would cause a person of a poor country to steal something is if they cannot afford what they want. For example, in Africa many people cannot even afford their personal and physical necessities. The small community of Africa cannot afford enough food to fill up their stomach for a single night and will therefore have to rob food for themselves and their family.. Another reason why people in a poor country would commit more crimes is since they cannot afford the luxuries that they desire. Even though luxuries are not a component of survival they still play an important role in self confidence. For example, Car theft is much more higher in South Africa compared to North America since the people in South Africa cannot afford the luxuries of Mercedes or Porsche and would therefore steal the expensive luxuries that they want to be equal to everyone else. Next, the people of lower income feel excluded from society since they feel that they do not â€Å"fit in† with the rest of the community. For example, if one is wearing bum company footwear and the rest of the people in the community are wearing Nike company footwear then the person whom is wearing the bum company footwear would feel excluded from the rest of the society. This would cause the person of lower income to steal the expensive footwear just so they don’t feel excluded and higher their self esteem. Another reason why people who cannot afford what they want is due to the impact of jealousy on the lower income community’s mind. For example, Kristopher Gutierrez beat one of his best friends after realizing that he had a relationship with his girlfriend Kristopher is charged for aggravated assault1. This shows that jealous rage can cause one to commit any crime for revenge. Crime rates are higher in countries with more poverty since people do not have proper education. Firstly, the education system in poor countries is more weak therefore people in those poor countries are not well educated and do not know what’s wrong and what’s right. For example, statistics show that 121 million children worldwide are out of education2. This shows that children whom are becoming uneducated by dropping out of school at such a young age are not able to realize what’s wrong and what’s right. These 121 children would not be able to pursue their future career and earn a respectable amount of money since they would not have knowledge about the opportunities that are available to them. This would cause the children to get involved into horrible thing such as theft and burglaries. Read more:  Essays About Crime Rate Increase Another reason that causes higher crime rates in a country is due to the weaker teachers in the poor country. The teachers have probably also committed crime in their life. This would cause the teachers with wrong knowledge to teach their students the same knowledge they have. For example, if a teacher has the knowledge that crime and theft is alright and acceptable this teacher would teach their students that theft and crime is acceptable then the students would go off thinking it’s okay and possibly even commit crimes. Another reason that affects higher crime rates in an uneducated country is due to the parents of the students that are also not well educated and are therefore not a good role model towards their children. The children learn these horrible things by their parents. Since each family has their own values the children consider these crimes to be acceptable. For example, the parents of a poor family would probably have to rob clothing for their children. When the children realize that their parents stole clothing for them they will follow their parents and do the same. Additionally, the government systems of poor countries are much less strict towards crimes. Such as, the police control officers don’t carry many weapons and devices since they cannot afford them. In Canada, the police officers carry many weapons around with them such as guns, knives and GPS systems compared to Africa police officers can’t carry many weapons around with them maybe only one and cannot afford to purchase GPS. This would cause the community to think that it is easy to get way with committing crimes. Also, the police would have less control over the criminal since the criminal would bribe the police officer with money and most commonly the police officer would fall into this. Another reason why a more undeveloped country with an easy going government system would commit more crimes is due to the laws and punishments which are not strict and the criminals would feel that the punishment is manageable. For example, in South African countries such as Botswana the government system is less strict compared to a developed country such as Canada. The laws in Botswana for crime is more easy going if you are caught speeding then you can bribe the officer for money although the law in Canada obviously does not allow you to bribe the officer. This proves that the laws in Botswana are much less strict in comparison to Canada. Another reason that affects crime rates in a poor country is due to the fact that people feel committing a crime is easy to deal with and the police force is less committed to their job since the officers know that they would not get in much trouble even if they do not perform their duty properly. The government is less strict. For example, the community of Botswana and Africa feel that it is easy to get away with theft. This makes theft a much more common aspect of their life since it is so easy to commit and so easy to deal with the punishments. If one commits a crime in Canada they feel guilty and very afraid of the horrible outcomes such as all of the punishments and years in prison they have to deal with. Therefore, the population of Canada would tend to commit fewer crimes in fear of the outcomes. In conclusion, the crime rates are higher in an undeveloped country and this is proven by many aspects. Firstly, since people cannot afford what they want. The people of some undeveloped countries cannot even afford the necessities for survival such as food. Also the people of an undeveloped country cannot afford the luxury that they desire they feel excluded from society which causes them to commit crimes to achieve what they desire and to â€Å"fit in† with everyone else. Secondly, in undeveloped countries the society is not well educated. The population that is suffering through poverty does not know what is wrong and what is right. Therefore commit crimes thinking it’s okay to do. The students don’t have a good role model to look up to since the teachers and parents have also committed crime in their past and the parents do not realize it’s unacceptable to commit a crime. Thirdly, since the government system is very weak and not so strict in comparison to the government system of a developed country. Due to the fact that the government system is not strict in a poor country the populations of that poor country feel that it is easy to get away with committing a crime. Also, since the police force is less committed to their duty they become bribed very easily especially with money. Additionally, since the laws and punishments of an undeveloped country are not strict the community commits crimes easily. Overall, it is proven that the crime rates are much higher in a more undeveloped country. Works Citied Bennett, William J. , John J. DiIulio, and John P. Walters. Body count: Mora; poverty–and how to win America’s war against crime an drugs. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1996. Print. Ross, Sherwood. â€Å"OpEDNews- Page 2 of Article: Why Poverty Spreads Across America. † Opednews. com Progressive, Liberal United States and International News, Opinion, Op-Eds and Politics. N. p. , n. d. Web. 25 Sept. 2012. . Short, James F.. â€Å"Crime and Society. â€Å"Poverty, ethnicity, and violent crime. Boulder, Colo. : WestviewPress, 1997. 220-245. Print. Taylor, Blake. â€Å"Poverty & Crime – Fundamental Finance. † Fundamental Economics. N. p. ,n. d. Web. 30 Sept. 2012. . Poverty vs. Crime Rates Essay By: Mariam Mirza For:Mrs. Rowley.

An Overview of Sleep Deprivation and Its Effect on the Human Body

An Overview of Sleep Deprivation and Its Effect on the Human Body Sleep deprivation is the general term given to describe a state that occurs due to an inadequate amount of sleep or a consistent low quality of sleep. Sleep is as vital to the human body as food or water, and an insufficient amount of sleep can have severe effects on both physical and mental health. Disruptions to the sleep cycle and circadian rhythms such as shift work or jet lag have consequences on how the body functions. A person who is sleep deprived is more likely to have impaired judgment, is accident prone and make decisions that could affect them negatively. An individual who has not slept for more than 24 hours have a severe lack of hand eye coordination and suffers from similar symptoms of a person who has a blood alcohol level of 0.1. Sleep deprivation is not only linked to physical health, but also to mental health and the way we perform daily tasks. Sleep deprivation can occur due to multiple reasons. The most common reason for sleep deprivation is personal choice. Many people chose to go to bed at a late hour after spending time socialising or watching television, causing a reduce in the amount of sleep they get. Another reason is illness, as something such as tonsillitis can keep a person awake due to pain they are experiencing and they sleep poorly. Other reasons include sleep disorders such as insomnia or sleep apnoea, a poor sleeping environment or shift work. The topic of sleep deprivation on health related to psychological principles through altered states of awareness, or often known as altered states of consciousness. Consciousness is the term given to a process by which the brain creates a model of internal and external experience. Altered state of awareness is the term that describes a state where thoughts and actions that differs from that of a normal conscious person. Sensory overload, sleep deprivation and trauma can all lead to an altered state of awareness. A study conducted at Harvard University uncovered that a sleep deprived brain can not be in control of its sensorimotor functions and can have long term negative affects. Circadian Rhythms are mental, physical and behavioral changes that follow a 24-hour to 25-hour cycle, responding mainly to the light and darkness in the environment. Circadian Rhythms are found in most living things such as animals, humans, plants and even tiny microbes. The study of Circadian Rhythms is called Chronobiology. The body has more than 100 circadian rhythms. Each unique 24-hour cycle influences an aspect of your body’s function, including body temperature, hormone levels, heart rate, blood pressure and even pain threshold. Scientists can’t explain how this helps your brain ‘keep time’ but they do know the brain relies on outside influences known as zeitgebers, to keep it on a 24-hour schedule. Exogenous Rhythms are regulated by external events in the environment. Endogenous Rhythms are internally driven. External Factors associated with Circadian Rhythms: Daylight – when daylight hits your eyes, cells in the retinas signal your brain Sleep Social Contact Regular Meal Times All of these things send time keeping messages to your brain. Sleep hygiene refers to habits and practices that are conductive to sleeping well on a regular basis and can be introduced through different situations such as a repetitive sleep wake cycle. You sleep better when your temperature is lowest, which is commonly in the early hours of the morning between 4 and 6am. You’re most likely to wake up when your temperature starts to rise, between 6am and 8am. As you age, your brains ‘pacemaker’ looses cells which changes your circadian rhythms – mainly noticeable in how you sleep. There are 5 stages of sleep. The first 4 stages of sleep are non REM (Rapid Eye movement). The fifth and final stage of sleep is REM (Rapid Eye Movement). Each cycle last approximately 90 minutes, and each person experiences roughly 4-6 cycles per night. The first time through the cycle you only spend about 10 minutes in REM Sleep – which increases to 30 to 60 minutes by the last cycle. When a person suffers from sleep deprivation, they do not experience each stage of sleep and therefore do not get the benefits they would such as waking up feeling refreshed. There are both long term and short term effects that occur when a person does not get an adequate amount of sleep both with chronic sleep deprivation and partial sleep deprivation. Chronic sleep deprivation is where a person does not get enough sleep over an extended period of time, and suffer from the effects long term. Partial sleep deprivation is the term given to a person who has some sleep during a 24-hour period but not enough to meet needs, and may only occur occasionally. In cases of extreme sleep deprivation, psychosis can occur, where a person experiences being desensitized to surroundings and at a loss of personal identity. They struggle to cope with people and the environment, however this usually only occurs after 6 days of sleep deprivation. The most common short term effects of sleep deprivation include anxiety, drowsiness, becoming easily distracted, a decreased alertness and cognitive impairment and severe stress. These symptoms occur as the sleepiness a person feels slows down their thought processes, putting them in an altered state of awareness. Concentration levels are lowered and it becomes more difficult to complete complex tasks. The nerve connections that make our memories are strengthened during sleep, and therefore sleep deprivation causes stress and forgetfulness. Without sleep, anything learned or experienced over the day will not be embedded in short term memory. In addition to these short term affects that severely alter an individuals state of consciousness, long term effects are even more dangerous. People who suffer from chronic sleep deprivation are more likely to experience anxiety disorders and depression. They are also at a higher risk of chronic health problems such as high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke. The interruption of circadian rhythms can lead to these problems and severely affect a persons mental health and physical well being.

Crosstalk IT Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Crosstalk IT - Coursework Example The first type of coupling or conductive coupling is a result of the establishment of physical contact between conductors. Inductive crosstalk results when the current passing through a single conductor results in the generation of a similar current in another conductor. The third type of crosstalk or capacitive coupling is the resultant of the coming together of two or more conductors such that they begin to act as a capacitor. Figure 1: Introduction to Crosstalk. Source: polarinstruments.com Crosstalk may be PREVENTED by enabling the positioning of conductors to be at respective distances. Instead, the introduction of insulation between the conductors may also result in the lessening of crosstalk. Practically it is not possible to separate out wires in distances therefore the option for insulation is better. Crosstalk due to inductive capacitance may be eliminated by twisted the inducing cables around each other. The inter-wound cables are often referred to as twisted pair cables. The way crosstalk gets reduced is due to the reduction of the field size cross section on which crosstalk may occur. Thus electromagnetic interference gets reduced considerably. Digital signals are often affected less or not at all by crosstalk. The signals mostly affected are those that are analogue in nature. The term has been chosen owing to my personal experience of handling issues related to it in my organization. The networking setup had old fixtures within the entire organizational setup and had to be replaced with better cables that proposed reduced interferences and thus lesser possibilities of crosstalk. CAT 6 CABLE Ethernet or LAN to put simply is the means by which the computer systems present within a closed area are connected together into a network via hardware cables. The cables used for the said process are of various standards. CAT 6 Cable is one of them. The technology of the Ethernet is integral for organizational networks and so is the presence of CAT 6 cable in it. Figure 2 Cat 6 Cable. Source: http://www.openxtra.co.uk/articles/category-6-cat6-cable It is given the name CAT 6 because it belongs to the sixth generation of cables that have been made for the Ethernet technology. Specifically it may be said that it supports the following gigabit Ethernet technologies: 10BASE-T/100BASE-TX and 1000BASE-T/1000BASE-TX. The cable consists of eight wires just like its predecessor Cat 5 cable. However it is different from its former version in the manner that it makes use of all its 4 pairs in data transfer. The Category 6 Cable was used in the establishment of the Local Area Network of the Organization for which I work. The selection and successful installation of this cable was my task and that is how I encountered it. This cable was preferred over the rest of the available option because it is the latest version of cables that complies fully with the standard Ethernet Protocols fo Data Transfer and provides efficient data transfer without any da ta loss. MP3 MP3 is a short form of MPEG-2 Audio Layer III. It is a standard format for digital music storage that was designed by Motion Pictures Experts Group (MPEG) around mid-1990s. High quality audio files can be created using this standard with extremely optimized storage space. MP3 format is widely used over the internet to share and transfer audio files. How the magic of MP3 works. The

Media and Cultural Diversity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Media and Cultural Diversity - Essay Example These movies constructed white men as heroes and guardians of morality and civilization, white women as frail but morally superior figures, and African-American and immigrant men and women as uncontrollable sexual deviants who threatened civilization. These films reflected the fears of the white middle class that massive immigration, waves of black migration to the North, and the increasingly public role of women were irrevocably changing American society and threatening the power of the traditional dominant group in the United States: white middle- and upper-class men. In the 1910s and 1920s the film industry was fascinated with rape in silent feature films. Out of a sample of fifteen of the most popular feature films from 1915 through 1927, eleven contained single or multiple scenes of attempted rape.(1) The attempted rape served as a transitional point for the films and indicated some momentous change in the story line was about to occur. But more importantly rape also acted as a metaphor for larger cultural concerns. Indeed, the action initiated by the sexual violence operated as a symbolic episode that legitimized the power and dominance of white men of the middle and upper classes, who were united through a common culture of respectability that emphasized etiquette and genteel values (Bushman, 1993). Attempted rape scenes in these popular films developed a triangular relationship between the white, manly hero saving his white, female love interest from the sexual violence of the African-American or immigrant rapist. Such plots were based upon a long tradition of melodramatic story-telling with clearly defined notions of good and evil, and many films followed the time-worn traditions of the past. But because films defined white men as good and powerful, white women as objects of sexual violence or adoration, and African-American and immigrant men as violent, all helped to reinforce the cultural perception that white middle-class men were powerful, and that civilization depended on that power. These films defined images of all three types of people by juxtaposing them against the others: logical and powerful white manhood contrasted with weak and passive womanhood and with the destructive sexual energy of the more "primitive" manhood of African-American and southern- and eastern-European men. In short, silent feature films often used rape to preserve and support dominant white manhood, to subordinate women, and to perpetuate negative stereotypes of non-Caucasian males. Further, the metaphorical form these movies used to c onvey that power--rape--also created a highly charged atmosphere of sexuality. Dersu Uzala [1975]: This film, directed not by a Russian but a Japanese (the famous director, Kurosawa) using mostly Russian or Soviet actors and staff, is nonetheless a classic of Russian cinema in the same way that the St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow is a symbol of Russia despite having been designed by an Italian. An Imperial Russian Army survey party in pre pre-WW1 times goes to chart previously uncharted lands in Eastern Siberia.

Human resources Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Human resources - Essay Example It is therefore imperative for HR management to be well versed with different versions of cultural values of the host nations so as to achieve desirable goals. Their policies are ought to be implemented in light of applicability to specific cultures and laws. There would also be need to attract, retain and motivate local people to improve the operations of an organisation in a new environment. It is significant to note that in industrialized nations such as the US, personal economic achievement is presumed to be the prevailing notion that drives people according to Carrel (1995). Employees are bound to be motivated by the gains they get from their work in form of salaries hence it would be recommended that a company entering such a market should also take into consideration the needs and aspirations of the peoples who live there. On the other hand, in the former Soviet Union, Asia and other European Nations the collective mental programming from decades of communism has taken a heavy toll on them, Chris Brewster (1996). Such mentality as, â€Å"why work hard when wages do not increase?† is very common. It can be plainly seen that the differences between socialist economies and free market economies are glaring and are of considerable significance for HR professionals. 4. The Human Resources Management (HRM) has a vital role to play in motivating employees in order to improve their performance as well as productivity within any given organisation. In view of this assertion, it can be noted that Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is perhaps the most appealing theories for Human Resources (HR), professionals. Thus according to Maslow, cited in Michael R. Carell et al (1995:206), â€Å"when a need occurs, motivational tension develops and is directed towards satisfaction of the need.† Thus the hierarchy comprises of five levels of needs which need to be satisfied as a way of motivating

Bibliography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

Bibliography - Essay Example The relevance and appropriateness of the preservice teacher education has raised policy debate among the legislators in different states, with some considering it as a needless detour for the teaching profession. Kip Tellez has backed this assertion through a completed seven-year biographical study of a teacher who did not have the preservice experience, but has applied psychological and instructive resources to emerge as an effective alternative route teacher. Further, while educational training through coursework and higher degree qualifications form a vital component of the teaching content, such qualifications do not necessarily amount to producing effective teachers who are able to pass over educational knowledge to students in an effective manner. The methodology applied in the case study was lengthy interviewing of the participant teacher, and thus several limitations might befall the results obtainable, regarding alternative route teaching being equally effective. The observe d transformation of the capability of the teacher from a mathematics and English teacher to the principal of a new charter elementary school serves to back the assertions that alternative routes to teacher education are effective. The case study concludes that it is not the actual application of well defined methodologies of teaching or instructive methods, but the more psychologically a teacher is connected to the students, that enables a teacher, whether with previous preservice teacher education or the one from alternative routes, to understand the educational needs of the students, and thus be able to deliver knowledge appropriately. The relevance of this article by Kip Tellez is that; the case study reveals that it is through enthusiasm and gaining deeper insights into the students’ education understanding needs, that a teacher can become effective in delivering

The Feasibility of Virtual Fitting Room in the Fashion Industry Literature review

The Feasibility of Virtual Fitting Room in the Fashion Industry - Literature review Example The essay "The Feasibility of Virtual Fitting Room in the Fashion Industry" explores Virtual Fitting Room, its Feasibility in the fashion. Technology, in the modern day business, transcends the use of online retail stores towards the use of mobile applications and sophisticated software. It is arguable that the virtual fitting room application is highly feasible in contemporary fashion business. The advent of fashion stores helped transform shopping, as customers would acquire access to products without visiting physical stores. These stores provide applications for carts and financial transaction. Online shopping has recently developed thereby threatening to replace traditional shopping in real shops. Some shoppers, however, still prefer real sopping to online shopping for notable cited reasons. To begin with, there are serious security concerns, as fraudsters establish sites for conning consumers. In addition, there are grave technical difficulties that some customers face while ma king transactions. For instance, remembering passwords is often one of the major technical issues that customers face. In spite of the online shopping development in fashion marketing, the issue of size and measure remains a great hindrance to online shopping. It is essential to highlight that size and fit are rarely standard across all brands. This leads to a significant amount of product returns thereby hindering sales and creating extra costs for retailers. The use of augmented reality directly solves this problem.

Billboard Influence On Social Issues Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Billboard Influence On Social Issues - Essay Example Authorities shouldn’t let advertisers place a high pictorial advertisement in congested areas. This study hasn’t put significant light on billboard influence on social issues. For instance, billboards used to contain exaggerated content, which doesn’t have a possible existence. Such falsify practices often blow mistrust environment among people. The author of the study is failed to make logical arguments in the study. He expressed its soft feelings for the business community. Society shouldn’t be dumb on the name of the flourishing business activity. Whatsoever is containing an anoxic substance for society, it shouldn’t let allow proceeding. The structure of the essay isn’t well formulated. Hence, the author has been found with deprived thoughts regarding illustrating the significance of billboards. He attempted to give an edge billboard advertisement for a digital advertisement. The author of essay aimlessly attempted to highlight the existence of billboards nearby villages. African-American neighborhoods have a higher percentage of public service billboards dealing with issues such a dunked driving and school dropout. However, the billboard isn’t only serving to business entities. These have else usages including political promotion campaigns, maps, and addresses. Perception molds mind into a thought set those small business owners often us inexpensive methods to brandish their products. Similarly, the bombardment of billboards is from them. They want the customer to get eased in finding them. Reliability of source references is so important for writing a valuable study. Hence, Edquist, Jessica has significantly explored the impact of billboards during simulated driving.

Compensation Management Essay Example for Free

Compensation Management Essay Compensation does not refer, however, to other kinds of eployee rewards such as recognition ceremonies and achievement parties. The ultimate objectives of compensation administration are: efficient maintenance of a productive  workforce,  equitable pay, and compliance with federal, state, and local regulations based on what companies can afford. The basic concept of compensation administration—compensation management—is rather simple: employees perform tasks for employers and so companies pay employees wages for the jobs they do. Consequently, compensation is an exchange or a transaction, from which both parties—employers and employees—benefit: both parties receive something for giving something. Compensation, however, involves much more than this simple transaction. From the employers perspective, compensation is an issue of both affordability and  employee motivation. Companies must consider what they can reasonably afford to pay their employees and the ramifications of their decisions: will they affect  employee turnover  and productivity? In addition, some employers and managers believe pay can influence employee work ethic and behaviour and hence link compensation to performance. Moreover social, economic, legal, and political forces also exert influence on compensation management, making it a complicated yet important part of managing a business. Compensation and Reward system plays vital role in a business organization. Since, among four Ms, i. e Men, Material, Machine and Money, Men has been most important factor, it is impossible to imagine a business process without Men. Advantages of Fair Compensation System: Therefore a fair compensation system is a must for every business organization. The fair compensation system will help in the following: 1. If an ideal compensation system is designed, it will have positive impact on the efficiency and results produced by workmen. 2. Such system will encourage the normal worker to perform better and achieve the standards fixed. 3. This system will encourage the process of job evaluation. It will also help in setting up an ideal job evaluation, which will have transparency, and the standards fixing would be more realistic and achievable. . Such a system would be well defined and uniform. It will be apply to all the levels of the organization as a general system. 5. The system would be simple and flexible so that every worker/recipient would be able to compute his own compensation receivable. 6. Such system would be easy to implement, so that it would not penalize the workers for the reasons beyond their control and would not result in exploitation of workers. 7. It will raise the morale, efficiency and cooperation among the workers. It, being just and fair would provide satisfaction to the workers. 8. Such system would help management in complying with the various labor acts. 9. Such system would also bring about amicable settlement of disputes between the workmen union and management. 10. The system would embody itself the principle of equal work equal wages. Encouragement for those who perform better and opportunities for those who wish to excel. Need for designing of compensation Policy: After going through the role and essentials of a sound compensation system, it becomes imperative that every business organization should be set up for itself a proper Compensation Policy. The Management of the organization must have well-designed Compensation Policy. The policy calls for deciding the criteria for promotions, up-gradations etc. It would also be necessary to fix up the standard expectations from each and every workmen/employee. The policy should determine the norms to be followed for Performance Appraisal or Job Evaluation. It should also chalk out the need for training, provisions for fringe benefits, welfare schemes etc. It must prescribe the manner in which such benefits would be extended and levels within the organization to which such benefits are extendable. The incentive schemes and its details, Pay package structure, Tax implications etc. are matters of concern while designing the compensation Policy. Importance of Compensation System: Money makes the mare go is the proverb. It holds good for all the factors participating in the business process expects its fair share of prosperity of the business. Compensation/ Reward System play a vital role in the business organization. And its importance can be very well ascertained as follows: 1. Sound Compensation/Reward System brings amicability and peace in the relationship of employer and employees. . The system brings out the best out of every employee in the organization. It aims at creating a healthy competition among them. And as such, encourages them to work hard and efficiently. 3. The system provides adequate opportunities to those who wish to perform better. The system provides growth and advancement opportunities to the deserving employees. 4. The system upholds the principle of equal wages. It provides transparency and parity too. 5. The perfect Compensation system provides platform for happy and satisfied workforce, this minimizes the labour turnover. The organization enjoys the stability. 6. The organization is able to retain the best talent by providing them adequate compensation thereby stopping them from switching over to another job. 7. The business organization can think of expansion and growth if it has the support of skillful, talented and happy workforce. 8. The sound Compensation system is hallmark of Organization’s success and prosperity. The success and stability of organization is measured with pay-package it provides to its employees. 9. Both employer and employees get benefited because of the sound Compensation System. 0. A sound Compensation System helps the organization keep pace with changing environment. It helps the organization to cope up with the wage levels in neighboring industries. 11. Sound Compensation System minimizes the complaints from the employees, provides them the congenial work environment to perform better and sets up for them the targets to be achieved. Definite targets help employees kn ow their role in the organization, which minimize wastage, and enhance overall efficiency. It also helps organization to reduce the cost of production and maximize profits The Compensation System Time RatePiece rate BonusProfit sharingIndirect Monetary Incentive Time Rate System: This system is divided into three categories. Time Rates Ordinary level High Wage LevelGraduated Time Rates Ordinary Level: It is calculated on time (daily, monthly, weekly etc. )The formula for calculation of salary is Rate per hour X Hours worked = Earnings (RPH X HW=E). High Wage Level: It is calculated on hourly basis put over time is not paid. The formula for calculation of salary is RPH X HW = E Graduate System: Payment: the basic is linked with dearness cost of living. The index of cost of living is varying and that is considered for calculating the remuneration. Formula: Basic Salary is Rs. 2,000/- and Cost of living Index (D. A) is 100% then, Rs 2000+100% of Rs 2000 as cost of living is added, thus total remuneration is Rs. 4000/-. It is after 6 months, cost of living index change 150%. Then basic salary + 150 % of basic salary si. e Rs 3,000/- will make it Rs, 5000. Piece Rate/ Payment Rate (Payment by Results) System of Piece Rate (Payment by Results) Straight Piece RatePiece ;amp; Time Combination Differential Piece Rate Taylor System Merrick System Gantt Task System Straight Piece Rate: Payment: Flat rate is applicable per unit, which is predetermined. The time spent is not considered. Formula: PPR X O = Earnings. Piece Rate and Time Rate Combinations: Payment: It is a dual rate system, designed to perfect inefficient workers. The worker is ensured to get the minimum payment. If the payment is calculated on the basis of piece rate guarantees and number of pieces fall below the minimum wages guaranteed, he is paid by time Rate. Differential Piece rate: Payment: In favour of piece rate system, minimum wages were assured. However, under this system, instead of combining time-rate and piece-rate, there are dual rates for different efficiency level. The purpose behind keeping high piece rate for higher efficiency is as the level of production increases, the cost per unit falls. Bonus: Bonus is given by the company to their employees as a reward. It is been fixed by the government i. e 8. 33%. Bonus encourages the employees to work hard. It is a motivating factor for the employees to improve their efficiency. Profit Sharing: Profit Sharing is the most motivating factor. When the company makes profit it gives some kind of share to their employees as an Annual increment. This helps to motive employees to work hard and get more increment. Indirect Monetary Incentive: Indirect Monetary Incentives like traveling allowance, HRA, Dearness allowance, medical facility etc. are very motivating for the employees. Elements or ingredients of a good wage plan: Before we discuss these two plans, it would be fruitful to know the ingredients of a good wage plan. These are:- 1. It should be easily understandable i. e all the employees should easily understand what they are to get for their work. They should be instructed in how the wage plan works. 2. It should be capable of easy computation i. e. it should be sufficiently simple to permit quick calculation. Mathematical tables may be supplied, by reference to which calculations can be quickly made. 3. It should be capable of effectively motivating the employees, i. e it should provide an incentive for work. If both the quality and quantity of work are to be stressed at the same time, a plan should be selected that will not unduly influence the worker to work too fast or to become careless about quality. . It should provide for remuneration to employees as soon as possible after the effort has been made. Daily or weekly payment of wage would be preferable to induce employees to work. 5. It should be relatively stable rather than frequently varying so that employees are assured of a stable amount of money. Reasons or factors affecting wage differentials: Wages differ in different employments or occupations, industries and loc alities, and also between persons in the same employment or grade. One therefore comes across such terms as occupational wage differentials. Wage differentials have been classified into three categories: First, the differentials that can be attributed to imperfections in the employment markets, such as the limited knowledge of workers in regard to alternative job opportunities available elsewhere, obstacles to geographical, occupational or inter-firm mobility of workers, or time lags in the adjustments of resource distribution and changes in the scope and structure of economic activities. Examples of such wage differentials are inter-industry; inter firm and geographical or inter-area wage differentials. Second, the wage differentials which originate in social values and prejudices and which are deeper and more persistent than economic factors. Wage differentials by sex, age, status or ethnic origin belong to this category. Third, occupational wage differentials, which would exist even if employment markets were perfect and social prejudices, were absent. Wage differential arises because of the following factors:- a. Difference in the efficiency of the labour, which may be due to inborn quality, education and conditions under which work may be done. . The existence of non-competing group due to difficulties in the way of the mobility of labour from low paid to high paid employments. c. Difference in the agreeableness or social esteem of employment. d. Differences in the nature of employment and occupations. Norms for Fixation of Wages in Industry: 1. While computing the minimum wages, the standard working class family should be considered as consisting of four consumption units and t he earnings of women, children and adolescents should be excluded. . The minimum food requirements should be determined on the grounds of a net intake of 2700 calories as laid down by Akroyd for a normal adult in India. 3. Clothing needs should be established on the basis of a per capita consumption of 16. 62 meters per year. 4. As regards housing, the minimum wages should be determined from the standpoint of the rent corresponding to the minimum area specified under the government Industrial Housing Scheme. 5. Miscellaneous expenditure on items such fuel, lighting etc. hould from 20 per cent of the total minimum wage. The resolution further prescribes that the authorities involved in the issue should justify any deviation from these norms. Retirement benefits related enactments in India: Employees’ Provident Fund Act The Act was passed with a view to making some provision for the future of the industrial worker after his retirement or for his dependents in case of his early death and inculcating the habit of saving among the workers. The object of the Act is to provide substantial security and timely monetary assistance to industrial employees and their families when they are in distress and or unable to meet family and social obligations and to protect them in old age, disablement, early death of the bread winner and in some other contingencies. The act provides for a scheme for the institution of Provident Fund for specified classes of employees. Accordingly, the Employees’ Provident Funds Scheme was framed under Section 5 of the Act, which came into force on 1st November, 1952. Main features of the Act The Act is applicable to factorize and other establishments engaged in specified industries classes of establishment, which have completed three years of their existence and employing 20 or more persons. The Act, however, does not apply to co-operative societies employing less than 50 persons and working without the aid of power. An establishment, which is not otherwise coverable under the Act, can be covered voluntarily with the mutual consent of the employer and the majority of the employees. Employees drawing a pay not exceeding Rs. 5000 per month (And now it is amended to Rs. 6500/- ecently) are eligible for membership of the fund. Every employee employed in or in connection with the fund from the date of joining the factory or establishment. The normal rate of contribution to the provident fund by the employees and the employers as prescribed in the Act is 10 percent of the pay of the employees. The term â€Å"wages† includes basic wage. Dearness allowance including cash value of food concession and retaining allowance, if any. Employees’ State Insurance Scheme The Employees’ State Insurance Scheme Act, 1948 is a pioneering measure in the field of social insurance in our country. This act came into force from 19th April, 1948. The Scheme under the Act aims at providing for certain cash benefits to employees in the case of sickness, maternity, employment injury and medical facilities in kind, and to make provisions for certain other matters in relations thereto. The term â€Å"employee† has wide connotation and would include within its scope functions of clerical, manual, technical and supervisory. Persons whose remuneration (excluding remuneration for overtime work) does not exceed Rs. 6500 a month are covered under the Act. The Act does not make any distinction between causal or temporary employees or between technical or non-technical employees. Employees employed directly by the principal employer and those employed by or through contractor. However, the definition of â€Å"employee† does not include any member of the Indian naval, military or air force. Compensation Structure and its components: One of the most vital factors the motivation, retention and the morale amongst the employees is the compensation system, policies and review philosophies of any organization. While the bargain able employees generally have their unions to negotiate or review terms with the Management-which are governed by the Long Term Settlements- the terms of the managerial employees are mostly seen to be at the mercy or the goodwill of the organization, reviews of which may or may not be regular or timely, or often do not seem to meet the expectations or logic of such employees. Management Compensation therefore, now plays a very significant part along with the working style and environment, empowerment etc. in the organization’s success strategy. While individual organizations may have differences in their methodologies based on factors best suited their perceived needs, some general directions are evident, and are discussed below. 1. Salary, Basic Salary or Consolidated Salary continues to remain as the major component of compensation, though Salary Scales are often discarded these days, or used only as guides. Individual Salary is generally decided initially using the Scale, but thereafter performance, contribution to targets or results generated determine the revisions periodically, which may vary widely from individual to individual. Salary broad handling is therefore, getting recognition and acceptance. 2. Grade wise flat Allowance is being considered generally, except where tax exemption benefits are still available, when they continue as separate components. Allowances may be linked to the Salary as a percentage or by slabs, but preference is for flat amounts, which do not increase automatically, and therefore increase could be discretionary, and therefore controllable. 3. Reimbursements of expenses incurred on Company work has become limited, and in line to conform to the tax laws. Being actual in most cases, they are not considered as a part of the compensation, unless it is provided towards personal benefits. 4. Annual payments: Bonus or Commission, and Leave travel are common features some tax reliefs apply for the latter. 5. Benefits generally comprise of mostly unfurnished company owned or leased accommodation, use of company or leased vehicles, medical coverage, retrial benefits covering Provident Fund, Pension or Superannuation and Gratuity, post-retrial medical assistance, easy loan schemes at low or zero interest rates for house building, cars or vehicles, furniture or utility items etc. enting employees owned housing, club entrance free reimbursement etc. Minor benefits could be provision of security, driver or gardening assistance, else of products or assets at a concessional rate, relocation and transfer expenses including admission etc. fees for children, credit card fees, phones etc. 6. Employee stock option schemes which has been popular in IT in dustry-,is not extensively used yet, not being tax advantageous to other industries, nor seen as being very attractive with lesser growth trends for their share values especially in the well-established older companies. 7. Most companies, as against earlier visible costs, use the â€Å"Total cost to the Company† concept as basis. Cost of the most benefits are averaged or computed on actual basis, and within the system of the overall cost, but with greater compliance to tax laws, this basket concept is on the wane. 8. Retiral benefits: Some in recognition of the past contribution of pensioners, and to partly offset the inflation post retirement practices periodic improvement in pensions, or a guaranteed grade minimum pension. 9. Performance Bonus that does not increase future liability is being given more as recognition of results generated. It requires transparent, balanced and fair systems and benchmarks, and also agrees targets by the managers in advance during planning and review discussions. 10. From the earlier grade oriented compensation system within reasonable boundaries, compensation often has to be somewhat tailor made for specialist or key contributors to retain them in the very volatile job market. 11. Compensation review periods have become annual generally and sometimes oftener, as compared to every three to five years earlier, in the fast changing market situation. Conclusion To summarize, the need to regularly carry out detailed compensation reviews both within and out of the organisation with full support and commitment from the top is essential. Openness and transparency are important to the managers in the very sensitive and personal issues of management i. e. remuneration, and therefore policies and practices should match. The remuneration and the system have to be fair and dynamic Dealing with human feelings still remains a competitively attractive feature.

British Management Styles

British Management Styles 1. Introduction Some would argue that since industrialization is a rational, orderly process, striving for universal efficiency with standardizing effect, managers would clearly be the same sort of people doing the same kind of things in the same ways. This assumption could be extended to the companies themselves. Manufacturing companies, these generic units of industrialization, would be much the same with regard to their structure and general features wherever they are located. At any rate, this would be true for countries at the same stage of industrial development having the same sort of political system. For example, organisations throughout Western Europe operate in similar contexts and under the same pressures which would lead towards uniformity. The accelerated volume of trade within Europe and increasing collaboration and overlapping ownership between EU organisations would, naturally, lead to the establishment of a common Western European management style. Of course, such a case assuming or alleging that industry, management and companies are everywhere and always the same is not accepted. On the contrary, the assumption that societal culture causes the business climate and approach to management is the prevalent one (Tayeb, 1993). Even the creation of the single common market of EU, requiring common technologies and similar modern distribution and marketing methods from each organisation, does not illustrate any visible cultural assimilation, but rather a cultural synergy1. European managers in general have been reared in societies with long and deep traditions and are too conscious of their past to put aside their diversities for the sake of Europeanisation2. There can be a similar managerialism, which could be called a European managerial culture, but how far this extends; how far managers in Europe do some things the same way is an issue of analytical purposes only. Managing and organizing are not activities isolated from society, carried out by automatons in executive suits according to the universal management principles, in some glassed-in managerial sphere (Hickson, 1993, p.252). Each manager is a person formed by a society, and so the processes of managing and organizing are not separable from societies and their cultures. Hence, the last few years have seen a renewed interest in national differences and a series of comparative studies of the extent of company structure and education systems, as well as the socio-cultural factors which impinge on management style. Nowadays, it is accepted that one can generalize across individual differences in various countries and generate characterizations, either normative or empirical or both, of management styles which particular countries exhibit (Barsoux and Lawrence, 1990). This paper aims to consider the distinctiveness of the British management style on a number of dimensions. The examination of managerial practices in the UK and the relevant issues addressed are based on the interpretation with the case of management application in The Body Shop. The experience of The Body Shop as an international retailer provides us with a fine illustration of both the strengths and weaknesses of the typical British management style. In order to familiarize himself with The Body Shop case, the reader is strongly advised to look over the companys case study written by Gibson-Sweet (1994, in Harris and McDonald), before continuing with the following sections of this paper. 2. UK management Because of the fact that the United Kingdom is a multi-cultural society, identifying the typical characteristics of English managers was never an easy task3. Nevertheless, several studies have been conducted towards that purpose. Hofstede (1984) and Tayeb (1988) for example have attributed to the English a list of distinctive cultural features with direct effect on the way they conduct business. This section discusses some of the most significant features attributed to the English management with references to the case of The Body Shop. Individualism: The origins of individualism, independent thinking and self-confidence in England should be traced long back into history. The protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism were, in fact, the major driving forces behind the Industrial Revolution. Britons have a high regard for liberty and independence. Hence, they have cultivated a strong entrepreneurial mentality and flair. This is illustrated in the laissez faire economic context which they established for more than two hundred years, and which opposed government interference and supported unrestricted economic liberty and free competition4. Consequently, the English had traditionally developed considerable competences in dealing with export markets and responding to foreign competitors and to a flood of imports without going bust or requiring immediate trade protection. The surprising successful development and expansion of franchising in England is a clear reflection of this distinctive capacity of the British entrepreneurs. The Body Shop success owes much to this business formula. Managerial consciousness, anti-technical orientation: British managers are proud of being good all-rounders (Barsoux and Lawrence, 1990). They have a generalist outlook which is akin to the belief that management is something separable from the technical aspects of a job. Related to this idea of generalism is the notion of managerial consciousness, as against technical-orientation which is very profound in Germany. No wonder, therefore, why British managers do not tend to be especially technically minded, since such expertise is not deemed to enhance their managerial reputation or performance. Whereas German top executives would describe themselves first and foremost as specialists, British ones see themselves as managers in more generalist terms, and somewhat detached from production. Naturally, German managers are expected to be too narrow, while Britons have a much broader vision. Both Anita and Gordon Roddick had not any particular technical background but proved to be very successful all-round managers. Informality: In terms of personal exchanges, British managers are informal, especially by the standard of France or Germany. This is because British managers are in a certain way humanitarians. The Body Shop exemplifies this as it segments its market by factors such as the customers ideals and values, rather than by using technical standards. British take people as the point of reference, rather than systems objectives. In Britain, there is a conviction that management is based on individuals, not committees, systems or rule books. People are the frame of reference (Barsoux and Lawrence, 1990, p. 119). This in turn has meant that mush is achieved by means of social acceptance. Hence, influencing and conjoining is essentially persuasive5. That is why British managers take pride in showing off their ability to shape, influence and decide in informal ways and are marked by a strong grasp of political manoeuvring and manipulative skills. This attitude partly explains why British managers tend to have a negative view of conflict. Open conflict between managers is very rare as it is seen ungentlemanly rather than a means of correcting deviations, testing ideas and exerting creativity; the way it is viewed in say Germany or America. Coping well with uncertainty and setbacks: Americans and Japanese are famous for the systematic way into which they gather data and carry out market research in an effort to enhance strategic decision-making. This is not the British style at all. Environmental scanning, SWOT analysis and the like are not typical for Britain. This does not imply that strategy or forward planning is rejected, but rather that it is intuitive. Britons would argue that the full range of options, rationally conceived in an explicit and formal corporate planning, are unlikely to be realised in practice. Anita Roddicks decision to not enter Eastern Europe, for example, was mostly based on vague personal judgements and intuition, rather than market research evidences of the regions unprofitable potentials (in fact there are indications for the opposite; Alexander, 1996). In alignment to the above argument, British managers have a high tolerance for ambiguity and cope well with uncertainty and unexpected setbacks. Of course, this brand of intuitive pla nning becomes a powerful competitive advantage in todays turbulent, fast moving business environment where flexibility, initiative-taking and adaptability to change is paramount. But, exactly because the British feel comfortable in situations where not everything is explicit and space is provided for manoeuvring and exercising personal judgement, they tend to undervalue educational credentials. British companies put a stronger emphasis on pragmatism rather than professionalism, while personal qualities and background (a vague leadership quality and motivating ability as opposed to strict functional attributes), appear to receive the most frequent mention, both in relation to top and middle management. Decentralization: Bigness provides vital economies of scale, financial resources and muscle in the market. However, today it is more flexibility and responsiveness that matter for success. The argument of size is no longer all-pervasive6. Moreover, recession in the early 1980s made corporate restructure necessary for survival. British companies responded with leaner and fitter structures as well as a move towards decentralization7. SBUs were the most obvious manifestation of this transition. The application of decentralised management, in contrast to functional management, encourages autonomy and entrepreneurship and helps to motivate people by making them better informed, more responsible and giving them more control. Thus, UK companies witnessed their managers engaging in initiatives and nurtured the managerial talent they needed. Decentralization has been proved especially appropriate in sectors which are subject to rapid technical or market changes, notably services. In retailing, initiative inno vation adaptation are by far more significant factors of success than control and economies of scale, providing, thus, a strong argument in favour of decentralised structures and approaches to management which UK enterprises have mastered exceptionally well over the past two decades. The Body Shop case is a clear reflection of this: its success was built on creative initiatives and innovation, not on its size and say effective financial control. Democratic management style: There is a wide agreement that control in British business organisations is relatively dispersed. In other words, the democratic style, also referred to as participative or semi-constitutional is the prevalent one in British firms. It can be reflected on the fact that subordinates are consulted in decision-making and are given wide opportunities to exercise discretion in their work. Contrary to the autocratic, paternalistic approach that German firms share, top management in UK displays a willingness to delegate to lower management and counts on the subordinates strong sense of responsibility. Even in the case of UKs small, family-run firms (where a paternalistic pattern is supposed to emerge), British managers (and owners in most cases) do not portray a pure autocratic style, but rather a mixture of democratism autocratism, which is referred to as sophisticated paternalism. Thus, UKs family businesses manage to retain a decentralised decision-making approach while upholding their d istinctive social ethos and religious dissent. This is very evident in many UK firms (e.g. Cadbury, Clarks), but most of all in The Body Shop. However, there are many who suggest that Anita and Gordon Roddick should give up insisting on operating the company along what are essentially family-run lines as this seems to be inappropriate and potentially damaging for the companys future prosperity. Conservatism: The English are widely seen to be a nation with a love for the past, traditionalism, conservatism, and a reluctance to change. Anita Roddick refused to change the business practices applied to The Body Shop no matter how the City or the economic recession forced her to do so. Moreover, she seems not to take advantage of the possibilities offered to franchising from the Internet (Wymbs, 2000), mostly because of conservatism than of any other particular reason. The British conservatism partly explains their reluctance on applying modern technology in their businesses. However, due to this stubbornness on using outdated machinery, British firms missed the opportunity to become first movers in many industries and, subsequently, faced formidable catch-up problems. Lack of ambition: Despite the resurgence in their desire to do business during the 1980s, mostly as a result of the Thatcherism (The Economist, 1989), Britons display little love for business. Involvement in entrepreneurial activity for the purpose of making money has never been respectable. This should be traced to the English educational system and its dominant values. Traditionally, arts and classics were given high priority relatively to engineering and technology. In business conditions, the goal has been traditionally satisfactory rather than outstanding performance. Domestic rivalry is viewed as distasteful, vulgar and certainly ungentlemanly. Therefore, UK firms lack the strong profit orientation of the Americans or the market expansionism of the Japanese. Merging rather than competing is a common choice or perceived necessity. In this respect, the franchising system, on which The Body Shop relied much, fits very well the typical anti-rivalry notion found in Britain. Low value placed on education: Compared with their counterparts in other advanced nations, British managers are still under-educated and poorly trained, notwithstanding the recent growth in university and college provision8. In Britain there has been an anti-intellectual tradition which devalues training, particularly of a vocational kind (Barsoux and Lawrence, 1990; Lane, 1989; Keeble, 1992; Gospel, 1992). Porter (1990) comments on the British educational system as lagging behind virtually all the nations he studied! The country traditionally relied on practicing at doing the job to produce its managerial stock. Naturally, business owners provide very limited support to vocational training as they see it as a cost, a waste of their precious capital, rather than an investment with long-term benefits9. Industrial management in Britain did not attract the intellectual elite and had a relatively small intake of university graduates (Fitzgerald, 1993). The relative value placed on finance (a degree in accounting is he ld to be an ideal qualification for a top management post) suggests an emphasis on the short-term at the expense of the long-term, with research being the prime victim. The process of education is of central importance and needs some further elaboration. The continued under-investment in human capital provided little opportunities for the British economy to exploit its pool of gifted labour force and elevate it from the mere status of gifted amateurs (Jones 1997). One reason that explains the under-developed pattern of vocational education in UK lies at the, until very recently, states deliberate low involvement, even denial of responsibility to the issue. Consequently it was left as a matter for employers and unions. But, as explained above, line management was never persuaded of the direct link between profitability and competitiveness through training and regarded training schemes as an overhead to be cut when profits were threatened. The deepening recession in the 1980s made emp loyers even les willing to invest on training. Moreover, criticism has been levelled at the wide variety of inappropriate training schemes existing in Britain (Lane, 1989). For example, the apprenticeship system was highly inefficient in terms of responsiveness to changing production conditions and contributed even further to the generation of low-skilled labour. Several quotations (Bierhoff and Prais, 1993; Roffe, 1999; Matlay, 1999) for improving both the quantity and quality of vocational education in UK, arguing for the need of a more systematic and homogenous system have been occasionally proposed but not headed. Short-termism: English managers have a very short-term perspective in business planning relative to their major competitors, especially the Japanese and German. In middle management this can be seen in the flair for improvisation. Higher up in the company it manifests itself in the willingness to cut or defer such thing as advertising or RD expenditure in order to meet year-end budgets without worrying about the long-term repercussions of such a course of action10 (Gordon, 1990; Handy, 1988). In this respect, emphasis on growth (as this is seen in France), market share (as in Japan) and continuous quality improvement (like Germany) is not evident in British enterprises. Anti-industrial orientation: British culture has a large alleged impact on the development of anti-industrial orientation, evident on the low esteem that traditionally a career in British industry carried. Hofstede (1984) provides an element of explanation on the basis that British rank very high in the individualistic and uncertainty avoidance cultural dimension. Therefore, Britons have an inherent inclination on risky and entrepreneurial, rather than manufacturing, capital-based activities. British managers continued to prefer old machinery and production processes exactly because of this personal value system which favoured trading, rather than manufacturing. However, this attitude meant the downfall of the British manufacturing industry and a relative decline in the indigenous economy in a sequential manner (Van Ark, 1990; Dintenfass, 1992) as this can be portrayed by stats such as: GDP growth, national income, volume of trade exports and so on (Davis et al, 1992, Dicken, 1999). The Body Shop, on the other h and, illustrates a very good example of how British firms establish competitive advantages not by using modern, hi-tech machinery, but rather through intuition and originality. The Body Shop managed to promote the green issue in a genuine and passionate way, promoting wider societal issues through sponsorship and captured the imagination of consumers worldwide. The companys advertising expenses were grounded to zero; still its marketing approach was highly successful. The Body Shop case, then, moves us to a consideration that will be further elaborated in the following chapter: that British firms have lost their edge on manufacturing but, in the mean time, enhanced their worldwide competitive position in the service sector and in industries like retailing. In this respect, the British economy has mastered a transition from an industry-oriented one to a services-oriented one. 3. UK management and retailing: an integrated approach Insufficient investments in modern technology, industrial relations problems and low level of skill and motivation in the labour force affected productivity and condemned Britains manufacturing industry. However, when it comes to the service sector, the whole picture is very different. For example, while in heavy manufacturing the German labour productivity is found to be 22% higher than that of British as a result of differences in physical capital and engineer-related human capital (OMahony, 1992), such a difference has not been experienced in less capital-intensive and less engineer-related industries (food, drink tobacco, textiles, chemicals). Britain experienced a rapid growth of the service sector as early as in the 19th century, but was exceptional in the 1980s and 1990s (Godley and Fletcher, 2000). Today British firms outperform most of their counterparts in the service sector. In regards of specific industries, such as retailing and financial services, this is very profound (Millward, 1990). The typical British personal capitalism (Chandler, 1990) concept suits the purposes of such industries where the production process is relatively straightforward, offers few opportunities for economies of scale but many opportunities for innovation and entrepreneurial initiatives (Jones, 1997). Take as example the creative ideas of Anita Roddick and the originality of her business practices. Without having sufficient funds, she built the companys success only by relying on her wits. More importantly, since The Body Shops competences are not based on technology and machinery utilization but on its founders creativity, intuition and entrepreneurial capacities, the companys business model is very hard to be imitated and the competitive advantages deriving from it are highly sustainable. British firms, especially in 1970s and 1980s pursued successful strategies of product differentiation and product diversification and possessed capabilities in brand management and distribution, which they employed both in extensive exporting activity and through extensive multinational investments (Alexander, 1997). The British competitive performance in the service sector contradicts the image of British enterprise lacking organisational capability in manufacturing industry. Indeed, research by Balasubramanyam (1992) shows that British corporations in retailing appeared to possess competitive strengths in highly developed management skills, in effect, financial management and marketing management, rather than in production management. Jones (1993) adds to the list of Britains core competences the following: incumbency, experience, and powerful intangible assets, most notably reputation for honesty and stability. Jones and Morgan (1994) suggest that such entrepreneurial and trading skills may have been inherited from the family-firm tradition. The culturist hypothesis suggested in previous sections of this paper might explain the outstanding British performance in such kinds of managerial skills. The above clearly suggest that a distinction must be made between the competitiveness of the British firms in manufacturing and in services (Jones, 1994). Throughout the postwar period and into the 1990s the British retailers were the largest sectorial direct investors in the United States, a position maintained by extensive acquisition activity (Lipsey, 1993). This must have involved considerable organisational and management skills, or else it could not have been sustained. Britons possess skills that evolve into strong core competences when it comes to the service sector and particularly the retailing. Hence, generalizations such as those of Porters slide of Britain (1990) and the Chandlerian critiques should consider more thoroughly the British strength in the less capital intensive and technology oriented industries such as: consumer branded goods (including beverages, confectionary products, cosmetics, perfumes, household products and so on), retailing, financial related servic es, auctioneering, entertainment, publishing, leisure products, consultancy, advertising. Britains broad strength in services partly reflects demand conditions. In business services, a combination of skilled human resources and early industrial strength has given British firms a solid position. In retailing, strength in high-end consumer goods (luxury and wealth-related products) was further supported by a sophisticated domestic demand retained, especially around London. Many of the industries in which Britain still has competitive advantage, technological change has not been significant enough to provide worldwide competitors with a lever to supplant British firms on the basis of their technological superiority, especially in the high-end segments that are not price-sensitive and where buyers value traditional methods. Finally, those areas where UK firms have sustained competitive advantage partly owe it to related and supported industries. In consumer goods and services, a vibrant retail sector has created pressures to innovate. This environment has been a fertile one for British firms to develop skills in consumer marketing. The City of London illustrates a classical example of a sector built upon the concept of clustering11. The dynamism of the cluster has attracted firms from all over the world, solidifying Londons position as Europes financial centre. 4. Conclusions Overall, in response to historic, ecologic and evolutionary processes, UK has created a culture and social climate which stand English managers and their companies in good stead in many respects, but handicap them in some others (Schneider and Barsoux, 1997). Their honesty, trust, self-control, and creativity are their major cultural assets, while their individualism, professionalism and reserve give an impersonal and formal air to business dealings. However, in their effort to deal with competitive markets, they are hampered by unhelpful aspects of their culture and their society. These include capital market short-termism, less-than-favourable attitudes to business, traditionalism, reluctance to embrace new technology wholeheartedly, and ill-prepared school leavers and university graduates. Of course, in retailing, as the case of The Body Shop clearly illustrates, UK management style is highly successful, as most of the negative cultural influences do not affect their performance i n the industry, while the positive ones are those that really matter and provide them with a competitive edge. We have looked at the British management style as at a national level, but this is not the only option. Style may also be construed diachronically, as an expression of a society -and a world- in transition. With this in mind, one might ask what the future will bring in British management. The chances must favour a gradual convergence with Western Europe in ways of managing and organizing, if only because so many influences lead that way. But it is likely to be drawing together that will never completely come together. In other words there are likely to be more similarities, but differences will persist. 5. Notes In fact, Hofstede (1993) explicitly argues that culturally, Europe does not exist. In his studies (1984), the EU countries seem to broaden diachronically their already well-established heterogeneity in terms of cultural values. He also comments on a paradox: despite the fact that Europeans are genetically more homogenous relatively to North Americans, culturally they are significantly more heterogeneous. The notion that Europeans are culturally alike, even if they look more or less alike, goes against the initial optimism of the founders of the EU, who believed in cultural convergence through economic activity. It is still in conflict with the assumptions of many national politicians, journalists, members of the public, and particularly, many non-Europeans. Moreover, the traditional conflicting nature of the relationship between the working and the middle class puts in question even the existence of a homogenous English culture. However, similarities between the two classes are far greater than their differences. Also, their exposition to common social institutions and a constant fusion of values and attitudes among them is such that, in the end, their only basic difference lies to their family upbringing (Tayeb, 1993). It would be, therefore, safe to assume that the two classes are sufficiently alike to talk about an English culture. Besides, there is possibly no nation in which total class homogeneity exists, but historically, this fact did not pose serious threats to the emergence of distinctive national cultures. Of course, the contemporary economy can hardly be called a pure version of capitalism since it is characterized by a mixture of freedom and control, and of private and state enterprise. The emphasis on freedom or control shifted from time to time depending on the policies pursued by the government of the day (conservative governments applied no control beyond fiscal policies, while labour governments tended to use direct control mechanisms). The strongest weapon the British employ for their persuasion to be as gentle as possible is, of course, their humor. Their readiness to joke about business matters is very distinctive. Efficiency, productivity and profit are constant targets for wisecracks. Humor is seen as a device for distancing the unpleasant parts of business life and a safety valve for preserving managerial sanity, perhaps a means of coping with defeat. However, as Barsoux and Lawrence (1990) argue, exactly because jokes suspend reality momentarily, British managers are left with the option not to react. The subversive impact of jokes prevents them of being effective as change agents. The theme of Big Business which was dominant in Europe till the early 1980s failed to respond to the changing European environment since then (low labour productivity growth, high unemployment, slow innovation and low profit margins). The transaction cost theory (Hennart, 2000) or internalisation theory (Buckley and Casson, 1978) provides us with a consistent explanation based on the premise that variations in transaction costs alter the optimum size of firms. Hence, falling transaction costs since 1980s forced a fall in the optimum size of firms making the National Champions highly uncompetitive and SMEs (mostly family-businesses) the emerging pattern. According to others (e.g. Lane, 1989; Jones, 1994), the decentralised nature of UK management is mostly a result of the way British firms actually grew, in effect, through mergers and acquisitions rather than organic growth. This pattern created large firms consisted of a number of small firms, which did not undertake a thorough rationalization of production activity. Such a structure necessitated a decentralised mode of decision-making, regardless of what sentiments top management had on this matter. Lane (1989) provides data from the IMS which illustrate that in contrast to Germany and other advanced European economies, British young people have until very recently gone straight into employment after finishing their compulsory secondary schooling without receiving any vocational education at all. Investment in training by industry has been estimated by Porter (1990) at far less than 1% of revenues in Britain, compared to 2% in Germany and 3% in Japan. For comparative purposes, Germany is found to be far more ahead than UK in the rate of enterprises using the technically most advanced processes and machinery, such as CAD, CNC tools and flexible manufacturing systems. The faster adoption of sophisticated technological devices and processes by Germans can explain their superiority over British firms in high-technology products (Lane, 1989). Porter (1998) uses the term cluster to refer to the geographical concentrations of interconnected companies in a particular location. Other terms used in bibliography for the same purpose, more or less, are agglomeration and industrial districts.

The Age of The Renaissance :: The Renaissance

The Middle Ages is considered by many historians a time period of ignorance, where little or no advancements took place. The church was the center of attention, and instead of a philosophical view of the world, beliefs were centered around superstitions. On the other hand, the rebirth of education and advancements that followed the Middle Ages and was labeled as the Renaissance. There have been arguments as to whether the Renaissance is actually a separate time period, or instead, just a high point of the Middle Ages. The Renaissance was definitely a distinct era. Inspiration from the ancient Greek and Roman people led to humanism beliefs and encouraged man to become multi-talented. Therefore, the Renaissance man, a man who excelled in many areas, became prominent. Also, the ideals of the people changed, and religion no longer ruled their lives. Advancements in all aspects of life virtually improved. Thus, many aspects lead to the change from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance, a ti me period that was undoubtedly distinct from the Middle Ages. During the Renaissance, ideas and beliefs changed greatly. Humanism, a crucial movement to the Renaissance, stressed secular ideas and beliefs and the importance of advocating human’s ideas and values. The movement drew inspiration from the ancient Greek and Roman people. Therefore, classical education began to circulate once again (document 1). The people of the Middle Ages had great amounts of ignorance and believed in faith and false ideas while focusing on childish possessions, but during the Renaissance these ignorant beliefs disappeared and humanism took its place (document 2). The church was no longer the center of life for many and some lost interest in the traditional beliefs that the church was preaching. Yet, it was still an important aspect. The church had lost large amounts of power and wealth due to the humanism movement because people became less reliable on the church and could think and follow ideals on their own. But, the church was rapidly changing during this time period also, because religion was focused on wealth and the money it could obtain (document 5). Instead, many supported the idea that the people who held secular beliefs should be ruled by noblemen that were scholarly, highly educated, and not only concerned with goods (document 5). Entirely new ideas and beliefs began to circulate during the Renaissance, and the church lost much of its great influence.

Medication Compliance in Elderly :: essays research papers

Running Head: Enhancing Medication Compliance in Elderly Individuals Research Utilization Paper An Intervention Study to Enhance Medication Compliance in Community-Dwelling Elderly Individuals Chris Elmer HSCI 401 Fall 2001 My research study was to determine whether daily videotelephone or regular telephone reminders would increase the quantity of prescribed cardiac medication taken in a sample of elderly individuals who have congestive heart failure (CHF) (Peteva, 2001). Within this research I would disseminate the new scientific knowledge with the help of the pharmaceutical company that makes the congestive heart failure medication. With the help and support of the pharmaceutical maker, I would provide a full in-service to the nursing staff of hospitals and doctor’s offices alike. In doing this, this would provide a friendly and educational atmosphere in a nursing practice setting to get complete understanding of the research findings and how they as nurses can make a difference in the consumption of prescribed medication. Secondly, I would write a journal article and have it published in the pharmaceutical’s bulletin to include a well-known nursing journal. These journal articles would contain the findings of the research and suggestions on how the nursing staff can help the patients improve the compliance of taking prescribed medication. Once the information is disseminated into the medical public, the nurses will apply the learned knowledge to their practice for the elderly patients who are taking congestive heart failure medication. First, the nurse will collect all the patients that are currently taking congestive heart failure medication and explain to them on a one-on-one basis the benefits of having reminders to comply with taking prescribed medications. Then nurse would also explain the pros and cons of the reminders and that the videotelephone reminders would be provided at no cost to the patient. If the patient agrees to utilize the videotelephone reminder, the patient would sign a patient confidentiality agreement and liability agreement for legal reasons. What the agreements would stand for is a â€Å"need to know basis,† meaning that the patients information is strictly confidential and those who are on a need to know basis would have access to the patients information. The liability agreement is s o that the patient could not sue the pharmaceutical company or the medical facility where they are being treated if a complaint involved only the videotelephone reminder program. Once the videotelephone reminder program is implemented the pharmaceutical company and myself would provide quarterly visits to the medical site to collect data on the progress of the program.

Safe Distances :: Personal Narrative Religion Papers

Safe Distances Evolution at its most basic is the process by which a species puts barriers between itself and extinction. Anytime a species finds a way to increase its individual organisms' ability to reproduce, it has put a little extra distance between the species and total annihilation. For example: the peacock's elaborate tail, which ensures his success in propagating his genes, also makes him an easy catch for predators. One might imagine that the peacock could simply have invested in a foreign sports car to attract the opposite sex. I was 15 the first time I made my own blood run. I was sitting in the crowded closet, feeling that iron-in-my-stomach sensation that had been with me more and more since my grandmother had died, since my father had started screaming so much, since my feelings for school had gone from run of the mill adolescent angst to extreme boredom, frustration, outrage over the absurdity of it all. I would sit some nights like a toddler in the darkness of my closet, morosely rehashing my grievances against life, lost in a forest of sweaters and skirts. I would brood, and think and will myself not to cry until the effort became too great and I'd give in and wring my hands and rain tears on my sneakers and sandals and sensible dress shoes in silence until the iron had dissolved enough that I could stand straight again. The Hebrew's relationship with God starts out as extremely simple and extremely personal. God chooses his favorites with frightening randomness, picking otherwise unremarkable second sons to succeed their morally ambiguous, but also chosen, fathers. God's actions in Genesis are often inexplicably random, even petty. God forbids his first human creation to eat a certain apple, and then puts a whole tree full of the forbidden fruit right in front of them. When they finally give in and taste test what they shouldn't have, Adam and Eve are banished from paradise and consigned to death. God's actions here seem cruel and unfair, or at the very least, unfathomable to human minds. We can't help but feel a little outrage and confusion over the events of Genesis. Why wasn't Lot's wife allowed to look back (19:26)? Why did God just up and slay Er (38:7)? How could Cain be allowed to live after killing his brother (4:15), when God was willing to kill all the children on earth with one gigantic flood in order to cleanse the earth of sin (6:13)?