Wednesday, July 31, 2019

SMIO Group Element Strategic Management In Organisations

ALL Analyses and critically evaluate the environments in which strategic management and change takes place and assessing the appropriate organizational responses (analysis, enquiry). 4 Explore and evaluate critically the contemporary literature on strategic leadership, management and decision-making and how it relates to successful organization progression in a global environment (knowledge and understanding).ALL Understand, critically evaluate and apply contemporary ideas on strategic aspects of decision-making in effective risk assessment during organizational change (integration, knowledge and understanding). Assignment set by: Peter J Consider Assignment verified by: Scrutiny Panel and External Examiner Assignment Instructions Your team must be submit by the due dates as stated below and will be vomited electronically via Turning and for which you will be issued instructions. The only circumstance in which assignments can be submitted late is if an extenuating circumstances form is submitted at the same time.This group element is weighted at 15% of the overall marks available on this module, and which are allocated as follows: 1) Group work – Country Manager Initial Strategic Audit and Internationalization plan† Submit by 9th February 201 5 by no later than 17. 00 pm (see page 7) 2) Group work – Country Manager Final â€Å"End-Game† Report: Submit by 4th May 2015 by no later than 17. 00 pm (see page 9) Detailed briefing and instructions are given herein. Strategic Management In Organizations Assignment Brief – Country Manager ALLELES Business Game Simulation.The Country Manager Simulation (or business game), will give you and your team a rewarding and engaging opportunity to actually manage the international expansion activities for a multinational company. During lectures, tutorials and workshops will be exploring the complex arena of Strategic Management and International Strategic management from various perspectives rea l world perspectives. You will note from your module handbook that we will be devoting part of the aerogramme to learning using the Country Manager (ALLELES) simulation.The output from this will form a part of your final assessment on this module. The ALL SMILE case will also be used as an assessment vehicle for you to demonstrate your learning on the theory and concepts which we will be exploring in the lectures, tutorials and in your self-managed readings. Each team will develop and implement strategies for entering into and expanding throughout the Latin American region for a consumer packaged goods firm that manufactures and markets toothpaste.You will determine which countries to enter, when to enter them, where to reduce your products, which customers to target, the products you want to launch and at what prices, the channels through which you want to sell, and manage various marketing communications activities. The simulation will enable you to â€Å"learn by doing†. Y our team will develop a marketing plan. Then you will manage the business by implementing your plan (making decisions) over a simulated eight-year period. Finally, you will complete an end-of-game report.You will as the course progresses be drawing on a range of concepts and theories to help your knowledge and understanding and other learning outcomes and which will inform the analysis, evaluation, development and implementation of international strategies. It is important that you reflect upon and draw on these and previous concepts and underpinning theories to inform your analysis, evaluations and decisions. You will be using the Country Manager simulation to evaluate and develop new international market entry and development opportunities.The simulation is based upon a wealth of country data (political, economic, social etc) and the company for which you are working is up against established competition. You will be developing market entry strategies, and managing regional expans ion in Latin America. You will learn how to manage these activities to create customer value internationally. The value creation process involves understanding customers, collaborators, competitors, and a company's own core competencies, and using this knowledge for competitive advantage and growth.The Country Manager simulation will entail initially establishing a new international market for entry as the home market has become saturated. Following a detailed comparative country analysis your team will then go onto establish a brand presence in that market. You will need to make decisions on he level of FDA to make and to go on to attempt to maximize the companies strategic and financial position in that country. You will then be expanding into additional foreign markets in Latin America.It is very important to read and become thoroughly familiar with the Country Manager ALL SMILE case study on. This case will be used not only dynamically in the simulation to develop your analysis and decision making skills, but will also be used to integrate with and apply key concepts/theories On ISM and overall help to make the learning process closer to reality than desk based case work Your team needs to develop a Strategic Marketing Plan – the roadman for managing your entry, growth, and expansion into Latin America.Before working on your Marketing Plan, read the entire Country Manager users manual. Your plan will cover most of these topics. In order to do so, you will need to use the various reports (environment, competition, internal) to analyze the current situation and forecast how it will (or how you want it to) change. The goal is to determine what strategy you want to set and how to implement it (I. E. , what decisions you will need to make) in order to maximize your nutrition to corporate headquarters.Because you report to both the Toothpaste Category Management and the Latin America organizations (see Figure 1 , page 8 of the user manual), you must work toward maximizing your country cumulative contribution as well as the overall cumulative contribution for the region. Your instructions are to do a sequential entry (waterfall) strategy into Latin America – that is, you are not to enter more than one country at a time. For example, you might enter one country in period 1 , a second country in period 3, a third country in period 5.You should enter at least three countries. See the next page for more specific entry and expansion instructions. Initial Strategic Plan Entry & Expansion Instructions Firstly, enter the Latin American market: Enter your first country. Begin by launching no more than 4 SKU. Add more SKU in subsequent periods as you believe the market bears and consistent with your strategy. You should advance two-three periods. Continue to play in the initial market, expanding into a multi-segment SST taste.Secondly, begin regional expansion: After establishing your business in the initial market, enter into one addit ional market in Period 3 or 4. Begin by launching 4 or more SKU in the second market. Continue to play in the initial and second markets, expanding your multi segment strategy. Thirdly, continue regional expansion: Continue to play in the initial market, and 2nd market, now expanding into a third market in Period 5 or 6.Follow the same procedure as above for the third market Complete all nine periods In the event that you have made a major blunder (e. G. , entering an MSP of 10. 0 instead of 1. 0), you must contact your tutor to replay a period. You must complete your final set of decisions within the specified schedule dates. Note: Be sure to keep a log of your decisions and results each period. After each period, save/print the Performance Summary (Consolidated – Internal). Con. Assessment part 1 .Initial Strategic Audit and Internationalization Plan. Group Work Submission (7. 5 % of available marks) – (state team number and members names on the assignment) This elem ent will be submitted as a Poster (instructions provided and a blank Poster Template is available on Blackboard) via Turning by no later than 5. 00 PM on Monday 9th February 2014. Before working on your Strategic Plan, read the entire Country Manager case and manual. Then focus on Section 4 of the user manual. Your plan will cover most of these topics covered here.In order to do so, you will need to use the various reports (environment, competition, internal) to analyses the current situation and forecast how it will (or how you want it to) change. Your team's primary goal is maximizing your overall cumulative contribution for the region. Note however you will note be assessed on the level of cumulative contribution you have achieved. Your secondary goals are maximizing your market share and brand equity in each country that you example, you might enter one country in period 2, a second country in period , a third country),' in period 5.You should enter at least two countries. Your performance will be evaluated as follows: Country and regional performance relative to other teams on the following measures: o Cumulative net contribution o Anal period net contribution o Market share o Brand equity Your Plan should not exceed two AH poster sized sheets , using the given poster Template (adapt this as required, by adding â€Å"sub pages† and do include a full Harvard Reference to all sources of literature and case evidence – including the Country' Manager case and any further research undertaken by your team.Aim to give a good visual impact for your poster by using applied models etc. You may add as supporting exhibits as you like to the poster. All exhibits must be referred to in your text. Your plan may be entirely or partially in outline form. Organism your Marketing plan as follows. 1. Make sure you include on the poster group members' names 2. Executive Summary – one page description of your overall strategy (see items 3 to 7 below). 3. Si tuation analysis (opportunities and threats from a SWAT). 4 Vision, Mission and Key Strategic Objectives. 5.Market entry strategies (the sequence and timing of countries you will enter). 6. Manufacturing location and sourcing (including any changes you plan to make and when). 7. Target marketing strategy (for each country you plan to enter). Each target market should represent a combination of demographics and benefit (e. G. , older & healthy; see cross-section under â€Å"Brands Purchased† reports). 8. Strategic Positioning and marketing mix strategies (target specific UP strategies for each country you plan to enter). 9. Regional standardization (any manufacturing and marketing resources you plan to share across markets). 0. Market share objectives (end-of-game racket shares for each country you plan to enter). 11. Appendix containing all referenced Exhibits and a List of references to Harvard Standard. You plan will be submitted on-line via Turning for which you will be gi ven specific instructions and will be submitted in the form of a poster and for which a blank template is included on the modules Blackboard site. This Poster template Can be adapted but must not be longer than two AH sized pages and with a minimal font size of Arial 24 Additional guidelines will be made available on Black Board on preparing your group poster.Assessment part 2 (7. 5 of available marks). Country Manager Final Report Group Work Submission – (state team number and members names on the assignment) This element must be submitted via Turning no later than 5. 00 PM on 4th May 2015. Each team is to submit a final â€Å"end game† group report that describes your team's performance and what you learned about being a country manager for a company expanding internationally. Your final â€Å"End-Game† group report is not to exceed five (5) pages of text (double-spaced, 1†³ margins, 11 or 12- point Times New Roman or Arial font).Your Appendix may include supporting exhibits or reports which must be referred to in your text. Organism your teams Final Report as follows: 1. Cover sheet with team members' names, countries entered, and date. 2. Reflections upon your team's successes and failures in implementing your strategy and objectives (as described in your Group Strategic Audit and Plan poster). (use available data /Metrics and relate to appropriate theory) 3. Appendix. Your Appendix should include (but is not limited to) country and regional performance.Include the following Period 6 (end of game) information: o Cumulative net contribution for the region o Net contribution for each country o Market share for each country Brand equity for each country Your teams performance will not be evaluated or graded in terms of final marks but your report should include: Country and regional performance relative to other teams: o Regional cumulative and final period net contributions and brand equity. Country and regional absolute financial p erformance: o Regional cumulative and final period net contributions.Country market shares and brand equities. Assessment Criteria Descriptor & percentages 0-39% Pass (3rd) 50-59% Pass (2;ii) 60-69% pass (2;I) Demonstrate a systematic understanding and critical evaluation of the key aspects of the strategic management process (LOL – knowledge & understanding) Demonstrates very limited knowledge & understanding. No use of relevant theory from module lectures or elsewhere. Demonstrates limited knowledge & understanding. Some evidence of relevant theory. Occasional errors in understanding. Demonstrates some knowledge & understanding.More than 1 or 2 theories introduced. But not extensively & coherently applied to the case(s). Limited critical evaluation. Demonstrates good knowledge & understanding. Uses a number of relevant theories, demonstrating evidence f wider reading and understanding beyond module lectures. Some evidence Of critical evaluation. Demonstrates very good knowl edge & understanding. Confidently introduces a number of relevant theories from the lecture notes & wider reading. Critically evaluate key aspects of strategic management process.Demonstrate the ability to compare different theories and perspectives of strategic management and use and appraise them appropriately (ALL – learning, analysis) Overwhelmingly descriptive content with little or no application of theory from lecture notes. Mainly descriptive content, but with some limited attempt o apply theory to case(s). Some descriptive content & arguments may not be fully developed. More in-depth analysis is evident. Answer is supported by range of well-selected theories. Evidence of extensive analysis. Applies range of relevant theories in a coherent and convincing way to the case(s).Critically evaluate theories and concepts of strategic management. Analyses and apply appropriate problem solving techniques plus knowledge learned to solving complex business problems (ALL – analysis, application, problem solving and reflection) Demonstrates very limited or no critical reasoning to evaluate theories. No evaluation of strategic options provided. No evidence Of the ability to solve complex strategic problems. Demonstrates very limited or no reflection on learning. Demonstrates limited ability to evaluate theories and concepts of strategic management.Provides a limited evaluation of strategic options. Limited evidence of the ability to solve complex strategic problems. Demonstrates limited ability to reflect on own learning. Demonstrates some ability to evaluate theories and concepts of strategic management. Provides evaluation of strategic options but analysis is not convenience. Provides evidence of the ability to solve complex strategic problems but with some limitation. Demonstrates some ability to reflect on own learning. Demonstrates good ability to evaluate theories and concepts. Good evaluation of strategic options with supportive evidence. Revise s good evidence of the ability to solve complex strategic problems. Critically evaluate options & demonstrates the ability to reflect on own learning but with some limitation. Demonstrates very good ability to evaluate theories and concepts. Confidently evaluate different strategic options with supportive evidence and critically evaluate options. Provides good evidence of the ability to solve complex strategic problems. Good demonstration of the ability to reflect on own learning. Demonstrate the ability to communicate complex issues (L 04 – communication) No logical structure. Many errors of spelling, grammar etc.Work incorrectly referenced Some errors in structure. Language basically sound. Some incorrect referencing. Structure & language satisfactory. Work referenced, perhaps with some errors. Well structured. Effective use Of appropriate language. Good referencing. Compelling & logical structure. Very effective use of language. Referencing excellent. Grammar and reference s – structure, grammar, selection & presentation of sources is accurate & appropriate References absent or drawn from inappropriate sources e. G. Wisped. A few references used, mainly from lecture notes with little evidence feeder reading.Some references used, some from lecture notes but with some evidence of additional reading/research. Broader range of references used, from lecture notes but also with more extensive evidence of wider reading/ research. Wide range of reference used, from lecture notes but also with extensive evidence of wider reading/research. Academic Misconduct The Business School takes any cases of academic misconduct, including plagiarism very seriously. The penalties are severe and can in some cases result in a student not being allowed to continue their studies.The policy on Academic misconduct can be found at: http://www. Staffs. AC. UK/assets/ academic_misconduct_tacit-26770. PDF Please note all assignments are processed via Turning (plagiarism detec tion software) Non Submissions If you fail to submit any assessment for a module an N will be recorded (non- submission) (fail due to non-submission) for that module and you will not have a guaranteed re-sit entitlement. Any further attempt entitlement will be at the discretion of the Award Board. Assignments must be submitted by the due date.The only circumstance in which assignments can be submitted late is if an extenuating circumstances claim is made. In these circumstances work may be submitted up to 5 working days late only (this is not automatic). If the extenuating circumstances are upheld, the assignment will be graded as usual. If the claim is rejected and the work is of a pass grade a maximum of a 40% (R) for undergraduate and 50% (R) for postgraduate will be awarded. If your work is submitted after the 5 working days a O will be awarded. Maximum Word Length: State the number of words used on the assignment front sheet.You may include diagrams, figures etc. Without word p enalty. A sliding scale of penalties for excess length will be imposed according to the amount by which the limit has been exceeded. 1-10% excess 1 1-20% excess 21-30% excess 31 excess no penalty reduction in the mark 20% reduction in the mark the work will be capped at a pass N.B.. None of the above penalties will be used to change your mark which is above the pass mark, to one that is below the pass mark. Therefore the maximum penalty for exceeding the word limit will be a reduction to a pass grade.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

CIPP Diploma in Payroll Management-Work Based Essay

It was concluded that the flexible enefits choices project will benefit from the collaboration between the researcher, the company and the supervisor. The nature of the researcher’s role within the Company will ensure that access to, and the collection of information is within the capacity of the researcher. Aims The aim of this project is to evaluate the existing choices within the workplace and from the findings of the evaluation will conclude whether to keep existing choices or Introduce new choices to the companys flexible benefit scheme. bjectives The objective of this project is to review the existing benefit choices In time for the ext enrolment process for Flexible Benefit and to determine whether the choices are still meeting the personal needs of the employees. A questionnaire will be sent to all employees and based on the answers a focus group will be set up. The questionnaire and focus group feedback wlll provide the data necessary to amend or keep the choices avai lable. The project and the eventual recommendations will be feasible and do have a chance of being implemented. The issue of choices within the flexible benefit scheme is an organisational issue and are reviewed annually in readiness for pen enrolment process. However, the review has not been on the same in-depth scale that this project is proposing. The researcher In collaboration with the HR Manager will have the necessary resources to complete the project. Questionnaires will be devised and given to the employees. Email addresses are available to the researcher and the research Itself is a task that needs to be implemented. The researcher’s current position in the Company will help with the confidential aspect of a research as well as galnlng the trust of the participants Involved. The Gantt chart hows the ideal planning schedule. The renewal process for making flexible benefit choices occur in December, for the January admissions. The researcher proposes that the questionnaires and Focus group are held after the current enrolment process. The researcher also proposes that the write up and analysis occur Immediately after. This will enable the researcher to address any Issues that arises. Content The Company a financial organisation and is a moderately sized company consisting of two hundred and thirty staff on the payroll. The Company can be separated into wo groups 0T employees; DroKers ana non DroKers (aamlnlstratlon/l I ) I ne company HR and payroll is administered by a team of three consisting of the Payroll Administrator, HR Manager and the HR Administrator. Rationale The research for this project will investigate employees’ views on the existing flexible benefit choices. When the scheme was in the initial research stage, the feedbacks from the focus groups were positive and indicated that the most appreciated benefits within flex were; Holiday buy/sell Dental insurance Pension enhancement Medical insurance After two years into the scheme, the most popular flex choice is the Private medical insurance, with only 20% of employees opting for this. This research will try to investigate whether the current flex choices are meeting the personal needs of the employees. Can new choices maximise Income Tax and National Insurance efficiency for both the Company and individual employees? Last year, the change of benefit choices was put forward to the employees via an email questionnaire. However, the responses were very low and so no changes were made. This project ill provide an opportunity for an in-depth questioning of the employees with results that may determine the choices for the next renewal process. Reading The secondary research will include books and articles that are relevant to the project issue. The following Journals have shown key information in regards to flexible benefits; Bradford, S. , 2010. Flexible Benefits.

Genre Conversation Essay

Although genre is commonly regarded as a tool for conventional assortment, it is necessary to recognize that a genre is not defined by its formal features, but by its situational factors. The contextual identification of a genre is highlighted by Carolyn Miller, who describes genres as the â€Å"typified rhetorical ways of acting in recurring situations† (qtd. in Bawarshi 7). The word â€Å"situation† is crucial in her definition because writing results from situational demands. Such situational nature of writing is emphasized by many scholars including Amy Devitt, Anis Bawarshi, and Stanley Fish. Synthesizing the works of these authors, we can derive that genre unites writing and context. Thus instead of focusing on formal features, a genre should be acknowledged as a publicly established form identified by its contextual features, in which writers and readers are socially connected. Since genre is socially defined, it can only function when there is a rhetorical situation that calls for a response. Returning to Miller’s definition, genres are responses to recurring situations. Because similar situations trigger similar rhetorical responses, these responses develop into a default ways of answering a particular type of situation (Bitzer 13). Nonetheless, not all situations stimulate responses; only situations in which one or more exigences exit trigger production. According to Lloyd Bitzer, an exigence is an â€Å"imperfection marked by urgency† (6). Writers are only motivated to write due to the presence of such imperfection. Since a rhetorical writing is invented to address an exigence, the purpose of such writing is therefore to modify the situation and so to alleviate the presented problem. Such contextual dependency of writing is highlighted when Bawarshi connects writer’s purpose and situation, indicating that writing â€Å"begins and takes place within the social and rhetorical conditions constituted by genres† (11). In other words, genres situate and motivate writers to write for a practical reason. For example, an advertisement article serves to encourage purchasing when a company tries to sell a product, while a science report serves to communicate lab results when researchers wish to publish their findings. In short, genres are responses to situations, thus what classifies a text into a genre is primarily the pragmatic purpose of the text in relation to the given situation. Furthermore, situations does not merely create genres, they also shape genres. Consider the rhetorical situation in which a letter is written: there are some physical distances between the writer and receiver, there is a close relationship between the writer and receiver, there is something the writer wants to communicate†¦Given such situation, there are many constraints that dictate the formal features of writing. These constraints give a genre its formal features. Thus genre simplifies the formal decisions writers need to make by â€Å"organiz[ing] the conditions of production as well as generat[ing] the rhetorical articulation of these conditions† (Bawarshi 9). With genre, writers are provided with writing frameworks that allow them to echo the demands of the given situation. Again, these writing frameworks are â€Å"rhetorical forms† that â€Å"comes to have a power of [their] own† as they are primarily responses to recurring situations (Bitzer 13). This implies that genres are shaped by situational specificity, thus particular social demands give birth to particular genres as different situations emphasize different values. Therefore â€Å"keep[ing] form and generic contexts united† is essential for a genre to work and hence for us to communicate as genres are shaped by contexts (Devitt 200). Although situation suggests appropriate forms to allow effective communication, it is crucial to acknowledge that formal features do not define genres. Formal feature can vary significantly within a genre, and such â€Å"inherent variation within all genres† is â€Å"essential to keeping genres alive and functioning† (Devitt 212). For instance, an advertisement can attract customers with striking pictures, yet it can also sell a product using persuasive statistics. No matter what formal features a text possesses, that text belongs to the advertisement genre as long as it is written to encourage consumption. This example illustrates that although context writing set constraints to promote appropriate formal features, yet the writer’s purpose is what ultimately defines a genre. Apart from contextualizing writing, genre socially connects writers and readers. On the conveying side, writers participate in discourse communities, which are â€Å"social and rhetorical environment[s] within which cognitive habits, goals, assumptions, and values are shared by participants† (Bawarshi 5). Writers in the same discourse community tend to employ same or similar genres. This is because the social contexts they write in, as well as the ideologies they wish to convey, are both shared within the community. Therefore, if a writer chooses to communicate with a genre commonly used by a discourse community, that writer will be identified as a member of community. What is the significance of discussing discourse communities? This answer relates back to the situational nature of writing – the concept of discourse community highlights the social purposes of genre by â€Å"locate[ing] a writer’s motives to act within typified rhetorical and social conditions† (Bawarshi 11). Members of different discourse communities tend to express using different strategies because they write for difference purposes and respond to different situations. Thus â€Å"writers will use different language in different genres† to properly address the presented exigence (Devitt 213). All in all, genre socially connects writers by situating them in discourse communities within which participants are motivated to produce by the same type of situation. Writers are not the only ones involved in the social context of writing, a text is given meaning by its readers as it means whatever the readers interpret it to mean. This suggests that a genre is identified as that genre when the readers perceive so. Fish describes interpretation as â€Å"the art of construction† (361); instead of finding what is in a text, readers create what is in the text through interpretation. These interpretations are shared â€Å"social and cultural patterns of thought† that result from experiences of acting within the social environment (Fish 364). Therefore, genres are â€Å"embedded within their social and cultural ideologies† so that they trigger appropriate interpretations (Devitt 191). Genre’s situational embedment underscores that writing is â€Å"dynamic, changing over time as the assumptions, values, and practices of writers and readers change† (Rounsaville 70) because the â€Å"social and rhetorical conditions are constantly being reproduced and transformed† as writers and readers act within them (Bawarshi 9). In sum, writing changes because context change. Hence, writing is a  social action defined and shaped by the social conditions that guide production and interpretation. Socially shared ideologies give birth to textual conventions, which are â€Å"agreements between writers and readers about how to construct and interpret texts† (Rounsaville 69). Genres associate writers and readers by suggesting textual conventions. Because these conventions are shared agreements between writers and readers, they enable writers to construct writing in a manner that directs readers’ interpretation so the text conveys its intended message. Therefore, successful communication results when writers follow text conventions when inventing and readers use these same conventions when reading. In conclusion, genre is constituted by social conditions in which writers and readers act within. Such situational dependency of writing is reflected in the works of the three authors referenced above. Amy Devitt’s text underscores the importance of understanding genre through its rhetorical purpose instead of through its form. She opposes the use of writing models, arguing that although learning formal features is an easier approach, yet the understanding of how genre actually functions is more practical when writers encounter new situations in specific disciplines. Similarly, Bawarshi relates text and context by defining writing as a social action. He reveals that inventions always depart from preceding productions, hence highlighting the importance of applying previously established forms to answer situational demands. Lastly, Fish’s chapter underlines the necessity of responding to an audience. After all, writing is a form of communication that involves not just the writer but also the reader, therefore writers should always be aware of how their readers might interpret their invention. In sum, the main take away point from these authors’ works is that effective writings are those that echo situational conditions. Works Cited Bawarshi. Anis. Genre and the Invention of the Writer: Reconsidering the Place of Invention in Composition. Logan, Utah: Utah State University Press, 2004. Devitt, Amy â€Å"A Proposal for Teaching Genre Awareness and Antecedent Genres. † Writing Genres. Carbondale: Southern Illinoise University Press, 2004. Ede, Lisa. â€Å"Writing for Rhetorical Situations†. Rounsaville, Angela, et al. , eds, Situated Inquiry. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2008. Fish, Stanley E. â€Å"How to Recognize a Poem When You See One†. Rounsaville, Angela, et al. , eds, Situated Inquiry. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2008.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Contrast and Compare Absorption Costing with Marginal Costing Essay

Contrast and Compare Absorption Costing with Marginal Costing - Essay Example The Strict adherence to a particular costing method is critically important to effectively managing the finance in a firm since its management will be bale to make proper appraisal of the productivity as well as performance of various costs units in the firm. This piece of research reviews full costing and variable costing and outlines the conceptual framework and key assumptions of these cost methods. This paper compares and contrasts these approaches to product and services costing with a view to explain whether the choice of full costing or variable costing still matter or not. Full Costing: Conceptual Framework and key assumptions Full costing, also commonly termed as Absorption Costing, refers to a costing method in which all manufacturing costs, including variable as well as fixed costs, are attributed to the production costs. Hilton, Maher and Selto (200, p. 58) stated that full costing applies all manufacturing-overheads to manufactured goods along with direct materials and d irect labor costs. Full costing is also termed as absorption costing because it absorbs and recovers both fixed and variable costs (Heisinger, 2009, p. 276). The cost incurred for the production of a unit is considered as variable cost per unit plus an allocated share of the fixed overheads (Jawahar-Lal, 2008, p. 627, Nigam, Nigam and Jain, 2004, p. 398). In full costing, direct costs are directly allocated to the cost units and manufacturing overhead-costs are taken to the product and other overheads. Direct material costs and direct labor costs are variable costs and these are directly attributed to the product. But, fixed costs are charged over different products that the firm manufactures over a given period of time (Williams, Haka and Bettner, 2004, p. 923, Jiambalvo, 2009, p. 181). Inventory costs should include all production overheads with fixed as well as variable costs and therefore SSAP 9 considers Full Costing as an essential requirement for the external reporting purpos es if the firm has to undergo it (Broadbent, Broadbent and Cullen, 2003, p. 92). In Full Costing method, the demand of the product is never considered, but prices are considered as the functions of the costs. Full costing includes pasts costs that may not always be relevant to the present decision making purposes and pricing determinants (Jackson, Sawyers and Jenkins, 2008, p. 228, Drury. 2006, p. 227) In Full Costing method, the demand of the product is never considered, but prices are considered as the functions of the costs. Full costing includes pasts costs that may not always be relevant to the present decision making purposes and pricing determinants. It is therefore criticized that Full costing may not be able to provide reliable and accurate information in order to make decision making be effective (Boardguess, 2009). Variable Costing: Conceptual Framework and key assumptions As detailed above, Full costing includes direct materials, direct labors and both variable and fixed manufacturing overheads that are incurred in manufacturing a product. In contrast, variable costing doesn’

Sunday, July 28, 2019

First Semester 2009 Examination(International Business Law) Essay - 1

First Semester 2009 Examination(International Business Law) - Essay Example Additionally, the role off the World Trade Organization along with the association of the element of finance is in all probability even less palpable. 1This kind of an investigation has always targeted the revelation of the fact that the international business account ca in no way prosper lacking an unwavering financial structure in addition to financial steadiness which tends to come under severe hazard lacking a well running business system. This is why it’s obvious how the worlds economic downturn, will have a very profound effect on the elements of International business law. The monetary crisis is amongst the most significant triggers that tend to cause disturbance within the element of worldwide operation. During this kind of a crisis, the business associated investment may turn out to be very classy otherwise even occupied, furthermore the economic disturbances tend to discourage the demand for exchanged commodities as well as services, which in turn implies lesser international payments as well as lesser foreign investment. It is disputed that the International business law is an ingredient of the entire resolution to the predicament rather than one of its groundwork. The element of International business law is characteristically an exceptionally imperative building block during preserving as well as recapturing the element of financial permanence, along with the concepts of open business policies within a ll of the countries that have been highly influenced by the global economic predicament also , within their export marketplaces are the major fundamentals inside the act and occurrence of recuperating from the global catastrophe. The WTO regulations restrain adverse public interventions in trade financing in important ways, including with regard to the requirements on the limitations on expenditures in addition to the transfer of payments also the international business laws , the services operation,

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Paradoxically, although modernity appeared to be a threat to Essay - 1

Paradoxically, although modernity appeared to be a threat to Christianity, it had been nurtured, in significant part, by Christ - Essay Example Thus, the role Christianity has played towards the realisation of modernity is a matter that has been subject to debate, with some scholars arguing in favour of the rationale that Christianity spurred modernity onwards, while others gainsay the very idea, as shall be seen in the debate that ensues forthwith. Thesis Statement Contrary to what is being peddled against Christianity as a force antithetical towards modernity and having an inimical relationship with modernity, Christianity is poignantly the very harbinger of modernity, even to a global extent. According to Taylor (1989, 132), fundamentally, one of the tenets of Christianity is the belief in, and emphasis of man being made in the image and likeness of God [Genesis 1:26]. As such, since God is self-determinate and absolutely sovereign, man is also a free moral agent. By this, it is meant that man has the capacity to exercise freedom of choice and thereby deciding his destiny on earth and eternal destiny. The same also does not only mean, being self-determinate, but also being rational. Isaiah 1:18, I Pet 3:15, I Thessalonians 5:21 and Luke 9: 62 are some of the portions that call people to reason. This is because, making decisions entails being rational. The relationship between the doctrine of man being a free moral agent and modernity is seen in the fact that the Renaissance Age played, and continues to play an inextricable role in modernisation. In the same respect, Renaissance Age could not have come about in the absence of free or independent thinking. It is not in dou bt that the realisation of the Law of Gravity by Isaac Newton was a culmination of laborious thinking about an apple's fall from a tree. Not only did Isaac Newton [a Christian with great interest in natural philosophy and mathematics, Christian theology, economics, astronomy, alchemy and physics] discover the Law of Gravity, but he also wrote the Philosophie Naturalis Principia Mathematica which laid the foundations for classical mechanics. For instance, the laws of universal gravitation and the law of motion are derived from Isaac Newton's work, Philosophie Naturalis Principia Mathematica. Industrial and physical infrastructure and the development of modern means of transport [such as air transport] rely on the laws of motion and gravity. It is also important to note that Christianity, being a highly philosophical and introspective religion, set the pace for philosophy. For this reason, going through St. Paul's treatise on his Letter to the Romans is highly philosophical, as he exp lains fundamental concepts such as the fall of mankind, the purpose of the law [that was handed to Moses] and its inability to bestow right standing with God, justification by faith, and the inability of the law to help win over the war with the carnal nature of man (Lindberg, 2000, 83). Furthermore, Angold (2006, 11) points out that the highly philosophical aspect of Christianity is underscored by the philosophical controversies which succeeded the Edict of Toleration and the Edict of Milan in 311 and 313 AD, respectively, and thereby ending the Persecution of the Church. Immediately after the acceptance of Christianity as a legitimate religion, the Church had to contend with highly complex philosophical problems and concepts, as it dealt with doctrinal controversies such as Arianism [in the Nicean Council, 325 AD], Apollonarianism [the Council of Constantinople, 381], Nestorianism [the Council of Ephesus, 431], monophysitism [the Council of Chalcedon, 451] and Nestorianism [the Se cond Council of Consta

Friday, July 26, 2019

The long-term effects of unemployment on a person Essay

The long-term effects of unemployment on a person - Essay Example On the other hand, unemployment will increase depression and anxiety, decrease self esteem and cause detrimental health consequences. This situation worsens when efforts to secure employment continuously end in failure over a prolonged period of time (Motoko 9). This paper will discuss the causes, long term effects on individuals and possible solutions to unemployment. Causes of Unemployment Unemployment may be occasioned by several factors in different forms. They include rising costs of operating business, mismatch of skills and required types of jobs available in a region, and rapid growth of technology (Ruhm 618). In the example of rising costs of operations, the automobile industry is undergoing difficulties due to the rising prices of oil and oil products. The high prices of oil are eating into company profits, forcing investors in the industry to cut down on wage and salary budgets, hence reducing the number of employees (Ruhm 619). When there is a variance of skills and the j obs available in the same area, most citizens are rendered unsuitable for employment because they do not match the fundamental requirements. Furthermore, with rapid advances in technology, employees need to be more efficient than they were before. This calls for more advanced training that requires extra funding, which may be unavailable to uninformed citizens (Motoko 51). Another cause may be the fact that there are individuals available for the jobs, but they usually find themselves in the hardships of transitions between jobs either because they have not identified a job that interests them or they are not suitably qualified (Motoko 51). Effects of Unemployment Unemployment has negative effects on an individual’s personality, social life, physical and emotional health (Ruhm 618). Among the most significant long term psychological effects are stress, depression and suicidal tendencies. Stress is a complex result because most other effects end up in different types of stress . Studies have shown that persons who lost employment spent more time on visits to health centers, used more medication and spent more days on sick rest than those who were actively employed (Ruhm 622). Unemployment is a stressful occurrence that has potential to affect mortality and morbidity in national health trends, death trends or individual persons’ changes in specified times. Stress Unemployed people are not able to earn money and fit productively into society (Boyce, Wood & Brown 531). Stress is a key effect of unemployment, and its levels are directly proportional to the duration an individual has been out of employment. Money, success and social status, makes an individual confident, and a well paying job is synonymous with these aspects. Unemployment reduces peoples’ satisfaction levels with their careers and finances (Motoko 51). When a job is lost, an individual loses confidence and self esteem, which grows into stress as time advances. High levels of stre ss are known to impact physical effects on the human body and most unemployed people are known to ignore self care practices leading to a degrading level of health (Ruhm 624). Unable to Fulfill Financial Obligations With the inability to earn substantial, regular income, most unemployed people soon exhaust their savings (Motoko 84). Long term commitments entered into while still with the security of employment, such as mortgage

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Virgin Queen Elizabeth I Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Virgin Queen Elizabeth I - Essay Example Thesis statement: Virgin Queen Elizabeth I’s fame/ notoriety is interconnected with her hatred to marriage, her controversial relationships with a number of noble class men, and her manipulation of relationships for political purposes. Virgin Queen: biographic information One can see that Virgin Queen’s life history is interconnected with the history monarchy in England, especially the history of Tudor dynasty. She was born (say, in the year 1533) to Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Lehman made clear that â€Å"Elizabeth was born at Greenwich Place on September 7, 1533, and Henry VIII was so certain that the child would be his longed for son that announcements were printed for the birth of a prince† (396). But her childhood was not so peaceful because her mother’s execution and related issues (say, the declaration of illegitimacy) deeply influenced her character and behavior. Later, in the year 1558, she was able to be the queen regent of the British Empire. As pointed out, her ability to manipulate relationships helped her to be a strong and able ruler. Besides, she connected her political supremacy with the religious context of England. For instance, she made use of her status as the regent queen of England to control the Protestant Church in England. This is important in her growth and development of a mighty ruler because she was able to settle the clash between the state and the religious authorities. On the other side, she was not able to maintain discipline in her personal life. She never tried to act according to the opinion of her well-wishers, but decided to remain unmarried. From a different angle of view, she celebrated her status as a virgin queen and it deeply influenced her character. Virgin Queen passed away in the year 1603. Queen Elizabeth I: virgin or not From a different angle of view, Queen Elizabeth I is considered as virgin because of her decision on marriage. One cannot prove that her status as a virgin is intercon nected with her virginity because she used to maintain intimate relationships with a number of male friends. So, her virginity is not an important factor of her status as a virgin. Pratt made clear that â€Å"Elizabeth did not feel the same sense of urgency to marry, declaring in 1559, â€Å"In the end, this shall be for me sufficient, that a marble stone shall declare that a Queen, having reigned such a time lived and died a virgin† † (39). Her choice in her personal life transformed her into an efficient ruler. Besides, her eligible status (not virginity) helped her to enjoy a special position in the society. On the other side, she made use her status to fulfill her political aims. Triefeldt stated that â€Å"Having decided never to marry, the virgin queen became very good at using her single status as a political tool† (72). For instance, her eligible status helped her to create a unique persona among the rulers of Europe. Her declaration that she is not read y to marry anyone because she is already married to England was helpful to maintain her political supremacy. To be specific, the patriarchal society in England never allowed women to be successful in the political context. So, Queen Elizabeth I decided to be single in her personal life and it helped her to be in the limelight. In short, Queen Elizabeth I’s fame as a virgin is not related to her virginity. Instead, she is generally considered as a virgin because she was not ready to marr

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Choose a company or organisation. Suggest an additional green product Essay

Choose a company or organisation. Suggest an additional green product or service it could offer in the market - Essay Example Although we may not recall, reusable diapers with their security pins and artificial wrappings kept numerous of us dry as babies. Today, throwaway diapers have become the standard mostly due to their convenience. However, much has altered in latest years and there are numerous causes for holding our natural environment. The days of being restricted to disposable diapers and plastic diapers should be gone. Many parents who are focused on eco friendliness have found the expediency of disposables hard to give up. In detail, the diaper argument can get a bit confusing. Proponents of disposable diapers contend that eco friendly diapers or cloth diapers need time, water, electrical power, and petrol for consignment and washing. However, it is significant to recall that if the output method for organic piece of cloth diapers is much friendlier on the soil than the method for disposables. Washing piece of cloth diapers does take electrical power and water but if you integrate them into your laundry usual and restrict many of additional burdens, the added influence can be reduce. Organic Diapers are free of chemicals; organic cotton fabric diapers bypass the use of chemicals and thus are much device for your babys skin at a time when your babys skin is very weak. In compare, not reusable diapers use several chemicals, which are either for aesthetics or soaking up power. One demonstration is sodium polyacrylate which is utilized in diapers to make them permeable. Sodium polyacrylate can soak up as much as 400 to 800 times its group in water which makes it one of the most significant components of a throwaway diapers. However, sodium polyacrylate has been discovered to origin allergies in offspring amidst other troubles. Throwaway diapers may furthermore comprise find allowances of dioxin which is a side-effect of the bleached paper used (Brody

Classical and Baroque Style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Classical and Baroque Style - Essay Example There were several important forms that were used during this period. These included the mass, Missa Brevis, Missa Solemnis, requiem, and the vespers (Downs 69). Furthermore, the classical choral was homophonic and lighter in its texture. In addition, during this era, music was given careful attention by elegance, to form and restraint. The music was objective in nature and emotions were carefully controlled. In contrary, the Baroque period was dominated by chants and choral music. There were poems that were accompanied by instruments meant for praises. Music had the triadic harmony which made the music more complex. Furthermore, this music was dramatic and expansive. This music marked the beginning of harmony and melody use. Melodies were now played with a group of instruments in a chamber or by soloists in a concerto. For instance, Brandenburg concerto is one of the major Baroque concertos. It was composed by J.S Bach. The period led to the creation of foundations of scales and chords. Modulation in composition was also another style that emerged during this period. The period had composers like Monteverdi and Vivaldi. The period was also characterized by polyphonic approach and the basic form of the period was type of the three parts and it also incorporated the binary form. However, the two periods have some factors in unison. For instance, most of the instrumental forms like sonata a nd symphony were invented in the Baroque period but they were used in the classical era.

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

The Rampart Scandal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Rampart Scandal - Essay Example The LAPD's motto is 'To protect and serve' (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). However, through numerous occasions involving corruption, obstructions of justice, racially motivated beatings and officers drug dealing, the city's police force's image has been tarnished and re-tarnished again and again as being recognized as an law enforcement agency unlike any other the country or the world has ever seen. Lawlessness as it would seem, has always been one of the key ingredients that keeps this law-enforcing agency a household name in the city of Los Angeles. The concept of a police department came after the city's second City Marshal Jack Whaling was murdered in 1853 (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). His killer met his death at the hands of a bounty hunter, thus prompting the city's first chief, Dr. A.W. Hope to organize the Los Angeles Rangers. The Los Angeles Rangers volunteered to help the County Sheriff and Marshal. A white ribbon identified these new rangers, which had the words imprinted, "City Police - Authorized by the Council of Los Angeles (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). The city's police department has always had a sen... Foster was mayor. The mayor saw it fit to lead a mob of people, which removed a criminal suspect from jail and hang him (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). Mayor Foster was promptly reelected. Such actions were looked upon as normal, even praised at the times. However, an event such as this was just the fist step on a journey through the LAPD's history of its brand of no holds bar, Wild West type of judgment, when policing the community. Racial tensions between the LAPD and its constituents have seemed to be the social norm for the city Los Angeles. A look at a law in 1850 revealed that racial tension was protected under the state's statutes and was upheld by California's Supreme Court. According to Los Angeles Police Department, (2008), No black or mulatto person, or Indian, shall be permitted to give evidence in favor of, or against, any white person. Every person who shall have one-eighth part or more of Negro blood shall be deemed a mulatto and every person who shall have one-half of Indian blood shall be deemed Indian (p.1). Asian Americans suffered the same fate of persecution under the law, as this law extended to them as well. The racially motivated violence perpetuated in the city did nothing to reform the laws that governed the community. As more and more Chinese settled in the city looking for work on the railroads and in the mines, tension between White and Asian began to escalate at an alarming rate. The Los Angeles Massacre, which occurred on October 24, 1871, was believed to have been a dispute between two Chinese named Yo Hing and Sam Yuen (Los Angeles Massacre Site, 2004). The two men arguing led to Yo Hing being shot. The dispute continued in to the next day, as Officer Bilderrain

Monday, July 22, 2019

Josef Mengele †the Angel of Death Essay Example for Free

Josef Mengele – the Angel of Death Essay After the war many Nazi doctors were tried at Nuremberg, for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Yet the man who became the most infamous Nazi doctor — although Hitler himself may never heard of him — fled to South America and escaped prosecution. He was never caught and convicted, though he lived for decades thereafter. Mengele, called Uncle by the countless children he subjected to gruesome experiments and unthinkable torture, and known as the Angel of Death in the concentration camps, was responsible for the torture and deaths of 400,000 people, and the torment of thousands more. The most important thing to note about Mengele is that he was not an isolated example of an evil maniac gone berserk. He was simply part of a system and a much wider network of Nazi doctors. His work may have been different from those of the other doctors only in quantitative terms not qualitative terms. Today, the Auschwitz experiments of Josef Mengele remain the most egregious example of the collaboration of unscrupulous researchers with equally unscrupulous senior scientists and prestigious scientific institutions – which is a phenomenon that could be happening on a wide scale in our own times, especially in matters of drug trials of giant pharmaceutical corporations. In 1947, the world learned of what is now the most infamous scandal in medical research: medical experiments conducted by Nazi doctors. Nazi doctors performed a variety of extremely disturbing experiments on prisoners in concentration camps. Some experiments were designed to further the war effort. For example, to study gunshot wounds, Nazi doctors shot inmates and examined their wounds. To study diseases such as typhus, Nazi doctors intentionally infected inmates with disease. To study human capacity to withstand exposure to cold, Nazi doctors stripped inmates and exposed them to icy water or blizzards. However, the majority of experiments had less to do with winning the war and more to do with promoting or substantiating Nazi ideology. Doctors were interested in sterilizing undesirables, curing homosexuality, and establishing anthropological differences between races. To find an effective means of mass sterilization, Nazi doctors injected hundreds of women with a caustic substance in the hope of obstructing their fallopian tubes, and inflicted severe burns and infections on both male and female prisoners by exposing them to high doses of radiation. To cure homosexuality, Nazi doctors injected hormones into inmates suspected of being homosexual. To catalog physical differences in race, Nazi doctors killed a number of prisoners, stripped the flesh off their bones, and saved their skeletons for an anthropological museum. Dr. Mengele is among the best known SS physicians at Auschwitz, and was responsible along with other SS doctors for selections and medical experiments that used prisoners as guinea pigs. Mengele could never have thought of himself as a monstrous psychopath, though, but only as a biomedical scientist participating in a broad program of racial research. During the Holocaust Mengele and many other Nazi physicians used thousands of camp inmates, especially those with disabilities and deformities as subjects for their biomedical racial research. Born in the Swabian section of Bavaria in 1911 into an upper middle-class family, Mengele eventually earned two doctorates. The first doctorate was in physical anthropology at Munich under Theodor Mollison in 1935 and the second was in medicine at Frankfurt under Otmar Freiherr von Verschuer in 1938. He received his license to practice medicine in late 1937 but apparently did not pursue certification in a specialty. Instead, he opted for research. As a student of anthropology, he had studied under the leading exponents of the life unworthy of living† theory and it greatly influenced his thinking and behavior. The notion that some lives were not worth living was rapidly becoming academically acceptable. His two dissertation supervisors were eugenicists, and his dissertations in anthropology at Munich and in medicine at Frankfurt both dealt with research in racial hygiene. After finishing his second doctorate, Mengele continued his research in Verschuers Frankfurt Institute for Hereditary Biology and Race Hygiene. As principal investigator, Verschuer supervised the research of numerous assistants under a variety of DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft German Research Foundation) research grants. Verschuer’s 1938 report to the DFG on this sponsored research, focusing on the genetic study of twins and families, lists the work and publications of his assistant Mengele. Although Mengele did not join the Nazi party until 1938, he belonged to the brown-shirt storm troopers, the SA, during 1933-34 and in 1938 joined the SS. As an SS member, he was drafted during the war into the Waffen SS instead of the Wehrmacht, advancing by 1943 to the rank of captain (Hauptstrumfuhrer). He served as an SS physician to the Eastern front until he was wounded and therefore posted to the concentration camp death head units in the rear. He functioned during 1943-1944 as one of the SS physicians at the Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination camp. In his new post, Mengele performed the usual duties of a concentration camp SS physician as well as the special Auschwitz assignment of directing selections for the gas chamber. In addition, Auschwitz opened up unlimited opportunities for the ambitious researcher. Research subjects were available in large numbers, and the restraints of medical ethics did not apply. Further, Mengele could compel highly skilled inmate physicians to design and conduct research, perform tests and autopsies, and produce research papers, without the need to share credit with them. It is therefore not surprising that Mengele used Auschwitz as a research laboratory. Otmar von Verschuer, Mengeles mentor who was himself a protege of Eugen Fischer, had left Frankfurt for Berlin in 1942 to succeed Fischer as director of the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute of Anthropology. Mengele had worked at the institute during SS assignments to Berlin and thus continued to contribute to Verschuers research projects (Cefrey 62). When Mengele went to Auschwitz, Vershuer realized the potential of this posting, and as principal investigator, he carried Mengeles Auschwitz experiments on his DFG grants. Therefore, Mengele’s experiments — that often necessitated the killing of children, thousands of them (especially twins) — were part of the official program and in pursuing his shockingly macabre â€Å"research† he was only following the broad lines of Nazi research agenda. Driven by the desire to advance his medical career by scientific publications, Dr Mengele began to conduct all kinds of utterly atrocious medical experiments on living Jews, children, twins, disabled people, and all those who fell into the Nazi category of ‘Untermenschen’ – all of whom he took from the barracks of the concentration camp at Auschwitz, or ‘selected’ right away on their arrival, and brought to his hospital block. Mengele used the pretext of medical treatment to kill thousands upon thousands of prisoners, personally administering the horrific torture procedures, for example as by injecting them with phenol, petrol, chloroform, or by ordering SS medical orderlies to do so. From the moment of his arrival at Auschwitz, Mengele joined the other SS officers and SS doctors, among them Dr Clauberg and Dr Kremer, in the selection of Jews reaching the Auschwitz railway junction from all over Europe. With a movement of the hand or the wave of a stick, he indicated as unfit for work, and thus destined for immediate death in the gas chambers, all children, old people, sick, crippled and weak Jews, and all pregnant women. Between May 1943 and November 1944 Mengele conducted, also along with Dr. Heinz Thilo, scores of such selections. Mengele was especially on the lookout for twins and other promising research subjects (Lifton 165). He also took an equally decisive part in several selections in the camp infirmary, pointing out for death by shooting, injection or gassing those Jews whose strength had been sapped by starvation, force labor, untreated illness or ill-treatment by the guards. On May 26, 1943, only two days after he arrived at Aushwitz, Mengele committed his first mass murder. There was a typhoid epidemic in the barracks of over a thousand Gypsies who had been brought to the camp two months earlier. For Dr Mengele, typhoid was not an illness to be cured, but one to be eliminated; that day, all the Gypsies were dragged out of their barracks and driven to the gas chambers. Against their names in the camp register were put the letters SB Sondebehandlung, Special Treatment. This was just a sign of much worse things to come. In perpetrating a host of such ghastly medical and scientific experiments, Mengele was of course being an independent member of a larger cohort of wanton butchers. These Nazi doctors most brazenly forsook their Hippocratic Oath and armed themselves with scalpels, forceps, and needles in inflicting immeasurable pain and torture on hundreds of thousands of innocent people, a significant portion of them being children. Mengele regularly mailed the results of his research on twins to the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute. There scientists analyzed the samples of blood obtained before death and the organs obtained after dissection. It was a systematic, organized and purposeful enterprise. Though few of these doctors collected scientifically valid data and many of the experiments were expressions of pure pathological sadism, the Nazi doctors justified their acts of torture and inhumanity as attempts to improve German medicine and advance science. Mengele himself, through his research on twins, dreamed of being able to genetically engineer a flawless race. The ultimate goal was to produce an ideal race of Aryan men and women endowed with only the finest genetic traits, who would rapidly multiply and rule the world. (Lagnado, Dekel 61) Of the approximately 350 doctors who are estimated to have committed medical crimes, only about 20 doctors and 3 assistants were brought to justice in Nuremberg (Spitz 50). Some others were tried, and sentenced to in American military trials at Dachau. Still many doctors escaped, including one who would become the most infamous of them all, Dr. Josef Mengele. Human experimentation neither arose with the Nazis, nor ended with them; however, the history of human experimentation in the West is usually divided into two eras: before the Nazis and after. Mengele is by no means such a grotesque aberration as he may appear to be at first. Nazi doctors perpetrated some of the most horrendous actions during the Third Reich, but the shadows of Auschwitz and Nuremberg are long. Though Mengele escaped scot-free, we at least know about his evil deeds; there may be many others of his ilk alive today and even working in collaboration with reputed organizations whose work we may never even come to know. Works Cited Cefrey, Holly. â€Å"Doctor Josef Mengele: The Angel of Death† New York : The Rosen Publishing Group, 2001 Lagnado, Lucette Matalon; Dekel, Sheila Cohn. â€Å"Children of the Flames: Dr. Josef Mengele and the Untold Story of the Twins of Auschwitz. † New York : Penguin Books, 1992 Lifton, Robert Jay. â€Å"The Nazi Doctors: Medical Killing and the Psychology of Genocide† New

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Success and Failure of Project Methods at Heathrow

Success and Failure of Project Methods at Heathrow This report is prepared to analyze the success and failure of the project methods and its process. For this purpose the project of Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport is discussed. The Barry Leonard, 2009 explained about project management that it is a process of planning; organizing, allocating and controlling different resources to provide improved result of organizational project. It involves different set of activities to apply techniques and tools for achieving the targets of the project. The projects are carried out with the consideration of different factors which may be time or budget. The starting and ending time of project is always decided before its implication; which provide a benefit to produce successful results. The project manager carries out the planning and executing activities of the projects. It has to face many challenges regarding the organizational project. The achievement of project goals; completion of project on time; or utilization of input for obtaining expected output can be major challenges for it. The scope or cost can also become hurdles for meeting targets. The main responsibilities are assigned to project manger to fulfill the demands of clients. The Terminal 5 is a terminal at Heathrow Airport in London. It is having a structure to stand freely in air and considered a largest building for its standing. It is designed to cover about 35 million passengers each year. The glass and steel is used to build up it structure. Its design was offered in 1989, the United Kingdom passed its planning in 2001. The Queen Elizabeth II made its opening in mid of March 2008, and then its operations started at end of March 2008. PROJECT LIFE CYCLE There are five main phases of the Project Life Cycle, which provide a proper sequence to initiate or end up the project. It defines first that why there is a need to take a start of project, then problem relating to it, then the planning, controlling or monitoring processes take place to complete it. There can be many factors which create complexity to meet the basic objectives of the project; they may be related to the team performance, budget or size of project. There are mainly five phases of project life cycle, which are defining, planning, organizing, controlling, and completing. By following these different five phases, the project of Terminal 5 is analyzed here. Initiating or defining In this phase, the goals of objectives are defined with the combination of its scope. The list of its objectives is prepared to point out the involvement of the key factors for it. Then the statement of problem is provided to state the expected output by allocating the resources. All of the risks and assumptions are defined in this phase. The risks and uncertainties in mega projects provide a chance to implicate innovated techniques. The project manager is also appointed in this phase; which later on formulate a team after considering their abilities or experience according to the requirement of project. The main tools which are utilized in this phase are plans for business and framework of project (Kim, 2003). The Terminal 5 Heathrow is the greatest project of the Europe. Its main objective is to extend the range of airport for meeting the volume of its customers from 67 million passengers per year to the 95 million passengers. It is having a purpose to build up a strong structure of glass and steel with the combination of high security and safety to people. For this mega project, the BBA was assumed to select to apply their standard practices; utilize the capital appropriately and use technical competencies to avoid risks. It was targeted to connect the Terminal 5 with the other existing terminals. The risks estimated for the projects were quality of structure; safety for passengers; integrating the systems and working under budget. Its scope was to build up 270,000m ² terminal; two satellite buildings and 87 meter control tower for functioning in Heathrow. Planning Another phase is planning which is consisted of identification of different related activities of project. It also includes a task to estimate the time and cost; review the sequence of activities; and highlighting the critical actions. The specific criteria for achieving the project goals; and completing the task are specified in it. The most important process of writing the proposal is also performed in this phase. The planning phase of Terminal 5 project was started on 1986 and went up to 2001, when it was finalized that construction should be started now. By BAA, the project director was appointed at main board for handling and reporting from planning to controlling phase. The BAA selected appropriate set of tools for planning the project. It created an example to build up or construct the largest infrastructure within its defined capital and time. According to Flyvbjerg et al., 2003, its estimated investment was  £4.3 billion and time for its completion was expected year of 2008 for phase 1 and 2011 for phase 2. It was estimated to start it on 2002. It was planned very effectively to give a scope for complete the projects under estimated time and cost. Its planning phase started from 1986 and went up to the September, 2002. Organizing The Mishra (2006) described about third phase, that it is related to organizing activities, tasks or team of project. The basic needs are specified; the project manager and team are recruited under it. The work packages are also defined in it. The main task of organizing the team; and identifying the stakeholders are also performed under this phase. For Terminal 5 project, the BAA, private investment, HM Government was sponsored and Richard Rogers Partnership was appointed as Lead Architect. The advanced strategies were used by BAA and its different suppliers for organizing this mega project. The project manager Andrew Wolstenholme, had experience of dealing unexpected situations and risks while completing the Glaxco (GSK) project; he utilized all those methodologies and helped to provide his exceptional skills for T5 project. According to the Norman Haste, first project director of T5, there should be high investment on design for achieving successful completion. However, the design ing and the organizing phase started at 1989 and went up to around 2004. In the opinion of Andrew (2009) Single Model Environment (SME) was used for digitally designing; and integrating to the construction phase. Controlling This is an important phase of the project life cycle; because it is assured that all of the operations are performing under a control management. It is also known as execution phase because all of the plans are executed in it. The control tools are defined and status report of the tasks is prepared in it. The Harold (2009) demonstrated that during it, the plans and schedules are reviewed, and order may change according to the requirements. It may be considered as constructing phase for the T5. For Terminal 5, different designs were developed to bring in a real position. Its construction phase was divided into two phases: one was formation of building and infrastructure which started at 2001 and went up to 2008; other was connecting the systems and equipping the building which took time from 2006 to 2008. Its control tower was manufactured in 12 meter high sections to avoid the disturbance of aircrafts operations. It was built up by Richard Rogers Partnership. The control tower of  £50 million provided 360 degree cone to view which become the most technological controller in 2006 when started for functioning. In 2004, its first segment of single wave roof was placed on it, and then on 2005, sixth and last was on its position. The total weight of this roof was 26,000 tons which created its superstructure. Its high way design allowed passing away the cranes for constructing the other operations in airport. The staff of Terminal 5 was appointed by the BBA in 2008. The rail station was built up in it with six platforms; two of them were designed for London Underground Piccadilly Line extension; two for Heathrow Express extension; and other two were for connecting to west in future. The change order required in this project was to have some advancement in its road infrastructure. There was a need to have Airside Road tunnel (ART), which constructed in 2005. The Spur road from M25 was built by Balfour Beatty in 2008. To control the pollution and drainage the storm water outfall tunnel (SWOT) was arranged. It consisted of one bore tunnel which is having length of 4.1km. It was to recycle the wasted water by BAA. The automated people mover (APM) played their role to create a track transit system which provided facility of transformation between main terminal and satellite building. For providing benefit of transferring passengers and luggage, personal rapid transit (PRT) system of  £25 million was applied in July, 2009. Closure In last phase project manager should assure about the completion of project. It consists of different steps which are forming the agreements in documents forms; acquiring acceptance of clients; arrange deliverable in final form; comparing deliverable products with estimated; and allocating project resources. It also involves a step of informing about completing project to upper management (Michael, 2002). The allocation of different resources in this project enabled Terminal 5 to take about 30 million and Heathrow to take 90 million passengers a year. On Sep, 2006; two major transport milestones arrived on T5 when the project was completed about 85 percent. In 2007, the staff was trained and system was checked to provide deliverables. Around 40 million person hours were used for construction program since 2002. At T5 the availability of six cars was provided in start; and sixteen provided in 2008. The project was completed very successfully and its construction safety was on merit. In 2006, there were no reports regarding accidental situation of around 7000 work force. The official opening was held on 14th March, 2008; and it opened for passengers on 27th March 2008. IDENTIFICATION OF SUCCESS AND FAILURE Some of the successes and failures are discussed below: SUCCESS There were many chances of high risks and uncertainties in this project; but many advanced strategies were utilized to avoid them. Its main success is completion of project on time estimated for it. It was a great challenge for the project manager to arrange or allocate the resources with consideration of time. The budget programs were designed with most effective techniques and the cost plans were delivered very successfully. There were perfect tunnel bores and designs; the technical and mechanical activities were performed with deep consideration; structure was prepared with modern approaches. The Mott MacDonald performed their assigned task very efficiently while working on road tunnel. The designing; construction; and fabrication were much enhanced. The SME (Single Model Environment) proved to be very beneficial for these operations. The most innovative application helped to have stability in its operations. The quality level of providing the facilities to passengers was a great return on the high investment on the mega project; the shareholders achieved a great reward in it. There was a complete safety provision for the local inhabitant; passengers; and environment. The partnership with different parties was very successful which helped to remove the constraints. The exceptional plans were developed which helped to built up a control tower for serving all Heathrow. The integration was very strong to meet the projects goals. There were proper risk and control management to avoid failures in project. There were enhanced system of privacy; the finger prints were taken while crossing security gates which protect against illegal actions. There were strong IT systems for achieving success. FAILURE There were fewer failure regarding staff training, baggage handling and massive IT spread out. The main failure was the unfamiliarity of staff of BA which created many disruptions. Eventually, this problem was sorted out by BAA and BA later on. Initially, the baggage system not worked properly, the BA was blamed for it to not have sufficient staff. According to the BBC, there were many problems faced by the terminal staff for car parking in garages. There were high investment in the IT; there were 180 IT suppliers and 163 systems, about 9000 devices; 2100 PCs and a great mess of cables spread inside. According to British Airways CIO Paul, it is a smaller town filled with telecommunication system interrupting to build T5. CONCLUSION The mega projects always hold a risk of failure, however, the Terminal 5 Heathrow project was much successful and its phases were processed in proper sequence. The project management structure was very strong which helped to utilize the planning; managing and controlling methods effectively for completing the project. REFERENCES Andrew Devies, 2009, From Iconic Design To Lost Luggage: Innovation At Heathrow Terminal 5 Barry Leonard, 2009, GAO Cost Estimating and Assessment Guide, pg. 140-145. Flyvbjerg et al, 2003, mega projects and risk: an anatomy of ambition, Cambridge, Cambridge university press. Harold Kerzner, 2009, Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling. Pg. 418-450. Kim Heldman, 2003, Project management jumpstart, pg. 18-25. Michael Greer, 2002, The project managers partner: a step-by-step guide to project management, pg. 23-69. R.C. Mishra, R C Mishra Tarun Soota, 2006, Modern Project Management, pg. 22-60.

Entrepreneurial Action Is Creative Action Commerce Essay

Entrepreneurial Action Is Creative Action Commerce Essay Entrepreneurs are the talk of the business town at this very moment. But, who exactly is an entrepreneur and more importantly, what is it about him that makes him so famous in the world today? Let us take a closer look at an entrepreneur and his world! An entrepreneur actually is a person who makes life easier for the world community at large. Schumpeter (1965) defined entrepreneurs as individuals, who exploit market opportunity through technical and/or organizational innovation. He sees an opportunity which others do not fully recognize, in order to meet an unsatisfied demand or to radically improve the performance of an existing business. It began when an entrepreneur empathized with a problem faced by an individual which could be addressed by introducing a particular product or service. The earliest companies in the world were started by entrepreneurs who saw this need and created a vision for fulfilling that need. Next, they took the risks associated with starting a company and then finally producing and releasing a product to solve that particular problem of the individual. Eventually, in the long run, companies established by entrepreneurs add to the competitive spirit of the economy. In doing so, they force the existing firms to compete with the ideas and methods of newer firms and to come up with efficient business strategies. Thus, having stated how an entrepreneur was brought into existence, it can now be established that not only are entrepreneurs the people who possess the vision to introduce innovative products, but also the ones who ensure that the market is updated at all times, at times also creating new markets along the process. In a way they form an interlink between the masses and the business world. This makes them the core element of the business sector. This work performed by an entrepreneur is together clubbed as entrepreneurship. It can be defined in terms of value creation by identifying opportunities for new products and services and realizing them through new firm formation, then it is the process of transforming identification to realization of opportunities that forms part of the entrepreneurs learning experience. Reference Mitra (2011) The natural course of this essay takes us to an interesting point where we know that an entrepreneur introduces a product based on a need. However, there are two vital aspects of this task. Firstly, there is no empirical result which can ascertain his decision to introduce a product which has never before been released. In effect, this makes entrepreneurship an intuitive task. The decision to go ahead with a particular product is to a large extent backed by his instinct that the product will indeed be accepted in the market. The entrepreneur thus, makes an uncertain but intuitive decision of giving a product the green signal. Secondly, the probability of the product being accepted in the market is very high when the product is creativity personified, that is, it is a product which hasnt yet found a place in market. It could be a modification of an existing product or better still, a whole new product created by the entrepreneur. So it is visible now that uncertainty and creativity ar e two primary elements of entrepreneurship. Frank Knight, threw some light on the uncertainty aspect of entrepreneurship. His theory states that uncertainty is distinguishable from risk. He says that risk is measureable, whereas, uncertainty is not calculable as it relies on probability which cannot be measured. It is uncertainty that is distinguished from risk that provides a return to the entrepreneur. In other words, an entrepreneurs income (residual income) i.e. profits, is a product of uncertainty and not risk. This implies that if an entrepreneur wants to earn a profit it is a given that he needs to willingly bear uncertainty. Thus entrepreneurs are distinguished between non entrepreneurs in their willingness to bear uncertainty in order to gain profit. Milliken went ahead and gave three types of uncertainty. His three types of uncertainty can be simplified into three questions asked by a prospective actor about his or her relationship to the environment: (1) Whats happening out there? (state uncertainty), (2) How will it impact me? (effect uncertainty), and (3) What am I going to do about it? (response uncertainty). Let us consider an example of a product introduced under uncertainty. Apple introduced iPod at a time when nothing like it was ever heard of. There were some Mp3 players and portable CD players in the market at the time. But, IPod was entirely a different product. The probable success or failure of iPod could not be calculated. With thick clouds of uncertainty, Apple released iPod! Lo and behold! After the first few months of gradual acceptance, iPod hit a golden run. It revolutionised the market for audio players and electronic goods at large. However, it must be noted that the decision to introduce iPod was indeed an uncertain one which eventually garnered great profits for the company and gave it a niche status. Thus knights theory stands true that it was uncertainty that reaped profits for late Steve Jobs. The evaluation of Knights theory of uncertainty reveals that it has some loopholes as well. His theory explicitly arises out of partial knowledge. . The essence of the situation is action according to opinion, of greater or less foundation and value, neither entire ignorance nor complete and perfect information, but partial knowledge[p. 1991. This can be viewed negatively as partial knowledge backfires. Also, it appears as though Knight has paid too much attention to uncertainty and neglected other functions of the entrepreneur which are also instrumental in him earning profits. He has also not accounted for differences and asymmetries that emerge between different companies. It is not rational for an entrepreneur to release his product under strict uncertainty. Surely, he does undertake a considerable market research prior to taking a decision about introducing the product. However, the presence of uncertainty is definitely a hard hitting aspect of an entrepreneurs job. In contrast to Knights theory about the willingness to bear uncertainty, Joseph Schumpeter in his theory argues that entrepreneurs function lies in an innovative act of creating a new combination. Believing that the potential for new combination is abundant and at times obvious, Schumpeter delineates entrepreneur from non-entrepreneur not by difference in knowledge or perception but by performance of innovative act itself. The history of entrepreneurship reflects its uncertain nature. Several examples such as introduction of Nano Car by TATA Motors in India, Mc Maharaja which is a burger introduced by McDonalds in the Indian market, HD TV show that all these products began from an atmosphere of uncertainty. Nothing is certain, surely not the performance of a new product or service in todays volatile markets. In the past, uncertainty would rise from the fact that the market were rigid and unwilling to open up. Today, the same uncertainty exists, but with a different nature. The uncertainty phenomenon today arises from the ever changing tastes and preferences of the public. This puts in added pressure on the product performance. Thus, uncertainty can indeed not be separated from entrepreneurship. In fact, it is practically engrained in it. As established above, the second aspect of entrepreneurship deals with creativity. Being creative is seeing the same thing as the world, but thinking of something differently. Creativity refers to the ability or power to create or to bring something new into existence, to invest into a new form and to produce using imaginative skill. Some theoretical work on creativity gives insight into understanding the concept. According to Weisberg (1999), knowledge and creativity are two competing positions that are positively related. Creativity is in a way an application of knowledge. As opposed to this, the person theory of creativity suggests that creativity is a reflection of an individuals personality. Some traits are culturally determined while other traits are more emotionally determined. These different traits serve as an inspiration for creativity. On account of this, individual personality differences result in a heterogeneous mix of creativity. Stress also plays a very important role in creativity. A person with low arousal has high creativity and person with high arousal tends to have low creativity. The more we define our creativity by identifying with specific sets of values, meanings, beliefs and symbols, the more our creativity will be focused and limited; the more we define our creativity by focusing on how values, meanings, beliefs and symbols are formed, the greater the chance that our creativity will become less restricted. Normally highly creative people tend to be highly focused. But too much knowledge also sometimes restricts creativity. Planning improves a persons genic idea, a person with futuristic thinking, is seen to be more creative. Entrepreneurship would have been non -existent if it werent for creativity, to the extent that creativity is often used as the middle name for entrepreneurship. The main aim of an entrepreneurs job is to create new products and thereby discover new opportunities. An entrepreneur ought to have a creative product or service in order to be successful. In the early days of entrepreneurship, creativity was grossly ignored. It wasnt believed to be a requisite quality for an entrepreneur. That notion was corrected eventually. It was then accepted that creativity is an essential ingredient for an entrepreneur to make a fortune. Entrepreneurship creativity has been known as the generation and implementation of novel appropriate ideas to acquire new ventures (Amabile 1997). Intuition can also been viewed as more business competency which influences the ability of creativity.Also for an entrepreneur to understand creativity he must think of personal attributes like person , place or product. Talking of creativity, probably the most creative idea to have come up in the last decade is that of facebook! Truly, Mark Zuckerberg came with the brainwave of the century when he thought of starting The Facebook. The creative genius that he was, he thought there was a way to socially and virtually connect people across the world. The idea of facebook is not as much inspired by need as it is inspired by creativity. It is indeed a shining illustration and reinstates what creativity can do to an entrepreneur. Needless to mention, that Mark is now a millionaire. Intuition can be viewed as a core business competency which is influenced by the ability to be creative. There are also a number of other contributing internal and external factors that impact creativity: entrepreneurial creativity requires a combination of intrinsic motivation and certain kinds of extrinsic motivation a motivational synergy that results when strong levels of personal interest and involvement are combined with the promise of rewards that confirm competence, support skill development, and enable future achievement (Amabile 1997:18). Entrepreneurship has played a major role in fostering economic growth and also in generating employment. Along this process, the impact of creativity has been substantial. Entrepreneurial creativity, however, exists before, during and after the lifetime of a particular business since it is shaped in part by the social world and by the individual decision maker (Fillis and Rentschler 2006). Uncertainty and creativity are in effect interlinked. Both together define an entrepreneur. The relationship between the two can be expressed in the following manner. An entrepreneur introduces a new product with creativity and then releases it under some uncertainty. The idea thus begins with creativity and then gets linked with uncertainty. Creativity can be used to deal with the ambiguity and uncertainty in decision-making by matching the nonlinear responses of the entrepreneur to that of the business world. Uncertainty has not tended to be modelled in investigations of creativity and social networks, although it is very much part of an entrepreneurs environment (Perry-Smith and Shalley 2003). However, within new product development processes, it does receive attention in terms of moves to reduce it in order to secure the desired commercial effects. Creativity can also contribute to dealing with ambiguity. While uncertainty refers to a lack of information, ambiguity refers to the existence of multiple and conflicting interpretations regarding an organisational situation (Kijkuit and van den Ende 2007): Creativity when practiced by the entrepreneur is called creative action. It is impossible for an entrepreneur to sustain his position in the market if his product is just like many others in the market. There is only room for the product which is different. Consumers today, are not willing to buy anything that is outdated. Thus an entrepreneur has to ensure that his product satisfies the need appropriately and also is up to date. It is this challenge that necessitates creative action. For instance, Apple had launched iPhone 2G. Then, they upgraded it to iPhone 3G, then to 3GS, then 4G , then 4GS and finally 5 as they know they need to change with time. This shows Apples persistent creative action in keeping up with the latest technology as the company is aware that if it fails to keep up with the world, it will lose its control over the market. Having entered a particular market, for an entrepreneur to maintain the position of his enterprise, he ought to keep up his creative action. It is widely said and people are made to believe that opportunities dont come knocking to your doorstep and more so if you are an entrepreneur. An entrepreneur has to seize an opportunity before some other entrepreneur finds it. Once again for this as well, he needs to put at work his creative talent. Also such kind of creativity normally comes out of a person when there is a problem being considered and due to which the entrepreneurs keep getting solutions for the problem and then idea is being generated related to the problem and finally creativity then plays a major role and it gives an opportunity to an entrepreneur. But its not always when a problem is being seen an entrepreneur finds the solution for it is not always certain as many times the entrepreneurial action leads to failure. As said by Schumpeter that innovation is a necessity as people demand different products as the time changes hence creativity and opportunity plays a major role during that time and creative becomes necessity for an entrepreneur without which he would not be successful. Creativity, problem solving and intuition interact in order to produce an appropriate strategic vision for the entrepreneurially led organisation (Markley 1988). Mainly entrepreneurial learning is the process by which an entrepreneur acquires knowledge related to the business by exploiting opportunities This learning of Entrepreneur is socially embedded and provides the entrepreneur with human and social knowledge resources. The main reason for entrepreneurial learning is constructing the ambiguous and individualised realistic ideas for an entrepreneur.it is also a way by which entrepreneur develop knowledge and skills and make a business model .Hence forth for entrepreneurship learning is very essential for all the entrepreneurs as without which uncertainty might be created instantly. Also entrepreneurial learning is a key mechanism for innovation, as through which new opportunities would be discovered. After having discussed the concepts of uncertainty, creativity and their interlink and relationship with entrepreneurship, it will also be insightful to discuss the economic theories of entrepreneurship. Economic theories overall tell us that entrepreneurship takes a birds eye view of human action. These theories explicitly tell us how an entrepreneur should allocate his resources in order to maximise his output. These all points are essential for an entrepreneur. Also there are mainly two kinds of historical theories which have been used they are the Classical and Neo Classical theories. And then later new modern economic theories were introduced regarding innovation as the key aspect. As an economic system, in his book The Wealth of Nations in 1776, Adam Smith perceived capitalists as owner-managers who combined the basic resources of land, labour, and capital into successful enterprises. The classical capitalistic economic system, based on the concept of private ownership of property, assumed the creation and distribution of wealth through the exchange of goods and services through open, uncontrolled markets open to all buyers and sellers. In the late 19th Century, Leon Walras (1874) and Alfred Marshall (1890), separately, developed similar models of capitalist economics that incorporated a logical framework capable of mathematical analysis (Kirchhoff, 1997). The key concept of the new models was that markets consist of many buyers and many sellers who interact so as to ensure that supply equals demand. This Neoclassical theory was designed to show that capitalism characterized by perfect markets and unfettered by outside interference distributes wealth among bu yers and sellers and creates wealth in the process. Joseph Schumpeter (1934), one of its early critics, saw innovation as the key for creating new demand for goods and services and entrepreneurs as owner-managers who started new, independent businesses to exploit innovation. To Schumpeter, an entrepreneur was a person who destroyed existing economic order by introducing new products and services, by creating new forms of organization, or by exploiting new raw materials. A classic example of all that is discussed above in the essay would be to consider the introduction of automatic cars by General Motors back in 1940s. It was a time when cars were not even seen world over but inspite of that, General Motors possessed the creative vision to innovate and develop the first ever automatic car of the world. As this was a new concept, it was a big risk on the part of General Motors to launch a car of such a high standard. Very obviously then, the uncertainty surrounding this newly made automatic car was enormous. However, their creative action proved fruitful and their vision was rewarded as today, the entire western world is seen zooming around in automatic cars. If this is not enough, to remain ahead of their rivals, the big car companies of BMW, Mercedes Benz are continuously introducing new features through creative action to maintain their position among the top bracket for car buyers. Entrepreneurs are evidently the most dynamic members of an economy. As we have seen, they are the ones who bring exciting new products and services to the market, create new demand which facilitates further supply and thereby further production and better returns to factors of production. All this in turn keeps the economy on its toes. Further, the less productive firms of the economy are induced to enhance their productivity and performance and thereby improve the quality of products in the market. All this, the entrepreneur does under strict uncertainty with heavy dependence on his instinct.