Wic s Bankruptcy And The Loss Of Northern Brazil - 896 Words

Amidst the WIC’s bankruptcy and the loss of Northern Brazil to Portugal, the Dutch found themselves on the arid island of Curacao with 100,000 slaves and minimal opportunities. But the Dutch are known for their ingenuity and they quickly rebounded from their losses even while her corporate was itself a sinking ship. Part of their initial success revolves around them settling in Curacao before 1642. The WIC realized how invaluable a slave trade depot would be if Northern Brazil would ever fall back into the hands of the Portuguese. Once Curacao was established, the Dutch knew they could continue transporting slaves to the Caribbean and then sell them to the highest bidder. Initially the highest bidder was the Spanish because, unlike the Portuguese, they paid the WIC in cash. However, it took some time to convince the Spanish to consider asiento contracts with them. With the end of the Eighty Years War in 1648, Portugal had previously revolted against Spain in 1640. Portugal, as Postma explains, â€Å"had monopolized the slave trade to the Spanish colonies because they were the only Europeans who had African trading bases that could obtain large numbers of slaves.† As mentioned, the Treaty of Tordesillas prevented Spain from entering into Africa herself. Therefore, the Spanish had to find alternative means to acquiring their needed labor force. At first the Spanish acquired their African slaves by way of illicit trade because they felt that the Dutch and English were

Sexual Orientation Discrimination Essay - 2508 Words

Running Head: DISCRIMINATION HR Management Issue – Sexual Orientation Discrimination Table of Contents Introduction †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Sexual Orientation Discrimination Definition †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Explanation of Topic †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Background of Issue †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Challenges this issue Presents Workplace Discrimination †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Recommended Organizational Response †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Projection about†¦show more content†¦Sexual Orientation Discrimination Everyone agrees that workplace discrimination has no place in the modern business world. But not everyone understands the laws that protect employees against discrimination. In this case, what you don’t know can hurt you, especially if an aggrieved employee files a discrimination claim. Definition According to an article published by Workplace Fairness, a non-profit organization that provides information and education on employee rights, sexual orientation discrimination means treating someone differently solely because of his or her sexual orientation whether it be homosexual, bisexual, or heterosexual. This discrimination may occur because of a perception of someone whether the perception is right or wrong. Someone who is discriminated against on the basis of sexual orientation may also be discriminated against or harassed on the basis of sex, gender identity, disability, such as actual or perceived HIV status, and/or marital status. This is very important to Human Resource Professionals because they are the ones that make sure organization objectives are being met, and policies are being followed. It is the Human Resource professionals that deal with staffing, compensation, safety and health, training and development as well as employee and labor relations issues. Therefore if any situations in the workplace occurShow MoreRelatedDiscrimination Based On Sexual Orientation Essay1492 Words   |  6 Pagesworld where Lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender people are being slandered, it is hard for them to get jobs because of their sexual preferences or how they identify. Gays and lesbians who choose to come out around â€Å"straight† people they work with will probably face at least some (if not much) discrimination. During work, â€Å"discrimination based on sexual orientation must not be tolerated in any form in modern law enforcement. Instead of prejudi ce and intolerance, police departments and chief executivesRead MoreDiscrimination Based On Sexual Orientation Essay1776 Words   |  8 PagesDiscrimination based on sexual orientation has been denounced morally based on the argument that those who fall outside of the â€Å"normal† heterosexual orientation were â€Å"born that way†. The rationale behind this judgement is that those who did not choose something should not be discriminated against because of it. There already exists a societal consensus that it is unfair (and even immoral) to discriminate against someone based on their race, hair colour, disability etc., and many believe that thoseRead MoreSexual Orientation Discrimination in the Military1861 Words   |  8 PagesIn September 2011, the United States lifted the â€Å"Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell† policy (DADT), which restricted gay, lesbian, and bisexuals from openly serving in the military. This was the first time in American history in which people of every sexual orientation could serve openly (â€Å"11 Facts About,† n.d.). This was a momentous occasion for some and not so much for others. For those military members that had served in secret and those members that were firmly against gays and lesbians, this repeal had differentRead MoreDiscrimination On The Basis Of Sexual Orientation2214 Words   |  9 Pagesthat truly stuck out is ENDA. The topic of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is something that I think will continue to garner huge political attention for years to come. This law sticks with me, not because I belong to any of the classes of people it is trying to protect, but because I see that those people really are not getting the fair treatment they deserve. It seems so dumb to me to not hire someone because of his or her sexual orientation. I truly believe that the person most deservingRead MoreSexual Orientation Hiringi Discrimination Essay1609 Words   |  7 Pagesorder to p rohibit workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Currently, ENDAs exist in twenty-two states, including the District of Columbia (Martell, 2013). Even though ENDAs work to end sexual orientation discrimination in the workplace, they need to be extended on a federal basis in order to be maximally effective. This is because sexual orientation discrimination still widely exists in employment today. Tilcsik’s (2011) audit study of hiring discrimination among openly gay men provesRead MoreEssay on Sexual Orientation Discrimination Prejudice in the Workplace1103 Words   |  5 PagesSexual Orientation Discrimination Prejudice in the Workplace. Sexual orientation is â€Å"the clear, persistent desire of a person for affiliation with one sex rather than the other†, otherwise known as sexual preference. (http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com) Prejudice against lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transsexuals (otherwise known as LGBT people) remain widespread in American society. LGBT people have always been a target for discrimination. Like other forms of prejudice, this discriminationRead MoreThe Prevention Of Violence And Discrimination Based On Sexual Orientation And Gender Identity1713 Words   |  7 Pagesprevention of violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity Student Officer: Sarah Lim Position: Chair of the Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee ________________________________________ Introduction: Gender identity and sexual orientation is one of the more stigmatized and marginalized aspects of self-expression for any human in our society today. A state or country with a more liberal take on the expression of gender identity and sexual orientation tends to be more prosperousRead MoreDiscrimination Towards Minority Groups Based On Race, Gender, And Sexual Orientation1313 Words   |  6 PagesDiscrimination towards minority groups based on race, gender, and sexual orientation has existed in our society for decades. Till this day these stereotypes and prejudice towards an individual’s race, sexuality, ethnicity, and background still exist. There are particular barriers such as activities and interactions with people occurring daily, as well as plenty of disadvantages for those from different cultural backgrounds other than white. The term racism comes to mind when an individual draws negativeRead MoreThe Discrimination Or Prejudicial Treatment Against Homosexual Believing That Heterosexuality Is The Normal Sexual Orientation945 Words   |  4 PagesHeterosexism, the discrimination or prejudicial treatment against homosexual believing that heterosexuality is the normal sexual orientation. LGBT(Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual) community has suffered from heterosexism for many decades. This is growing rapidly around the country. Homosexuals have been excluded from jobs, denied benefits, discriminated at school, discriminated within their religion, not being accepted in their town or country and in public places in general. As evidence suggestsRead MoreDiscrimination Based On Sexual Orientation Essay1721 Words   |  7 Pagesreligion, gender, or sexual orientation; this is defined as discrimination (Article 14: Protection from discrimination). In 2015, the United States House of Representatives amended the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which was an act that protected discrimination in the workplace, so that it would protect against inequity in all aspe cts of life based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex (Cicilline). Although in today’s media there is much focus on bigotry for sexual orientation and gender identity

Financial Aid Free Essays

Federal regulations require students to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) in three areas- cumulative GPA, hours earned or completion rate, and maximum timeframe – to be eligible for financial aid. It is the student’s responsibility to stay informed of the University’s SAP standards and to monitor their progress, through our Banner system. A complete description of VSU SAP policy for financial aid purposes can be found on the VSU website at www. We will write a custom essay sample on Financial Aid or any similar topic only for you Order Now vsu.edu , click 1) Financial Aid, 2) General Information and 3)Satisfactory Academic Progress. Extenuating or Mitigating Circumstances; An appeal can be submitted if a student’s failure to be in compliance with one or more areas of SAP is due to events beyond the student’s control. If such mitigating circumstances can be documented for the specific semester(s) when the deficiencies occurred, the student may submit this completed SAP Appeal, along with all required documentation. Submission of the appeal does not guarantee approval. Students appealing to reinstate eligibility; you are granted one opportunity to appeal, (no repeat appeals), however re-evaluation for more than once is based on a case-by-case basis. Those students may not submit an appeal for the same previous reason Supporting Documentation To confirm your extenuating circumstance(s), you must attach documentation from an objective third party (Example: Physician, counselor, lawyer, social worker, teacher, religious leader, academic advisor, VSU Counseling Center). Documentation must be on official letterhead and verify that extenuating circumstances occurred during the timeframe referenced in your appeal. In cases of death of an immediate family member, provide a copy of the death certificate or obituary. Appeals without supporting documentation will not be reviewed. Reinstatement of Aid A financial aid Staff member will notify you of the decision by mail or via email to your official VSU email account. If your appeal is approved your financial aid is reinstated for the current semester. Eligibility is not retroactive to a prior term. If your appeal is denied you may choose to apply for an alternative loan. All decisions of the Financial Aid SAP Appeal Committee are final and not subject to further appeal. Appeal Deadline SAP appeal and supporting documentation must be received by the VSU Office of Student Financial Aid by June 20 for the fall semester and January 6 for the spring semester. Summer appeals must be submitted prior to the first day of classes. Appeals received after these dates will be considered for the following semester. It is the responsibility of the student to initiate an appeal before the specified deadline. How to cite Financial Aid, Papers

The Indus Valley Peak

Question: Write an essay on The Indus Valley civilization ? Answer: The Indus Valley civilization is one of the oldest civilizations in the world and the city of Harappa was the capital and the most important city of this civilization. The civilization developed along the side of the river Indus and therefore agriculture flourished during that period in that particular area (Korisettar 2015). Although, much of the Harappan scripture had remained undeciphered, there are certain scriptures or rather the phonetic language, which the archeologists had deciphered (Recchia, Gabriel and Max 2015). Reading those, scriptures the archeologists had derived the conclusion that the Indus culture or the civilization is one of the most stable civilizations, which has remained constant and stable until its destruction. The scholars believe that may be the city of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro, were under the theocratic rule, which means the priest ruled it during that time. The priest in the Harappan civilization was there in the citadel and the priestly class of the civilization was the most powerful of all the classes that were there in the civilization. Harappa had people who were regarded as the specialized warriors; in spite of that, the defense and the construction as well as the preparation of the fortress lay in the hand of the priests. The priests had the final word in this matter (Rao, Bhonsle and Kumar 2016). The archeologists had a firm believe over this fact because there are proves of the artisans house and granaries near those citadels where the priest used to stay, which shadow light on this fact that may be the priest were responsible for the construction of the fort. The Harappan civilization, reached its peak during the second millennium, which means approximately during the 4000 to 2000 BC. There are some archeologists and scholars, who believe that the Harappan belongs to the first group of Homo sapiens. The archeologists believe that these people somehow were separated from a large group who was then migrating from Africa. After being separated, the group traveled to the Mediterranean and from there to Afghanistan and then following the route reached the Indus River, where they ultimately set up their civilization. Therefore, following this description it can be assumed that the Harappans were nomads but slowly agriculture grew as the most important part of the economy of this civilization (Vijay 2015). The people in Harappan civilization was also very skilled in making bronze models and bronze statue and at the same time they are also someone who was efficient in making metal tools and weaving cloths. Harappa was the chief city where, trade grew and it was the most important market place. During the Indus Civilization trade relationship developed between Indus and the Mesopotamian Civilization. The Harappan Civilization is a civilization, was the richest and most interesting civilization in human history, which also faced controversy because many scholars believe that for the destruction of the city of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro, the Aryans were responsible. According to the scholars, if one had a thorough reading of the Vedic scriptures then they could found out an incident where there is mention of the destruction of the walled city by the Lord Indra. Therefore, in the Vedas Indra has also been referred as the purandara or the one who is responsible for the destruction of the fort (Dibyopama et.al 2015). The archeologists put forward the fact that the skeletal remaining that were found in the city of Mohenjo-Daro, prove the fact that people there died because of some violent actions. The Aryans too, were nomads, like the people of the Harappa, had once being but the special feature of the Aryans were that they were skilled in horse riding and they were warriors at the same time. Although, unlike the Harappan, the Aryans did not have the knowledge of agriculture, the Aryans were those people who had the knowledge of cattle rearing(Banerjee 2015). The scholars believe that the Aryans are learned the skill or the art of agriculture from those Harappans who were still remaining after the destruction and many also state the fact that non-Aryans or the Harappans were accumulated in the Vedic culture by the Aryan themselves. Although, there are many scholars who believe that the Aryans are not responsible for the destruction of Harappa. The archeologist and the scholars believe that deforestation, floods and other natural calamities lead to the destruction of Harappa and the Aryans were not at all responsible for the destruction of the city. Although this is a fact that the archeologists only want to hold for the city of Harappa, and not for Mohenjo-Daro, the archeologists believe that the skeletal of Mohenjo-Daro prove violent destruction and the description of the wall destruction of Indra could be related to this explanation. Reference Dibyopama, Astha, Yong Jun Kim, Chang Seok Oh, Dong Hoon Shin, and Vasant Shinde. "Human Skeletal Remains from Ancient Burial Sites in India: With Special Reference to Harappan Civilization."Korean Journal of Physical Anthropology28, no. 1 (2015): 1-9. Korisettar, Ravi. "Book Review: Irfan Habib, Prehistory and Irfan Habib, The Indus Civilization."Studies in People's History2, no. 2 (2015): 247-250. Rao, J.S., Bhonsle, B.R. and Kumar, B., 2016. Hindu temple cartsRathams. InEssays on the History of Mechanical Engineering(pp. 367-388). Springer International Publishing. Recchia, Gabriel L., and Max M. Louwerse. "Archaeology Through Computational Linguistics: Inscription Statistics Predict Excavation Sites of Indus Valley Artifacts."Cognitive science(2015). Vijay, Muni. "Agriculture at KalibanganEvidences and Excavations."Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies3, no. 12 (2015). Korisettar, Ravi. "Book Review: Irfan Habib, Prehistory and Irfan Habib, The Indus Civilization."Studies in People's History2, no. 2 (2015): 247-250. Recchia, Gabriel L., and Max M. Louwerse. "Archaeology Through Computational Linguistics: Inscription Statistics Predict Excavation Sites of Indus Valley Artifacts."Cognitive science(2015). Rao, J.S., Bhonsle, B.R. and Kumar, B., 2016. Hindu temple cartsRathams. InEssays on the History of Mechanical Engineering(pp. 367-388). Springer International Publishing. Vijay, Muni. "Agriculture at KalibanganEvidences and Excavations."Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies3, no. 12 (2015). Dibyopama, Astha, Yong Jun Kim, Chang Seok Oh, Dong Hoon Shin, and Vasant Shinde. "Human Skeletal Remains from Ancient Burial Sites in India: With Special Reference to Harappan Civilization."Korean Journal of Physical Anthropology28, no. 1 (2015): 1-9. Banerjee, Madhubanti. "Rakshasas and Asuras in Hindu Epic Tales."IJASOS-International E-journal of Advances in Social Sciences1, no. 2 (2015): 147-152.

Abortion Is Bad Essays - Abortion In The United States, Abortion

Abortion is Bad Do you consider something with a beating heart a living creature? A babies heart forms and starts beating in the fifth week of pregnancy, therefor, that would make abortion murder. The baby that is growing inside of you is depending on you, so when you make the choice to end that life, you are making the choice to murder another person. Someone that believes in the pro-choice theory would say that the decision is up to the woman, but the person with the pro-life theory would say that it is murder no matter what the situation. Would you consider it murder to kill a baby the day after it is born? Then why would it not be murder to kill it before it is born? ?If it is impossible to abort a baby in the ninth month, then what makes it ok to do in the fifth or sixth month.? (Carl Sagan & Ann Druyan). Many abortions are perormed each year in the United States. 75% of all abortions in the U.S. are performed on women over 20 years of age, but the lawmakers try to concentrate on the 186,000 teens that have an abortion each year. In 1990, there were nearly 400 abortion bills were introduced to 41 legislatures. So far, as many as 20 states have passed laws that requires a teenager to have a parents consent before having an abortion. This may help reduce the number of abortions each year, the people that passed these bills feel that maybe the parents will feel differently about the situation and be able to talk their child out of it. 20% of teens that are sexually active do not use any form of birth control, these are the teens that end up getting pregnant and getting an abortion. If these girls would use some kind of contraceptive it could stop a lot of the abortions performed each year. If you think about it, it is so much easier to take a pill then it is to be pregnant and have to de cide on the life of another person. When you feel that you are responsible enough to participate in sexual activity, you should also feel that you a resonsible enough to deal with the consequences that follow. Abortions are considered ?the easy was out.? I feel that abortions are just selfish. There is no easy way out. I could not imagine living with the guilt of taking anothers life, especially the life of something that I created, and that is dependant of me. There are so many people out there that wish they had the chance to get pregnant. If you really feel that you are not ready to be a parent then you could atleast give the baby up for adoption, and make your life, that babies life, and the family adopting the babies life a lot happier. I believe that when conception occurs, it is Gods will. He would not have provided you with the joys of having a baby if he did not feel that you could handle it, and he definetly would not provide you with the joys of having a baby if he thought that you had any intentions of killing it. Many of the people that have abortions take advantage of it and use abortion as a form of birth control. I can understand that having a baby might ruin your life, or so you think, but what about the life that you are ruining when you have an abortion. In a way, it is taking away a piece of you, a piece of you that you will never be able to get back. This might sound humorous but it is not meant to be, what if the baby that you killed could have grown up to be the president of the United States, or discovered a cure for a disease that you might have when you are older? There are so many things that need to be considered. Have you ever really thought about having a living being sucked out of you? Have you ever seen the results of an abortion? It is scary. Maybe if the results of abortion were more widly discussed then

Cutting the Mustard

Cutting the Mustard Cutting the Mustard Cutting the Mustard By Maeve Maddox I read an online comment in which the writer said that something wouldn’t â€Å"cut the muster.† I cruised the web a bit to see if this is a common alteration of the idiom to cut the mustard. It doesn’t seem to be too wide spread, but it’s out there. Apparently there’s a mix-up with the expression to pass muster, meaning â€Å"to meet a required standard.† Ex. You call that project â€Å"finished†? It doesn’t pass muster with me! muster: Chiefly Mil. An act of calling together soldiers, sailors, prisoners, etc.; an assembling of people for inspection, exercises, etc. We can say: The general mustered his troops. The private did not pass muster because his shoes were dirty. The expression to cut the mustard derives from associations with the spicy condiment. The expression keen as mustard dates from 1679. Ex. That lad is keen as mustard. (He’s enthusiastic and bright.) Mustard is pungent. It’s strong. It’s hot stuff. It adds flavor to bland food. There was a cowboy expression, the proper mustard, which meant â€Å"the genuine article.† Perhaps from that use mustard came to mean â€Å"the best.† The word â€Å"cut† in the expression hasn’t anything to do with snipping off leaves. It’s used in the sense it has in the expression to cut a fine figure. A person who can cut the mustard has strength and energy. It’s the lack of these qualities that would cause someone to say, â€Å"He’s too old to cut the mustard.† Being unable to cut the mustard doesnt always imply that a person is too old. It may mean that the person, of whatever age, simply hasnt got what it takes to perform a particular activity: Perhaps I could get a job as a maid in somebody’s houseIdden convinced me I would never cut the mustard at this occupation. Hons and Rebels, Jessica Mitford. Marlene Dietrich and Rosemary Clooney used to sing a song called Too Old to Cut the Mustard. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:When to Capitalize Animal and Plant NamesUsed To vs. Use ToEnglish Grammar 101: Prepositions

APPLICANT TESTING Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

APPLICANT TESTING - Coursework Example They may be tested for their cognitive ability to understand arresting procedures and application of those procedures. Potential police officers even undergo personality testing to identify the degree of fitness of the applicant to serve on the police force. One of the best ways to test police officers for the police department is the cognitive ability test. This testing method is used to identify the applicant’s ability to understand procedures and rules and their application in the field work. These tests are inexpensive because these tests can be conducted through computer based software that offers different questions based on multiple choices and these tests can be conducted online. The problem with these tests is that the applicant may perceive that the tests are not directly testing skills required to perform the job. These tests can result in legal issues because these tests may result in unintended discriminatory practices. For example: these tests have been found to resulted in unintended discriminatory practices against certain minority and protected groups such as the African Americans. Sims states that African Americans have been found to score sixteen percent less than White Americans on these tests (Sims, 2007). In order to avoid legal action and decrease the chances of being help responsible for unintended discriminatory practices, organizations can make these tests more jobs specific in order to be able to prove that these tests were conducted without the intention of discriminating against the protected groups. Personality trait tests used for applicant testing is another significant test that is being used in order to perform tests that help in testing the psychological aspect of applicants. These tests are mainly administered in order to identify the psychological disorders or issues that applicants might be facing and due to these disorders applicants are rejected. The main

Deepwater Horizon explosion (April 2010) -Transocean Company Essay

Deepwater Horizon explosion (April 2010) -Transocean Company - Essay Example This resulted to the loss of about five billion oil barrels through spillage but luckily, the situation was contained in 15th of July 2010. The discharge of crude oil had many negative effects such as damaging fisheries and their habitats as well as disrupting the economy (Guttry, 291). The oil spill, which is termed as the largest in the history of America, resulted to the damage of property worth forty billion US dollars. Since the damage was so big, it attracted the president’s attention where he responded by appointing a commission to inquire the causes of the spill (Guttry, 291). Reports state that even after the several response actions taken to control the impacts of explosion, the well in the Gulf of Mexico is still leaking. Although the estimated leaking rate is three million liters per day, some scientists argue that it is higher. The restriction by the government for scientists to establish the effects of the spill has raised ethical issues of government providing i nformation to the public. Ethical questions that were raised concerned the effect that the spill had on the eco system for example, the seabirds could be poisoned. In terms of legal, it was clear that the wild animals did not have any form of legal protection after the oil spill. Even though the major goal of any business is to make profit, it also has the right of making sure that its actions conform to the expectations of the society in terms of law and ethical custom (Halbert, 11). The Transocean Company should also put in place a number of safety measures that protects the environment in the event of fire or oil spill. After the explosion, company was also unable to pay dividends to the shareholders and many investors lost trust in the company during the year 2011 (Halbert, 13). The tourism business of Florida was affected negatively and the repair measures by the company could not restore the tourist attraction sceneries damaged by the oil spill (Halbert, 17). The companyâ€⠄¢s reputation was also damaged to the potential investors and to the society when they realized that the operations of the company were not inclined towards ensuring safety to its workers and the environment. After the explosion, the US president issued a drilling moratorium to regulate the drilling operations. The Energy National Board, which is located in Canada, also made it mandatory that all the drilling companies should produce their set of defined safety measures as a process of controlling oil spill damages. Moreover, the National Contingency plan (NCP) was enforced whose role is to provide the federal actions in response to an oil spill (Hagerty, 07). The response action could be the demand of the company responsible for oil spill to compensate the affected parties. Since the disaster of oil spill was one of the greatest in the US history, the event attracted a number of responses and reactions from the government, private companies, and Non-profit making organizations. As required by the government, the Transocean committed itself to pay twenty billion US dollars as a way of settling the claims resulting from the damages caused by oil spill. The major damages caused by the oil spill were on property, physical injuries and even death of the workers (Guttry 293). It is therefore evident that the drilling operations in deep water are very risky and the government as well as the industry should make safety of the workers

The era of the weak state THE WEAK STATE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The era of the weak state THE WEAK STATE - Essay Example The fourteenth amendment (1868) that protected equality of all citizens before law and the fifteenth amendment (1870) that imparted voting rights to all were also partially circumvented in a similar manner by the South (Henretta and Brody, 440-456). All these had a negative and weakening effect on the consolidating process undertaken by the new state. The period, 1865 to 1890, on the contrary, was the era of agricultural growth, industrialization and urbanization but of course with environmental costs (Henretta and Brody, 430-446). And towards the end of the era of the ‘weak state’, that is between 1877 and 1900, the US began to grow into a full-fledged industrial nation (Henretta and Brody, 462). If it was the feudal social establishment that acted as a weakening element for the state during 1860s and 70s, towards 1900, the emerging corporate industries took over the same task. It is observed that the new America that emerged in 1900 was â€Å"a land of factories, corporate enterprise and industrial workers† (Henretta and Brody, 462). A market of mass dimensions and a wide consumer base grew (Henretta and Brody, 497). Infrastructure facilities were also developed to great extent thereby helping industry to grow better (Henretta and Brody, 495-497). The decades that preceded and succeeded 1900 saw an influx of immigrants from Europe culminating in thoughts about restricting the same and also extreme urbanization (Henretta and Brody, 502-585). On the political front, the era of the ‘weak state’ is marked by the people getting highly mobilized as political pressure groups but all the same, the government being the weakest in the US history in terms of power and national pride (Henretta and Brody, 600-606). Slowly, as the two-party system emerged, the possibility of a third voice was suppressed and a common understanding was arrived at to maintain the ‘weak state’ so as to further the capitalist society and its

Pneumatic Auto Gear Changer Project

Pneumatic Auto Gear Changer Project (a) Introduction 1.1 This career episode is based on my design and fabrication project carried out during the penultimate year of my bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering at Rajiv Gandhi College of Engineering (Anna University Affiliated)-Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu state, India. Established in 2001, it is a self-financed and one of the best engineering institutes in Tamil Nadu. The project was completed over a period of 3 months from December 2012 to March, 2013. (b) Background 1.2 The project on Pneumatic Auto Gear Changer was carried out in order to understand and implement theories in gear change application. Its purpose was to analyze the various steps involved and to provide recommendations for a real world use of this technology. I carried out this project as a part of a group of four people. In this project, a push button was used to activate/deactivate a solenoid valve and at the time of gear changing, the switch was triggered and the solenoid valve was activated. This in turn causes the compressed air to go through the pneumatic cylinder. The compressed air pushes the pneumatic cylinder as it passes through a tube and henceforth changes the gear from one speed to the other with the help of a gear box arrangement. 1.3 The automatic gear changing structure is relatively useful in low cost automation in all automobiles. Pneumatic systems work at higher speeds and the manpower requirement is reduced due to this project. The design and the implementation of this project in the real world application was made and a detailed report was submitted. This project work was supervised under Mr. Manoj Kumar, the associate professor in the department of mechanical engineering at Rajiv Gandhi College of Engineering. As it was an open ended project, I had to look up through several online journals, document reviews and also took guidance from the head of the department on various projects and ideas. The project time was quite limited and had to be come up with a proper design plan before the actual start of the project. This proved to be quite a challenging task as this was the first real world project in my career. However, I was completely aware of the fact that, these would be the kind of challenges and problems I would face in real life as a professional engineer. Some of the duties I was involved in during the course of this project were as follows: I carried out an extensive study on various materials relating to the pneumatic systems. Since, there was no specific consensus on the selection of compressors, I had to select the one that best suited the requirements of the project while considering all the technical aspects. I also dealt with the equipment suppliers on behalf of my team to purchase the necessary materials needed for the project. I attended meetings with my supervisor to discuss individual observation and the progress of the project. I presented this project to the department faculties and also completed an extensive project report. (c) Personal Engineering Activity As a first step of the project, I explained my thoughts on doing this project to my supervisor. I carried out my research regarding the project and presented him the importance of the project before carrying out the project.ÂÂ   The present scenario gear changer plays a vital role in automobiles.ÂÂ   Manual transmissions have become uncommon in many cases of cars sold across Australia, North America and some parts of Asia. However, they remain dominant in parts of Europe and other developing countries. Hence, I did an analysis on the present day vehicles equipped with automatic transmission option and those that are not and further highlighted the importance of the project in the present and future of automobiles as well as in certain machineries. After deciding on the project, I carried out numerous literature reviews in order to come up with an appropriate design plan and to acquire the necessary equipment needed for the project. However, the articles and writings published on the topic was quite limited and were available for only specific cases.ÂÂ   As my project was regarding the project pneumatic gear changer, I did my extensive research on the pneumatic side of the project. Furthermore, I reviewed the advantages of pneumatic system and discussed with my supervisor for the usability in the project. Pneumatic system and was best considered due to its following reasons: The pneumatic system power output could be easily controlled Over loading does not affect the pneumatic systems The pneumatic system could be used at varying working temperatures Transportation of air through pipelines over long distances can be easily done with pneumatics in place. Pneumatics enables high working speeds It is a system which requires minimal upkeep. In this project, I used a reciprocating compressor as the key component for the supply of compressed air. I selected the appropriate equipment for the project after evaluating the suitability of information acquired from several sources. A compressor is an instrument that sucks in air and gas at an optimum pressure and deliverers the air back at a higher pressure as the output. It was very important for my project to select the appropriate compressor as pneumatic systems operate primarily on the supply of both compressed air and pressure into the system. Moreover, I had to make sure, clean conditions were maintained during the phase of the project as warm and moist air could result in precipitation of condense from the compressed air. The following is the schematic diagram of pneumatic auto gear changer used in this project. Figure 1: Schematic diagram of pneumatic auto gear changer I also considered an important element for this project which was the push button. The push button switch was fixed near the driving seat of the vehicle. Besides this, I had set up an air tank with fully filled compressed air in it. Prior to gear changing, the solenoid valve was activated by triggering the switch. The compressed air streamed from the air tank to the pneumatic cylinder as the solenoid valve was open. Likewise, at the time of compressed air inlet into the cylinder, the pneumatic cylinder moved forward and the gear box liver moved along automatically from one position to the next. The gear box liver was further activated which allowed the vehicle running at different speeds. I have highlighted the advantages of this type to my supervisor and was duly approved and appreciated by him. They are as follows: It required simple maintenance cares A safe system for the automobile. Easy to Handle. Low cost automation project Repairing was easy. Easy replacement. However, some of the disadvantages of this type were as follows: Initial cost was high. The system was a complicated one. During the course of this project, I used a control valve to control the flow direction within the system. I also used a 3/2 single acting solenoid valve, having one inlet, outlet and an exhaust port. The air entered the pneumatic single acting solenoid valve once the push button was activated. Moreover, I introduced a pneumatic shifter to the whole design as it works through compressed air power. So once the gear changing signals were received, the pneumatic shifter opens or closes the magnetic valve assembly. The compressed air flows into the system once these valves are open, or thrusts it out thereby creating the effect of shifting gear mechanism. More compressed air into the system allowed the gear to be shifted up and the gear shifted down as the air was let. Furthermore, I used an on-board tank to get this compressed air to the cylinder even though I knew re-routing the engine exhaust could be a possibility and be economically viable however, it would result in lower performan ce as most of the oxygen present in the exhaust gas would already be burnt. Figure 2: Schematic of a 3/2 single acting solenoid valve After the analysis on various aspects of this project, I discussed my project outcomes and my results.ÂÂ   Putting all the information to use, I wrote the final report titled Pneumatic Auto Gear Changer and presented this to my department professors and to the head of the department. (d) Summary This project presented me with the opportunity to understand the applications of theoretical knowledge that I had acquired in class rooms to implement in a real world project.ÂÂ   Discussions during the project with the supervisor provided great insight to challenges presented throughout the project.ÂÂ   The challenges uncovered were resolved by use of appropriate technical skills. This project also helped me understand the working and execution of any engineering project and served as a stepping stone to the real world. Overall, I am very happy that I could contribute myself effectively to this project at its various stages and also helped to secure the highest possible grade for this project.

Clone :: essays research papers

Pre-Mature Decision Millions of people pour into movie theatres every weekend to view movies about sports, romance, politics, and Science Fiction. While most of these movies are meant exclusively for entertainment, occasionally people will leave a theatre believing what they had viewed. Science fiction movies do this very well, especially when it comes to the topic of cloning. These movies from time to time have involved cloning machines, where a character walks into the machine and out he comes along with his clone. This might have made the movie enjoyable, but have put the idea of cloning in a bad light. There are many reasons why the public fears cloning, however, most fears are unsupported. People are afraid of cloning just as they are afraid of anything new in their lives. This immature fear led congressional representatives to an immediate ban of all research and practice of cloning. Cloning should have never been banned, the action taken was inappropriate and had absolutely no factual reasoning. The statement that "Humans are not guinea pigs" is one of the most common claims made by those who oppose cloning. However, in all morally relevant respects, this is not true. Every one of us is an experiment; a result of a couple of people getting together in the back of a car, a hotel room, or some dark and secluded part of the house, throwing together the ingredients that created us. In many cases, the people who created us may not have even wanted to form a person by their actions, though they did. In this respect, clones will be far further from being guinea pigs than most people who are conceived through traditional methods. Which means that if the cry "humans are not guinea pigs" really has some sort of moral force, it would argue for prohibiting traditional reproduction long before it will have any applicability to cloning (Fyfe par. 26-30). Another very common fear is that cloning will be used to create armies or slaves. Armies and slaves can be created faster and more cheaply by other means than cloning. This fear of a â€Å"2nd Holocaust† is very frivolous. It is unlikely that clones will ever be mass-produced as some people fear. Women would have to go through having to bear them , not mentioning that someone also has to raise them. This is an important point that much discussion about cloning overlooks.

Life-Based Leadership Principles from Jack Welch Essay

During the hundreds of millions of years of natural evolution on this planet, survival has always been a continuous challenge for living creatures. It has recently to come into light that in the past four million years, there have been scores of human species on the earth, besides us homo sapiens. However, all of these various human-like beings including the Neanderthal man perished in the course of evolution; we humans have outlived all of them. We have emerged as the true survivors. We are the last â€Å"man† standing. However, in the whole history of the world, survival could have never been as tough as it is in today’s world of big business. It is an ever-changing, dizzingly fast-paced, intensely competitive and danger-saturated environment out there. There are many survivors and many winners in this arena, of course. Of all such exceptional people in the recent decades, there is one man who stands out as a celebrated icon of leadership and business success. And it is none other than Jack Welch of GE, arguably the finest CEO in the latter half of the twentieth century. Speaking from a broad perspective, he is not just an exemplary business leader, but a hero, a survivor, a symbol of the triumph of man. Jack Welch is a man who believed that each individual should control his or her own destiny. Welch sums up his conviction thus: â€Å"†Today, I see winning as people defining their objectives and fulfilling them, not being a victim. You define where you want to go, and then you go for it† (Knowledge@Wharton) And from the depth of this belief perhaps sprang the secret of his greatness. Starting from the early Eighties, Jack Welch, CEO of the General Electric Corporation, has led his company through one of the most revolutionary and far-reaching changes ever witnessed in modern business history. Having taken GE with a market capitalization of about $12 billion, Jack Welch turned it into one of the largest and most admired companies in the world, with a market value of about $500 billion, when he stepped down as its CEO 20 years later, in 2000. Although Jack Welch was the legendary leader of a global manufacturing giant noted for its technological might and superiority, he has utilized a very human process to drive change through GE’s vast organization. He honoured the individual above all, and the humanity of the individual. To him, the individual was the pivotal force in bringing about organizational change. And for the major part of his immensely successful career at the helm of GE he relentlessly embraced change. It was change that made GE businesses leaders in their markets, added profitable, productive businesses to GE’s family, and tapped the brains of knowledgeable employees. Welch worked for change, and change worked for him. Jack Welch of course knew how difficult change could be. Nevertheless he viewed change as his only real chance to transform GE into the kind of top-notch competitive enterprise that he wanted it to be. Only through continuously undergoing massive changes, GE could win, and Jack Welch firmly believed in winning. He wanted to be a winner. And winners were not afraid to make changes. However, pursuit of change, empowerment of individuals, and such principles are only part of a broder human-centric principles of successful leadership in which Jack Welch passionately believed in. Welch’s original approach to management and leadership, which proved so successful in transforming GE could be summed up unders six heads: Control your destiny, or someone else will. Welch’s first maxim became the title of a semi-autobiographic bestseller that described the revolution at GE. The basic approach that Welch followed to carry out a dramatic revolution at GE was to trust the individual and let him or her believe in their own desitiny. Welsh believed in delegating authority freely, fairly and responsibly, within the company. In a general context, however, while no mere human being can have absolute control over his or her destiny, the point is to take total personal responsibility for one’s own life and actions, and assume intelligent control of the course of things. 2. Face reality as it is, not as it was or as you wish it were. Facing reality is tough. Facing reality means looking directly into suffering, failure, inadequacy of ourselves, others, and the world, something which we human beings are programmed to avoid. When corporations do not face simple realities, however, such as their products costing more to produce and being worthless than those of their competitors, market share and profits drop, the company and its employees suffer. Welch saw all these things happening at GE. Only when we are ready to honestly examine ourselves and acknowledge our shortcomings, will we be able to do anything about them. Acceptance can lead to transformation. 3. Be candid with everyone. Traditional wisdom says that honesty is the best policy. This home-spun truth has great relevance in today’s hyper-modern corporate settings. Welch strove to create an atmosphere at GE where people could effortlessly speak up to somebody â€Å"in authority,† who could then do something about their problems. It is an atmosphere, it is in the air of GE. Welch himself regularly spoke with front-line employees on the plant floor. Welch was equally open to hear both the good and bad things about GE. Honesty, sincerity and candor: they have their own rewards. â€Å"In a bureaucracy, people are afraid to speak out. This type of environment slows you down, and it doesn’t improve the workplace,† says Jack Welch. He therefore calls for promoting a corporate culture that appreciates and rewards honest feedback. â€Å"You reinforce the behaviors that you reward. If you reward candor, you’ll get it. † 4. Don’t manage, lead. Welch abhorred a strictly hierarchical type of management built on the concept of control. To Welch, managers should become leaders who show the way to other people by inpsiring and motivating them. Instead of controlling and exploiting workers, leaders should liberate and empower them. Do not push and pull your employees at every opportunity, gently guide them towards greater possibility. Welch’s leadership philosophy continues to be very simple: empower others, ask questions, tap into the potential of all of your associates, choose integrity and candor over charts, graphs, and politics, and spend more time in action instead of planning and posturing budgets. 5. Change before you have to. That is to say, proactivity. One has to be able to look ahead and predict changes that future is going to necessitate. In the context of a business organization, it is far better to change early those things in a company that need to be changed to stay competitive, when there is still plenty of time, rather than forcibly having to change them later when an adverse reality in form of failure and loss thrusts itself in the face of the organization. Welch was fond of yelling across the table at meetings, â€Å"Change, before it’s too late! † 6. If you don’t have a competitive advantage, don’t compete. Welch often quoted his business maxim that every division at GE had to be â€Å"number one or number two† or get out of that specific business. In the 1980s, Welch was convinced that inflation would soon become rampant thereby slowing down economic growth. The elimination of the old-line businesses was not going to be an easy job in terms of loss of jobs and lowering of morale that it implied. But Welch had to do what he had to do. The â€Å"Number 1 or number 2† philosophy – as ruthless as it sounds – had been critical for GE to grow and survive in the modern world.

Time Management in College Five Golden Rules [Guest Post]

Time Management in College Five Golden Rules [Guest Post] Do you like to learn? I do! Every hour spent at the university was great fun to me. I love to broaden my knowledge, acquire new skills and use them later in practice. However, mastering knowledge of all subjects is extremely time-consuming, especially when each of them refers to different issues, which not always overlap. Therefore, if students want to get good scores in many disciplines, they should admit that time-management in college is crucial! Meeting deadlines is one thing, and keeping the quality of the assimilated content high enough is another. Both issues are significant for students. The reason is that their combination is what makes students successful. I have to admit that I have experienced some slips in my life and terrible pangs of conscience due to the result not meeting my obligations frustrates me greatly because it conflicts with my inner need to be perfect in everything. Today, however, I am no longer the same person who started their adventure with studies. Today, I understand how valuable every minute of my day is. Thats why I try to use these 24 hours to the maximum, so as not to have any regrets that I wasted my time because I was too lazy. If you also want to boost your efficiency, check out five golden rules of time-management in college! #1 Learn to Say No Probably each of us at least once in their life found themselves in a situation in which the number of tasks to perform overwhelmed psych them out. Such moments particularly love to attract people who would like to have their project done by someone else as if those were walking with a loudspeaker and announcing they eagerly relieve their fellowmen in carrying out their duties. I am well aware that saying no is not the simplest thing to do; however, its paramount for time-management in college. We usually do not want to risk the consequences of refusing our help our college friends. After all, we may also need it one day, right? That is why the way in which we communicate this refusal is so crucial – find some practical advice on how to say no so that nobody will consider us to be a chuff! Believe me, if you finally start to devote 100% of your learning time to do your job, you will quickly feel the difference! It will allow you to focus as much as possible on what you can and take your exams without blinking an eye. #2 Do Not Distract Yourself Improving your skills of time-management in college is a challenge to many students. Lets face the truth: whenever we sit down to learn, everything starts to tempt twice as much. Social media, a book, an episode of a favorite TV series (especially when a difficult exam is approaching fast), even hunger starts to get worse than usual. I know it better than you think – as soon as you start learning, the sounds from the outside become much more intense and disperse the barely achieved concentration. Thats why whenever I start learning, I turn off my wi-fi and put my phone away at a safe distance, much longer than the length of my arm, and also behind my back. When someone calls, I have the opportunity to get up and move. Whats more, I no longer check my Facebook account compulsorily reading the same entry three times. This way it is reliable and the results, although difficult to achieve, are incredibly satisfying – I do not waste time on staring at my smartphone and consuming a million different pieces of information. I focus much better on the content to learn for a test or an exam, so I am also more satisfied with their results! Besides, I have learned not to check now and then if I have received a message. It was incredibly difficult for me because I try to answer my friends questions as soon as possible. From experience, however, I know that immediately after any distractions connected to the phone, it is the news that distracts me the most. #3 Prepare a List Of Tasks One of the most important principle of time-management in college is creating to-do lists. Did you know that we are doing much better when we stick to the established plan? Mastering the confusion is the easiest way to concentrate because knowing our next steps allows us to control the time we spend on it. Of course, chaos can also be creative and develop creativity, but unfortunately, this is not a good solution, not in the long run. By placing tasks in a more rigid framework, our efficiency is increased – and that is what it is all about! Here, I have something of a sub-item for you, that is, use tools!Task lists can be drawn up in many ways. The easiest way is, of course, to take a piece of paper and a pen, but I prefer the application for a smartphone. I have already tried Todoist, Asana, Trello, Podio, and TimeCamp, so I know exactly how much time I need to learn a particular subject or to complete another project. I also enter data regularly into my calendar (Calendar for Mac OS). On top of all I have a notebook at hand, which I use to note down some ephemeral ideas and thoughts. #4 Set Yourself a Time Limit When we learn or write some essays for classes, we often encounter the same type of tasks. Notes or scripts are usually of a similar size, so we can determine how long it will take us to prepare them, including any preparation – just as in the case of learning for a particular subject. Again, I will mention the time tracking tools, such as TimeCamp – just turn them on when you start learning, and the application will count the minutes and hours spent on that activity by itself. Doing so definitely makes it easier for students to manage their time because they are able to divide their day in such a way that any of their duties is fulfilled at the expense of the other. Imagine how lucky it will be to learn of three subjects instead of two? I would be proud of myself, would you? You should! Following the rules of time-management in college means no more missed deadlines. #5 Take a Break And the last but not the least rule of time-management in college is taking breaks! Our brain needs rest. Imagine working persistently out at a gym, putting yourself through the hoops there achieve the desired results. It is impossible for you to withstand it without even a short break! The same goes for the mind – it, too, needs rest to work correctly. That is why it is so vital to take a break from time to time while creating something, which is a typically intellectual effort. For me, it usually means two minutes spent with my eyes closed, preparing a meal or, more and more often, a series of simple physical exercises. These small pauses will allow you to enhance your focus and give you the strength to do more work so that you will finish it much faster! If youve missed our blog on helpful time-management activities for students, check it out now, so that you had a complete picture on how to manage your time. Author: Ola Rybacka Ola is a Community Manager at TimeCamp a time tracking software company  and a new media maniac. Shes a Ph.D. and speech therapy student, treats the university as the second home. Likes reading science fiction and fantasy books, prefers rock and celtic music, loves sitting in the kitchen and cooking for her friends and family.  Find her on Twitter here: @pidzuchna

Review of Molieres The Imaginary Invalid

Review of Molieres The Imaginary Invalid Moliere's 'The Imaginary Invalid' is a farcical play about a hypochondriac who is so obsessed with his health and money that he ends up neglecting his family. The story involves several different themes and plots within one family. A new interpretation of this 17th century play is now being performed at the Arts Club Theater; it incorporates some new changes and modernizations in addition to the traditional improvisation. Morris Panych has definitely succeeded in delivering a new, more comical version of Moliere's final play.Moreover, the dominant theme of this play is body versus mind. The play is about a wealthy, but stingy man who believes that he is constantly sick (Argan). However, there is an obvious doubt to whether he is really sick or if he is just imagining his illness. Therefore, the primary theme is Argan's internal struggle of body vs. mind. This theme is developed throughout the play into smaller themes such as masculinity versus femininity, greed versus love, and death versus life.English: Pura D'or Argan Oil Product: Pure this definitely confuses the original play by Moliere. One of the original purposes of the play was to...

Humanities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Humanities - Essay Example However, Realism as an art movement does not focus merely on the beautiful sceneries of the society but rather on the ugly manifestations that has an impact on the political, social and moral features of the society. Realist movement chose to paint common, ordinary, sometimes ugly images rather than the stiff, conventional pictures favored by upper-class society. The thought of this art movement is still in use today. Not just in art but in the whole system of our community; from politics, to religion, to literature and many more. If there is one thing that we should learn from this movement, it is the idea of expressing our thoughts in many ways and how we could reach and affect people’s perspective in the society in a more unique way. Realism presents the most relatable material to its spectators in the art and literary world of writing as it allows readers to connect on several levels associating it with their own personal lives. If I have to choose an artist that is worth discussing, that would be the famous Leonardo da Vinci. Many people say that the way Da Vinci painted seems as if you could see into the souls of the paintings. Da Vinci, as a painter, architect, sculpturer, engineer and geologist presented a different attitude towards his works which is one of the reasons why most people appreciate him as a person. Mona Lisa and Last Supper were two of his most famous works that attracted millions of people around the world and even adopted his concept in arts. Mona Lisa which he worked on from 1503 to 1506 and The Last Supper which also took him 2 years to finish (1495 to 1497) presented his patience throughout his works. Most of us only knew him as a painter, but what makes Leonardo more interesting is that behind his famous works and admired reputation, he is a troubled man. Leonardo da Vinci was known to suffer from dyslexia- a learning disability that can hinder

The Internet Revolutionized Traditional Methods Research Paper

The Internet Revolutionized Traditional Methods - Research Paper Example It may also be automated, in that an avatar or some other form of artificial intelligence guides the user through the system, giving responses based on their specific need. The exponential growth of social networking sites has also led to companies establishing their presence on sites such as Facebook and Twitter in a bid to reach more people. Internet-savvy people are therefore able to get rapid responses to their problems through companies’ online support. Online blogs and forums are another networking option where companies can engage with their clients. Customers can also interact with other users, learn from them, obtain solutions to their problems and gauge the quality of services offered. The internet is thus changing the way companies relate to their clients and bringing customers together. The quality of online support of two major companies is discussed below: The Apple online customer support department is easily accessible on its homepage. The placement of the link on the homepage was a plus because it not only made it easier for customers seeking help but also made visitors to the Apple website aware of this service. The online customer support landing page contains a variety of options. Users click on the icon depicting the product they need help with. Icons depicting products include; Mac, iPod, iPhone, iPad, and iTunes. Clicking an icon leads to a support page with detailed information about the product. If the pre-recorded information fails to satisfy the customer’s requirements, there is a contact support button that a customer can use to get in touch with the Apple technical support staff. The customer is required to input their hardware serial number to access the support staff. Though an effective security measure, it may inconvenience a customer who is unaware of their serial number or not physically close to their produ ct at the moment.

Compare the rights of LGBTQ persons in the different traditions Research Paper

Compare the rights of LGBTQ persons in the different traditions - Research Paper Example ty become such a major issue with some even claiming it to be the most dangerous threat to Christian life and to the gospel, part of the cosmic battle that Satan is waging against the church? The interesting thing is that it need not be so central. It is quite clear that in the Bible homosexuality does not receive a lot of attention. In the Canada, Judaism and mainline Protestant faiths are usually seen as the most liberal, followed by Catholicism. Majority of Catholics are accepting towards LGBT but not their leaders. Catholic Church leaders still remain antagonistic towards it. Relative to other religious groups in Canada, conservative Protestants are typically seen as having the least accepting attitudes. In the media, articles and features concerning LGBT more often than not paint Christian institutions as discriminative towards LGBT. Cases of lawsuits against church institutions in response to discrimination are becoming frequent. There are also cases where teenage suicides are attributed to be caused by stigma experienced by homosexual teenagers in Christian schools. The Church maintains that they do this to keep in line with their faith which is intolerant toward any sexually deviant behaviour. In response to legal action, the Church maintains that this is discriminatory toward them. The issue that arises is that the discrimination that the Church reports is in response to laws that prevent them from discriminating against LGBT people. The Jewish Community, on the other hand, holds a different view. Among the Jewish community, sexual orientation is considered to be biological and not a choice hence the wide acceptance of LGBT. The Jewish community however, does not hold as much influence as the Christian faction and is therefore rarely featured in news articles. This is also in part due to the fact that it supports LGBT people. Despite this, there exist minor assemblies within the Jewish community who hold antagonistic views towards LGBT by the numbers are

Dell Computers Essay Example for Free

Dell Computers Essay Dell Computer pioneered a new way of making and selling personal computers. Its customers â€Å"custom-design† their computer over the Internet or phone. Dell reengineered its â€Å"supply chain† as it coordinated its efforts with its suppliers and streamlined its order-taking and production process. It can ship a computer within two days of taking an order. Personal computers lose 1 percent of their value every week they sit on a shelf. Thus, having virtually no inventory is a great advantage to Dell. Compaq tried to adopt Dells approach, but with limited success. Dell’s CEO Michael Dell understood that kind of execution. His direct-sales and build-to-order approach was not just a marketing tactic to bypass retailers; it was the core of his business strategy. Execution is the reason Dell passed Compaq in market value years ago, despite Compaqs vastly greater size and scope, and its the reason Dell passed Compaq in 2001 as the worlds biggest maker of PCs. As of November 2001, Dell was shooting to double its market share, from approximately 20 to 40 percent. Dell turns its inventory over eighty times a year, compared with about ten to twenty times for its rivals, and its working capital is negative. As a result, it generates an enormous amount of cash. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2002, with revenues of $8. 1 billion and an operating margin of 7. 4 percent, Dell had cash flow of $1 billion from operations. Its return on invested capital for fiscal 2001 was 355 percent—an incredible rate for a company with its sales volume. Its high velocity also allows it to give customers the latest technological improvements ahead of other makers, and to take advantage of falling component costs—either to improve margins or to cut prices. These are the reasons Dells strategy became deadly for its competitors once PC growth slowed. Dell capitalized on their misery and cut prices in a bid for market share, increasing the distance between it and the rest of the industry. Because of its high velocity, Dell could show high return on capital and positive cash flow, even with margins depressed. Its competition couldnt. The system works only because Dell executes meticulously at every stage. The electronic linkages among suppliers and manufacturing create a seamless extended enterprise. A manufacturing executive we know who worked at Dell for a time calls its system â€Å"the best manufacturing operation Ive ever seen. In 1998, Dell Computers launched its first global brand advertising campaign, beginning in the United States and Canada, to further highlight the advantages of its direct business model. The brand advertising campaign carries the theme Be Direct. The campaign highlights Dells unique business model, which helps to eliminate barriers between customers and the manufacturer, providing Dell with the means to enhance the overall customer experience. Dells advertising has focused primarily on its products and has been targeted largely at computer-enthusiast and industry trade publications, cable and local television and a few national newspapers. The Be Direct campaign will be in addition to the companys ongoing product-oriented advertising. The new brand campaign emphasizes the strengths and advantages of Dells direct-to-customer business philosophy. The direct model, pioneered by Dell in the computer industry, enables Dell customers to have computer systems built to their specifications; a single point of accountability; award-winning service and support; and fast access to the latest relevant technology. Presently, the growing number of orders comes in over the Internet. The order-taking system interfaces with Dells own supply chain control system, which ensures that inventory is where it needs to be for the computer to be manufactured quickly. In addition, Dell stores very little inventory. Instead, Dells suppliers have built warehouses close to Dells facilities, and Dell orders parts on a just-in-time basis. By implementing these strategies, Dell has been able to provide customers with exactly what they want very quickly. In addition, inventory costs are low, and Dell minimizes the danger of parts obsolescence in the rapidly changing computer industry. In this way, Dell has become a dominant player in the desktop PC market and is well on its way to doing so in the laptop and server markets. References Cravens, D. W. Piercy, N. (2003). Chapter 1: Strategic Planning and Decision Making. NJ: McGraw-Hill Companies. http://www.dell.com

Recruitment And Selection Policies For Companies Management Essay

Recruitment And Selection Policies For Companies Management Essay In order to compete successfully in a global market, more companies are beginning to focus on the role of human resources, most importantly on recruitment and selection as a critical part of their core competence and a source of competitive advantage. A good recruitment is very essential for an effective human resource management. According to Sparrow and Hiltrop (1994), the effectiveness of many other human resource activities, such as selection and training, depends largely on the quality of new employees attracted through the recruitment process. Also, Sparrow (2006) pointed out that the challenges for HR business partners in handling recruitment for an international organisation vary in each country, but a common need is the question of how to ensure rigour and consistency across operations in very different cultures, business markets and labour markets. 1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY Hiring competent individuals has always been and will always be of paramount importance to business organisations, which is highly dependent on the recruitment and selection, which aims to attract and retain high-quality individuals in order to achieve continued success within the organisations. The importance of recruitment and selection should never be ignored. One of the earliest management writers, Taylor F.W (1911) complained about the typical way individuals were selected based on who you knew or who was first in the queue. Taylor introduced the idea that people should be selected for their skills and abilities, which should be tested before the selection decision. Due to the increase in internalisation, HR departments of multinational companies have put so much importance on the recruitment and selection of their staff, primarily because recruitment and selection is involved in making future predictions about future behaviour, so that decisions can be made about who will be most suitable for a particular job. 1.2 AIMS/OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY I aim to analyse the recruitment and selection policies of Ernst Young (EY) and KPMG in their different subsidiaries which are Nigeria and Sierra Leone, and to build the concepts on human resource management literature, which will help me to analyse what these companies did well? What these companies did badly? How these companies can be improved? What lessons we can learn from these companies? Would the recruitment and selection methods change overtime for Ernst Young Nigeria and KPMG Sierra Leone in the likely future?. 1.3 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY The importance of this study/paper is to explain and persuade my readers on the importance of an effective recruitment and selection policies from my analysis of Ernst Young Nigeria and KPMG Sierra Leone. 1.4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY According to Lee (1989) research is a systematic quest for undiscovered knowledge. The result of the pursuit of this knowledge is known as research. I would be carrying out a case study on Ernst Young and KPMG in their foreign subsidiaries; which are Nigeria and Sierra Leone and to carry out an analysis on the recruitment and selection policies used. CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW There are many previous studies and literature concerning recruitment and selection, this review will aim to expand on these and use the concepts of human resource management literature to offer a diverse understanding. Recruitment is defined as searching for and obtaining potential job candidates in sufficient numbers and quality so that the organisation can select the most appropriate people to fill its job needs. Selection is the process of gathering information for the purposes of evaluating and deciding who should be employed in particular jobs. With that said, every organisation has to recruit workers, select them, pay them, and also motivate them and in the long run eventually arrange for their retirement or departure. However, things are done differently in different countries; not only do they have different cultures (the foreign subsidiaries am analysing are Nigeria and Sierra Leone which are Wes-African countries), they also operate with different educated and skilled workforces, and in different economic situations, with different labour laws, government support or control and so on. Recruitment and selection vary across different countries, in HRM there are the concepts of international and comparative human resource management, and there is a distinction between Comparative HRM and International HRM which was made clear by Boxall (1995). Comparative human resource management explores the extent to which HRM differs between different countries or between different areas within a country or different regions of the world (Brewster and Larsen, 2000). Comparative human resource management is telling us that employment systems differ noticeably between countries and that managing human resources has to vary from country to country. 2.1 INTERNATIONAL HRM In international HRM, which is the basis of this paper, primarily because it seeks to understand the approaches used in the management of employees by multinational companies in their subsidiaries. For these international organisations, human resource management is a key to success. International HRM examines the way organisations manage their human resources across these different national contexts. According to Brewster and Lee (2006), international organisations have employees who work across national borders. In international HRM, there are staffing issues that internationalizing companies encounter that are either not present in a domestic environment, or are complicated by the international context in which these human resource activities take place and how subsidiaries respond. There are four (4) main approaches in which multinational companies deal with the management of employees in their foreign subsidiaries, these approaches were developed in the international business strategy literature which focused on human resource management and was carried out by Perlmutter (1969) and Heenan Perlmutter (1979) these approaches are; Ethnocentric, Polycentric, Regiocentric and Geocentric approaches. In the Ethnocentric Approach; in this approach the strategic decisions are made at headquarters, few foreign subsidiaries have any autonomy. Key positions at the foreign operations are held by headquarters management personnel, this type of approach is common at the early stages of internationalisation because of the need to maintain good communication, co-ordination, and control links with corporate headquarters, subsidiaries are usually managed by expatriates from the parent country (PCNs). A common disadvantage to this approach is that the workers of the host country nationals (HCNs) feel inferior or cheated to the workers of the parent country nationals (PCNs) when salaries, compensation packages, company bonuses are compared. In the Polycentric Approach; in this approach the multinational company treats each subsidiary as a distinct national entity with some decision-making autonomy. Subsidiaries are usually managed by local nationals (HCNs) who are rarely promoted to positions at headquarters. Likewise parent country nationals (PCNs) are rarely transferred to foreign subsidiary operation. In this approach, there is continuity to the management of foreign subsidiaries, which avoids the turnover of key managers that, by its very nature results from an ethnocentric approach. However, the major difficulty with this approach is that of bridging the gap between the host country national (HCN) subsidiary managers and parent country national (PCN) managers at corporate headquarters. This approach will be further analysed in chapter 3. In the Regiocentric Approach; this approach is a reflection of the geographic strategy and structure of the multinational. Personnel may move outside their countries but generally only within a particular geographic region (e.g. Europe or Asia Pacific). In this approach, regional managers may not be promoted to headquarters position but enjoy a degree of regional autonomy in decision-making. In the Geocentric Approach; the multinational companies takes a worldwide stance in respect of its operations, it recognises that each part makes a unique contribution with its overall competence. It is usually accompanied by a worldwide integrated business, and nationality is ignored in favour of ability. Here, parent country nationals (PCNs), host country nationals (HCNs) and third country nationals (TCNs) can be found in key positions anywhere of the multinational, including those at the senior management level at headquarters, subsidiaries and on the board of directors. A common disadvantage to this approach is that it can be expensive to implement because it leads to an increase in training of workers and also the issue of relocation costs. The above literature illustrates the four (4) different approaches used by multinationals in the management of their employees in foreign subsidiaries, some authors believe the polycentric approach to be very global, in that, subsidiary managers are responsible for their own strategy and co-ordination is needed across multiple dimensions. However, there are critics such as Mayrhofer and Brewster (1996) who argue that the vast majority of firms are ethnocentric. These four (4) approaches provide an understanding of international human resource management (IHRM) within an organisation. 2.2 COMPARATIVE HRM There are also two (2) approaches to research and thinking in the field of HRM; due to the issue regarding whether HR practices can be transferred, these approaches are; the Universalist and the Contextual or in the terms of this chapter, the comparative (Brewster, 1999). These two (2) approaches are also reflected in the debate between the two (2) schools of thought that contest the notion of convergence. Some researchers argue that even when there are differences, they are reducing as the notion of globalisation becomes more established and societies are moving towards each other in the way they do things, also including the way they manage their human resources. Other researchers argue that there is little evidence of such a moving together and that, in fact, societies remain steadfastly different and even unique. The Universalist approach is very dominant in the USA but is widely used elsewhere. The main aim of the Universalist approach is to improve organisational performance and to achieve organisational goals in HRM, and in particular strategic human resource management (SHRM). The major problem with this approach, is that it operates only at the level of organisation, ignoring policy at the national or international level and because is dominant in the USA it therefore, pertains more to the USA and in reality, it fails to provide insights to different countries in their practice of HRM. In contrast, the Contextual approach or comparative searches for an overall understanding of what is contextually unique and why. It is more focused on understanding what is different between and within HRM in various contexts and what led to those differences. Most researchers working in this paradigm believe that it is the explanation that matters, any link to firm performance is secondary. Contextualist researchers study the importance of such factors as culture, ownership structures, labour market and so on which are the aspects of the subject rather than external influences upon it. At this point, is important to know that neither approach is right nor wrong, both approaches, and the others that exist in other parts of the world, have a contribution to make. However, in practice there are often debates between the different approaches used to understand the nature of human resource management. 2.3 DUNNING ECLECTIC THEORY From the concept of international HRM literature, we understand the four (4) approaches in which multinational companies manage their employees in foreign subsidiaries, however, to understand why these multinational companies decided to set up in foreign subsidiaries, can be better understood with the Dunnings Eclectic theory (Dunning, 1992) which usually involves an arising need to establish a corporate culture in their subsidiaries and also most importantly, to transfer knowledge from the parent country national (PCNs) to the host country national (HCNs) and third country national (TCNs) which involves the need for expatriates (number of people who are sent by multinational companies on foreign assignments on a short or long period of time). The Dunnings Eclectic theory explains the roles of expatriates, which are: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To secure transfer of technology positions, as companies send the expatriates abroad in order to transfer their technology to the foreign subsidiary i.e. in countries where qualified people are not available, companies send the parent country nationals (PCNs) to fill out the positions. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To secure the headquarter control, where the multinational companies can exercise this control by using the parent country nationals (PCNs) in their foreign subsidiaries. In such situations firms try to incorporate the headquarters culture into the foreign operations, which in some cases may create cultural problems. Especially when multinationals tend to demand administrative and financial control in their foreign operations. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ It leads to an opportunity for international experience or management development, several firms find international experience highly important before promoting their employees. Foreign transfers are here important in order to learn foreign cultures and environments. In such situations qualified host country nationals (HCNs) are available but managers are still transferred to foreign subsidiaries to acquire knowledge and skills. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To help in organizational development, this could be called the Geocentric approach. This role is performed only by the best people at the best places without nationality barriers. Transfers can take place from headquarters to subsidiaries, from subsidiaries to headquarters, or from subsidiaries to subsidiaries. Nationality of employees does not matter in this situation, as the objective of this staffing strategy is to get to know about different cultures, create international networks, decentralization, and interaction between managers of different nationalities. In general, this strategy is mostly followed by larger global companies. However, multinational companies are increasingly adopting a strong global mindset and reducing the number of expatriates that are usually sent on foreign operations, which is usually costly for the multinational companies. Interestingly, multinational companies are beginning to recruit and select more of the local talents in their foreign subsidiaries and also ensuring that the top management in their foreign subsidiaries understand the headquarters desires and corporate vision and making sure it conforms in line with the headquarters. CHAPTER 3 ANALYTICAL THEORY In order to ensure successful business management, leading companies and organizations are implementing new policies, standards, procedures, ensuring space for new organisational cultures, business models, new projects and products. Yet, managing human resources is more challenging than we may even expect or even imagine and also, most importantly recruiting and selecting the right quantity and quality of staff into an organisation. The following analysis shall focus on the recruitment and selection of Ernst Young and KPMG in their foreign subsidiaries which are Nigeria and Sierra Leone. 3.1 ERNST YOUNG IN FOREIGN SUBSIDIARY- NIGERIA Ernst Young (EY) Quality In Everything We do is ranked as one of the largest professional services in the world and one of the big four (4) auditors. Ernst Young which was founded in 1989 due to a global merger between Ernst Whinney and Arthur Young, however, its individual components can be traced back to 1849. Its global headquarters is located in London, United Kingdom in the region of Europe, furthermore, Ernst Young is a global industry which offers these professional services; audit, tax, financial advisory and consultancy to their clients. Ernst Young (EY) Nigeria was set up in the year 1991, and has been in Nigeria for twenty-one (21) years. Ernst Young is one of the largest firms of chartered accountants and business advisers in Nigeria. Their clients include many multinational companies from all sectors of business. The firm also serves an impressive array of middle market and privately held companies, this structure allows Ernst Young Nigeria to be very responsive to both established businesses and emerging and developing businesses. Ernst Young Nigeria provides four (4) principal services to their clients; Advisory, Audit, Tax and Transaction services. As at time of writing this paper, Ernst Young Nigeria has a staff of 260 people including sixteen (16) partners, these partners are both Nigerians and Expatriates, the firm is administered by the Partners who occupy key positions in the firm and are responsible for making decisions on the strategic direction of the firm. The objective of the recruitment and selection policies of Ernst Young Nigeria is: To recruit and select people according to merit (quality of being particularly good or worthy) so as to ensure efficiency and effectiveness and also that the right people (in terms of qualification and experience) occupy the right positions at Ernst Young Nigeria. This objective has helped Ernst Young Nigeria recruit and select the best type of applicants into their organisation. The reasons for recruiting at Ernst Young Nigeria is either to fill a vacancy i.e. replace a member of staff who has resigned or to bring in a new member of staff to ease the workload in the team. There are various factors which usually affect the design and implementation of recruitment and selection policies of any organisation. As expected the problems encountered during the design and implementation of the recruitment and selection policies of Ernst Young Nigeria is not for public knowledge. However, I am very certain Ernst Young Nigeria faced some challenges in the design and implementation of their recruitment and selection policies at the initial stage such as total lack of knowledge of the labour market and also an important issue of corruption which seems to be crippling the Nigerian economy. 3.2 RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION POLICIES OF ERNST YOUNG IN NIGERIA This is carried out differently depending on the category of staff required, which are: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Professionals These categories of staff are recruited either into the Audit, Advisory or Tax Departments. The three (3) different departments have different skill requirements. Application letters and CVs are lodged by applicants and are reviewed based on the different qualifications required by each department. The minimum qualification for this category is a first degree in any field, also, professional qualifications such as ACCA, CIMA or a Masters degree is usually an added advantage. After the recruitment process is carried out, the selection is carried out which is in form of an interview, an interview is conducted by either a Business Unit leader or Manager and the HR Head of Ernst Young Nigeria, to find out more about the individual and their experience, the chosen applicants are assessed during the interview to know if they have excellent communications skills. Depending on the position being interviewed for, applicants may be asked to answer a written test. If the candidate is found sui table, a second interview is arranged with the prospective Partner during which a discussion on the salary and terms of conditions of service for the position are also discussed. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Trainees Prospective Trainee Accountants send their applications and CVs throughout the year to the company. These application letters are reviewed by members of the Human Resource department and applicants are short-listed if they meet Ernst Young (Nigeria) requirements which are as follows: i. Applicants must be aged a maximum of 25 if they are yet to start the professional examinations. ii. Applicants should preferably be graduates with good degrees; non-graduates are considered if they have started the professional exams already with good results. Applications are short-listed based on the above-mentioned criteria. Short-listed applicants are invited for a two (2) hour psychometric test. Those applicants who pass the test, are then selected and invited for an interview, this interview is conducted by a minimum of two (2) people including the HR Head and an Audit Manager. Applicants are expected to portray a commitment to the professional course they are pursuing with the intention of qualifying within the shortest possible time. This interview assesses the candidates communication skills, intelligence, and confidence. The interviewers must also be convinced that the candidate has the personality to fit into the Ernst Young Nigerias structure. Thereafter, a training program is run for Trainee Accountants by three (3) Audit professionals to get them familiarized with Ernst Young Audit methodology. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Interns As part of Ernst Young Nigerias co-operate responsibilities, they offer internships/placement for graduates from recognized universities and polytechnics within Nigeria. This program should be over within three (3) months. To be eligible for the Internship Program, candidates must be in their third (3) year and possess a good predicated grade in their undergraduate degree with plans to pursue a career in audit, tax or advisory services. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Administrators à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Secretaries For the administrative staff and secretaries at Ernst Young Nigeria, an informal method of recruitment is usually used through the form of personal recommendation, often referred to as word of mouth. Those applicants who are suitable are then interviewed by the HR head, which is a very common form of selection. Thereafter, an appointment letter is sent to the suitable candidate detailing the terms and conditions of service and the salary attached to the position. The employee is required to return a signed copy of this agreement on commencement of work. 3.3 RESULTS FROM ANALYSIS From the overall framework, structure and organisation of Ernst Young Nigeria, I would say the management and staffing of employees in this subsidiary is using the Geocentric approach due to the fact that key positions at the subsidiary (EY Nigeria) are occupied by nationals of the host country (HCNs) and nationals of the Parent country (PCNs) who are all highly competent employees. The Regiocentric approach is also used by Ernst Young Nigeria reasons being that some staff are transferred within the same geographic region; some of the staff at Ernst Young Nigeria are from other African countries specifically from Ghana, South Africa all within the same geographic region. Ernst Young Nigeria commonly uses the internet method of recruitment; this method ensures a large pool of applicants, from which the best applicants are selected from. However, I disagree with this method of recruitment for a country like Nigeria, because Nigeria does not yet have a truly web coverage, therefore, people dont usually have access to the internet to apply for these jobs, and sometimes come across these jobs after the closing dates. For the recruitment of the Trainee Accountants into Ernst Young Nigeria, one of the criteria is that applicants should be a maximum of 25years; I frown upon this criterion because it is indirect age discrimination and should not be practiced, this cannot be present in Ernst Youngs headquarters due to the government legislation which frowns against any form of age discrimination. 3.4 KPMG IN FOREIGN SUBSIDIARY- SIERRA LEONE KPMG (cutting through complexity) is ranked as one of the largest professional services in the world and one of the big four (4) auditors. KPMG is a merger of Peat Marwick International and Klynveld Main Goerdeler this merger was established in 1987, in consonance with a decision of the international council to have all affiliate firms adapt the name to underscore the advisory functions of this world-wide firm. Its global headquarters is located in Amstelveen; Netherland in the region of Europe, KPMG is a global industry which offers these professional services; audit, tax and advisory. Its advisory services are further divided into three service groups- Management Consulting, Risk Consulting, and Transaction Restructuring. KPMG Sierra Leone was established in the 1930s by Edward Casselton Elliot but was not known as KPMG. It was called Peat Marwick Casselton Elliot and CO and has been in Sierra Leone for about 80 years. KPMG is the largest firm of chartered accountants and business advisers in Sierra Leone. Their clients include many multinational companies from all sectors of business. The firm also serves an impressive array of middle market and privately held companies, this structure allows KPMG Sierra Leone to be very responsive to both established businesses and emerging and developing businesses. KPMG Sierra Leone provides three (3) principal services to their clients; Audit, Taxation and Advisory services. As at time of writing this paper, KPMG Sierra Leone has a staff of 120 people including three (3) partners namely; Vidal T.O. Decker (Senior Managing Partner), Claudius Williams-Tucker (Tax Peoples partner) and Derrick Kawaley (Audit partner) all nationals of Sierra Leone, the firm is admin istered by the Partners who occupy key positions in the firm and are responsible for making decisions on the strategic direction of the firm. The objective of the recruitment and selection policies of KPMG Sierra Leone is: To recruit and select people according to set competencies, competencies are defined as a combination of behaviours, knowledge, skills and personality attributes. This objective has helped KPMG Sierra Leone recruit and select the best type of applicants into their organisation. The reason for recruiting at KPMG Sierra Leone is either to fill a vacancy i.e. replace a member of staff who has resigned or to bring in a new member of staff to ease the workload in the team. There are various factors which usually affect the design and implementation of recruitment and selection policies of any organisation. As expected the problems encountered during the design and implementation of the recruitment and selection policies of KPMG Sierra Leone is not for public knowledge. However, I am very certain KPMG Sierra Leone faced some challenges in the design and implementation of their recruitment and selection policies at the initial stage such as total lack of knowledge of the labour market. 3.5 RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION POLICIES OF KPMG IN SIERRA LEONE This is carried out differently depending on the category of staff required, which are: Professionals These categories of staff are recruited either into the Audit, Advisory or Tax Departments. The three (3) different departments have different skill requirements. Application letters and CVs are lodged by applicants and are reviewed based on the different qualifications required by each department. The minimum qualification for this category is a first degree in any field, also, professional qualifications such as ACCA, CIMA or a Masters degree is usually an added advantage. After the recruitment process is carried out, the selection is carried out which is in form of an interview, an interview is conducted by either a Business Unit leader or Manager and the HR Head of KPMG Sierra Leone, to find out more about the individual and their experience, roles in KPMG have required competencies based on personal and technical skills. These are assessed during the interview together with communications skills. Depending on the position being interviewed for, applicants may be asked to answer a written test. If the candidate is found suitable, a second interview is arranged with the prospective Partner during which a discussion on the salary and terms of conditions of service for the position are also discussed. Trainees Prospective Trainee Accountants send their applications and CVs throughout the year to the firm. These application letters are reviewed by members of the Human Resource department and applicants are short-listed if they meet KPMG Sierra Leone requirements which are as follows: Applicants must be aged a maximum of 27 if they are yet to start the professional examinations. Applicants should preferably be graduates with good degrees; non-graduates are considered if they have started the professional exams already with good results. Applications are short-listed based on the above-mentioned criteria. Short-listed applicants are invited for a three (3) hour psychometric test. Those applicants who pass the test, are then selected and invited for an interview, this interview is conducted by a minimum of two (2) people including the HR Head and an Audit Manager. Applicants are expected to portray a commitment to the professional course they are pursuing with the intention of qualifying within the shortest possible time. This interview assesses the candidates communication skills, intelligence, and confidence. The interviewers must also be convinced that the candidate has the personality to fit into the KPMG Sierra Leone structure. Thereafter, a training program is run for Trainee Accountants by three (3) Audit professionals to get them familiarized with KPMG Audit methodology. Interns As part of KPMG Sierra Leones co-operate responsibilities, they offer internships/placement for graduates from recognized universities and polytechnics. This program should be over within three (3) months. To be eligible for the Internship Program, candidates must be in their third (3) year and possess a good predicated grade in their undergraduate degree with plans to pursue a career in audit, tax or advisory services. Administrators Secretaries For the administrative staff and secretaries at KPMG Sierra Leone, an informal method of recruitment is usually used through the form of personal recommendation, often referred to as word of mouth. Those applicants who are suitable are then interviewed by the HR head and the partner, which is a very common form of selection. Thereafter, an appointment letter is sent to the suitable candidate detailing the terms and conditions of service and the salary attached to the position. The employee is required to return a signed copy of this agreement on commencement of work. 3.6 RESULTS FROM ANALYSIS From the overall framework, structure and organisation of KPMG Sierra Leone I would say the management and staffing of employees in this subsidiary is using the Polycentric approach, due to the fact that top management staff consists of host country nationals (HCNs) who are nationals of Sierra Leone and who are recruited and selected to manage the subsidiary, as at time of writing this paper, there are no expatriates working at KPMG Sierra Leone, the company is administered by the partners (nationals of Sierra Leone) who are responsible for strategic decisions of KPMG Sierra Leone, which implies that the top management at KPMG Sierra Leone i.e. partners understands the desires and corporate vision of KPMG headquarters. The Regiocentric approach is also used by KPMG Sierra Leone, because some staff are transferred within the same geographic region, som