Essay 3 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

3 - Essay Example In the environment, particularly one such as an island, most of the ecological niches are usually unoccupied. In the new ecosystem, the species have to evolve and adapt first if they want to survive. In the process of adapting, the species may change so much that in the end it becomes a different species. This is when the species is said to be going through convergent evolution. Convergent evolution refers to the process where unrelated species evolve into similar uniqueness the due to environmental pressures (Wilson 100). Therefore, the process of adaptive radiation takes place when the new species has to evolve so as to make use of the available ecological niches. It is crucial to note that adaptive radiation occurs when the species are under high pressure in the new environment. It is also crucial to note that when adaptive radiation occurs speciation does not take place consciously (Wilson 118). In speciation process, new species are formed. Animals in the new environment are never conscious when adapting into new species. Additionally, in the environment, evolutionary development of adaptive radiation only occurs mostly in animals and a few times in plants. This is because plants do not disperse in new environments like the

Civil War Battles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Civil War Battles - Essay Example The confederacy was forced to defend with limited resources, which was a subjected to union thrust along multiple avenues approach. The pacific Coast Theater was known to be the military operation in the United States around the Pacific Ocean. The department of the pacific, which include the states of Nevada, California, Washington, and Oregon territory, encompassed this theater. Operations directed against Confederate irregulars in California were placed in Southern California, and New Mexico territory to control the region, which had strong secessionists’ sympathies. The battles were organized in geographical presence of Mountainous terrain. This increased the chance of conflict as they offered terrain where rebels can seek sanctuary. A high production of primary commodities in various states increased national exports significantly increasing the risk of conflict and thus contributing to financing of the civil war. The time between the civil battles and the war gave room for a conflict to recur and significantly increased the opportunity cost of restarting the

Hiroshima, a Tragedy That Could Have Been Averted Essay Example for Free

Hiroshima, a Tragedy That Could Have Been Averted Essay The nuclear bombings of Japan are a very controversial topic, and is highly discussed and researched by scholars and the general public. The nuclear bombings are not just a small part in military history, but a lesson in reality and the destruction possible of man to achieve their goals; these bombings have raised a whole host of ethical issues and concerns, which must be taken into consideration. There are many reasons why the actions taken by the United States and specifically President Truman to drop the A-Bomb on Hiroshima were absolutely unnecessary. On the other hand there is an abundant amount of weak justification as to why it was so imperative for the U. S. to distinguish the lives of sixty-six thousand civilians in the blink of an eye, and cause catastrophic destruction and disparity that would have a lasting effect for decades to come. The atomic bomb should have never been dropped on Japan because the atomic bomb is not a strategic weapon. It could be compared to Pheasant hunting using a Sherman Tank. According to writer Mary Bellis, â€Å"the bomb was dropped from the Enola Gay. It missed by only 800 feet. At 0816 hours, in an instant, 66,000 people were killed and 69,000 injured by a 10-kiloton atomic explosion† (Bellis). We can begin by looking at the reasons that ultimately led to the decision to bomb Hiroshima, and the heart of it, with President Truman. On Dec 7, 1941 the Japanese conducted an unprovoked air assault on the U. S. naval base in Pearl Harbor; by doing this the Japanese caused the U. S. to be brought into WWI. Bill Gordon, in his Essay reminds us that, as a result, for four long years, severe loathing of the Japanese people grew immensely in the U.  S. , and many U. S citizens and members of the government viewed the Japanese as a very barbaric race of people, which gave the impression that the bombing would be justified. (Gordon). The fear of them in the U. S. was so present that they were rounded up and confined in containment camps including naturalized Japanese Americans. To add to their unpopularity was their mistreatment of U. S. prisoners of war which to say the least was horrifying, and their attempts to cover them up were proof that they knew they were committing war crimes. But ask yourself, does this justify killing civilians? Although these acts by the Japanese are extremely savage; they were committed on military personnel in the context of war, not on unsuspecting civilians in the course of their everyday activities. Truman’s reason for the bombing was that he believed that the alternative to this was to wage war on the Japanese mainland, but this would mean the death of many U. S. troops and could end in failure. He claimed this was his way to end the war and spare the loss of U. S. military personnel. In doing so, he did achieve just that, but is this not the classic example of a Pyrrhic victory? Doug Longs article states how there were concrete proof that Japan was ready to surrender and Truman had knowledge of this, weeks before his decision. It was understood by both, the Allies and Japan, that surrender was the only way out for the Japanese. Japan was ready to surrender by mid July 1945, and had sought diplomatic help through the still-neutral Russians. In July1945, the U. S. ad intercepted and successfully decoded messages sent between Foreign Minister Togo and Japan’s Ambassador to Moscow, Sato. These messages clearly stated Japans, and specifically the Emperors great desire to end the war. As I stated earlier Truman was well aware of these transmissions, but insisted the bomb was necessary to terminate the war and save the lives of thousands of U. S. soldiers (Long). When in theory it was not. The US government refused to state in the Potsdam Declaration that upon the surrender of Japan the position of the emperor in Japan would remain. This statement along with the Soviet declaration of war on Japan should bring one to believe that this would have been enough to convince Japan to surrender. It is very conceivable that the US Government didn’t include the statement that the position of the emperor of Japan would be allowed to remain if Japan surrendered because the US government didn’t want to appear soft on Japan. If this was all that was needed, would it not have been worth exploring? Again, mass murder to save face in the eyes of the enemy is not a justifiable argument. Long states in his paper â€Å"Hiroshima Was it Necessary? † President Truman had advisors who influenced him to remove the statement against the advice of other advisors who had more knowledge of Japan and their culture, which held a great love and loyalty for their Emperor Hirohito. Was it the ignorance of certain U. S. officials about Japanese culture that led to this invaluable detail being left out of the Declaration? , or was it omitted purposely? , knowing the outcome, thereby creating an excuse to bomb them. , Drobny in his article quotes Herbert Hoover as stating to Truman, I am onvinced that if you, as President, will make a shortwave broadcast to the people of Japan tell them they can have their Emperor if they surrender, that it will not mean unconditional surrender except for the militarists youll get a peace in Japan youll have both wars over (Drobny). This was a full two months before the bomb was dropped, plenty of time to make a simple Broadcast, yet it wa s ignored. . The U. S. decision to drop leaflets from planes in the days before the attack warning the people of their impending doom is also very suspect. Why if the intended bombing of a heavily populated civilian area was planned why would anyone give such a warning? If the intentions were not to kill civilians, then was it even necessary to target these areas? Would detonation of the bomb on an unpopulated Island or at sea off the coast of Japan been enough to show the immense destructive power and in essence have the same effect without all the death? This creates speculation that the bomb was used to impress upon the USSR the capabilities of the U. S. military, this again could have been achieved at a different site without death involved. Another was Hiroshima and Nagasaki being 2 cities that were surprisingly not affected by the war as far as destruction would be a great place to study the effects of the bomb, if any of these were the underlying effects of the decision, there is no concrete proof, but it is quite proven that these were two effects that did take place intentional or not. The thought of using the deaths of civilians, to prove a point to the USSR or to Experiment on civilians is appalling. Jeff Kingston, A history teacher at Temple University in Japan, confirms that During the Yalta conference Stalin had promised the U.  S. to invade Japan â€Å"three months† after the defeat of Germany, and the agreement between the U. S. and the USSR was signed to that effect (Kingston). The Red Army declared the war against Japan exactly three months later; it entered Manchuria on August 8. The same day the Red Army invaded Korea from the north, while the US troops were invading it from the south. The USSR Red Army captured the entire Kwantung Army of the Japanese and began preparing itself for the amphibious landing to the islands of Japan. Indeed, Stalin was fulfilling his obligations to their U. S. ally. Long explains how Truman did not want the Red Army to land on the islands of Japan, even though this move could have saved many lives of the American soldiers ( long). Truman could not afford the thought of victorious Stalin exporting socialism to their Pacific neighbor. That fear probably was one of many motives behind the Truman’s decision to drop nuclear bombs on Japan. Should he not have considered this before making a deal with Stalin? Had he just ignored the fact that this would leave Japan vulnerable for the USSR to occupy? If so, those were not the acts of a responsible leader. An argument could be made that Stalin was hoping to advance the causes of socialism into Asia but there is no proof, only assumptions, now, and then, that he considered the territorial occupation of Asia to achieve that goal. In making Stalin an ally, Truman created a situation that he would not be able to control without the show of massive military force, essentially making the use of the bomb quite probable. There is undeniable proof that Japan wanted to give up, as President Truman had in his possession, and he should have explored every option to negotiate with Japan to surrender, and did not. In my opinion, the United States took a few steps back on the evolution ladder when they decided to kill innocent people. It is widely known the US State Department and President Truman wanted payback for the astonishing attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, but lowering the U. S. to their level was not the answer. While the Japanese may have been seeking peace deals through the USSR diplomats, it was ultimately pointless. The sheer size, scope and savagery of World War II seemed to leave only room for total victory. It is doubtful the Russians would have accepted a peace treaty instead of surrender regarding Germany any more than the United States would have accepted peace instead of surrender after Pearl Harbor and years of bitter fighting. World War II was in all aspects, a war aimed at nothing less than total victory. This country was not built on the concept of an eye for an eye so this is a weak argument not to accept or at least explore every option to achieve the most humane end to the war. It is widely believed in the U. S. that these decisions were decided to seize the opportunity of any chance at a quick victory. The population was tired of war, huge sacrifices were born by the allies, and a hope to defeat Japan without direct military invasion was believed to be a huge gamble. The main justification for using the Atomic bomb however it worked was that Japan surrendered. While the end did not justify the means, the goal was reached. In the months preceding the bombing, the Japanese were becoming weaker and weaker. They were surrounded by the Navy; many areas were destroyed by air raids, and they couldnt receive any imports and also could not export anything. Naturally, as time went on and the war developed in our favor and it was quite logical to that with the proper kind of a warning the Japanese would then be in a position to make peace, which would have made it unnecessary for us to drop the bomb, or to have had to bring Russia in to the war. Many it seemed wanted to issue a warning for various reasons moral and tactical. The tactical argument was the Allied Forces had already won, the Japanese would have surrendered, and the US would not have exposed its nuclear capabilities to the Soviets thus delaying the arms race. Many military minds were convinced the Japanese were already blockaded and knew they were dependent on the rail transportation and inter coastal shipping. Conventional bombing, submarines and mines would have eliminated any movement of supplies throughout the country. Even with these strangle holds in place, it is still very conceivable that Japan would still not have surrendered if it meant losing their Emperor, but we will never have the answer to this question, because it was not allowed to play out to see the outcome. As with any decisions made in the past, hindsight is 20/20, but these were very different times, and the threat of Communism was so great, even a U. S. president would make a decision this reckless to stop it from spreading. We will never know the outcomes of the many alternatives that were proposed after the fact, but we do know there were alternatives that could have been perused before these cities and their inhabitants were bombed. One would like to believe that it was not all in vain, and the world learned a valuable lesson from this destruction, as we have not had an event like this in the world since. This is only a summary of the events that took place, in an attempt at trying to understand why Truman did what he did, and if it was necessary. You will have to come to your own decision on the moral and ethical issues involved, but hopefully this sheds some light on the subject so your decision can be made in an informed manner.

Personal Previous Job Reflection Social Work Essay

Personal Previous Job Reflection Social Work Essay DISCUSSION: This question reveals a lot about you. You want to indicate that what you liked best about your last job are things that will appeal to the Hiring Manager. Show that your last job allowed you to demonstrate many of the desirable Behavioral Competencies that are discussed at the beginning of this Guide. Give specific examples of how your last job allowed you to flex your skills and show your maturity. Never make statements like I like that my last company gave me a lot of vacation days, or something similar. When answering about what you liked least, keep it short, do not be negative, and relate your answer to how your last job limited you in your ability to exhibit positive Behavioral Competencies. What I liked about my last job was the fact that there was good on the job training. I was able to really develop my X skills, which I know will help me succeed here if I am fortunate enough to be able to join your team. What are the qualities and skills of the people who have been most successful at this company? One thing I liked about my last job was that it allowed me to develop my leadership skills. FOR EXAMPLE, I was put in charge of a project where I had to earn the buy-in of people from multiple different departments including Marketing, IT, Product Development, and even HR. I held all the responsibility for getting this project completed on time, even though I had no real authority over my teammates since they did not report to me. I was able to create a project vision that the team agreed on, and then day-to-day I made sure that each team member completed their work on time. I did this in most cases by appealing to my teammates own self-interests. FOR EXAMPLE What I liked least about my last job was that the management style was pretty hands off, and this was fine for me because I am self-motivated and work hard to achieve. But the lack of structure sometimes allowed some of my teammates to slack off from time to time and I often ended up having to pick up the extra work. I would not mind that SOMETIMES, but it got old after a while. I had to constructively approach my manager and let her know what was going on WITHOUT creating any friction between me and the slacker teammates, who I actually liked as people. In the end, it worked out well, because I was pro-active. Have you ever run into that type of situation as a manager? What have you learned from your mistakes? DISCUSSION: Show that you are able to learn from your mistakes, but dont offer up any negative examples concerning your past performance. Show that you have been successful, but that you have the maturity it takes to examine your own behavior so that you can learn and grow and be a better employee. Be brief. Good question. Well, I have been successful at every job I have had, but I have had the normal ups and downs. Id say that I do actively try to monitor my work habits and the quality of my work so that I can constantly be improving myself. FOR EXAMPLE, I have had one or two hiccups with customers where their satisfaction was not where I thought it was. I learned that I have to really monitor certain difficult customers closely and take their temperature so I can keep their satisfaction level as high as possible. Have you had any customers like that here? Give me an example of a problem you faced on the job, and tell me how you solved it. DISCUSSION: This is a problem solving question that tests your critical thinking skills. This is a great question for showing that you are a creative and capable problem solver. The problem you select to use as an example should be as similar as possible to a problem that you are likely to face at the job you are interviewing for. I try to take a systematic approach to problem solving where I take the time to gather the relevant data, clearly define the problem or goal, then come up with possible solutions. I think it is important to get the information and clarify the problem first before you start coming up with possible solutions, or wasting other peoples time. FOR INSTANCE, when I was at Job X What kinds of challenges are you currently facing in your department? How tough a position does this put you in? What could the ideal candidate do to help solve this problem in his or her first three months on the job? Describe a situation when working with a team produced more successful results than if you had completed the project on your own. DISCUSSION: This is a behavioral interviewing style of question. The Hiring Manager wants to learn more about your thought process, and how well you can form examples to answer this teamwork related question. You will want to show your ability to solicit ideas from others, listen carefully, and persuade people to your point of view. Well, I have worked both independently and as a member of team, throughout my career. I enjoy both, and can do both equally well. I will have to say, though, that working with others has often yielded great results for projects I have worked on specifically when it comes to brainstorming. I try to get everyone involved in coming up with new solutions by making time for sessions where there are no wrong ideas or answers. The creativity of a group of people is always going to be greater than that of one person, and thus the results will be more successful. I did that a lot a Job Y. FOR EXAMPLE Working with others allows you data-mine other peoples skills and experiences, get perspectives and ideas that you would not have on your own, and check the quality of your own work before it goes out the door. FOR EXAMPLE, at Job X I worked with many great people. I was able to pick their brains so to speak about the effectiveness of various techniques, estimates on how long it would take to get various things done, etc. I would not have been able to do my job as effectively with out them. Will there be the opportunity to work in team situations at this job? Describe a time when you were faced with problems or stresses at work that tested your coping skills. What did you do? DISCUSSION: Workplace stress is an issue for everyone. Dont pretend that you never get stressed out. You want to show that you can deal with stress and cope with difficult situations. Show that you are calm under pressure, and know how to avoid stress in the first place through planning and time management. Well I think it is important to remember that stress effects everyone, and it is inevitable that sometimes people are going to have bad days. That is why I try to give people the benefit of the doubt when they seem to have a short fuse. What I do personally is try to control my response to a situation. You cant necessarily control what happens to you, but you can control your response. What I try to do is lengthen the time between the stressful situation and my response so that I can identify the cause of the stress and decide what I can do about it. FOR EXAMPLE, on several occasions I have had to deal with very irate customers who actually yelled at me. What I did was stay calm and not let them get under my skin. I really tried to listen and decide exactly what it was that was at the root of their problem. Then I provided solutions that could be completed within a specific time-frame. I always find that it is best to face those types of situations head-on and be objective about the m. I do my best to be professional and not get my emotions involved. Also, I try to avoid stress in the first place by tackling difficult tasks or conversations sooner rather than later. Does that make sense? What was your role in your departments most recent success? DISCUSSION: Youll want to be very specific here, and frame your answer in terms of how you saved time and money. The Hiring Manager is looking for a pattern of success, and you need to describe recent successes in detail. Use the S.T.A.R. Statement formula for your examples. Be prepared with at least three examples concerning your recent successes, and make sure at least one of them relates to teamwork and something you accomplished as part of a group. Make sure you address how your work made other people FEEL, as well as the time you saved and the revenue or cost-savings you generated. I guess that would be a recent project for client X. I handled all of the communication with the client for our last project. It was a three month long project where my team had to build a custom package based on the needs of client. I was instrumental in translating the clients business needs into detailed product features. I had to make sure that my team understood what the client wanted, and then check the quality to make sure that we were delivering a quality product with the features that the client was expecting. Well, it was an ongoing process that required a lot of communication and teamwork with my team as well as the client. I think my role really was to clarify the scope of the project, and then manage the clients expectations. We were able to deliver on time, and the client was thrilled! I was able to make sure no time was wasted on adding unnecessary features, and since we were working on a fixed bid price, we saved my company time and money. My manager and everybody on my team felt great because the project went so smoothly. Is that the kind of experience that would help me be successful here?

Little Charity in Eudora Weltys A Visit of Charity Essay -- Visit of

Little Charity in Eudora Welty's A Visit of Charity  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the short story of "A Visit of Charity" by Eudora Welty, a fourteen-year-old girl visits two women in a home for the elderly to bring them a plant and to earn points for Campfire Girls.   Welty implies through this story, however, that neither the society that supports the home nor the girl, Marian, knows the meaning of the word "charity."   The dictionary defines "charity" as "the love of man for his fellow men: an act of good will or affection."   But instead of love, good will, and affection, self-interest, callousness, and dehumanization prevail in this story.   Welty's depiction of the setting and her portrayal of Marian dramatize the theme that people's selfishness and insensitivity can blind them to the humanity and needs of others.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Many features of the setting, a winter's day at a home for elderly women, suggests coldness, neglect, and dehumanization.   Instead of evergreens or other vegetation that might lend softness or beauty to the place, the city has landscaped it with "prickly dark shrubs."1   Behind the shrubs the whitewashed walls of the Old Ladies' Home reflect "the winter sunlight like a block of ice."2   Welty also implies that the cold appearance of the nurse is due to the coolness in the building as well as to the stark, impersonal, white uniform she is wearing.   In the inner parts of the building, the "loose, bulging linoleum on the floor"3 indicates that the place is cheaply built and poorly cared for.   The halls that "smell like the interior of a clock"4 suggest a used, unfeeling machine.   Perhaps the clearest evidence of dehumanization is the small, crowded rooms, each inhabited by two older women.   The room that Marian visits is dark,... ...otted plant qualify as an act of charity.   In fact, as an analysis of the setting reveals, the Home is inhumane in many ways.   Marian indicates in her thoughts, words, and deeds that she is opportunistic and indifferent to the needs and feelings of the aging women.   Welty further suggests in this story that pseudo-charity can destroy the very humanity it pretends to acknowledge and uphold.   People like Marian acting either out of duty or for personal advantages have created the Home and the conditions that have made the inhabitants cranky, clutching, and unlovable.   Marian left the women more lonely and distraught than she found them.   This kind of charity is uncharitable indeed. Work cited Welty, Eudora. â€Å"A Visit of Charity† Making Literature Matter: An Anthology for Readers and Writers. Ed. John Schilb and John Clifford. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2000.

Functional Areas

Functional Area Interrelationships: Kudler Fine Foods Charles Burt, Megan Engelking, Lou Gamache, Rebecca Lanham, and Julie Lee University of Phoenix BUS 475 July 24, 2011 Phyllis Koch Functional Area Interrelationships This paper is based on the Kudler Fine Foods (KFF) virtual organization scenario presented in University of Phoenix Business 475 course (Apollo Group, Inc. , 2009). The following topics will be covered about KFF; the main motivation for the KFF existence from analyzing the vision, mission, values, goals, and the basis for the type of managerial structure employed by KFF.We will identify the key positions that support that organizational structure; explaining all steps of the collaboration process among the serviceable sections that must be employed to accomplish organizational aspirations. An action arrangement is to execute the collaboration process, giving an example of the use of lateral and vertical collaboration within KFF will be given. Another topic will be ide ntifying the key stakeholders and their roles needed to achieve the executive goals, and recommend the collaborative interactions among the significant stakeholders to facilitate the organization's accomplishments.Reason for Existence Analyzing the strategic plan of KFF reveals the primary reasons for the organization’s existence, and that key components are established for the future success of the company. The mission statement is one of those key components. The mission statement states that the organization is committed to customer satisfaction by providing the finest of foods coupled with knowledgeable, experienced, and helpful staff (Kudler Fine Foods – Our Mission, 2003, Para. 3).The purpose for a mission plan is to provide guidance for the actions of an organization and to help direct decision-making. The mission plan will further identify organizational goals along with the responsibilities that exist to the customer and other stake-holders. KFF has establishe d a mission statement that identifies strong commitment to company goals and values. Another key component to strategic planning is the vision. A vision statement provides a final objective or goal for the organization.Furthermore, it identifies the future result when objectives found in the mission statement are met. Although little is mentioned in the virtual organization link for customers to see about a specific future vision for the company, one may gather the future expectations highlighted in the mission plan. Visionary thoughts include the expectation for KFF to be â€Å"the purveyor of choice for customers aspiring to purchase the finest epicurean delights† (Kudler Fine Foods – Mission Plan, 2003, Para. 3).However, strategic plan the vision Is stated for internal use that â€Å"Kudler Fine Foods will be the premiere gourmet grocery store for those savvy shoppers who are searching for the finest meats, produce, cheeses, and wine† (Kudler Fine Foods †“ Strategic Plan, 2003, p. 3). The values and goals of KFF contribute to the strategic plan of the organization and identify further reasons for the existence of the organization. The people at KFF understand the high standards that exist in providing quality food. Furthermore, they understand the responsibility to the community and their employees.By taking extra measures, KFF fulfills this responsibility with its Social Responsibility Statement. In an effort to contribute to the local economy, buyers will seek to purchase from local organic farmers when high standards are met. The bakery takes extra steps to ensure healthier baked goods through the use of unbleached flour and seeing that ingredients have no preservatives. Additionally, and certainly noteworthy, KFF rotates food from the shelves and donates food still in â€Å"good† condition to local homeless shelters and food kitchens (Kudler Fine Foods – Strategic Plan, 2003, p. ). These efforts demonstrate the c ommitment to values and the identified social responsibility. KFF reveals many reasons for the organization’s existence through its use of the company’s mission, vision, values, and goals. Organizational Structure A business’ organizational structure is critical to the business and the employees. An organizational structure is â€Å"the manner in which an organization arranges (or rearranges) itself† (Fontaine, 2007, p. 6). At Kudler Fine Foods (KFF) the organizational structure that they operate under is a functional structure.A functional organizational structure is a structure where the position and function of employees are clearly specified. The business is divided into separate departments with specific tasks (Pearce ; Robinson, 2009). KFF has a hierarchy of authority, which defines who is in charge of which fundamentals and who reports to whom. The decision making, ideas, and plans come from the top hierarchy, in this case Kathy Kudler, the preside nt of KFF. KFF has a vertical dimension with several levels of management. Kudler Fine Foods has a total of three stores that make up the framework of the organizational structure.For instance, the president is at top working with the three store managers. Each store has the same structure hierarchy beginning with the store manager. Under the store manager is the assistant store manager and continues to branch out to the four different department managers – produce and foodstuffs; spirits, cheeses, and wine; meats, and seafood; bakery, and pastries. The key positions that hold the structure together is the administration staff consisting of the president, director of administration and human resources, finance, and accounting, and store operations.Many levels of management exist in the structure. Every employee has a defined role, all of which with the common goal of meeting the needs of the consumer. Kudler Fine Foods operates in a centralized manner allowing KFF to have mor e upper management control. With a functional structure every employee’s role is important to the vision and goal of the business. Collaboration Process â€Å"Today's enterprises are striving to create more specialized features through globalization and  collaboration† (Park, 2003, p. 5). Several steps are in the collaboration process.The first step is for all the people in the process to come to an agreement on the collaboration process. The second step is for all the people involved in the process to understand the need of reaching the same goal. The third step in the process is for all people involved to work together and share the responsibilities in making the decisions. The fourth step is to make sure all people have resources, which they intend to share with the others involved. The fifth process is making sure everyone knows that with the shared responsibility, during the collaboration, each person is also responsible for the outcome.The final step in the col laboration process is establishing trust among everyone involved. Trust is a huge factor into how well a team performs. After working out all the details to the steps in the collaboration process, the members must make sure the schedule and guidelines are discussed and followed. Developing guidelines is a way to make sure all people involved are held accountable for the inactions or actions within the group. Kudler Fine Foods has started the collaboration process and the first KFF needs to do is have the purchasing and inventory manager’s start the process.The largest success of Kudler Fine Foods is the customers continuing to shop at the stores. To keep the customers coming back to Kudler Fine Foods, the collaboration team needs to consider the needs and wants of the customers. The inventory manager will assist by advising the team what products are selling and what products are not. The product manager may determine a better position in the store to make sure the non-sellin g items sell or the two individuals may cut back on that particular product to lessen the overhead.Kudler Fine Foods will need to implement an action plan to keep customers coming back, but also to introduce new products to the customers. Kudler Fine Foods has initiated a frequent shopper program, which enables customers to earn rewards with purchases. Rewards are coupons or a certain dollar amount off the entire shopping order once a certain level of purchases is met. KFF must also increase the marketing of the company and the rewards program to make sure the customers aware of the program.The marketing manager can collaborate with the inventory and purchasing managers to discuss how to best implement a successful marketing plan. Setting these processes in motion will give KFF an advantage above the competition Lateral and Vertical Collaboration Lateral collaboration occurs between the equivalent level of employees within the organization, and vertical collaboration would be betwee n employees with a superior and subordinate relationship. An example of vertical collaboration occurred when Kathy Kudler coordinates the selection of sale merchandise with the store managers during the weekly operations meetings.Kathy has oversight of the entire organization and directs the merchandise and sale processes with her subordinate store managers. Good lateral collaboration is illustrated by cooperation between store managers in facilitating resupply of advertised merchandise between stores, to the stores with a higher demand. Kudler Fine Foods has no consistent purchasing procedure. The three department managers at each store independently place orders with suppliers based on the department manager’s subjective assessment of store requirements.Further, the onus is on the department manager â€Å"to obtain the best pricing, quality, and delivery possible† (Apollo Group, 2009, Supply Chain Overview, para. 1). This purchasing structure lacks both vertical and lateral collaboration and relies on the individual department managers to take additional steps to coordinate purchasing with other department managers. No mechanism for department managers to compare or discuss store needs among counterparts and no consistent pricing structure between store locations. A vertical disconnect is evident in that Kathy Kudler also places orders independent from the store managers.An action plan to improve both vertical and lateral collaboration within Kudler Fine Foods involves improvements to the purchasing process. Department managers would be required to have a department manager weekly review meeting where store merchandise needs, trends, and purchase requirements would be compared, discussed, and coordinated laterally into a purchase order plan. This purchase plan would be submitted vertically to a central purchasing agent at the administrative level who would facilitate the negotiation and purchase from suppliers to ensure the best pricing and qua lity.Key Stakeholders Kathy Kudler is the founder of KFF. She is the primary stakeholder, and because the company is a privately owned entity there are no shareholders in the company. The company does have investors who have a stake in the company. The investors or stakeholders are both internal and external and are monitored by the company. The stakeholders include the employees, consumers, suppliers, banks, and Kathy Kudler, and each can have an affect or be affected by the company. When Kathy first decided to create Kudler fine foods, she obtained financing.This is done generally through banks. Banking institutions will extend credit terms to consumers such as Kathy. Kathy can also go to these banks when she is obtaining funding for new stores or launching new products. Banking institutions can also help with extending the line of credit when peek seasons are low and profits might not be as large. The main point of financing comes from banking institutions. The staff of KFF is cr itical to the daily operations of the company. These employees have direct contact with consumers and serve as a primary point of contact for Kathy and consumers.Employees contribute to labor and the expertise to the company. In daily activities these employees are responsible for the growth of the stores, the appearance stores, maintenance in the stores, training new staff, and picking up the slack when other employees are not available. Because Kathy is not available daily to complete these activities it is important for the staff to complete these activities and ensure the success of the company. Consumers are a large part of the company, it is important for the consumers needs to be met, and this is done typically through purchasing goods.Customers rely on employees and Kathy to provide the goods that they are willing to purchase. Customers’ requests need to be met and Kudler has to decide whether the requests of the customer can be met or are feasible for the company to provide. If the products are not available to the consumer the company needs to look into alternate options to solve the problem and to keep the customer. Suppliers can also play an important role in the company. These suppliers are the backbone of the company and provide all the products necessary for the company to be successful.KFF have suppliers for wine, cheese, fresh produce, organic meats, and all bakery items. These come from both local and national suppliers. The local products ensure the highest quality of products and these suppliers need to remain on good financial terms to continue to build a business relationship. Conclusion Kathy Kudler has achieved success by hiring managers who take social responsibility seriously because he or she already has firm intuitions about what constitutes ethical and unethical conduct (Heath, 2006).The success of the company has many factors that contribute. The way that the stakeholders of the company relate and work together are importan t factors in any companies’ success. KFF has achieved the success the company has because of their ability to interact positively with all the stakeholders in the company. The existence of the company is to serve the customers of the community with the highest quality of gourmet foods. Kathy Kudler’s mission, vision, and values have made the company a success and a reality. References Apollo Group, Inc. 2009) Kudler Fine Foods; 2003 Strategic Plan. Retrieved July 24, 2011 from https://ecampus. phoenix. edu/secure/aapd/cist/vop/Business/Kudler2/intranet/ad/strategicPlan. htm Apollo Group, Inc. (2009) Kudler Fine Foods; Supply Chain Overview. Retrieved July 24, 2011 from https://ecampus. phoenix. edu/secure/aapd/cist/vop/Business/Kudler2/intranet/op/supplyChainOverview. htm Fontaine, C. W. (2007). Organizational Structure: A Critical Factor for Organizational Effectiveness and Employee Satisfaction. Retrieved from professorfontaine. om/files/Organizational_Structure_Whit e_Paper_v7b. pdf Kudler Fine Foods, About Kudler Fine Foods – Our Mission, 2010, Retrieved from: https://ecampus. phoenix. edu/secure/aapd/cist/vop/Business/Kudler2/internet/about. htm Kudler Fine Foods, Strategic Plan, 2003, Retrieved from: https://ecampus. phoenix. edu/secure/aapd/cist/vop/Business/Kudler2/intranet/ad/StrategicPlan2003. pdf Pearce, J. A. II, & Robinson, R. B. (2009). Strategic management: Formulation, implementation, and control (11th ed. ). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Problems faced by women Essay

            Human Resources in the Recession: Managing and Representing People at Work in Ireland; William K Roche, Paul Teague, Anne Coughlan, Majella Fahy. The effects of the Irish recession on the manner in which people are managed at work and on how they are represented by trade unions is the subject of this study. This study examines how human resource managers and unions (where they are found) have faced the challenges. First of all, the impact of the international financial and economic crisis on the Irish labor market is assessed. Then, the Irish economic crisis is placed in a comparative European context to get a sense of the extent to which the public policy response in Ireland has been similar to those pursued by other EU member states. After this assessment a detailed literature review is conducted on reviews and debates concerning the impact of recessions, past and present, on the conduct of human resources in organizations. This is followed by a detailed examina tion of the type of policies and practices that are available to HR when making adjustments to difficult business conditions. The research has used a survey conducted of managers with responsibility for human resources to assess their responses to the recession. The survey firstly sought to examine the impact of the recession on firms in terms of revenue and employment change, in order to establish the commercial context for any recessionary measures adopted. The subjects of examination are then the types and incidence of measures taken by firms, ranging from pay and headcount adjustments, changes in HR systems and functions, to changes in working time arrangements. The responses of the firms reflect the severe effects and challenges experienced by the survey respondents. This is followed by an investigation into the role of the HR function in the recession. The section explores whether the operation of HR has changed as a result of the recession, the function’s level of infl uence in terms of HR strategy formulation and implementation, the business role of HR, the level of engagement with employees, types of policies and practices that have received greater or lesser attention and relationships with trade unions. Finally, the HR practices that survey respondents considered to be most effective in helping them manage the recession are investigated. Examination of the effects of the recession, as experienced by thirty HR  managers, representing a wide range of businesses, who participated in the different focus groups is entailed. It reviews, in detail, the effects on HR of acute cost, headcount and productivity pressures and the range of retrenchment measures that they were required to put in place. The research then examines HR managers’ understanding of what constitutes ‘good human resource practice’ in recent and current recessionary conditions. The main HR practices that were identified in the literature include – wage ad justment; employment adjustment; re-organization of working time; workforce stabilization; employability; voice and engagement; and process or product innovation. By and large, while most of the measures adopted were aimed at reducing pay costs in one way or another, Irish firms have been quite diverse with respect to the range of measures that have been implemented to steer their way through the recession. The survey results also show that HR mangers have been steadfast with regard to implementing the ‘softer’ side of HR practices.             Impact of the Recession on the Labor Market in the South East; Annette Cox, Terence Hogarth, Thomas Usher, David Owen, Freddie Sumption, Joy Oakley. This study focused on analyzing the impact of economic downturn on skills needs and training practices within different sectors in the South East, focusing on a mixture of sectors which were seriously affected by recession and those which might lead the recovery. The research consisted of two phases: the first involving quantitative analysis and literature review, and the second involving qualitative analysis of interviews conducted with stakeholders and employers. The research concluded that the Impact of Recession on Employers’ Current and Future Skills Needs and Training Practices is conditional. Small organizations are reported to be more likely to reduce training investment than large firms and commitment to training varies by sector, There is an increased demand for ‘short and sharp’ courses, Training opportunities are being targeted at senior staff and trainees, Employers are receiving high numbers of applications and using tighter screening criteria and Multi-skilling needs are developing as a result of expansion or contraction of business.             The impact of the economic recession on hR; Talent 2 and Ipsos MORI This study is based on a survey. Senior HR professionals were asked about how the global recession is affecting their organizations and their people management strategies and practices. 200 senior HR Directors and VPs were invited to participate in the survey, and 73 completed it. The findings of the survey were that HR is greatly affected by recession in the economy. Three in five respondents felt that the current capital markets had a direct impact on their organization, with three- quarters also feeling they have a direct impact on HR. Similarly, the vast majority of organizations (95%) were either freezing, or decreasing, their annual HR budget, in areas such as training and development, external training, the use of external consultants, recruitment and HR systems. Evidence suggests this is likely to be the case regardless of what the predicted financial performance is for their organization. The top three priorities selected were Performance management; Leadership and management development; and Employee communication and engagement.             The Impact of the Recession on Employment-Based Health Coverage ; Paul Fronstin This article focuses on the impact of the recession on employment-based health coverage. This Issue Brief examines changes in health coverage among workers during the recession that started in December 2007, including monthly changes for 2007 and May 2008−July 2009. The emphasis is on changes that occurred between September 2007 and April 2009. While health coverage through the work place is by far the most common source of health insurance among the population under age 65, the recession that started in December 2007 is associated with a change in employment- based coverage and the uninsured. Workers least likely to have employment-based coverage at the beginning of the recession were more likely than other workers to experience a decline in the percentage with such coverage one year later. Younger workers were more likely to lose coverage than older workers. Hispanic workers we re more likely to lose coverage than whites or blacks. Part-time workers were more likely than full-time workers to have lost employment-based coverage. The percentage of workers with own name employment-based coverage declined the most for those employed with  for-profit private- sector employers and those employed by the federal government. The largest declines in the percentage of workers with employment-based coverage in their own name by firm size occurred in the smallest firms, those least likely to offer coverage. Workers who were members of a union were less likely to have experienced a loss of employment- based coverage than were nonunion workers. Workers with the lowest earnings were the least likely to have employment-based coverage in their own name and experienced the largest decline in coverage.