Essay on Evolution of Management - 649 Words

Over the past hundred years management has continuously been evolving. There have been a wide range of approaches in how to deal with management or better yet how to improve management functions in our ever changing environment. From as early as 1100 B.C managers have been struggling with the same issues and problems that managers face today. Modern managers use many of the practices, principles, and techniques developed from earlier concepts and experiences. The evolution of management though the decades can be divided into two major sections. One of the sections is the classical approach. Under the classical approach efficiency and productivity became a critical concern of the managers at the turn of the 20th century. One of†¦show more content†¦This was the first major approach to forging informal work relationships and worker satisfaction. The last approach to classical management was bureaucracy. Bureaucracy was extremely popular in large organizations because it allows companies to perform many tasks while eliminating judgments of managers. Although bureaucracy works well with most organizations it may not be the best approach to organizations that require fast thinking and decision making. The second major section in the evolution of management is the contemporary approach. The contempary approach has four types of management that have developed from the time period around World War II to present time. One of the approaches to contemporary management is quantitative management. Quantitative management uses math problems to help management with decisions and problems. Managers typically do not rely on this type of management as a primary approach to decision making. Many managers rely on their experience or intuition and use this only as a way to compare alternatives or eliminate weaker options. Another type of contemporary management is organizational behavior which began to take place during the human relations time period. The basis for this type of management is that worker productivity and organizational success is based on more than satisfaction of economic orShow MoreRelatedEvolution of Management1083 Words   |  5 PagesEvolution of Management The evolution of management can be divided into three distinct era’s. The Pre-Classical Era, Classical era and Neo-classical era. Pre-Classical Era From the Biblical times we find monarchies of the time use some form of management to lord over the great kingdoms such as the Egyptians who used hierarchy management to build the pyramids, Moses leading the Israelites through the desert to the promised land and King David when he was in charge of the kingdom of Israel. InRead MoreEvolution of Management1893 Words   |  8 PagesEvolution of Management By Jason Kolff American Public University January 27, 2008 In this paper I will be explaining the evolution of management from the beginning of the industrial revolution to present which includesRead MoreThe Evolution Of Sport Management1486 Words   |  6 PagesThe evolution of sport management Comparatively, the field of sport management is a rather new academic discipline (Chalip, 2006), which has faced some challenges in terms of justifying its importance in the academic world. Nonetheless, Chalip (2006) believes it was an unavoidable course for the evolution of sport management. 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Ethical Challenges Case Study Volkswagen Ethical Scandal

Ethical Challenges Case Study Volkswagen Ethical scandal Managing Organizations and Teams MANA – 6372 – 01 For Professor Gerald Burns By Venu.Velpula Dallas Baptist University Feb 1, 2017 Definition: The word Ethics is defined as a system of moral principles. They affect how people Make decisions and lead their lives. Though the ethical dilemmas face by certain companies may be specific to their industry or company other types of ethical issues are common to the types of organizations. Handling the ethical decisions with wisdom is especially important for small businesses, given the potentially devastating effects these companies may face if such†¦show more content†¦Finance: The 2008 financial Crisis caused critics challenges to U.S and European financial Institutions and regulatory bodies. In past financial ethics was somewhat overlooked because of the issues in financial divisions are addressed in different point of view. Mostly they are considered as a matter of law instead of an ethic. In this Paper I would like to discuss a real time example of a company which faced a ethical scandal in 2016 and how they resolved its case. Volkswagen Scandal a Case study in Bad Corporate Ethics. Key History of Volkswagen: Volkswagen is German automaker in 1937 by German Labour Front and headquartered in Germany. Volkswagen Group is the largest automaker worldwide currently. Volkswagen is the large international corporation in charge of multiple car and truck brands including Audi, Seat, Lamborghini, Bentley, Bugatti and Skoda. Volkswagen has a largest share market of 20% in the world market. Volkswagen has many factories in the world including Manufacturing, assemble of vehicles for the available local markets. Problem: Volkswagen’s diesel emission is a complete failure offers a valuable lesson to corporate how to react when they put themselves into ditches and roads. 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Rosa Parks Biography free essay sample

Strength incorporates life skills which demonstrate dignity with pride, courage with perseverance and power with discipline in a comfortable environment of peace. † (Achievement, 2010) This quotation embodies Rosa Parks’s philosophy as a person. Rosa Parks is a great example of that philosophy because of what she did. On December 1, 1955 Rosa Parks was coming home from a tiring day at work and was sitting on the bus. At that time the law was if a white person needed your seat, a coloured person would have to give up their seat for the white person. Mrs. Parks was tired of this way so she refused the bus drivers request and that small action made all the difference. Rosa’s actions lead to many more important historical actions, such as the first real protest that included Martin Luther King Jr. as spokesperson. Rosa Parks was the person who helped start â€Å"the beginning of the modern civil rights movement in the United States† (Achievement, 2010). We will write a custom essay sample on Rosa Parks Biography or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Rosa Parks was born on February 4, 1913 in Tuskegee, Alabama. Her parents were James McCauley and Leona McCauley. After her younger brother was born in 1915 they moved to Pine Level, Rosa was put into a rural school and at the age of 11 Rosa finished her education. Afterwards Rosa’s mother registered her into a private school for girls once Rosa completed that she went to Alabama State Teacher’s College High School. Unfortunately, Rosa couldn’t finish her Teacher’s College at that time because she had to care for her grandmother’s who had become ill. Her mother then became ill and she then continued to take care of her grandmother as well as her mother. In caring for her mother and grandmother she was unable to graduate with her class but eventually she got her diploma in 1934. Rosa Parks got married to Raymond Parks on December 18, 1932. Raymond was born on February 12, 1903 in Wedowee, Alabama, Randolph County. Raymond worked as a barber and supported Rosa Parks’ beliefs all the way. Rosa Parks worked as a seamstress, a job that involved sewing for long hours. She was also an activist to help free the â€Å"Scottsboro boys,†, ans together with Raymond she was an active member of the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP’s) programs. Raymond was a secretary and youth leader and Rosa was a secretary. One day on December 1st Rosa Parks was coming home from a long day at work, at the age of 42, she was tired and just wanted to get home. She sat down on a seat on the bus, and then Rosa was asked to move for a white man, but she was tired of being treated unfairly she refused the white man’s request as well as the bus driver’s; which lead to her getting arrested. Her trial was later that day and she was found guilty but later that night she was bailed out from jail. The arrest of Rosa Parks triggered black people of Montgomery and sympathizers to organize in protest. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was appointed spokesperson for the Bus Boycott; a boycott of the city bus that lasted over a year. Also people had all sorts of different protests in the South and all over the US. Hundreds and thousands of people were in on the protest to demand equal rights for all people. All these actions lead to segregation on Montgomery buses finally being declared illegal by the United States Supreme Court on Nov. 13, 1956, and then the boycotters were able to return to the buses on Dec. 1, 1956. In 1957 Rosa moved to Michigan and became a helper for the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME). After her husband’s death of cancer in 1977, Rosa co-founded with Ms. Elaine Eason Steele the Rosa and Raymond Institute for Self Development. This is where Rosa explained her love for children, â€Å"Children are my passion and I believe that everyone can make a difference in their own lives. Our young people are curious, eager to learn, and need the guidance of mentors who care about their development. After all, they are our future and we must someday depend on their leadership. We hope to encourage an environment of dignity, responsibility, and a commitment to treat others as we wish to be treated. † Rosa parks, 1987- Commemorating the establishment of the Rosa Raymond Parks Institute for self Development/ (Achievement, 2010). The Rosa and Raymond Institute for Self-Development is where young teenagers tour the country in a bus learning about the history of their country and civil rights. â€Å"Pathways to Freedom program, traces the underground railroad into the civil rights movement and beyond. Youth, ages 11 through 17, meet and talk with Mrs.Parks and other national leaders as they participate in educational and historical research throughout the world. They travel primarily by bus as â€Å"freedom riders† did in the 1960’s, the theme:

Performance Appraisal Systems in Red Square Industries free essay sample

Aims The purpose of the report is to evaluate the current performance appraisal system in terms of advantage and disadvantage. As well as, provide the relevant solutions to overcome the problems. 1. 3 Scope The pros of the current performance appraisal system consist of the grading, discriminating performance, rewarding performance and the performance appraisal ecord. In turn, the cons of the current system include that lacking top management commitment, leniency bias, poor communication, violation of EEO and static performance appraisal. Finally, the recommendation comprises with top management commitment, prevention of the leniency bias, dynamic performance appraisal, considering the validity and accuracy of the performance system, enhancing communication, legal treatment in performance appraisal system and employee feedback. 2. 0 Literature review The current performance appraisal system brings some advantages to Red Square Industries. For example, the rewards are corresponding to the related contribution, which is supported by Khan, Farooq and Ullah (2010). They state that the change in reward affects the change in the motivation and performance of employees. We will write a custom essay sample on Performance Appraisal Systems in Red Square Industries or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page At the same time, there are some disadvantages of current performance appraisal system existing in the Red Square Industries. It could reduce the feeling of satisfaction and when lacking top management commitment. In addition, the leniency inhabits the delineation of the rating quality (Frah and Dobbins 1989). What is more, the employees belong to the union are more lenient and only those rated 1 2 get bonus ayments, which against the opinion that the EEO in performance appraisal is the minimum requirement (EEO is everyones responsibility 1981). The unfair treatment also creates ill feeling to the employees that may doom the most carefully constructed appraisal system Oawahar 2007). Finally, employee feedback is one of the recommendations. Nickols (2007) states that the Performance appraisal provides employees with feedback regarding their performance to reduce errors and waste, increase quality and enhance employee motivation, commitment. . 0 Analysis 3. 10 The advantage of the performance appraisal systems in Red Square Industries Stone (2010) expresses that performance appraisal systems focus on the individual employee. To Judge the performance of staff, the organisations choose several performance systems, including grading. 3. 111 Grading Grading system could describe workers perform ance clearly in specific performance levels, comprising with superior, good acceptable, marginal and unsatisfactory (stone 2010). Stone (2010) further argues that the forced ranking distribution is the refinement of the grading system, which places the fixed percentage in each grade. For example, the Red Square Industries adopt the forced distribution as its appraisal ystem. Particularity, the top 10 per cent are superior performers, the next 25 per cent are good performers, the next 45 per cent are acceptable performers, the next 1 5 per cent are marginal performers and the bottom 5 per cent are unsatisfactory performers. As a result, the evolution expresses the performers and non-performers. At the same time, it helps managers to overcome the problem that overrating, underrating or rating people as average (stone 2010). Also, it requires managers to take more time to consider about their employees (stone 2010). . 120 Performance appraisal objectives 3. 21 Discriminating on the basis of performance The organisations must distinguish the subordinates who perform well or not in the company. Stone(2010) notes that the inadequate performance can not exist in the organisation. He further stresses that the failed performers would be supplied opportunity and assistance to improve their grads, but they will be transferred, demotion or termination if they can not match the requirement. For instance, Red Square Industries give employees rated 5 roughly 3 to 6 months to improve their performance by training before they get sack. Grote (2000, cited in Stone 2010) otifies that the organisation like Microsoft annually weeds out about 5 per cent of its employees through its performance appraisal system. The up or out program brings great benefits to the organisation. it not only motivates those well- done performers by discriminating the good performers and non-performers, but also it saves much potential costs if they continue keeping the poor employees , such as dissatisfy the customers, damage public images, lost sales (stone2010). In a word, the Red Square Industries discriminate staff, which is one of performance appraisal objectives. 3. 22 Rewarding performance 2010) indicates that based on the objective measure of performance like forced distribution system or performance based discrimination, the organisations make decisions that who is being rewarded. In Red Squared Industries, the salary increases and bonus payments are performance related. Those rated 1,2 and 3 would receive relevant salary increase. Those rated 1 or 2 would get bonus payments. The employees rated 4 and 5 are given legally required increases. As Murray (2005, cited in Stone 2010) says that if you deliver, you will get paid but if you do not deliver, you will suffer the impact of that. As a result, the reward performance related system motivates the staff to contribute and approach good performance. In addition, the different level of contribution, the rewards that staff receives are correspondingly different. The bonus payments are only rewarded to those rated 1 or 2. Those rated 4 and 5 only get legally required salary increases. Stone (2010) points out that the excellent performers with higher rewards and the lesser performers with least rewards could encourage a performance-oriented behaviour and a performance-oriented culture. Therefore, the change in reward affects the change in he motivation and performance of employees (Khan, Farooq and Ullah 2010). Employees may lose their passions and give up forwarding if everyone gets the same awards no matter how good the performance is. In other words, the top performers would be motivated to keep remaining their excellent contributions while the bad performers would be encouraged to do better due to the incentive of the high performance related awards. 3. 130 The performance appraisal record The record is the document that records the performance rating and comments for employees (stone 2010). As we know, the Red Square Industries do make the erformance appraisal record to note down the distinction of subordinates performance. The record could largely help the organisation identify those who play important role in achieving the objective of the organisation. 3. 20 The disadvantage of the performance appraisal system in Red Square Industries 3. 21 Lacking top management support The factor that lack of top management support is the barrier to the effectiveness of performance appraisal schemes (stone 2010). Stone (2010) supports his opinion that the best CEOs never hesitate to fire when they must. However, the managers of Red Square Industries are reluctant to fire trouble some non-performing employees who belong to a union. As well as, they refuse to rank anyone as a 4 or 5. They fail to follow the grading system and discriminate on the basis of performance. Otherwise, the managers send the wrong signal to employees that they do not need to worry if they do not perform well (stone 2010). What is worse, it could reduce the feeling of satisfaction and organisation commitment by the certain types of performance (Stathakopoulos 1997). 3. 2 Leniency bias Leniency bias occurs when manager rates their employees either consistently high or IoW (stone2010). For example, some managers argue that their department is different. They say that most of their employees are stars or starlets and refuse to rank anyone as a 4 or 5. Leniency bias is one of the aspects that cause rating errors. It makes the appraisal system become inaccurate and nonsense (stone2010). Farh inhabits the delineation of the rating quality. 3. 23 Poor communication Negative communication and participation inhabit development scheme, hence prevent the appraisal process (Lansbury 1998, cited in Stone 2010). In Red Square Industries, when a star is perceived by co-workers as really belonging to another anking group, they are reluctant to communicate and cooperate. What is worse, the rating system fosters enw and negative competition. The typical attitude is that if they are hothots, let them solve the problem. As a result, it stops employee development that is the aim of performance appraisal. 3. 24 Violation of EEO requirement EEO requires performance appraisal must be Job-related and non- discrimination (stone 2010). However, employees in Rea Square Industries rated 5 who belong to a union are treated more leniently in terms of termination and pay increases than the employees who are not union members. Additionally, those with a 1 rating are referred to as star. Those with a 4 or 5 rating are called dog. Employees rated 3 are called Workhorses. What is worse, bonus payments are only given to those rated 1 or 2 and those rated 4 or 5 are only given legally required increases. Many managers claim that the forced distribution of employees creates too much ill feeling due to the unfair treatment. Jawahar (2007) says that an unfavourable reaction may doom the most carefully constructed appraisal system. What is more, EEO in performance appraisal is the minimum requirement (EEO is everyones responsibility 1981). 3. 5 Static performance appraisal The appraisal program is not successful among the managers and workers in the Red Square Industries. Mohrman (1995, cited in Stone 2010, p. 295) says that they are concerned with the past performance rather than with improving future performance. People look back where they have been and do not attempt to explore how to grow and develop. For instance, those rated 3 become unmotivated, because they regard their rating as meaning they are only average. The static performance can not match the aim of the performance appraisal of the employee continual development. 3. 30 Implementable solution . 31 Management commitment To succeed the performance appraisal system, it requires the management commitment (Regel 1987, cited in Stone 2010). Regel (1987, cited in Stone 2010,p. 304) further states that all members of the management team need to understand appraisals purpose and should agree that it is critical for management to participate in and support the system. Therefore, if the management commit to the appraisal system, it will work. 3. 32 Prevention of leniency bias Due to leniency bias, the rating error generates. Therefore, the managers should prevent it to create the fair and accurate appraisal system. The managers of Red Square Industries should correctly distinguish the performance. As a result, the appraisal system would not be nonsense and it would facilitate employees to grow and develop. 3. 33 Considering the validity and accuracy of the performance system Sometimes the rating will not reflect the actual Judgement, so it requires the manager to recognise this (stone2010). Stone (2010) further illustrates that ensure performance related are being assessed to achieve validity and make sure Stone (2010) explains this system is not Just Judgement about performance, but the motivation to employees toward new goals. The Red Square Industries workers should learn to improve themselves relying on the rating system. Compared to the static program, the dynamic program is more likely to be effective, credible and sustainable (Anderson 1992, cited in Stone 2010, p. 31 5). 3. 35 Enhancing communication Positive communication develops the employees themselves and facilitates Job satisfaction (Stone 2010). The workers in the industries should cooperate and well communicate to each other, no matter others rating. Help each other and improve together to accomplish the organisational goal. 3. 36 Legal treatment in performance appraisal system Get rid of the call like dogs or Workhorses which refer to those rated a 5 and 4 respectively, which will eliminate the ill feeling of employees. Furthermore, the fairness of the appraisal system would encourage people to participate to the organisation. Legal treatment is the desire of employee. Also, it is the process of EEO. 3. 37 Employee feedback Performance appraisal provides employees with feedback regarding their performance to reduce errors and waste, increase quality and enhance employee motivation, commitment (Nickols 2007). There are pros and cons of performance appraisal system in Red Square Industries. Employee feedback could help to minimize the disadvantages of the appraisal system. 4. 0 Conclusion In a word, the current performance appraisal system presents advantages in the Red Square Industries. Firstly, the grading system describes the specific performance level, which helps managers to overcome the overrating, underrating, rating people as average and requires managers to take more time to consider about their employees. Secondly, discriminating performance leads to motivate those well- done performers and save potential costs. Thirdly, reward performance results in motivating contribution and good performance. Finally, performance appraisal record helps to identify those who play important role in achieving the objective of the organisation. There are also some disadvantages of the current performance appraisal system. Firstly, it lacks top management commitment, which leads to send wrong signals and reduce the feeling of satisfaction to employees. Secondly, the leniency bias causes rating errors and inhabits the delineation of the rating quality. Thirdly, poor communication stops employee development. Fourthly, the Red Square Industries violate EEO which is everyones responsibility. Last but not least, the static erformance appraisal can not match the aim of the performance appraisal of employee continual development.

Culture is the collective sum of knowledge experi Essays

Culture is the collective sum of knowledge experi Essays Culture is the collective sum of "knowledge experience, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of time, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and material objects and possessions" learned by a specific group of people, well-defined by everything from "language, religion, cuisine, habits, music and arts." It is a "learned behavior" and is "socially transmitted," or more briefly, behavior through "social learning." It can also be defined as a "way of life" of a group of people and that are spread along by the means of "communication and imitation" from one generation to the next. "There are approximately 370 million Indigenous people in the world, belonging to 5,000different groups, in 90 countries worldwide. Indigenous people live in every region of the world, but about 70% of them live in Asia." (Wikipedia). Indigenous Peoples manage to live a "nomadic life" and have "small populations" comparative to the "prevailing culture of their country."They normally have their "own language and distinctive cultural traditions which are still practiced." "Indigenous Peoples are often thought of as the primary stewards of the planet's biological resources." Their modes of life have "contributed to the preservation of the natural environment" on which they "depend" on. "Indigenous societies are found in every inhabitedclimate zoneandcontinentof the world"(Wikipedia). The article is related to the " World Indigenous Games a multi-sport event involving indigenous athletes that was first staged in 2015 which was held in Palmas,Brazil , from October 23 to November 1, 2015 " and feature d " competitive sports and non-competitive demonstration events. " With delegations from as far afield as Ethiopia and New Zealand and two dozen indigenous peoples from across Brazil, the games produced nine frenetic days of competition in traditional sports, dancing, singing, commercial and cultural exchange and a dose of politics. Despite language barriers, tips were traded, stories swapped and traditional accoutrements traded. The next edition of the games will be held in Canada in 2017. Much of the criticism is due to a government proposal that would give the country's legislative branch, which is influenced by agricultural lobbies, the power to define indigenous lands, many of which are home to valuable natural resources. The Games were supported by the United Nations Development Program, reflecting the past several decades' movement toward advocating for indigenous peoples on a global platform, recognizing the common experiences of land loss, colonization, and discrimination that connect groups from the Sami in Finland to Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma. In 2007, the General Assembly passed the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, treated as a watershed moment despite its lack of binding agreements. Even so, Canada, Australia, the United States, and New Zealand voted against it, the only member states to do so. But time will tell if future "Native Olympics'"have the power to change viewers' idea of indigenous people. The Games reveal "tensions between celebration and objectification,"Pablo Medina Uribe wrote in a piece for Fusion, a dilemma evident in some descriptions of the athletes: "Brazil's buffed-out, face-painted indigenous women reportedly strike fear in rivals' hearts,"one report noted.Another described participantsas "Supersized Maori from New Zealand, diminutive Aeta from the Philippines and native peoples of all shapes and sizes in between." As the Games draw to a close today, the competition has proven to be just as much about politics and PR as strength or speed. "Our life is not a game," one protester's sign reminded photographers perhaps before he dashed off to the next event. Few sporting pleasures can rival that of the post-victory brag. Shortly after the Kuikoro had seen off their Amazonian rivals, the Karaja , in arguably the most hotly anticipated event of the first World Games for Indigenous Peoples , the tug-of-war, one of the athletes could not resist emphasising the ease of their 40-second victory. Indigenous Games 2015 kick off in Brazil - in pictures View gallery "It was really simple," Pique Kuikoro said. "To win, you just have to stay prepared, breathe at the right time and keep your feet planted in the sand." Not all the games at this nine-day event in Palmas, a sleepy city in the sweltering agricultural heartland of Brazil , are quite so straightforward. There's football, of course, and archery, but also spear-throwing, log-carrying and xiknahiti

Biography of Childrens Author Tomie dePaola

Biography of Children's Author Tomie dePaola Tomie dePaola  is acclaimed as an award-winning childrens author and illustrator, with more than  200  books  to his credit. In addition to illustrating all of these books, dePaola is also the author of more than a quarter of them. In his art, his stories, and his interviews, Tomie dePaola comes across as a man filled with a love of humanity and joie de vivre. Early Life By the age of four, Tomie dePaola  knew he wanted to be an artist. At the age of 31, dePaola illustrated his first picture book. Since 1965, he has published at least one book a year, and  generally four to six books annually. Much of what we know about Tomie dePaolas early life comes from the authors own books. In fact, he his series of beginning chapter books is based on his childhood. Known as 26 Fairmount Avenue books, they include 26 Fairmount Avenue, which received a 2000 Newbery Honor Award, Here We All Are, and On My Way. Tomie came from a loving family of Irish and Italian background. He had an older brother and two younger sisters. His grandmothers were an important part of his life. Tomies parents supported his desire to be an artist and to perform on stage. Education and Training When Tomie expressed an interest in taking dance lessons, he was immediately enrolled, even though it was unusual for a young boy to take dance lessons at that time. In his picture book Oliver Button is a Sissy, dePaola uses the bullying that he experienced because of the lessons as the basis for the story. The emphasis in Tomies family was on enjoying home, school, family and friends, and embracing personal interests and talents. dePaola received a BFA from Pratt Institute and an MFA from the California College of Arts Crafts. Between college and graduate school, he spent a brief time in a Benedictine monastery. DePaola taught art and/or theater design at the college level from 1962 through 1978 before devoting himself full time to childrens literature. Literary Awards and Accomplishments Tomie dePaolas work has been recognized with numerous awards, including a 1976 Caldecott Honor Book Award for his picture book Strega Nona. The title character, whose name means Grandma Witch is apparently very loosely based on Tomies Italian grandmother. DePaola received the New Hampshire Governors Arts Award as the 1999 Living Treasure for the entire body of his work. A number of American colleges have awarded dePaola honorary degrees. He has also received several awards from the Society of Childrens Book Writers and Illustrators, the Kerlan Award from the University of Minnesota, and awards from the Catholic Library Association and the Smithsonian Institution, among others. His books are frequently used in the classroom. Writing Influences DePaolas picture books cover a number of themes/topics. Some of these include  his own life, Christmas and other holidays (religious and secular), folktales, Bible stories, Mother Goose rhymes, and books about Strega Nona. Tomie dePaola has also written a number of informational books like ​Charlie Needs a Cloak, which is the story of the creation of a wool cloak, from shearing a sheep to spinning the wool, weaving the cloth, and sewing the garment. dePaolas collections include Mother Goose rhymes, scary stories, seasonal stories, and nursery tales. He is also the author of Patrick, Patron Saint of Ireland. His books are characterized by humor and light-hearted illustrations, many in a folk art style. DePaola creates his artwork in a combination of watercolor, tempera, and acrylic. A Full and Accomplished Life   Today, Tomie dePaola lives in New Hampshire. His art studio is in a large barn. He travels to events and makes personal appearances regularly. DePaola continues to write books based on his own life and interests, as well as illustrating books for other authors. To learn more about this extraordinary man, read Tomie dePaola: His Art and His Stories, which was written by Barbara Elleman and published by G.P. Putnams Sons in 1999.

A paper about the nature of religion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

A paper about the nature of religion - Essay Example What happens when a person dies?, Is there God?. How one should live? Why human beings should not commit sin? There are many different religions in this world; all of them have their separate set of beliefs and rituals, each unique and entirely different from the other. Yet a common thread binds through them all – that religion should stand for the common good of all; that its ultimate aim should be the welfare of all human as opposed to serving the purpose of those who believe in a particular sect. Scholars the world over have viewed religion differently and therefore have promulgated a variety of theories while defining the term religion. However most definitions, the modern scholars think are found wanting in terms of being able to communicate clearly what the scope of the word should really encompass. Some of the definitions are too vague and unspecific that they fail to adequately demarcate religion from other areas of human thought such as law, psychology, and physics etc, while others are too narrow describing religion in terms of a particular religion or culture. The Encyclopedia of Religion describes religion as: â€Å"When more or less distinct patterns of behavior are built around this depth dimension in a culture, this structure constitutes religion in its historically recognizable form. Religion is the organization of life around the depth dimensions of experience — varied in form, completeness, and clarity in accordance with the environing culture." From t his definition it emerges a definite culture and pattern of behavior, and it determines the organization of life within that community. Max Muller a German philologist and orientalist who created the discipline of comparative religion has defined religion as, "The living kernel of religion can be found, I believe, in almost every creed, however much the husk may vary. And think what that means! It means that above and beneath and

What are the key features of an effective learning environment(in Essay

What are the key features of an effective learning environment(in Primary school) and how can this support the Primary National Strategy and Every Child Matters - Essay Example Good teachers are able to assess learning effectively. They also are able to control their classes and treat all students equally. The Primary National Strategy supports improving most of these factors, but more needs to be done. A report of the success of the Primary National Strategy concluded that The National Literacy and Numeracy frameworks are still used by teachers as their core support in planning for progression in both English and mathematics. Schools are anxious to maintain the improved standards they have seen since the introduction of the NLNS. Many do not wish to risk losing these gains through too great a change. Although the strategies have improved the teaching of English and mathematics, teaching in both subjects remains no better than satisfactory in one lesson in three. Although provision of additional guidance and better targeted support has improved the quality of teaching in some schools, it has yet to raise the overall frequency and consistency of teaching that is good or better in all schools. One significant improvement in teaching is teachers’ use of information and communication technology (ICT), a consequence of increased guidance and support provided through the PNS. However, despite support for teachers in developing assessment fo r learning, improvements are slow in coming and weaknesses remain (Primary National Strategy: An evaluation of its impact on primary schools 2004/05, 2005). A teachers knowledge of their subject matter is very important factor in that teachers effectiveness. A teacher with a high level of knowledge can usually explain a subject better to students. They will rely less on simple memorization and they will be able to answer any unexpected questions by students. They will receive more respect from students. They act as a good role model for students as they can show that learning their subjects is

Identity and Belonging Essay Example for Free

Identity and Belonging Essay This expository piece draws upon the context ‘Identity and Belonging’ in conjunction with personal memoirs from Alice Pung’s ‘Growing up Asian in Australia’. The purpose of this piece is to explore and invite my audience to experience what it is like to be the subject of isolation due to differences in appearance, language and culture and to point out the internal struggles people have while trying to discover their true identity whilst in the presence of others. I have referred to a number of stories from Alice Pung’s novel such as Towards manhood, a call to arms and sticks and stones and such like; all of which outline the issue of not being able to express oneself in the presence of others. The language used in this feature article is that of a formal and serious tone that reflects hardship of migrants and people who struggle to discover their true identity and a sense of belonging Essay In a diverse world where there is no conventional group to which we all belong it can be hard to find a concrete group where we can feel a sense of belonging and confidence to express ones true identity. The presence of others whether it is family or friends effects the way we act in certain situations and groups and causes us to reluctantly have several identities. However they may not always be our true identity but put-on in order to satisfy others and act in accordance to what they expect of us. We can create a new identity by changing our appearance, clothes and position in a group however in the process we may lose sight and become confused about who we really are and what identity is appropriate for different groups. It is not always easy to be our self in the presence of peers and family and living up to their expectations when you are confused about you own identity and sexuality. In the story ‘Towards Manhood’ the main character Benjamin found it challenging to be himself in the company of other because of his sexuality and not being able to conform to other’s expectations. He used his Asian appearance and identity to hide the fact that he was gay and he pretended to like a girl so his peers wouldn’t think he was â€Å"a comprised failure of a man†. However when he confesses his sexuality to his mother, who surprisingly acknowledges that her son was gay and that â€Å"something went wrong in the womb† he begins to accept and come to terms with who he is. It is through the acceptance of other that are closest to you that you get a sense of belonging and security and for Benjamin this was his family and his boyfriend Scott. It is also difficult to be ourselves in the company of others when your physical appearance and culture are dissimilar. Having a robust ethnic background can act upon the ability to fit into a foreign culture and way of life, but also it can affect the way others perceive us. In the story ‘A call to Arms’ Michelle found it hard to fit in because of the constant strain between Chinese heritage and Australian upbringing. Michelle felt a great deal of isolation because the Australian people weren’t accustomed to her appearance and her culture, â€Å"M y life seemed so incredibly abnormal compared to everyone else I knew† which often left her victimised by her peers. Michelle began to be ashamed of her culture around the presence of her peers and she began to lose her sense of identity and belonging. However on her trip to Hong Kong she â€Å"felt something she had never experienced before, and something I certainly never consciously been seeking: acceptance†. Everything that wasn’t accepted back in Australia â€Å"no longer incited automatic embarrassment† and she was able to express her culture without being looked down upon. It wasn’t until she tried to communicate to other in Chinese that she realised that only her appearance fitted in and finally acknowledges that both cultures shaped her identity. Our heritage and upbringing can place a great deal of stress when trying to conform to others and discover our own identity. It can leave us feeling isolated when around people that are different and not immune to your culture however sometimes people create a new identity in order to down play their culture and ethnic origins. Having a strong ethnic heritage can sometimes urge people to create a new identity in order to feel a sense of connection and belonging with the societies around them. In the memoir ‘Sticks and stones and such like’ Sunil attempts to create an identity that is accepted by the Australian culture and does this by changing his name to one that is easily pronounced by his fellow peers and is considered to be an Anglo- white majority name. Sunil creates multiple identities in order to fit into a Majority Australian- white school and along the way sacrifices and betrays his culture. After changing his name Sunil feels a sense of acceptance and anonymity among his white peers. However when Sunil’s mother finds out, she is dismayed that her son would give up his culture in order to feel a sense of belonging amongst his friends. After finding out about the origins of his name and why his mother treasured it so much, Sunil begins to rediscover his ethnic identity and finally accepts his own name and finds a sense of belonging. By having a different name that is unfamiliar to the people around you can sometimes give a sense of isolation and highlight the culture barriers between people. Often many ethnic people change their name in order to conform and make it easier to pronounce for the people that are unaccustomed to their language and culture and by taking on another name, they also create a new identity and clear any stereotypes of that race. We cannot always be our self in the company of others and that urges us to take on another identity. People often create a false identity on social networking sites in order to create a person that is desired by peers and also random people. People who are discriminated against or behold a sense of isolation because of differences in appearance and culture often create a profile online of how they want to appear to others and by creating a false identity that they can hide behind can give them a sense of belonging to a group and acceptance. We cannot always be ourselves in the company of others which often leads to false identities being created and a sense of not fitting in. The presence of other determines the identities in which we take on or want to be perceived as however this can also lead to a misinterpretation of their real identity and also sacrifices of heritage and culture.

Separation of Powers Essays -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Successful governments in history gained their acclaim by trial and error. The government in the United States is no different. In fact, the structure of the government in the United States has been through many changes: the American government was once feeble and operated with weak alliances between states; however, the present government functions in perfect equilibrium with the separation of powers, the federal system, and regards to democratic ideals.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After gaining independence from the British government, the United States wanted to refrain from the all-powerful central government and establish a weak central government where the powers to govern were given to the thirteen states. This form of government was formed with the Articles of Confederation. In this system, each state retained its sovereignty, freedom, and independence. The Articles of Confederation did, however, create a national government. It provided a national legislation, Congress. Congress consisted of delegates from the states, and each state had one vote in the legislation, with no regards to population. The central government had some powers to govern: it can conduct foreign relations, declare war or peace, maintain an army and navy, settle disputes among states, establish and maintain a postal service, and et cetera. These powers, however, were not given to Congress alone; Congress shared these powers with the states. So in many ways, Congr ...

Customer Service Essay

Introduction: â€Å"The customer is always right† is a famous business slogan. The underlying truth behind this statement is recognizing that customers are the life blood for any business. Understanding the importance of good customer service is essential for a healthy business in creating new customers, keeping loyal customers, and developing referrals for future customers Important of Customer Service: Customer service is important because customer service does more than simply provide a means to drive sales. It is also said that when companies have a commitment to a customer service this raises the bar of competition. There are following tip for good customer services.  Excellent customer service begins at the initial greeting. In this situations, using good people skills will increase the chances for a positive first impression. For example, saying hello with a smile to a customer who just walked in the door will invite that person in and make them feel welcome. Acknowledge the customer within a minute of them entering the premises, no matter how busy you are. This immediately helps make the customer feel welcome and at ease. Make eye contact with the customer. This makes both you and the customer feel more comfortable with each other. Finally, In terms of the general ambience, make sure premises are kept at an adequate temperature. Make sure don’t skimp on heating in th e winter, and in the summer if it’s too hot install cooling systems. This doesn’t have to cost a fortune but can make a big difference to the environment your customers enter. Too hot or too cold, and your customers will turn straight round and leave. Key point to Friendly Service:- Smile Talk to customer whenever possible Show to regular customers that you recognise them Use the steps below as guide but, above all, be yourself 1.Promptly welcome the Guest 2.Take the order clearly 3.Collect the payment accurately 4.Assemble the order completely 5.Deliver the order politely. Conclusion: You need to give support and guidance to your team to encourage them to improve their customer service delivery. It is about having a passion for customer service and sharing this enthusiasm with your colleagues and staff team. It is about leading by example. Lead a team to improve customer service 1.Be able to plan and organise the work of a team 2.Be able to provide support for team members 3.Be able to review performance of team members 4.Understand how to lead a team to improve customer service Be able to plan and organise the work of a team 1.Treat team members with respect at all times 2.Agree with team members your role in delivering effective customer service 3.Involve team members in planning and organising your customer service work 4.Motivate team members to work together to raise their customer service performance Be able to provide support for team members. 1.Check that team members understand what they have to do to improve their work with customers and why that is important 2.Check with team members what support they feel they may need throughout this process 3.Provide team members with support and direction when they need help 4.Encourage team members to work together to improve customer service

Analysis of the Hungarian Mobile Market Essay

Introduction The mobile market is still one of the most rapidly expanding business sectors in Hungary. Openness to new technologies and society’s need for swift communication, have elevated current statistics to show that the number of mobile telephones in Hungary exceed that of landlines. And it appears that the balance continues to shift more in favor of mobiles. This is characterized by the occurances of the previous years. At the end of 1999 the proportion of landline to mobile use was two to one, by the end of 2000 the number of landlines was only 25% higher than that of mobiles. Recently, over the course of the past few years dramatic changes have taken place. The country’s leading mobile provider, Westel Mobile Rt., reached 2 million subscribers by June 12, 2001; at the same time Pannon GSM reported 1.5 million subscribers, while the number of Vodafone subscribers was around 260,000.According to a recent report of the Telecommunications Supervisory Office, the number of opera tional mobile telephones in October 2003 amounted to 7,614,256. Given the tendencies of previous years, this number is expected to increase. Therefore, we can observe that mobile penetration has increased by nearly 100% over the course of the last few years. Growth shows no sign of slowing with the market. This makes it one of the highest growing markets in eastern Europe. But how will the Hungarian mobile-market develop further? Can the sharp increase of recent years be maintained, and when can we expect signs of market saturation? The Main Market Players Westel Mobile On 16 June 2000 Westel’s analogue and digital divisions, Westel Radiotelefon and Westel 900 GSM, officially became known as Westel Mobile; the company required a name change to reflect the fact that it was scheduled to introduce a GSM-1800 service. Westel was granted a GSM-1800 licence in mid-1999 when the government awarded Hungary’s third digital concession to Vodafone. In the interest of promoting fair competition, Vodafone was afforded a year-long period of exclusivity before Westel was allowed to launch its own GSM-1800 offering. Westel began sales of dual-band handsets in January 2000 in preparation for its November launch. Westel’s GSM subscriber base almost doubled during the course of 2000, from 842,000 to 1.6 million, growth which the company has attributed to the popularity of its pre-paid service Domino. The sale of Domino packages accounted for 76% of total revenues in 2000 and by the end of the year pre-paid users outnumbered post-paid customers, ac counting for 52% of the total subscriber base; this had risen to 57% three months later. By the end of March 2001 Westel had signed up a total of 1.8 million subscribers and in mid-June 2001 it registered its two millionth customer, by which time 60% of its customers were pre-paid. Westel launched its WAP service in early February 2000 and by the end of the year claimed that 100,000 customers were using WAP-enabled handsets. According to the company, there will be a boom in its WAP services once access times have been cut by GPRS. In spring 2001 Westel launched GPRS to a couple of hundred users and has scheduled full commercial launch for 1 August. It is aware that the technology could be slow to take off, however, and has already indicated that initial growth could be affected by the lack of handsets. A major development for Westel customers in 2000 was the introduction of the GreenZone tariff package, which allows customers living in rural areas to make lower cost calls. The GreenZone covers around 80% of Hungarian territory. In addition Westel has roaming agreements in place in 87 countries with 196 networks. It has also highlighted the popularity of SMS services; 200 million were sent during 2000 and in the first half of 2001 Westel customers sent more than 30 million per month. Westel Mobile retained its dominance over the market having almost doubled its subscriber base during the course of 2000, from 842,000 to 1.6 million, giving it a market share of 53.1%. By March 2001 the number of subscribers had reached 3.39 million, equivalent to a penetration rate of 33.7%. estel Mobile is owned by Matav (51%) and Deutsche Telekom (49%). Pannon GSM Although growth was steady during 2000, Pannon gained little ground on Westel; at the end of March 2001 it claimed a market share of 40.4%, up slightly on the 39.3% it recorded a year earlier. At the same date its subscribers numbered 1.37 million, 38% of whom were signed up to its pre-paid package Pannon Praktikum, which was launched in November 1997. By May 2001 Pannon announced that its customer base had reached 1.5 million. It has offered WAP services since early March 2000 and claims to have signed up several thousand users in the first four months. Majority shareholder KPN announced in June 2001 that it was seeking to offload its stake in Pannon as well as its minority stakes in the Ukraine and Indonesia. Interest in the stakes has been high and at the time of writing KPN confirmed that talks with potential buyers were well under way. Analysts have suggested that Vodafone may show interest in acquiring Pannon to strengthen its position in the country; it is not believed that Vo dafone will be deterred by the fact that Pannon is likely to be sold in conjunction with VoIP operator Pantel. Pannon is owned by KPN (44.66%), Telenor (25.78%), Sonera (23%) and TDC (6.56%). Vodafone Hungary When the VRAM consortium launched Hungary’s third digital mobile network under the Vodafone name in November 1999 it stated that its aim was to achieve a market share of 10% by the end of 2000. It failed to reach this target, signing up 200,000 customers, equivalent to just under 6.5%. Nonetheless, growth has been rapid. By March 2001 Vodafone had signed up 223,000 subscribers, up 374% from the 47,000 it claimed a year earlier. At the beginning of 2001 Vodafone announced that it would invest USD60 million in Hungary to build 400 base stations nationwide in addition to the 800 it has already installed. Vodafone has invested hundreds of millions of dollars since the inception of its Hungarian project to fund infrastructure, marketing and technological advances. The VRAM consortium consists of Vodafone (50.1%), RWE Telliance (19.9%), Antenna Hungary (20%) and Magyar Posta (10%). Market Share Development in Hungary Total Subscriber Development in Hungary Market Analysis This market is characterized by severe price discrimination implemented by all the participating firms. All three members of the market have pre paid and post paid packages available to their customers. It is observable that more users choose the pre paid packages in general. This can be derived from the price discrimination of the competing firms on the market. The following diagram also illustrates this tendency. Since the slope of the two lines is determined by the cost per minute it is obviously the lower envelope that represents the line according to which buyers should base their preference-based decisions. A customer who does not uses his or her mobile a lot will choose one of the pre paid packages. Controversially someone who is willing to talk much on his or her mobile will choose the post paid package, which implies to pay more for getting the started and costs less to use. In the intersection point of the two lines is the point where the customer is indifferent between the two. The market had witnessed unprecedented growth during 2000. At the end of the year it was home to 3.1 million users, this constitutes a 92.5% increase on the previous year end of 1999. This also beat the government’s forecast of a target of 2.5 million by a considerable margin. Also noteworthy is that mobile penetration reached an impressive 30.7% in December 2000, up from just 15.9% twelve months earlier. The market is growing indeed. according to analysts, 2002’s tendencies were easy to predict. The fast growth continued in the mobile market. However, it seems harder to foresee the development of the market later on. The only fact evident is that in the long run, there will be more mobile terminals in the country than the number of people living in it. Hungary’s new telecommunications act, which is currently being debated in Parliament, is also expected to further boost competition in the mobile phone market. With three competing mobile phone operators the Hunga rian market is probably the toughest in the entire region. Mobile Penetration Development in Hungary The second year of liberalized telecommunications in Hungary was marked by a decline in the number of fixed-line subscribers, but a persistently growing mobile market. In the first quarter of 2003, the number of mobile subscriptions (including active SIM cards and analogue subscription) rose to over 7 million for the first time, says a telecommunication market quarterly report compiled by the National Communications Authority (HIF). A comparison of 2003’s summer figures with those from the summer of 2002, shows an increase in mobile phone subscriptions of 22%. The numbers illustrate a major trend in the telecommunications sector of, let’s not forget, a country of only 10 million inhabitants. Westel leads the sector with a 47.5% market share, while Pannon GSM ranks second at 36.94%, followed by Vodafone, the smallest player, but one that is quickly growing with a 15.56% share of the market, according to HIF. Prices appear to increasingly level off, and the competition is speeding up. Therefore the mobile companies react faster to each other’s steps. Several years ago it took mobile operators almost half a year to counter each other’s marketing actions, but today it is a matter of days. This type of price war competition was started by Vodafone, Hungary’s third mobile phone provider, which entered the market in 1999. Vodafone’s Vitamax pre-paid cards became an instantaneous hit. Initially Vodafone’s prices were some 15-20% lower than anything offered on the market, but in the time since Westel and Pannon have lowered their prices as well. Pannon’s new campaign: â€Å"De-Juice† was a response to Vodafone’s younger image, and offers prepaid options along side Pannons already existing Praktikum service. Since March this year, Westel has introduced three new pre-paid Domino packages that offer competitive and unified tariffs on calls mad e to fixed-line or other mobile networks. There is also a considerable amount of price competition in the post-paid sector. Similarly to the post-paid packages, there is a very large array of package allocation possibilities. Of these assortments Westel’s cheapest offer for subscribers is its ‘Tà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½rsalgà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ M’ package, under which users can call within the network for 36.75 Hungarian Forints per minute in peak hours. Under Pannon’s ‘Horizont’ package, subscribers can choose between three different categories (Bà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½nusz, Plusz, Extra) that offer economical prices for calls made at different times of the day. In the meantime, Vodafone has come forward with its Rock ‘n’ Roll ‘Csà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½cs Plusz’ subscription package, which offers a tariff of 6 Forints per minute for the first 10 minutes of a call made to any network. So competition is fierce among mobile operators for post-paid subscribers and pre-paid card users. Although companies believe they will win customers by advertising the lowest prices, we have ascertained that many pre-paid packages hide additional charges for calls made after prime time hours. Many analysts say that even after Hungary’s new telecom law takes effect, price competition will continue since there are still significant reserves in pre-paid card rates. Although mobile operators are extremely careful about detailing their strategies, we believe that telephone equipment prices, along with regular subscribers, will remain the main campaign elements in the future. One aspect of the new telecom law states that from May 1, 2004, customers may keep their mobile numbers even if they switch providers. It seems that this will greatly rearrange the market. It can be expected that pre-paid phone customers will probably have to pay much more for the mobile handsets (as opposed to being relatively cheap, as is the case right now), as it would not be in any company’s interest to give expensive, modern phones cheaply to customers who could change providers at any moment. Meanwhile, the value of regular subscribers is expected to grow and those customers who sign a long-term contract will probably be the most important ones. Pannon GSM, for instance, seems to put more focus on the post-paid customer segment instead of the SIM card market. The current price competition, mostly focused on pre-paid card users, is seen spreading to subscribers who would be able to make cheaper calls as well. Vodafone is also pursuing a similar strategy. Telecom Policy Director Pà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½l Marchart says: â€Å"I expect that the new regulation will stimulate market competition even in those markets that show monopolistic signs today.† In reality however, the new regulations are being carefully scrutinized and opinions vary. It is questionable whether they will fulfill the function of creating real market competition. Prices would radically drop if real market competition existed in the market. This question was first raised by Hungary’s Competition Authority (GVH). The office made headlines recently with its inquiry into the telecommunications services sector, which resulted in imposed fines for Westel and Pannon. The sector inquiry enabled GVH to achieve a more accurate view of the mobile phone sector. The office found several problems on the mobile market, mainly with the pricing of calls generated from mobile phones to fixed-line networks. GVH accused mobile operators of utilizing restrictive practices in-order to increase mobile use in Hungary. The inquiry alleged that there is a mobile phone cartel in Hungary. But of course in the end it accused mobile service providers of little and did not prove that there were coordinated actions taken on by the mobile firms. GVH could not even prove that call fees to other networks were too high, but only stated that some contracts among mobile providers could distort competition. Westel was fined HUF 210 million and Pannon GSM HUF 150 million by GVH. The fine is not substantial, however, and accounts for a mere fraction of mobile operators’ turnover. Westel and Pannon said they will appeal the GVH decision in Hungarian courts. Vodafone did not have to pay any fines. The mobile companies agreed that fees for calls to other mobile service providers would cost less than calling fixed-line operators. In Summary then, we believe it is safe to say that continued competition and occasional price-wars will continue to surface among the three mobile conglomerates in Hungary. We have just recently perused in the latest issue of the Budapest Times that the new telecoms legislation has just been officially approved in Parliament. The new telecom act will come into force January 1, 2004 for fixed-lines and May 1, 2004 for mobile networks, just in time for the EU entry. We are yet to see what real effects this law will have on market competition, and if predatory and limit pricing attempts will be detected and penalized by the GVH. Also of note for future developments is Hungary’s ensuing EU absorption. Although it is expected that new fixed-line operators will enter the Hungarian market after EU integration, in the mobile market, the situation is quite different. Given the considerable number of active mobile phone users in the Hungarian population, it seems inconceivable that a potential new entrant firm could operate efficiently next to the incumbents. They would need a lot of resources and a good financial background, since return on the investment would probably take a good number of years. The fact that the number of mobile providers is not bound to increase in the future is one issue that all three firms seem to agree on. However, we believe that eventual new entrants will or should make their way on the market, since this would further promote competition which is an obvious goal of the Hungarian Competition Office (GVH). What we, consumers can do is to hope that at some point in time prices and minimum average costs will tend to meet, setting an end to the presence of dead weight loss. This way welfare as well as consumer surplus will be maximized on the Hungarian mobile market. Bibliography Sources Consulted and Referenced: Hungarian Competition Authority (GVH) official website; www.gvh.hu Hungarian National Communications Authority (HIF) official website; www.hif.hu Pannon GSM Mobile Service Provider Corporation official website; www.pannongsm.hu The Budapest Times Newspaper. Issue: Nov 28. – Dec 4. 2004; www.budapesttimes.hu Vodafone Mobile Service Provider Corporation official website; www.vodafone.hu Westel Mobile Service Provider Corporation official website; www.westel.hu

Debunking 10 Common Job Search Myths

Debunking 10 Common Job Search Myths Psst†¦if you don’t bring seven copies of your resume to the interview, printed on expensive paper, they won’t take you seriously. Oh, and if you don’t follow up with Human Resources once a day, every day after your interview, they’ll forget you exist. †¦Pass it on! The job hunt is one of those processes that is oddly regimented (when is the last time you saw a resume that wasn’t templated to within an inch of its life?), but also subject to old wives’ tales and everyone thinking they know best. (Except we do. Trust.) It can be hard to know what advice to rely on, and which to take with a grain of salt. In that spirit, let’s look at some of the most common bits of job hunt conventional wisdom, and see how it stacks up, reality-wise.Myth: You don’t need a cover letter anymore.This is a popular one in this age of digital job applications and faceless job engine sites. The phrase â€Å"cover letter† itself conveys a bygone era: you would wrap your resume in a paper-life substance covered with words about your intentions, your qualifications, and your eagerness to talk in depth about this opportunity, then place it in another paper cover, whereupon a civil servant would convey your package to a â€Å"mailbox.† Quaint, no?In reality, the cover letter does indeed serve a purpose, even if the entire process is handled online. It helps give context to your resume, and puts a voice to your stats. Your resume may be neutrally reviewed for key words by a robot inside a hamster wheel (that’s how those sites work, right?), but at some point your package will be viewed by a human looking to hire you. It’s good practice to write a cover letter to attach to your resume, regardless of how you send in your package.Myth: Never quit a job without having another job offer first.Ideally, sure, you’d have your next job lined up while you’re still working, and have a seamless tra nsition from one to the next. But you know what doesn’t always line up correctly? Life. Sometimes quitting your job is the right option, regardless of what you have coming up next. Not having a job lined up can make your job search more complicated, but this isn’t a black-and-white issue.Myth: Add HR people to your network for future opportunities.According to career expert Hannah Morgan, this is not the best use of your time or networking energy. Human Resources professionals are usually focused on filling specific roles at specific times. They may not know about future openings, or even think to mine their own networks for openings that have already come up. You’re better off networking with people in your target departments at specific companies.Myth: Enthusiasm and passion outweigh experience for reach positions.I wish this one were true! Unfortunately, the reality is that overcoming a lack of experience is a major challenge for people looking to level up, o r people trying to change careers. While it’s not an impossible challenge, especially if you’re committed, there’s no easy way around a lack of experience. Ideally, you’d be eager and passionate while actively working to get more experience. But while passion alone may get you spunkiness bonus points, it may not translate into a job offer. If you’re trying to show your dedication to the job, even when you don’t have the most experience, you can help yourself by tailoring your resume to emphasize skills over experience, and use the interview as a platform to talk about other ways you’re qualified for the position.Myth: You can’t change career paths after you choose one.Ever heard of famed newspaper editor Walt Disney? Or how about legendary bureaucrat Julia Child? No career decision is a permanent one, if you don’t want it to be. Sometimes we just outgrow old choices- and career decisions aren’t immune from that. O r maybe your career path isn’t what you thought it would be when you started. Or maybe you just feel ready for a change. Whatever the reason, you can always prepare to start over in a new field. There are challenges in making the switch- experience? Job opportunities? Skills?- but if you’re invested in this change and make plans to get the experience and skills you need (or are willing to start from the bottom), there’s nothing stopping you.Myth: All you need is a good resume.A good resume is the centerpiece of your job application package, that part is true. But it’s not the only thing, and you can’t count on it to get you from first look to job offer. You need to build the rest of your package around it. Even great resume might not be able to overcome a â€Å"meh† interview- or worse, and actively bad one.It’s important to be able to put your resume details (skills, experience, career highlights) in context, and to be able to talk a bout them coherently and confidently. You want your voice as an applicant to come through, and that comes via the interview, not just the bullet points on paper (or screen). Once you send off your resume, that’s your starting point for interview prep. Practice your handshake, come up with specific anecdotes that demonstrate your skills, and don’t forget to bring questions to ask.Myth: Hiring managers will be able to connect the dots on my qualifications for this job.Don’t leave anything to chance! If you want the company to know you’d be a good fit because of your communication and leadership skills, tell them! Don’t count on an HR rep or an interviewer to assume that based on your education, or past jobs, that you’d be a good fit for the position. Use the cover letter and the interview to your best advantage to make connections to the job description, and make sure you hit the points you want to hit.Myth: I’m clearly qualified, so th e automated application system will push me to the top.Remember what I just said about not taking things for granted? This goes double for computerized application processes. When you work on your resume for this application, make sure you’re using as many keywords from the job description as you can, as well as strategizing how to make your resume pop, even in robot eyes. Knowing how these automated engines process and spit out the data in your resume is an extremely helpful tool in actively trying to game the application system. [via Lifehacker]Myth: You should stay in constant contact with the hiring department so they know how engaged you are.Follow-up is great. A thank-you note is imperative. But after that, regularly checking in to see how the post-interview process is moving along is not a great strategy. For one thing, they may be seeing other candidates, or doing an internal review process. Hiring can have a lot of moving parts, and if someone is out on vacation for a few days or there are a number of qualified candidates, you may not get the instant job offer that you might hope to get.After you submit a resume, it’s best to wait until you hear from the company†¦reaching out at that stage won’t necessarily help get your resume seen or considered. After you have an interview, send your thank you on the same day, and then give them at least a week. At the one week mark, it’s okay to start checking in occasionally (but only occasionally). And there are other, less invasive ways to follow up after the interview, if you’re feeling especially anxious and don’t want to annoy the hiring manager or long-suffering HR rep.Myth: Your best job opportunities are found online.The interweb is one of the best, most inclusive tools you have in your job search arsenal. You can find companies and openings that you might never have thought to search for, and can have your resume in someone’s hands in the time it takes to send an email. But don’t count out offline methods, either.There’s something to be said for good, old-fashioned networking: most jobs are still filled by either internal candidates or by applicants directly referred by employees. (There’s a reason so many companies offer referral bonuses for employees who bring in new hires. And who doesn’t like the idea of earning cash for their friends?) So while job engines can broaden your job search, don’t rely on them exclusively to get that job offer in your hands.There’s so much career advice out there, and it can be hard to tell what’s true, what used to be true, and what just isn’t true. Taking the time to think through (and do some research) about which of our most cherished job search truisms and â€Å"facts† will make you a leaner, meaner candidate armed with the best information to make decisions for your own career and job hunt.

Whats Tested on the SAT Writing Section Grammar and Questions

What's Tested on the SAT Writing Section Grammar and Questions SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips "Writing, to me, is simply thinking through my fingers." If Isaac Asimov weretalking about the SAT Writing and Language section, he would probably add that he would have to think through his fingers fast. With 35 minutes for 44multiple choice questions, you have to work quickly and efficiently to achieve a high score. Let's go over the Writing and Language section in detail so you know exactly what to expect. Format of the SAT Writing The Writing and Language section is your second section on the SAT. Writing and Language, together with Reading, makes up your verbal score (aka, "Evidence-based Reading and Writing" score). This section is35 minutes long and asks you 44 multiple choice questions. All of the questions are based on passages. In fact, there are four passages followed by 11 questions each. Thepassages are sourced from the areas of Careers, Social Studies, the Humanities, and Science: Careers passages might discuss trends or debates in major professional fields, like medicine, technology, or business. Social studies passages might draw from history, anthropology, psychology, political science, or sociology. Humanities passages could feature an author or explore trends in literature or the arts, includingprose, poetry, art, music, or dance. Science passages will focus on topics in earth science, biology, chemistry, or physics. You won't get any prose; all of the passages will be nonfiction, explanatory, or argument-based. One or more will also be accompanied by a related graphic, like a chart, table, or graph. The thing you need to know about theWriting and Language passages is that they're full of problems. They willbe riddled with errorsin punctuation, word choice, sentence structure, and organization. The multiple choice questions will point to various parts of the passages andask you if and how each partshould be fixed. The Writing and Language section tests your editorial skills. Let's take a closer look at how it does this. Writing and Language: Testing Your Editorial Skills Writing and Language asks you to read error-strewn passages and make them better. First, you have to recognize whether or not there is an error.If there is, then you have to choose the answer that would fix or improve the sentence, paragraph, or passage. To accomplishthis task, you need to understand grammar rules andhow to organizeideasanduse transitional words and phrases. According to College Board, Writing and Language questions test four main skills area: Command of Evidence, Words in Context, Expression of Ideas, Standard English Conventions. A little over half of questions ask about the first three skills areas and have to do with the development and organization of ideas and effective language use. The other half of questions cover Standard English Conventions. These questions ask about sentence structure, usage, and punctuation. They tend to be more detail-oriented questions. Let's take a closer look at each of these skill areas and what they test, along with an official sample question in each. 1. Command of Evidence Command of Evidence questions tend to look at the big picture. They want you to improve the way a passage presents information or imparts meaning. You might need to add a supporting detail, introductory sentence, or conclusion to make a passage more impactful. These questions often ask you to include the reason for making a change (ie, your "evidence").This sample question falls into the Command of Evidence category. It wants you to strengthen a passage and provide your reasoning behind choosing a particular answer. Picking up on context clues is very important! How else are you going to figure out that it was Professor Plum with the candlestick in the billiard room? 2. Words in Context Words in Context are more detail-oriented than Command of Evidence questions, as they point to a particular word. You might need to replace a word that doesn't make sense or choose one that works better in itsparticular context. None of the words will be particularly advanced, but they might be ones that are easily confused (e.g. the words "outperform, outweigh, and outdo") or that take on different meanings depending on context. As with many Writing questions, Words in Context questions will have the option of "No Change."Before thinking about how to replace the word, you have to decide whether or not there's a problem in the first place. Here's a typical example of a Words in Context question in SAT Writing and Language. 3. Expression of Ideas As their category indicates, Expression of Ideas questions ask you to think about how ideas are expressed. You might rearrange the order of sentences to improve flow or strengthen an argument. You might also choose to delete a sentence completely. These are "big picture" questions that ask you to make revisions that would make the passage more impactful. The following is an example of an Expression of Ideas question on the SAT. 4. Standard English Conventions Almost half of the SAT Writing questions fall into this Standard English Conventions category. Here's where your understanding of grammar and punctuation rules comes into play. These questions ask you to fix errors in sentences and clauses. You might edit for errors in verb tense, subject-verb agreement, pronoun use,parallel construction, commas, or apostrophes. The following example, for instance, asks you to distinguish between "there" and "their" and to make sure the phrase under considerationhas propersubject-verb agreement. The second question testscomma rules. In addition to these four major skill areas in Writing and Language, Command of Evidence, Words in Context, Expression of Ideas, and Standard English Conventions, you'll also encounter another question type that calls for its own special prep. About 2% to 4% of questions will be about data interpretation. On the redesigned SAT, data is all around you. Extra Question Type: Data Interpretation As you read above, one or more of the passages in Writing and Language will be accompanied by a graphic, like a chart, table, graph, or some other visual that communicates data. The graphic will be related to the passage in some way, but it might be described incorrectly. Questions couldask you to revisean incorrect representation of the data or to add a sentence based on data to strengthen an argument. Here's an example of a data interpretation question on Writing and Language. The data interpretation questions are the only ones of the Writing section where you might have to flip between pages to read the question and then consult the graph. As you can see in the samples, all of the other questions should line up directly with the part(s) of the passage to which they refer. Now that you have a sense of the skills and question types on this section, read on for some key study tips to prepare for SAT Writing and Language. Get out your red pen. College Board has just given you the job ofEditor-in-Chief. How toStudy for SAT Writing and Language The SAT Writing and Language section asks you to be an editor. It presents you with flawed passages, and your job is to make them better. You might improve a word, fix a punctuation mistake, rearrange ideas, or add sentences to improve flow. While some of your editorial skills are the cumulative result of years of reading and reading, how can you take specific steps to prepare yourself for the SAT Writing section? Read on for sixstudy tips to help you achieve your target scores. 1. Study Grammar Rules Almost half of the questions on the Writing section ask you to fix an error in grammar, usage, or punctuation. While grammar rules aren't the only part of your SAT Writing prep, they are a big part. To prepare, you should make sure you understand the most commonly tested grammar rules, like subject-verb agreement, parallel structure, and simplifying wordiness. By knowing the rule, you can pick up on what a question is asking you. Then you can confidently locatethe right answer, rather than simply relying on what sounds or looks right. Get a firm grasp of grammar and usage rules so you can master these question types on SAT Writing. 2. Study Punctuation Rules The old SAT didn't ask about punctuation, but the redesigned test does. You may need to fix a comma, apostrophe, semicolon, colon, or period, perhaps combining phrases into one sentence or separating a run-on into two sentences. Make sure to review the most commonly tested punctuationrulesand then test your understanding with official practice questions. Pair each rule with relevant practice questions to reinforce the concept. Then take practice tests where the questions are all mixed up in random order to make sure you can recall the relevant punctuation rule when you get tested on it. These questions are tricky if you don't know, for example, the right way to use a semicolon. If you do, though, then they're a piece of cake. 3. Read Essays and Newspaper Articles As you read above, all of the passages on the Writing section ask about nonfiction, explanatory, or argument-based texts. If you've spent English classes only reading literature, likeThe Great Gatsby and The Crucible, then you might need extra practice with non-prose texts. Somegreat sources forpractice are nonfiction essays and newspaper articles. Read with an analytical eye, perhaps circling transitional words and taking notes on the margins about how ideas are organized or how an author builds an argument. Deconstruct the text in front of you just as an editor would. If a passage strikes you as particularly strong, try to pick apart why it's so strong. If it fails to impress, note what you would change to make it more impactful. Developing your editorial eye is key for doing well on the SAT Writing and Language section, where your primary task is to edit and revise pieces of writing. Look alive! You need to stay alert tomake it through the long winter of SAT prep. 4. Pay Attention to Feedback on Your Writing Do any of your teachers give you editorial feedback on your writing? If so, don't just go straight to the grade and ignore the marks and comments. The marks and comments are key to developing an understanding of edits and revisions. Study them closely, and ask questions if you don't understand any. Similarly, you might go out of your way to ask your English teacher, for example, to give you feedback on a piece of writing. Or you could become aneditor yourself and trade comments with a peer. If you get feedback on your papers, pay close attention - it will help you become a better writer, which will, in turn, help you do better on the Writing section of the SAT! 5. Study Multiple-Meaning Words Some of the questions in SAT Writing fall into the Words in Context category. None of the highlighted terms are particularly obscure or advanced. Instead, they're relatively common words that may change meaning depending on context. Studying mid-level, multiple-meaning words will help you for both the Writing and Reading sections of the SAT. Beyond studying word lists, pay attention to how certain words shift depending on how they're being used. This understanding, along with the ability to pick up on context clues, will help you masterWords in Context questions. 6. Practice Interpretating Data from Graphics Finally, you'll get a few questions asking you to interpret data from graphics. These questions require an understanding of the graphic, plus they might ask you to go one step further to fix a mistake or insert a description into the passage. You can hone this skill in your Science and History classes, with SAT practice questions, and even with ACT Science questions (though, of course, not all the Writing data interpretation questions will necessarily be related to Science). Make sure that you can grasp a variety of charts and graphs, like pie charts, line graphs, scatterplots, bar graphs, and tables. While data interpretation may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about a writing test, it needs to be part of your prep for SAT Writing and Language. By honing your editorial and data interpretation skills, along with learning exactly what's tested on this second section of the SAT, you'll be one step closer to your goals. In closing, let's review the key points that you need to know about the Writing and Language section of the SAT. SAT Writing and Language: Key Points SAT Writing is your second section on the SAT, and all the questions are multiple choice and passage-based. This section asks you to be an editor and to fix errors in grammar, punctuation, and organization. Your job, simply put, is to make a flawed piece of writing better. To prepare for this section, you should study rules of grammar, usage, and punctuation. Beyond these rules, you should read and write widely, keeping a critical eye on structure and flow, to hone your editorial skills. You might also practice peer editing with a friend, as well as pay close attention to any feedback you get on your own writing from teachers. The Writing and Language section makes up half your verbal score, while the first section of the SAT, Reading, makes up the other half. By learning all about the skills tested, question types, and study strategies, you're well on your way to achieving your target verbal scores. What's Next? Is writing your strong subject, and you want the SAT score to prove it? This perfect scorer gives you 11 strategies forgetting a perfect score. Feeling unsure about data interpretation questions? This guide tells you how to analyze graphics on the Writing and Reading sections of the SAT. Official SAT practice tests are the gold standard for high quality practice questions. Download 8 free printable official SAT tests here. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points? Check out our best-in-class online SAT prep classes. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your SAT score by 160 points or more. Our classes are entirely online, and they're taught by SAT experts. If you liked this article, you'll love our classes. Along with expert-led classes, you'll get personalized homework with thousands of practice problems organized by individual skills so you learn most effectively. We'll also give you a step-by-step, custom program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Try it risk-free today: