Learning Team Deliverables Essay

Organizational culture consists of different traditional ways, values, and certain beliefs when setting out the rules for making a decision, power, and formation of a company. The organizational culture focuses more on leadership values. Culture determines the way we as people handle business and also for one’s own success. By having a structured organizational culture, it allows the employees to feel that if they do what is right, they will be rewarded for their actions. The following paragraphs will discuss the impact of leadership and the mores of senior management and how they affect both the culture and the application of power. We as a group have chosen a law firm as the â€Å"model† company. Coercive Power Coercive power is a form of manipulation used on employees to bring about a sense of fear. Employees conform to coercive powers for fear of retaliation. Coercive power in the long run can lead to character flaws amongst employees. Law firms that use coercive powers are usually only concerned with short term goals. Coercion used long term can cause dissatisfied partners’ performance to drop. Partners may eventually end up leaving the organization because they feel nothing good is going to happen for them. For instance, peer pressure at a law partnership could be a form of coercion to gain a unanimous decision regarding financial decisions. Long term affect could lead to the partnership being resolved due to one of the partners’ dissatisfaction in the ways things are going. Reward Power Law Partners who conform to the rules to receive positive benefits for their efforts enjoy reward power. Law Partners enjoy reward power since it allows them to control negative repercussions by doing well. Partnerships use reward power to help encourage partners to perform high and meet the firm’s goal. For example, bonuses given at the end of each year could motivate all partners to do well. Reward powers usually benefits all parties involved. Legitimate Power The most common access to one or more of the power bases is legitimate power. â€Å"Legitimate power represents the formal authority to control and use organizational resources based on structural position in the organization.† (Stephen P. Robbins, Timothy A. Judge, 2011) In a law firm, that structure is driven by the board of directors, then to the partners. Those that are lawyers are submissive to the partners in hopes to become one someday themselves. We associate power with hierarchy, so employees infer leaders as powerful and comply when an executive order is placed. Although, legitimate power is the most recognized, having expert power is just as powerful. Expert Power In any organization, most of the time employees are easily replaced. If one provides the same service or acting task in a like manner as their counterpart, then replacing them is not that difficult. However, having a niche that is not easily replaced provides expert power. Expert power is the ability to provide an expertise and the respect and admiration of others. In a law firm, the knowledge of being able to defend or represent the firm in a way that is beyond the ability of others creates an expert power that will buy you life in the firm. Since law firms are all about winning their cases, the more one brings to the table, the better the opportunity of becoming partner. Referent power Referent power in any organization allows an individual to be considered for hire or a current employee to receive warranted or unwarranted compensation for their contribution to the entity. Referent power in a Law Partnership can assist in an employee becoming Partner of the firm. Rewards incurred from this power are influenced by interactions and the ability to relate to others. This power has been stated to hold more weight due to its intimacy. It has been directly correlated with positive performance, satisfied employees and the organization knowingly aware of an employee’s commitment and contribution to the organization. The use of the five power bases in a Law Partnership is commonplace. However, in order for the firm to be successful, the board of directors and partners must possess strong leadership skills, and abide by an even stronger code of ethics when exerting their powers. Leaders of the partnership use their reward and  legitimate authority to motivate others, encouraging growth, and further development of skills. Expertise is used to contribute to the growth of the firm, and not used as a ransom for personal gain. In addition, a strong sense of values in leaders of the firm will bring about an atmosphere of respect and trust, thus upper levels of the partnership use reference and personal influence within ethical confines. The use of all power bases for individual gain will not bring about sustainable growth and should be avoided. Furthermore, use of coercion power will create fear and distrust, and if the other powers are also being misused, partnership’s culture can be affected stress, lack of motivation, loss of staff, and corruption, and even b etrayal. References Schermerhorn, J. R., Hunt, J. G., & Osborn, R. N. (2005). Organizational Behavior (9th ed.). Retrieved from https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/content/eBookLibrary2/content/TOC.aspx?assetid=bb2bb7b2-43f9-41d6-af58-cf49682ce588&assetmetaid=20a7c5ea-8d61-49ba-b292-5374bc15903f. Stephen P. Robbins, Timothy A. Judge. 14th ed. (2011). University of Phoenix website. Retrieved May 1, 2014 from https://newclassroom3.phoenix.edu

Euroland Foods SA Case Analysis

I. Introduction Euroland Foods Company was a publicly traded company since 1979. Theo Verdin founded the company in 1924 as a result in developing his dairy business. Euroland Foods Company saw itself as a multinational producer. The four products were high-quality ice cream, yogurt, bottled water, and fruit juices. Each product accounted for 60%, 20%, 10%, and 10% of the company’s revenue respectively. The company’s headquarters was in Brussels, Belgium. Since the day the company was founded, it has experienced steadily development. II. Background of Firm The board of directors of Euroland Foods Company had 12members. Three of them were the Verdin family, four of them were from the management, and the left five members came from outside. The combined Verdin family, the combined company executive, Venus Asset Management, and Banque du Bruges et des Pays Bas were the four biggest stockholders. Each had 20%, 10%, 12%, and 9% of the company’s shares outstanding respectively. Senior Management Committee was responsible for the capital budgeting and presenting it to the board of directors every year. Seven members, including five managing directors, one PDG, and one finance director, were on the committee. III. Statement of Situation Euroland Foods Company had two major problems comparing with its peers. One was the high debt-to-equity ratio, another one was the low price-to-earnings ratio. The debt-to-equity ratio was 125%, which made the Banque du Bruges, Euroland’s bank, could not keep silence. Banque du Bruges strongly pushed a debt reduction program to Euroland. No project could be financed if the leverage level was beyond the current debt-to-equity ratio. The lower the price-to-earnings ratio, the lower the stock price was. In this case, the Euroland’s stock price was lower than average of peers. At the current ratio 14, Euroland’s market value was below its book value. Euroland Foods Company failed in the trying of new product introduction. Its sales had been stopped since 1998. The creditor, Banque du Bruges, was worrying about the Euroland’s ability to pay its debt back. The one of the biggest stockholder, Venus Asset Management, was worrying about cutting off the dividends. IV. Constraints on Solution Due to the high debt-to-equity ratio, the board of directors decided to limit capital spending to EUR 120 million. There were eleven projects on the table, and up to total EUR 316 million. There was estimated minimum acceptable IRR and maximum acceptable payback years. (Table 1) V. Possible Solutions In order to increase the sales, Euroland Company has to choose projects wisely under the EUR 120 million budget limitation, minimum IRR limitation, and maximum payback period limitation. Net present value, internal rate of return, and payback period are the main measures Euroland Company used to analyze each project. According to Exhibit 3, project 1 replacement and expansion of the truck fleet, project 2 a new plant, project 3 expansion of a plant, project 4 development and roll-out of snack foods, and project 5plant automation and conveyor systems are eliminated for the over maximum acceptable payback period. The left projects are all considerable. The special project in this case is the effluent-water treatment at four plants. Because it belongs to the safety or environments category, there is no measurement yet. Euroland Company could see it as a future expenditure, and if Leyden was right, we can spend EUR 6 million today instead of EUR 15 million four year later. This project will save Euroland a lot in the future. (the saving amount equals to the net present value of EUR 15 million minus EUR 6 million) The project is going to be mandatory four year later. VI. Recommended Solution If I was on the board of directors, I would approve project 11, Acquisition of a leading schnapps brand and associated facilities, which is analyzed as project 10 on the Exhibit 3; project 7, Market expansion southward, which is analyzed as project 6 on the exhibit 3; and project 9, Development and introduction of new artificially sweetened yogurt and ice cream, which is analyzed as project 8 on the exhibit 3. The capital budget for the three projects are EUR 60 million, EUR 30 million, and EUR 27 million respectively, which give us the total EUR 117 million. We still have EUR 3 million can use, and I will propose to use it in the effluent-water treatment at four plants project. Although the project estimated cost is EUR 6 million, companies barely pay such a huge amount in one day. We can negotiate with the seller to come up a payment plan; in addition we need to make a deal which the first payment is not greater than EUR 3 million. Project 7 market expansions southward and project 8 market expansions eastward are similar, but I decided to approve project market expansions southward instead. Besides the higher net present value and internal of rate of return, the purchasing power is stronger and competition is less intense.

National Union of Bank Employees Essay

Introduction Unions are organizations formed to voice out dissatisfactions and represent interests of employees in a company. In the past, employees- especially those who are low in education level and those who are minorities were exploited because they are not aware of their rights. Therefore, unions exist and sustained till today for two main reasons- to protect the employees and to counter the employers’ powers. Unions normally deal collectively with employer and negotiate labor agreements during the period in which they are effective. The major goal is to gain the best common interest, working conditions, health benefits and job security for its members. To further understand the function and role play of unions, we conducted a study of a union- NUBE (National Union of Banking Employees) in the banking industry. Based on our research result, this paper will include the background of the chosen union, how this union fights for its members’ benefits, the impacts towards the industry due to its pass success and some personal opinion from a current member in this union obtain through a walk in oral interview. Brief History of Unions in United States of America and Malaysia In early 1920s, labors had to work extra hours with minimum wages. Neither health benefits nor insurance were included in their contract of working. Later on, things have changed with the existence of unions. One of the earliest unions  was The National Labor Union which was founded in 1866. After 1866, more and more unions were formed such as The Knights of Labor, American Federation of Labor and also few acts were passed to protect the labors. In Malaysia, unions started to be in active in 1920s when the Communist Party of Malaya encouraged unskilled workers to unionize. There were no rules or regulation at all about trade unions at that time. But in 1940, a Trade Unions Enactment was passed in the Federated Malay States. The enactment made it necessary for all trade unions to be registered in order to avoid redundant unions. Trade unions in Malaysia can be divided into three, in-house, national and federation of trade unions. Objective of in-house trade union is to look after the interests of members in that institution only. While national trade unions are grouped according to industry, trade, or occupation, and their membership is not restricted to a particular institution but geographically where a national trade union can draw its members only from Peninsular Malaysia, or Sabah, or Sarawak. Lastly, a federation of trade unions is a combination of trade unions from similar industries, trades, or occupations. Usually Director General of Trade Unions has the right to decide what similar industries are trades or occupations when there are doubts within the members. Well-known unions in Malaysia consist of Malaysia Rugby Union, The Musicians Union of Malaysia and few others. National Union of Bank Employee’s Background National Union of Bank Employees (NUBE) consists of more than 30,000 members in the Banking and Financial Institutions in Peninsular Malaysia. It was formed in 1958 with 5 branches under them, the first is combination of Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Pahang (KLSP), second is in Ipoh, the third is in Penang, Kedah and Perlis (PKP), the fourth is in Kelantan and the fifth is in Seremban, Melaka and Johor (SMJ) and their recreational seaside resort which is in Port Dickson. Like other unions, the reason of having union in any industry is to protect labors and their opinions will be taking in consideration. As for banks, NUBE is a union for all the banks in Malaysia .NUBE’s primary objective is to serve protect and help members regarding their personal benefits and to help the members to negotiate with the banks in order to have a good employee and employer relationship. NUBE can be  considered as a middle person or mediator if there is a problem between the banks and the employees. National Union of Bank Employee’s Battles When members of the union have an issue which is not being paid attention by the employer or government, NUBE will publicize the issues in order to pressure them. In the pass, NUBE had organized a number of activities in fighting all kinds of benefits for its members such as increasing the salary, improving certain health benefit policies, requesting apologies and demanding compensations for unfair labour practices etc. Some disputes were even brought up to the court when the employer and the union could not compromise. Overall, most of these activities and pickets by NUBE had successfully gain public attention and cause pressure towards the employers to take immediate action in negotiating the solution when an issue is brought up. NUBE Fights for Maternity Leave In March 2010, NUBE proposed an increase in maternity leave in conjunction with International Women’s Day on the 8th. The â€Å"90 Days for Mums – 1 Million Signatures Campaign† was launched later on to garner support for this proposal even though the ministry make it clear that they have no plans in extending the current maternity leave. Apart from defending the rights of female employees in Malaysia that, this campaign also aimed to aware the government that many sections of labour laws in Malaysia were obsolete and adverse. NUBE Secretary-General J. Solomon said that a 60-day maternity leave in Malaysia is not the in line with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention 183 on Maternity Protection. Therefore, the one million signatures will be submitted to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to appeal for an amendment of the Act on maternity leave. For creating greater awareness to the public, NUBE also sent in memorandum to the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development at the launching of the campaign. The result as reported in The Star Online, this campaign successfully received huge support from various parties such as Women’s Aid Organisation, World Alliance on Breastfeeding Action, Asian Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women, All Women’s Action Society, Union Network International – MLC (Global Union), Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC),  Kesatuan Kesedaran Komuniti Selangor, Tenaganita Sdn Bhd, Wanita Gerakan, and Wanita Keadilan. As the result, the huge impact of this campaign had caused the ministry to promise that they will take in consideration of this proposal. Although there is no visible changes in the maternity leave on both private and public sectors yet, NUBE act is consider very important as they have successfully raise awareness and concern to employers about this matter so it could be reviewed with added benefits when the time is right. NUBE Reports Maybank to MACC On the February 15 this year, NUBE unionist staged a picket against Malayan Banking Berhad (Maybank) outside their office at Bangsar. The bank employees who are NUBE members that joined the picket voiced their main dissatisfaction over the stagnant wages issue that is yet to be reviewed by their employer and the dissatisfaction over unfair practice by Maybank. The union members marched into the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and report about Maybank violating the labor and civil laws as well as the collective agreement for launching an in house union called the Maybank non-executive Union (MANEAU). J.Solomon explained that the formation of MANEAU by Maybank serves as a ‘union busting campaign’ because it spoilt NUBE’s negotiation for performance bonus. It is revealed that employees did not receive any performance bonus at all whereby the CEO of Maybank enjoys a huge sum of 24 months’ salary which total up to RM2,160,000 as his performance bonus. This cause great dissatisfaction among the Maybank employees as is clearly unfair to them. Besides, to stop employees from joining the picket, Maybank also ordered the Malaysian Commercial Bank Association to slash salaries of all employees that take leave to join the picketing. Maybank acted unfair to the employees’ union members and shown effort in blocking any activities of the employees union. Malaysian Trade Union Congress also reported that Maybank is going against the law by supporting their own in-house union by sponsoring them. Maybank’s act violated the laws as they shouldn’t be sponsoring or supporting any unions. NUBE had shown concern over their member’s disputes and reacted quickly by getting the issue to the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak but when it gets no response, NUBE acted by staging a picket, raising awareness to the public of what is happening inside the Malaysia’s biggest financial  institution, giving reasonably huge amount of pressure to Maybank in reviewing the matter. NUBE also acted in protecting the bank employee’s rights by reporting the violation of laws by Maybank to the MACC. NUBE Pickets on Minimum Wages Recently in Kuala Lumpur, while the rest of the workers across the Malaysia are enjoying their privileges of Labor Day off day on May 1, over a thousand employees gathered together and marched across the city. The main reason the march takes place is to protest against the newly announced minimum wage policy and to fight for basic employee rights. The rally comprising participant mostly from the NUBE, followed by the other unions – Guppy Plastic Industries Workers Union, Occupy Activist, Party Socialist Malaysia, and Women Aid Organization. During the march, their chant includes stop eliminating union organizations and raising the minimum pay from RM 900 to RM 1500, a much fairer pay. NUBE clarify the much fairer pay as the poverty line according to research is RM 750 and the differences of RM 150 apart from minimum pays are not sufficient. J. Solomon also taken this opportunity to send messages to employers and officers in Human Resource Ministry to abort whatever plan that erode worker’ rights. He also says that it is totally unacceptable as the human resource ministry is plotting with Maybank employers to tears worker apart and attempts to destroy NUBE. Therefore, members from NUBE pickets against Maybank and urges to boycott against the bank. The Current NUBE Member The summarized information below is obtained through an interview with a current Maybank employee who is also a NUBE member conducted orally at Maybank Kota Damansara branch on July 2, 2012, 2.30pm. (Refer Appendix A for full interview contents). The interviewee requested to not disclose her personal information. In the following, she will be referred as ‘the interviewee’. To enter the banking industry, one basically must have a certain level of education. Therefore, employees in the banking industry are highly aware of their rights. To ensure that these rights were protected, most of them join the NUBE as it is a more efficient and powerful route for obtaining better working benefits. It is widely known among the banking  industry employees that this union is actively fighting the best of possible for its members. This is how the interviewee came to know about the existence of this union and felt secure to be a member of it. One of the factors related to union success in organizing is having a good leader because a strong leader certainly will give confidence to the members in the union. In return, members will show a relative strong support in the union. J. Solomon (2005), formal NUBE leader once said: â€Å"Since my younger days, I’ve never liked to see anyone being bullied. If I see somebody who is weak and cannot speak for themselves, then I’d be an informal leader. That’s how I grew up.† Therefore, according to the interviewee, NUBE’s area representatives were sent to banks quarterly or when there are any grievances in order to maintain close contacts with members, collect feedbacks and update latest information to ensure the members concerns are well taken care off. The interviewee is positive that J. Solomon is professional in taking care of their dissatisfactions and then fights the best for them. She is happy to received regular updates from area representatives, and is satisfied that the official website is up to date with the latest information about the union activities all the time. Apart from that, she is also pleased that when a contract is coming to an end, all members will be invited to attend meetings to voice out concerns and terms to be renegotiated in the new contract. This is the reason she has been in the union for more than 10 years. Certainly, having loyal members is another factor of the union remaining strong and successful. NUBE professional attitude is certainly one of the main reasons that their members remain loyal. When it comes to picketing or demonstration, the union will first notify the police about their schedule of activities and obtain a legal approval so that departments who are concern can take any form of precaution to prevent injuries and damages towards the public. This is also another reason that the interviewee support this union all years along because she highly respects J. Solomon attitude in always insisting a peaceful and legal way to express their dissatisfactions so that the employer will resolve the issue for them. â€Å"I personally feel that all the union is really needed in order we, the employees are not being exploited and get what we deserve,† she said. Conclusion From our research, a strong and effective union is able to increase its members working quality. The few factors that NUBE is so successful are concluded as below: (1) they have active participation from members, (2) they have done proper preparations for further negotiations before hand, (3) they are highly involve in political and civil activities, (4) they have a strong union mentality and most of all (5) a professional leader. (Fossum, 2012) Overall in simple words, in the past, present and future, the existence of unions does and will always play a very crucial role and serve an important purpose towards the society. If there are more NUBEs around the world, it is positive to believe that the rate of exploitation in labors will reduce drastically and the amount of sweatshops will decrease faster especially in rural areas. References Anisah Shukry. (May 1, 2012). On Labour Day, workers march for more money. Retrieved July 6, 2012 from http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/on-labour-day-workers-march-for-more-money/ Baker&Mckenzie. (2009). Malaysia Trade Unions Guide. Retrieved July 11 2012 from http://www.bakermckenzie.com/files/Uploads/Documents/Supporting%20Your%20Business/Global%20Markets%20QRGs/Trade%20Unions%20and%20Works%20Councils/qr_malaysia_tradeunionsguide_2009.pdf Claudia Theophilus. (August 26, 2005). Q&A with the NUBE general-secretary. Retrieved July 5 from http://www.indianmalaysian.com/sound/modules.php?name=News&file=print&sid=40 John A. Fossum. (2012). Unions: Members and Leader Attitudes, Behaviours, and Political Activities. Labor Relations Development, Structure, Process. 11ed. NY: Mc Graw Hill. Lisa J. Ariffin. (February 15, 2012). NUBE takes Maybank dispute to streets. Retrieved June 18, 2012 from https://www.facebook.com/groups/379377715461781/ Malaymail. (March 2, 2010). Pet ition for 90 days of maternity leave in progress. Retrieved July 6, 2012 from http://mp.mohr.gov.my/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1862:petition-for-90-days-ofmaternityleaveinprogress&catid=150:news&Itemid=624&lang=my *NUBE Malaysia Facebook Page. (August 11, 2011). About Basic Info. Retrieved July 10, 2012 from https://www.facebook.com/pages/NUBE-Malaysia/259701940707753?sk=info The Star Online. (March 9, 2009). NUBE goes ahead with maternity leave petition. Retrieved July 6, 2012 from http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=%2F2010%2F3%2F9%2Fnation%2F5820402&sec=nation *It is very unfortunate that the NUBE official website is still under maintenance since June. According to a current NUBE member, information retrieved from NUBE Malaysia Facebook page is accurate and reliable.

Major punishment philosophies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Major punishment philosophies - Essay Example This essay is a critical evaluation on the punishment response to first-time and habitual DWI offenders. Different punishments for driving while under intoxication are exercised depending on the state where the offence was done. The most possible punishment is brief confinement in a county jail for a period not more than one year and a fine not exceeding $ 5000 and in some cases withdrawal of the offender’s driving license for a short period of time (Head 2006). This punishment is justifiable for first time offenders because even though the law terms ignorance as no defense, it is possible that the offence could be committed out of ignorance or mere carelessness. This means that, the offenders have not formed a habitual DWI thus a short confinement would help them by opening their eyes to the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol (Bosworth 2005). Not only does it endanger their own lives but also the lives of other road users. This would go in line with one purpose of punishments which is to rehabilitate the offenders. Leaving the offenders to go free by fining them without confinement would be playing on a delicate ground even if the offender has never committed such a crime before. This is because the offence when committed is a threat to human life and if not punished properly, there is a probability that there would be a recurrence of the same. The brief confinement would serve the purpose of punishments which is to incapacitate the offender by denying him/her the opportunity to commit the offence (Neubauer 2007). This is achieved because during the time he is in confinement, he would not have the chance to drive and at the same time he will have the time to reflect on his mistakes such that by the time of his release, he will have changed his attitude and felt the pain of losing the comfort of his vehicle. Confinement as a form of

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Human Services Delivery - Essay Example But now people worldwide really doubt whether the Red Cross, is really involved with the same mission. This is due to a series of mishandlings that the American Red Cross has been involved in the recent past, with respect to the relief efforts being carried out following the 9/11 attacks and the Hurricane Katrina in 2005. (www.associatedcontent.com ) Investigation of the response of the American Red Cross to the Hurricane Katrina emergency concentrating mainly the New Orleans area When the Hurricane Katrina crossed over to the US in 2005 and started to ravage the various parts of the US, the New Orleans and the Mississippi areas were the worst devastated. Most of the affected people in these areas felt that, the America Red Cross was very slow in their response to the disaster and the relief work was heavily crippled due to the inadequacy of the shelters across the affected areas of New Orleans and Mississippi. As a result of this they were not in a position to provide adequate food as well as other necessary facilities, which were quite essential for the people during their worst times. Indeed it was the coastal areas that were totally neglected by the Red Cross organization and they argued that there were logistical problems associated with it, since adequate shelters were not set up. It was a really appalling situation since the victims felt that they were neglected by the American Red Cross when compared to the huge funds and donations, which they had received from the American government. It was argued by most of the top officials of the American Red Cross that, the organization felt the need for setting up shelters in areas which did not have risk of getting flooded and was safe for the survivors of the Hurricane Katrina. Most of the people felt that the organization did not make its presence felt in the rural as well as the densely populated areas, which were in dire requirement for relief and rehabilitation. The flood hit areas did not have relief shelt ers and so adequate supply of food and relief materials could not be routed to these coastal areas. The officials also argued that the Hurricane affected areas was so vast that, the organization was not in a position to deal with such a situation properly and in a timely manner. These factors complicated and hampered the whole issue of the flood relief to the New Orleans and the Mississippi areas. The Officials also pinpointed the lack of fuel that was very much required for transporting the essential supplies to the affected areas. But when compared to these areas that were worst hit, the other areas that were present in the other states across the US, were served much better by the American Red Cross. The way the American Red Cross used the 6 core tasks of Case Management in managing the clients during the Katrina emergency. Case Management is a management system, which helps in the administration of the care for individuals who are in a serious state of disturbance both physicall y as well as mentally. Indeed it is through the process of the Case Management, that the people in any social organization are able to prolong and improve the quality of

Comment to Peer Response DQ1DA and DQ2 KD Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Comment to Peer Response DQ1DA and DQ2 KD - Essay Example When this other companies joined the cereal production the company realized a shortfall in its earnings with a drop of about 6% sales due to continued competitive pressures in the ready to eat cold cereal market, and the reduced sales. Customers have also faced a short based on the value and nutrition. This also creates competition to the companies due to deal-seeking on finding the largest market (Michaels, 2011). Addressing the issue of fresh entrants into this kind of market calls for critical managerial skills with critical analysis is the present market (White, 2008). The managers should anticipate the actions of others (Shubik, 2009). An increase in price by other companies especially top dogs will lead to the company also adjusting its market price. In the cereals industry General mills announced a price increase in the price by +4% on 25% to 33% of its products. Kellogg’s is likely to respond the same way. The strategies set to put the sales back on track will ensure the reinvestment into the business, with the lowering of the up-front cost of shares to 12 cents; the internal growth will be expected to rise with the general improvement in category trends such as product promotions to the outside world. This will ensure that the 4.5% fall in customer demand is raised for the company to begin making profit (Friedman,

Intellectual property Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words - 1

Intellectual property - Essay Example Every corporation depends on its intellectual property for proper functioning. Intellectual property often include valuable knowledge on the manner in which an organisation conducts its business, make decisions, manufacture its products or knowledge about the customers of the firm among others. Can you imagine how it would be if your competitors in the make had free access to crucial information on how you do your business, which is the source of your competitive advantage? This paper explores how the Coca-Cola Company has managed its intellectual property in the past and also gives recommendations for improvement. The Coca-Cola Company Ltd. is an American transnational company that manufactures and distributes non-alcoholic beverages all over the world. The company has maintained full control of its beverage concentrates and syrup for many years. The corporation is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The company’s brand name is synonymous with its popular product-Coca-Cola, invented by John Stith Pemberton, a pharmacist in the year 1886. The company’s beverage formula as well as the Coca-Cola brand was purchased in 1889 by Asa Candler, who proceeded to register the company in 1892. On top of the popular Coca-Cola brand, the company now offers more than five hundred brands in the global market. The company runs a distribution system where it focuses on the production of syrup concentrate, which it distributes to authorized bottlers across the world. The company owns the trademark under which the bottlers operate and retains full control of the production process. As a worldwide producer and distributer of non-alcoholic beverages and soft drinks, the Coca-Cola Company possesses numerous resources that make it possible to execute its production process through to distribution to the final consumers. The corporation owns both tangible and intangible assets, which facilitates its production process and distribution to the final

The Early Adulthood Period Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Early Adulthood Period - Research Paper Example This reporter stresses that "being a young member of the club, I am really active in its activities as I feel good strength, good coordination, good reaction time and sensations (sight, hearing, taster, smell, and touch). In addition, I feel excellent motor skills and great sex appeal. Also, I think it is important to be in a group and is utmost important for someone to be approved by the society to survive. At this stage, the two major challenges in life are to give up my adolescent way of thinking and face the adult world. To achieve this, I will have to terminate many of my existing relationships, concepts, friendships, and occupational relationships. However, my transition to the next stage of development means a lot of changes in intelligence, expertise, and the ability to learn. In addition, there will be physical difference too. As Araneta points out, it is natural that I will start redefining my relations including mentor relationship, love relationship, family relationship, and occupational relationship. As I move forward, I am going to reach Midlife where I will be more serious about life. At that stage, out, I will try to reduce the influence of the external world on my life, and will try to strike a balance between the needs of the society and the needs of self. Thus, most probably, I will withdraw from many of the activities of the club to give more importance to my personal life too. As I grow older, I have to expect a number of events that can change my life that will enhance my development. Some such events people normally face as they grow older are marriage, birth of children, promotion in jobs, and so on. As I go through these events, it is highly likely that I will withdraw from my activities that I was previously into. Or, at least, I will start questioning the purpose or usefulness of those activities. According to the theory of Loevinger, I am presently in the Conformist Stage."

What exactly are the consequences of performance appraisal in Essay

What exactly are the consequences of performance appraisal in organisations and how does it contribute to organisational or individual performance - Essay Example Additionally, the process provides the management with information that helps them to identify employee potentials. The organization can desire to affect the employee attitude by the results obtained by the employee through the evaluation cycle. The evaluation cycle provide the employee with clear performance SMART goals. The performance SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic and Time-bound that the employee should work towards achieving. If the employee is performing well, the organization can reward such an employee by job promotion or increase in salary pay. If an employee performance is poor, the organization can choose to train the employee so that the employee can improve in performance (Kerwick 2013). After goal setting in performance appraisal, the supervisor and employee hold a self-appraisal meeting to discuss the employee’s performance so that they can identify potential goals for the upcoming appraisal period (Michelle, Douglas & John 2010). Based on the management, the employees perform their job and the supervisor should a keep note of the employee’s accomplishments and challenges. When a performance appraisal is carried out, a supervisor needs to show the employee how their performance affects the productivity of the organization. The employees should also understand how their performance affects the ability of others employees to do their jobs, and it helps put his job duties into an overall company context. This helps improve the notion of teamwork among the staff and can also encourage the cooperation to achieve corporate goals. After employee evaluation, employees with high scores become motivated and are likely to perform well and increase organizational productivity (Michelle et al 2010).An employee with a positive feedback makes himself feel like a worthy contributor in the organization hence encouraging them to perform better in the future. This

Environmental economics Essay Example for Free

Environmental economics Essay The market forces of demand and supply lead to equilibrium price and quantity that can be used to allocate sources effectively in many of the markets. At times they fail to deliver the best level of output for society. The government intervenes using various methods to correct market failure. This report details the six different types of market failure which can occur in the UK in addition to critically detailing how the government attempts to correct market failure. 2. Externalities According to Samuelson (1954) ‘Externalities create a divergence between the private and social costs of production’. Social costs are the production cost of a product or service including third party costs; in the event of a negative externality the social costs are much greater than private costs i. e. pollution. Externalities are external costs and benefits which arise during economic activity but which are not considered by the buyers and sellers involved as they effect third parties only. Ignoring external costs and benefits can lead to the wrong level of output in the market. Negative externalities, occasionally referred to as external costs, are the costs that separate social and private costs. They are the costs paid for by third parties, which is usually society as a whole. If negative externalities are left to the market mechanism it could lead to over production. Chivian and Bernstein (2008) concluded, ‘soft drinks in large quantities are unhealthy and could lead to medical problems’. This would increase the medical costs for the government, to tackle this issue they could tax soft drinks to discourage use in addition to elevating such charges from healthy drinks consequently providing a cheaper and healthier alternative. Consumers can create externalities by consuming certain goods or services. †¢Pollution from privately owned cars or taxis †¢Public damage caused by alcohol abuse †¢Litter on streets The UK government address these negative externalities through two primary functions; legislations and taxations. Pressure from environmentalist along with studies confirming the existence of global warming forced the UK government to introduce ‘Green taxation’. This includes an increase in petrol prices to discourage use of fuel reliant cars, increase in excise duty on alcohol as well as fines for perpetrators caught in the act of littering. Indirect taxes are used as a means of deterrence on products which could lead to market failure. They differ to specific taxes such as excise duty on tobacco as they are not fixed sum per unit. VAT is an indirect tax which raises cost of production. A pecuniary externality is a type of negative externality which relates to the economic activities rather than physical resources. Apple increased its market share from 25% to 36% in the mobile phone market while others have lost theirs; those suffering losses have incurred a pecuniary externality (Apple iphone market share, 2011). The key difference between pecuniary and real externality is while real externality ought to require compensation pecuniary should not. Positive externalities, if left to market mechanism, could under produce and would not reach level of output which is socially efficient. †¢Education system, government provides student finance to encourage higher education †¢Health service, government provides free health service By investing in human capital via promoting education and providing incentives to stay in education i. e. EMA, the government is assisting corporations through nurturing more educated individuals. This is essential in sustaining the country’s development. Positive externalities can also have negative effects; UK boasts one of the largest fast food market in the world, Britons spend average of ? 7 million a day on junk food, which contributed to UK being crowned as ‘the fattest country in Europe’ (Britain is Europes fattest nation, 2011). 3. Missing markets Missing markets transpires when there is a failure in the market to produce certain goods or offer services in spite of the level of demand. If conditions are not satisfied markets can struggle to exist and since it is unlikely they will ever form they are called ‘missing markets’. An example of this occurrence is the ‘pure public goods’ which provides to the population non-excludable and non-rival benefits. The free rider problem can be one of the causes which lead to missing markets; the term originates from the example of someone who doesn’t pay fares when using public transport. Everyone would want to use the product but would wait till someone else has paid for it which could lead to under-production or even non-production. For example, if an individual does not pay tax he can still use the roads or call the emergency services. Pure public goods and other markets with similar characteristics are unlikely to ever be considered as business opportunities by individuals or corporations given the impossibility of charging consumers at the point of consumption. Pure public good includes: street lights, national defence, police, fireworks display etc. All pure public goods have the following characteristics: †¢Non-rivalry: The consumption of the good by one person does not reduce the quantity available for others. The amount of usage does not correlate with the availability for example; a lighthouse’s light can be seen by more than one ship at any given time. †¢Non-excludable: If the good is provided for one anyone can use it, and they cannot be stopped from using it. Once a streetlight is erected it benefits all passers-by and there is no possible way of excluding someone. †¢Non-rejectable: The public cannot refuse the benefits or consequences of a pure public product. An individual cannot reject being defended by the armed forced of a country, nor can they reject the benefit of street lighting. To tackle the missing market failure the government may seize control of all operations relating to pure public goods and would then be responsible for meeting the demands of the people. In order to fund projects such as road building the government would raise taxes rather than charge individuals. The government introduces money making schemes such as congestion charges to raise funds for the transport system or charge private airlines landing fees at airports. In 2008, as a bid to attain ? 3 billion, an idea was proposed which would introduce congestion charge in Greater Manchester. 4. Information asymmetry Information asymmetry occurs when there is a lack of symmetry, or balance, between the knowledge of the buyer compared to that of the seller furthermore, the imbalance gets exploited which leads to a misallocation of resources. For instance, an unscrupulous dentist might tell his patient he needs lots of dental work done, when in reality not so much is required, just to create business. This can also be seen in lawyers, car mechanics, doctors etc. In the UK there are several laws which help the consumers and warrant them rights if a product is purchased or a service is used. The Trade Descriptions Act 1968 was introduced to prevent manufactures and retailers from misleading consumers by stating all products ‘must be sold as described, of satisfactory quality, and fit for purpose’(OFT, 2011). This prevents businesses from deceiving individuals by allowing them rights to know exactly what the product is. To inform consumers of their rights the government has setup websites and institutions which can be used to attain information readily. The OFT (Office of Fair Trading) was set up in 1973 to ‘enforce both consumer protection and competition law, acting as the UK’s economic regulator’. They can be contacted by consumers who would be given guidance about their matter and legal advice. The OFT carry out investigations into alleged unfair practices if consumers feel wronged for example, in June 2010 an investigation into credit score websites was opened after consumers complained about being charged monthly subscriptions fees. Verdict was reached and the accused companies agreed to not mislead consumers by making these charges known (Investigation into unfair practices, 2011). 5. Lack of competition in the market According to O’Connor (2012) a monopoly occurs if at least of the two conditions are satisfied: †¢The only organization in the industry †¢Substantial barriers of entry The UK government and many other agencies, informally, refer to any company with more than 25% market share as a monopoly. This includes companies on a national, regional or local scale. Monopolist businesses act as price maker, due to lack of competition, therefore can create artificially high prices if demand exists to earn abnormal profits. This is very different to the situation which occurs when competition exists in the market where businesses are constantly trying to reduce prices to undercut competitors. A restrictive trade practice is a strategy used to reduce competition and raise prices of products. Cartels are formed when businesses agree to set prices high, they are also illegal in UK. Competitors are forbidden to collude in restricting the flow of goods to a particular person or business. The UK government has various legislations to prevent abuse of power. Monopolies and Restrictive Practices Act (1948) In 1948 the Monopolies Commission was created to investigate industries where businesses are acting in collusion to limit competition. A report will be published after the investigation is concluded and will be given to the government to take necessary action. Monopolies and Mergers Act (1965) This act was created to investigate or prevent business that control at least 25% of the market from merging together. The Monopolies Commission would investigate the case then allow the merge to take place or disallow it if it does not act in the interest of the public. Restrictive Trade Practices Act (1956) Restrictive Trade Practices Act made it illegal for manufactures to act in collusion and control the prices at which their product is sold at in retail stores. The Registrar of Restrictive Practices acts as a database, businesses have to register any restrictive agreements between the manufactures. Fair Trading Act (1973) This act established the Office of Fair Trading with the aim of enforcing the act. Consumer protection and Competition law were the main agenda. The goal is to ensure markets work well for consumers, ensure strong competition and prohibit unlawful practices. Consumer protection was enhanced as businesses would be given warning at first but will be taken to court if problems persist. Competition Acts (1980 and 1998) Large businesses may limit competition and increase profits by predatory pricing, excessive prices, refusal to supply and price discrimination. This act was created to ensure businesses do not abuse their dominant market position and to deal with restrictive business practices. The EU influenced this act as the UK had to comply with EU competition policy. This act will be enforced by the Director General of Fair Trading and business if found at fault will be liable to financial penalties. Enterprise Act (2002) This act establishes new competition authorities, reformulates the law regarding mergers and markets, changed the law governing insolvency bankruptcy and criminalises anti-competitive behaviour. It also enhanced the Office of Fair Trading powers allowing it to carry out searches under warrant on the suspected mergers. Businesses can now appeal against the decisions made by the Competition Commission. The Minister of Trade and Industry used to play a major role but due to inconsistencies he no longer has the final say regarding mergers. 6. Unstable prices Unstable prices apply particularly to commodities, any naturally accruing substances, such as fossil fuels, coffee, wheat etc. If left to the market mechanism they tend to suffer from fluctuations in prices much more frequently than manufactured goods, which create problems for the suppliers of these commodities as they cannot plan with any certainty on what revenue they are going to receive. Lipsey and Harbury (1993) discussed the two strategies the government tries to control the price with: Price ceiling The government imposes a maximum price limit that can be charged for a particular item in order to protect consumers from environments that would make commodities inaccessible. A binding price ceiling is when the government decides to set the price ceiling below that of the free market price for example, if bread costs ? 2. 00 on the free market a price ceiling of ? 1. 00 would be considered a binding price ceiling. However, this can also have undesired results as some suppliers may slump out of the market as they cannot deal with the deficit, causing supplies to reduce and demand to increase as consumers bulk buy cheap items. A non-binding price ceiling is when the price ceiling is set above the free market price giving the suppliers/manufactures a buffer zone which is unlikely to have any practical effect. Price floor A price floor is the minimum price that can be charged for a product or service. If the mandatory price is set below the free market equilibrium price then it will have no practical effect but if the minimum price is set higher than the free market price it would mean consumers will have to pay more for the product. This could lead to demand falling which would result in manufactures seeing revenue decrease. An example of a minimum floor price is the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 which dictates the lowest amount employees can be paid. 7. Labour market failure Labour market should, according to Gregg and Wadsworth (2011), reach a certain equilibrium wage and quantity but in practice this rarely happens. Listed below are some potential causes of market failure: †¢Labour and skills immobility: Labour cannot always be where the jobs are, this is called geographical immobility. Skills immobility is when labour does not possess the right skills to fulfil the job. For example, coal miners lost their jobs when new industries were formed and because of the mismatch in skill they are left unemployed. †¢Discrimination: Race, gender, height, weight and age are some examples of discrimination which can take place and could lead to market failure. The government intervenes by creating legislations such as the National Minimum Wage Act and Equal Pay Act to help protect people’s rights at work. They also offer incentives for students to continue into further education. Gangmasters are the main employers in a town and will use their buying power to force wages below the national minimum wage rate. The government set up the GLA (Gangmasters Licensing Authority) to help control this problem and protect workers (Labour markets, 2009). 8. Conclusion The UK government acts admirable in the event of market failure to prevent further damage being inflicted onto the economy. However, the monopolistic business control acts are not in my estimation deterring businesses from unhealthy practices enough. The green initiative is laughable at best considering most households generally are in possession of two cars compared to just a single vehicle few years ago. Clearly more needs to be done to protect the environment. Although high petrol prices and an increase in insurance act as a deterrent to some the lack of alternatives is detrimental to the efforts. A higher tax should be implemented on tobacco as it is causes negative externalities which not only affect the individual but also the government, NHS spend on average five billion a year on treating diseases directly caused by smoking (Buckley,2003). 9. Bibliography Samuelson, P. A. , 1954, the pure theory of public expenditure, harvard university press. Chivian,E. C. and Bernstein, A. B. , 2008, sustaining life, oxford university press. O’Connor, A. C. , 2012, monopoly: the cause of evil, Lightning source uk ltd. Gregg, P. G. and Wadsworth, J. W. , 2011, The labour market in winter: the state of working britian, OUP oxford. Lipsey,R. G. L and Harbury,C. D. H. ,1993, first principles of economics, Weidenfield and Nicolson. Buckley,C. B. , 2003, thank you for smoking, Allison and busby. reuters. 2011. Apple iPhone market share. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www. reuters. com/article/2011/12/22/smartphones-europe-idUSL6E7NM0PI20111222. [Accessed 25 January 12]. metro. 2011. Britain is Europes fattest nation. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www. metro. co. uk/news/38242-britain-is-europes-fattest-nation. [Accessed 25 January 12]. office of fair trading. 2011. Investigation into alleged unfair practices. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www. oft. gov. uk/OFTwork/consumer-enforcement/consumer-enforcement-completed/adaptive-affinity/. [Accessed 25 January 12]. labour market failure. 2009. labour markets. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www. tutor2u. net/economics/presentations/labour_market_failure/player. html. [Accessed 25 January 12].

UK Diverse Society

UK Diverse Society ECA TASK 1 In what ways can the UK be described as a diverse society? Choose three examples of diversity and write and essay which: describes each of them in turn considers which aspects of diversity are negative and which are positive for one of the examples. The diversity of family life in the UK today The diversity of places in which people live The diversity of cultures in the UK Britain today is a richly diverse society in which people with very different ways of life coexist. Diversity means being different, being unlike and variety. Diversity can describe differences within a society or between societies and applies to the unique contributions   to the group characteristics made by the individuals such as beliefs, sexual orientation, ethnic background, cultural perspective,  and so forth. Family, place and culture mean different things for different people but are usually associated with connectedness. This essay, though, will first analyse family, place and culture as causes and consequences of social diversity and, secondly, it will describe the relationship between places and life chances and how diversity can bring inequality. During the past decades, social change in Britain has brought structural and functional diversity into family (Sherratt et al. 2004, p.30). Families today come in many shapes and sizes, there is no right or wrong structure. The main types of family, nuclear and extended, have increased with reconstituted and single-parent families. Families can be formed by married, unmarried or same sex couples   with dependent, independent or no children at all. National statistics for 2001 (ONS, 2002 data set ST32217 and ST33218 ) show that one in five families with dependent children are headed by lone mothers, three times the number obtained in 1971. This may be explained by rising rates of divorce, cohabitation and live births outside of marriage. These figures suggest evolving family structures but also a general maintenance of conventional gender ideology. Hence, different beliefs and practices in relation to the division of labour may bring diversity to family life.  In this respect, You ng and Willmott (1973, cited in Sherratt et al. 2004 p.26) predicted a more egalitarian family whilst Morris (1990, cited in Sherratt et al. 2004 p.26) denied the attrition of the traditional gender roles.   Another source of diversity in family life is regional diversity. The inner London boroughs have higher concentrations of minority groups than the rest of the country (ONS, 2001). Ethnic diversity as a source of family diversity is defended by Berthoud (2001) among others. This author argues   that Asian families are more traditional, have high rates of marriage and are more likely to have extended families comprising three generations. By contrast, West Indian households have a higher proportion of lone mothers and low rates of partnerships. Similarly, geography and ethnicity bring diversity to the places where people live. Whether rural or urban location, owner-ocuppied or rented, house, flat or even a caravan, there are multiple places to live in Britain today. Places where people influence their experiences and social relations (Sherratt et al. 2004, p 88). In inner London boroughs, like Islington and Camden, not only there is more ethnical diversity than in the rest of Britain (ONS, 2001), but   affluent professionals inhabit the same street as jobless, low-income families or live next to council estates while having no connection with them, as exemplified by Graef (2003). In other parts of East London though, Mumford and Power (2003, cited in Sherratt et al. p. 97) noticed how diverse neighbourhoods can still maintain a sense of community spirit through local social networks. The transition from dwells and neighbourhoods to homes and communities can be done via a sense of attachment and belonging that is part of t he broad meaning of culture (Sherratt et al. 2004, p.96). Culture is all shared beliefs and socially communicated demeanour, that distinguishes a group of people, whether this is a family, a neighbourhood, a community or a nation (Sherratt et al. 2004 p.38-45). People identify with others within their culture but distinguish from people in other cultures. Hence, diverse cultures lead to diverse ways of living, and these can bring people into conflict over how it is acceptable to live. On the other hand, cultural diversity brings richness and choices and shapes identities bringing connectedness. The culture in Britain, including language, food, arts, clothes, leisure activities, religion or relationships can be seen as a sum of the diverse cultures that constitute its society. Cultural mixing is not a new concept, as noted by Sherratt et al. (2004 p. 76). It started with trading in prehistoric times and was further fueled by imports and immigration.   The only thing new about cultural exchange is how easy it is now.   With modern informa tion technology it is possible to experience other cultures on a whim. But the globalisation of culture has a downside. Scott-Clarke and Levy (2003) exemplify the devastating social effects of cultural imperialism caused by American television in Bhutan. In the same way, the aforementioned diversity of places where people live reflects choices, variety and opportunities but there is a drawback. Utilizing the Weberian term â€Å"life chances† (Weber 1948, cited by Sherratt et al. 2004, p. 85) to describe an estimate of an individuals ability to enjoy the economic and cultural goods of a society, it is easy to see how the distribution of such goods is usually asymmetrical. Peoples life chances are influenced by salary, wealth, housing and education (Sherratt et al. 2004, p 87). Therefore, family, culture and where people live shape life chances. The importance of housing tenure in life chances is debated amongst sociologists. Saunders (1988, 1990, cited in Sherratt et al. 2004 p. 88) outweighs the importance of home-owning status to occupation but this argument is contradicted by Forrest and Murrie (1995, cited in Sherratt et al. 2004, p. 89) and criticised by Watt (1993, cited in Sherratt et al. p. 89). Clearly, home equity can be used as collateral or improve children with inheritance, giving control to peoples lives. On the other hand, Sherratt et al. (2004 p. 94) points out how the UK shows a general pattern of geographical clustering of poverty and wealth and how this clustering affects peoples ability to access housing, education and employment opportunities and directly impacts in the quality of health services. A direct consequence could be seen in the different life expectancy for different areas in Britain in 1998-2000 (ONS, 2002) accounting up to 10 years of difference for men between Westminster and Glasgow city. Personal wellbeing is then affected by the ability to afford a home in a neighbourhood that improves rather than limits life chances. In conclusion, Britains society is undeniably diverse. Living in Britain has implications on how people live, whom they live with and where they live and these differences shape British society. Social change has brought diversity to family, neighbourhoods and culture. There are many different types of families today. Diverse neighbourhoods may or not share a sense of community. Cultural diversity shapes our identity. Where people life affects their health and prosperity. Diversity brings richness but also inequality. References Berthoud, R. (2001) ‘Family formation in multi-cultural Britain: three patterns of diversity, paper resented at Changing family patterns in multi-cultural Britain Institute for Social and Economic Research University of Essex. Available at: http://www.sociology.org.uk/as4fm1.pdf [Accessed 24-27 January, 2008] Graef, R. (2003) ‘Two families living side by side. But the gulf between rich and poor keeps them worlds apart The Observer, 20 July. Available from: http://observer.guardian.co.uk/focus/story/0,6903,1001753,00.html [Accessed 24-28 January, 2008] ONS (2001) National Statistics: Ethnicity: Regional Distribution. Available from: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=263 [Accessed 24 January 2008] ONS (2002) National Statistics: Families with dependent children headed by lone parents: Social Trends 32, data set ST32217. Available from: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/STATBASE/ssdataset.asp?vlnk=4992More=Y [Accessed 24 January 2008] ONS (2002) National Statistics: Births outside marriage as a percentage of all live births: Social Trends 33, data set ST33218 http://www.statistics.gov.uk/STATBASE/ssdataset.asp?vlnk=6369 [Accessed 24 January 2008] ONS, 2002 Health Statistics Quarterly, issue 13. London. Available at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/HSQ13_v4.pdf [Accessed February 2, 2008] Scott-Clarke, C. and Levy, A. (2003) ‘Fast forward into trouble The Guardian,14 June. Available from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/weekend/story/0,3605,975769,00.html [Accessed 24 January 2008] Sherrattt, N., Darkes, T., Pearson, C., Williams, C. and Woodward, K. (2004) Understanding society, Milton Keynes, The Open University. TASK 2 Write no more than 250 words to answer the following questions: In what ways do you feel that your study skills have improved during the course? What do you now think are the strengths and weaknesses of your study skills? How would you like to make further improvements? My study skills during this course have improved qualitative and quantitatively. From a natural science background I have had to leap into social sciences, where comprehending the material is more important that memorising it. Multiple-choice questions have been substituted by essay writing, where you have to reason, argument and reference your statements, not just tick the correct answer. Reading and note taking have been tasks of outmost importance. I feel I have had to strip texts to their bare bones and build their bodies again with my own words. One of my skills is interpreting graphs and numeric data, as this is something I do very frequently in my job. One of the most difficult things has been to accept that there is usually more than one answer in social science questions, and there are no right or wrong, but different opinions and an open debate. It has been a revelation to discover that, in social sciences, we, as individuals and as a society, are the researchers and subjects of study, and the dynamic implications of this duality. I have signed up for DD100 to further improve and polish my new skills. Y157 has opened my appetite for social matters and I want to learn more. My newly acquired skills are going to be put to the test.

Voluntary turnover

Voluntary turnover CHAPTER NO.1 Introduction Background 1.01 Employee turnover is a much-studied phenomenon. There is a vast literature on the causes of voluntary employee turnover dating back to the 1950s. 1.02 Voluntary turnover is a major problem for many organizations in many Asian countries (Barnett, 1995; Chang, 1996; Syrett, 1994). Employee turnover is giving sleepless nights to human resource managers in many countries in Asia (Naresh Khatri). Organizations are spending lots of money to reduce employee turnover. Employee turnover is also one of the issues faced by many organizations in Pakistan. Objective of the Research Study 1.03 The objective of the study is to know the factors of employee turnover, why employee quit the jobs and leave the organizations and which factor influence the most while leaving the organization. 1.04 The objective of the study is to know the factors, which influence the most in employee turnover in, call center industry in Pakistan. Problem statement 1.05 What are the factors of employee turnover in the organizations? Research Questions a) What are the reasons; employees quit their jobs and leave the organizations? b) What is the role of the factors (alternatives, intention to quit, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, wages and conditions, employee characteristics, training and development and influence of co-workers) in employee turnover? c) Which factors cause the most in the employee turnover? Rational Of the Study 1.06 The purpose of the research study â€Å"Factors of employee turnover† is to help out the managers to figure out the factors of employee turnover in the organizations. So that the managers easily can find, why employee is leaving the organization? According to the results they can make the plans to reduce the employee turnover in the organizations. Definitions of the Terms 1.07 â€Å"Employee turnover is defined as, the ratio of number of workers that had to be replaced in a given time period to the average number of workers†. CHAPTER NO 2 Literature Review 2.1 Over time there have been a number of factors that appear to be consistently linked to turnover. An early review article of studies on turnover by Mobley (1979) revealed that age, tenure, overall satisfaction, job content, intentions to remain on the job, and commitment were all negatively related to turnover (i.e. the higher the variable, the lower the turnover). In 1995, a meta-analysis of some 800-turnover studies was conducted by Hom and Griffith, which was recently updated (Griffith, 2000). Their analysis confirmed some well-established findings on the causes of turnover. These include: job satisfaction, organizational commitment, comparison of alternatives and intention to quit. 2.2 The top factor cited in most studies is low compensation and inadequate benefits. Lack of appreciation and feeling that the employer values the employees contributions also ranks high on the list of reasons for employee turnover. Another contributing factor to employee turnover is poor management. This includes such factors as poor communication from leadership, lack of training, too much change, lack of resources necessary to do the job, lack of recognition that an employee is dissatisfied with career development opportunities, harassment, demeaning behavior, and a lack of flexibility toward employees. Lifestyle changes, such as the transfer of a spouse, birth of a child, or the need for a shorter commute will also cause employee turnover. (Kathleen Goolsby) 2.3 Some variables and factors are examined and discussed in more detail below. Comparison of Alternatives 2.4 The comparison of alternatives is a factor that plays a role in employee turnover. The relationship between alternatives and turnover on an individual level has been researched widely since March Simons 1958 seminal work on ease of movement. 2.5 Much of the subsequent research focused on the link between job satisfaction, perceived alternative opportunities and turnover. Later, researchers began to focus on the role of both actual and perceived opportunities in explaining individual turnover decisions. 2.6 Subsequent research has indicated that actual alternatives are a better predictor of individual turnover than perceived opportunities. Research on the impact of unemployment rates as a proxy for actual opportunities in employee turnover revealed that unemployment rates affected the job-satisfaction/turnover intent relationship but not actual turnover (Kirschenbaum Mano-Negrin, 1999). They concluded that macro level analysis predicted turnover patterns but perceptions of opportunities did not. This point was reinforced in their study on medical centers in various locations used measures of perceived and objective opportunities in internal and external labor markets. The authors concluded that objectives opportunities were a better set of explanations of actual turnover behavior than either perceived internal or external labor market opportunities. 2.7 Nevertheless, while actual alternatives appear to be a better predictor of turnover, there is also well-established evidence of the link between perceived alternatives and actual turnover. In their most recent meta-analysis, Griffith (2000) confirmed that perceived alternatives modestly predict turnover. Intentions to Quit 2.8 Intension to quit is one of the factors that play a role in employee turnover. Mobley (1979) noted that the relationship between intentions and turnover is consistent and generally stronger than the satisfaction-turnover relationship, although it still accounted for less than a quarter of the variability in turnover. Much of the research on perceived opportunities has been found to be associated with intentions to leave but not actual turnover (Kirschenbaum Mano-Negrin, 1999). Organizational Commitment 2.9 Many studies have reported a significant association between organizational commitment and turnover intentions (Lum, 1998). Tangs (2000) study confirmed the link between commitment and actual turnover and Griffiths (2000) analysis showed that organizational commitment was a better predictor of turnover than overall job satisfaction. 2.10 Researchers have established that there are different types of organizational commitment. Allen Meyer (1990) investigated the nature of the link between turnover and the three components of attitudinal commitment: affective commitment refers to employees emotional attachment to, identification with and involvement in the organization; continuance commitment refers to commitment base on costs that employees associate with leaving the organization; and normative commitment refers to employees feelings of obligation to remain with the organization. Simply, employees with strong affective commitment stay with an organization because they want, those with strong continuance commitment stay because they need to, and those with strong normative commitment stay because they feel they ought to. Allen and Meyers study indicated that all three components of commitment were a negative indicator of turnover. In general, most research has found affective commitment to be the most decisive va riable linked to turnover. Job Satisfaction 2.11 The relationship between satisfaction and turnover has been consistently found in many turnover studies (Lum, 1998). Mobley 1979 indicated that overall job satisfaction is negatively linked to turnover but explained little of the variability in turnover. Griffith (2000) found that overall job satisfaction modestly predicted turnover. In a recent New Zealand study, Boxall (2003) found the main reason by far for people leaving their employer was for more interesting work elsewhere. It is generally accepted that the effect of job satisfaction on turnover is less than that of organizational commitment. Characteristics of Employees 2.12 Despite a wealth of research, there appear to be few characteristics that meaningfully predict turnover, the exceptions being age and tenure. Age is found to be negatively related to turnover (i.e. the older a person, the less likely they are to leave an organization). However, age alone explains little of the variability in turnover and as age is linked to many other factors, alone it contributes little to the understanding of turnover behavior. 2.13 Tenure is also negatively related to turnover (the longer a person is with an organization, the more likely they are to stay). Mangione in Mobley concluded that length of service is one of the best single predictors of turnover.; Griffith also found that age and tenure have a negative relationship to turnover. 2.14 There is little evidence of a persons sex being linked to turnover. Griffiths 2000 meta-analysis re-examined various personal characteristics that may be linked to turnover. They concluded that there were no differences between the quit rates of men and women. They also cited evidence that gender moderates the age-turnover relationship (i.e. women are more likely to remain in their job the older they get, than do men). They also found no link between intelligence and turnover, and none between race and turnover. Wages and Conditions 2.15 Wages and conditions is one of the variables of the employee turnover. Mobley (1979) concluded that results from studies on the role of pay in turnover were mixed but that often there was no relationship between pay and turnover. Other studies found no significant relationship. 2.16 On the other hand Campion (1991) cited in Tang suggests that the most important reason for voluntary turnover is higher wages/career opportunity. Martin (2003) investigates the determinants of labor turnover using establishment-level survey data for the UK. Martin indicated that there is an inverse relationship between relative wages and turnover (i.e. establishments with higher relative pay had lower turnover). Pay and Performance 2.17 Griffith (2000) noted pay and pay-related variables have a modest effect on turnover. Their analysis also included studies that examined the relationship between pay, a persons performance and turnover. They concluded that when high performers are insufficiently rewarded, they leave. They cite findings from Milkovich and Newman (1999) that where collective reward programs replace individual incentives, their introduction may lead to higher turnover among high performers. Attitudes to Money 2.18 For some individuals pay will not be the sole criterion when people decide to continue within an existing job. In the study of mental health professionals, Tang (2000) examined the relationship between attitudes towards money, intrinsic job satisfaction and voluntary turnover. One of the main findings of this study is that voluntary turnover is high among employees who value money, regardless of their intrinsic job satisfaction. However, those who do not value money highly but who have also have low intrinsic job satisfaction tended to have the lowest actual turnover. Furthermore, employees with high intrinsic job satisfaction and who put a low value on money also had significantly higher turnover than this second group. The researchers also found that placing a high value of money predicted actual turnover but that withdrawal cognitions (i.e. thinking about leaving) did not. Training and Career Development 2.19 Martin (2003) detected a complex relationship between turnover and training. He suggested that establishments that enhance the skills of existing workers have lower turnover rates. However, turnover is higher when workers are trained to be multi-skilled, which may imply that this type of training enhances the prospects of workers to find work elsewhere. The literature on the link between lower turnover and training has found that off-the-job training is associated with higher turnover presumably because this type of training imparts more general skills (Martin, 2003). Effect of Vocational Training 2.20 In a study examining the effect of apprenticeships on male school leavers in the UK, Booth and Satchel (1994) found that completed apprenticeships reduced voluntary job-to-job, voluntary job-to-unemployment and involuntary job termination rates. In contrast, incomplete apprenticeships tended to increase the exit rate to these destinations relative to those who did not receive any training. Winkelmann (1996) reported that in Germany apprenticeships and all other types of vocational training reduce labor mobility in spite of the fact that the German apprenticeship training is intended to provide general and thus more transferable training. Career Commitment 2.21 Chang (1999) examined the relationship between career commitment, organizational commitment and turnover intention among Korean researchers and found that the role of career commitment was stronger in predicting turnover intentions. When individuals are committed to the organization they are less willing to leave the company. This was found to be stronger for those highly committed to their careers. The author also found that employees with low career and organizational commitment had the highest turnover intentions because they did not care either about the company or their current careers. 2.22 Individuals with high career commitment and low organizational commitment also tend to leave because they do not believe that the organization can satisfy their career needs or goals. This is consistent with previous research that high career committers consider leaving the company if development opportunities are not provided by the organization. However, this group is not apt to leave and is likely to contribute to the company if their organizational commitment is increased. Chang found that individuals become affectively committed to the organization when they perceive that the organization is pursuing internal promotion opportunities, providing proper training and that supervisors do a good job in providing information and advice about careers. Influence of Co-Workers 2.23 A 2002 study by Kirshenbaum and Weisberg of 477 employees in 15 firms examined employees job destination choices as part of the turnover process. One of their main findings was that co-workers intentions have a major significant impact on all destination options the more positive the perception of their co-workers desire to leave, the more employees themselves wanted to leave. CHAPTER NO 3 Method Research Procedure 3.01 The research is a descriptive study. A descriptive study can be defined as, â€Å"A study that focuses on a particular situation or set of situations, reports on important aspects observed, and attempts to determine the interrelationships among them.† 3.02 The goal of the descriptive research study is to offer to researcher a profile or to describe relevant aspects of the phenomena of interest from an individual, organizational, industry- oriented, or the other prospective. (Uma Sekran) 3.03 The purpose of the research study â€Å"Factors of employee turnover† is to help out the managers to figure out the factors of employee turnover in the organizations. So that the managers easily can find, why employee is leaving the organization? According to the results they can make the plans to reduce the employee turnover in the organizations. Sampling 3.04 The sample for the research is taken through the random sampling. The type of sampling is cluster sampling. In this type of sampling I have chosen 100 employees as a sample to fill out the questionnaire. These employees are from different departments and their positions in the departments are also different. The sample of the employees consists of top level managers, middle level managers and non managers. Data Collection Secondary Data 3.05 Secondary data is collected from the journals, newspapers, and publications and pervious research studies. Most of the data is taken from the previous research papers on employee turnover, which are available on the Internet libraries. Primary Data 3.06 For the primary data, I have designed a questionnaire according to factors described above in the literature review. The questionnaire is filled by 100 employees from different organizations. The employees are from top level management, middle level management and no managerial level. Data Analysis 3.07 Each question is analyzed by using data tabulation method; tabulation consists simply counting the number of cases that fall in to various categories. Tabulation Frequency Distribution 3.08 Frequency distribution is method to conclude the questionnaires, frequency distribution method simply reports the number of responses that each question received and is the simplest way of deterring the empirical distribution of the variable. A frequency distribution organizes data in to classes or group of values and shows the number of observations. 3.09 The presentation of tabulation frequency distribution is done by column charts, bar charts and pie charts etc. CHAPTER NO 4 Results and Discussion What is your gender? Table 1 Gender Frequency Percentage Valid Percentage Cumulative % Male 75 75 75 75.00 Female 25 25 25 100.00 Total 100 100 100 Pie Chart 1 4.1 This table shows that the sample of 100 questionnaires was distributed randomly among male and female employees. In which we observed that 75% were male students and 35% were female employees. What is your age? Table 2 Age Frequency Percentage Valid Percentage Cumulative % 20-24 24 24 24 24.00 25-29 31 31 31 55.00 30-34 21 21 21 76.00 35-39 13 13 13 89.00 40-44 6 6 6 95.00 45-Above 5 5 5 100.00 100 100% 100% Pie Chart 2 4.2 The above table shows that questionnaires were divided into six different age groups i.e. from 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44 45-Above. Out of this 31% employees were aged from 25-29. 24% were aged from 20-24. 21% were form 30-34. 13% were from 35-39. 6% from 40-44%, 5% from 45-above. What is your department? Table 3 Department Frequency Percentage Valid Percentage Cumulative % Administration 11 11 11 11.00 Marketing 15 15 15 26.00 Operations 7 7 7 33.00 Customer Services 31 31 31 64.00 Finance 10 10 10 74.00 Human Resource 17 17 17 91.00 Technical 9 9 9 100.00 Total 100 100 100 Pie Chart 3 4.3 The above table shows that the questionnaire was divided in six different departments i.e. administration, marketing, operations, customer services, human resource and technical. Out of this 31% employees are from customer services, 17% from human resource, 15% from marketing, 11% administration, 10% from finance, and 9% are from technical departments. What is your position in the job? Table 4 Position Frequency Percentage Valid Percentage Cumulative % Top management 14 14 14 14.00 Middle management 21 21 21 35.00 Supervisor 34 34 34 69.00 other 31 31 31 100.00 Total 100 100 100 Pie Chart 4 4.4 This above table shows that the questionnaire divided in the employees of top management, middle management, supervisors, and other level of employees. Out of this 34% employees are from supervisory level, 31% are from other levels, 21% employees are from middle level management, 14% are from top management. What is your monthly salary? Table 5 Salary Frequency Percentage Valid Percentage Cumulative % Below 15000 17 17 17 17.00 Between 15001-20000 27 27 27 44.00 Between 20001-25000 21 21 21 65.00 Between 25001-30000 15 15 15 80.00 Between 30001-35000 14 14 14 84.00 Between 35001-above 6 6 6 100.00 Total 100 100 100 Pie Chart 5 4.5 This above table shows that the questionnaire was divided to the employees in six different salaries ranges i.e. Below 15000, between 5001-20000, between 20001-25000, between 25001-30000, between 30001-35000, between 35001-above. Out of this 27% employees are getting the salary between 15001-20000,21% getting the salary between 20001-25000, 17% getting the salary below 15000 ,15% are getting the salary between 25001-30000,14% are getting the salary between 30001-35000, 6% are getting the salary 35001-above. For how long do you work for the organization? Table 6 Period Frequency Percentage Valid Percentage Cumulative % Less than 3 months 5 5 5 5.00 Between 3-6 months 27 27 27 32.00 Between 6-12 months 21 21 21 53.00 Between 1-2 years 15 15 15 68.00 Between 2-4 years 17 17 17 85.00 More than 4 years 15 15 15 100.00 100 100 100 Pie Chart 6 4.6 This above table shows that the questionnaire divided in to employees are from six different categories i.e. less than 3 months, between 3-6 months, between 6-12 months, between 1-2 years, between 2-4 years, More than 4 years. Out of this, 21% employees are working for between 6-12 months, 27% are working for between 3-6 months, 17% are working for between 2-4 years, 15% are working for between 2-4 years More than 4 years. 5% are working for less than 3 months. Rate the following about your job satisfaction. My job means a lot more to me than just money. Table 7 Frequency Percentage Valid Percentage Cumulative % Strongly Disagree 26 26 26 26.00 Disagree 19 19 19 45

Langston Hughes :: Biography Biographies

Langston hughes and his significance as a black american and as a poet Langston Hughes was famous for his poetry, which helped to fuel the civil rights movement. His poetry also earned him fame but he still seemed to remain financially disabled. He didn't get much recognition for his poetry until after he died. Langston Hughes was born in Joplin, Missouri into an abolitionist family. Hughes hated his father and he was passed around between his different family members and family friend. Hughes began writing poetry in the seventh grade and when he graduated he was selected as the Class Poet. His father did not believe that he could make a living out of being a writer but he paid his tuition to college so his son could be an engineer. Langston continued to write poetry however and he dropped out of college with a B+ average. His significance was shown when he became one of the leaders of a movement, called the Harlem Renaissance. It spawned a whole new age of thinking and development. He helped prove to people that he and his fellow Negroes were part of America and her spirit. His poems "I, Too" and "Dinner Guest: Me" talk of how he and his people are this spirit. Hughes Black American roots and his sense of racial equality was what fueled most, if not all, of his poems. Growing up when Black Americans had no rights and had separate everything's was difficult for any black man living then. But he turned his feelings into beautiful poetry. Hughes poetry helped a lot of people out. He inspired many people during the civil rights movement and he gave hope to others with his unique perspective. His poems tend to be about social injustice save but a few. His poem, "Ballad of the Landlord" speaks of racial injustice as well as the discrimination of social classes.

American Encounters :: essays research papers

Who Speaks The Voice Of History   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The facts of history in the eyes of Americans have been viewed in many lights. The Smithsonian exhibit entitled, “American Encounters'; is no exception. This multimedia exhibit focuses on American Indians, Hispanics and Anglo-Americans in New Mexico. Although the exhibit contains many noteworthy facts about the culture and lifestyle of the Indians, in my opinion, many other aspects of Native American history were left in the shadows. The Smithsonian did not clearly illuminate the struggle and oppression which the Indians endured during the European settlement. This obscured information raises the issue of which historical facts are selected as notable. E.H. Carr, an historian, explains this argument with a very prominent quote from the first chapter of his book What is History. The quote states, “The facts speak only when the historian calls on them: it is he who decides to which facts to give the floor and in what order or context'; (Carr 9).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As stated above, Carr believes that “facts only speak when the historian calls on them. . .'; (Carr 9). In the “American Encounters'; exhibit, the facts concerning Indian tribulation and European domination could not be heard. By all means I believe that their situation was more than just an encounter. From the statement on the plaque, one could interpret that the Europeans were given the land, or that the Europeans established forts, trading posts, and colonies to live as one with the Indeginous peoples; however, that was not the case.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Consequently, Carr’s statement holds true. The authors of the exhibit choose how to present this portion of history. They decide in what context to display the facts. Obviously the authors feel that a blurb on the wall is enough to express years of struggle and strife. If visitors to the Smithsonian had no previous knowledge about the conflict between Native Americans and the Spaniards, does this excerpt explain the real situation?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  From this plaque I am taught nothing of the hardships that the Natives endured. I do not learn that thousands of Indigenous lives were taken at the hands of the Spaniards simply to acquire land that wasn’t theirs. I do not learn that families and tribes were broken up in order to teach the Europeans how to survive. To my dismay no artifacts, pictures or any other type of visual display told this side of the story. It is the responsibility of the authors of this exhibit to accurately convey the facts and clearly elaborate on them.

A. K. Kraipak Case

| ASSIGNMENT ON| A. K KRAIPAK vs UNION OF INDIA| (A Case Study)| | | | AN ANALYSIS OF THE CASE OF A. K KRAIPAK VS UNION OF INDIA : INTRODUCTION: Kraipak vs Union of india is regarded as an epoch making decision as it demolishes the artificial and conceptualistic distinction between administrative and quasi judicial function as well as delinked natural justice from quasi judicial.In this case the court asserted that natural justice could be applied to the so called administrative function as well, for the rules of natural justice aim at securing justice, or to prevent miscarriage of justice, and the basic aim is to arrived at a just decision. kraipak’s case had a profound impact on the growth of administrative law in india. The liberal judicial trend in favour of applying natural justice got strengthened as a result of the kraipak’s decision. Facts of the case :In 1966, a service called The Indian Forest Service was constituted, the selection for which was to be made fro m among the officers serving in the forest department of the state. Section 3 of the All India Services Act, 1951 provides that the Central Government shall after consulting the Government of the States concerned to make rules for the regulation of recruitment and the conditions of the service of persons appointed to those All India Services. In pursuance of the power given under Section 3, Indian Forest Service (Recruitment) Rules, 1966 were made.The Rule 4(1) of the above mentioned Rules empowers the Central Government to recruit to the service any person from amongst the members of the State Forest Service adjudged suitable in accordance with such regulations as the Central Government may make in consultation with State Governments and the Commission. † Now the regulation 3 of Indian Forest Service (Initial Recruitment) Regulations, 1956 framed under Rule 4(1) of the Indian Forest Service (Recruitment) Rules, 1966 provided for the Constitution of a Special Selection Board c onsisting of: 1.The Chairman of UPSC or his nominee. 2. Inspector General of Forests of the Government of India. 3. Joint Secretary. UOI. 4. Chief Secretary of the concerned State Government. 5. Chief Conservator of Forest of the concerned State Government. The selection Board was to be headed by the Chief Conservator of the Forest of the State while the final selections were to be made by the Union Public Service Commission (U. P. S. C).In the State of Jammu and Kashmir, a Naquishbund was appointed as the acting Chief Conservator of forest and was olso a member of the selection board for recommending the names of officers for All India Forest Service was formed, The Board recommended the names of the persons including Naquishbund. The selections as finally made by the board were accepted by the Commission. On the basis of the recommendations of the Commission, the impugned list was published. Even After review Basu, Baig and Kaulwho were supersede by naquishbund for chief conservat or of forest were not selected.It must be noted that Naquishbund was also one of the candidates for All India Forest Service. Though he did not sit in the selection board at the time his name was considered for selection but he did sit in the board when the names of Basu, Baig and Kaul were considered for selection and was also involved while preparing the list of selected candidates . Aggrieved, The Gazetted Officers Association, brought a petition to the Court challenging that the selections in question were made in contravention of the Principles of Natural Justice.Arguments Advanced : The petitioners as well as the respondents raised arguments with respect to the nature of the power conferred on the selection board. The petitioners contended that Rule 4 as well as Regulation 5 prescribes that the selections should be made after ‘adjudging’ the suitability of the officers belonging to the State service. The word ‘adjudge’ the meaning of which is ‘t o judge or decide’ indicates that the power conferred on the selection board was a quasi-judicial power.It was contended on their behalf that such a power is a judicial power not an administrative one and it has to be exercised in accordance with the well accepted Rules of Natural Justice, the violation of which has been rightly claimed. Naquishbund, being a candidate for Indian Forest Service cannot be an adjudicator of the same. On the other hand, the learned Attorney General on behalf of the respondents argued that the power exercised by the selection board is not a quasi-judicial power but an administrative power.To support this contention, it was further admitted that the proceedings before the selection board were not quasi-judicial because the board was not required to decide about any ‘right’. The duty of the board was merely to select officers who in its opinion were suitable for Indian Forest Service. He interpreted the word ‘adjudge’ as be ing ‘found worthy of selection’. It was also contended by the learned Attorney General that after all the selection board was only a recommendatory body. Its recommendations had first to be perused by the Home Ministry and then by the U.P. S. C. The final recommendations were made by the U. P. S. C. Therefore, grievances of the petitioners have no real basis. Keeping in mind the validity of the administrative actions taken, all that has to be seen is whether the final decision is just or not. And finally, in the form of arguendo, it was also contended by the learned Attorney General that the mere fact that one of the members of the board was biased against some of the petitioners cannot vitiate the whole selection process Analyzing the JudgmentA five judge bench of the Apex Court held that the selections made by the selection committee were in violation of principles of natural justice. The Court found the power exercised by the Selection Board as an administrative one and tested the validity of the selections on that basis. It held that the concept of rule of law would lose its importance if the instrumentalities of the State are not charged with the duty of discharging their functions in a fair and just manner. Also, it is a must to charge dministrative authorities with the duty of discharging their functions in a fair and just manner in a Welfare State like India, where the jurisdiction of the administrative bodies is increasing at a rapid rate. In the words of Hegde, J. – â€Å"The requirement of acting judicially in essence is nothing but to act justly and fairly and not arbitrarily or capriciously. The procedures which are considered inherent in the exercise of a judicial power are merely those which facilitate if not ensure a just and fair decision. It further observed that the dividing line between an administrative power and quasi-judicial power is being gradually obliterated. The Court held that the basic principle of nemo judex in causa sua was violated by appointing Naquishbund as a member of the selection board. Though he did not participate in the deliberations of the board when his name was being considered yet the very fact that he was a member of the selection board had a significant impact on the decision of the selection board and he participated in the deliberations when the claims Basu, Baig and Kaul were considered.Under such circumstances, the Court could not believe that Naquishbund could have been unbiased, the Court observed that the question is not whether Naquishbund was actually biased or not. The real question is whether there is a reasonable ground for believing that he was likely to have been biased. Further the Court observed that the question is not whether Naquishbund was actually biased or not. The real question is whether there is a reasonable ground for believing that he was likely to have been biased, earlier in Manaklal’s case the Court had made it clear that the test wa s not actual bias but a reasonable apprehension of bias.It held that it is difficult to prove the state of mind. Therefore in deciding the question of bias ordinary course of human conduct is taken into consideration. Owing to this, the Court observed that there was a personal interest on part of Naquishbund to keep out his rivals in order to secure his position without further challenge and so he cannot said to be impartial, fair and just while making the selection. ConclusionTherefore what emerges from this case is that although the Courts are making distinctions between the Quasi-Judicial and Administrative powers but at the same time there is one common element of fair procedure in both the cases which can be referred to as the ‘duty to act fairly’. This duty arises from the same general principles, as do the rules of natural justice. The case of A. K Kraipak v. Union of India is a landmark judgement in the development of administrative law in India and has strength ened the rule of law in this country.Hedge, J. observed that â€Å"If the purpose of the rules of natural justice is to prevent miscarriage of justice one fails to see why those rules should be made inapplicable to administrative inquiries†. In the words of Krishna Iyer, J. – â€Å"Once we understand the soul of the rule as fairplay in action – and it is so- we must hold that it extends to both the fields. After all administrative power in a democratic set-up is not allergic to fairness in action and discretionary executive justice cannot degenerate into unilateral injustice. †