Shewin Case

PA402: Employment Law Unit 3: The Employment Relationship – Shewin Memorandum Your Course Project: Read About the Shewin Memorandum Throughout the course, you will work on the Shewin Memorandum. Your first step is to become acquainted with Ms. Shewin and the fact pattern. Ima Shewin is a 45-year-old African-American woman with advanced degrees in English and journalism from the University of Chicago. She has been employed by The Blabber, a newspaper in Atlanta, Georgia, for 10 years.She started as an entrylevel researcher. Two years later, she was promoted to a junior-level reporter position, and two years after that, to a senior-level reporter position. She has now been a senior-level reporter for the last six years. During the first eight years of her employment, Shewin reported to George Doright. Two years ago, The Blabber reorganized, and Doright was moved to another division in the company. Since then, Shewin has reported to Arthur King, The Blabber's senior editor.Follow ing the reorganization, two editors have retired. Although Shewin applied for these positions, they were not offered to her. In fact, she was only invited to interview for one of the positions, although she believes she met the qualifications for both. Last month, she applied for a junior-editor position she has been after for several years now. Based upon the qualifications that were identified in the job's classified ad, she felt she was a shoo-in. She applied and was interviewed. The interview with Mr.King did not go as well as she had hoped. The interview took place over lunch in a restaurant. King started out the conversation by engaging in seemingly harmless social banter, but Shewin was uncomfortable with his personal questions about her relationship with her boyfriend. A few weeks after the interview, the company announced that it was hiring Gene Whiz, someone from outside the company. Whiz is 26 years old and recently earned a master's degree in journalism from the Universi ty of Chicago.He has worked as a reporter for a small local newspaper. Shewin believes a number of factors may have been held against her. For example, only three women are in the upper levels of management, and all were promoted prior to the reorganization. King was not involved in the promotion decisions for any of the three women. King has a reputation for making sexist comments, which several women in the company find offensive, as do a number of men. For example, he described one pregnant reporter as barefoot and pregnant. † He has also asked Shewin out to â€Å"discuss business,† invitations that she has declined. She feels that rejecting him may have something to do with her not getting the job. Another possible factor is that there are only five African-American senior managers in the company. Shewin has heard through the rumor mill that Whiz is part AfricanAmerican. Also, prior to Mr. Doright's transfer, Shewin filed a complaint against some of her male colleag ues.Apparently the men whose cubicles were surrounding Shewin's area had a habit of discussing their weekend dates in graphic detail on Monday mornings. Although they did not make these comments directly to Shewin, the conversations PA402: Employment Law Unit 3: The Employment Relationship – Shewin Memorandum were quite loud and she overheard them regularly. After several months of hoping they would stop, Shewin brought this matter to Mr. Doright, who sternly told the employees to stop such behavior.However, since Arthur King became the senior manager, her coworkers have reverted to their old behavior, and King has taken no action against them, despite Shewin's repeated complaints to him. In fact, Shewin has observed King laughing at the conversations as he walked by. He did not, however, participate in the conversations. Finally, Shewin is more than 40 years old and has concerns that she may be getting passed over because of her age. A friend of hers overheard King talking t o another senior manager, speculating as to when Shewin would finally retire.

First deserve then desire Essay

First deserve then desire is a well-known English saying which shows how the way to glory and success can be paved by having certain abilities and capabilities. It is a fact that a man can’t get what he wants just by day-dreaming and building castles in the air. For his lofty ideals and goals, a man has to put his abilities into practice and strive to go extra mile to realize his cherished dreams. A life spent mere by words and not by productive deeds is worthless and such a person may have many desires, wishes and ambitions but he can’t realize his dreams into reality simply because he does not toil to realize his ambitions into reality and does not deserve the glory and success attached to his ambitions. History bears ample witness to the fact that all the great men who left a deep mark and influence on the world were men of actions. They practically did what they said and meant. In other words, they deserved the status they got through their untiring efforts and struggles. It is said that genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration. If we go through the pages of history, it will be found that all the great men worked extremely hard to translate their ideals into reality. It would be pertinent to mention here the examples of some great men who truly deserved the status and honour the world accorded to them. To begin with, Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), who was 16th President of the United States, was born to a poor farmer. He toiled extremely hard to deserve this status. He faced many ups and downs in his life. He played a key role in preserving the unity of America during its bloody civil war and ended slavery. He modernized and developed America. Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965) who was the Prime Minister of Great Britain during the second World War, could not pass the entrance examination to Harrow Public School when he was barely ten or eleven years old. He disliked the exams as most of the students tend to dislike exams. But, soon, he developed passion for education and utilized his potential to become a great

Issues in Education-Student Wellbeing Essay

When looking at the work done in schools around the promotion of wellbeing, there are many different state and national frameworks that inform school-based practices. I have chosen to discuss the Framework for Student Support Services in Victorian Government Schools (Department of Education 1998) pictured below. This framework outlines four major principles or levels of activity, grouped together with the ‘resilient student’ at its centre. The major principles are primary prevention, which is presented in the framework as the largest of the four principles and therefore indicates that it should be given the most attention, followed by early intervention, intervention and postvention. I’d like to start by posing the question what is resilience and how can resilience be recognised in a student? Resilience can be defined as â€Å"the set of attributes that provide people with the strength and fortitude to confront the overwhelming obstacles they are bound to face in life†(Sagor, 1996, p.38). There are also certain characteristics and descriptors of resilience that have been recognised by teachers and described by Sagor (1996) as being the most â€Å"social, optimistic, energetic, co-operative, inquisitive, helpful, punctual and on-task† (p.38) students. So the aim for wellbeing in schools should be on trying to instil some of these qualities in its students as a preventative measure to give them the best chance at becoming a a resilient student and hopefully carrying that on into adulthood. Primary prevention is the largest area in the framework because it constitutes the broadest and most significant area of activity. The aim is to provide students with the skills and tools needed on the path to becoming a resilient student. This means raising awareness to what makes students vulnerable, developing targeted programs and strategies that help to reduce these vulnerabilities and increasing awareness the issues whilst providing different ways of coping and/or skills that may be useful when these events or adversities may arise. Primary prevention is not always the first choice in schools according to Richard Sagor, a Professor at Washington State University, he believes that teachers don’t always opt for prevention before intervention, especially long term teachers, they tend to see the problem/s as being with the individual students and not with the cohort of students or school as a whole. Sagor suggests that â€Å"we must recognise that it is politically easier to ‘stay the course’ and continue to offer ‘traditional’ mainstream education†¦rather than to re-make our secondary schools into more hospitable, inclusive and preventative organisations†(1992, p.19). I found these arguments to be similar to those that arise in Australian literature on this topic for example â€Å"the health sector has invested considerable resources towards the development of a ‘packaged curriculum’ and†¦.the evidence to date has been that school health education has little effect beyond the short term†(Glover & Butler 2004, p.300). The programmes we have in place seem to be missing the mark and not really achieving what they set out to do. The next principle in the framework is early intervention. This is the time to assess the risks and identify the needs of students in order to really target those at risk of ongoing social, emotional and/or physical harm. By giving students the tools to be able to identify, assess and manage their own risks, early intervention intends to catch a problem at it’s beginnings and intervene before it gets any worse. This principle does promote student wellbeing and is probably one of the most effective as it can be very targeted information for issues that have already been recognised as being a problem. Intervention involves providing effective management and support to students in crisis, this includes ensuring access to appropriate counselling, care and treatment services and is also concerned with providing the skills for professionals who are dealing with students at their crisis point. Yes this principle still has it’s place in the promotion of student wellbeing, but it is already a bit late for the students, the key is to get in before the issues arise. Postvention is basically how the situation is handled beyond the crisis or event. It is the provision of ongoing support or counselling where necessary, monitoring the recovery process and evaluating the situation. After this crisis has passed and wellbeing is restored, a plan can be implemented or introduced into the prevention stage to increase awareness of the issue and hopefully prevent this happening for others in future or give them the tools to be able to cope with a challenging situation. I think this principle is very important and plays an evaluative role in providing wellbeing for present and future students. The principles in the Victorian Framework for Student Support Services of 1998 are collectively designed to provide comprehensive support for the promotion of the wellbeing of students in schools all over Australia and are also being increasingly encouraged on an international scale. The key to moving forward is prevention, like anything if we can prevent a problem before it begins and/or provide the skills and the know how to deal with a crisis before it arises then everybody is much better off. Students, teachers, parents and the wider community would be stronger and better equipped to face the challenges of everyday life. Our work as classroom teachers contributes in many ways to the promotion of young people’s wellbeing. It is no secret that high school students spend the majority of their teenage years in schools where they are supervised by teachers. Whether it be in classroom, out in the playground, out and about on excursions and even at the bus stop. Teachers are very influential figures in a young persons life, so it will come as no surprise that the work a classroom teachers does can contribute to the promotion of young people’s well being. Wellbeing can be defined as, â€Å"a state of positive psychological functioning that allows students to thrive, flourish and learn. Wellbeing refers to a state of positive emotional and social functioning that we would wish to nurture in all our students. The term wellbeing has been used to refer not only to a person’s subjective experience of ‘feeling good’ about themselves and their relationships with others but also to their sense of meaning, purpose and growth†(Goh, 2013). Wellbeing is a very broad term which is difficult to define. This definition from Goh (2013) stood out to me because it mentioned the fact that promoting the wellbeing of students allows them to ‘thrive, flourish and learn’, this is the important objective for schools and teachers to remember. Norris (2003) argues that â€Å"Children learn best in an environment that is safe, nurturing, and affirming†(p.318) which I think is the aim for all classroom teachers. Teachers can use a range of teaching strategies to enhance the resilience and overall wellbeing of their students. An example of a strategy for teaching resilience in America is the ABC’s of resilience. Renee Jain (2013) speaks about the difference between two people and what makes one person resilient and another person not. The A stands for adversity, this is the problem being faced. The C stands for the consequence or the reaction to the adversity and the thing that makes two people end up with different consequences is the B which stands for beliefs(about the situation). A resilient person is armed with the beliefs and the tools to pick themselves up and move forward. Those without resilience will be consumed by the adversity and struggle to get back up (Jain, 2013). By making students and teachers aware of this connection it is easier to understand why we need to be taught the qualities of a resilient person in order to maintain wellbeing. Many efforts are being made to spread the message of wellbeing for students through the use of programmes designed by non-government and some government organisations. The USA are world leaders in the sheer number of programmes and resources in the promotion of mental health, with thousands of programmes in operation with varying levels of success (Weare, 2010, p.27). The promotion of mental and wellbeing in Australia is also starting to thrive with programs such as Root of Empathy (2009) and Mind Matters(2009) at the forefront of the efforts to reach students with the message of wellbeing (Weare, 2010, p.28). In the UK â€Å"an increasing number of schools are engaged in what is effectively mental health work†¦working on a wide range of initiatives†¦two particular examples are Place 2 Be (2009), which supports councellors in schools and Pyramid Clubs (2009)† (Weare, 2010, p.28). I think the most prominent thing that stands out to me on an international scale is that everyone is trying to approach this from a whole school and even a whole community perspective, making it everyone’s business. I do think that this is how it should be and to be effective in promoting overall wellbeing of students it has to be a looked at as a holistic approach. By that same token, staff wellbeing is also a priority in promoting positive school environments. This means that it is important to look after yourself as a teacher, if the teacher is stressed, not focussed, and not looking after their own wellbeing then that will reflect onto the students wellbeing. In conclusion, teachers are very important role models and play such a pivotal role in a young persons life. Countries all over the world are now staring to really understand how much of an impact teachers and even schools as a whole can can make in the promotion of wellbeing in students. As long as the approach is holistic and targets students in the time of their lives when they need this information the most, we can quite possibly create a new generation of resilient young people. References: Glover, S & Butler, H 2004, ‘Facilitating health promotion within school communities’, in Moodie, R & Hulme, A (Eds.), Hands on health promotion, IP Communications, Melbourne, Vic, pp. 299-310. Sagor, R 1996, ‘Building Resiliency in Students’, Creating a Climate for Learning, Vol. 54 (1), Washington State University, Vancouver, pp.38-43. Sagor, R 1992, ‘Alternative programs for at-risk youth: wolves in sheep clothing’, Reaching Today’s Youth, Vol. 1 (2), Washington State University, Vancouver, pp.18-22. Goh, C 2013, ‘Student Wellbeing’, Student Wellbeing Action Partnership, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Accessed on 31/7/2013 from: http://web.education.unimelb.edu.au/swap/wellbeing/ Norris, J.A 2003, ‘Looking at Classroom Management Through a Social and Emotional Lens’, Theory into Practice, 3 (4), p.313-318. Jain, R 2013, Teaching Students the ABC’s of Resilience’, Social and Emotional Learning, The George Lucas Educational Foundation. Accessed on 31/7/13 from: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/teaching-the-abcs-of-resilience-renee-jain Weare, K 2010, Promotiing Mental Health Through Schools, In P.Agglton, C.Dennison & I.Warwick (Eds.), Promoting Health and Wellbeing Through Schools, London: Routelege, pp.24-42.

Societal Benchmark in Advanced Practice Nursing Essay

Societal Benchmark in Advanced Practice Nursing - Essay Example remains a general consensus that the real credit for the evolution and practical implementation of APN History of Advanced Practice Nurse goes to the American Civil War 1861. That was when the APN implementation began processing and started developing (Keeling & Biglee, 2009). However, CRNA did not get introduced easily and the process did not go smooth because certain barriers regarding legislation cropped up during the early 1900’s. The nursing staff everywhere was not easily granted rights to administer anesthesia because such rights were questioned by the medical profession. People in the medical profession objected on grounds that the concept of nurses administering anesthesia would imply that they are practicing out of their scope which would not present a very nice image (Keeling & Biglee, 2009). Therefore, legislation in Kentucky (Frank VS South) nurses needed to be licensed to administer anesthesia. With time, things started developing and in 1931 foundation for the A merican Association of Nurse Anesthetist (AANA) was laid and 1945 the mandatory certification for CNRA’s got established which changed circumstances phenomenally (Ray, 2005). Other factors also assisted in the development like there were no professional nurses at that time and catholic sisters served as nurses. Also during the 20th century, the increase in immigration and trends toward industrialization and urbanization contributed significantly in refining the image of APN role in the healthcare system with the result that other nursing specialties emerged. The approach of the Nurse Practitioner was such that primary care was provided to the poverty stricken immigrants during World War II so that more worthwhile opportunities got revealed to benefit NP (Keeling & Biglee, 2009). This approach proved to be effective as when physicians had too much on their plates and were too busy to care for all the wounded, the NPs were granted the right to go beyond the realm of caring and handle other

True Grit Themes and Film Elements Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

True Grit Themes and Film Elements - Essay Example She asks the Sheriff if she can hire a Deputy U.S. Marshal to track down Chaney and bring him to justice. The Sheriff recommends three of them and Mattie chooses to hire Rooster Cogburn. Mattie’s first conversation with Cogburn occurs when he is in a toilet out of a saloon. Mattie waits for him to come out but he takes too long. This is to show that Cogburn drinks a lot and is sort of nonchalant of what goes on in the world. Until the first appearance of Cogburn, the camera focuses a lot on Mattie. She has been shot from low angles and when three criminals are hanged in the beginning, the camera follows Mattie in a way that makes her presence prominent. This shows that Mattie is a very important character in the movie. Cogburn’s first appearance in the movie is like that of a title or a very important character. He is called as a witness in a courtroom and everybody is listening to his testimony very carefully. He explains to the court that his fellows and he had tried to talk about the situation with the Wharton boys who had allegedly murdered an old man and a woman for some money. He explains that they tried â€Å"to talk some sense into him† but they chose to attack his group and Cogburn had to shot them and their father to save his life. Also, when asked about how many men he has shot in his 4 year career as a Deputy U.S. Marshal, he says that he has â€Å"never shot anybody he didn’t have to.† In this scene, a whole new opinion can be formed about Cogburn which is quite different from him being a drunkard. It can be easily construed that Cogburn is man of good judgment and reason who is not afraid to use violence when it is necessary. When Mattie has first real and face to face meeting with Cogburn, she says to him she has heard that he is â€Å"a man with true grit.† From this statement, it seems that Cogburn is the central character but he shares it with Mattie. He refuses to believe that Mattie would be able to pay the reward of $50 that she offers to him for the capture of Tom Chaney. However, when Mattie raises the money by horse-trading with Colonel Stonehill, she is able to convince Cogburn to pursue Tom Chaney. He agrees but has some qualms about Mattie accompanying him. Another very important development before Mattie successfully secures Cogburn’s services is the introduction of Texas Ranger LaBoeuf who is also after Chaney who has murdered a state senator in Texas. LaBeouf is a strong character in the movie and is noticeable how the camera follows him when he is talking to Mattie as she wakes up. When he stands up from his chair, the camera shows his boots and the spurs on his boots are prominent. Although he tells himself after a little while that he is a Texas Ranger, the focus on his shoes and the guessing eyes of Mattie at the same time show that he is an accomplished individual. He is beyond his jurisdiction but he is pursuing Chaney for a big reward that is offered for Chaney in Texas. His entrance into the movie is also like that of a very important character. He is shot from a low angle when he looks at Mattie when she is going inside to spend the night. He tells Mattie of her business and offers to join forces with Cogburn in pursuit of Chaney as Cogburn knows the area very well and LaBoeuf knows hoe habits and reactions of Chaney. Mattie proves to be very firm in her resolve and insists that she wants to see Chaney hang in Fort

Now that we talked about the rise and fall of primary civilization Essay

Now that we talked about the rise and fall of primary civilization around the globe, discuss the factors or combinations of factors associated with the collapse of civilization - Essay Example Similarly, desertification which is a â€Å"serious environmental problem confronting the world† has always led to continued environmental degradation (Geist 4). The negative effects originating from desertification has been cited throughout the history to have contributed to the collapse of empires and civilization. This is owed to the fact that such conditions usually hamper communities practicing farming, agricultural production and also displaces the population thereby in the community. The other environmental factor that has caused collapse of civilization is deforestation. In most cases, deforestation occurs whenever there is cutting of trees for trees for timber, firewood and for manufacturing purposes which generally lower rainfall and cause soil infertility thereby making civilizations unstable to support itself and its people especially those that lived near the rivers. Political Factors: Historically, politics has played a significant role in the collapse of various world civilizations. For examples, through politics the barbarians managed to invert empires which in Frassetto’s view, was caused by â€Å"uncivilized people who began to pressure on† by causing war in the empire (33). Eventually, these people succeeded with their effort to invade and trespass the majestic frontiers thereby destroying the old civilization as a result of hatred. On the other hand, various political changes and reorganizations of political institutions that existed in different civilization cause a lot of stability thereby resulting to collapse of civilizations. Lack of well organized political institution to govern the society and maintain law and order meant disintegration of the societies that formed such civilizations. Social Factors: Historically, social unrest has been cited to have caused â€Å"collapse of rigid social orders† (Fagan 18). For instance, whenever

Welding Metals Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Welding Metals - Essay Example (www.wikipedia.org). A weld is defined as a blend or coalescence of two or more metals by heating then until they reach a critical temperature and flow together. The piece of metal to be welded is called the base metal, work piece, or work. The edges of the base metal are often specially prepared for welding by, for example, machining, shearing, or gouging. There are five basic weld joints: butt, lap, corner, "T," and edge. The American Welding Society has developed a system of symbols that are added to mechanical drawings, to convey precisely how a welding site should be prepared, what type of weld should be made, and any other considerations. Arc welding is a very popular method of joining metal together for many different applications. It is the processes of joining metal together through fusion which is done by the electric Arc, by electrical current (Arc 1994).An electric arc between the electrode and the work piece generates heat. Sufficient heat is generated to melt the pieces together. The arc reaches temperatures of around 6,000 degrees Celsius which is concentrated at the tip of the electrode (Weldwell 2003). The range of welding current used varies from 5 to 500 amps. The voltage ranges from 20 to 30 volts. The current can be either AC or DC. The type of current is dependent on material thickness. The electrodes have a metal core surround by flux, which melts with the work piece creating a fusion weld. The flux coating forms a gas and slag that shields the molting metal pool. This flux materialis cleaned off once the weld has cooled with a wire brush. The weld should be as strong or stronger then the metal that i t is fusing together. There are four common types of welding namely Stick or SMAW(Shielded Metal Arc Welding) Mig or GMAW(Gas Metal Arc Welding) Tig or GTAW (Gas Tungsten Arc Welding). Flux-Core or FCAW (Flux Core Arc Welding). Shielded metal arc welding or stick welding is one of the most commonly used types of welding. (Repp 1994).this is because it is one of the easiest methods and the equipment used is inexpensive. It is used in mobile welding due to its ease of portability. In this process the flux covering the electrode melts during welding. Due to this gas and slag are formed that form a protective layer around the molten weld pool. The slag is chipped off the weld bead after welding. The flux provides a method of adding scavengers, deoxidizers, and alloying elements to the weld metal. Advantages The equipment is simple, inexpensive and portable. It has a moderate welding speed. This process is flexible i.e. in order to tackle different tasks, metals and thickness change of rods or welding parameters is sufficient. Flux provides excellent cleaning action in cases where weld metal preparation is less than ideal (rust, scale, dirt, etc.). It is less sensitive to wind and drifts. Discontinuities Considering the weld discontinuities stick welding suffers from undercut where a groove melted into the base metal adjacent to the weld toe or weld root and left unfilled by weld metal. Secondly it suffers from incomplete fusion i.e. a weld discontinuity in which fusion does not occur between weld metal and fusion faces or adjoining weld beads. Other discontinuities include porosity of the weld formed, cracks and slag inclusions in the weld. Problems The main problem concerning stick welding is Arc Blow. It is a problem that exists with most electric welding processes. It is caused by the preferential magnetic fields developed near the arc. These are most often caused by the arc current ground path or in the

Quantitative Methods Coursework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Quantitative Methods Coursework - Essay Example 1. Production and Transportation cost = (80000 units)(97 pence/unit) = 7,760,000 pence 2. The rest of the capacity of factory '1' (90,000 - 80,000 = 10,000) can be used for producing and transporting to manufacturer 'B' Production and Transportation cost = (10000 units)(98 pence/unit) = 980,000 pence Hence the total cost of production and transportation for factory '1' is 7,760,000 + 980,000 = 8,740,000 pence = 87,400/- 3. The rest of the demand of manufacturer 'B' (72,000 - 10,000 = 62,000) should be produced by factory '3' having lesser costs than factory '2'. Production and Transportation cost = (62000)(109) = 6,758,000 pence 4. The rest of the capacity of factory '3' (80,000 - 62,000 = 18,000) can be used to produce and transport for manufacturer 'A'. Production and Transportation cost = (18000)(107) = 1,926,000 pence Hence the total cost of production and transportation for factory '3' is 6,758,000 + 1,926,000 = 8,684,000 pence = 86,840/- 5. The rest of the demand of manufacturer 'A' (51,000 - 18,000 = 33,000) is produced by factory '2' Production and Transportation cost = (33000)(113) = 3,729,000 pence Hence the total cost of production and transportation for manufacturer 'A' order is 1,926,000 + 3,729,000 = 5,655,000 pence = 56,550/- 6. The total demand of manufacturer 'D' can be supplied by factory '2' Production and Transportation cost = (58000)(114) = 6,612,000 pence Hence the total cost of production and transportation for manufacturer 'D' order is 6,612,000 pence = 66,120/- Conclusion Total Cost of production for factories and manufacturers Factory Computer... As shown by the graph, the relationship is somewhat linear at values 13 onwards (lower part of the graph) and these are non-linear at higher part of the graph. The values for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage are non-linear with huge differences as shown by the graph.

The impact of the anti-immigration laws that have been introduced by Research Paper

The impact of the anti-immigration laws that have been introduced by Arizona and the participation of Hispanics in the U.S. political system - Research Paper Example The immigration issue has been taking the spotlight in recent decades in America. It has been a lingering concern for Americans who are starting to question the long-held mantra that the United States is the land of almost infinite opportunities. There is a growing fear among the citizenry that such limitless opportunities are no longer the case today or that they no longer are as easy as they were in the past. The US government has actually wavered in terms of addressing the issue head-on. For instance from 1960 to 1970, a major immigration policy reform was enacted with the amendments to the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 and afterwards, many thought that it was enough. No significant immigration policy was introduced well until the 1990s. Recent developments, however, are significantly putting pressure on immigration policymaking. The US is considered to have the highest immigration rates globally and that more than a million people legally immigrate to the country annual ly, leading foreign-born citizens to constitute 13 percent of the entire American population. (Bardes, Shelley and Schmidt 2008, p. 482) This figure excludes the immigrants that cross the US border illegally. The former American Ambassador to Mexico, Jeffrey Davidow (2007) summed up the prevailing sentiment: While race race-baiting and violent anti-immigrant sentiment had largely disappeared from the American political vernacular, there was a nagging anxiety about the growing number of foreigners in the United States. Americans were asking, â€Å"Where did all these people come from? (11)† With the current protracted economic downturn, the high and constant flux of the inflation rate, the governments accumulating debt and budget deficits, as well as the high number of job losses, the public is increasingly fearful that immigrants would take away jobs that should have been taken by Americans in the first place. Surveys conducted from 1960s until today demonstrate the increasin g concern of Americans for immigration (Simcox 1997, 129) It is in this respect that the strict anti-immigration policy was enacted by the state of Arizona. This paper will examine the laws enacted by the state against immigration and its impact, particularly in the participation of Hispanics in the American electoral process. Background: The Arizona Anti-Immigration Laws Prior to the enactment of the series of Arizona anti-immigration laws, two significant immigration statutes were enacted in the US: the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA) and the Illegal Immigration Reform and Responsibility Act (IIRIRA). Both of these legislations aim to manage immigration with the former focusing on permanent immigrants instead of the temporary entry in order to check the flow of undocumented migrants; while the latter, enhancing the existing law and including the permission for the Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) authorization â€Å"to bar reentry to the United Stat es if an alien overstayed his/her visa deadline for departure† (Adams 56). Many were not satisfied with the results of these measures. To borrow Adams’ words: The spirit and framework of both the 1986 and 1996 immigration laws failed to address the grassroots flow of aliens at the source – the official government attitude and immigration policy avoidance by Mexico. In spite of the fact that from 1994 to 2001 (pre-9/11) the annual U.S. border enforcement budget of the INS and the Border Patrol nearly tripled to over $2.5 billion, the immigrant flow continued nearly unchecked (56). A good part of the years after, a growing debate emerged as to how to best address the issue. In 2004, as part of the increasing impact of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack in New York, immigration policy took an increasing relationship to terrorism and border security. For example, the United States Visitor Immigration Status

Methodology to improve organizational effectiveness Essay Example for Free

Methodology to improve organizational effectiveness Essay A non-profit organization should use both qualitative and quantitative performance measures, based on the organization’s mission goals and objectives, to show financial and programmatic accountability in a transparent environment. Qualitative and quantitative research methods can be used in marketing, financial planning, fundraising and program research and evaluation. This paper will define and discuss these models as they relate to a non-profit organization. Examples of their application and benefits will be given with respect to the Employment Skills Center, a 501 (c)3 organization. Qualitative versus quantitative analysis When making decisions in a non-profit organization, there are two general approaches to problem solving: quantitative and qualitative. The quantitative approach uses mathematical reasoning involving numerical data and involves data collection using such methods as structured surveys and interviews and review of related documents. Qualitative research involves non-numerical information, such as in-depth interviews, focus groups, open-ended surveys and observation. Both have their place in research and analysis conducted in non-profit organizations. Effective use in non-profit organizations Using both qualitative and quantitative analysis, separately and/or together, to evaluate and improve the performance of an organization is critical to its success. Data that may be used with these methods include financial and operations data, marketing, communications and fundraising data, programs and outcomes data and external data (â€Å"The State of Non-profit Data†. 2012. ). Analyzing budget revenues, expenses and variances between projected numbers and actual numbers uses a quantitative method and is helpful in creating a more accurate budget. In addition to budgeting, the Employment Skills Center uses quantitative analysis in measuring outcomes for reporting to the Pennsylvania Department of Education and funder reporting. These outcomes include participation rates, program completion, educational gains, employment and retention and client demographics. Qualitative analysis is used to evaluate client needs and satisfaction in order to improve program services. It is also used in volunteer management and retention and staff development. Mixed methodology is useful in board evaluation, job performance reviews, fund development, marketing and communications and improving program effectiveness. Impact analysis is the cornerstone of non-profit sustainability and involves both quantitative and qualitative methodology. It allows you to find out what is and is not working in your organization. It shows your current and potential funders, and the community, what your organization does and how it benefits your clients and the community. It can help raise additional funds by providing evidence of the organizations effectiveness. It can improve staff effectiveness by identifying strengths and weaknesses. By looking at certain statistical data provided by the U. S. Census Bureau and the U. S. Bureau of Labor and statistics such as population projections, educational levels, unemployment rates and economic indicators we can evaluate the current need for services and use the data in grant applications, donor solicitations and community awareness.

SONY Marketing Management Techniques

SONY Marketing Management Techniques Introduction Strategic marketing management techniques are methods used by the management of a company to evaluate and deploy the marketing strategies that the company requires to maintain a competitive edge against its direct rivals. Seeing as marketing is the use of key information about customers, products and markets to properly assess the suitability of providing a certain service or product it is imperative upon any contemporary business to maintain cutting edge marketing research techniques. This is especially the case when considering the role marketing techniques play in allowing a company to change, evolve or diversify the key directions of their services and/ or products in the market. In a similar vein, it is also imperative upon businesses to maintain a tight control on the performance of their marketing strategies. There has been much academic interest in this aspect of performance and with good reason a faulty marketing strategy, if not addressed swiftly and efficiently by a robust performance management team will result in catastrophic consequences. There are a number of methods that can offer key marketing performance parameters but one of the main methods is the collection and analysis of core data from the market in which the service or product of the company is competing. One could make the case that the entire enterprise of measuring the marketing performance of a product depends on the companys ability to collect and accurately analyse the appropriate data. Finally, an accurate picture of the performance of a company can be attained through the use of a business scorecard. This is a method of business performance review that has gained in greater exposure and use over the last few decades and has now become an integral part of the performance management teams repertoire of business tools to evaluate the the success of the company and its products/ services against its competitors. The business scorecard typically is a tool that provides a single parameter of success succinctly such that an accurate assessment of the position of a product in the market can be accessibly gained without delving into the details. This tool of course does not replace existing performance barometers but provides a different function of a quick and simple success rating. This report will focus on Sony as an organisation that involves these marketing factors especially the Sony PS3, a video game console that will provide a microcosm of the larger company at work. Sony is a multinational company that specialises in audio, video and entertainment products. It has an established market reputation and expertise in the video console games entertainment industry. The Sony PlayStation 3 is the third console that Sony has released and with each of its two previous products Sony was able to maintain a staggeringly dominant market share. This position is the backdrop to the release of the Sony PlayStation 3, an eagerly awaited console by a massively loyal fan base, and the marketing strategies deployed, the techniques used, the performance reviews established and the scorecard indicators analysed will be the crux of this report. Strategic Marketing Techniques deployed There are a number of techniques used by marketing management teams to ascertain a marketing strategy and direction. One of the most basic and yet most widely used of all marketing techniques is the use of the marketing mix by detailing the four Ps Price, Product, Placement and Promotion. Each of these four parameters give the company critical information on the best method to market its new product. The product that Sony wished to market was its PlayStation 3. This product was a continuation of the Sony PlayStation 2 and the original Sony PlayStation. This product was to be released into a well established and mature industry that had three direct competitors the Nintendo Wii and the Microsoft X-box 360. Both Nintendo and Microsoft had been in direct competition with Sony before and both have fared badly. Nintendo competed against the original Sony PlayStation with its N64 console but didnt manage to make any headway into Sonys market share. Microsoft competed against the PS2 with its own X-Box console but again Sony was able to maintain the lions share of the market. So much so that the X-Box only sold 24 million consoles to the approximately 120m sold by Sony.  [1]  These are the market conditions that the PS3 was conceived in and the key aim of the PS3 was to maintain the market share of Sony while delivering the cutting edge in gaming technology above and beyond that wh ich its competitors offered. Sony marketed the PS3 with a premium pricing strategy and there were a number of reasons to adopt this position. The PS3, when it was released represented the best console in gaming history. In fact the PS3 was released many months later than its direct competition of the 360 and Wii because it was developed to such a high standard. To give a comparison, the 360 has three processing units all running at 3.2 GHz, the PS3 in comparison has seven of the same processing units.  [2]  This is a vast difference in computing power and thus required far more time to research and develops the console. This extreme power and computing capability was thought to be recoverable through the pricing of the PS3 by Sony and it is easy to see why. The PS3 entered the market to huge expectation and just as huge a fan base loyally waiting to buy the console. The company felt it was a good ploy to price the PS3 at a premium level in direct contrast to both the Wii and the 360. The Wii and the 360 were under-priced by their respective companies so as to attempt to flood the market, so to speak, and gain higher sales through cheaper products. Sony decided to go the opposite way and priced their product highly because they felt they had enough consumers to bank on to buy their console and enough interest from game developers to coerce serious gamers into purchasing the PS3. The PS3 was first released in Japan and then worldwide. Seeing as Sony is originally a Japanese company and that its biggest customer base was in Japan this made complete sense. The 360 in comparison was first released in the USA where it had its own customer base. These strategies are easy to understand because they both play to the strengths of the respective companies and allow both to develop further commitment amongst their biggest customer repository if this strategy does well in their respective home markets then they can be certain to do well in foreign and worldwide markets also. Sony is choosing the best marketing strategy available to it in terms of placement of the product. Sony is in an enviable position when it comes to promoting their product. Seeing as a console itself is no more than a channel and a conduit of games, all Sony can offer is an exceptional messenger between the game and the gamer. The real promotion of a console occurs in the line up of games and the gaming experience it can offer and in this regard Sony has some of the biggest games producers signed exclusively to produce for its console. Games of the calibre of Gran Turismo 5, Metal Gear Solid 4 and Final Fantasy IV are all signed exclusively to the PS3 and offer a gaming experience that is of the highest quality in their respective genres. This promotion of the PS3 is indirect but highly effective. As an example, serious racing gamers will be hard pressed not to buy a PS3 just to experience Gran Turismo 5 which is undoubtedly one of the best games in the entire genre, if not the best. Apart from this, the PS3 had the success of the previous consoles as indirect promotion as well s eeing as the PS2 commanded upwards of a 70% share of its market, Sony had a great headstart upon its competition in providing the next generation of gaming, it had reputable expertise in the matter.  [3]   Marketing Performance Management and the Business Scorecard There are many performance tools that can be used by a management team to assess the marketing strategies employed for its product. This report will focus on one such tool the business scorecard. As mentioned earlier, the business scorecard allows the management team to know quickly and simply the success of a certain product it is a critical tool in the current business world and if not used by Sony, then certainly should be. The business scorecard allows for instant feedback on the performance of a product and is thus especially useful in a mature and sophisticated industry such as the video game consoling one undoubtedly is. The Sony PS3 suffered from well documented problems when it first entered the market a year later than its competitors. As with any new console, game developers are often unsure about how to utilise the computing power of a machine and it is not unusual to see the quality of games improve dramatically in the second or third year of the console once it has been through its teething problems. Unfortunately for the PS3 both of its competitors had already been through this stage and real quality games were being developed for them while the PS3 was slow to the market and grossly over-priced in comparison and thus unable to compete with either console because of its inferior games and higher price tag its greater computing power didnt mean much until games could be developed to utilise the raw power. In this case, it seemed the marketing strategy of the PS3 was not working and the marketing management team had to find a solution or risk losing their market share. The solution offered and finally implemented was a reduction in the pricing of the PS3 so as to allow the console to compete directly with the other consoles on even ground and to win back its customer base. This was a simple and efficient marketing manoeuvre that could have been made through the use of a business performance tool such as a business scorecard. Conclusion In conclusion, it is important to say that there are many factors which contribute to an effective marketing strategy and the marketing team need to be able to use the correct techniques and the correct performance tools to be able to analyse and sell their product successfully. The Sony PS3 was effectively marketed taking into account its high computing power, loyal customer base and the exclusive games it had to offer. However, seeing as the timing of the console lagged behind its competitors an effective performance appraisal tool was required to remedy the situation and that is exactly what occurred Sony was able to change its marketing strategy and continue to be a world leader in its market.