Tuesday, December 24, 2019

How Would You Characterize the Leadership of Walmart...

Part 5 Question 2: How would you characterize the leadership of Walmart founder Sam Walton? The leadership of Walmart is Authentic Leadership which refers to individuals who know and understand themselves, who espouse and act consistent with higher order ethical values, and who empower and inspire others with their openness and authenticity. There are 5 key characteristics of authentic leaders, which are: (i) Authentic leaders pursue their purpose with passion, (ii) Authentic leaders practice solid values, (iii) Authentic leaders lead with their hearts as well their heads, (iv) Authentic leaders establish connect relationships, (v) Authentic leaders demonstrate self-discipline. First characteristic is authentic leaders pursue their†¦show more content†¦They must keep smile when they meet other people. It is clear when he mention that â€Å"just because we work hard, we don’t have to go around with long faces.† Besides that, to Sam Wilton, the stunt contained an important business lesson. The stunt can attract people to whom they want to attract and they will be pay up. Thus, even though we are in pressure, we must hide it and show our dedication to other person through smiling. If the leaders practice the solid values, it will make other worker to do so. Indirectly, the leader became a role model to the worker in their work. Leaders have big responsibility to be handling, by practicing the solid value, it will smooth the management. Third characteristic is authentic leaders lead with their hearts as well their heads. All leaders sometimes have to make tough choices, but authentic leaders maintain a compassion for others as well as the courage to make difficult decisions. In Walmart, the newly minted manager got to work recruiting 350 new associated, and initiated all hires with the same cheer. The manager should decide the new worker appropriately even though she a new manager. She also works with confident and told the new recruit that she start work on 19 years old. Than she was told that, the worker in Walmart is someone who’s extroverted and loved to deal with customers. Leader must do their job in full feeling to increase their reputation as a leader. Leader must have criticalShow MoreRelatedStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 Pagesmechanical, photocopying, recording, or likewise. To obtain permission(s) to use material from this work, please submit a written request to Pearson Education, Inc., Permissions Department, One Lake Street, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458, or you may fax your request to 201-236-3290. Many of the designations by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and the publisher was aware of a trademark claim, theRead MoreManagement Course: Mba−10 General Management215330 Words   |  862 PagesBusiness Review Finance Articles The Power of Management Capital Feigenbaum−Feigenbaum International Management, Sixth Edition Hodgetts−Luthans−Doh Contemporary Management, Fourth Edition Jones−George Driving Shareholder Value Morin−Jarrell Leadership, Fifth Edition Hughes−Ginnett−Curphy The Art of M A: Merger/Acquisitions/Buyout Guide, Third Edition Reed−Lajoux and others . . . This book was printed on recycled paper. Management http://www.mhhe.com/primis/online/ Copyright  ©2005

Monday, December 16, 2019

Management Role Free Essays

There are several meanings and interpretations that are engaged in the word management. Also, the roles and work that are associated in this position also defends on the knowledge of that particular person about the term. It can be said that most people view management as the position in which you can get the things done through other people. We will write a custom essay sample on Management Role or any similar topic only for you Order Now Still, there are some views regarding the role of management in an organization that can be considered quite apart from the traditional view of management roles such as to support employees in order to maximize their ability for the betterment of the organization and as well to help employees to be productive members of the community. However, for most employees it can be said that the term management refers to the group of people with the responsibility to make decisions about the organization. The activities of the board as well as program and/or executive directors are also referred to as management. In Joe’s case, he had misconceptions of the responsibility that had been put into his shoulders by the time that he was appointed manager for the Best Made Mfg. Thus, Joe was placed back into his previous position, in the production line after merely 3 weeks.   Joe expected to do the same kind of work, only lighter than before after being placed into a new position. In can be seen in this case that the roles and responsibilities of being a manager is quite different from being in the production line. Being a part of the production line means working side-be-side with the people on the said workplace. It means that you are likely to do what most people do. Thus, being a manager is a totally different scenario. In order to better see the differences, let us look closely to the part and role of the management in the progress and development of the company. In the traditional interpretation, management is referred to as the activities of groups of people in which their main responsibility involves planning, organizing, leading and as well as controlling/coordinating. In order to have a better picture of the role of management, let us look closely at each of the four functions mentioned above. Planning involves the identification of goals, objectives and methods that the company intends to do and achieve. The resources that will be used in the companies operation is also part of planning as well as to identify the responsibilities of personnel’s and the completion date of a certain task. There are many kinds of planning of which strategic, business, project, staffing and as well as advertising and promotions planning are included. Another responsibility of the management is to organize the resources of the company in order to achieve the goals of the company in the most advantageous manner. It may include the organization of new departments, offices, file systems, human resources and as well as the reorganization of the business and others. Another consideration and responsibility that is in the hands of the management is to influence the persons that are part of the company. Leading is an important consideration in order to motivate the employees. Thus, to set the direction that must taken by the individual employees is an important factor in order to maximize the potential of the company. Leading not just involves striving to achieve the goal of the company but to influence the employees to the same thing as well. Controlling/Coordinating is also an important task of the management. It involves the processes, systems and structures of the organization in order to reach the organization’s goals and objectives in the most effective and efficient manner. This may include the monitoring and adjustments of the systems and other structures of the company as well as the collection of feedbacks. The performance management process, financial controls together with the policies and structures are some of the examples. Thus, the task of those in the production line and management involves two different tasks. The main distinction is that those in the production line are guided by the management but does not have the authority to make decisions. This is the job of the management along with all the other responsibilities and task mentioned above. Being part of the management and of the production line are two different tasks that involves different approach. To treat them as having the same function and responsibility will surely cause you some trouble just like Joe’s case. Reference Davidmann, M. (1998). Role of managers under Different Style of Management. Retrieved December 12, 2007 from http://www.solhaam.org/articles/clm2su.html Heathfield, S. (2007). When Management Systems Fail. Retrieved December 12, 2007 from http://humanresources.about.com/od/motivationsuccess/a/manage_systems.htm McNamara, C. (2007). Basics—Definitions (and Misconceptions) About Management. Retrieved December 12, 2007 from http://www.managementhelp.org/mgmnt/defntion.htm How to cite Management Role, Essay examples

Saturday, December 7, 2019

Pegasus airlines case study Answers free essay sample

Question no.1 Give examples of needs, wants, and demands that Pegasus customers demonstrate, differentiating these three concepts. What are the implications of each for Pegasus’ practices? 1. Examples of needs can be Pegasus customers need diversification. 2. Examples of wants can be customers want to improve airline industry and reflect their opinions. 3. Examples of demands can be low-cost airline, many destinations they want to go, improved quality of services and many benefits related to customers. We can conclude the implications of each for Pegasus’ practices are customer-oriented company. In other words, they want to meet customer’s expectation. Question no.2 Describe in detail all the facets of Pegasus’ product. What is being exchanged in a Pegasus transaction? Pegasus gives customers many things. First of all, Pegasus is the first low-cost airline in Turkey. They create credit (loyalty) card to reduce insurance rate. They have refund strategy when departure is delayed to alleviate customers’ dissatisfaction. We will write a custom essay sample on Pegasus airlines case study Answers or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page And they run social network relationship like Facebook, Twitter and Vodafone etc. Pegasus sometimes opens an event for free tickets. And they always try to listen customers’ voices to know better their tendency and thinking. Question no.3 Which of the five marketing management concepts best applies to Pegasus? Answer no.3 We saw Pegasus’ many activities to go happily together with customers. So we can call them a marketing-oriented company. Because marketing orientation requires something fulfill customers’ desire. Question no.4 What value does Pegasus create for its customers? Answer no.4 1. The Pegasus has significantly determined the need and wants of the consumers and delivered them the satisfaction that they wanted. 2. They also provide them the facilities above their expectations like they provide them with the discounted insurance rates, a specific guarantee policy, parking space and valet parking, a cafà © etc with a low-cost ticket to fly. Question no.5 Is Pegasus likely to continue being successful in building customer relationships? Why or why not? Answer no.5 Yes! It has demonstrated that even in the airline business, entry barriers can be lowered and a powerful brand can be created. It ensures successful service through safety, training and its devoted employees. It employs creative communication with its customers. It offers great destinations easy access to great international hubs and it uses efficient management techniques. To be successful in the low cost airline industry, great attention needs to be paid to customers changing travel patterns and needs. Booking flights, post purchase evaluation through regular customer relationship management and intangible value created by a variety of details makes Pegasus successful in building customer relationsips.

Saturday, November 30, 2019

Othello Play Essays - Othello, Michael Cassio, Iago, Roderigo

Othello Play The four main characters in the play Othello represent four different character traits of manhood: Roderigo, the failure; Othello, the hero, yet the insane lover; Cassio, the noblemen; and Iago, the villain, yet the strongest character of the play. Of these four characters Roderigo reveals the weakest character traits. Iago effortlessly profits from Roderigo's deficiency in a intelligence, in fact Iago himself said he would not waste time and effort on"such a snipe"(I iii 387) except for "sport and profit." Towards the end of the play Roderigo reveals some traits that might classify him as a man with a spine. He finally stands up to Iago and threatens to expose the conspiracy against Othello and Cassio, but ultimately his flaws overpower his virtuous traits and he is persuaded by Iago to kill Cassio instead. Likewise, Othello is the tragic hero of the play but his character is also weak. Jealousy is Othello's major downfall. He reveals his insecurities in the scene where he strikes Desdemona and calls her a "devil". Similarly, in the brothel scene, Othello's insecurities arise when he cruelly questions Desdemona. He condemns her as a "simple bawd" and a "whore", which he has no real proof of. Iago also easily manipulates Othello, like Roderigo, throughout the play. Othello is naive. He demonstrates that a few well-placed suggestions can alter his train of thought, such as when Iago was talking to Cassio and made Othello believe that the lieutenant was speaking of Desdemona instead of Bianca. On the whole, Othello was a weak character and a naive man. In contrast, Cassio's character is strong. He spoke about Othello with dignity and grace, which no other character in the play does. Also, Cassio showed extreme loyalty to the Moor. Cassio's only flaw is that he temporarily lost his power of reasoning when he was drunk and let himself be manipulated by Iago. All in all, Cassio is a good example of how a man should act; with dignity and honor. Likewise, Iago's character is also strong. He is an intelligent man as can seen in the soliloquy where he is hatching a plan to frame Cassio "to get his place "(I iii). In the soliloquy Iago's intelligence is revealed in the statement "How, How? - To abuse Othello's ear / That [Cassio] is too familiar with his wife."(I iii 396-39). Iago used his intelligence to think of a plan to frame Cassio and bring down Othello at the same time. Iago is also a confident man. Throughout the soliloquy Iago is confident "That the moor ...Will be tenderly led by the nose./ As asses are " (I iii 401- 404) and will be easily manipulated. However, if Iago had used his good character traits for good he would have been the hero of the play instead of Othello. On the whole, Shakespeare did an excellent job on setting the character traits for the male characters in the play: Roderigo was the "snipe"; Cassio, the noble gentleman; Othello, the fallen "noble Moor"; and Iago, the intelligent, confident and arrogant self-made villain. All the Characters in the play had some good traits but each of them had an appalling attribute that led to their downfall.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

History of Romanticism

History of Romanticism What is Romanticism? Romanticism refers to the period of intellectual, artistic and literary movement in Europe in the first half of nineteenth century. This movement was a vivid response to the Industrial Revolution, as well as a revolt against existing political and social norms (Gunderson 38). Romanticism was an ideological system that criticized rationalistic nature of assumption.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on History of Romanticism specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Therefore, the priority was given to the development of visual arts, literature, music, and natural sciences. Romanticism had a potent impact on political life, leading to the development of radical and liberal view on governance. Romanticism is characterized by free expressions of emotions and feeling, which is often exposed in literature, artistic works, and science. The significance and nature of Romanticism is also analyzed by German artist Caspar Friedrich and poet William Wordsworth. The supporters of the Romantic Movement point to the spontaneous and irrational display of powerful emotions and feeling that allow humans express themselves. In terms of artistic representation, the emphasis should be placed on imagination as the major source for creating artistic works whereas artificial rules should be ignored. Additionally, the representatives of Romantic Movement attained much importance of genuineness and originality of ideas and thoughts. Why is the 19th Century Called The Romantic Era? The nineteenth century is called the Romantic Era because describes a historical and cultural movement characterized by aesthetic style and attitude toward art, literature, and science. In artistic sphere, romanticism was a protest against the neoclassical search for intellectual control and order (Gunderson 16). A human, therefore, should be guided by sense and intuition rather than by logic and reasoning. Finally, people should b e free from dogma dictated by the Church. In literature, Romantic Movement can be perceived as a shift in Western mythological trends in portraying heroes. In fact, real hero with ordinary abilities and skills prevailed instead of focus on supernatural phenomenon. The movement features strong emotion as a powerful tool for expressing aesthetic experience, with an emphasis placed on such emotional states as horror, apprehension, and awe that were especially encouraged during that time. In artistic field, painters focused on picturesque representation of natural landscapes, as well as naturalized interpretation of human activities. Despite the fact that movement originates from Europe – the cradle of scientific discoveries – it supported prevalence of emotion and intuition over rational approaches practiced during the era of Enlightenment.Advertising Looking for assessment on art? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Is Being Romantic Different Today from that in19th Century? In modern times, the concept of Romanticism has not been changed when it comes to the core concepts and outlooks. At the same time, there are certain shifts in terms of the creation of marginal movements and various streams within this ideology. It should also be stressed that Romanticism has largely been affected by technological progress and innovation and, therefore, the modern supporters of this movement fight against spread of state-of-the-art technologies because destruct humans and nature. Usually, ‘romantic’ minds usually possess a progressive mind and, therefore, these people are not afraid of expressing ideas that differ radically from the well-acknowledge ones. Additionally, being romantic is still associated with absence of knowledge. Instead, the emphasis is placed on imagination and unlimited self-expression. Within the context of the rapid development of consumerist culture, it can be sta ted that Romanticism has played a crucial role in advancing the industrialization process due to the straightforwardness of the ideas. At the same time, the modern Romanticism stands apart from technological and industrial development because it is now regarded as a socio-cultural movement representing pieces of art and literary work. Do Men and Women Have Different Ideas about What Is Romantic? Psychologists would definitely argue that males and females feel differently due to the peculiarities of their nervous systems. Indeed, both men and women refer to different forms of romantic attachments, particularly when it comes to romantic relationships. In this respect, multiple research studies prove that men are prone to be les anxious and more avoidant as compared to women (Erdman and Ng 211). When men become attached to relationships, they tend to create distance to be on the save side and make things easier. In fact, they ignore romantic attachments and feelings. In contrast, women tend to be more anxious. Being attached increases their anxiety and therefore, close relationships could be more disruptive for women in emotional terms, as compared to men. In this respect, it can be concluded that women are more prone to be romantic because they are not afraid of expressing their feelings whereas men are expected to use reason to take control of the situation. Is Romanticism Universal or Do Different Cultures Have Different Ideas? When it comes to the different views on romanticism in various cultures, the focus should be on the concept of collectivism and individualism, as well as on low-context and high-context cultures. In this respect, Western countries, in which the priority is given to individualism and low-context dependence, romanticism is closely associated with freedom of self-determination and expression of ideas (Erdman and Ng 215). In Eastern countries, which are characterized by individualism and high-context environment, people are less oriented to ward romanticism because individuals are highly affected by traditions, rituals, and customs that restrict human freedom to express their emotions freely.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on History of Romanticism specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Work Cited Erdman, Phyllis, and Kok-Mun Ng. Attachment: Expanding the Cultural Connections. US: Taylor Francis. 2010. Print. Gunderson, Jessica. Romanticism. US: The Creative Company, 2008. Print.

Friday, November 22, 2019

Marduk the Mesopotamian Creation God

Marduk the Mesopotamian Creation God Marduk- also know as Bel or Sanda- is a Babylonian creator god who defeats an earlier generation of water gods to form and populate the earth, according to the earliest written creation epic, the Enuma Elish, which is presumed to have heavily influenced the writing of Genesis I in the Old Testament. Marduks acts of creation mark the start of time and are commemorated annually as the new year. Following Marduks victory over Tiamat, the gods assemble, celebrate, and honor Marduk by conferring 50 name attributes on him. Marduk Gains Power Over the Gods Marduk became prominent in Babylonia, thanks historically to Hammurabi. Nebuchadnezzar I was the first to officially acknowledge that Marduk was head of the pantheon, in the 12th century B.C. Mythologically, before Marduk went into battle against the salt-water god Tiamat, he obtained power over the other gods, with their volition. Jastrow says, despite his primacy, Marduk always acknowledges Eas priority. The Many Names of Marduk Marduk, having received 50 names, received epithets of other gods. Thus, Marduk may have been associated with Shamash as a  sun god and with Adad as a storm god. According to A Dictionary of World Mythology, there was a henotheistic tendency in the Assyro-Babylonian pantheon that led to the incorporation of various other gods within Marduk. Zagmuk, the spring equinox new years festival marked the resurrection of Marduk. It was also the day the Babylonian kings powers were renewed. Sources Studies in Marduk, by W. G. Lambert. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (1984).Sennacherib and Tarsus, by Stephanie Dalley. Anatolian Studies (1999).The civilization of Babylonia and Assyria, by Morris Jastrow (1915)

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Wine Industry Association of WA Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Wine Industry Association of WA - Lab Report Example Today Australia is having more than one thousand wineries and about twenty thousand wine-industry workers are living in the country.† 1 If someone thinks the wine as a romantic unchangeable institution, he can be forgiven, but it is not true. The wine has always been influencing the market.† 2 sustain the global reputation. The organization is having 9 main wine producing regions and few sub-regions. Western Australia produces merely 3 percent of the Australia’s wine but astonishingly nearly 30 percent of its premium quality wines are produced in this region.† 3 The education centers are the new concept to pull up the sales. The top management takes the decisions and the lower level staffs follow that. The board of the Directors includes the top management team like producer [category A], Vice president Grower, treasurer producer, producer [category B], distributer, general manager and some other top ranked officers. Second level staffs are basically marketing and even manager, sales manager, export manager. These are basically the internal structures of the organization. Some volunteers are there to do exhibitions and trade fare and to manage the wine education centers. of the whole nation are produced in the Western Australian wine industry. South Australian Wine industries are very much reputed for the high volume of wine they produce. However, few of the promising competitors are Wine makers federation of Australia, Wine Grape Growers Association, Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation and Grape & Wine Research & Development Corporation. Most of these competitors are having their own wine education centers. The macro-environment is the larger view of the environment in which the particular wine industry is performing their acts. PESTEL analysis is very much important to understand the socio-economic impact on the industry. Economic Factors: These factors are

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Final take home exam Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Final take home exam - Term Paper Example Hence, the quality of interaction has improved to a great level. This eventful journey of social media development is marked by several milestones. I will be highlighting 5 of the most key moments in the history of social media. In my opinion, the first one is obviously the development of e-mail. E-mail is probably the first form of digital message. The next one is development of Genie, which was an online forum that led the foundation of social media. I believe the third milestone was a major shift in terms of development (Freeman, 2010). It came in the form of world’s first social platform where users actually got the opportunity to get in touch with their loved ones. The website was known to as classmates.com. The emergence of Friendster, improved and modern social media platform is the next big thing to have happened. The craze was such that within the first month of its launch, around 3 million people joined in. The last major breakthrough came in the form of modern day n etworking platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. These networks support online transfer of various types of file and has actually taken communication to the next level. The journey of social media has been an eventful one and it is expected that with a similar rate of development, soon human being will experience a new world through the eyes of social networking platforms. Properties of social media Social media is referred to as a virtual network or community where users gather to communicate among themselves and at the same time create and exchange information about the various topics. Therefore from the above findings I can conclude that social media acts as a mediator between the users. Some of the key properties of social media are quality, reach, frequency, accessibility, usability, immediacy, and permanence. I believe these aforementioned properties create disparities among the different social media forms and are the reason that leads to various types of social media (Kietzmann, Hermkens, McCarthy & Silvestre, 2011). For example, due to differences in the features we come across two terms, namely social media and industrial media. The major difference between social and industrial media is that industrial media is more expensive. It includes television, newspapers and films. In my opinion, it is important to distinguish different forms of media because without distinction new forms will never emerge and can even act as a hindrance. In the context of the difference between the new forms of media with rational forms is its ability to go viral. Due to the presence of a million of registered users a small issue can go viral through social media. Types of social media As seen above, social media has various features that allow users to accomplish crucial tasks. However, when a discussion about social media is going on, it is a necessity to underline the different types of social media present in the virtual world. From my personal experience as well as consultation of the textbooks, I have found there are 6 different types of social media namely collaborative projects, blogs and micro-blogs, content communities, social networking sites, virtual game worlds, and virtual social worlds (Gillgian, 2011). According to me, all of the aforementioned types of social media has their own significance and can be described as unique,

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Integration versus generic approach Essay Example for Free

Integration versus generic approach Essay Integration versus Generic Approach Author Note This paper is being submitted on November 17, 2013, HS/100 Introduction to Human services course. Integration versus Generic Approach The integration concept is that which emphasis’s on the integrating of the various human services systems under one organizational or administrative system. In the most basic terms, an integrated service delivery approach serves people better, more efficiently and effectively. Integration calls for people within agencies to be involved and invested in the process of sustainable change. To achieve truly integrated services, organizations must overcome their own interests and look at clients’ needs. (Friedman and Pagan, 2011). Today technology allows human service agencies to have a comprehensive view of client need, giving caseworkers the best information to look at services across programs and to allocate available resources to assist customers. This enables agencies to deploy necessary services quickly in a well-coordinated fashion (Freidman and Pagen, 2011). The generic approach to human services, in part, has integration, but it is generally believed that the existing human services structure is most accurately described as an array of potentially related programs that deliver distinct benefits or services to narrowly defined target populations. These programs are usually separate and distinct, through which money, regulations, and professional norms, and expectations flow. While some overlapping across programs has always existed, each usually operates in a relatively self-contained manner (Corbett and Noyes, 2008). I believe that the integration approach serves our publics best interest. To have all systems and programs come together to see the big picture, to focus on all the problems together, instead of having to go place to place to work on separate issues Unfortunately, a  ready-made definition of service integration does not exist. We have not been able to find a magic threshold that marks the separation of unintegrated service systems from those we would characterize as integrated (Corbett and Noyes, 2008). (Ragan, 2003) states, â€Å"There is no single answer. Based on observations†¦service integration is a combination of strategies that simplifies and facilitates clients’ access to benefits and services. Each site has implemented a distinctive mix of strategies, processes, and partner agencies†.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Parent-Child Relationship Essay -- Self Esteem, Struggle for Control

Parents play a major role in the development and the life of a child. According to the Encyclopedia of Psychology, parenting practises is universal because of three common goals: ensuring children's health and safety, preparing children for life as productive adults and transmitting cultural values. Although, the modern days inventions as well as peers pressures are affecting children's behavior,however parents that are not overly controlling can use these traits to develop their children for the good. Perhaps this is why Amy Tan's story, â€Å"Two Kinds,† is so interesting. This story helps us to better understand relationships between parents and children by showing us how parents struggles for control with their children, why parents fight child for control, and why parents cannot control their children , but can only guide them. To begin with, â€Å"Two Kinds,† helps us to better understand relationships between parents and children by showing us how parents struggles for control with their children. First, Amy Tan, a second -generation Chinese describes parents and children using power and control to get their needs and wants met. She demonstrates that as children grow, they try to gain power in order to get control over their lives. For example in the story her mother believed that she could be anything in America. Consequently, she wanted her to become a prodigy. Amy would take tests from her mother every night. However, she was frustrated with every test and the drive inside her began to vanish as she decided to be disobedient to her mother. â€Å"And then I saw what seemed to be the prodigy side of me because I had never seen that face before. I looked at my reflection, blinking so I could see more clearly. The girl staring b... ...hild development may help parents give children choices to help parents give children choices to help them develop their guidelines as they matures. However, parents need to take responsibility for the choices they make. Excessive control is not a forced decision. With the adequate public information and dedication, parents can guide their children to become productive citizens. When a parent confront an obstinate child, all it takes is for her not to take it personally, or overreact by saying abusive things, giving her severe punishments or physically hurting the child. Work Cited Tan, Amy. â€Å"Two Kinds.† Literature Reading, Reacting, Writing. Ed. Laurie G. Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. 8th ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2013. 687-695. print. Kazdin, Alan E., Phd. Encyclopedia of Psychology, Volume 8, March 2000. Parent-Child Relationship Essay -- Self Esteem, Struggle for Control Parents play a major role in the development and the life of a child. According to the Encyclopedia of Psychology, parenting practises is universal because of three common goals: ensuring children's health and safety, preparing children for life as productive adults and transmitting cultural values. Although, the modern days inventions as well as peers pressures are affecting children's behavior,however parents that are not overly controlling can use these traits to develop their children for the good. Perhaps this is why Amy Tan's story, â€Å"Two Kinds,† is so interesting. This story helps us to better understand relationships between parents and children by showing us how parents struggles for control with their children, why parents fight child for control, and why parents cannot control their children , but can only guide them. To begin with, â€Å"Two Kinds,† helps us to better understand relationships between parents and children by showing us how parents struggles for control with their children. First, Amy Tan, a second -generation Chinese describes parents and children using power and control to get their needs and wants met. She demonstrates that as children grow, they try to gain power in order to get control over their lives. For example in the story her mother believed that she could be anything in America. Consequently, she wanted her to become a prodigy. Amy would take tests from her mother every night. However, she was frustrated with every test and the drive inside her began to vanish as she decided to be disobedient to her mother. â€Å"And then I saw what seemed to be the prodigy side of me because I had never seen that face before. I looked at my reflection, blinking so I could see more clearly. The girl staring b... ...hild development may help parents give children choices to help parents give children choices to help them develop their guidelines as they matures. However, parents need to take responsibility for the choices they make. Excessive control is not a forced decision. With the adequate public information and dedication, parents can guide their children to become productive citizens. When a parent confront an obstinate child, all it takes is for her not to take it personally, or overreact by saying abusive things, giving her severe punishments or physically hurting the child. Work Cited Tan, Amy. â€Å"Two Kinds.† Literature Reading, Reacting, Writing. Ed. Laurie G. Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. 8th ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2013. 687-695. print. Kazdin, Alan E., Phd. Encyclopedia of Psychology, Volume 8, March 2000.

Monday, November 11, 2019

Final Assignment : Sugar-Sweetened Beverages

Francesca Mancini Prof. Nakamoto October 23, 2012 Final Assignment  : Sugar-Sweetened Beverages The article â€Å"A Randomized Trial of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages and Adolescent Body Weight†(2012) aims at examining the causal relationship between the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and obesity among adolescents. The research for this article is a follow up of a previous pilot study that has been conducted on a period of six months involving normal weight, overweight, and obese adolescents who consumed sugar sweetened beverages regularly.Results showed that there was a significant decrease of body weight and body mass index (BMI) among the overweight and obese adolescents. Due to this result, a further study has been designed to reanalyze the data from the pilot study and further explain the effects of sugar-sweetened beverages. The research method used was a random sample of 224 adolescents that are obese or overweight who consumed at least one serving of sugar-sweet ened beverages or fruit juice per day. Participants were randomly assigned to a control group or an experimental group for two years; where one year would be an intervention and the second year a follow up.Since the participants are young, the parents provided a written consent and the participants a written assent. The multicomponent intervention aimed to reduce the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages for one year in the experimental group by providing access to home delivery of non-caloric beverages. Motivational telephone calls with parents were conducted on a monthly basis and three check-in visits with participants. The control group on the other hand received $50 supermarket gift cards to participants at four to eight months as a retention strategy but did not instruct them on what to purchase with the cards.It is important to note that the study did not focus attention to other diet methods or physical activity, however, they have included the daily physical activity lev el and the amount of television watched daily. The measures for his study: * Demographics: sex, race, date of birth, ethnic group, parents level of education, and total annual household income. * Physical activity: in collaboration with the persons metabolic equivalence. * Television viewing: hours per day. * Dietary intake: includes three main items. 1) beverages per servings per day: a-sugar-sweetened, b-fruit juices, c-artificially sweetened, d- unsweetened. ) energy intake per calorie per day: a-total, b-sugar-sweetened beverages, c-fruit juices. 3)Sugar grams per day. * Weight and height: in kilograms and centimeters (these are used to compute the BMI * BMI as an outcome over the two years: used the bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) to calculate body fat. * Adverse events: any symptom or medical attention that was reported during the study. Hypothesis: One single hypothesis was formulated for this study. They hypothesized that the experimental group would gain weight at a slower rate than the control group.Results: When testing the covariates for interaction, Hispanic ethnic group is found to be the only modifier for group differences, as they have portrayed the most change; causing the study to add an interaction term for the ethnic group. At baseline, regarding the demographics or other variables, there were no differences between the experimental and the control groups. In terms of dietary intake at year one, change in consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages was different between the control and the experimental groups; declining almost to zero for the experimental.Also meaning that the experimental group consumed more artificially or un-sweetened beverages. At year two, same results remained however, the intake of artificially sweetened beverages did not differ between the groups. Also, sugar intake in both years was less for the experimental group. In terms of the outcomes, at year one the net BMI was significant, but not in year two. When suga r was added to the BMI measure there was no longer a significance. Body fat was not significant among the groups. Although, there was no intervention done for physical activity, the experimental group watched less television.In terms of ethnic group, among Hispanics in the two years, there was significant effect on the BMI, as well as in the change of body weight. The effects of Hispanic youth was strong compared to the non-Hispanics. Discussion: The results show a support of the hypothesis; the experimental group did gain weight but at a slower rate than the control group. These are shown in the results of the overall BMI computed and the overall weight of the participants. Most of the difference is due to the Hispanic participants, as they are the ones that showed to have the most effect out of the intervention.Even if the overall study did support the hypothesis in quest, there are many discussion points towards the results and the overall study: * The unexpected finding that the Hispanics are the ones that have showed the most dominant findings, causing the major change in BMI over two years, is one that should be studied more. It is interesting that they started out with a sample that includes diversity, however, if the Hispanics hadn’t been part, the hypothesis wouldn’t have been supported.There is a reason to why the Hispanics have been affected this much, it would be interesting as they have stated, to look more into the physiology and in generic susceptibility. * During the second year, when the intervention was not playing a critical role, there was an effect but not as powerful. The level of consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and juice had increased a bit and this shows that the intervention was not that efficient as with time this will increase. It is clear that the results of the study were conducted and everything they needed to establish was accomplished, though, the aim is to keep that behavior going.There should have been a stronger message that could be captured by the participants. * They did not focus on any other diet activity or exercise because their main focus was to check the effect of the sugar-sweetened beverages and non-caloric beverages; wanting to leave everything constant. However, (explaining on a personal level) when people are in an intervention, there is some kind of psychological factor that works to lead to the belief that they are on a certain form of diet; causing them to indirectly adjust other things in heir lifestyle (although in the results shown, people have gained weight overall, but it still makes a small difference). If we look closely at the results in year one, the participants technically did decrease their overall weight because as the height increased, it causes a slight change to the weight, therefore leading to an increase in BMI; whereas in year two, one would think that there would be same constant increase (as the increase in height did not differ much) however, participants gained more than the previous year.Which leads to the previous point that shows that the intervention was not efficient enough to stay through the follow up, the participants did not continue the behavior change. * The measure of the time spent watching television daily is also a critical factor that was not used much, as it was clearly stated that they were not examining the effect of physical activity or anything else; it was just an overall view. Results stated that the experimental group did spend less hours watching television; maybe it is relevant to the key point stated earlier about the unconscious change in lifestyle. â€Å"Missing values for BMI were imputed by assessing that the participants’ BMI z score was unchanged from baseline†(p. 3). Including manipulated data to the results would have an effect on the overall study, the missing information of any participant should just be omitted, as well as the participant itself. * There was no intera ction with the parents level of education and the total household income, probably useful to show the differences among social classes; as the study is one of a diverse sample, including differences in all characteristics. * Adverse events were included, however, did not have much significance with the study.. n this study of reduced sugar-sweetened beverages, there are not side effects that could lead to any severe injury. Probably it was necessary to cover everything needed, maybe during a severe injury, the interventions was not followed or the participant have gained or lost weight because of the incident. Impact of paper on intervention: Sugar-sweetened beverages has an effect on the increase of body weight, this was evaluated in the article through an intervention that included the provision of non-caloric beverages to check the difference in weight gain among the two groups of study (experimental and control).There were some issues that the article â€Å"A Randomized Trial o f Sugar-Sweetened Beverages and Adolescent Body Weight†(2012) does not answer; these are issues that relate to the messages sent out. To start by saying, an intervention in medical terms is â€Å"any measure whose purpose is to improve health or alter the course of disease† (Medical Dictionary). In this paper, the intervention aimed at the provision of non-caloric beverages aimed at reducing the consumption of sugar sweetened beverages, however, the message was not strong enough.It was a trial period of one year to check if sugar sweetened beverages did cause a gain in weight, and whether substituting these with non-caloric beverages would make a difference at a slower pace, and it most certainly did. The researchers did not identify to the participants and their parents what promotes or protects weight gain; they should communicate the effects of these sugar-sweetened beverages, the idea behind using non-caloric beverages, the impact it has on the body, and the aim of modifying the behavior to adjust obesity problems.The telephone calls every month did not include information, just checking up with parents of child’s consumption. Overall the paper did provide the non-caloric beverages, however, it did not communicate the impact of these beverages body weight. Study proposal: To recap, the study in the article provided emphasized on difference in weight gain over a period of two years. One year was including the intervention where non-caloric beverages were provided, and the other year was a follow up, with no intervention.The research however, did not focus on any details about the drinks itself or the amount consumed per day, except that it was non-caloric and â€Å"diet† beverages. A proposed study that includes different variables of beverage intake is going to be explained shortly. The aim is to review the research and suggest additional variables and measurements that are going to be tested and therefore, predict the results. T he research proposed is derived from the study of the article â€Å"Reduction in Consumption of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages is associated with weight loss: The Premier Trial† (2009) by Chen, Appel, Loria, et al.Obesity and overweight rates in Europe are increasing as the years pass and is a serious public health concern, at the range of 7. 6% to 24. 7% as reported by the Statistical Office of European Union (2011). A major factor for this obesity is the increase in dietary energy intake from beverages. Energy intake among European adolescents is on average 1455 ml/day, mostly consumed from sugar-sweetened beverages, fruit juice, and sweetened milk (Duffey et al. , 2011). Calories consumed in liquid for have weak satiety properties and cause poor energy compensation compared with calories from solid food (Chen et al. 2009). Having explained that, it is safe to say that the reduction in liquid calorie intake may lead to weight loss, which leads to the purpose of this study; to ex amine how changes in the beverages consumption affect weight change among adolescents: * How changes in liquid calorie intake affects the body weight * How changes in consumption of specific beverages affect body weight * The effect of both in terms of time—6 months and 18 months This study is in Europe, more particularly in Switzerland and the sample population is adolescents.We are going to use the same sample size of 224 adolescents that are overweight or obese and that consume sugar-sweetened beverages, juices, or any form of energy intake in the form of liquids on a daily basis. Just like the previous study, there will be a written informed consent provided by the parents and a written assent provided by the participants. The intervention includes participants to be involved in groups where they receive information and behavioral counseling; information and advice on the impact of sugar-sweetened beverage consumption on body weight.Each individual receives two 30 min che ck-in sessions every month as well as group meetings every other week, in addition to the original monthly telephone call with the parents. In this study the control would be the baseline, as everyone is part of the intervention, and all participants would be studied closely in order to see the effects of decreased consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages as time passes. Data collection is done in three parts: at baseline, at 6 months, and at 18 months.To begin, a questionnaire would be filled in order to get the baseline characteristics of each individual, followed by an interview via telephone to provide the â€Å"unannounced† 24 hour dietary intake (including portion size and exercise). This was done every time new results had to be measured, meaning at baseline, 6 months, and 18 months. The hypotheses formulated for the study: Hypothesis 1: changes in consumption of liquid calories will cause a reduction in weight; only when liquid calorie is decreased.Hypothesis 2: chang es in consumption of individual types of beverages will cause a reduction in weight. Hypothesis 3: Weight reduction in terms of any decrease of sugar-sweetened beverages will be greater in 6 months, compared to 18 months. The design presented: Independent variable (what we manipulate): Liquid calories Types of beverages Dependent variable (what we measure): Weight change Design 1 | Body Weight:| Liquid Calories: | 6 months | 18 months | No change | No change | No change| Increase on 100 kcal| Increase | Increase |Decrease of 100 kcal| Decrease (0. 3kg)| Decrease (0. 2kg)| Design 2 | Body Weight| Beverage Category:| 6 months | 18 months| Decreased by one serving | Sugar-Sweetened| Decrease (0. 5kg)| Decrease (0. 7kg)| Diet Drinks| No effect| No effect | 100% Juice| No effect | No effect| Other (milk, coffee,.. )| Decrease (0. 1kg)| Decrease (0. 2kg)| The measures for this study: * Demographics: sex, race, date of birth, ethnic group, parents level of education, and total annual house hold income. * Physical activity: in collaboration with the persons metabolic equivalence.Evaluated in the questionnaire, as a recall of the previous 7 day activity. * Dietary intake: includes portion size 1) beverages per servings per day 2) energy intake per calorie per day: a-sugar-sweetened beverages, b- juices, c- diet drinks. Received through â€Å"unannounced† telephone calls 24 hour dietary intake. * Beverages divided into categories: a- sugar-sweetened, b- diet drinks, c- 100% juice, d- other: includes milk, coffee, tea, †¦ * Weight and height: in kilograms and centimeters – these are used to compute the BMI.Results: The results do show that the change in liquid calorie intake does affect body weight and that a decreased in beverage type will also cause body weight to decrease, however, this is explained in more detail. In terms of hypothesis 1- a decrease in liquid calorie did cause a decrease in body weight. Results have shown that a reduction of 100 kc al was associated with a decrease of 0. 3 kg at 6 months and a 0. 2 kg at 18 months (Chen et al. , 2009).In terms of hypothesis 2- there was a relationship with beverage type and body loss, however, not with all the beverage types; with some there was no correlation. When tested, a reduction of one serving of sugar-sweetened beverage was significantly associated with weight loss at both 6 months and 18 months. Diet drinks, 100% juice were inversely associated with weight loss, but this was not statistically significant, leading to not effect in weight loss; a decrease of one serving of the other beverages did show a slight decrease in weight loss along both time periods (Chen et al. 2009). In terms of hypothesis 3- weight reduction will be greater at 6 months, compared to 8 months, showed no significance; the opposite occurred. Compared to baseline, as stated in hypothesis 1, the weight loss was greater at 18 months, also proven at a reduction in sugar-sweetened beverages by one ser ving was associated with a 0. 5kg weight loss at 6 months and a 0. 7kg weight loss at 18 months (Chen et al. , 2009). Meaning at 18 months people lost more weight than at 6 months. Discussion/ Commentaries: From the proposed study, findings have suggested that a reduction in liquid alorie intake was significant with weight loss in both 6 months and 18 months, and that the reduction of sugar-sweetened beverages was also associated with weight loss in these periods of time. The original study by Ebbeling et al. , (2012) was an intervention to reduce the number of sweet-sugar beverages consumed and instead consume the unsweetened beverages or non-caloric beverages. This was studied without advising the participants on the effects of these beverages on the body and overall weight, just by observation and calculation of BMI.Although the results were aimed at checking the weight gain in two years between a control group and an experimental group, their focus was on the result of the BMI w hich is a measure relative to weight and height: people had an increased BMI as they were growing taller and gained more mass. In this proposed study however, the intervention is focusing on the opposite outcome, the weight loss with time of using less sugar-sweetened beverages, the measure here was the overall weight difference caused by these beverages, shown in kg. It also includes counseling, advice, and information on the effect of these beverages on the body.Overall, this is mainly planned so that people could accept this behavior change; and because this is done on obese and overweight participants, the behavior of reducing the intake of these sugar-sweetened beverages is one that should be continued – when participants see a change in the overall weight loss (in which the study has proven to be supported), they would be more motivated to carry on this behavior. It is merely a way of tackling the same issue but in a different way with a stronger intervention – m ore information given to participants.Aside research has shown that the link between sugar-sweetened beverages and body weight is related to the high fructose content in these beverages. On the long-term this can promote fat storage and excessive food intake through an increase and change in the hormonal patterns that are related to this issue –called the â€Å"postpantrial hormone patterns† (Chen et al. , 2009). This is probably why in hypothesis 2, the other types of beverages did not have an effect on weight change, as they do not have the same amount of fructose.The different nutritional components of each beverage type has a different effect on the body, some aiding in the process of losing weight and others adding difficulties, while some have no effect. Another point that is interesting to point out is that earlier, the term liquid calories was used, this is to state the specific energy intake, as there are two kinds of energy intake- the liquid and the solid fo rm; this study is focusing on the liquid calorie intake of most prominent beverages. Strengths and Limitations:Some strengths of this study is the duration of the study, it was long enough to test if there is a significant difference in the change of consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, also the ability to evaluate a variety of beverages and knowing the effects of each on the body, as this might affect the overall effect. Another strength would be the responsiveness and excellent participation rate on the group meetings, the individual session, and the availability of information about the 24 hour dietary recall to measure dietary intake.Some might argue that the â€Å"unannounced† 24 hour dietary intake may be a little bit faulty, that the dietary intake should be written on a daily or weekly basis in order to evaluate it better; not just done at baseline, 6 months and 18 months. Although this point may seem like a limitation, the study sees it as a strength as the inte rvention is focusing on the liquid calorie, with the behavioral counseling and advice on increasing or decreasing liquid calories is pretty clear that there is a tight control and a trust that the participants are following what is being told.Some limitations of this proposed study would be the lack of follow up, the study was aimed at 18 months with the manipulation of calorie intake from different kinds of beverages along with counseling, there was no follow up to see if people maintained the lower calorie intake or not. Another limitation would be the lack of provision of these diet beverages or fruit juices in schools, we have not controlled what and where participants should obtain these beverages, we have just instructed them to do reduce the liquid calorie intake.The study has used a rather small sample size in order to have more control and focus on all the results yielded; there is no doubt that the results would be different, however, it is always better to pick a larger s ample size as we are referring to the country as a whole. What we learned: What we learn from this study is that the reduction in liquid calorie intake is associated with weight loss, specially in the reduction of sugar-sweetened beverages.In this study, while focusing on the weight in kg, the result change in overall body fat was clear; the overall change in weight because of liquid calorie reduction is not a large amount, however; it does prove that it has an effect on weight gain or weight loss. Moreover, the study supports policy recommendations and public health efforts to reduce intakes of liquid calories, specially the reduction in sugar-sweetened beverages (Chen et al. , 2009).A number of factors were assumed , however, more prospective studies with accurate measures of exposures and outcomes in terms of body composition are needed to provide more robust evidence on which to base interventions to achieve long-term behavioral change and prevent excess weight gains in adolesce nts (Rennie, Johnson, & Jebb, 2005). References Chen, L. , Appel, L. J. , Loria, C. , Lin, P. H. , Champagne, C. M. , Elmer, P. J. , †¦ Caballero, B. (2009). Reduction in Consumption of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages is Associated with Weight Loss: the PREMIER Trial. American Society for Nutrition 89:1299-306. Retrieved from http://ajcn. utrition. org/content/89/5/1299. full. pdf+html. Christian Nordqvist. (2011). European Adult Obesity Rates Range From 7. 6% To 24. 7%. Medical News Today. Retrieved from http://www. medicalnewstoday. com/articles/ 238283. php. Ebbeling, C. B. , et al. (2012). A Randomized Trial of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages and Adolescent Body Weight. New England Journal of Medicine, 367:15, Oct. 11, 2012, 1407-1416. Intervention. (2007). In Medical Dictionary online. Retrieved from http://medicaldictionary. thefree dictionary. com/intervention. Duffey, K. J. , Huybrechts, I. , Mouratidou, T. , Libuda, L. , Kersing, M. , De Vriendt, †¦ Popkin, B. M. 2011). Bever age Consumption Among European Adolescents in the HELENA Study. Eur J Clin Nutr. 66(2):244-52. doi: 10. 1038/ejcn. 2011. 166. Epub 2011 Sep 28. Retrieved from http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/pubmed/21952695 Rennie, K. L. , Johnson, L. , Jebb, S. A. (2005). Behavioural Determinants of Obesity. MRC Human Nutrition Research, 19(3):343-58. Just in case: http://ajcn. nutrition. org/content/87/6/1662. short http://pediatrics. aappublications. org/content/123/4/e661. abstract (used as a limitation cy my intervention did not include a policy inclusion in order to deal with the issue) http://ajcn. nutrition. org/content/84/2/274. full

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Discuss Somerset’s global supply chain Essay

Somerset Furniture Company (SFC) was founded in 1957 in Randolph County, Virginia. Traditionally, SFC manufactured large, medium-priced, ornate residential home wood furniture such as bedroom cabinets and chests of draws, and dining and living room cabinets, tables, and chairs. Somerset prides itself on customer service. They believe that late deliveries to its customers would harm its credibility and result in loss of customers and excessive inventories. Somerset has recently set up new strategies and tactics to meet goals and improve global supply chain. They first found their problems were, and focused on its core capacities that will improve productivities and reduce inefficiency to win in the global market. In the mid-1990s, SFC was faced with increasing foreign competition, high labor rates, and diminishing profits. SFC decided to outsource several of its furniture product lines to manufacturers in China. This reduced the size of its own domestic manufacturing facility and labor source. SFC considered quality and time as its core competences. SFC planned to implement and strengthen its core by adopting EDI, RFID, and RTA (ready to assembly) to acquire more competitiveness on time by reducing time, improving the delivery of economic value to customers. Because of supply chain variability, shipments can be off schedule or delayed. Since 9/11, random security checks delay shipments. SFC’s global supply chain was getting lose its competitive edge and even faced shipment delays by as much as 40%. SFC was initially successful in their idea to outsource their business on a limited basis. SFC has since then discovered that as many companies do this same thing, out sourcing can result in a host of supply chain problems. Discuss possible remedies for its supply chain problems. Reduce Variability: Somerset should implement processes and tools that will reduce variability. The current process orders furniture on a weekly and bi-weekly basis. The process takes between 12 and 25 days to develop a purchase order which is then released to the Chinese suppliers. With these kinds of gaps in order creation, it makes it extremely difficult to forecast demand. The supply chain can easily be improved by implementing a real-time internet driven system that allows for direct communication between the retail operations and the supplier. Suppliers then can begin manufacturing  new furniture as orders come in. Additionally, implementing such a system will help ensure that once an order is received, that there is an urgency to deliver that order to the store, versus the current process where it may take from one day to a month before furniture is delivered to a store. Somerset wants as much of the order delivered to a store as possible in order to improve their on hand inventory levels and reduce variability. Improved Transportation: Somerset should also leverage technology with its transportation companies. Technologies such as RFID can be used to provide real-time updates to the transportation company. With improved forecasting, thresholds can be established, so that once reached, a truck is pre-ordered with the expectation that a complete order will be reached once the truck reaches the manufacturing facility. With improved forecasting and the use of technology, the trucking company can better estimate its consumer needs, thus improving their preparedness. Shipping Partnerships: In order to improve the probability of securing shipping containers and to reduce the delays caused by security checks, Somerset should leverage partnerships with companies that have similar shipping needs. By increasing the scale of their shipping needs, Somerset and t heir partners can compete with larger companies like â€Å"Big W†, by placing advanced orders. Additionally, Somerset, will experience cost savings, because of the shared container costs. The company will have fewer concerns with partially filled containers. Lastly, due to the increased scalability, the company (along with the business partners) may be able to leverage their size and avoid delays caused by security checks. Alternative Suppliers: Somerset should begin exploring opportunities with different global suppliers. Given quality concerns with production facilities and the difficulties with improving transportation and shipping resources, China may not be the best supplier for Somerset. By securing a different supplier, Somerset can not only improve its quality (thus securing its reputation), but also improve the expedience with receiving its ordered goods. These improvements can result in cost savings and improved customer service for Somerset. Discuss strategic and tactical changes that might improve the company’s supply chain performance. Collaborative Data Collection: Somerset needs to partner with the stores they deliver furniture to in order to gat her sales and other data customer facing attributes like delivery performance, fill rate and order  fulfillment. They could use this data to address supply chain response time and make their production more flexible. This entire process should be automated and accessible over to all of the stakeholders. By evaluating this data and comparing it with data about their competitors Somerset can develop a more accurate model for forecasting future sales and returns by reducing the variability due to a shorter lead time. Optimizing the customer facing fulfillment system will provide insight into how to adjust their internal supply chain process. For example, Somerset will be able to shorten the time it takes to develop and release their purchase order to their Chinese manufacturers. However, this process needs to be automated and accessible to their Chinese manufacturer so they are better able to prepare to fulfill the orders in a timely manner. This purchase order process should be combined with a plan that incentivizes their manufacturer to process their orders quicker. They also need to penalize th e manufacture for faulty products and late delivery. Although they currently have a Quality Control process they should have their own representative participate in the QC the process in China. Since Somerset has the machinery to make the custom furniture, part of the agreement should include requiring their Chinese manufacturers to use them. They also need to find other manufacturers so that they can mitigate the risk if their primary manufacturer experiences a problem meeting the deadline or there is a problem with the shipping deadlines. New Product Release: Somerset should re-evaluate how they introduce new products and phase out old product lines. For example, instead of replacing the entire product line at the same time they could introduce new products that replace the products are beginning to experience a drop off in demand. They should also examine the cost of replacement parts. They should look for ways to replace the faulty parts at a minimal cost. Standardized Parts: Somerset should identify parts that can be made interchangeable. The use of standardized parts would cut down on the time and skill required to make the furniture without affecting their customized features. Another option would be for Somerset to incorporate the manufacture of replacement parts into the facility where new products are developed. That could reduce the cost and time it currently takes to get replacement parts from China. In order to address the partially filled container problem and the creaking issue Somerset should ship the parts in standardized boxes that stack better an  fill the containers. Then establish an assembly plant in the US. That also provides them with a final control over the quality of the finished product. Somerset should also add a distribution center in China where the products are delivered prior to being shipped to the US and another distribution center in the US near the port of entry. This would help address the delays in delivery to the ports. Furthermore, Somerset should purchase their own trucks and coordinate delivery of finished product s with the pickup of raw materials. Additionally they could ship these standardized containers via airplane verses relying exclusively on ships. Although they can’t shorten the time it takes their containers to clear customs Somerset could reduce the time it takes to deliver them by purchasing their own delivery trucks to pick up the delivery from the dock. They can still contract with larger delivery services pick up from the distribution centers. Please note that these distribution centers could act as warehouses where additional inventory is stored. Product Visibility: In order to further remove uncertainty the individual boxes should be bar coded and the containers should have RFID capabilities. As a result of using technology, Somerset will have visibility to status of their products and shipments at all times. The information derived from the enhanced process would enable Somerset to reduce the supply chain cost and continue optimize their supply chain efficiency ultimately cutting cost and increasing revenue. Discuss strategic and tactical changes that might reduce system variability. Somerset Furniture faces the challenge of trying to alleviate delayed shipments in their supply chain process from their current 40% variability rate. The dilemma with shipment lead time is that the determining factor is processed orders from the past. Somerset’s management team would evaluate their past orders to determine how much lead time was reasonable in order to forecast future furniture shipments. As we learned from the case, Somerset’s variability issues stem from many factors. Some of the factors are beyond Somerset’s control due to the strict compliance factors in International shipping. For example, the size of Somerset’s business causes them to generate more security checks than larger companies because of the smaller and infrequent number of shipments. These security checks can lead to a three week delay in the shipping process. Also there is a 3-6 day lead time for containers to be loaded at the docks. There really isn’t much that  Somerset can do about this lag time because ports have their own employees and contract labor group to handle loading and off-loading duties. Furthermore, ports order containers according to bulk demand and availability which makes it hard for companies like Somerset to control the 1-7 day wait time that it takes to empty and transport available containers to the port loading docks. Another issue facing Somerset and other retail companies is that companies like SunKist and SeaLand, who own containers, only wish to order and manufacture enough containers that can be loaded and off-loaded on a continuous basis. This maximizes the fleet inventory of SunKist and SeaLand so that they can generate the most profits from their assets. Container Purchase: One way that Somerset can alleviate this problem is to purchase or lease their own fleet of containers from container manufacturers. This would allow them to reduce the 1-7 day variability wait period for empty containers. Somerset Furniture could own or lease this inventory and contract with companies like SunKist or SeaLand to store the empty containers at their docks for rental fees. By purchasing or leasing their own fleet of containers and contracting with available container owners, Somerset would also be reducing the excess space problem that they are having due to the dimensions of the containers. By ordering th eir own fleet of containers, Somerset could customize the orders to better accommodate their furniture shipments thus maximizing container space. Regulatory Compliance: Another challenge facing Somerset is that the inventory trip from China to Somerset’s Norfolk warehouse takes 29 days. There really isn’t much that Somerset can do about this timeframe. In addition to the above waiting period, the stringent process that International shipments undergo during the Customs inspections is also beyond Somerset’s control. The only thing Somerset can do to alleviate this problem is to comply with every aspect of Customs to not cause a further delay in the process. Trucks can only be loaded with furniture when the containers past inspections at the docks. One would think that the common sense thing to do is to have trucks waiting on the containers to pass Customs to prevent further delays; however, 3rd Party trucking companies charge for hold over time. The reason behind the downtime charge is that they lose money if their vehicle fleet is not on the road carrying a load. The 1-3 day trip that it takes for trucks to get from Customs to Somerset’s  warehouse is a minor issue compared to the potential 30 day period that it takes for the trucks to be unlo aded at Somerset’s warehouse docks. Supplier Incentives: The variability issues for Somerset that are within their control exist on the front end of the process beginning with the work order and purchase order process. For starters, one of the things that Somerset can do to eliminate wait time is to offer incentives to its Chinese suppliers to search for ways to process purchase orders faster. If the Chinese suppliers can accurately and efficiently reduce the 10-20 day wait period it takes to process purchase orders on the front end, then Somerset Furniture Company can reduce the potential 30 day wait period that it takes to unload trucks on the backend at their warehouse. This would help Somerset Furniture to be able to reduce excess storage fees that they have to pay to 3rd Party trucking companies for having their trailers occupied for many days at Somerset’s docking stations. Another tactical strategy that Somerset can employ is to seek ways to reduce the 60 day wait time that it takes for their suppliers in China to begin the manufacturing process. Questions need to be asked. What kind of incentives can be offered to their suppliers to start the manufacturing process earlier? Are there other suppliers in China that Somerset can employ as sole supplier manufacturers? Employing sole suppliers would help to cut down on variability because there would be no other customers hindering the manufacturing process since Somerset would be the only customer. Lastly, rather than use low-cost suppliers in China, Somerset should do the math and see if it makes sense to become their own low-cost supplier in China. By searching for ways to reduce the 60 day manufacturing cycle ¸ Somerset could reduce excess inventory and increase Just-In-Time (JIT) shipments. Also by searching for a sole supplier in China, Somerset could enjoy a streamlined manufacturing process with little or no lag time. This in turn would help to alleviate the quality issues that Somerset was having because there would be one supplier to hold accountable for their product. Discuss strategic and tactical changes that might improve quality and customer service. We have listed multiple strategic and tactical changes that Somerset could potentially make to their organization that would not only improve the overall quality of their product, but would certainly improve their customer service. If Somerset made a deliberate effort to improve its transportation via technology, engage in strategic  shipping partnerships, standardize some of its key parts, and offer supplier incentives, it would undoubtedly improve its quality and its customer service. Inspections: In addition to the above listed items, Somerset should acquire the services of an independent auditor or inspector. By placing an independent inspector in the facilities of its Chinese suppliers, Somerset could greatly increase the quality of its products and would likely reduce the amount of customer complaints. Proactive Customer Service: Somerset could greatly increase its customer service by committing to a proactive customer service team. Somerset could increase the size of its customer service support function that would allow its customer service team more time to place courtesy calls, follow up calls, emails, and texts to customers that may have had a bad experience. A dissatisfied customer could likely become a lost customer if there is not a proactive customer service team to follow up on each issue. Customer Service Score Cards and Online Surveys: Lastly, Somerset should make every attempt to listen to the voice of its customers. Somerset could provide its customers with customer service score cards and/or online surveys so that they could stay in tune with the changing demands of their customers. The exceptions such as late deliveries or damaged products should be addressed as expeditiously as possible, however, it is in the organization’s best interest to know and understand what their customers like, dislike, want, and need. Customer service score cards and online surveys would give Somerset priceless feedback and it would open lines of communication between the organization and its customers.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Methods of Engagement in Afghanistan

Methods of Engagement in Afghanistan In a more instinctive manner, there is need to redefine Afghanistan’s security, economy and identity in order to minimize the increasing rate of poverty, tension and insecurity in the country (Kinsman, 2006). According to neoliberal theorists, Afghanistan has lost its ability to pursue self-interests in the international realm.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Methods of Engagement in Afghanistan specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Evidence derived from comprehensive analysis indicates that lack of human security; poor narcotic economy and identity crises have affected the rate of development in all sectors of the economy. Underdevelopment in the country has been manifested through low gross domestic production, literacy level, low life expectancy, frequent attacks and identity tension. This implies that firm steps must be taken to eradicate insecurity, violation of human rights and economic decline. By so doing, this guarantees increase in national security, economic growth and identity achievement (Kinsman, 2006). Furthermore, protection of human rights will help to overcome identity conflicts. Recently, economic relation theorists have raised concern on the state of economy, security and national identity in Afghanistan (Manley, 2007). Moreover, the theories have constantly insisted on the essence of national security, economic development and identity in response against international pressures. It is on this ground that this paper attempts to address and recommend how the economy, security and identity in Afghanistan can be eradicated. Theoretical approach From a theoretical perspective, it is evident that Afghanistan has lost its capacity to govern its self-interests in the international sphere (Kinsman, 2006). From a liberalist perspective, every country needs to have a central role to play in the international cooperation. Failure to this, the theorists perceive the state to have los t its power to the core states (Manley, 2007). Due to problems related to security, identity and economy, Afghanistan is unable to govern its national interest and thus can not offer a direction of its policies without external influence. To some extent, it has become a threat to international security due to Al-Qaida terrorist groups (Manley, 2007. However, these problems have been discussed in details below. Security It is apparent that security in Afghanistan has posed a great threat to the economy and identity of the citizens in particular (Ghaznizada, 2010). Evidence has been derived from the fact that the US army has been doubled to ensure security in the country as at 2009. For a long time, the US army has focused its effort in the country in order to eradicate the remnants of the warring groups (Manley, 2007. Frequent wars have left the country unstable for development and as well threatening the international community.Advertising Looking for essay on international relations? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Numerous steps have been made in the effort to increase security. Such include establishment of a transitional government and consultative forums through which a new constitution have been formed (Kinsman, 2006). According to the liberalists, the survival of the country will only be determined by the present state. An objective has been set on how to defeat armed insurgent and terrorist groups in Afghanistan. It is imperative to note that though efforts have been made to enhance national security, such agenda has been left in the hand of coalition allies and NATO forces (Kinsman, 2006). Nonetheless, security enhancement in Afghanistan requires comprehensive strategies in order to achieve better results. From the perceived evidence external force from NATO and USA might not make a predominant change toward the current state unless the critical demands of the warring Taliban are met ( Ghaznizada, 2010). Liberalist confirms that there can be no improvement in the security sector unless efforts are made to develop the economy and suitable political wing. In this case, it is perceived that such sectors are likely to evoke violence whenever there is any form of imbalance. Nevertheless, there rose a huge controversy over who is responsible for enhancing security in Afghanistan. According to liberal theories, the state should take a legitimate position in ensuring the security of the population. However, critics have given their views upon US, UN and NATO role in enhancing security in Afghanistan. Liberalists are against the idea through which the US army uses force to ensure security and protection of human rights in Afghanistan (Ghaznizada, 2010). To them, they perceive this as imperialism of the highest degree. In this case, they argue that great powers tend to assert their power over younger nations and thus they deprive them their self interests. According to this theory, a country should be set free since it understands its indigenous problems better and freedom from the contemporary challenges lies on the hands of the nationals. For this reason, issue of security in Afghanistan has been of great concern in the international relation realm. Recommendations have been made permitting the government to delegate some of its responsibilities to international agencies and external military forces. Additionally, commercial and non-government, organizations, should reinforce the government in bearing the ultimate responsibilities (Ghaznizada, 2010).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Methods of Engagement in Afghanistan specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Notably, we can not ignore the fact that though liberalists insist that the indigenous government should assume the role of fostering security, there are some constraints. For instance, Afghanistan government has been prone to shortage of resources, poor political ideologies and historical needs. In this case, there is a huge dilemma on how security can be enhanced through such a fragile political base. Therefore, external efforts from the US army, UN and NATO have made a tremendous mark in reinforcing the government to combat insecurity in Afghanistan (Kinsman, 2006). From a status review, it is evident that the US troops has unlimitedly donated resources in order to reconstruct the country irrespective of several limitations face. In this case, liberalists do not dismiss the role played by the ally groups. Furthermore, they confirm that there is need for there to be an international consensus in order to foster unilateral actions of rebuilding the country’s security. As mentioned earlier, it is therefore advisable to employ combined efforts where the indigenous government and the international organizations such as NATO, UN and US army will work together to enhance security in Afghanistan (Kinsman, 2006). In line with this, there are several recommendations in which this security as a major objective can be achieved in order to enhance ultimate success in Afghanistan. One of the recommendation involve establishment of provincial reconstruction teams (Manley, 2007. These teams are essential in ensuring that security reforms are followed strictly. Such reforms include disarmament and demobilization policies. In line with this, such teams strengthen the government’s ability to administer at the provincial and district levels. Another recommendation is use if international military to intervene and fight against terrorism. By so doing, this will help to establish both domestic and national security (Kinsman, 2006). In addition to this it is recommended that programs of demilitarization, reintegration and demobilizations should be formulated. Moreover, the programs should be well designed in order to reduce heavy armaments and acceleration of training activities for the terrorist groups. Such programs also help to devise alternative means of training and employing middle-level forces.Advertising Looking for essay on international relations? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More That not withstanding, it is also recommended that the country’s national army should be adequately trained (Radek, 2004). This makes them to become more equipped to fight and combat terrorist groups. This also enhances their warlord power over the existing militia terrorists. The government should also give them incentives in order to foster cooperation. In the long run, it will be possible to achieve national integration and security. Other than international organizations, there are other tools that can be used to ensure ultimate security in Afghanistan. For instance, the nons of such tactics include providing alternative means in which farmers would generate viable money, provide incentives and enhancing economic security (Anon, 2009). Moreover, the government should also castigate opium growers and as well the distillers in order to eradicate risks associated with nominal illegality. Establishment of security institutions would also make it hard for traffickers to smuggl e the drug. According to liberalists, the government should make the demands of the people to be superior and thus such illegal activities are justifiable since they are means of attaining basic amenities. In this case, there should be economic incentives that need to motivate people to abandon the illicit activities (Anon, 2009). For instance, diversification of food crop might not be effective unless the government provide the people with infrastructural facilities. The international organizations have played a large part in fostering economic security in Afghanistan in the past 6 years. International relation has established counternarcotics operations in Afghanistan. For instance, the USD agencies have declared a Jihad for the poppy production through sentiments such as drug control strategies. Instead, the US agency has tried to encourage licit agriculture and this has made poppy production to drop by 37% as at 2007 (Anon, 2009). However, I recommend that non-governmental organ izations to be used as tools that will reinforce the government in encouraging licit farming. Notably, efforts have been made to finance licit agriculture such as availing affordable farm equipments, quality seeds and fertilizers (Anon, 2009). Moreover, other international agencies such as the NATO have encouraged small scale businesses by providing financial aids in terms of loans. This has facilitated toward the growth of agro-processing and crop exports. Foreign aid and engagement from external agencies have emerged crucial for rebuilding Afghanistan’s economy (Kinsman, 2006). Due to the fact that the country still remains poor, liberalists confirms that there should be an increased role in which the indigenous government takes to promote economic growth (Kinsman, 2006). Therefore, it is recommended that for there to be economic progress the government of Afghanistan should be autonomous of eternal influence to determine the fate of its people. Nevertheless, this can be ve ry tricky since the government has been unable to eradicate the peace spoilers in favor of illicit activities. For this reason, no matter how much we try, it is impossible to do away with external organizations such as UN, US and NATO agencies (Anon., 2008). In this case, it is upon the government and international community to come together to foster comprehensive economic growth in the nation. Identity: The issue of identity has been debated upon in the international relations arena. In this case, international relation has devised tools and recommendations concerning identity as a political problem. In the context of Afghanistan, there exist two components of identity namely ethnic and religious identity. According to liberalists’ view, identity crises are inevitable particularly when a country is at its initial stages of political, social and economic evolutions. It is on this ground that the international relations aim to persuade Afghans to embrace religious beliefs tha t are not tied to violent extremist organizations. It is apparent that in Afghanistan there are several religions such as Islam and Christianity. However, Islam has the majority of the population. Ethnic identity guards the people toward their historical and social groups (Phillips, 2011). In this case, different ethnic groups have different values and relations. From the period of independence, Afghanistan has faced identity crisis even though there are no clear boundaries distinguishing each group. However, different identities in line with ethnicity have been used as a political tool thus creating tension. However, there have been factors that have influenced people’s identity. For instance the central government has played a major role in influencing people’s identity in a way through education and the media (Radek, 2004). The main goal of the government was to establish a common social identity referred to as the Pashtuns. The issue of identity has given rise to m any challenges since there are people who decline to associate themselves to a particular identity. Due to identity tension, some people have denied their own identity and other have opted to keep it a secret for fear of confrontations. Differing upon a common identity has made the country to lack a national familiarity and thus it become complicated to define Afghanistan in the international arena (Phillips, 2011). It is imperative to mention that by paying much attention on the traditional social groups people have been resented and thus decline to associate themselves to a particular social group. Therefore, due to resentment these groups waste time in acrimonious activities rather that taking time to develop an identity. For instance, there had been a Jihad war among the communist coup during the evolution of national identity (Radek, 2004). This war caused division among social groups each undertaking its own national duty on its own volition. However, the international relatio n agencies have tried to persuade the Afghans to embrace ethnic and religious beliefs that are not tied to violent extremist organizations. To achieve this goal several recommendations can be used to ensure success. For instance the international community, Afghanistan’s government and non-governmental organizations should encourage education for all (Kinsman, 2006). Through a unified education system it becomes easier to integrate individuals of different identities to interact and thus accept individual differences without tension. In the long run, education will help to weaken ethnic divisions (Narayanan, 2010). Moreover, it is recommended that international relation should try to persuade the Afghan’s government to increase large number of ethnic groups being represented in the central government (Manley, 2007. According to liberal theory, separate social groups have various demands to make depending on the national needs. Therefore it is not enough to let few ethn ic groups such as Pashtuns and Tarjik to represent other groups (Radek, 2004). In this case, to achieve an identity, there is need for a larger representation by strongly-developed ethnic and religious groups in the government. In a shift of focus, the only tool that is suitable in solving identity problem is the Afghan government. This is due to the fact that it is only the government that understands the indigenous difficulties concerning identity. Conclusion Imperatively, liberal theory is the best theories when addressing and giving recommendations to be followed to achieve success in terms of security, economy and identity issues in Afghanistan (Manley, 2007. The theorists conclude that security in Afghanistan has gone past the call for auxiliary international forces to in the country. However, It should not be enforces by increased armed force against the nationals but through a genuine reconciliation at the national level. This will help in addressing the grievances and deman ds of the Afghans. On the other hand, regardless of the wavering hope on the economy collective efforts can help to achieve sustainable growth of licit economy as opposed to the vast growing lethal economy. Concerning the issue of identity, Afghans need to identify themselves with non-extremist identity. By so doing, the country will be able to bear the external critics in the international arena. In a nut shell, problems of security, economy and identity can only be addresses through integrated approaches. Therefore, a combined effort from the government, international agencies (NATO, US, UN) and non-governmental organizations are required to see these problems solved. References Anon. (2008). Asia: No quick fixes; Afghanistans opium poppies. The Economist, 387(8585), 54. Anon. (2009). Opium Takes Over Families and Villages in Afghanistan. News for You, 57(41), 3. Ghaznizada, W. (2010). Afghan Air Force training facilities rebuilt after 20 years. Web. Kinsman, J. (2006). Afghanista n comes home. Policy Options, 28(1), 58-61. Manley, J. (2007). Afghanistan: meeting the development challenge. Policy Options, 28(9), 6-12. Narayanan, D. (2010). Afghanistan: Emerging From the Rubble. Web. Phillips, M. (2011). An Airline Magazine That Makes Travelers Want to Pull the Rip Cord: Safi Shows the Real Afghanistan, From Dog Fighting to Dry Swimming Pools. Web. Radek S. (2004). Meanwhile, in Afghanistan. National Review, 56(19), 34-36.

Monday, November 4, 2019

Behaviour management assignment

Behaviour management assignment INTRODUCTION Background information on the child The little boy in question (known as Greg Booker from here on – to protect his real identity) is 3 and three and quarter years old. He has attended nursery since the age of 3 and a half. Greg came for two pre visits to the nursery and both times it was observed that he did not want to leave mum’s lap and was unwilling to access the activities available, nor was he encouraged too by mum. In a group or class situation he is quiet and shy and does not like to talk to his peers and you can see he feels awkward around them. He has made little attempt to make friends within the group, selecting only one other child that he likes to stand with. Greg has made firm attachments to all the adults within the setting and will happily talk freely to them. (1)†Yet there is another group of children in our midst whose behaviour should be just as much a cause of concern to us, a group whose needs are different but just as important , and who are apt to get lost in the noise and confusion of modern life. They are the quiet children, the painfully shy, the withdrawn, the anxious, the friendless – the ‘invisible children’ (Makins, 1997). but when he feels comfortable with an adult he is confident to talk to them clearly and concisely. Background information of the family Greg lives with mum and dad and has one older sister they live within a nuclear family environment. All grandparents and aunts and uncles live in Scotland. Greg’s older sister attends the school attached to the nursery, she never attended nursery but upon entering the reception class took a very long time to settle (6 months to be precise – information obtained from reception class teachers). Mum realised that by not letting his sister attend the nursery setting was a mistake and freely admitted that she did not want the same for her son. Observed behaviour of parent and child on entering the setting When mum dro ps Greg of at nursery, she will come into the setting pick him up and kiss and cuddle the child excessively before leaving, however he is not distressed when mum leaves although Greg was distressed on his first day at nursery and then did not cry from day two at the setting. Mummy has always told Greg that he is her baby and she will often say in his presence, â€Å"you are my baby, I don’t want him to grow up and I’m going to be lonely when he goes up to reception class†. Other parents have commented that when Greg is invited to birthday parties, mum will stay and Greg will remain seated on mummy’s knee for the duration of the birthday party, whilst other children are confident to stay by themselves. Mum recently approached me to say that she was organising a party for Greg’s fourth birthday, but when mum asked him for the names of the children he wanted to invite, he said he only wanted to invite two of the children from the setting.

Saturday, November 2, 2019

Capital Punishment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6000 words

Capital Punishment - Essay Example While this is just one way in which the disputants talk past each other in the capital punishment debate, this particular disagreement helps to explain other aspects of the capital punishment dispute. Proponents of capital punishment speak the language of local option and states' rights not only because this insulates the pro-capital punishment orientation of most state governments from federal review, but also because states and localities are the levels of government that usually hold power over ordinary criminal justice decisions. State legislatures, local prosecutors and judges, and the particular values of specific communities are supposed to shape criminal justice outcomes. National government and constitutional values have little direct influence on most punishment decisions. If the availability of death as a criminal punishment were a garden-variety choice of punishment option, state and local power over them would be consistent with an important American tradition. If on the other hand, one regards capital punishment as a fundamental moral and political question, the national government and constitutional values are the appropriate vehicles for decisions. The p... ed nations and even the importance that the proponents of the penalty attach to it are powerful evidence that the death penalty is an issue of transcendent importance, one that is principally moral and political. (Gary, 783-805) There are certain reservations from some corners of public discussions as regards to the unreliable evidences that caused capital punishment but consequently proved false. It is hard to believe how prosecutors can admit evidence from unreliable sources. In some cases witnesses have later recanted or disavowed their testimonies claiming that they had only made their statements under pressure or coercion from prosecution and law enforcement. These false testimonies proved to be the condemning evidence in many cases. Lastly, most of the people charged in capital cases ca nnot afford defense attorneys. The appointed defense counsels in several cases have exhibited incompetence. Some of them did not even look for or missed important evidence that proved the innocence of their clients. In other instances, defense lawyers failed to conduct adequate pretrial investigations, talk to possible witnesses, obtain relevant police reports, or seek pretrial investigative funds. Michael Mello, a renowned capital punishment defense attorney in Florida from 1981-1995, has said "there is today a desperate (albeit difficult to quantify) shortage of competent capital post-conviction defense lawyers" (David, 1037-48). The Supreme Court in the Furman decision ruled that the death penalty is unconstitutional because it is a "cruel and unusual" punishment. Some allusions to racial discrimination appeared in the opinions, but more evidence seems called for.Â