Human Trafficking in the US

Sex Trafficking in the United States Imagine yourself leaving for a trip that you have been looking forward to. You get packed, board the plane, and then finally you arrive at your destination. After settling in you go explore the area. At this point, you are kidnapped. You cannot do anything to protect yourself or to escape. You end up being forced to strip your clothes and have your body sold. You are now an object, no longer a person. Welcome to the victims' world of sex trafficking.Because sex trafficking is an underground business, it may be difficult to completely stop this exploitation. Knowing the signs, watching for human sex trafficking, and acting quickly can save countless lives. Sex Trafficking is any practice that involves moving people within and across local or national boundaries for the purpose of sexual exploitation (Farr 2). It is the fastest growing crime in the United States and the second largest illegal trade after the drug industry. Human Trafficking has been going on for over one hundred years.Human Sex Trafficking happens all over the world, including the United States. There are approximately twenty-seven million victims of sex trafficking worldwide; three undred thousand of them are women and children bought and sold yearly here in the U. S. Of the three hundred thousand sex slaves sold in the US, 25% are forced into the business by parents or family members and 75% are former runaways. Each year, 1. 7 million children run away from home. From that number, 90% will be approached by traffickers within 48 hours. Many of which do not make it out the industry alive.In the state of Texas alone, there are only 99 known survivors in the last 20 years whoVe managed to escape sexual slavery (Preda. org). Victims of sexual slavery are not all kidnapped, majority are tricked into the business. Most of the women trafficked into brothels posing as massage businesses are not U. S. citizens, and many do not have documented status. Therefore, traff ickers use the threat of deportation to maintain control of immigrant women. Without legal status, the women frequently fear and distrust police or government authorities.Immigrant women are vulnerable due to language barriers, unfamiliarity with their legal rights in the US, and/or the lack of a local support network. Others can be women with financial need or in debt leave the women vulnerable to recruiters, who appear to be offering legal Jobs. Sex trafficking thrives because it is low in risk and high in pay off. The United States FBI estimates about three thousand Russian mobsters control gangs in American cities that involve forced prostitution (Stoecker, Shelly 14). These groups generate 7 billion dollars yearly in the United States.Since there are currently no consistent or accurate ways of tracking these crimes, statistics may vary. Because this is a large and very detailed business, many people are involved throughout the process. Everyone involved has a role to play to en sure the process is done quickly and smoothly. The recruiter finds and brings the victims into the industry usually by force or deception. The recruiter then sells the women to brokers or directly to employers. Brokers are the â€Å"middleman†; they buy the women from recruiters and sell them to employers, those who own brothels or bars.If the women are being transported from overseas, a contractor organizes the transaction. Next an Employment or Travel agent is needed. Their main purpose is to arrange a â€Å"legitimate† Job and Job description or a† legitimate† trip. A document theft or forger obtains all the legal documentation needed to travel from country to country. The transporter travels with the women to each destination and delivers them to the recruiter. Who then sells them to the employers. The employers provide the women with a place to live and work; telling them of the working conditions, living arrangements, and lifestyle.A large number of e mployers are bar or club owners, while a very small percentage of them are street pimps. For large establishments an enforcer serves as security for the place of business (Farr 63). The life of a sex slave can be compared to an animal caged in a zoo. You are brought out only to do your trick, and then locked in a cage again. Victims, usually ages 11-17, are chained to a bed or confined in small living quarter's majority of the day until they are fed, usually something light to keep their weight down. Then they are given ice-cold showers to reduce the swelling on their bodies.Attendants then cover-up their bruises from the night before, put make-up on the girls, and then present them to another group of men for more abuse and profit. The women usually serve 5 to 30 men a night. Many of these victims turn to drugs as a solace for the life they have been brought into. Drugs and beatings numb their capacity for thoughts of escape and further iscourage the energy or alertness required to act on their desire for freedom. Many never make it out of the industry alive (preda. org). Stopping Sex Trafficking is harder than it may seem.There are signs of human sex trafficking that everyone should be aware of. Visible indicators may include: Heavvy security at the commercial establishment including barred windows, locked doors, isolated location, and electronic surveillance. Women are never seen leaving the premises unless escorted. Victims live at the same premises as ‘the brothel or work site, or are driven between uarters and â€Å"work† by a guard. Victims are kept under surveillance when taken to a doctor, hospital or clinic for treatment; trafficker may act as a translator.High foot traffic especially for brothels where there may be trafficked women indicated often by a stream of men arriving and leaving the premises. Physical signs of a person being trafficked include: malnutrition, dehydration or poor personal hygiene; sexually transmitted diseases; si gns of rape or sexual abuse; bruising, broken bones, or other signs of untreated medical problems; critical illnesses including diabetes, cancer or eart disease; post-traumatic stress or psychological disorders (humantraffcking. org).

Figurative Language Essay

Figurative language is language that describes something by comparing it to something else. Figurative language goes beyond the literal meaning of words to describe or explain a subject. There are many types of figurative language, including similes, metaphors, alliteration, onomatopoeia, imagery, personification, and hyperbole. Authors use figurative language to help the reader see beyond the written words on the page and to visualize what is going on in the story or poem. You are using figurative language when writing goes beyond the actual meanings of words so that the reader gains new insights into the objects or subjects in the work. Types of Figurative Language There are many types of figurative language. Some include the use of a specific type of word or word meaning such as: 1. Simile A simile is a figure of speech that compares two different things, usually using the words like or as. His feet were as big as boats. She’s as light as a feather. The snow was like a blanket. She ate like a bird. 2. Metaphor A metaphor compares two different things without using the words like or as. The comparison is instead made using some form of the â€Å"be† verb. Her hair is silk. My hands are ice. The football player is an ox. 3. Personification Personification is a figure of speech in which an animal, inanimate object, or abstract concept is given human characteristics. a smiling moon art is a jealous mistress the wind screams the rain kissed her face Euphony Euphony is used for effects which are pleasant, rhythmical and harmonious. An example of euphony is the poem Some Sweet Day. Some day Love shall claim his own Some day Right ascend his throne, Some day hidden Truth be known; Some day—some sweet day. — Lewis J. Bates, the poem Some Sweet Day Observe the symmetry of the lines and how the last syllable in the first three lines rhyme. Poetry is considered euphonic, as is well-crafted literary prose [example needed]. Important phonaesthetic devices of poetry are rhyme, assonance and alliteration. Closely related to euphony and cacophony is the concept of consonance and dissonance. Periphrasis Definition: The term ‘periphrasis’ refers to the use of excessive language and surplus words to convey a meaning that could otherwise be conveyed with fewer words and in more direct a manner. The use of this literary device can be to embellish a sentence, to create a grander effect, to beat around the bush and to draw attention away from the crux of the message being conveyed. Example: Instead of simply saying â€Å"I am displeased with your behavior†, one can say, â€Å"The manner in which you have conducted yourself in my presence of late has caused me to feel uncomfortable and has resulted in my feeling disgruntled and disappointed with you†.

Purpose Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Purpose - Essay Example Disadvantages, in this case, refer to the problems that may be caused when the goods are consumed. The main purpose of Hazard communication is to ensure that the existing dangers or hazards of all the chemicals produced locally or imported are evaluated properly, and thus any information concerning their dangers are revealed or transmitted to the employees and the employers, as well. The transmittal is always accomplished by means of effective and comprehensive hazard programs. The programs include container labeling, material safety data sheets, as well as, employee training. Problem Definition Safety dangers or hazards related to physical features and characteristics can be easily and objectively defined with the use of testing requirements such as flammability. The definition of health hazards is more subjective and less precise. Health hazards, as understood and explained by health specialists, can result into measurable changes in the human body, for instance, reduced pulmonary function. The changes are indicated by the occurrences and the presences of symptoms and signs among the employees exposed to them. Such symptoms include a non measurable subjective feeling, as well as, shortness of breath. Determination of occupational health hazards always prove a great challenge, complicated by the fact that many of the common effects or signs occur mainly in non-occupationally exposed populations, in such away that the exposure effects are difficult or challenging to separate from the common and recurring illnesses. There are occasional situations whereby a substance may cause an effect hardly seen or visible in the population, at large. An example is angiosarcomas, which results from the exposure to vinyl chloride. This makes it easier for the establishment of the certainties that the occupational was the actual and the primary causative agent. Nevertheless, the effects are common, for instance, lung cancer. Normally, the situation becomes worse and complicated due to the fact that most chemicals have not been well adequately tested in order to determine the potential of their health hazards, and the data does not exist for the substantiation of the effects. Efforts by many scientists have come up with results and basis of categorizing effects, as well as, their definition in many ways. The general or the overall accepted terms â€Å"chronic† and â€Å"acute† used or applied in this area to come to the delineation between the effects on fundamental basis of duration or severity. â€Å"Acute† effects normally happen rapidly due to exposures that are considered short terms, and are always of short duration. â€Å"Chronic† effects occur due to long term exposures of an individual to the hazards. Unlike the Acute ones, they are of long term durations. The acute effects, that are most frequently referred, in this case, are those that defined by the US major body, the American National Standards of Institute (ANSI) s tandard for the Precautionary Labeling of Hazardous Industrial Chemicals (osha.cov). Such hazards include corrosivity, lethal dose and sensitization. Despite these being obvious health effects, they never cover adequately the chronic effect areas, excluding, for instance, the blood dyscrasias such as anemia, liver atrophy and bronchitis. The same is applicable with the term chronic effect, which is often used in the reference to only

Unequal Distribution of Property and Factions Research Paper

Unequal Distribution of Property and Factions - Research Paper Example The government must, therefore, protect these rights as they develop on the identified individuals with the abilities and the talents, as the key responsibility of the state is to protect its entire citizen and their wealth (Mill and Ryan, 2006). The government will tend to do this by enacting policies and rules that are geared towards the protection of both talent and ability. Talent and ability are one of the greatest resources of any given country since as the individuals become creative in the efforts to enrich themselves resource wise, they, in turn, lead to the growth and development of the whole country and its inhabitants. It is certain that property in the society is not divided equally and the property that is not divided equally exist in different forms which include the following:- there is the category which involves either land or business property. Some of the property owners in the society own property in form of land and indeed large tracts of the land depending on their ability to acquire the land (Rousseau and Cress, 1987). The other groups in the society own property in form of business ventures and franchises operating them jealously and zealously practices that are normally unfair and unjust. Moreover, it is coupled with a lot of irregularities and unfair practices; some of these practices are either ethical or unethical in nature. The round objective though is one that of acquiring property; hence, protection from the government of the abilities and the talent if called for (Mill and Ryan, 2006). The other reason that individuals in the society own wealth or property in an unequal manner are because of the sole reason that there are many injustices in democratic governments of the day.  Ã‚  

Air Pollution in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Air Pollution in China - Essay Example The health analysts have promised more disease such as lung cancer, pulmonary diseases, and other health complications as a consequence of the air pollution trends. Cumulatively, the effects of air pollution have a negative impact on the economic growth of a country, which is a severe problem in society. Consequently, there is a need to focus on the causes of air pollution, its impacts and the possible preventive measures that can be used to mitigate against the scourge. Reilly (2011, p. 1) points out that the progressive development of China for three consecutive decades has come along with adverse consequences on the environment. In the last 30 years, China has experienced the highest level of industrial development which has consistently contributed to the development of this state. However, industrialization has been accompanied by the emission of hazardous gases in the atmosphere which has contributed to an increase in the carbon dioxide gas content in the atmosphere. Most indus tries use crude oil products to fuel their machines as the source of industrial power. The by product of these industries include smoke, whose carbon dioxide content is high and additive to the atmosphere. As most industries regard the cost of fuel as cheaper than that of electricity, they opt to use this kind of power and consequently contributing to build up of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Urbanisation is another factor that has contributed to the increased air pollution in the atmospheres. With development of industries, most people have relocated to urban areas in search of job opportunities and better livelihoods. This population build up in China towns predisposes the environment to the risk of air pollution. For instance, Beijing alone has a population of more that 22 million people, a figure that is more than double the population in New York City (Policy and Global Affairs, 2005). As people obtain job in the urban areas, they have the ability to purchase vehicles that run by diesel or petrol. For instance, in Beijing, every day the town experience an increase in its automotive by a figure of 2000 new cars. This trend promises an increase in the rate of air pollution and an increase in the adverse effects of the carbon dioxide surge in the atmosphere. This has sent an alarm to environmentalists to design effective mitigative measures to reduce and if possible eliminate the level of air pollution in China. In the rural areas of China, solid fuels contribute to the increase in the rates of air pollution in the country (Policy and Global Affairs, 2005, P. 6). One characteristic of the rural areas in China is that they have the poorest and disadvantaged groups who live well below the poverty line. This lifestyle makes it hard for the people to afford alternative means of fuel such as electricity and they have to resort to the use of coal, corn stalks, firewood and other biomass. Burning these solid fuels produces a lot of smoke that contains high leve ls of carbon dioxide and other unfriendly gases that are unhealthy for human consumption. Coupled with the fact that this population has no chimney facilities accelerates the rate of air pollution in the atmosphere. The fact that the majority of the population lives in rural areas makes it even more complex to induce preventive measures to curb environmental pollution in this region of China. In essence, Energy is a

Green marketing(is it ethical to use green marketing just to convince Essay

Green marketing(is it ethical to use green marketing just to convince customers to buy the companies products) - Essay Example The present essay is based on the book ‘Sign Wars: The cluttered landscape of advertising’ by Goldman and Papson (Goldman et al, 1996). It deals with the meaning and practice of green marketing, its concepts as developed by the advertising industry, its effectiveness both to genuinely care for the environmental concerns and to hoodwink the public etc. It deals with the ‘signs’ attached to the products with a view to promote sales, even as companies defend their record of environmental concerns. Relevant case studies are included to argue that green marketing has been more of a self-promotion gimmick than any real concern for responsible corporate behaviour. 1 (a). Goldman and Papson, trace the evolution of advertising industry from 1920s, when the competitive market forces were compelling industries to entice consumers to buy their products. They point out that in order to sell more and more of the products, advertisers â€Å"†¦created a social world in which (a consumer’s) identity is expressed through consuming commodity signs† (Goldman, 1996, p.187). These commodity signs represented a â€Å"†¦social process of branding goods, that is, endowing goods with value and capacity to fulfill a variety of desires† (p.188). In this process, the advertisers used, â€Å"†¦nature as a referent system from which to derive signifiers for constructing signs† (p.191). â€Å"Commodities like cars and cigarettes are placed in the landscape settings labeled ‘natural’ and juxtaposed with natural objects† (p.192). By 1980s, advertising that started with nature as a referent system, progresse d to ‘green marketing’ to position nature itself as the subject of the ad †¦(only) to hail the viewing subject† (p.192). Thus commodities are positioned as environmentally friendly, and corporations 1 (b). Automation and mass production of the last century, led to severe competition. To compete, it was not enough for the

Jainism and ahimsa Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Jainism and ahimsa - Assignment Example Secondly, the religion helps in reducing violence since it emphasizes on complete nonviolence to all living beings (Kenneth 2014). As such, the religion promotes peace in the society by urging its followers to maintain a serene, peaceful environment that does not harm anybody or anything. Thirdly, the religion promotes equality of all living things. In general, there is an improvement in the moral behavior of people since the followers practice their beliefs in day-to-day life and observe the vows keenly. On the other hand, Jainism religion is seemingly ancient and the followers of the religion are outdated. Moreover, Jainism has many restrictions that are seemingly obscure and senseless. For instance, it is unrealistic to practice vegetarianism when we visit our friends since we cannot question the ingredients of every food. Apparently, Jainism is only reasonable for a minority. The extreme rules are not flexible to changes that apply to modern religions. In addition, many people wonder what the followers think about God and the life after death. Most religions also believe that it is not possible to exist without killing living creatures and

Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and Essay - 7

Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence - Essay Example Many people have shown their love and respect for this monument because of his intelligence and wisdom and this makes me appreciate him a lot. The success story of Jobs has caught my attention for years and it has become an inspiration for me to better my own life. I may not be as talented and intelligent as Jobs but I believe that with perseverance, determination and diligence, I can create my success story like my inspiration. This is the reason why I am so interested in business. Currently, business is getting global which makes it become a better place for potential businessmen to show their talents and skills and for one to be given a fair chance of showing what he has got. With the inspiration Jobs has impressed in me, I look forward to finishing my studies and starting my own career that I believe would propel me to great heights of financial

Quality management focuses attention on continuous improvement Essay Example for Free

Quality management focuses attention on continuous improvement Essay Th e work of W. Edwards Deming is a cornerstone of the quality movement in management. 27 His story began in 1951, when he was invited to Japan to explain quality control techniques that had been developed in the United States. â€Å"When Deming spoke,† we might say, â€Å"the Japanese listened. † Th e principles he taught the Japanese were straightforward, and they worked: Tally defects, analyze and trace them to the source, make corrections, and keep a record of what happens afterward. Deming’s approach to quality emphasizes constant innovation, use of statistical methods, and commitment to training in the fundamentals of quality assurance. One outgrowth of Deming’s work was the emergence of total quality management, or TQM. Th is process makes quality principles part of the organization’s strategic objectives, applying them to all aspects of operations and striving to meet customers’ needs by doing things right the fi rst time. Most TQM approaches begin with an insistence that the total quality commitment applies to everyone in an organization, from resource acquisition and supply chain management, through production and into the distribution of fi nished goods and services, and ultimately to customer relationship management. The search for and commitment to quality is now tied to the emphasis modern management gives to the notion of continuous improvement—always looking for new ways to improve on current performance. 29 Th e goal is that one can never be satisfi ed; something always can and should be improved upon. Evidence-based management seeks hard facts about what really works. Looking back on the historical foundations of management, one thing that stands out is criticism by today’s scholars of the scientifi c rigor of some historical cornerstones, among them Taylor’s scientifi c management approach and the Hawthorne studies. The worry is that we may be too quick in accepting as factual the results of studies that are based on weak or even shoddy empirical evidence. And if the studies are fl awed, perhaps more care needs to be exercised when trying to apply their insights to improve management practices. Th is problem isn’t limited to the distant past. 30 A book by Jim Collins, Good to Great, achieved great acclaim and best-seller status for its depiction of highly successful organizations. But Collins’s methods and fi ndings have since been criticized by researchers. 32 And after problems appeared at many fi rms previously considered by him to be â€Å"great,† he wrote a follow-up book called How the Mighty Fall. 33 Th e point here is not to discredit what keen observers of management practice like Collins and others report. But it is meant to make you cautious and a bit skeptical when it comes to separating fads from facts and conjecture from informed insight. Today’s management scholars are trying to move beyond generalized impressions of excellence to understand more empirically the characteristics of high-performance organizations—ones that consistently achieve highperformance results while also creating high quality-of-work-life environments for their employees. Following this line of thinking, Jeff rey Pfeff er and Robert Sutton make the case for evidence-based management, or EBM. Th is is the process of making management decisions on â€Å"hard facts†Ã¢â‚¬â€that is, about what really works—rather than on â€Å"dangerous half-truths†Ã¢â‚¬â€things that sound good but lack empirical substantiation. Using data from a sample of some 1,000 fi rms, for example, Pfeff er and a colleague found that fi rms using a mix of well selected human resource management practices had more sales and higher profi ts per employee than those that didn’t. 35 Th ose practices included employment security, selective hiring, self-managed teams, high wages based on performance merit, training and skill development, minimal status diff erences, and shared information. Examples of other EBM fi ndings include challenging goals accepted by an employee are likely to result in high performance, and that unstructured employment interviews are unlikely to result in the best person being hired to fi ll a vacant position. 36 Scholars pursue a variety of solid empirical studies using proven scientifi c methods in many areas of management research. Some carve out new and innovative territories, while others build upon and extend knowledge that has come down through the history of management thought. By staying abreast of such

Research & expressing emotions Essay Example for Free

Research expressing emotions Essay Art has been one of the most prolific ways of expressing emotions and thinking by mankind. Most of the traditional artists have been using different mediums to make an art form. They range from clay to paints. But in this age of electronic media, art has also found some new mediums. Electronic art is the art form which started to emerge in early 1990’s and as a result of this many young artist from the new generation became famous. One of them is Eric Jordan. He is not just an artist; he is a philosopher and a businessman. Eric Jordan is the founder of 2Advanced.com.he founded 2Advanced when he was just 23. 2Advanced is regarded as one of the most creative web design companies in the world with clients like Ford, NBC, General Electric and many other Fortune 500 companies. Eric has been the main driving force behind 2Advanced. Eric started   Eric indulged in arts from a very early age when he started making sketches but soon moved to electronic media. He started by experimenting with different softwares but couldn’t get his hand on something which could really satisfy him to express his thinkings. During this point in life he discovered two softwares which would play a pivotal role in the life of Eric: Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Flash. He started using these softwares day and night, and his hard work result in eye-catching website of 2Advanced. Currently 2Advanced is in its fourth version of the website. His work became so famous that he got nominated and won the prestigious Webby Award. The famous 2Advanced website was created by Eric in the span of two weeks. The software he used was Adobe Flash, Adobe Photoshop and Freehand. To this date 2Advanced.com has been my favorite work designed by Eric. The blend of futuristic vision with eye-catching graphics and phenomenal graphics has taken Flash and Photoshop to new heights.   Apart from being famous for amazing work at 2Advanced Eric is also a famous DJ in California. He has an extreme passion for electronic music and has been playing electronic music since he was a teenager. He believes that he could bring his futuristic vision of the world to the electronic media and he has been successful in that by showing the work he has done in the field of web design. His work mostly depicts the world of future with a careful attention to detail. In an interview while describing the theory behind 2Advanced, Eric says: â€Å"Many people think the name â€Å"2advanced† was meant to imply mastery of everything, when in reality it constitutes a love of the future and the underlying feeling that somehow I wish I had been born in the distant future. Not because I don’t appreciate the era I was born in, simply because the idea of deep technological advances and a rise in the collective human consciousness are alluring to me. 2advanced was a way for me to tell the story. Some people pick up on the message, some don’t. But even if one person understands the 2advanced voice, it makes it all worth it.

Economy and political factors in Mexico

Economy and political factors in Mexico Mexico located in the southern portion o f North America, covers a period of more than two millennia. It covers area of 1,972,550 sq. km. (761,600 sq. mi.). Its estimated population is 112,468,855. Its language is Spanish and ethnic languages.   According to some estimates, the population of the area around Mexico City is nearly 22 million, which would make it the largest concentration of population in the Western Hemisphere. Its capital is Mexico City(Distrito Federal). Mexico is known for its fashion, socializing, sports and recreation, eating and recipies. PESTLE ANALYSIS FOR MEXICO: The PESTLE Analysis report provides a holistic view of the country from historical, current and future perspectives. Insightful analysis on critical current and future issues are presented through detailed SCPT (strengths, challenges, prospects and threats/risks) analysis for each of the PESTLE segments. In addition, the PESTLE segments are supplemented with relevant quantitative data to support trend analysis.   POLITICAL FACTORS: Political section provides understanding about the political system and key figures relevant to business in the country and governance indicators. Here The government as referring to the federal government. It is the federal government that passes and enforces legislation concerning the entire country. Actions by the federal government affect a large number of firms and are consistent across state boundaries. Environmental analysis, however, should not overlook actions by both state and local governments. Regulations concerning many business practices differ between states. Tax rates vary widely. Laws regarding unionization (e.g., right-to-work states) and treatment of homosexual workers differ between states. Local governments have the potential to affect business practices significantly. Some local governments may be willing to provide incentives to attract business to the area. Some may build industrial parks, service roads, and provide low-interest bonds to encourage a desirable business to move into the community. President Calderons National Action Party currently is the largest party in the Senate but lost its majority in the Chamber of Deputies in the July 2009 elections. The next national elections-for the president, all 128 seats in the Senate, and all 500 seats in the Chamber of Deputies-will take place in July 2012. In 2010, elections were held in 14 of Mexicos 31 states.   Poverty in Mexico is caused by individual, geographic and political factors. Main cause of poverty is due to political economy of the country. The International Monetary Fund and World Bank-prescribed structural adjustment policies have been applied in Mexico because the government doesnt carry out enough policies to encourage successful development. They cannot, for these international institutions lend money to Mexico on the condition that the nation open up its economy and cut social expenditures to repay the loans. The IMF and World Bank programs are supposed to reduce poverty, but actually they are increasing it. Therefore, Mexico needs a new political economy designed by Mexican economists and politicians, people who are committed to Mexico and to the future of its society.WTO Membership of trading partners increases the political costs of supplying administered protection. ECONOMIC FACTORS: GDP (official exchange rate): $1 trillion (2010 est.); $876 billion (2009); $1.088 trillion (2008). Per capita GDP (PPP method): $13,542 (2009 est.); $14,534 (2008). Annual real GDP growth: 4.5% (2010 est.); -6.5% (2009); 1.3% (2008); 3.3% (2007); 5.1% (2006); 3.2% (2005). Inflation rate: 4.6% (2010 est.); 3.57% (2009); 6.5% (2008); 3.8% (2007); 3.4% (2006); 3.3% (2005). Natural resources: Petroleum, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber. Agriculture (4% of GDP):  Productscorn, wheat, soybeans, rice, beans, cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes, beef, poultry, dairy products, wood products. Industry (31% of GDP):  Typesfood and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, consumer durables. Services (64% of GDP):  Typescommerce and tourism, financial services, transportation and communications. Trade (goods):  Exports  (2009)$230 billion f.o.b.  Imports  (2009)$234 billion f.o.b.  Exports to U.S.  (2009)$185 billion (80% of total).  Imports from U.S.  (2009)$112 billion (48% of total).  Major marketsU.S., EU (5% of total), Canada (3.6% of total). Economic section deals with the economic story of a country that provides a balanced assessment of significant macro-economic issues. Economic factors refer to the character and direction of the economic system within which the firm operates. Economic factors include the balance of payments, the state of the business cycle, the distribution of income within the population, and governmental monetary and fiscal policies. The impact of economic factors may also differ between industries. Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Mexico for 2009 was $14.4 billion, down 51% from the previous year.  The Mexican Government estimate of FDI for 2010 is $15 billion to $20 billion. Mexico is classified by the World Bank as an upper-middle-income country. Poverty is widespread around 44% of the population lives below the poverty line and high rates of economic growth are needed to create legitimate economic opportunities for new entrants to the work force. The Mexican economy in 2009 experienced its deepest recession since the 1930s. Gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 6.5%, driven by weaker exports to the United States; lower remittances and investment from abroad; a decline in oil revenues; and the impact of H1N1 influenza on tourism. Mexico is a major recipient of remittances, sent mostly from Mexicans in the United States. Remittances average around U.S. $21 billion per year, and are the countrys second-largest source of foreign currency, after oil. Most remittances are used for immediate consumptionfood, housing, health care, educationbut some collective remittances, sent from a U.S. community of migrants to their community of origin, are used for shared projects and infrastructure improvements. Mexico has grown with an annual average rate of 4%, even with the changes from an inward-looking developing economic strategy towards a more open economy with a far-reaching trade liberalization program. Mexico is the United States second-largest export market and third-largest trading partner. Top U.S. exports to Mexico include electronic equipment, motor vehicle parts, and chemicals. Trade matters are generally settled through direct negotiations between the two countries or addressed via World Trade Organization (WTO) or North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) formal dispute settlement procedures. The most significant areas of friction involve agricultural products as well as cross-border trucking. Mexico is an active and constructive member of the World Trade Organization, the G-20, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The Mexican Government and many businesses support a Free Trade Area of the Americas. SOCIAL FACTORS: Social section enables understanding of customer demographics through income distribution, rural-urban segmentation and centres of affluence, healthcare and educational scenario. Mexico is the most populous Spanish-speaking country in the world and the second most-populous country in Latin America after Portuguese-speaking Brazil. About 76% of the people live in urban areas. Many Mexicans emigrate from rural areas that lack job opportunitiessuch as the underdeveloped southern states and the crowded central plateauto the industrialized urban centers and the developing areas along the U.S.-Mexico border. According to some estimates, the population of the area around Mexico City is nearly 22 million, which would make it the largest concentration of population in the Western Hemisphere. Cities bordering on the United Statessuch as Tijuana and Ciudad Juarezand cities in the interiorsuch as Guadalajara, Monterrey, and Pueblahave undergone sharp rises in population in recent years. The sociocultural dimensions of the environment consist of customs, lifestyles, and values that characterize the society in which the firm operates. Socio-cultural components of the environment influence the ability of the firm to obtain resources, make its goods and services, and function within the society. Sociocultural factors include anything within the context of society that has the potential to affect an organization. Population demographics, rising educational levels, norms and values, and attitudes toward social responsibility are examples of sociocultural variables. Mexico has made great strides in improving access to education and literacy rates over the past few decades. According to a 2006 World Bank report, enrollment at the primary level is nearly universal, and more children are completing primary education. The average number of years of schooling for the population 15 years old and over was around 8 years during the 2004-2005 school year, a marked improvement on a decade earlierwhen it was 6.8 yearsbut low compared with other Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS: Technological section provides strategic information on technology and telecom, technological laws and policies, technological gaps, patents and opportunity sectors in the country. Cooperation between the United States and Mexico along the 2,000-mile common border includes state and local problem-solving mechanisms; transportation planning; and institutions to address resource, environment, and health issues. Technology can change the lifestyle and buying patterns of consumers. Recent developments in the field of microcomputers have dramatically expanded the potential customer base and created innumerable opportunities for businesses to engage in business via Internet. Whereas computers were traditionally used only by large organizations to handle data processing needs, personal computers are commonly used by smaller firms and individuals for uses not even imagined fifteen years ago. Similarly, new developments in technology led to a reduction in prices for computers and expanded the potential market. Lower prices allow computers to be marketed to the general public rather than to business, scientific, and professional users-the initial market. Technology also changes production processes. The introduction of products based on new technology often requires new production techniques. New production technology may alter production processes. There is little doubt that technology represents both potential threats and potential opportunities for established products. Products with relatively complex or new technology are often introduced while the technology is being refined, making it hard for firms to assess their market potential. When ballpoint pens were first introduced, they leaked, skipped, and left large blotches of ink on the writing surface. Fountain pen manufacturers believed that the new technology was not a threat to existing products and did not attempt to produce ball-point pens until substantial market share had been lost. Another technology, the electric razor, has yet to totally replace the blade for shaving purposes. Perhaps the difference is that the manufacturers of blades have innovated by adding new features to retain customers. Manufacturers of fountain pens did not attempt to innovate until the ballpoint pen was well established. It is quite difficult to predict the impact of a new technology on an existing product. Still, the need to monitor the environment for new technological developments is obvious. Attention must also be given to developments in industries that are not direct competitors, since new technology developed in one industry may impact companies and organizations in others. LEGAL FACTORS: Legal section provides information about the legal structure, corporate laws, laws to start a new business and the tax regime. Legal dimension of the general environment also affects business activity. The philosophy of the political parties in power influences business practices. The legal environment serves to define what organizations can and cannot do at a particular point in time. The legal environment facing organizations is becoming more complex and affecting businesses more directly. It has become increasingly difficult for businesses to take action without encountering a law, regulation, or legal problem. A very brief listing of significant laws that affect business would include legislation in the areas of consumerism, employee relations, the environment, and competitive practices. Many of the laws also have an associated regulatory agency. Powerful U.S. regulatory agencies include the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The 1917 constitution provides for a federal republic with powers separated into independent executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The president is elected by universal adult suffrage for a 6-year term and may not hold office a second time. There is no vice president; in the event of the removal or death of the president, a provisional president is elected by the Congress. The Congress is comprised of a Senate and a Chamber of Deputies. Consecutive re-election are prohibited in this economy. Senators are elected to 6-year terms, and deputies serve 3-year terms. The Senates 128 seats are filled by a mixture of direct-election and proportional representation. Supreme Court justices are appointed by the president and approved by the Senate. Estimates of the cost of compliance vary widely, but could well exceed $100 billion annually. Many of these costs are passed to consumers. However, costs of legal expenses and settlements may not be incurred for years and are not likely to be paid by consumers of the product or owners of the company when the violation occurred. Still, potential legal action often results in higher prices for consumers and a more conservative attitude by business executives. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS: Environmental section provides information on the countrys performance on environmental indicators and policies.  Mexico have a history of cooperation on environmental and natural resource issues, particularly in the border area, where there are serious environmental problems caused by rapid population growth, urbanization, and industrialization. There have been several studies of the relationships between environmental factors, particularly air pollution, and attacks of asthma. Most of these studies have ignored the potential confounding effects of aeroallergens such as pollens and fungal spores. We report a statistical analysis of the relationships between emergency admissions for asthma to a hospital in Mexico City and daily average airborne concentrations of pollen, fungal spores, air pollutants (O3, NO2, SO2, and particulates) and weather factors. Asthma admissions had a seasonal pattern with more during the wet season (May-October) than the dry season (November-April). There were few statistical associations between asthma admissions and air pollutants for the three age groups studied (children under 15 years, adults, and seniors [adults over 59 years]) in either season. Grass pollen was associated with child and adult admissions for both the wet and dry seasons, and fungal spores were associated with child admissions d uring both the wet and dry seasons. The analysis was done with environmental data averaged over the day of admission and the 2 previous days. Our results suggest that aeroallergens may be statistically associated more strongly with asthma hospital admissions than air pollutants and may act as confounding factors in epidemiologic studies. COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE FOR MEXICO USING PORTAR DIAMOND: Factor conditions  are human resources, physical resources, knowledge resources, capital resources and infrastructure. Specialized resources are often specific for an industry and important for its competitiveness. Mexico generates significant revenue from the production of beef, poultry, pork, and dairy products. Although private investment in natural gas transportation, distribution, and storage is permitted, Pemex remains in sole control of natural gas exploration and production. Despite substantial reserves, Mexico is a net natural gas importer. Demand conditions  in the home market can help companies create a competitive advantage, when sophisticated home market buyers pressure firms to innovate faster and to create more advanced products that those of competitors. Technology can change the lifestyle and buying patterns of consumers. Many new developments in technology led to a reduction in prices for computers and expanded the potential market. Lower prices allow computers to be marketed to the general public rather than to business, scientific, and professional users-the initial market. Related and supporting industries  can produce inputs which are important for innovation and internationalization. One of the most recent joint efforts by governments to influence business practices was NAFTA. The agreement between the United States, Canada, and Mexico was intended to facilitate free trade between the three countries. Firm strategy, structure and rivalry  constitute the fourth determinant of competitiveness. The way in which companies are created, set goals and are managed is important for success. U.S.A. Vs Mexico greatest rivalry in sports. The numerous joint ventures between U.S. and Japanese automobile manufacturers could have been termed anticompetitive by a less pro-business administration. Changing relationships between the United States and other countries may alter the ability of firms to enter foreign markets. The United States establishment of trade relations with China in the 1970s created opportunities for many firms to begin marketing their products in China. The rise of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to power in Iran altered the lives of many Iranian citizens. Wine, vodka, music, and other forms of entertainment were prohibited. Black markets provided certain restricted items. Other products, such as wine, began to be produced at home. Anti-American sentiments throughout the country showed the hostility of many citizens. Non-American firms thus had an opportunity to capitalize on the anti-American sentiments and to provide goods and services formerly provided by U.S. firms. Government  can influence each of the above four determinants of competitiveness. Regulations concerning many business practices differ between states. Tax rates vary widely. Laws regarding unionization (e.g., right-to-work states) and treatment of homosexual workers differ between states. Local governments have the potential to affect business practices significantly. Some local governments may be willing to provide incentives to attract business to the area. Some may build industrial parks, service roads, and provide low-interest bonds to encourage a desirable business to move into the community.

Votes For Sale :: essays research papers

Votes For Sale According to the Associated Press, lobbyist donated 633 million dollars to government representatives in the first half of 1999. A lobbyist’s job is to pass money to representatives for a vote in their favor of a bill. Up to $5000 may be given to any one congressman by a lobbyist thru Political Action Committees (PACs). Farmers, laborers, gun control activists, abortion opponents, and teachers are just a few of the numerous groups who form these committees in the United States. These interest groups employ a lobbyist to offer a cash donation on their behalf. The legislative branch of the United States government was designed to represent citizens of this nation. Congressional members are supposed to be the representatives of people in their district or state. Laws are supposed to be passed in the public’s best interest. PACs attempt to influence the passing of laws through lobbyists. Lobbyists degrade democracy, encourage improper policymaking, and likely provoke politi cal corruption. The most obvious downfall to lobbying is that representatives would be encouraged to vote for money; causing a degradation of democracy. In other words, if a pro-life group paid a representative to vote against legalizing abortion the money would influence the representative’s vote. Whether or not a bill is passed becomes an issue of who is willing and able to pay more for it. Congressmen would look to vote for bills that would get them the most money from the PACs. Even though $5,000 is the maximum donation a lobbyists can give to one particular politician; lobbyists donate to several. This can give them the upper hand in a majority decision. Lobbyists believe they are representing the people and getting bills passed that the people want, thus promoting the citizen’s role in the government. The problem with this view is that the money is getting more representation than the people are. The group that has the most money and buys the most votes will get more bills passed in their favor, regardless if they are the majority or not. This takes away from the democratic process; not allowing all the people’s votes to count. A representative should vote for those who elected him not those who pay him the most. When a representative’s vote is influenced by money the fundamentals of democracy are defeated. Secondly, representatives benefit directly from lobbyist’s donations. Therefore, representatives will use improper policymaking to assure a lobbyist’s cause is ratified.

Basketballs Greatest Players :: essays research papers

Basketball's Greatest Players   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are many great players who had the talent to be all pro and lost it in the streets. Probaly the two most famous to fail are Lloyd Daniels and Earl Manigult. Both could of been all-stars but let the drugs and inner city life destroy there chances. It's been said that Earl Manigult's best feat was being able to jump up to the top of the backboard and take a dollar bill and replace it with four quarters. One other rumor was he once dunked a basketball backwards thirty-six times in a row to win a sixty dollar bet. Now to Lloyd Daniels, said to be the best basketball player ever to play in New York he was heavely recruited and signed with UNLV despite never graduating H.S. His biggest downfall was his addiction to drugs since he was twelve years old. Despite having anything he wanted and UNLV he was caught buying drugs and kicked off the basketball team and out of school.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Next, the player who did make and continues to rock the up and rising basketball world. The most famous and most known of the basketball players is Michael Jordan. He has won four NBA titles and is the most recognized player ever. Despite his pro career he was once cut from his H.S. team. Then two years later he was a H.S. all-american. Two years later at the University Of North Carolina Michael as a freshman hit the game winning shot to secure the legendary coach Dean Smith his first ever collegiate championship. As a pro playing for the four time defending champions he has averaged 32.2 points per game, 5.9 assists per game, 6.4 rebounds , 2.7 steals, and 1 block. Michael Jordan is the best role model for America's youth since Dr.

Lost at the Fair

Lost at the Fair Every august the family would load up and head to the big fair in Leitchfield. Always excited to get there and head to the rides while dad went to the tractor pull. It was always a great experience until the year 1993. Mom was taking me and my brothers to the rides. We had been to several was having an absolute blast. Then my world froze and I was scared for my life. We were coming out of the fun house my brothers were ahead of me and suddenly I couldn’t find them.I looked in front of me then behind me no where’s around I decided to take the exit and go to my mom. I thought she’d be right around the corner, but when I rounded it she was no where’s insight. I started walking around scared and crying I couldn't find my mom no where’s. Suddenly this woman came to me. I wasn’t sure if she was going to help me or take me she was just a stranger. Luckily this was a very sweet woman who took me to the announcer box; she was going to help me get back to my mom.The announcer asked me my mom’s names and they hollered several times I was worried she couldn’t hear them and what was I going to do. Four years old in the middle of a fair with hundreds of people. Finally my aunt came to the announcer box after they assured she was my aunt they released me to her. Then out of nowhere I heard my mom’s voice hollering for me. Both scared and crying we were reunited and thankful I was safe. I learned a valuable lesson that day and I wasn’t going to wonder off anymore.

Present day Societal Value of Labor Unions Essay

A labor union is an organization of employees of the same profession, working for either one employer or many employers. It is formed by people with common skills, knowledge and skills pursuing the same dream, to be at the top of their carriers. Labor unions are normally funded by contributions from employee’s salaries. They are headed by officials who are elected by members after a given period of time. For labor unions to be effective they need to be run by people with the right management education, skills, knowledge and experience for them to deliver to their respective members. Labor union officials are accountable to its members and need to be responsible enough, for every action they take, has consequences on all the members. Labor unions are formed and run as per the constitution, according to the Labor act of any nation and the related articles. Labor unions have a societal value in the present day, because members expect some return that is either qualitative or quantitative. Although employers may be opposed to the idea of labor unions, the Government gives the right atmosphere for their formation and existence. Labor unions that are not beneficial to the members do not last long, because they are democratic institutions and members have a right to quit and join new unions. (Albert, 2001 p. 20-31) Organized institutions: Labor unions provide a forum for dealing with multiple issues at once and as group. Actions taken by labor unions are across the board; they relate to all the employees and their respective employers. Issues tackled do not relate to individuals but to the whole group of members. Members of the same profession get to meet and reason together, in order to better their living standards and their economic well being. Solutions to issues facing the employees are to the advantage of all the member. Labor unions need to be registered as per the required regulations, prescribed under the Labor union’s Act of any Country. They are therefore recognized and protected by law. They are therefore expected to deliver as per the necessary standards, without bias to either the employees or the employers. Issues presented by individual members are discussed by the officials and if need be, they are communicated to the rest of the members, in order to understand who the union is acting for, at any particular time. Protection of Employee’s rights: Labor unions are formed on the principle, â€Å"united we stand, divided we fall†. Any skilled, semiskilled and unskilled employee has rights and privileges at his place of work, which the employer may not be willing and ready to fulfill. It’s the duty of the labor union to negotiate for its members, with the employers for their rights to be realized. Single employees may not have a better understanding of their rights and may be oppressed by the employer. In groups/labor unions they will have the power to speak as one and demand the employer’s attention. (Becky 2002 p. 11-32) Some employee’s rights include; Better working, conditions and environment; This mostly applies to semiskilled and unskilled workers who are found at industrial plants. Most employers may find it expensive to provide them with the right working gear and devices like, gloves, masks and gum boots. Such employees will therefore be risking their lives at the expense of their incomes and need someone to come in between. Such employees may not be housed at the plant and will be expected to report to work early in the morning. The labor union will come in and negotiate for their transport system; whereby they are either picked by bus early in the morning or they are given an adequate transport allowance to enable them be punctual at work. The single employees who demand better working conditions and environment may risk their jobs because the management may consider them to be unruly. Some manufacturing companies, like tobacco industries, pollute the environment which the employees are working in. they may therefore be exposed to contracting diseases, hence poor health. It is the duty of the labor unions to negotiate healthy environment to ensure that employees utilize their skills well and advance in their carriers. A well balanced remuneration package; Employees need a salary package relatively proportional to their contribution towards the company’s profitability. Some employers may want to retain a lot of their earnings and therefore deny their laborers/employees good compensation. For a worker to be productive his or her financial and economic needs should be well catered for, by the employer. A stressed up employee may not utilize his education and knowledge adequately to develop his carrier. Some employers may want to pay their employees less than the other professionals with the same education, knowledge and skills. This is psychologically unfair and the labor union steps in to ensure a uniform salary package across the board for people with the same skills and knowledge. If the employer does not obey, the labor union can sue on behalf of the employee with costs being met by the employer, as per the relevant regulation and case ruling. Employee Motivation; For employees to perform better, they need their spirits lifted through a well organized motivation system. These lack in some organizations and it is the duty of labor unions to negotiate for the members items like, overtime payments, study leaves and bonus payments. It is through such motivation systems that employees can utilize their skills, education and knowledge in order to have some carrier growth and development. Labor unions therefore assist their members in meeting their short-term goals and keep them focused at their long-term goals. Better working conditions at the present make it possible for employees to realize ambitions and dreams. (Norman 2000 p. 4-54) Retirement benefits; Labor unions ensure that every employer has retirement arrangements in place for its employees. Employees should not retire with any funds to survive on because this may depress them at their old age. Retirement age is therefore maintained across all companies and those who their contracts are terminated in advance are given some golden handshake to survive on. Labor unions also deal with cases where contracts are terminated before maturity and those affected are restored and any damages are catered for by the employer. The labor unions therefore ensure that the society’s dependency ratio is not increased due to early terminations or people retiring with out finances. Professional Networking: Through labor unions professionals get to meet and share ideas relating to their carrier field. People with the same knowledge, skills, education and experience get to network and assist one another emotionally and this boosts their morale. Meetings organized by labor unions for its members provide a forum for discussions to be held among members. Motivational speakers are also invited to give speech which inspires the members. Carrier growth and development: Labor unions ensure that members are constantly being updated on the latest skills and knowledge during union meetings. Discussions held also advance the awareness of their professional field details. Members also get to know the requirements for their movement up the carrier ladder. Study leaves negotiated for by the labor unions provide carrier development. Some employers may want to maintain employees as casual, which is not as per the law; labor unions therefore come to negotiate for their permanent employment. This enables both carrier growth and development. Go slows: When employers do not want to give in to requests by the employees, laborers may present this to their unions and they may result in mass action. Demonstrations/go slows organized by labor unions are recognized by the laws and no one of the employees is victimized. workers’ plights are therefore considered by their employers and their demands are negotiated for by both the employer and the union officials. Creation of jobs: Labor unions are run by officials, elected by the members based on their education, knowledge and experience, to manage the union. These officials are well remunerated, from the contributions by the members. They therefore earn a living out their efforts to manage the unions. In the society, dependency ratio is therefore reduced while idleness by the unemployed and crime levels go down. These officials are replaced from time to time and the jobs are given to new people. Mediator between the government and the employees: Labor unions negotiate with the Government for labor standards to be maintained for the sake of the employees. The government is therefore kept on check by the union to ensure that there are statutory regulations on the, minimum wage, working conditions/environment and unfair dismissals. Labor unions also provide some level of awareness to the professionals in terms of, what they should expect from the employer and what their level of productivity to their employers should be, in order to experience carrier growth and development. (Timothy, Roni, 2003 p. 23-34) References: Albert S. (2001). Labor unions. New York. Cristol Publishers. Becky T. (2002). Societal Value of Labor Unions. New Jersey. Western Press. Norman C. (2000). Enforcement of Labor unions. Los Angelus. Southern Publishers. Timothy S, Roni B. (2003). Labor Unions in united States. Boston. Cribal Publishers.

Management of Industrial Relations

Industrial relations is seen as the most subtle and complicated crisis of current Industrial society. It Is Impossible for any organization to have harmonious working environment unless and until there Is a heedful relationship and cooperation with labors.Hence, it is vital for all to have appropriate interest in generating fine relations between the two actors known as employers and employees. This essay will elaborate on the controversial issues such as, strike and absenteeism followed by owe these issues affects the actors mainly employer, employee and entire population either directly or indirectly In their daily lives and whether does this Issues have positive or negative Impact on them.To begin with, Industrial relation Is considered to be a diverse field which Is viewed in different perspectives by three distinctive schools where in unitary school, industrial relations see employer-employee relationships essentially harmonious and conflict is seen as the intrusion, Pluralist p erspective accepts expected conflicts and variety of groups will compete with evergreen interests, objectives and aspirations and through Marxist viewpoint there is a perpetual conflict between the two actors because of the unfair distribution of wealth and power between them.All these diverse nature portrayed by each school has some controversial Issues that Is related with Industrial relations thus, affecting everybody either directly or indirectly. Moving on, the controversial issues are mainly the industrial conflicts in an organization and the most popular one is â€Å"strike' which is a strong weapon utilized by labor alliance or trade unions in regards to getting heir certain demands to be fulfilled.Generally, group of workers relinquish the production process and brings up pressure on the employer In order to get their demands accepted. The most obvious effect of strike on employer Is that production schedules are disrupted and production capacity lowers. This â€Å"direct ly† affects the employers, employees and also the state whereby, employees lose out on working days and because of this, production and profit is forgone to the employers and once profitability level is down there is a huge tax loss by state.Hence, this also indirectly† affects the general public whereby, inflation takes place since there is product scarcity as production disturbance Is caused through strike and as a result, the public faces disruption of certain goods and services. Mostly due to strike there can be a severe economic and social effects and costs which can generally affect the actors, states and entire population.This can be supported through an event that had happened in 1959 in Fijian oil Industry where workers strike for higher wages and benefits like; sick leave and 40 hour workweek; â€Å"The strike was held for complete days in which all the gasoline stations were under stoppage since the fuses were gasoline stations the essential transportation se rvices like bus and taxis also went on strike in order to pressure the employers to accept the demands and also to commence the service soon. This affected the general public since they were deprived from transportation services.Later, the striking crowd grew and because of their demands still not being answered, workers threw rocks at the Europeans. This caused social cost since other shops located beside the gasoline stations were also imaged by the rock thrown and since the curfew was established later therefore, innocent people available near the scenic area also got victimized and had to taken to hospital hence causing social cost where they had to seek medical attentions by doctors† (Global Nonviolent Action Database). On the other hand, strike also has positive impacts whereby it can significantly progress the lives of workers together with their families.Benefits may include where the employees might lose their wages for the certain days but they achieve more in regard s to longer terms for example, wrought strike employees bargains an increment of 5% in their wage rate for an year then basically upcoming increases will be supported by larger amounts. Furthermore, absenteeism and attendance are also importance to industrialized society. Largely, absence from work creates extensive range of consequences on the workers, workplace, the industrial operations, and also the stipulation of goods and services to society. T characterizes a form of momentary revoke from the organization by the employees which enforces essential costs on the process of labor management. Absenteeism is due to many reasons such as Job stress, personal attitude or Job satisfaction but at the same time it also affects generally. This stands out to be the alarmingly high cost to management. This is evident when glanced at some foreign countries like Australia where industries â€Å"through absenteeism lost thirty times the number of working days than strike and eventually loosin g approximately $7 billion annually. Similarly, American industries also encountered it where â€Å"approximately $40 billion is lost annually' (Gorilla, MAGMA, course book). Hence, profitability level is at risk and states lose out on tax. Likewise, employees also lose out where due to absenteeism they might get terminated or dismissed from the employment contract that they were under and as a result, they will be left unemployed and largely it will affect their family since they might not be able to gain access to basic food items for their survival in future thus leading them to poverty.Looking at the population, they will be deprived from non-availability of certain goods and services thus, rise in price of products, leads to a drop in purchasing power and generally low income earned by retail shops. However, being left from work for nine basis can be advantageous for individuals and also for the workplace. It approaches to help in reducing the risk of injuries not only to empl oyees but permits a productive workplace, through sick leave employers are able to get rid of workplace stress and other disorders, and also maintains productive workforce.For instance, an employee is ill but is trying not to affect the Job that is being given therefore, that might affect other employees as that illness can be infectious, making the certain employees ill at the same time thus, more sick leaves are being utilized, eventually effecting the production level for a week or so. Categorized in diverse nature which stands out to be occupied with controversial issues which is in a form of conflicts mainly known as strike and absenteeism.These issues do have both negative and positive impacts on the entire population and employer, employee and also the state where they have to pass through economic and social costs. Eventually, to get rid of these issue and to have a healthy workplace policies must be revised and established hence, having a productive workplace and employers benefit the most which at last promotes betterment to state and the population. Bibliography Invalidates. Swarthmore. Deed, (2014).

The Impact of Personal and Organisational Variables

The impact of personal and organisational variables on the leadership styles of managers Summary This study has attempted to collect and analyse data on a number of personal as well as organisational variables that are considered as potentially useful in explaining the leadership styles of managers. Such data include the gender, age, length of service in present organisation, length of service in an organisation, hierarchy, size and type of organisation, whether a manufacturing or a financial services entity, for example.The objective of the study is to examine the impact of these variables, if any, on the leadership style practices of managers. In the modern management of human resources it is useful to investigate whether, for example, there is less use of directive form of leadership in preference to consultative, participative and delegative leadership practices. If so, such practices will be in line with the expected liberalisation in today’s world as different from yeste rday’s more authoritarian styles of organisational management.It would be useful to know what personal characteristics, such as age, have on leadership practices which is supposedly based on some suggested principles. For example, how do older and younger top-level and lower-level organisational leaders differ in their leadership activities? Knowledge of the answers to these and similar questions can be used to improve the management of human resources. Respondents to this study identified a number of personal variables during the data collection phase.This included their age, gender, and length of service either in the present organisation or in all organisations in which they have worked. Although a number of variables were thus involved and consequently used in the exploratory data analysis, some of them, like gender and length of service, were not significant, on their own, in the analysis. However, age shows up most significantly in their effects on the leadership styles of the managers. On leadership styles and behaviour, ompared with older workers, the researchers found that younger workers feel more comfortable in fast changing environments and are more willing to take risks and consider new approaches. They also operate with more energy and intensity, and have a greater capacity to energise others. In addition, they are more likely to seek out opportunities to take charge and push vigorously and competitively to achieve a high level of results. When compared to older workers, younger workers also tend to work to develop and promote themselves.Similarly, on leadership styles and behaviour, compared with younger workers, the researchers found that older workers study problems in light of past practices in order to ensure predictability, and minimise risk. They tend to maintain a calmer and more understated (though not detached) demeanour. Older workers tend to maintain an in-depth knowledge of their field and use this knowledge to approach proble ms. They cooperate and delegate more, in addition to showing a greater degree of empathy and concern for other workers. Contrary to the practices of younger workers, the authors suggest that older workers work to develop and promote others.Respondents were asked to indicate their overall satisfaction levels with their boss’s leadership styles. Given the hierarchical nature of most organisations, subordinates rated bosses who, in turn, rated their own bosses and so on so that a full picture of the situation with this consideration was obtained. A further examination of the data suggests that managers at higher organisational hierarchy, obviously, tend to use some but not all of the four leadership styles – directive, consultative, participative and delegative.The impression seems to be that before they get to the higher organisational position they would have tried each of the leadership style dimensions and decided to concentrate on only one, two or three of them but n ot all four leadership styles. Experience would have assisted them in selecting and concentrating on the style or styles of leadership that they considered most appropriate during the performance of each of their organisational activities.A corollary of this finding is that lower level managers tend to use significantly more of the overall leadership styles in comparison with the higher-level managers. This finding is as expected since lower-level managers need time and experience to decide which of the styles would work best for them in different situations. Thus in their learning processes, they might decide to use each and all of the leadership styles during their learning period. This study set out to examine the leadership styles of managers from the perspectives of their ages and the levels they occupy in their organisational hierarchies.Using survey data from over 400 UK employees and managers, the authors found that managers at higher organisational hierarchies tend to use l ess of the overall leadership style in preference to one or the other of the directive, consultative, participative or delegative leadership styles. It was felt that their experiences enable them to more easily select an appropriate style of leadership in performing their organisational activities rather than relying on a composite leadership style. However, it was also found that older managers tend to use less of the individual leadership styles in preference to the overall leadership style.This situation leaves us with the conclusion that the higher level managers in our study may not be the oldest ones and that, today, younger managers are rising to the top positions in organisational management. One reason for this, of course, is the increasing use of technology in managerial duties and that younger managers tend to be more adept at this than their older colleagues. One of the implications of our finding is that organisations today must increasingly recognise the complementary roles and skills of younger and older employees in achieving their goals. Age does not necessarily have to be an asset or a barrier.THE DOWNSIDE OF SELF-MANAGEMENT: A LONGITUDINAL STUDY OF THE EFFECTS OF CONFLICT ON TRUST, AUTONOMY, AND TASK INTERDEPENDENCE IN SELF-MANAGING TEAMS Summary Over the past few decades, interest in self-managing teams has increased, particularly interest in understanding their design, structure, and performance. Little is known about how self-managing teams design and adapt themselves, and how these actions affect performance. A recent review of teams in organizations that specifically discussed adaptation did not reference any research exploring structural change as an adaptive mechanism.The author illustrated an example of teams with high trust suffering performance losses when they adopted a design with high individual autonomy. Thus, selfmanaging teams’ ability to choose and adapt their structures has important implications for their performanc e. In general, flexibility and adaptability are beneficial and are often what allow teams to avoid trouble and manage problems successfully. However, the author suggest this flexibility can sometimes be a liability, specifically when a self-managing team unintentionally adopts a potentially dysfunctional design.The authors focus is on how task and relationship conflict in self-managing teams can cause them to restructure themselves in response. The author defines task conflict here as disagreement among group members about decisions, viewpoints, ideas, and opinions and as potentially including controversy over the best way to achieve a group goal or objective. In the context of self-managing teams, the issue of structure and process becomes more complex than it is for â€Å"traditional† work teams.Normally, structural, or design, variables are considered exogenous inputs in a classic input-process-output (IPO) model, but in the case of self-managing teams they can clearly be outputs as well. This characteristic raises two thorny issues, one conceptual and one methodological. First, it suggests that the study of self-managing teams should address not just the immediate effect of structure on outcomes such as performance, but also the effects on structure itself of various processes, such as conflict, and the effects of emergent states like trust.Conflict has long been known to have the potential to harm group processes, such as coordination and cooperation, as well as performance outcomes, such as goal accomplishment, and much is known about the causes and effects of conflict in teams. Although the benefits of sharing divergent viewpoints and discussion are clear, especially in terms of team decision-making quality, the overall effect of both task and relationship conflict on performance appears to be negative. Despite voluminous research, the effects of onflict on team structure have remained largely unexplored, representing a significant shortcoming in academic understanding of teams, particularly selfmanaging ones. The author believes that the links between conflict and structure may not only be direct, but also indirect—through intervening variables such as intrateam trust, which has been found to be important to self-managing team performance. Hypothesis 1. Higher conflict, whether task or relationship, is associated with lower trust.The author expects that the reductions in trust associated with increased conflict will in turn influence team structure, resulting in lowered autonomy and task interdependence. Autonomy and task interdependence both consistently stand out in the team design literature as the two primary structural factors of teams. Hypothesis 2. Lower trust is associated with lower levels of individual autonomy in a team. It is also likely that trust influences task interdependence. By a logic similar to that presented above, perceptions of risk may also lead team members to limit task interdependence and coordination requirements.Task interdependence is often considered the extent to which an individual’s task performance depends on the efforts and skills of others. Hypothesis 3. Lower trust is associated with lower levels of task interdependence in a team. In addition to the indirect effects discussed above, it is also possible for conflict to have direct effects on team structure. In terms of autonomy, such effects might result from a desire for revenge or retribution in response to task or relationship conflict; a team member might essentially withhold autonomy from another as a punitive act.Hypothesis 4. Higher conflict, whether task or relationship, is associated with lower levels of individual autonomy in a team. A direct effect of conflict on task interdependence is also possible, as team members may redesign their team to avoid interacting with one another. If relationship conflict is high, members can reduce task interdependencies to minimize their contact with team members they do not like, thus avoiding conflict. Hypothesis 5. Higher conflict, whether task or relationship, is associated with lower task interdependence.Hypotheses 1, 2, and 3 thus suggest that trust serves as an indirect intervening variable by which trust is affected by conflict and, in turn, affects team structure. Hypothesis 6. Higher conflict, whether task or relationship, is associated with teams characterized by a combination of lower task interdependence and lower individual autonomy. Finally, it is worth noting that such a design— low interdependence combined with low autonomy—is potentially dysfunctional.Thus, moving slightly outside the main focus of the present study, the author would also expect to find such an interactive effect of autonomy and task interdependence on team performance. In other words, design changes that are either directly or indirectly associated with conflict in a self-managing team are likely to have dysfunctional effects on perfo rmance. The authors basic contention is that self-managing teams can be particularly susceptible to detrimental effects of conflict as a result of their ability to alter their own structures and designs.The results have largely supported that contention. He has shown that higher levels of conflict (especially relationship conflict) in teams are associated with lower task interdependence and individual autonomy, partly because of direct effects, and partly because of indirect effects of lower trust. He also demonstrated that high conflict in teams is associated with the combination of lower autonomy and interdependence, which is a potentially dysfunctional design for a self-managing team, with lower performance than other configurations. Leadership in the Service of Hospitality SummaryThe definition of leadership has changed considerably in the past one hundred years, beginning with the â€Å"great man† concept and, more recently, focusing on â€Å"transformational leadership . † The next step in leadership evolution is servant leadership, in which the leader seeks to support and empower followers. The implications are considerable for the hospitality industry, since it is based on the concept of leadership through service. Hospitality educators could take steps to instill servant leadership principles in students to equip them for this increasingly relevant leadership style.This paper looks back on half a century of publications, the changes it has recorded in leadership theory and practice illustrate the evolution of approaches to understanding the relationship between leaders and followers in hospitality organizations. In the current business climate, there is a greater need for leaders who can guide with integrity and courage instead of autocratic leaders. Therefore it seems logical to research several philosophies on employee care and environmental stewardship. These philosophies promote a culture of trust and respect.This emerging approach to leadership is examined in light of the pressing issues businesses are confronting as we move into the second decade of the twenty-first century—leaders whose motives are often questionable and a workforce that has become increasingly stressed, disillusioned, and disengaged. Early theories focused almost exclusively on personal characteristics of the leader and attempted to better understand the reason for his or her impact on organizational performance. In fact, one of the first perspectives was called the â€Å"great man† theory under the premise that leaders (at that time, almost exclusively male) were born, not made.During the 1950s and 1960s, behavioural theories emerged with increasing frequency. Theorists proposed that individuals could learn to be leaders through skill development and deliberate action. While the earliest theories focused on the leader’s characteristics and competencies in search of the key to greater effectiveness, thinking during the p ast twenty-five years has generally taken a broader view that considers both the dynamics created between the leader and his or her followers as well as the context and features of the particular environment.Servant leadership captures and reimagines elements from earlier thinking on the requirements of both the individual as leader and his or her relationship with followers. Servant leaders demonstrate the flexibility required for effectiveness in a culturally diverse workplace, incorporating the positive and appropriate aspects of other leadership models. Behaviors Associated with Servant Leaders 1. Listening intently to others combined with personal reflection on what is heard 2. Empathy: assuming the good intentions of colleagues 3. Awareness: understanding issues involving ethics and values . Persuasion, rather than relying on authority or coercion 5. Conceptualization: servant leaders dream great dreams and are also operationally skilled 6. Foresight: the ability to foresee th e likely outcome of a situation 7. Stewardship: holding institutions in trust for the greater good of society 8. Commitment to the personal and professional growth of all employees 9. Building community within the organization As definitions of customer service turn to customer care, servant leadership becomes increasingly relevant. Servant leaders appreciate, encourage, and care for their followers.Employees, inspired by the example their leader sets, in turn provide generous and genuine care to guests. When employees take personal responsibility for addressing each guest’s needs, when they serve out of a personal commitment to provide value and assistance, service becomes authentic and quality increases. This customization of service translates into high customer satisfaction and subsequent organizational effectiveness. When employees perceive their leader as trustworthy—when they keep their promises and act on espoused values—employee commitment, effort, and efficiency increase.While both servant and transformational leaders seek to empower employees, servant leadership adds an ethical emphasis beyond what is generally found in transformational leadership theory. Arguments have been posed that transformational leaders, highly motivated to accomplish their organizational goals, may be tempted to use their charisma and misrepresent aspects of the situation to their followers. The path to servant leadership is not always direct, and students must be encouraged to cultivate a long-term view of the journey.Educators can help each student to see the value in doing what is right, even if it is not immediately recognized or rewarded. While focus is on facilitating these outcomes in student learners, faculty may find that modelling servant leader attitudes and practices can help them to facilitate personal responsibility and high standards of ethical behaviour. When faculty demonstrate empowerment and build trust, they can raise students’ expectations regarding the requirements of their future hospitality leadership role. Job-Related Barriers and Coping Behaviors n the Career Development of Hospitality Undergraduates Summary The main reason why this research is done is to understand the reason for the extremely high turnover in the hospitality industry. The purpose of most of the hospitality education programs is to prepare students for future management positions. However, many of these students drop out after 3-5 years. The first step of the survey, in the direction of solving the problem is to understand students' career planning. Studies from the student perspective are scarce, so this study will focus mainly on these students, hree main objectives guiding the study. 1. To explore and compare hospitality students' perception of work-related barriers 2. The relationships between the role of the barriers students investigate in their career decision processes. 3. To evaluate the effectiveness of career counseling to improve and suggest directions for future studies focusing on barriers for hospitality students Job-related barriers are defined as â€Å"events or circumstances, either within the person or in his or her environment, which are part of a career progress difficult†.Several studies focus on further classification of these career difficulties. Factors, including race, age, education and background are examined during the years. In addition to the quantitative studies that have focused on the effects of barriers for student career development processes a few researchers found that qualitative methods have the advantage of improving the exploration of the students' perceived barriers. Nowadays hospitality researchers have developed a new and different approach to the career development of students in the hospitality industry.Acquiring useful skills is viewed helpful in promoting hospitality graduates compatibility with advances in the industry. Along with the before mentioned a pproach, the view and the perception of the students in the hospitality is considered more and more important. The lack of opportunities for growth was the main reason reported by alumni of hotel and restaurant programs for changing employers or leaving the industry. Unsuitable working hours and poor financial compensation be mentioned as another important reason for the change businesses, changing careers, or leave the industry altogether.Career decision-making self-efficacy (CdSe) refers to the degree of confidence people have in their expertise or ability to informational, educational and professional goal-planning activities to be carried out. In addition to these CdSe states that â€Å"the students' perceptions of barriers can be based on several considerations: chance barriers arise, the degree of disruptiveness as it occurs, and an individual is able to overcome barriers† . A total of 430 surveys were distributed to hospitality students at two universities through the stratified sampling method (program enrollment ratio: 7:3).School 1 is located in a small suburban university city with a population of 27,906 and a number of medium-sized cities in the area. School 2 is located in a medium sized city known for commercial and medical institutions with a population of 217,326 and the proximity of nearby small towns. Selection of these two samples, the investigator in order to determine whether location has significant influence on the selected variables. One of the outcomes of this research is what kind of factors are considered as the main barriers.The factors, difficulty finding a job because of a tight labor market and not knowing the â€Å"right people† to get a job came in first and second. The findings of this study suggest that students perceived barriers differently, because the same item are grouped into different factors within the subscales. Thus, the inability to move away from friends / family seen as affecting â€Å"getting a jo b they desire† (finding the job factor), but the move was also seen as their â€Å"performance on the job† to influence (performing the work factor).When both quantitative and quantitative measures were used to students' perceptions of career barriers to explore other results have emerged from these two reviews. When students had a choice to predetermined list of wide assessments given, they rated the tight labor market as the top concern, followed by lack of connection. The findings of this study showed that students often use problem-oriented methods to deal with barriers.Again, although the qualitative method may have limited students from considering all possible coping strategies, students turned on internal (hard to improve themselves, work) over external assistance (eg professional help) to find solutions. This result showed a consistency in the qualitative data, because internal barriers (lack of experience, motivation, self-confidence) more than external ones ( tight labor) were cited. Finally, the moderate relationship found in this study showed that although students were able to career decision in the hospitality industry , they do not have the confidence in this field to conquer the barriers.By studying the career development processes of hospitality students, hospitality teachers will benefit from understanding how to help students cope with barriers and hospitality situated in a better position to help students with their career goals. Decreasing barriers in students' career planning will improve hospitality students control over their career behavior. A conscious choice of career, a meaningful career goal and career preparation will facilitate hospitality students commitment to their career choices and retention in the hospitality industry. Career Decision Making and Intention: a Study of Hospitality Undergraduate StudentsSummary This study focused on a sample of hospitality undergraduate students and had three main objectives: Firs t, to determine factors that affect their career-related decisions; second, to explore motivations for pursuing a hospitality career; and third, to examine whether the probability of hospitality students’ career intentions can be predicted by selected variables Self-Efficacy. This concept dominates career development theories and may be best described as â€Å"Can I do this? †. Self-efficacy serves as a mediator to motivate people to achieve a special goal, such as pursuing a career in the hospitality industry.Self-efficacy is about individuals’ belief in their ability to carry out the following five tasks: self-appraisal, vocational information gathering, plans for the future, problem solving, and goal selection. Performing these five tasks is essential to achieve career maturity. Outcome Expectations. This factor is an important determinant of â€Å"career interests and choice goals† and may be best described as â€Å"If I do this, what will happen? â € . Outcome expectations are both the intrinsic and extrinsic rewards that career choices and goals are based on. Vocational Exploration.This factor refers to a process that an individual engages when choosing a career. This process begins with exposure to various sources of information (about one’s self, the vocational world, and alternative options) and involves activities such as (a) testing occupational preferences and interests, (b) evaluating suitability and obtaining feedback, (c) establishing career goals and overcoming barriers and obstacles, and (d) engaging in and committing to a career choice. Career Intentions. This factor is defined as â€Å"the degree to which a person has formulated conscious plans to perform or not perform some specified future behavior†.Both self-efficacy and outcome expectations are predictors of â€Å"career intentions and persistence behavior†. Three methods of data analysis were performed in this study. First, a series o f bivariate correlation analyses was conducted to test the relationships among career-related variables. Second, logistic regression analysis was performed to test the hypothesis and identify background and career-related variables that significantly predicted the probability of students’ intention to work in the hospitality industry after graduation.Third, students’ responses to one open-ended question were thematically analyzed. This question encouraged students to express their own views and opinions about pursuing careers in the hospitality industry. The authors results hold three main implications for both hospitality educators and industry. First of all, hospitality students in this study identified themselves as the most influential factor in making career decisions and also reported intrinsic rewards as more valuable outcomes or motivators for pursuing careers than extrinsic.Implications of this finding suggest that hospitality firms continue to create industry positions that promote â€Å"self-reliance,† â€Å"autonomy,† â€Å"advancement,† â€Å"opportunities for personal and professional development,† and â€Å"sense of achievement†. These researchers concluded that â€Å"money alone does not motivate a young manager† â€Å"the strongest driver of commitment is the intrinsic nature of the job,† and â€Å"one of the most important job features focuses on challenging job that offers growth opportunities†. Industry may also find our qualitative data on students’ motivations for pursuing a hospitality career valuable.Their responses matched with industry professionals’ views regarding qualifications for hospitality graduates in the 21st century, and included service attitude, flexibility, enjoy serving people, enjoy what you do, dedication, and commitment. Second, hospitality educators may find our regression analysis on factors affecting undergraduate students’ c areer intentions worthwhile when planning curriculum. For example, female students were found to show stronger intentions to work in the hospitality industry than male students. How does the material/information in the articles relate to the career development programme hat you followed at IHM? The IHM career development programme is created to prepare the student for his/her professional life after graduating IHM. By the use of several obliged tests and assignments, the student and his/her study career coach try to find out what the weaknesses and more important, strengths of the student are. Along with the before mentioned activities, the students tries to acquire skills that might help him/he in the future. Because the author of this assignment is currently a second year student, the first two years of the career development programme are examined.According to (Kuang Chuang, 2011) most of the career development programmes are designed to fit the student in a profile that companie s expect. However the turnover rate in the hospitality industry is extremely high, most of the universities do not change their programmes to decrease this high turnover rate. As mentioned before, students are bounded to several tests in order to increase their chance to receive a suitable job after graduation. The examples given in the article of the before mentioned authors, are the so called job-barriers.These barriers are events of circumstances that are part of career development difficulties of the ex-student. Examples of barriers are; inflexible working hours, poor financial compensation and the lack of growth. Students mentioned these three barriers as most important factors to leave the industry. Nowadays the industry, together with the universities, realize more and more that the students' point of view is important as well. Only fitting into a profile is not applicable anymore in the current market. Personal opinions, from students in this case, are becoming the new stand ard.The link with the IHM career development programme is that IHM tries to learn the student a range of skills that might turn out useful in any industry and not only the hospitality industry. Improving the lack of experience and motivation are also an important part of the programme. Of course fitting into a certain profile is also part of the programme, e. g. company visitations in the first year, and the expectations that derive from these visitations. Overall the article concludes that hospitality teachers will benefit from understanding how to help students with their barriers and how to give them a better position on the future market.A well chosen choice of career, a well structured goal and preparation will improve the chance of reaching the goals of students. The second article (Ning-Kuang Chuang and Mary Dellmann-Jenkins, 2010), tries to understand the factors that are involved in choosing a future career for students. Further objectives were if the career intentions of s tudents can be predicted by researching several variables. In accordance with the IHM programme, the articles explains the importance of self efficiency. It can be best described as; Can I do this?Part of the self efficiency are also individuals’ belief in their ability to carry out the following five tasks: self-appraisal, vocational information gathering, plans for the future, problem solving, and goal selection. Especially in the practical modules, students are constantly challenged to improve their performance and look critically towards themselves and to others. These factors are essential in achieving a mature and professional student. The focus in this part lies on the last two factors, problem solving and goal selection because these to factors can be best related to the career development programme of IHM.One of the boundaries that lies in the main question in this part of the assignment is the fact that all the articles should relate to the career development progra mme. However, the entire educational programme of IHM focuses on the before mentioned factors, and therefore this part will also include information about the rest of the IHM programme. The most obvious factors in the IHM programme related to problem solving is Problem Based Learning. In short, PBL. During these sessions students are trained in solving real life problems, that might also occur in the careers of the students contributing in a session.But PBL is in the authors opinion not only about solving problems but also about setting goals. What does a group want to achieve, will that challenge them, and why do the students want to know it? All these aspects of the IHM programme relate to this article in such a way that IHM also tries to find out why a student wants to achieve something. In the article, the students stated that money was not the only motivator in a job, but the intrinsic value that was found in a job gave the decisive. Especially these intrinsic values are also m entioned in the industry as most important in hiring people.Therefore the IHM educational programme is an extension of the article or the other way around. Describe in your own words how a manager of a hospitality company can use the information derived from the articles and the career development programme. What is a leader? Is a leader someone born to lead, or someone learned to lead? In earlier times especially men were considered leader that were born. There gender and background gave them the status that was expected and necessary to lead. In those days, most of the leaders were autocratic leaders, not much or little attention was given to the human aspects of leading.According to (Judi Brownell, 2010), the ‘great man' concept was the way to look at leaders. Nowadays leaders are considered transformational, they change according to what is needed to lead successful. The next step is the servant leadership style in which the leader seeks to support and empower followers. T he implications are considerable for the hospitality industry, since it is based on the concept of leadership through service. In the current market there is a need for trustworthy leaders who lead with integrity. Care about employees and the environment are considered more and more important.Keywords are trust and respect, however motives of leaders are, or are becoming questionable, and more often employees are stressed, disillusioned and disengaged. Is the personality of the leader the key factor in success? Or can a leader be trained to be a leader as mentioned before? Servant leadership might be the new success, but I have my doubts about the ‘new' element in this case. The hospitality industry has always been an industry were not the employees, but the guests and their expectations were considered most important.Employees in this industry have always been servants of guests. In my opinion is a good leader in a hospitality company, a trustworthy, respectable and integer p erson. One that has feeling with his company and his employees in order to let the guest feel at home and treated as such. Quality increases when employees feel respected and valued. While both servant and transformational leaders seek to empower employees, servant leadership adds an personal aspect to the business beyond what is normally found in transformational leadership.According to (Titus Oshagbemi, 2008), t would be useful to know what personal characteristics, such as age, and gender have on leadership which is based on some suggested principles. For example, how do older and younger top-level and lower-level organisational leaders differ in their leadership activities? Older workers are considered more calm and understated, they tend to cooperate and delegate more work compared to their younger employees. Also these older workers show a greater degree of empathy and care for their colleagues, they work to develop and promote others instead of themselves.According to my opin ion all this theory is important but not essential. Of course a leader can be trained in more or less disciplines of the hospitality business. But overall a leader is born, a leader has a natural feeling of what he/she has to do in order to make his employees do what he/she wants without being questioned. In addition to this most important factors a good leader, let his/her employees feel valued and respected. I think a hospitality leader is a leader that can deal with all sorts of problems. The most important information in these two articles is the information about the servant leadership.This kind of leadership should, in my opinion, almost be natural in a hospitality company. It doesn't maybe give direct rewards or benefits, but it would increase the quality of a lot of companies. A leader is in every way a role model, not only business wise but also personal wise. When answering the main question, for a hospitality manager without the natural leadership ability, I would recomme nd to turn the entire process around. Try to find out what you would like to experience when visiting your own company. How should the staff treat you, how should the overall feeling be?Explore what being a leader is about? According to these articles there are different ways to achieve a successful company. In addition to these articles, a manager should learn how to develop him/herself, the career development programme gives lot of opportunities to do so. By the hand of e. g. a Belbin Teamroletest or a Core Quality Quadrant, a manager might come up with ways to improve his leadership capabilities. But in my opinion, a manager hopefully already owns this kind of knowledge about him/herself, and should not have to rely on a university programme.Describe in your own words the importance of self management, personal leadership and career development for your personal professional development as a manager. Self management is the ability to lead a group without being constantly supervis ed or controlled. Little is actually known about the pro's and con's of self management, on the one hand it is a positive factor that individual peers can form an autonomous group, with self control. A group that makes it own decisions and is responsible for its performance. Skills like: leadership, cooperation and team-building can be learned.On the other hand, one might say that conflicts easily occur within a group, these conflicts might decrease the overall performance in this group. Conflicts are caused by a bad designed group, a group without clear agreements and without a clear structure. In this case the self management in my own personal professional development as a manager is the main issue. E. g. is the experience I gained at IHM with self managed groups. Especially in module assignments, teamwork is at the essence. Placed most of the time in a random group, it is just luck whether you are placed in a productive group, or not.Of course there are the workshops about cultu ral differences, effective teamwork and communication skills, but these workshops do not contribute to the basic of these groups. A group consists out of 4 peers, 2 peers are contributing and obviously 1 or 2 are not. This is the problem that, in my opinion, comes forward in any group. Answering the before mentioned main subject, self management is extremely important, if carried out correctly. Students at IHM, might get the feeling that there are always negative aspects in a group process. This is a negative aspect in the self managing atmosphere of IHM.However I believe that if carried out correctly and if just slightly supervised, the before mentioned, negative peers get the feeling that they also have to work in order to reach the set objectives. So concluded I would say that self management is important when becoming a future manager but it should be learned correctly in order to succeed. Secondly I will explain my vision on personal leadership in my personal professional devel opment as a manager. As mentioned earlier in this assignment, I think leaders are born instead of taught. I realize that in the current, international market, this vision is to black and white.I understand the importance of knowing the theory behind leading and the ability to perform according to the theory. In addition I will specify the †manager† part in the earlier mentioned statement. At IHM we are becoming future hospitality managers. In my opinion hospitality managers should have a common feeling of what a guest actually wants. The basic should be right in order to successfully create a future manager. Besides all the business, marketing and HRM knowledge, the basic should be right. Therefore I think that just a percentage of all the IHM graduates will become successful future hospitality managers.This might also be a reason for the high turnover in the industry, however this will not be examined further in this assignment. Self management will however remain one o f the most important factors in our future jobs, because of the increasing globalization and the changing nature of the hospitality industry. Finally this part of the assignment will focus on the career development part in becoming a manager. In my opinion standing still is †¦ Especially in the current modern business market, every single individual has to keep improving whenever the possibilities are present.Improving does not only relate to performing better, but also on the before mentioned fact of dealing with problems, the so called barriers. These barriers will not only come up when being a manager, but will cross the paths of current IHM students as well. Therefore I would like to explain the importance of career development by using the example of the students, becoming managers. I think one of the most important factors in career development is to turn the barriers into something positive. Learn from the difficulties that will sooner or later arise. Together with this barrier dealing issue, the performing part is the other main aspect.I think it is wise for managers in any industry to improve their overall performance constantly. Not only from learning theory, but from learning the industry as well. Explore what, related to the hospitality industry, your guests want and how their needs change. What are the trends and how will you use these in your advantage? Write a reflection of what you have learned from this replacement assignment, and how this can help you to make the right career decisions for you. At first, I have to be honest, I thought of this assignment as just the next of many others.The same aspects of the career development programme highlighted again. Until the moment that I started searching for articles. I realized that there was a lot to learn about these kind of programmes. Information that I had never seen before. Useful research that had been done concerning real life students' †problems†. In the last part of this r eplacement assignment I will focus on the 3 factors mentioned in the part above. Self management As mentioned earlier in this assignment I consider the luck factor in a designated module assignment group as a negative aspect. But maybe I should consider this barrier as a positive factor.I will help my fellow peers to gain a feeling with a project, try to guide them trough the available theory and set up clear rules and agreements. This might be a positive influence in a group. These steps will improve the group process and eventually the overall performance. Therefore I consider this a right decision in my upcoming career. Personal leadership I always have, and still do, consider myself as a leader type of person. This comes forward out of my personal experiences. E. g. I have been the chairman of several commissions, part of the largest student hockey club in the Netherlands.And I used to be the captain of my team. One of my strong points is that I can understand the position of ot her people in situations, I always try to listen carefully, not only to what people are telling me, but also what they don't. During my first two years at IHM, especially my practical module points and PBL points, underline this personal skill. Positive feedback from PBL coordinators and fellow peers also prove this. Currently my objective is to get a internship at the famous Amstel Hotel in Amsterdam. During my third year at IHM I will focus more on what is expected from me if I want to get the internship.Together with the Industrial Placement Office, I will try to make the right decisions in this step of my career as well. Career development After making this assignment I think I will consider the career development programme of IHM as a useful part of the education, instead of a less interesting way to receive credits. I think it would be good to make these kind of assignments part of the career development programme, because it offers a lot of information to students that they o therwise wouldn't have seen at all. It also gives students the opportunity to broaden their horizon bout career development, further than the basic assignments, in my opinion, for the portfolio do. The assignments given in the first 2 years of the education give not really a in depth view of the benefits the programme has. Conclusion Finally I want to conclude that however I didn't like the assignment at first, I realize that it will contribute to my career development programme in a positive way. After reading all the information in the articles, my look on the programme changed. It became clear to me that it is a way of preparing you for your upcoming professional life, however at first I might not seem that way.I read more about self management, career development and personal leadership in one week than in the rest of the two years together, and learned a lot. Literature list 1. Ning-Kuang Chuang. (2011). Job-Related Barriers and Coping Behaviors in the Career Development of Hos pitality Undergraduates . Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism. 14-32. DOI: 10. 1080/15332845. 2010. 500183 2. Ning-Kuang Chuang and Mary Dellmann-Jenkins. (2011). Career Decision Making and Intention: a Study of Hospitality Undergraduate Students. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research 2010 34: 512 originally published online 19-05-2010.DOI: 10. 1177/1096348010370867 3. Judi Brownell. (2011). Leadership in the Service of Hospitality. AUGUST 2010 Cornell Hospitality Quarterly 363. Volume 51, Issue 3 363-378. DOI: 10. 1177/1938965510368651 4. George W. Langfred. (2007). THE DOWNSIDE OF SELF-MANAGEMENT. Academy of Management Journal 2007, Vol. 50, No. 4, 885–900. 5. Titus Oshagbemi. (2008). The impact of personal and organisational variables on the leadership styles of managers. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Vol. 19, No. 10, October 2008, 1896–1910.