Nokia Case Studies

The three important issues the company should focus on in terms of expense control Employment at the company should be cut down to a manageable size. The company should only retain a sizeable number of workers that it can manage comfortably as the revenues continue to dwindle. The goal is to save a significant amount of revenues currently being paid out as salaries and wages.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Nokia: Case Studies specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Business acquisitions should only be limited to those that are viable and those that require less time to return profits. The financial goal of this move is to save funds from further non-profitable ventures. Closing the extra regional offices and branches and instead maintaining the main ones only is the third strategy. This action will save a significant amount of revenue that is currently being spent on meeting rent and other related expenses. Assessment of Nokia-Microsoft’s Windows Mobile The Window’s smartphone by Nokia has failed to recapture the market leadership in the sector. Instead, Nokia has continued to lose its market share while recording huge losses, especially in the smartphone sector. The Windows mobile platform has failed to achieve its intended purpose of spurring growth for the brand maker. From the current market trend, it is possible to adjudge that the Windows mobile platform is inferior to its main competitors Android by Google and iOS by Apple. The best alternative for Nokia should be using the licensed Android OS on its smartphone devices in order to boost its market share. This will see Nokia devices enjoy the same superiority as other leading Android devices such as Samsung, thus attracting a huge global market to recapture its market share. Necessary steps to regain the North American Market Nokia should begin by carrying out an extensive study of the North American market in order to determi ne trends and preferences. Market needs for the smartphones, especially in North America, keep changing rapidly as users seek for new features and capabilities.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More A closer link to the market will enable the brand maker recapture the market. Additionally, Nokia should seriously consider introducing the Android OS in its devices because this platform is sought after by the North American market. Realistic strategies for regaining market share Price competition Nokia should shift its competition towards the aspect of price by targeting to avail high quality products at cheaper prices. Lowering prices will see more users acquiring its products, thus increasing the market share. The costs will involve buying more materials and utilizing them on more products in order to achieve economies of scale advantage. However, this strategy is risky because the gadgets might be of an inferior quality to compromise on cost. New products This strategy should focus on releasing new products with enhanced features and performance. This will provide the market with a high range of products capable of competing with the other brands. The costs involve intensive research and development, while the risk lies in spending too much on a technology that fails to pick up. I prefer the price competition strategy because with its capacity, Nokia is able to achieve success through building economies of scale advantage. Nokia is also shifting production to Asia where it is likely to benefit from cheaper labor. Evaluation of Stephen Elop Performance Stephen Elop has performed dismally in his leadership. The company has continuously lost market share and registered losses. I recommend that he should change his strategy by focusing more on changing market trends and incorporating them immediately, instead of taking time before acting. Nokia has been rigid in its operations, failing to read signs early and take the right steps to address challenges. Thus, the CEO must consider flexibility while competing for business. Additionally, Elop should consider expanding Nokia’s business by venturing into new business areas, such as personal computers and laptops. This will see the firm cushion itself from harsh business conditions and performance affecting one area.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Nokia: Case Studies specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This essay on Nokia: Case Studies was written and submitted by user Charleigh Ochoa to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

The Outsiders1 essays

The Outsiders1 essays In this book analysis, about the book The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton I will discuss character and plot development, as well as the setting, the authors style and my opinions about the book. In this part of the analysis I will give some information about the subjects of the book, and about the author. The author wrote the story when she was just 16 years old, in the 1950s. The book was successful, and it was sold, and still being sold, in many copies as a young adults novel. There was a movie made about it, and today there are still many schools that use this book in junior high and high schools for English classes. There were plays made about the book too. The Outsiders is about a gang. They live in a city in Oklahoma. Ponyboy Curtis, a 14 year old greaser, tells the story. Other characters include Sodapop and Darry, Ponyboy's brothers, Johnny, Dallas, and Two- Bit, that were also gang members and Ponyboy's friends. This story deals with two forms of social classes: the socs, the rich kids, and the greasers, the poor kids. The socs go around looking for trouble and greasers to beat up, and then the greasers are blamed for it, because they are poor and cannot affect the authorities. I hope you would enjoy and learn something about the book from reading this analysis. Plot Development The plot development in the book, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, was easy to follow. In this part of the book analysis I will give some more details about the plot development. There were no hooks or hurdles in the beginning of the book, the first sentence starts right away with the plot-without any forewords. This is the beginning of the first sentence: When I stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house... (page 9). As you can see, it goes straight to the point without any prologues or any kind of introduction. The plot development in the middle of the story was sensible and easy to...

Plot Structure Analysis of Frankenstein Coursework

Plot Structure Analysis of Frankenstein - Coursework Example In contrast, this perfect human turns out to be a ugly monster, and he runs away from it because of its disgusting appearance. This is the mid-point of this narrative, observed in that Frankenstein rejection of the monster created a feeling of loneliness of it, and in its attempt to find company, it ends up murdering his own brother, and having a young innocent girl bear responsibility of his death in the eyes of general society members. This narrative reaches climax when Frankenstein realizes the real murderer of his brother, creating a twist on preceding actions. How a â€Å"perfect† creature created by an individual turns out to be his own pain? This narrative strives to advise human race on truth and value of accepting life in its simplicity. Underlying truth is that mankind seeks to achieve peace and perfection, by creating things he thinks ought to be there for this form of life, and at the end of it ends up destroying himself, and those close to him. This narrative is of great value in contemporary society, where wars and mass destruction is the order of the day in a bid to achieve

Exclusionary rule and the fruit of the poisonus tree Essay

Exclusionary rule and the fruit of the poisonus tree - Essay Example Such illegally obtained evidence was henceforth banned form use in Federal courts. Justice William Day wrote the unanimous opinion, saying that the Fourth Amendment essentially embodies the old English common law principle that ‘a man’s home is his castle’, and that it was intended to â€Å"forever secure the people, their persons, houses papers, and effects, against all unreasonable searches and seizures under the guise of law.†2 Justice Day continued with what may be one of the most damning indictments of illegal police conduct as he argued that â€Å"the tendency of those who execute the criminal laws of the country to obtain convictions by means of unlawful searches or enforced confessions . . . should find no sanction in the judgment of the courts which are charged at all times with the support of the Constitution and to which people of all conditions have a right to appeal for the maintenance of such fundamental rights.†3 The vital element of this argument is that just because the police and prosecutors had routinely performed illegal searches and â€Å"pressured† (some would say tortured) suspects into giving confessions, the mere fact that the illegality was widespread and of long duration provided no defense. Interestingly, Day’s argument was essentially the opposite of William Rehnquist’s argument for keeping the Miranda rights. Renquist argued that while the constitution may not guarantee or require such rights, the fact hat they had become part of the overall fabric of the legal system in particular and of American society in general they had become an essential fabric of the legal landscape.4 While the actual reasoning behind the exclusionary rule may be somewhat hazy at times, especially in these early cases when it was being initially being developed, and before its progeny had fleshed out the whole, its institution seems to have been catalysed by a view of

WGS final Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

WGS final - Assignment Example As seen in the work of Kirk & Okazawa-Rey, as the women grow up, they are socialized into women and even given descriptions on how a perfect female body should look like and how they are anticipated to live up to this reality (121-162). The women in turn completely change their views on how their bodies look like, design new model of their look and even change their beliefs on their exact identity. With this in mind, it is expected that the women will take into account what their bodies are made for and even attempt to determine how their bodies will change as they develop from one stage to another (Kirk & Okazawa-Rey 121-162). This thought is shared by Serdar who indicates that, the media has continually shaped the female body image (1). In her opinion, the author is wary of the extent in which the society sets socio-cultural standards that the women are expected to follow in the course of their development (Serdar 1). With the media emphasizing on the ideal body type and image, it is evident that lots of women will struggle to meet that standards of beauty that are, to a great extent, unattainable. One can easily relate to the plight of the women that constantly struggle to identify themselves with the beauty models in their televisions sets in the form of fashion models, advertisement queens and presenters of renowned shows. The response by the women being discontented about their physical appearance can then be understood from the perspective of Serdar. The society in this case, can be termed as one of factors that result to gender inequalities in the society. As far as this case point is concerned, th e women are forced to lead their lives as per the society not as per their beliefs. Kirk & Okazawa-Rey explain how the concept of the female appearance has created a beauty business that makes profits of billions every year

Stages of Enlightenment in Buddhism

Stages of Enlightenment in Buddhism MODULE 9: The Planes of Realization (stages of enlightenment) Enlightenment is a concept and a word that is commonly used and associated with mediation, the practice of Buddhism and its benefits. Most of the time, it is used in connection with the concept of Nirvana. In most Buddhist texts and literatures, enlightenment can be read to have started with the Buddha himself, thus the term samma-sambodhi is used to apply to the attainment of enlightenment of bodhis or meditators aiming for it. This is the goal of the paths of meditation based on most Buddhist traditions. In the original context, the word bodhi is a Pali and Sanskrit term that is used to refer to a person who has figuratively woken up and understood things. It is also used to point out to a specific level of understanding or knowledge that the Buddha has gained when he experienced his own awakening. This understanding gave him knowledge on to the natural causes of things that contributes to how human and other sentient beings come into their specific existence and also the workings of the mind that contributes to keeping human and other sentient beings trapped into concepts such as suffering, rebirth and cravings. In this sense, the word bodhi can then be connected to gaining a deeper level of understanding on how a person can liberate him or herself from the things that causes him or her to be imprisoned on the three concepts mentioned above. Enlightenment in the Buddhist Traditions The Buddha Siddharta Gautama, is the first recorded being to have attained a level of full enlightenment. This level that he has successfully achieved is written as sammasambuddha in the Pali language (samyaksambuddha in Sanskrit), or what is called as the perfect form off Buddhahood. In the Theravada tradition of Buddhism’s chronicles or the sutta pitaka, there are numerous texts and descriptions about how the Buddha has experienced awakening or enlightenment himself. This can be seen in the seventeeth chapter of the Vanapattha Sutta, the Majjhima. In this specific chapter, it is described how the Buddha has lived his life in the jungle and how from there, he was able to attain a state of awakening or enlightenment. This, the texts show, was done after the Buddha has successfully destroyed the disturbances that occurred in his mind, allowing him to achieve concentration of the mind. This has resulted into him attaining the Vidhyas or the the knowledges. This includes the presence of insight into his past lives, attaining insight into the workings of reincarnation and karma and insight to the presence of the Four Noble Truths. In the texts, the attainment of insight into the Four Noble Truths is what gave enlightenment the other term awakening. This means that any meditator practicing it has already achieved a level of attaining a security from bondage on a supreme nature. Moreover, awakening is also related to having reached the stage of Nirvana, where sufferings are ended and the process of being reborn no longer occurs. In the texts, the Buddha has claimed that the liberation he got from this is certain because the presence of knowledge happening to him has allowed him to develop insight. This have then given him certain freedom, rendering him to be free from rebirths. In teaching this concept to a meditator, the teacher must stress that the presence of awakening means gaining insight into the concepts of rebirth and karma, into the presence of the Four Noble Truths and the elimination of all things which contribute to attaining the state of Nirvana. Only in experiencing this would liberation be certainly experienced by the student. Attaining Awakening or Enlightenment The attainment of enlightenment or awakening at its fullest capacity can be achieved by a meditator by becoming a Buddha and entering into Buddhahood. When faced with this concept, the teacher must first explain to the meditator the various meanings and context of the word Buddha in the Buddhist traditions. Moreover, another term Tathagata should also be explained to the student. This term means â€Å"the thus-gone† and is used as an equivalent to the word Buddha. Reaching full awakening or enlightenment is considered in the Theravada Buddhist tradition to be equated in reaching the stage of Nirvana. This means that when a meditator starts practicing, the teacher should set his or her path to have the ultimate goal of reaching Nirvana. This is also true in other Buddhist traditions as well. This path involves the meditator abandoning the then fetters of his existence and working toward the ceasing of suffering or dukkha. This full awakening or enlightenment is attained by the meditator in four stages. Moreover, Budhaghosa, another authority in the Theravada Buddhist tradition has described another path to attaining enlightenment. In the Visuddhimagga or the Path to Purification, he has described what he calls the Seven Stages to Purification which is based on the Noble Eightfold Path originally described by the Buddha. The difference, however, lies on the fact that Buddhaghosa has emphasized on insight based on the three characteristics of life which are dukkha, anatta and anicca. These concepts are what distinguishes it apart from the four stages of enlightenment where the ten fetters or human existence are abandoned in a gradual manner. The Four Stages of Enlightenment In Buddhism, there are four stages of a progessing nature that is related to the four stages of enlightenment. These stages are important in resulting into the full enlightenment of a meditator as an Arahat. The people who are into either one of the four stages of enlightenment are referred to by the Buddha as the ariya-puggala or the noble people. Conversely, the people within the community of the bikkhu-sangha are called as the ariya-sangha or the noble sanghas. The four stages of enlightenment are the Sotappana, Sakadagami, Anagami and the Arahat. These four stages of enlightenment and their teaching to meditators are central elements in the Buddhist schools such as Theravada tradition. This was chronicled in the sutta pitaka, and how each level are attained were described as well. Apart from the four stages mentioned above, the teacher would have to tell his or her students that there are also other types which describes other stages as well. However, the focus of this module is on the four stages of enlightenment so these four would be the ones that are to be described in detail here. As mentioned in the previous sections, the four stages of enlightenment are the end product or result of the seven purifications that a meditator goes through. This was discussed at great lengths in the Visuddhimagga. The teacher can encourage his or her student meditators to read on excerpts from the Visuddhimagga about the seven purifications, their sequences and how each of these are related to four paths and fruits. Moreover, in the Visuddhimagga, prajna and its importance is also described in detail, as well as gaining insight into anatta and how these are related to liberation and can be attained in the practice of Insight meditation or Vipassana. The four stages of attainment or enlightenment are also associated with occurring in pairs of path and fruit. The following are the path and fruit pairs of the four stages of attainment: The path to stream entry and the fruition of stream entry The path to once returning and the fruition on once returning The path to non returning and the fruition of non returning The path to becoming an arahant and the fruition of becoming an arahant Each of these are described below in their relation to the attaining of enlightenment: The Sotapanna. This is the first stage of enlightenment and is derived from the Pali language (written as Srotapanna in Sanskrit). This term means or is translated to mean the person or the one who enters the streams (apadyate sota). The stream being described here is the super mundane representation of the Noble Eightfold Path and is regarded as the highest form of Dhamma as well. The person who is this stage is also considered to be one who was able to open the eye of the Dhamma (or dhammacakkhu in Pali and dharmacaksus in Sanskrit). The meditator who enters the stream is said to be able reach the state of being an arahant in a span or seven rebirths after he or she has attained opening the eye of the Dhamma. Another aspect that the teacher needs to stress out in teaching this is that the meditator can attain a grasp of the Buddhist doctrines on an intuitive level or what is known as the right view (samyagdrsti in Sanskrit or sammaditthi in Sanskrit). Moreover, the meditator can al so have a complete confidence, or Sadha on what is considered the three jewels of practice namely the sangha, dharma and Buddha. This means that when the meditator passes away, he or she will not undergo rebirth in any plane that is categorically lower than the human plane such as the animal or in hell. The Sakadagami. This is the second stage of enlightenment which is also called the stage of the once returner. The origin of this word is Pali (Sakrdagamin in Sanskrit), which when translates means the once who once comes (sakrt and agacchati, respectively). When explaining what this means, the teacher should tell the student that people who belong in this stage will return once more to the human plane or world one more time in most instances. A person who progresses in this stage after going through the first is said to have abandoned the first three of the ten fetters. Meditators who are in this stage are also seen to display a weaker sense of lust for things, milder feelings of hate, and even weakened delusions. This means that anyone who is considered to be a once-returner would be experiencing rebirths fewer than seven times and that these rebirths usually occur in the higher planes although there would occur a rebirth in the human plane at least one more time. Also, their rebir ths can occur in multiples in the five pure abodes. The Anagami. The third stage, the Anagami (Pali; also Anagamin in Sanskrit), is also known as the stage of the non returner. The word Anagami means one who does not come. These are meditators who have been successful in overcoming sensuality and are deemed not to lower planes such as the human one even after their death. These are those who were rewarded with being reborn in the Suddhavasa worlds or Pure Abodes, which are one of the five special worlds in the Rupadhatu. In these worlds, the meditators are able to attain Nirvana or can even be reborn for another time in a world that is considered to be higher than that of the Pure Abodes. A person who is considered to be a non returner is said to have been able to abandon the five lower fetters of the ten that binds humans to the cycle of rebirth on the human plane. When a meditator has reached the level of the Anagami, they are considered to be well-advanced already. The Arahant. The fourth stage of enlightenment, the Arahant, is related to a person who is fully awakened. This stage is where the individual is seen to have been able to fully abandon all the ten fetters. When this happens, the person would not be experiencing rebirth on any plane or world even after his or her death (Parinibbana in Pali; Parinirvana in Sanskrit) because he or she have escaped samsara wholly. This stage will be attained by a meditator when he or she would follow the path that is given by the Buddha himself. In teaching this, the teacher should tell his or her students that in the Theravada tradition of Buddhism, the word Buddha is reserved for use with Siddharta Gautama Buddha, the first who discovered the path to enlightenment. The Path and the Fruits of Enlightenment Attaining each stage of the path to enlightenment has its subsequent fruit, as mentioned in the previous sections of this module. This is necessary to be included in the teaching of the paths to enlightenment since the fruit of each path and their attainments has to be present and seen in the life of the meditator. This ensures that the attainment of knowledge is set on the right paths as well. In the Theravada tradition, there is a belief that gaining understanding is a sudden process, that it does not come gradually as other disciplines believe it to be. This means that once a meditator enters on a path to enlightenment, its fruits should be realized as well. So when a meditator enters the stages and becomes an Arahat (the liberated one) in the process, it can be said that according to the Vipassana tradition sudden changes should characterize the entire process. The Benefits of Enlightenment An endless cycle of samsara traps an ordinary person who does not have enlightenment (puthujjana in Pali; prthagjanai in Sanskrit). This means that a person is endlessly reborn, live and dies and the cycle is repeated numerous times over. This occurs not only on the human plane but in other various planes as well such as the animal. This can be ended when a person enters the Dhamma and aims for gaining insight and enlightenment. This means that the person would not have to be experiencing this endlessly and be miserable for the rest of his or her existence. As the teacher guides the student into this path he or she would have to set it in their minds that the aim of the entire process, apart from gaining insight is to realize attaining Nirvana. In doing this, the meditator would be transformed from someone who is considered to be an uninstructed being who is oblivious to the truths that practicing the Dhamma brings into an arahant (or the liberated one). This stage of liberation enables the individual to have comprehension of the Four Noble Truths fully and to have experience of Nirvana in the present life. Moreover, in attaining this stage, the concepts that were discussed in detail in this module should be reinforced by the teacher with proper actions and words from someone who has experienced them in a personal level. References: Gomez, Luis O. (1991),Purifying Gold: The Metaphor of Effort and Intuition in Buddhist Thought and Practice. In: Peter N. Gregory (editor)(1991),Sudden and Gradual. Approaches to Enlightenment in Chinese Thought, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited Warder, A.K. (2000),Indian Buddhism, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Mahasi Sayadaw,The Progress of Insight (Visuddhià ±ana-katha) Bhikkhu Nanamoli; Bhikkhu Bodhi (1995),The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha. A New Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya Park, Sung-bae (1983),Buddhist Faith and Sudden Enlightenment, SUNY Press Snelling, John (1987),The Buddhist handbook. A Complete Guide to Buddhist Teaching and Practice, London: Century Paperbacks Versluis, Arthur (2001),The Esoteric Origins of the American Renaissance, Oxford University Press Warder, A.K. (2000),Indian Buddhism, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers

How to Reduce Cheating and Plagiarism :: Expository Process Essays

How to Reduce Cheating and Plagiarism Early in the fall semester, a professor of American studies at Cornell found a three-page paper on the Internet analyzing a poem by Anne Bradstreet. A student in his course had just handed in that very paper. Accused of plagiarism, the student confessed that she had taken the paper from an Anne Bradstreet Web site. She had locked herself out of her apartment the night before the paper was due, she said, and without access to her notes had panicked. Two weeks later, the professor's wife, who teaches psychology, gave an examination to her advanced class. Halfway through the test a student asked to go to the bathroom. She was gone a long time, but the psychologist, who employed the young woman as a lab assistant and was directing her honors thesis, suppressed her suspicions. That evening, she visited the ladies room. In the toilet stall she noticed a sheaf of papers stuffed behind a plumbing pipe. They turned out to b e handouts distributed in the course, covered with notes in what she believed was the student's handwriting. Measured by recent surveys, cheating has reached epidemic proportions in high schools and colleges. In a survey of 21,000 students by the Josephson Institute of Ethics, 70 percent of high school students and 54 percent of middle schoolers admitted that they had cheated on an exam. That is up sharply from a study cited in "The State of Americans: This Generation and the Next," edited by Urie Bronfenbrenner and others.. That study found that 33.8 percent of high school students used a "cheat sheet" on a test in 1969. By 1989 the percentage had risen to 67.8. Furthermore, 58.3 percent of high school students let someone else copy their work in 1969, and 97.5 percent did so in 1989. A recent study by the Center for Academic Integrity at Duke University yielded results similar to the Josephson study, with almost 75 percent of college students acknowledging some academic dishonesty. In four focus-group discussions conducted by the Center for Public Interest Polling at Rutgers University, many students appeared blas about academic dishonesty. "I guess the first time you do it, you feel really bad, but then you get used to it," said one. Another asserted: "People cheat. It doesn't make you less of a person or worse of a person. There are times when you just are in need of a little help.

“One Art” by Elizabeth Bishop Essay

In her poem, â€Å"One Art,† Elizabeth Bishop constructs a poem that reveals a struggle with mastering the issue of loss. Through the use of a villanelle, Bishop utilizes the significance of structure and word choice to further the meaning of her work. Bishop crescendos each stanza to create a firm foundation for the dramatic conclusion, and incorporates expressive words throughout the poem to illuminate the last stanza’s attitude shift from that of carelessness to seriousness. The villanelle form is a type of love poem and Elizabeth Bishop’s use of this is appropriate for her poem about lost love. The first five tercets (three lined stanzas) begin by speaking of small objects (keys) then grow to large items (continents). The final stanza is a quatrain (four lined stanza) that contains the occasion and attitude shift of the poem. The poem’s first line â€Å"the art of losing isn’t hard to master† resurfaces throughout the text to reiterate the speaker’s opinion on the mastery of loss. And the repetition of the third line’s final word â€Å"disaster† is a key to the meaning of the poem. Bishop’s word choice furthers the significance of loss and love throughout the poem. Since the first and third lines repeat within the text the middle lines of each stanza remain different from each other. The endings of each middle line have the same rhyme pattern and collectively they spell out an ultimate loss-† intent†/ â€Å"spent†/ â€Å"meant†/ and â€Å"went.† The speaker, in the beginning, is impersonal and does not mention any valuable item which was lost. In the second stanza the speaker explains how to master the art of loss, and urges the readers to practice, making it a habit: â€Å"Lose something every day (line 4).† The â€Å"lost door keys, the hour badly spent (line 5)† become materialistic entities and lost time. The third stanza contains a dynamic list of uncontrollable loss. By choosing the phrase â€Å"losing farther, losing faster (line 7),† Bishop illustrates movement in time, ultimately symbolizing loss. The simple shift from the third stanza to the fourth allow for a more personal touch to the poem with the addition of the word â€Å"I.† Bishop chooses the â€Å"mother’s watch† to symbolize time and the link between generations. The lost watch makes tangible the feeling of inevitable loss. The speaker also sequences her losses- â€Å"my last†/ â€Å"next-to-last.† Stanza  five is the final tercet that includes materialistic items lost by the speaker. The loss of spacious and lavishing objects such as â€Å"cities†/ â€Å"realms,† â€Å"rivers,† and â€Å"continents† can not compare to the feelings the speaker acquires from the loss of love in stanza six. The final stanza, the quatrain, contains an attitude shift from that of invincibility to somberness. By implementing â€Å"you,† Bishop transformed the poem into a personal piece by breaking away from the pattern of inanimate objects and incorporating an actual being. Although the tone is of a more personal nature the details are still muffled. The parenthesis around â€Å"(the joking voice, a gesture/ I love)† creates a caesura for the reader, allowing a pause before confronting the uncertainty of the last lines. The first line refrain varies its form in line eighteen with the addition of the word â€Å"too† which seems to second-guess the original assertion that loss â€Å"isn’t hard to master.† And in the closing line the repetition of â€Å"likes† postpones the final word that the speaker is so hesitant to admit-â€Å"disaster.† The parenthetical statement â€Å"(Write it)† is a self-prompt that conveys the energy needed to actually allow the word â€Å"disaster† to be recognized. By putting it in writing the speaker is accepting the fact that they have not yet mastered the art of loss. Bishop’s use of the villanelle form and strong word choice collectively work together to illustrate the speaker’s private sorrows over a lost love without including a self-pitied tone. The poem reveals a struggle for mastery that will never be attained. One does attempt to master loss but the recognition of powerlessness may be a more efficient method to tame loss.

Lehman Brothers Ethical Reasoning Essay Example

Lehman Brothers Ethical Reasoning Essay Example Lehman Brothers Ethical Reasoning Essay Lehman Brothers Ethical Reasoning Essay Describe the situation at Lehman Brothers from an ethics perspective. What’s your opinion of what happened there? The ethical issue here was that Lehman’s executives exploited loopholes in the accounting standards to manipulate their balance sheet in order to mislead the investing public. Using â€Å"Repo 105†, Lehman was able to clear huge amount unprofitable assets off its balance sheet instead of selling at loss. Evidence pointed out that the chief executive, Richard Ruld, knew about the use of it but faked ignorance in defence. Even the auditors from Ernst and Young knew about the use of the suspicious Repo 105 but chose to keep quiet. I believe that the prime motivation behind the act was to retain investors’ confidence by preventing a plummet in stock price. Hence, the implication was that Lehman was projecting a false image of its strong financial position, meaning that its stock price was overvalued. Through falsified accounting reports, investors were tricked into believing that their investments were safe, incurring huge losses when Lehman defaulted. Investors lost faith. The consequences were devastating as it created a systemic crisis of confidence in the banking industry as all other banks froze lending to reduce their exposure of Lehman’s undesirable Repo 105. Lehman’s employees suffered too as they lost their jobs overnight. Could anything be done differently at Lehman Brothers to prevent what happened? Explain. After extensive research, it was apparent that a written â€Å"Code of Ethics† was present at Lehman Brothers. However, for an ethics code to be effective, the tone at the top executives needs to be set right so that the entire organisation can feel connected to the firm’s ethical values and beliefs. The obvious failure we witness in Lehman’s case was that the top management, led by Ruld (CEO) and Erin Callan (CFO), were guilty of unethical negligence and wrongdoing. Therefore, it is vital for the Shareholders to screen through their selection of the Board of Directors extremely stringently to ensure the appointment of the right leaders. As the top management was already corrupted, the Ethics Programs at Lehman had limited use in ensuring the upholding of the Ethics Code, as these top executives can wield their axe down on any whistleblowers that puts their power in jeopardy. This was the exactly what happened at Lehman, when whistleblower Matthew Lee, was axed. Therefore, Lehman needs to ensure that ethical leaders are at helm for this control mechanism to work, so that the Ethics Code can be reinforced through compliance-based ethics programmes to serve as deterrence. Simultaneously, integrity-based ethics programmes must come into play to instill and influence an individual responsibility for upholding ethical behaviour, with compliance continuously playing the role of monitoring, to prevent any future reoccurrences. On top of this, Lehman could have adopted the Moral Rights Approach to base their decision on whether their behaviour was ethical or unethical. Using this approach, they would not have committed fraudulent accounting, as it violates the fundamental rights that investors deserve from the use of their accounting report – which is to provide a faithful and accurate representation of the company for investors to evaluate investing decisions. Another preventive approach is the Fairness or Justice Approach to assist Lehman in weighing their ethical decision. The top executives’ decisions impact many groups of stakeholders, and the fraudulent acts only brought about harm to all stakeholders involved, as could be seen from the negative repercussions of the bank’s default – shareholders losing money, employees losing jobs, other banks’ losses due to lending to Lehman, public’s loss of confidence and stock markets crashing. If they did go about reporting their losses honestly, perhaps their stock price and profitability will fall, but at least the negative impacts would be localised within the firm, instead of triggering a banking shockwave. After all the public uproar over Enron and then the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act to protect shareholders, why do you think we still continue to see these types of situation? Is it unreasonable to expect that businesses can and should act ethically? Analysing from the concept of Organisational Code of Ethics, it can be easily deduced that ethical failures from organisations usually stems from the individual ethics component. Unlike societal ethics and professional ethics which are based on established social norm and a certain set of standards, individual ethics is the only component that is not conformed to a certain enchmark. Every individual’s ethics differ from one another as it is shaped from the influence of their upbringing. While honesty can be one’s core value, it can also be the most neglected value of another. As seen from the case studies of Lehman and WorldCom, personal interest and greed of the top executives to remain in power motivated them to trampl e on ethics, resulting in their obstructionist approach. Managers must first understand that ethical decision making is dynamic and every element must be carefully weighed to prevent unethical issues. In applying the five ethical notions, it can be argued in Lehman’s case that manipulation brings about apparent utilitarianism for everyone (higher stock price for shareholders, more bonuses for employees, stronger creditors’ faith and higher management’s bonuses) in the short run. However, it is not justified for the stakeholders to be denied their fundamental rights of having accurate information of the bank, nor is it fair and justifiable that it brings about harm for all stakeholders in the long run when it went bust. It is very reasonable to expect businesses to act ethically. This could possibly be achieved through a two pronged approach. The first, which aims to resolve unethical issues in the long run, requires the need for a stronger emphasis on education. Simple as it may sound, but the lack of ethical education is extremely glaring. In this profit driven world, where money speaks louder than anything else, there seems to be a shift towards higher reward and recognition for profits rather than ethical behaviour. Education serves as the most effective and fundamental way to resolve and prevent unethical issues altogether as it tackles the root of the problem to instill the right mindset. The second, perhaps shorter term measure, deals with governance. To prevent the evil temptation of dishonesty, there needs to be much harsher consequences and deterrence, such that temptation will vanish upon thought of the possible sentences that potential manipulators will face. Currently, the punishments of fines and jail terms are simply not severe enough to deter off such seduction of greed. With a softer but more effective measure through education to correct mentalities in the long run, and a harsher deterrence factor in the short term, ethical behaviour can be definitely be achieved.

View From The Bridge Critique essays

View From The Bridge Critique essays Arthur Millers A View from the Bridge is a modern tragedy set in 1950s Brooklyn about a mans obsession with his niece, and what that obsession ultimately brings about. Eddie Carbone, the protagonist of the play also happens to be the antagonist, because he ultimately is fighting against himself with his desires for his niece. I believe that this play was very predictable from the start; this is why I really did not enjoy it all that much. A View from the Bridge had some interesting parts but to me it was really boring and just didnt go anywhere. To me this play did not go anywhere because I did care for any of the characters. The way that Arthur Miller wrote this play makes it hard for you to care about any of the characters; therefore I also do not care what happens to them. There is Eddie, who comes of as arrogant to me; he is the one that I disliked the most. I really saw no point to his behavior, if Miller had given us more of a reason as to why he had such strong feelings toward Catherine then at least we could have learned what made him tick, but as it is I can not see that. I see no purpose for Alfieri; I think that this play could go on just fine without him. I do see the need for a narrator, but I dont think that Alfieri should have been included in the play itself, I believe this cheapens his position as the narrator. Beatrice and Catherine are two characters that I did not like all that much. I saw no practical purpose for Beatrice in this play, she had no effect on this play at all. I would have liked the Beatrice character a little more had she had more of an impact in the play. The Catherine character was likeable but I believe that she is a big reason why Eddie self-destructs. The way that Rodolpho acted made me not care about his fate. I do believe that Eddie was at least part right when he said that Marco was just looking to get married to become a citizen. I thin...

The Effects of the Cold War on the Middle East Essay

The Effects of the Cold War on the Middle East - Essay Example The condition for the communism’ triumph was to bring the whole world under communist rule, whereas the West’s target was to thwart the threat of communism. Eventually with the dissolution of the former Soviet Union, the West had been able to destroy the main drive of expansionist communism. After the fall of the Soviet Union, the remnants of communism were no more threat to the capitalist world. Thus the US-led west proved itself to be the true claimant of communism. Yet the United States’ success to eliminate the threat of communism through the dissolution of the Soviet Union perpetuates the debate on whether the United States as a superpower can, decidedly, declare its authority unchallenged. From a different perspective the Cold War can be viewed as the superpowers’ conflicts of interests. In plain eye, on the Soviet Union’s part, the war was a fight of idealism and on the United States’ part, it was a moral defense against expansionist c ommunism. But beneath both these moralist and idealist apparels lies the superpowers’ contest for a superior position in international politics. Through the Soviet Union’s dissolution in 1989, the threat from the communist front simply changed its platform from the communist block to the Islamic block and the Cold War turns into â€Å"War on Terror†. Indeed the threat from the extremist Islamists was one of the direct derivatives of the Cold War. Since even after the Cold War, the United States had to face additional Islamic threat, once watered by the Reagan Administration, one can deem that the US did not really win the War; rather the communist just lost it. A Brief Overview of the Cold War The Cold War can be defined as the conflicts of interests between the two superpowers, the United States of America and the Soviet Union, in the post Second World War period. It existed from 1947 to 1991. After the Second World War, the US President Franklin D. Roosevelt d id not need the Soviet support any more to win over Japan after testing the atomic bomb, ensuing the 50 years long Cold War. Thus, the Yalta Conference in the Crimea, Soviet Union, in February 1945 between the â€Å"Big Three† allies of the Second World War was one such event that structured the start of the Cold War (â€Å"The Cold War† 1). Though during the Cold War, ideological, political, economic and military tensions existed at an extreme level, the superpowers did not become involved in any direct war. Rather their military involvements were confined to proxy wars in various geographical regions of interests. Nuclear arm race between the two main parties of the war, the USA and the Soviet Union, began as a response to the superpowers’ desire to overpower each other. During the period, the world experienced a worldwide regrouping of the countries into the US block and the Soviet block. This regrouping in the Soviet block was mainly based on the Marxist pol itical ideology of Communism, whereas capitalism and democratic interests dominated the countries in the US block. This regroupings in both of the blocks often turned into expansionism and counter-expansionism. (Schweizer, 1994, pp. 69-74) Reagan’s Policy to Win the Cold War Reagan’s policy towards the Soviet Union can significantly be marked as a dual approach in the sense that on one hand Reagan’s administration chose to provide both overt and covert support to anti-communist communities and guerrilla movements in order to â€Å"roll back† â€Å"Soviet-backed communist governments in Africa, Asia, and Latin America† (D'Souza, 2003) and on the other hand, it put effort on growing an intimate, but cautious, relationship

Managing for the Future Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Managing for the Future - Essay Example It is also the co-owner of Sainsbury’s Bank along with Lloyd’s Banking Group (J Sainsbury Plc, 2012). Besides that, it has also owns property joint ventures with The British Land Company PLC and Land Securities Group PLC. What started off as a small retail store on London’s Drury Lane around the year 1969, Sainsbury’s has developed a huge history behind him over the years. Sainsbury holds more than 15% of the market share of the UK retail markets. Sainsbury hold the second position in the UK online retail market and is only behind Tesco. Sainsbury’s follows a simple passion of offering great food at fair prices to its consumers and this has been treated as one of the reasons for their success. By the year 2020, they have a target of sourcing all necessary raw materials and commodities in a sustainable manner (J Sainsbury Plc, 2010). Forecasts and Strategic Plan: Sainsbury is focused to provide healthy, safe, fresh and tasty food at fair prices. The chain continues to operate on five areas, which makes the chain differentiate itself from the retailers. The chain’s current focus plan is on: Growing space and creating property value Providing great food to the consumers Compelling general merchandising and clothing Developing new business channels Providing complimentary channels and services. Strengths Sainsbury’s has won numerous awards in the industry for its superior product quality over the past few years. Some of the awards comprises of fresh produce retailer of the year, honest food award and even wine retailer of the year. So it has clearly maintained industry standards and gained recognition in the industry The chain has made considerable amount of effort in order to modernize the brand by integrating technology at the point of sales (POS). Has tie ups with Nectar, a loyalty programme with an active user base of over 11 million. The chain has got high points on a regular basis in the industry’s most respected basket survey (J Sainsbury Plc, 2012). Weakness Their strategy is very puzzling at times. At times, they are targeting to appeal to mass markets which may result in tempting to go on an acquisition spree and then landing up with failed takeovers. Yet to recover the leading position of being the most preferred retailer in the UK region from the rival leading retailers. Opportunities Sainsbury’s ranking as an UK based online grocery provider is strengthened with higher sales on a year on year basis. With the increase in internet usage among the consumers, this segment can provide more sales to the retail chain. The addition of floor space in all new and existing stores for introducing the chain’s new health, beauty and household line of products will benefit the chain in the upcoming days and may provide greater share of revenue (J Sainsbury Plc, 2012). Threats Sainsbury’s is less committed to reinvest the capital generated in the business. This can spel l danger for the chain as Tesco who is a stronger competitor in this segment is more focused on committing a large amount of capital for maintaining their long term growth oriented strategy. Have high reservations in establishing the brand of Sainsbury’s overseas and in foreign locations, which provides them with a disadvantage of being