Gods in the Iliad and their interactions with their disciples Essay Example

Gods in the Iliad and their interactions with their disciples Essay Example Gods in the Iliad and their interactions with their disciples Paper Gods in the Iliad and their interactions with their disciples Paper Essay Topic: Iliad These gods reactions are what allow the reader and many people of ancient societies to connect to these supreme beings throughout The Iliad, while also providing a sense of folly and comic relief. Their acts of vengeance, pity, compassion, and Jealousy all remind the readers that these divine beings are present in the world around them. While reading The Iliad, many readers understand that they are reading of divine characters and their dealings with the earth due to the godly, and prolific powers that these beings are shown to have. But, for characters so divine and all powerful these beings are quite trivial in their dealings. Emotions that are near uncontrollable in human life are seen fairly often in The Iliad. Violent emotions become a hazard when portrayed by the gods. Emotions like vengeance and rage can be heightened by their divine powers thus causing a threat to all of the humans under this umbrella of emotion. Vengeance, can be seen displayed by Apollo as he swept the fatal plague through the army (Book one, 77, line 11). This wrath was brought upon all due to Agamemnon disrespecting Apollo Priest on Earth. : Cherrys prayer is heard and vengeance is enacted on the Achaeans until the source of the league is discovered. This vengeance from Apollo shows that he has empathy and pride Just like the human characters and this connection to the mortal world allows him to enact his emotions in a humane imperfect way. Although these gods are separated from mankind with their divine abilities, and seem to be at times separate in their feelings for humans in general readers can see a sense of humane compassion in a lot of the gods actions. Even Zeus, the god over all gods and supreme ruler of the heavens, is shown to have compassion toward some of the mortals. Zeus decision making can actually be considered one of the most humane out of the gods on Olympus with many of his choices being based on his human qualities of pride, lust, and power. This humane compassion can be seen when Zeus son Sarandon is going into battle with Patrols. Sarandon is fated to die by the hand of Patrols, and although Zeus should understand the rules of fate he still feels the need to save his son from the death ahead of him. Even though Hear eventually convinces Zeus to consider otherwise, the fact that he considered saving a mortal son room the perils of fate that awaited him showed that Zeus did care for his lineage, and in fact almost defied fate in order to save Sarandon. Zeus is a prideful god although he has nothing else to prove, his power and might are worshipped constantly, and this thought that he must must be superior is what shows his pride in his lineage. When Zeus labels his son Sarandon as the dearest of all men and the man I love most, my own sour(Book 16, Page 427, Line 515) he is placing his lineage above all the other gods and pronouncing his superiority even over the inhabitants of Met. Olympus. His actions parallel with those made by humans in all societies due to mankind being a prideful species. People want to believe that their fore bearers are of the utmost importance on earth, and through this sense of pride the ancient Greeks were able to connect on a basic level to even the greatest of the ancient gods. None of Homers epic would exist if it wasnt for a few goddesses and their humane parallels. Examples of vanity and Jealousy are huge catalysts throughout The Iliad, and can be seen in many of the books and is especially portrayed by the goddesses Athena, Aphrodite, and Hear. These women compare heavily too modern day females vanity in their actions and reactions to their outside stimuli. The Iliad having been set 9 years into the Trojan War would never have reached this point theoretically if the war had never started. Thanks to the competition between the three goddesses on who was the fairest, Paris was given the most beautiful woman in the world. This woman, Helen of Troy so happened to be married to Menelaus and thus the taking of Helen is considered to be the catalyst of the Trojan War. Hear, Aphrodite, and Athena believing that they are each the fairest, hush show that they are humane and vain in their emotions. The choice that Paris made in this test affects his entire story as a character and creates an opportunity to show Hear and Ethanes other emotions, such as their Jealousy, and rage. Hear and Athena in an act of hatred and scorn towards Paris, a prince of Troy, side with the Achaeans in an effort to destroy Troy. These actions based on their feelings of disdain caused by their need to feel worshipped are a giant contributor to the war as a whole, and show their weakness for human emotions. These gods and goddesses arrayed by Homer are not perfect in any way, shape, or form, and due to these flaws with Jealousy, vanity, and anger these goddesses are relatable to the people of the earth and the many flaws that humanity carries. Society once again is connected to these superior beings not only because of their divine powers, and need to worship in order to receive sustenance, but also because of the feeling of similarity that these gods carry with society as a whole. Humans are a species that are prone to promises, grudges, and petty arguments; and due to these qualities inside The Iliad, he gods are depicted at the same emotional level as a majority of humans. Zeus, the ruler of the gods, is privy to keeping his word, thus Thesis wish, provided to her by Achilles, is granted and Zeus is from that point on, slightly favoring the Trojan. Although he is considered to be all powerful, Zeus still grants Thesis wish in order to keep his word on the favor that he owes her. With all of his divine power Thesis request could have been denied easily, but Zeus humane nature shows up in his decision and he makes his choice, therefore connecting him to the honorable ways of he society at the time. Heres anger created from Paris giving the title of fairest to Aphrodite is seen as Zeus enacts on his favor. Her grudge allows her to see nothing but red for the Trojan and in turn she becomes annoyed with her husbands decision which creates a mirrored situation to earthly relationships. Although these choices are extremely important to the fabric of the timeline, and fate in general, the gods are still depicted with a very comical and surprisingly human reaction to a situation/war that can cause the death of thousands upon thousands of people.

Duties of Corporate people

Duties of Corporate people Introduction A corporation is a legal body created according to the laws of a particular state or country (Emerson, 2009). Today, corporations are formed through registration unlike in the past when they were established through charters. There are different forms of corporations but most companies are public held corporations (Emerson, 2009).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Duties of Corporate people specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Public held corporation is â€Å"a public traded corporation† and the shares of this corporation are traded on the public stock market (Emerson, 2009). The other type of corporation is the close corporation, which is the easiest to form; it is the simplest form of business ownership and many businesspersons prefer this form of corporation (Emerson, 2009). Small and medium enterprises fall in this category. The main difference between public held corporation and close corporation i s that, public held corporations are strictly managed; they have tight securities laws, require periodic disclosure, and have additional procedures requirements for business transactions compared to close held corporations (Emerson, 2009). Discussion Organizations have directors, officers, and shareholders and all of them perform different duties in the corporation. Directors in a corporation have a major responsibility to create and sustain long-term shareholders interest (Mallor, Barnes, Bowers, and Langvardt, 2010). As such, corporate directors provide oversight of the organization’s progress in terms of development. Mostly, they ensure that all plans and projects recommended by the management are enacted through enough funding and they approve recommendations made by the management (Mallor, et al, 2010). Corporation’s directors have a duty to understand the risks in any organization so that they can be able to plan adequately to ensure success of the company. Gener ally, corporation directors provide their services to the company in areas of management, decision-making, and leadership (Mallor, et al, 2010). In summary, they appoint CEO and other executive officers, implement plans, manage corporations, monitor finances, and approve major changes in a company (Mallor, et al, 2010). On the other hand, corporation officers are responsible for management of daily activities in an organization. They are responsible for creating sales, maximizing customer services, and driving all financial matters in an organization (Emerson, 2009). Generally, corporation officers implement projects, appoints key managers, set standards for the managers, and they design the company (Emerson, 2009).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Because corporation officers are many, they have different responsibilities. For example, CEO signs all legal documents , attends board meetings, and oversees daily activities in the organization while the vice president fills in when the CEO is absent (Bhabatosh, 2004). Chief Financial Officer is responsible in managing all financial matters and maintains financial records while the secretary has a responsibility to maintain and update all company records. The shareholders are also entitled to participate in issues of corporate governance. Although shareholder are not involved directly, they have made financial investment in a corporation and therefore they are entitled to elect directors in the organization and therefore directors are accountable to the shareholders at all times (Bhabatosh, 2004). Since corporation directors are responsible for the management of the company, some issues require shareholders approval within the organization. As such, shareholders are responsible for approval of restructuring or reorganization of the company, selling of the company’s asset, increasing or reduc ing numbers of directors in a company, amendments of the corporation share capital, and changing laws concerning shares ownership (Bhabatosh, 2004). Conclusion As observed, corporation directors, corporation officers, and shareholders all have unique responsibilities in an organization. It is necessary to understand that each role is very important and must be performed well to ensure that the company achieves the set goals to be successful. References Bhabatosh, B. (2004). Fundamental of financial management. Dewai: PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd. Emerson, R. (2009). Business Law. New York: Barrons Educational Series. Mallor, J. P., Barnes, A. J., Bowers, T., Langvardt, A. W. (2010). Business Law: The  Ethical, global and ecommerce environment. (14th Ed). New York: McGraw Hill.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Duties of Corporate people specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More

Corporate Governance Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Corporate Governance - Coursework Example While these people are usually elected by the Board of Directors or hired based upon their past record, professional skills and business acumen- it is sad when they indulge in scandalous behavior that can lead a company to bankruptcy and closure. In recent years we have had corporate scandals involving such well known names as Enron and Worldcom in the USA and Parmalat in Italy. These widely recognized household names had a national or regional presence at least, with some even having business interests in various countries across the globe. This is what makes their demise all the more shocking. What is Corporate Governance? Broadly speaking, Corporate Governance may be defined as a set of laws, rules and principles by which a business is operated and controlled. Some of these rules are set down by law and common business practices and the culture of the land, while others are defined by the owners and those in the higher echelons of management of the enterprise. The rules of corpora te governance are based on morality and integrity and fair play. ... It provides the structure through which the objectives of the company are set, the means of attaining these and monitoring performance are determined’ (OECD, 1999, 1). This definition captures the entities of all who are involved as well as the working relationships among them with respect to the functions and responsibilities of corporate governance. The Need and Importance of Corporate Governance Quite simply, the stakeholders of a corporation-whether they be debtors, creditors, suppliers or distributors- as well as the general public would love to do business with a corporate entity or buy its products and services if they know that the management and the employees are a well reputed group and they can rely on the quality of the merchandise or service that is being provided to them. In other words the public perceives the corporate entity and its management and workers to be good and honest hardworking citizens, working hard to contribute to the good of the economy and soci ety at large. Of course they price their goods to include profit as well as to cover the costs and expenses of running a business. But the exposure of bad and fraudulent business practices as well as dubious business activities will certainly make people think twice about the company and its bonafides- which have now fallen into disrepute It can be an audit team or the actions of a concerned whistleblower that exposes these activities2 (Wearing, 2005, 27). Once the beans have been spilled, the company usually comes under the investigation of the Securities and Exchange Commission and other Federal agencies such as FBI and law enforcement can also get involved. In the UK this would involve actions and investigations by the Home Department and the Metropolitan Police. Once the

Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 51

Marketing - Essay Example Soon they automated Customer Service Representatives, also known as Relationship Managers or RM who interact with customers through ‘High Touch Integrated Customer Desktop’. Companies can retain their existing customers by giving them an unforgettable service experience, that’s what the management team of Juniper also did. In order to keeping customers as the first priority, it is necessary not only to implement a proper CRM program but also to build emotional bonding with customers. Emotional bonding is usually built by showing friendliness, empathy and courtesy while rendering services. These strategies can be much more effective than the conventional CRM technologies. Wallace states that the credit of their success goes to tight relationship between marketing department and customer service. Unlike other companies where marketing tactics are difficult to be understood by customers, Juniper product managers closely monitor their campaigns on regular basis and RMs provide feedback to the marketing campaign in order to enhance the productivity and performance of campaigns. The bottom line of this advice is that there must be close relationship between the customers and the marketing department of the relevant company. Implementing the strategy of being customer centred satisfied a large number of Juniper’s customers. Consequently, the company received the Number One position in ‘Gomez Advisors’ Internet Credit Card Scorecard’. The company got this reputable spot by providing timely and accurate response through e-mail and phone calls. According to Wallace, they do not impose a formal CRM program instead they try to instil the behaviour of valuing customers in the culture of their

Cups of Hope Essay Example for Free

Cups of Hope Essay Political culture as we’ve defined it in class is a pattern of orientation expressed in symbols, beliefs, and attitudes toward other people. The definition itself enables us to understand that every individual is involved and political culture plays an important role in a society. As for Filipino political culture, it is hard to come up with a general concept knowing that our country is an archipelago bounded by a lot culture, tradition and attitudes toward other people that may be an essential element for a nation’s progress or destruction. What are those culture and national character that can be a threat or an edge for our countries success? For us to be able to answer what are these cultures or national characters, we will relate it to former Senator Leticia Ramos Shahani’s Moral recovery program wherein she stated that our country is now a sick nation gravely afflicted by interlocking diseases of poverty, passivity, graft and corruption, exploitative patronage, factionalism, political instability, love for intrigue, lack of discipline, lack of patriotism and desire for self gratification. She further said that this cancerous growth is affecting the vital organs of our society to the extent that we seem to be in a state of paralysis wherein the patient is not responding to the problems confronting it. She said further that our country’s sickness is moral in nature that’s why she suggests that we should undergo an economic recovery program and we also urgently need a moral, intellectual and spiritual recovery program for us to be able to survive the interlocking diseases. That’s why she, together with senators Romulo and Maceda proposed a resolution directing the committee on education, arts and culture, social justice, welfare and development to immediately conduct a joint inquiry into the strengths and weaknesses of the character of the Filipino with a view to solving the social ills and strengthening the nation’s moral fiber (Resolution No.10,MRP). Where they came up with a list of the character of the Filipinos classified as to be our strengths and weaknesses, and these are the following for the strengths which includes pakikipagkapwa-tao, which includes bayanihan, utang na loob and pagdadamayan; Family orientation wherein Filipino families are attached with their family members; joy and humor which would still seen after a tragic event;flexibility, adaptability and creativity, hardwork and industry, faith and religiosity and the ability to survive, these strengths are really noticeable compared to the characters of the foreigners. On the other hand, the weaknesses are also here, and these would include extreme personalism, where an individual always relate things personally; extreme family centeredness where there’s an excessive concern for the family; lack of discipline, that includes lack of precision and compulsiveness, poor time management and in procrastination; passivity and lack of initiative that includes being too patient and long suffering for our diseases to the extent that we do not respond into it; colonial mentality, building preferences based on the foreign stuffs; kanya-kanya syndrome, lack of self analysis and self reflection. In this program, they focused in strengthening our weaknesses, which is really essential to further analyze the disease of our sick nation. In former senator’s program, she also proposed strategies that targets the roots or factors of these Filipino characters and these are the home environment, social environment, culture and language, history, educational system, religion, economic environment, political environment, mass media, leadership and role models. For former Senator Shahani, for us to be able to implement the strategies we should have a clean hands and pure hearts , she also believe that a strong national character based on patriotism, unity, honesty and self reliance is our ultimate and surest defense and our greatest hope lies within us. Based on former Senator Shahani’s moral recovery program, we can analyze that we have a lot of national character that serve as a threat that may lead to our country’s destruction or lead to â€Å"sui-policide†. So what should we do to prevent that â€Å"sui-policide† and the interlocking diseases? Does Senator Shahani’s proposal would really help? We, in our group believe that Shahani’s proposal will really be a great help in preventing that sui-policide. We believe that If we caused that interlocking diseases we must also be accountable to cure these diseases. We must start change within ourselves. We must be open to admit our weaknesses and furthe r strengthen it. From being passive, we must change and be aggressive in terms of responding to our nation’s diseases and in checking our government’s performance. We must also develop patriotism, unity, honesty, and self reliance because it is the ultimate and surest defense for that interlocking disease. We must learn to value our state, for us to be able to have an urge to save it from its destruction. We should abolish selfishness, extreme personalism, extreme family centeredness, colonial mentality, lack of self analysis and self reflection. And lastly, we must learn to be responsible in our actions, develop self discipline, for laws, even how strict it is implemented if we, citizens are not following that laws these laws will be useless. For us to have a progressive Philippines, we must build our people, our nation, how? Through what is former Senator Shahani suggest and we quote †Building a nation is through eliminating its weaknesses and developing our strengths. We must look at ourselves objectively, with scientific detachment and also emotionally,lovingly and when appropriately with disgust. We must view ourselves as might a lover viewing a loved one but also as a judge capable of giving a harsh verdict .† All of our desire to cure our sick nation is possible as long as we will build our people, our nation and all of these start within ourselves.

How Important is Being Earnest? Essay -- Literary Analysis

Oscar Wilde is the author of the comedic play, The Importance of Being Earnest, which is a drama about two people who hold double lives trying to be the same person. While Wilde intended for his play to have people filling the theatre with laughter he conveys a deeper meaning. By looking closely at the characters in the play readers can see everyone is very selfish or egocentric. All the events that occur between the characters happen because they are only thinking about themselves. The lives of all the characters mingle together all due to this one character named Ernest who is first created by the character, Jack, for personal benefit. Ernest is spelled different from the word â€Å"earnest† which means serious in purpose or sincerity of feelings. Wilde uses this play on words to create a satire on the morals of people during his time period. The characters in the novel do not display earnestness but disrespect. The main characters will find out that being sincere and honest is better for them than lacking respect for others. The first character readers meet is Algernon, a friend to Jack, who is preparing for his aunt, Lady Bracknell, to arrive. After a conversation with his manservant he says â€Å"Really, if the lower orders don’t set us a good example, what on earth is the use of them? They seem, as a class, to have absolutely no sense of moral responsibility† (Wilde 6). Algernon believes people of less fortune have fewer morals. For example marriage is less important. Algernon displays hypocritical characteristics because he is going to try to base a marriage off of a fake identity. Another subtle hint to Algernon’s selfishness is when he eats all the cucumber sandwiches meant for his aunt. As he is sitting there talking to Jack he... ...to build relationships. They are building the relationships based on lies and deceit rather than being earnest which would build a stronger relationship. At the end of the play all is well and the truth comes out. The characters have finally learned their lesson the being earnest is important. It is not the name that is important but their qualities as a person. The characters can now live happy, fulfilling, honest lives with their spouses. Wilde portrays how morals are important through a comedic satire. Works Cited Wilde, Oscar. The Importance of Being Earnest. New York: W.W. Norton &, 2006. Print. JACOBS, KATHERINE. "Shakespeare's MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING 5.4.109-18." The Explicator 59.3 (2001): 115. Literature Resource Center. Web. 4 Apr. 2012. Doniger, Wendy. â€Å"Self Impersonation in World Literature† Literature Resource Center. Web. 4 Apr. 2012

Top 10 Risks of Offshore Outsourcing

Top 10 Risks of Offshore Outsourcing Summary:  Offshore outsourcing is growing 20%-25% per annum, with little evidence of slowing. Indeed, while most enterprises experience initial resistance, most technical issues are readily resolved and geopolitical risk is deemed insignificant after careful evaluation. By Dean Davison | December 9, 2003 — 00:00 GMT (16:00 PST) Offshore outsourcing is growing 20%-25% per annum, with little evidence of slowing. Indeed, while most enterprises experience initial resistance, most technical issues are readily resolved and geopolitical risk is deemed insignificant after careful evaluation.Even the current political fervor about jobs being moved offshore via outsourcing is not impacting the demand or strategy of IT organizations. Offshore outsourcing will continue to grow as a â€Å"labor arbitrage† model until 2008/09. META Trend: During 2004/05, outsourcing will divide into commodity and transformational services. Infrastructure service s will mirror grid-computing structures and develop consumption-based pricing (a. k. a. , â€Å"utility services†). Through 2006/07, transformational services (e. g. application development maintenance and business process outsourcing) will segment along horizontal (function commonality) and vertical (specialized) business process/services outsourcing functions. Although vendors will attempt to bundle infrastructure with â€Å"value† services, clients will demand â€Å"line item† pricing by 2008/09. Through 2004/05, IT organizations will outsource discrete projects/functions offshore (e. g. , from application development projects to specific call center support). Growth will continue at 20%+.Offshore strategies by domestic vendors will shift business from large, integrated outsourcing contracts, but most IT organizations will still develop strategies that focus on pure-play offshore vendors. The top 10 risks of offshore outsourcing are as follows. 1. Cost-Reduct ion Expectations The biggest risk with offshore outsourcing has nothing to do with outsourcing – it involves the expectations the internal organization has about how much the savings from offshore will be. Unfortunately, many executives assume that labor arbitrage will yield savings comparable to person-to-person comparison (e. . , a full-time equivalent in India will cost 40% less) without regard for the hidden costs and differences in operating models. In reality, most IT organizations save 15%-25% during the first year; by the third year, cost savings often reach 35%-40% as companies â€Å"go up the learning curve† for offshore outsourcing and modify operations to align to an offshore model. 2. Data Security/Protection IT organizations evaluating any kind of outsourcing question whether vendors have sufficiently robust security practices and if vendors can meet the security requirements they have internally.While most IT organizations find offshore vendor security p ractices impressive (often exceeding internal practices), the risk of security breaks or intellectual property protection is inherently raised when working in international business. Privacy concerns must be completely addressed. Although these issues rarely pose major impediments to outsourcing, the requirements must be documented and the methods and integration with vendors defined. 3. Process Discipline (CMM) The Capability Maturity Model (CMM) becomes an important measure of a company’s readiness to adopt an offshore model.Offshore vendors require a standardized and repeatable model, which is why CMM Level 5 is a common characteristic. META Group observes that approximately 70% of IT organizations are at CMM Level 1 – creating a gap that is compensated for by additional vendor resources on-site (see  Figure 1). Companies lacking internal process model maturity will undermine potential cost savings. 4. Loss of Business Knowledge Most IT organizations have business knowledge that resides within the developers of applications. In some cases, this expertise may be a proprietary or competitive advantage.Companies must carefully assess business knowledge and determine if moving it either outside the company or to an offshore location will compromise company practices. 5. Vendor Failure to Deliver A common oversight for IT organizations is a contingency plan – what happens if the vendor, all best intentions and contracts aside, simply fails to deliver. Although such failures are exceptions, they do occur, even with the superb quality methodologies of offshore vendors. When considering outsourcing, IT organizations should assess the implications of vendor failure (i. . , does failure have significant business performance implications? ). High risk or exposure might deter the organization from outsourcing, it might shift the outsourcing strategy (e. g. , from a single vendor to multiple vendors), or it might drive the company toward outsourci ng (if the vendor has specific skills to reduce risks). The results of risk analysis vary between companies; it is the process of risk analysis that is paramount. 6. Scope Creep There is no such thing as a fixed-price contract.All outsourcing contracts contain baselines and assumptions. If the actual work varies from estimates, the client will pay the difference. This simple fact has become a major obstacle for IT organizations that are surprised that the price was not â€Å"fixed† or that the vendor expects to be paid for incremental scope changes. Most projects change by 10%-15% during the development cycle. 7. Government Oversight/Regulation Utilities, financial services institutions, and healthcare organizations, among others, face various degrees of government oversight.These IT organizations must ensure that the offshore vendor is sensitive to industry-specific requirements and the vendor’s ability to: 1) comply with government regulations; and 2) provide suffici ent â€Å"transparency† showing that it does comply and is thus accountable during audits. The issue of transparency is becoming more significant as requirements such as the USA PATRIOT Act and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act place greater burdens of accountability on all American corporations. 8. Culture A representative example: although English is one official language in India, pronunciation and accents can vary tremendously.Many vendors put call center employees through accent training. In addition, cultural differences include religions, modes of dress, social activities, and even the way a question is answered. Most leading vendors have cultural education programs, but executives should not assume that cultural alignment will be insignificant or trivial. 9. Turnover of Key Personnel Rapid growth among outsourcing vendors has created a dynamic labor market, especially in Bangalore, India. Key personnel are usually in demand for new, high-profile projects, or even at risk of bein g recruited by other offshore vendors.While offshore vendors will often quote overall turnover statistics that appear relatively low, the more important statistic to manage is the turnover of key personnel on an account. Common turnover levels are in the 15%-20% range, and creating contractual terms around those levels is a reasonable request. Indeed, META Group has seen recent contracts that place a â€Å"liability† on the vendor for any personnel that must be replaced. The impact of high turnover has an indirect cost on the IT organization, which must increase time spend on knowledge transfer and training new individuals. 0. Knowledge Transfer The time and effort to transfer knowledge to the vendor is a cost rarely accounted for by IT organizations. Indeed, we observe that most IT organizations experience a 20% decline in productivity during the first year of an agreement, largely due to time spent transferring both technical and business knowledge to the vendor. Many offsh ore vendors are deploying video conferencing (avoiding travel) and classroom settings (creating one-to-many transfer) to improve the efficacy of knowledge transfer.In addition, employee turnover often places a burden on the IT organization to provide additional information for new team members. Business Impact: Offshore outsourcing can reduce IT expenditures by 15%-25% within the first year. Longer term, process improvements often make great impacts on both cost savings and the quality of IT services delivered. Bottom Line: As IT organizations consider the vast benefits and allure of offshore outsourcing, they must balance the risks and uncertainties with the potential for labor arbitrage.Strategic Decision Challenges Researchers have applied different perspectives to understand sourcing decision, the key among them being production and transaction cost economics (Ang & Straub, 1998), resource-based views (RBV), and resource-dependence views (Teng et al. , 1995). The Resource-Based View (RBV) argues that a firm’s competitive advantage depends heavily on its resources, as well as how these are used. Resources that are valuable and rare can lead to the creation of competitive advantage (Wade & Hulland, 2004).Competitive advantage can be sustained over longer time periods to the extent that the firm is able to protect against resource imitation, transfer, or substitution. The knowledge-based theory (KBV) of the firm considers knowledge as the most strategically significant resource of the firm. Its proponents argue that, because knowledge-based resources are usually difficult to imitate and socially complex, heterogeneous knowledge bases and capabilities among firms are the major determinants of sustained competitive advantage and superior corporate performance.There is certain level of paradox in outsourcing when viewed from RBV or KBV prisms. Proponents of outsourcing have often used RBV to justify outsourcing decisions. The lack of resources, or resourc e gaps, that a firm has can also be rectified by acquiring resources from outside the firm boundaries by souring arrangement (Teng et al. , 1995). Outsourcing has been considered as a part of the way that firms assemble knowledge from suppliers (Shi et al. , 2005). Thus, information systems (IS) outsourcing can be seen as a mechanism to integrate IS knowledge from IS vendors.Knowledge sharing by both, client and supplier sides, is considered to be a success factor in outsourcing (Lee, 2001). However, some researchers have raised concerns regarding the potential loss of internal know-how through IS outsourcing (Willcocks et al. , 2004) and the potential loss of intellectual property (Chen et al. ,2002; Evaristo et al. , 2005). Outsourcing involves the inherent risk of forgoing the development of the knowledge base of the firm. Hoecht and Trott (2006) argues that innovative capability of the firm is largely dependent on cumulative knowledge built up over many years of experience.Innov ative ability cannot be simply bought and sold. Earl (1996) argues that innovation needs slack resources, organic and fluid organizational processes, and experimental and entrepreneurial competences – all attributes that external sourcing does not guarantee. Aron (2005) describes these risks as the long-term intrinsic risks of atrophy. These risks are an inevitable byproduct of the process of outsourcing. Over time, if a company outsources an activity completely, it loses the core group of people who were familiar with it. They retire, they leave for employment where their skills are more alued, or they simply become less technically competent and out of date. Reliance on outsourcing is problematic, not only because key areas of expertise may be gradually lost to the outsourcing organization but also because outside providers may not have the desired leading edge expertise over the long-term (Earl, 1996) or may spread their expertise among many clients so that it degrades fro m core competency to mere industry standard. Hoecht & Trott (2006) remind senior managers of the harm that may be inflicted on the ability of the organization to survive in the long term if its core competencies are slowly eroded through outsourcing.A related issue is that of the strategic intent (DiRomualdo & Gurbaxani, 1998) behind the offshore outsourcing decision by organizations. Strategic intent in this context can range from an improvement in the IS unit of the organization (which generally provides the lowest degree of benefits), an improvement in the business processes of the overall organization, or a commercial intent to generate profits by developing core expertise in the domain of outsourced IT service (Kishore et al. , 2004–2005).The commercial intent is exemplified in the oft-cited case of American Airlines who established a new subsidiary to sell airline reservation related services commercially to other airlines and travel agents using Sabre, its airline rese rvation system, and to generate new revenues and profits from this line of business. Strategic intent behind outsourcing is an important challenge as it has been shown that stock market reacts favorably and rewards companies when they outsource with an intent of creating the maximum returns for the firm (Agrawal et al. 2006). On the vendor side, vendors can develop their expertise through building knowledge from experiences and holding the knowledge for competitive advantage. Szulanski (Szulanski, 1996) identifies lack of incentives, lack of confidence, turf protection, and the â€Å"not invented here† syndrome as motivational factors potentially influencing knowledge transfer in outsourcing arrangements.This two-sided nature of knowledge transfer is expected to create asymmetric information leading to outsourcing failures. From a client’s view several challenges then arise including deciding what is the right proportion of IT function insourced or outsourced, and what IT application should be outsourced or kept within for strategic reasons.

Play on Social Evils: -Dowry Essay

N:-Today we, the seven members {names} of this play greet you all. Here we have in our play Mr. Rai being played by XYZ†¦. He is a retired person who had worked in Indian navy before. Now we have Mrs. Rai being played by XYZ†¦. She is a kind person and loves sincerity .Their daughter Sagarika Rai or the person to be playing the role of a wife is XYZ†¦. She is very shy and coward girl who is also very kind like her mother. Now let us meet with Mr. Ghosh who is XYZ†¦. He is a brave person but cannot withstand his wife’s anger. Here comes the villain of this play or Mrs. Ghosh who is a religious concerned and an old fashioned lady being played by XYZ†¦. Here we have the last person but not the least Sagar Ghosh who is the son of Ghosh family. Scene-1 N- Rai Family .Mr. Rai sitting on his chair reading his daily newspaper. Mrs. Rai sitting to the adjacent chair enjoying her tea with toasts, when Mr. Rai sees advertise of a matrimony website. Mr. Rai- Sagarika has grown big so fast. Hey do you remember how she used to walk with her small legs and smile showing her small teeth. Mr. Rai-Really. I still remember combing her hair and making it when she was small. Mr. Rai-But now I think our Sagarika should be married. Mr. Rai-Even I was thinking of it. You see I heard from our neighbor Mrs. Das whose relative is Mrs. Ghosh. Das was telling me about the boy of Ghosh family. Mr. Rai-Well it would be better if we could have a talk with Ghosh family and speak about the proposal. Mr. Rai-Oh! Yes you can wait I will get it from Mrs. Das. N- {Mrs. Rai exists} After Mrs. Rai gets the number. Mr. Rai-Oh! So the number is 7322252241. Let me call the Ghosh family. Mr. Rai-Hello! Mr. Ghosh-Hello! Mr. Rai-With whom am I having the line across? Mr. Ghosh-Well, this is Mr. Ghosh. Mr. Rai-I am talking to the right person. N-The conversation goes on and they finally decide to meet at Mr. Ghosh’s house. Scene-2 N- Ghosh house. Both Ghosh Family and Rai Family are present. They all sit down on their respected places. Mr. Ghosh-It is pleasure in having you all here? As the proposal was decided. We are ready for the marriage. If you wish Mr. Rai can I ask Sagarika some Questions? Mr. Rai-Obviously you have all the rights. Mr. Ghosh-So, how much educated are you? Sagarika-I have completed my MSc and wish to do owners in this field. Mr. Ghosh-Very good! Girl do you have some hobbies? Mrs. Rai-Yes, she is very good with thread and needle along with studies. Mrs. Ghosh- So you must also know cooking? In Ghosh family everybody is fond of eating and I don’t want a Layman’s girl as my daughter-in-law. N-Laughing and enjoying Rai family now turned some what into a sad mood. Mr. Ghosh-Girl you can talk with Sagar and Sagar my son please show her the park. N- Sagar and Sagarika leave for the park. Mr. Ghosh- Sagar and Sagarika the name sounds so common. They will make a heavenly combination. Mr. Rai-Really. Even both look like true prince and princess. Mr. Ghosh -That all is ok then let us talk about the arrangements. Mrs. Rai-Truly†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ But I don’t wish that you may not talk about the social evils like dowry and all that to be paid in this world of 21st century. Mrs. Ghosh- How can it not be possible? It is a ritual and all must follow it. N-and so the debating goes on .but Mrs. Ghosh sticks to her opinion and demands a 30gm gold chain+Rs.5lakh cash, at last it is reduced to a 10gm gold ring+Rs.2lakh +all the wedding cost. After Marriage N-Though the wedding goes good Sagarika’s life ruins. Her Mother-in-law treats her badly. Sagarika learning all the moral values from her parents behaves very politely with her mother-in-law but her mother in law is  terrible. Mr. Ghosh cares for her as his own daughter and Sagar loves her a lot. Scene-3 N-Today is the auspicious day of karvachauth. The Holy day when wife’s fast without having a sip of water from morning to evening and break their fast after seeing their husband’s face. It is like a type of prayer for husband’s long life. Sagarika is also following the ritual and doing her 1st karvachauth. Mrs. Ghosh-Sagarika! I wish you are keeping your karvachauth. Sagarika-Yes mother! But I have to attend my college as I have my major tests today Mrs. Ghosh-Girls Nowadays! They just don’t give importance to these rituals. What should we say now? Sagarika- But mom I am following the rituals too. Mrs. Ghosh-Oh! Then why are you going to the college. Today you can stay and help me as the maid has taken holiday. You nasty girl I know you, you will go out have fun eat food and leave this old lady with loads of work. You daughters of laymen are like this only. Sagarika- Mom whatever you want to say you can say it to me but don’t insult my parents. N- {Mr. Ghosh enters} Mr. Ghosh- What is happening here? Why so much noise? Mrs. Ghosh-Oh! See your daughter in law and her spicy tongue. Mr. Ghosh -Oh! Oh! Maya stop it now. Why do you blame her always? Mrs. Ghosh- Blame her! Oh! You are a mad person. Don’t you hear her shouting at me? Mr. Ghosh- Sagarika, sweet Sagarika I know you are innocent but what is the matter. Sagarika- Actually today I have my major†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. N- {She is interrupted} Mrs. Ghosh- Oh! She doesn’t want to do karvachauth so she is making reasons. She will go out and party with her friends and at the same time she will make us fool by doing karvachauth. Oh! I am worried about Sagar. Mr. Ghosh-It is her 1st karvachauth. It is her wish if she wants to keep it or not. Mrs. Ghosh-Go on! Keep on taking that laymen’s daughter’s side. You want to know why I trouble you. I trouble you because your father didn’t pay the demanded dowry. N- Sagarika starts crying and misses her major tests  that day. She starts getting annoyed by her mother in law. She often complains her husband but Sagar can’t raise his voice against his mother. Sagarika even complains about these matters to her mother but being a good person used to advice to behave with her mother in law properly and used to say that such fights are common after marriage life. {Days passed, Months passed, after 2 years} Mrs. Ghosh is a widow and there is no one to save Sagarika from the troubles that were caused by Mrs. Ghosh. Scene-4 Sagarika is now a teacher. One day†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Mrs. Ghosh-Hey you layman’s daughter. Why do you work while my son Sagar earns so much? Sagarika- Mom it is because it includes passion. Mrs. Ghosh-From now on you will not work anymore. Sagarika-Mom but I like my job and I am happy with it. Mrs. Ghosh-Oh so now you will teach me. Sagar, where are you. See this your wife is telling me to wash her clothes. Sagar- What is it, Sagarika? Why am I having complains from mom? I never knew that you treated old people like this. Sagarika – But†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Sagar- No ifs or buts. Enough is enough. Mrs. Ghosh-Not only that Sagar that day when the maid was absent she ordered me to clean the house. Sagarika-But mom I never said you like that instead I myself cleaned the house. Sagar- I didn’t expect this from you. Sagarika-Mom why do you do this to me? Sagar-Now I order you Sagarika that you will leave your job and take care of mother. N-Sagarika as her mother obeys to her husband and leaves the job. Mrs. Ghosh has stopped the maid from coming and forces Sagarika to do all the household chores. Mrs. Ghosh-Where are my spectacles? Sagarika- I broke it. Mrs. Ghosh-Oh! Sagar see here she broke my glasses so that I fall down and break my legs. Sagar-Sagarika, what is it? Sagarika- but I didn’t do it knowingly. Mrs. Ghosh- Oh! See this Nasty girl, Daughter of a beggar. Sagarika-Mom speak properly. Sagar-Oh! Now you will teach my mom how to speak after breaking her glasses. You need a good thrashing. Mrs. Ghosh-So good bring the whip. Let me give her some brains that her parents lacked. What would have happened if your father paid the demanded dowry? N-Sagar and his mother went on torturing her. Sagarika then finally decide to suicide. Friends like this many woman suicide in a year. Dowry is one of those social evils due to which lives of so many innocent girls are threatened and they end up dying. So it is the responsibility of the youth to spread awareness and stop social evils.

The Crappy Side of Writing

The Crappy Side of Writing I’m staring at a screen, after an extremely frustrating, full day of writing and editing. Mostly editing. Without going into details, I fought with a full manuscript edit for almost eight hours one day this week. I edited an entire novel only for the edits not to save properly. There’s a long story about a corrupted file. Needless to say, I cursed and shed a few sloppy tears on my napkin beside the dinner hub On top of that, I learned my deadline was changing a little bit for Tidewater Murder, which really crimped my style pertaining to a certain speaking engagement. That change sucked the wind right out of my sails for a while. Maybe I shed a couple more tears. Hub So, once I reached a stopping place, and settled down, I made myself write this editorial. Why? Because I’m frustrated and wanted to know how I’d write in that frame of mind . . . and to show those of you who aren’t writing full time that writing for a living can have some seriously catastrophic days that make you want to throw up your hands and simply say â€Å"WHY DO I DO THIS?† I’ve sat at conferences watching the speaker smile, chuckle, and talk about how hard writing is, but then preach/lecture/instruct the audience to just stick it out. (finger snap) Just like that you’re supposed to decide that nothing will stop you. No emotion in the lesson. All tell and no show. I want to wipe that smile off that successful face and ask them to SHOW me. Quit TELLING. I want them to show me through detailed anecdotes. . . 1. How they almost quit one night over a rejection;2. How they wanted to strangle an editor;3. How they behaved when they lost an entire story on the computer;4. How, after ten chapters, they realized the story had no purpose. Or how about answering these questions: 1. How much money did they really make on that self-pubbed book? 2. Did they ever make a fool of themselves with an editor/agent?3. When did they make a bad decision on selling rights?4. After expenses, how much money do they really net after a traditional publisher kept 92% of the print proceeds and 75% of the ebook gross earnings?5. Was there ever a time he was a bad writer?6. How did that one-star review REALLY make him feel? Give me the dirt . . . all of it. Why? Because I need to know what’s coming at me. I need to understand that there will benights like this, where I doubt myself and crave an easier life. We write for the satisfaction. But no one tells us about the nights we feel like our writing sucks, or that the planets are aligned against us. Those are the times that define us in this profession. Coming out on the other side of those bad nights intact, with the shards of our wits swept up off the floor, with lessons painfully learned leaving deep scars behind, makes us decent writers. No pain, no glory. Okay. Big sigh. Excuse me while I return to beat up my keyboard.

British South Africa Company (BSAC)

British South Africa Company (BSAC) The British South Africa Company (BSAC) was a mercantile company incorporated on 29 October 1889 by a royal charter given by Lord Salisbury, the British prime minister, to Cecil Rhodes. The company was modeled on the East India Company and was expected to annex and then administer territory in south-central Africa, to act as a police force, and develop settlements for European settlers. The charter was initially granted for 25 years, and was extended for another 10 in 1915. It was intended that the BSAC would develop the region without significant cost to the British tax payer. It was therefore given the right to create its own political administration supported by a paramilitary force for protection of settlers against local peoples. Profits form the company, in terms of diamond and gold interests were reinvested in the company to allow it to expand its area of influence. African labor was exploited partially through the application of hut taxes, which required Africans to look for wages. Mashonaland was invaded by a Pioneer Column in 1830, then the Ndebele in Matabeleland. This formed the proto-colony of Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). They were stopped from spreading further to the north west by King Leopolds holdings in Katanga. Instead they appropriated lands which formed Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia). (There were failed attempts to also incorporate Botswana and Mozambique.) The BSAC was involved in the Jamison Raid of December 1895, and they faced a rebellion by the Ndebele in 1896 which required the aid of British to quell. A further rising of Ngoni people in Northern Rhodesia was suppressed in 1897-98. Mineral resources failed to be as large as implied to settlers, and farming was encouraged. The charter was renewed in 1914 on the condition that settlers be given greater political rights in the colony. Towards the end of the last extension of the charter, the company looked towards South Africa, which was interested in incorporating Southern Rhodesia into the Union. A referendum of the settlers voted for self-government instead. When the charter came to an end in 1923, white settlers were allowed to take control of the local government as a self-governing colony in Southern Rhodesia and as a protectorate in Northern Rhodesia. The British Colonial Office stepped in 1924 and took over. The company continued on after its charter lapsed, but was unable to generate sufficient profits for shareholders. Mineral rights in Southern Rhodesia were sold to the colonys government in 1933. Mineral rights in Northern Rhodesia were retained until 1964 when they were forced to hand them over to the government of Zambia.

Outlined and it varies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Outlined and it varies - Essay Example However, in the case of emotion, it is usually much difficult to really create the link. For instance in making decisions through emotions, one can be driven by such factors like nostalgia while they might be well aware (through cognition) that such a decision is not really the best (Norman, 2005). The traditional hard science approach in decision making faces much antipathy in the conventional practical situation. It relies much on positivism and logical sense. However, in today’s science, decision making and decision calls for more than mere objectivism. The world is indeed inundated with many situations and options which have made human beings to be accustomed to different experiences. In this regard, in making decisions and designs, it is important to demonstrate a subjective mind that highly promotes experientialism. It is further realized that the reaction of human beings to design normally occurs in three different levels: visceral, behavioral and reflective. The viscer al level is very important as it creates the first impression in terms of appearance. In this case, one is attracted by what their see before they can consider such aspects like functionality. Secondly, people are also driven by behavioral factors which include the ability of the item to perform the required needs. Lastly, the reflective level regards the effects of the item on the self-image and satisfaction of the individual. The subjective and post-positivist approach is realized in the design of such products like watches and autos in which case the mere functionality of the item does not really drive people to be interested. In the technological field, image and sound are some of the most fundamental factors that drive people to purchase specific items like computers and phones. The designers of these products should therefore move away from the traditional focus on objectivism and realize the very importance of creating an item which lures people through sight, sound and perfo rmance. The products used in everyday life should therefore be designed in a way that evokes certain emotions on the users. Most designers still hold on to the traditional objective ideas regarding science where emotional concerns of the users are not given much consideration in the design process. However, companies like Apple have realized this crucial value and are not only enhancing functionality but also image and visual characteristics of their products. The results are basically the increase in sales as people tend to be attracted visual efficiencies of such products. The subjective orientation places much focus on creating experience on the part of the users. For instance, in information technology, the designers should make products which are identified with specific features such as efficiency. Therefore the present usability design places greater emphasis on such critical factors that create a mental attitude on the part of the consumers who are then driven to purchase su ch items. PHILOSOPHY--A CRASH COURSE Philosophy is normally a subject of many debates and questions regarding its very nature and its importance in conventional human practice. While some people normally feel that it is almost unnecessary owing to its excessive indulgence in rational argument, the core of the matter is basically with respect to the importance of philosophy in

GLOBAL IMMIGRATION Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

GLOBAL IMMIGRATION - Essay Example Russian Federation is the largest in area country in the world. It contains a lot of regions populated by people from different cultures and ethnicities. Though the country doesn’t set itself up as the liberal one and doesn’t really welcome different cultures. Vice versa the National Immigration Service works hard to fight with illegal immigrants as immigration situation in modern Russia is complicated and causes a lot of problems for society. The problem started to appear in 1990’s when the USSR collapsed and Russian people became free to immigrate to other countries, as they hadn’t had that opportunity in Soviet Union; in addition, a lot of Russians who in soviet times were forced to leave certain territories like North Caucasus came back to their motherlands. Another factor of the depopulation was the high level of mortality and weak health care system. So the post-Soviet Russia started suffering from population crisis (Anderson 437). However, the Russi an borders also became open for several ethnicities who were evicted from their native lands that were parts of soviet territory. Since the collapse of Soviet Union Russian Federation has become one of the most powerful states in the world and definitely it made Russia attractive for immigrants, so it is â€Å"the world’s second largest immigration heaven† (Malinkin n.pag.) nowadays. In American society Russia isn’t considered to be the country where people usually strive to move. This fact became obvious when in his recent interview the President Obama stated that â€Å"immigrants aren’t rushing to Moscow in search of opportunity† (Malinkin n.pag.) and he was mistaken, as they really are rushing to Moscow in great numbers. The strange fact of high immigration rate makes people wonder what are the reasons for people to strive to the country which economy is rather instable and the level of life is not that much higher than theirs. According