Identify and discuss the key factors that influence the logistical Essay

Identify and discuss the key factors that influence the logistical processes at Tate and Lyle - Essay Example Moreover, the group has diversified portfolio business operations throughout the globe, thus making it one of the leading players in renewable food and industrial ingredient industry. The subject of this report is the determination of the key factors that influence the logistical processes at Tate & Lyle Plc. This study is significant because Tate & Lyle has a strong global presence. Moreover, understanding the logistical processes of the group will help not only in clarifying and in addressing the issues encountered by the group in its logistical processes, but it will also provide clearer grounds in apprehending the theoretical and practical application of logistics. As such, the purpose of the report is the identification and discussion of the key factors that affect the logistical processes at Tate & Lyle Plc. In order to achieve this purpose, several academic literatures pertinent to the subject matter have been gathered. The electronic databases EConlit, Academic Source Premier , Business Source Premier, GoogleScholar and Jstor have been searched, and the following key terms have been used Tate & Lyle Plc, logistical processes, logistics, sugarcane industry, globalisation, and supply-chain management in the search. The report is divided into six parts. The first part is the introduction wherein the subject, both the purpose and structure of the report are presented. In the second part, a brief company profile is provided while in the third part pertains to the supply chain in Tate & Lyle. The fourth part of the report deals with the transportation arrangements adopted by the group, while in the fifth section the inventory costs of Tate & Lyle will be discussed. Finally, the last part of the report is the conclusion. Company View: Tate & Lyle Plc Tate & Lyle Plc manufactures a wide range of products. The group’s ingredients are produced from renewable raw materials primarily corn, sugarcane, wheat, and molasses (Datamonitor, 2008; 2010). These raw ma terials are transformed into ethanol, citric acid, sweeteners and starches, and through the help of technology, it becomes a valuable ingredient for food, beverages and other industrial commodities. The end-users of the Tate & Lyle’s products are wide and varied. It ranges from branded food manufacturers, beverages, pharmaceutical products, household products, building products, paper and board to consumer brands and animal feeds (Datamonitor, 2010). Tate & Lyle creates its portfolio of renewable ingredients using three main processes: milling, fermentation and sugar refining. The group's other essential raw material processes include its patented sucralose processing of sugar. Tate & Lyle maintains more than 45 production facilities throughout Europe, the Americas and South East Asia (Datamonitor, 2010, p. 20). The company is considered as one of the leading manufacturers in renewable food and industrial ingredients. It is one of the largest producers of white and raw sugar in the world including leading brands such as Tate & Lyle (UK), and Alcantara (Portugal) (Datamonitor, 2010, p. 21). In the United States, the group is the second largest sugar refining company holding 36% of the market share. Likewise, Tate & Lyle is also second largest company in sugar beet processing in the U.S (Brewster & Boland, 2009). In order to bolster their current position in the global market, Tate & Lyle continues to come up with products and programmes that are responsive to the demands of the

Inhibition of DNA processing in heavy metal carcinogenesis Essay

Inhibition of DNA processing in heavy metal carcinogenesis - Essay Example Nonetheless, although it has been noted that some heavy metals may inhibit SSB (single strand break) rejoining, the effects on single strand break end-processing enzymes has never previously been investigated. First, an analysis on the DNA replication as a result of topo-1 enzyme will be done. This will show how topo-1 enzyme is responsible for winding of DNA structures. A picture analysis will be included to show evidence of the process. As mentioned earlier, different heavy metals have effects on the living organism’ DNA. The metals will be discussed together with their effects. This paper also explores inhibition of superoxide dismutases. This enzyme catalysis the dismutation of extremely reactive superoxide ions to generate hydrogen peroxide and numerous lines of evidence propose that these enzymes play significant part in the development and also response to treatment of cancers. These are enzymes that control under-winding and over-winding of DNA. DNA winding comes from the intertwined nature of its double-helical structure. For instance, during replication of DNA, DNA is overwound before a replication fork. When it is not controlled, it will eventually lead to a halt in DNA replication. A similar process is observed during transcription. To overcome the topological problems resulting from the double helix, topoisomerases are bound to single or double stranded DNA and cut the phosphate spine of the DNA. This untangles the DNA releasing the DNA spine again. Since the chemical composition of the DNA remains the same, the untangled DNAs are chemical isomers. Therefore, topoisomerases are isomerase enzymes which work on the DNA topology. The N-terminal domain is then preceded by a highly conserved, 421 amino acid core domain that contains all of the catalytic residues except the active site tyrosine. A protease-sensitive and poorly conserved linker domain

Human Resource Management in the FMCG Industry

Human Resource Management in the FMCG Industry Human resource management (HRM) is that part of management process which makes, enhances, manages and develops the human element of the enterprise measuring their resourcefulness in terms of talents, abilities, total skills, creative, knowledge, and potentialities for effectively contributing to the organizational objectives. Human resources are precious and a source of competitive advantage. Human resources may be tapped most effective by mutually standard policies which promote promise and foster an inclination in employees to act flexibly in the interests of the adaptive organizations pursuit of excellence. Human resource policies can be joined with planned business and used to reinforce appropriate culture. Human resources play a critical role in enabling the organization to effectively deal with the external environment challenges. The human resource management has been accepted as a strategic partner in the formulation of organizations strategies and in the implementation of such strategies through human resource planning, employment, training, appraisal and rewarding the personnel. Strategic management of human resources facilitates creation of competitive advantage for the organization over its rival by building unique human resource based competence. An organizations recruitment, selection, training, performance management process and compensation practices can have a strong influence on employee competence. Company output increase if the management can hire more experience well qualified candidate. Performance appraisal takes in account the past performance of the employees and focuses on their improvement for the future performance of the employees through counseling, coaching or training. The human resource strategy of a business should reflect and support the corporate strategy. An effective human resource strategy includes the way in which the organization pans to develop its employees and provide them with suitable opportunities and better working conditions so that their optional contribution is ensured. This implies selecting the best available personnel, ensuring a fit between the employee and the job and retaining, empowering and motivating employees to perform well in the direction of corporate objectives. Statement of Purpose Consumer packaged goods (CPG) Organization, alternatively called as FMCG industry mainly deals with the production, marketing and selling of consumer packaged goods. The FMCG or Fast Moving Consumer Goods are those goods which are generally consumed at a regular interval by the consumers. FMCG industry has some of the main activities like financing, selling, purchasing, marketing etc. The industry also contributes or also involved in general management supply chain, operations and production. FMCG industry gives a variety of consumables and consequently the amount of money is very high which is circulated against FMCG products. Day by day the competition between the FMCG producers is increasing consequently the investment in FMCG industry is increasing. FMCG Sector in India is estimated to grow at a very high rate by 2012. PRIME FMCG PRODUCTS Some general FMCG product categories include dairy products and food, drinks, coffee, tea, tobacco and cigarettes, glassware, paper products, pharmaceuticals, dry cells, electronics, prepacked food products, plastic goods, watches, greeting cards, soaps, printing and stationery, household products, detergents, photography, drinks etc. In FMCG industry some of the features which made this organization as a strong distribution networks are small operational cost, as a prospective one, presence of renowned FMCG companies. Population growth is also one of the major factors behind the success of this industry. Introduction GOOD FOOD, GOOD LIFE NESTLE is a very popular brand in all over the world. It basically supplies packaged food. It was established and has headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland. Nestle was established in 1905 when the two companies was merged. The first company was established in 1866 by Page Brothers to produce milk products and their company name was Anglo-Swiss Milk Company in Cham, Switzerland and the second one was Farine Lactà ©e Henri Nestlà © Company to supplies an infant food product set up in 1867 by Henri Nestlà ©. Nestlà ©s have a trademark (birds in a nest), derived from Henri Nestlà ©s personal coat of arms, evoke the values upon which he founded his Company. Nestlà ©s have their no. of brands which are well-known worldwide; list of all the products has made the company a international market master. Some of their famous products are coffee, chocolate, ice cream, confectionery, milk, pet food bottled water. FAMILY OF NESTLE Family of NESTLE consists of products related to: Milk Nutrition Beverages Prepared dishes cooking aids Chocolates confectioneries NESTLE is one of the well known FMCG company. In the Every part of the world, the Nestlà © name represents a commitment or promise to the customer that the product is of high standard and safe. NESTLE support the UNGC (United Nations Global Compacts). UNGC guiding principles on human rights, their aim and labour to offer an example of better labour practices and human rights all over his business activities. Nestle people played a major role for his success. Nestle people give the equal respect and dignity to each other and expect from the every employee to share and contribute their opinions and views to improve Company personal development and results and also promote a sense of personal responsibility. Nestle recruit motivated and competent people, who know and respect our values, provide equal opportunities for their advancement, development, protect their privacy and do not tolerate any form of discrimination or harassment. Human resources of an organization can provide it with a reasonable advantage over its competitors in the fast changing environment. This calls for the strategic management of human resources for the accomplishment of corporate objectives. STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT is called as the linking of strategic goals with human resources. No. of objectives in order to enhance or to develop an organizational culture, to improve organization performance and that fosters flexibility, innovation, and sustainable competitive advantage is called. HRM practices of an organization give its an edge over its competitors, thereby leading to strategic human resource management. KEY FACTORS OF SHRM PROCESS The outcomes of the Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) process which should be evaluated both qualitatively as well as quantitatively. The business strategy it alters and is altered by the SHRM process and which provide the business a good thought of direction. The external environment which is flexible and dynamic in the present global business scenario. The internal environment The general culture and the organizational context which is prevalent in the organization. VISUAL DEPICTION OF THE SHRM PROCESS HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT WITH BUSINESS OUTCOME STRONG AND FOCUSED VISION HUMAN RESOURCING OPEN COMMUNICATION PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL CHALLENGES AND ADVENTURES SHARING OF INFORMATION SHAPING THE WORKING CULTURE CONTINUOUS DEVELOPMENT STAGES OF STRATEGIC HRM PLANNING PROCESS Strategic human resource management is the process by which managers design the mechanisms of an HRM system to be reliable with each other, with the organizations plans and goals and with other essentials of organizational architecture. The main role of strategic HRM is the improvement of an HRM system that increases an organizations awareness, worth, invention, and productivity to customers. Strategic human resource planning (SHRP) involves four distinct stages: Situational analysis/environmental scanning. Estimating demand for human resources. Analyzing the supply of human resources. Developing action plans to close any gap between human resource demand and supply. The first stage of HR planning is the point at which strategic planning and HRM interact. HR planners anticipate sources of threats and identify and should drive the organizations strategic planning and opportunities with the help of Environmental scanning. The strategic ideas or plan implement to environmental circumstances, and HR planning is the mechanisms that an organization can use to accomplish this adaptation process. The second stage, forecasting demand, requires estimating not only how many but also what kinds of employees will be needed by the organization. The demand for employees should be closely tied to the strategic direction of the organization. Forecasting yields advance estimates of the organizations staffing requirements. This is a difficult task, especially for organizations in rapidly changing environments. Four forecasting techniques include expert estimates, trend projections, statistical modeling, and unit-demand forecasting. Estimate by no of expert, a group of experienced or expert provides the organization with demand estimates based on subjective assessments of available economic, intuition, prior experience, and labor force indicators. Trend projection involves forecasting which is based on a previous relationship between the employment and a factor related to employment (e.g. sales levels). Statistical modeling techniques (e.g. regression analysis or Markov analysis) are mor e quantitative forecasting and sophisticated techniques. Unit-demand forecasting requires the unit managers (e.g. department head, project team leader) to analyze the present and future job-by-job, people-by-people needs. The third phase involves studying the number and types of current employees in terms of the training and skills necessary for the future and also the supply of capable workers in the outside labor market. The skills inventory is a major tool used to assess the internal supply of employees. A skills inventory is a list of names, skills and characteristics of the people currently working for the organization. The list of skills coded into the skills inventory should be tailored to the needs for the organization, but might include such factors as level and field of education, knowledge of a foreign language, professional qualification or certification, or licenses held. The organized inventory provides a way to acquire these data and makes them available as needed in an efficient manner. Also important is the need to maintain the inventory so that information is kept current. With regard to the external labor market, the entire country (or world) may be the relevant labor market for hig hly skilled jobs. For unskilled jobs the relevant labor market is usually the local community. After the HR planning system has analyzed both the supply of and the demand for future workers, the two forecasts are compared to determine what, if any, actions are necessary. If a discrepancy exists between the two estimates, the organization needs to choose an appropriate course of action designed to eliminate the gap. The organization has a number of options available when the demand for workers is greater than the supply of workers. The organization might elect to use overtime work with current employees, increase training and promotions of current employees, or recruit new employees. In tight labor markets, the availability of labor is limited (i.e. demand exceeds supply), driving up the price of those employees who are hired, and limiting the extent to which the organization can be selective in its hiring procedures. In a loose labor market, qualified employees are abundant. When the supply of workers exceeds demand, alternative solutions include attrition, early retirements, demotions, layoffs, and terminations. STRATEGIC HRM AT NESTLE Nestlà © aims to increase the business, list of customers, profits and sales but, at the same time, to improve the Standard of living everywhere it is active and the quality of life for everyone. Nestlà © is also convinced that nestle employees is the strength of the Company and it is impossible to achieved without their energy and their commitment, which makes people its most important asset. Involvement of people and also showing their interest at all levels starts with the basic and appropriate information on the Companys activities and also on the specific aspects of their work. Through shared their views, ideas and communication and focused vision, everyone is invited to share and contribute there opinions and views to improvements enhancing Company personal development and results. Currently human resource is the term which is in demand of every organization. By using the HR policies companies are able to describe the combination of organizational management personnel functions with achievement, Knowledge, relation between employees, employees experience and how to utilize resource at different levels. PURPOSE By using the HR policies an organization can be transparent with their employees on organization environment Employee expectation from the company Company expectation from their employees What are the company policies and how the polices apply. What are the acceptable behavior What is the behavior of the workforce that cant be accepted? The policies are basically used to help an organization to explain that it reach the requirements for training, variety, principles. If an Organization want to fire any employee in this case it may be necessary for the organization to show the reason of the complaint with the employee contract and also all the others legal documents. HR management policies are important for those companies that do not want and personnel issues in future. Complete HR solution which covers human resource policy solutions, evaluation services, professional human resource advice and job description writing given to the customers. Common Sense would seem to dictate the necessity of having written policies and procedures covering all aspects of the employee/organization relationship. Yet, there are organizations with few or no written policies. In fact, there are organizations that have never considered developing policies and procedures-written or otherwise. There are organizations with written policies and procedures that read well but have no relationship to the needs of the organization/company or employees. There are organizations with elaborate sets of policies and procedures that no one seems to read, let alone follow, and there are organizations that appear to use their policies and procedures primarily as rules for identifying and punishing infractions. In actuality, HR policies- Provide clear communication between organization/company and its employees regarding conditions of employment. Form a basis for treating all employees fairly and equally. Are a set of guidelines for supervisors and managers. Create a basis for developing employee handbooks. Establish a basis for regularly reviewing possible changes affecting employees. To fulfill all these purposes and objectives, Policies should: Be clear and specific, but provide adequate flexibility to meet changing conditions. Comply with all appropriate federal and state laws and regulations. STEPS FOR SHRM Job Design Recruitment Selection Training Development Pay structure Benefits Performance Management Rewards and Incentives Maintenance: Welfare JOB DESIGN: Job design refers to the way the tasks are combines to form a complete job. Job design is a process which joins the intrinsic and extrinsic relationship, tasks, and the candidate experiences and educations required like knowledge, qualification, skill and capabilities for every type of task that meet the requirements of organization and employees. The job design under NESTLE is a very detailed and based on strategic process. The company incorporates practices like Job Enrichment and Job Enlargement, to motivate employees and to break the monotony of their job tasks. The correspondent herself works in both sales and brand management departments, which is an example of job enlargement. Nestle HR policy- Nestle group used this policy to covers those rules which create a sound basis for well-organized and active HR Management around the world. 2. RECRUITMENT SELECTION: Recruitment is the process of developing and maintaining adequate manpower resources. Recruitment is basically a process to select the interested candidates and divide the candidates in different- pool of prospective employees, so that the recruiters are able to select the right candidate from this pool. The recruitment process at Nestle is clearly defined. People with qualities like dynamism, realism, loyalty, pragmatism, hard work, honesty and reliable. Match between candidates values companys culture. Recruitment for management levels takes place in the head office and all others at the branch level. The existing employees are promoted to higher posts as per the requirements. There are no lateral recruitments. Another source of recruitment is campus placements and human resource consultancies. Selection-Combination of written test, GD interview (Interviews for top Management posts). 3. TRAINING DEVELOPMENT: Training is a major and also an important part of organized activity for increasing the skills and knowledge of people and also to understand the deep knowledge of task that what they have to perform or for a definite purpose. It involves systematic procedures for imparting technical know-how to the employees so as to increase their knowledge and skills for doing specific jobs with proficiency. From the Company floor to the upper management, training at Nestlà © is continuous. Nestlà © people provide this training and it is constantly appropriate to the professional life. Nestle provides the following- Literacy training-to upgrades essential literacy skills, especially for workers who operate new equipment (Mission-directed Work Team Approach). Employees are also sent abroad to study markets, consumer tastes etc. Nestle Apprenticeship Programmes. Local Training Programmes-on issues ranging from technical, leadership, and communication and business economics. Employees are also sent abroad to study markets, consumer tastes etc. Nestle people development review- this policy throws light on Nestlà ©s culture and core values, different training programs and life of employees after work. Nestle leadership and management principles- it describe the management style and the corporate values of the Nestlà © Group, specifically in the area of interpersonal relations. 4. PAY STRUCTURE: Pay Structure is basically used to set the salary structure of the employees according to the level of job, or group of jobs and also consider basic salary, overtime and bonus. We can also call pay structure as salary structure. Nestle strives to offer fair remuneration. Remuneration level is above the average in industry. The variable component of the salary is comparatively big to reward individual Performance. In case of higher management level, the variable part is linked to individual team target achievements. 5. BENEFITS: Nestle offers no. of benefits to their employees to fulfill their expectation like Health insurance for his and his family members, PF, reimbursements (Car, Phone) etc. Take all the necessary steps for the protection of the employees during work with Nestle. The following benefits are provided to all employees, with no discrimination- Leave-Personal Medical (fixed no. per year) Children Education Assistance Scheme Provident fund Retirement Gratuity Scheme Group Insurance Accidental Insurance Scheme Conveyance Reimbursements Residential Accommodation Monthly health check-ups free consultation for self family etc. 6. PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT: Performance management includes all standard procedures used to appraise contributions, potentials and personalities of group members in a working organization. It is a process which is important for making accurate and impartial decisions on employees for secure information. At Nestle performance appraisals of Employees are done in order to understand each employees abilities, competencies and relative merit. Formal assessment by Line Managers and HR once a year with feedback. Subordinate can question an unfair evaluation. Specific Key Performance Indicators have been enlisted by the HR department. One of the important key performance indicators is achievement following the Nestle management and leadership principles. Remuneration structure and promotion criteria take into account individual. 7. REWARDS INCENTIVES: it consists of a variety of modules that can be presented to reward employees and identify unique performance. The structure is based on consistent, delivering equitable and fair rewards to a differentiated group to encourage the employees to generate new ideas in improving the workplace productivity and consists of the following non-financial and financial rewards. Passion to Win awards- These quarterly awards have been institutionalized to reward those who over-achieve their targets. Long-service Awards- To recognize employees who have been with the company for more than 30 years. Nestle Idea Award- It was found from the correspondent that the company institutes Nestle Idea Award every quarter to recognize and award employees who come up with relevant and innovative ideas which have the potential of being implemented at Nestle. 8. MAINTENANCE A) EMPLOYEE RELATIONS: Employee Relations involves the body of work concerned with maintaining employer-employee relationships that contribute to satisfactory productivity, motivation, and morale. Essentially, Employee Relations is concerned with preventing and resolving problems which arise out of or affect work situations. Nestle provides a very healthy working environment which is one of the reasons why Nestlà ©s employees state their commitment level to be very high. Employee turnover is less than 5%., which is considered to be very low for a Multinational Corporation. Nestle has a open culture upward communication especially in case of grievance redressal. Work/Life balance is given importance, as illustrated in the Nestle Human Resource Policy document. Nestle Family annual events are organized by their HR department whereby employees along with their families are invited. Emphasis is laid on safety of employees (Nestle Policy on Health and Safety at Work). B) SAFETY HEALTH: Risk assessment must be required in an organization to identify any type of miss happening or danger in the workplace and should be able to identify or known the steps to be taken to handle the condition. The Nestle Operational Safety, Health and Risk-Management Strategy document illustrates that: Nestle is dedicated to safe healthy work environment. Regular safety assessments audits take place by internal external bodies. CHANGE MANAGEMENT Nestle has adjusted to the ever-changing external environment for the last 140 years since its inception 1866 without losing its fundamental views and fundamental values. It manages Change and drives sustainable profitable growth by following the policy of making gradual changes instead of making drastic and risky changes. ERP implementation- In June 2000, Nestle SA signed a contract of $200 million with SAP with additional $80 million for maintenance and consulting to install an ERP system for its global enterprise to maintain centralize a multinational that subsidiaries in 80 countries and have owns 200 operating companies. While the ERP system was likely to have long-term benefits, the project touched the corporate structure and culture. The structure was decentralized, and it tried to centralize it. This was initially opposed by employees but with subsequent measures taken by the HR like training etc., this has been successfully implemented. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS The Model employed by Nestle is one of High Performance, High involvement and high commitment. Nestle is unique in the sense that it has been able to successfully inculcate its business objective as well as its core values, consistently in its employees day-to-day activities starting from recruitment till continuous performance appraisals. Like, open and flexible culture is ensured by way of providing training programs to employees at all the levels. This kind of culture is also supported by decentralized structure of Nestle. Transparent performance appraisal systems and the freedom given to them to question their seniors benefit not only the employees but even the organization as a whole. Nestles emphasis on individual achievement is evident from the kind of pay structure HR has designed for its employees. Need to develop consultation/awareness program to assist the employees for their better understanding of the policies. More incentives should be offered to the employees who provide continuous services to the organization. Nestlà ©, maintain their essential principles and fundamental value from their past historical experience from village operation to the international leading food company which is important for long-term achievement and success. Nestle used HR policies from the last many years and as the company size is growing, increase the difficulty to a dimension which make the demands of research and development of its organization. Nestle motivation is depend upon the willingness to understand and to put query about what why it is doing it, along with respect to Nestlà © values, will guarantee its victory.

The Devastating Effects of Overpopulation Essay -- Environment Environ

The Devastating Effects of Overpopulation    Imagine living in a world where darkness reigns continually due to a dense cover of toxic air pollution which blocks most sunlight.   Starvation and death from the lack of energy resources is widespread and the people who have not perished yet live packed together, in overcrowded communities surrounded by waste and filth.   This grotesque picture of future life on earth may seem far-fetched but with the continued rise in population and the abuse of our planet by billions, this scenario may be closer to reality then previously thought. The Earth will soon not be able to sustain life if the population continues to escalate.   With the constantly rising numbers of humans, vital resources needed to survive are becoming extinct and the environment is being polluted as to almost make life unbearable.   Every individual will need to open his or her eyes to this growing and potentially devastating problem and take the necessary measures to stop it.   Is the planet really overpopulated?   The estimated population of Earth is 5.5 billion people with an annual growth rate of 1.7%.   This rate accounts for approximately 93 million births yearly (Daily 1).   This means that the world’s population has more than doubled since 1950 and it is projected to continue to 8.2 billion by 2025 and eventually reach 14 billion in 2100 (Miller 1).   Earth has a finite amount of resources and a fixed size but the number of people and the resources we consume per capita is continually   escalating.   With this increase the carrying capacity of earth, which is to   say the number of living things a given area can support, is being threatened   and our planet may not be able to support its' inhabitants indefini... ..., and How We Could   Achieve It.†Ã‚   Population and Environment:   A Journal of Interdisciplinary   Studies 18:1 (1996) 65-71. Lambert, Thomas.   â€Å"Defusing the ‘Population Bomb’ With Free Markets.†Ã‚   (1996):   1-31. Miller, G. Tyler.   Sustaining the Earth.   California:   Wadworth Publishing Company,   1998. â€Å"Mortality.†Ã‚   1995.   http://www.frt.com/mortalit.htm.   â€Å"Population Growth, Our Quality of Life and Environment Sustainability.† 1995. http://www.overpopulation.org/paul.html#in1second Preston, Samuel H.   â€Å"The effect of Population Growth on Environmental Quality.†   Population Research and Policy Review 15 (1996) 95-108. Smith, Herbert L., Tu Ping, M. Giovanna Merli.   â€Å"Implementation of a Demographic   And Contraceptive Surveillance System in Four Countries in North China.†   Population Research and Policy Review 16 (1997) 289-314.      

Views on Baz Luhrman’s Adaptation of Romeo and Juliet

Capulet my name is anonymous. My topic for the IOP is based on the film ‘Romeo and Juliet by B Luhrmann . I am going to impersonate William Shakespeare with a monologue where I shall speak aloud my views on Baz Luhrman’s adaptation of my text. When I wrote this book I was attracting a crowd with very orthodoxed thnking . the idea of two young lovers going against the society merely for lust was intolerable! hence in my book they died 4 days into their courtship. Death was their punishment for going against the knomes of the society. my book was a one with a serious message put forth to the reader.Where as the movie which was adapted frm my text seems to be moulded inorder to attract an audience with a very openmindset mindset who prefer entertainment over moral values. It had a many humourous scenes ,mercutio dressing up like a girl and dancing at the capulets party,which the modern crowd would enjoy more. The main objective of the this movie was to make money,which was done by mocking at my well known novel of romeo and Juliet.. adapting their movie from my book must have been a huge advantage for them as tthey wouldn’t have needed any script or a new story which has the risk of being disliked by the audience. hey just changed the costumes and situations into modern day ones which will obviously entertain the audience as they picture romeo as a young teenager in the days of old and not wearing a suit and smoking a cigarette on the beach.. the movie has a many differnces compared to the book in order to make the film more entertaining. in my book Juliet was 14 years old but in the movie Juliet doesn’t appear to be 14 at all. the movie makers changed this aspect of the book in their movie in order to make the scenes expressing lust more entertaining for the crowd.But the reason I had Juliet to be so young in the book was to highlight fact that her actions were all justified by the fact that she was immature. The costumes of the actors in the movie were very western and commonly worn by the people of the new times. in my book they were meant to be dress the way the people did during the time of the book being published. instead of wearing the olden day clothes characters like benvolio were wearing hawaian shirts and romeo was dressed in a suit smoking a cigarette on the beach . scenes like this weren’t common to see in days when I wrote the book.Instead of actually swords the charactes threatened each other with shinning pistols with the word â€Å"sword† carved on them. this aspect of the movie killed the seriousness as in the opening scene the capulets pointed a pistol at the montagues and ordered him to raise his â€Å"sword†. How will two people have a dramatic fight holding two pistols against each other? In my book this scene was supposed to be a dramatic fight . The royal prince was replaced by a police official to make the movie more relative to the modern world.The reason my book had a royal prince was to highlight he fact that these two lovers were going against the will of the highest authority. the movie portrayed the same situation but the police official replacing the prince is another example which I saw where barz luhrman has presented a change in the film for it to be resembling a modern life situation. In two offices of the capulets and the montagues were shown in the film as tall skyscrapers where as my book was geographically set in Verona which is supposed to be a small and silent town. During the time when I wrote this book ,writers and producers would only produce works which gave some hints to make the viewers or readers to ponder over certain real life situations. but I guess times have changed and so has the mindset and the taste of the audience. they seem to enjoy mockeries instead of eye openers I feel barz luhrman has not been faithful to my text while depicting it as a mmovie because the movie simply mocks at the text if I had an option to c reate a film depicting my text it would have been very different not changing any scenes for it to be enjoyed by the modern crowd.

Conflict in Organizations, Good or Bad Essay

Organizational conflict is a state of discord caused by an actual or perceived opposition of needs, values and interests between people working together. Conflict takes many forms in organizations. There is the inevitable clash between formal authority and power and those individuals and groups affected. There are disputes over how revenues should be divided, how the work should be done and how long and hard people should work (team and relationship conflict). There are jurisdictional disagreements among individuals, executives, managers, teams, departments, and between unions and management. There are subtler forms of conflict involving rivalries, jealousies, personality clashes, role definitions, and struggles for power and favor. There is also conflict within individuals — between competing needs and demands — to which individuals respond in different ways. A process that begins when an individual or group perceives differences and opposition between itself and another individual or group about interest and resources, beliefs, values or practices that matter to them. It occurs or arises due to difference in expectation and knowledge, poor communication, fear, attachment, incompatible values, harassments, stress, scarce resources, past trauma, misunderstandings and perceived oppression. It also arises usually during mergers and acquisitions, union negotiations, performance appraisals, interpersonal issues, changing job functions, downsizing and reorganizations. Conflict has negative effects on organizations such as, increase in turnovers, absenteeism, health issues, wasted resources, increase in production cost and decrease in job satisfaction and performance. Its positive effects include, increases effort of workers, diagnostic information, creativity, learning of new skills and forming of deep bonds. Conflicts can be handled through in tegrating, forcing, competition, sharing, smoothing, avoiding and compromising. There are two ways of looking at organizational conflict; the functional and dysfunctional. Each of these ways is linked to a different set of assumptions about the purpose and function of organizations. Conflict that occurs in organizations need not be destructive, provided the energy associated with conflict is harnessed and directed towards problem-solving and organizational improvement. However, managing conflict effectively requires that all parties understand the nature of conflict in the workplace. The dysfunctional view (bad) of organizational conflict is imbedded in the notion that organizations are created to achieve goals by creating structures that perfectly define job responsibilities, authorities, and other job functions. Here, each worker knows where he or she fits, knows what he or she must do and knows how to relate to others in the organization. This traditional view of organizations values orderliness, stability and the repression of any conflict that occurs. To the â€Å"traditional† organizational thinker conflict implies that the organization is not designed or structured correctly or adequately. Common remedies would be to further elaborate job descriptions, authorities and responsibilities, increase the use of central power (discipline), separate conflicting members, etc. This view of organizations and conflict causes problems. Unfortunately, most managers consciously or unconsciously, value some of the characteristics of this â€Å"orderly† environment. Problems arise when it is not realized that this way of looking at organizational conflict only fits organizations that work in routine ways, where innovation and change are virtually eliminated. Virtually all government organizations work within a very disorderly context — one characterized by constant change and a need for constant adaptation. Trying to â€Å"structure away† conflict and disagreement in a dynamic environment requires tremendous amounts of energy, and will also suppress any positive outcomes that may come from disagreement, such as improved decision-making and innovation. When a bad conflict worsens it becomes an ugly conflict. Ugly conflicts occurs where the manager (and perhaps employees) attempt to eliminate or suppress conflict in situations where it is impossible to do so. Ugly conflicts in organizations occur when: conflicts run for years, people have given up on resolving and addressing conflict problems, there is a good deal of private â€Å"bitching† and complaining but little attempt to fix the problem and when staff show little interest in working to achieve common goals, but spend more time and energy on protecting themselves Under these circumstances there is a tendency to look to the manager or formal leader as being responsible for the mess. In fact, that is how most employees w ould look at the situation. It is true that managers and supervisors play critical roles in determining how conflict is handled in the organization, but it is also true that the avoidance of these ugly conflicts must be a shared responsibility. Management and employees must work together in a cooperative way to reduce them, and increase the likelihood that conflict can be channeled into an effective force for change. The functional (good) view of organizational conflict sees conflict as a productive force, one that can stimulate members of the organization to increase their knowledge and skills, and their contribution to organizational innovation and productivity. Unlike the position mentioned above, this more modern approach considers that the keys to organization success lie not in structure, clarity and orderliness, but in creativity, responsiveness and adaptability. The successful organization, then, needs conflict so that diverging views can be put on the table, and new ways of doing things can be created. The functional view of conflict also suggests that conflict provides people with feedback about how things are going. Even â€Å"personality conflicts† carry information to the manager about what is not working in an organization, affording the opportunity to improve. Personal conflict Personal conflict refers to an individual’s inner workings and personality problems. Conflict sometimes has a destructive effect on the individuals and groups involved. At other times, however, conflict can increase the capacity of those affected to help deal with problems, and therefore it can be used as a motivating force toward innovation and change. Conflict is encountered in two general forms. Many difficulties in this area are beyond the scope of management and more in the province of a professional counselor, but there are some aspects of personal conflict that managers should understand and some they can possibly help remedy. Social conflict include interpersonal, intragroup, and intergroup differences Role Conflict Another facet of personal conflict has to do with the multiple roles people play in organizations. Each member of the organization belongs to a role set, which is an association of individuals who share interdependent tasks and thus perform formally defined roles, which are further influenced both by the expectations of others in the role set and by one’s own personality and expectations. For example, in an organization, employees are expected to learn from the instructor by listening to him, following his directions, undertaking assigned tasks, and maintaining appropriate standards of conduct. The manager is expected to provide the employee with high-quality working materials and resources, give advice and direction, conduct evaluation tests and work appraisals, provide a conducive working environment, and set a good example. The system of roles to which an individual belongs extends outside the organization as well, and influences his functioning within it. As an example, a man’s roles as husband, father, son, and church member are all intertwined with each other and with his set of organizational roles. As a consequence, there exist opportunities for role conflict as the various roles interact with one another. Other types of role conflict occur when an individual receives inconsistent demands from another person; for example, he is asked’ to serve on several time-consuming committees at the same time that he is urged to get out more production for his work unit. Another kind of role strain takes place when the individual finds that he is expected to meet the opposing demands of two or more separate members of the organization. Such a case would be that of a worker who finds himself pressured by his boss to improve the quality of his work while his work group wants more production in order to receive a higher bonus share. Conflict within groups Conflicts between people in work groups, committees, task forces, and other organizational forms of face-to-face groups are inevitable. As we have mentioned, these conflicts may be destructive as well as constructive. Conflict arises in groups because of the scarcity of freedom, position, and resources. People who value independence tend to resist the need for interdependence and, to some extent, conformity within a group. People who seek power therefore struggle with others for position or status within the group. Rewards and recognition are often perceived as insufficient and improperly distributed, and members are inclined to compete with each other for these prizes. In western culture, winning is more acceptable than losing, and competition is more prevalent than cooperation, all of which tends to intensify intragroup conflict. Group meetings are often conducted in a win-lose climate — that is, individual or subgroup interaction is conducted for the purpose of determining a winner and a loser rather than for achieving mutual problem solving. The win-lose conflict in groups may have negative effects such as: divert time and energy from the main issues, delay decisions, create deadlocks, drive unaggressive committee members to the sidelines, interfere with listening, obstruct exploration of more alternatives, decrease or destroy sensitivity, cause defensiveness, members to drop out or resign from committees, arouse anger that disrupts a meeting, interfere with empathy, leave losers resentful, incline underdogs to sabotage, provoke personal abuse. Conflict in the group need not lead to negative results, however, the presence of a dissenting member or subgroup often results in more penetration of the group’s problem as well as more creative solutions. This is because disagreement forces the members to think harder in an attempt to cope with what may be valid objections to general group opinion. But the group must know how to deal with differences that may arise. True interdependence among members leads automatically to conflict resolution in the group. Interdependence recognizes that differences will exist and that they can be helpful. Hence, members learn to accept ideas from dissenters (which does not imply agreeing with them), they learn to listen and to value openness, and they learn to share a mutual problem-solving attitude to ensure the exploration of all facets of a problem facing the group. Intergroup conflict between groups is a sometimes destructive, sometimes necessary, since event occurs at all levels and across all functions in organizations. Intergroup conflict may help generate creative tensions leading to more effective contributions to the organization’s goals, such as competition between sales districts for the highest sales. Intergroup conflict is destructive when it alienates groups that should be working together, when it results in win-lose competition, and when it leads to compromises that represent less-than-o ptimum outcomes. Intergroup conflict occurs in two general forms- Horizontal and Vertical strain. Horizontal strain involves competition between functions: for example, sales versus production, research and development versus engineering, purchasing versus legal, line versus staff, and so on. A clash between a sales department and production over inventory policy would be an example of horizontal strain. Vertical strain involves competition between hierarchical levels: for example, union versus management, foremen versus middle management, shop workers versus foremen. A struggle between a group of employees and management is an example of vertical strain or conflict. Certain activities and attitudes are typical in groups involved in a win-lose conflict. Each side closes ranks and prepares itself for battle. Members show increased loyalty and support for their own groups. Minor differences between group members tend to be smoothed over, and deviants are dealt with harshly. The level of morale in the groups increases and infuses everyone with competitive spirit. The power structure becomes better defined, as the â€Å"real† leaders come to the surface and members rally around the â€Å"best† thinkers and talkers. On the other hand, each group tends to distort both its own views and those of the competing group. What is perceived as â€Å"good† in one’s own position is emphasized, what is â€Å"bad† is ignored; the position of the other group is assessed as uniformly â€Å"bad,† with little â€Å"good† to be acknowledged or accepted. Thus, the judgment and objectivity of both groups are impaired. When such groups meet to â€Å"discuss† their differences, constructive, rational behavior is severely inhibited. Each side phrases its questions and answers in a way that strengthens its own position and disparages the other’s. Hostility between the two groups increases; mutual understandings are buried in negative stereotypes. It is easy to see that under the conditions described above, mutual solutions to problems cannot be achieved. As a result, the side having the greater power wins; the other side loses. Or the conflict may go unresolved, and undesirable conditions or circumstances continue. Or the conflict may be settled by a higher authority. None of these outcomes is a happy one. Disputes settled on the basis of power, such as through a strike or a lockout in a labor-management dispute, are often deeply resented by the loser. Such settlements may be resisted and the winner defeated in underground ways that are difficult to detect and to counter. When this happens, neither side wins; both are losers. If the conflict is left unresolved (it becomes an ugly conflict), as when both sides withdraw from the scene, intergroup cooperation and effectiveness may be seriously impaired to the detriment of the en tire organization. Disputes that are settled by higher authority also may cause resentment and what is called â€Å"lose-lose† consequences. Such settlements are invariably made on the basis of incomplete information —without data that the conflict itself obscures — and therefore are poor substitutes for mutually reasoned solutions. Strategies for Managing Group Conflicts include: Avoidance – a management strategy which includes non-attention or creating a total separation of the combatants or a partial separation that allows limited interactions. Smoothing – technique which stresses the achievement of harmony between disputants. Dominance or Power Intervention – the imposition of a solution by higher management, other than the level at which the conflict exists. Compromise – strategy that seeks a resolution which satisfies at least part of the each party’s position. Confrontation – strategy featuring a thorough and frank discussion of the sources and types of conflict and achieving a resolution that is in the best interest of the group, but that may be at the expense of one or all of the conflicting parties. Trained conflict resolver can begin with an economical intervention, such as getting group members to clarify and reaffirm shared goals. If necessary, he or she moves through a systematic series of interventions, such as testing the members’ ability and willingness to compromise; resorting to confrontation, enforced counseling, and/or termination as last resorts To conclude, the notion that conflict should be avoided is one of the major contributors to the growth of destructive conflict in the workplace. The â€Å"bad† view of conflict is associated with a vision of organizational effectiveness that is no longer valid (and perhaps never was). Conflict can be directed and managed so that it causes both people and organiza tions to grow, innovate and improve. However, this requires that conflict not be repressed, since attempts to repress are more likely to generate very ugly situations. Common repression strategies to be avoided are: nonaction, administrative orbiting, secrecy and law and order. Thus, conflict affecting organizations can occur in individuals, between individuals, and between groups. Also, conflicts within and between work groups in organizations are often caused by struggles over control, status, and scarce resources. The constructive resolution of such conflicts can most often be achieved through a rational process of problem solving, coupled with a willingness to explore issues and alternatives and to listen to each other. Conflict is not always destructive, it may be a motivator. When it is destructive, however, managers need to understand and do something about it. A rational process for dealing with the conflict should be programmed. Such a process should include a planned action response on the part of the manager or the organization, rather than relying on a simple reaction or a change that occurs without specific action by management. If managers should subscribe to the flexible vision of effective organizations, and at each conflict situation provide opportunity to improve, they can have the chance to harness the energy of conflict, directing it to be productive. Rather than trying to eliminate conflict, or suppress its symptoms, their task becomes managing conflict so that it enhances people and organizations, rather than destroying people and organizations. So, the task is to manage conflict, and avoid what we call â€Å"the ugly†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.where conflict is allowed to eat away at team cohesiveness and productivity.