Summary of The Jungle by Upton Sinclair Essay -- essays research paper

The Jungle The Jungle by Upton Sinclair is about a Lithuanian family living in Chicago in the 1900’s. They had faith in the American dream, hoping to start a new and successful life. Unfortunately they were deprived of they hopes and dreams. They were placed in the middle of a society where only the strongest and richest survived. The rich keep getting richer and the poor get even poorer. Jurgis and his family went to extreme lengths just in hopes of finding a job, they were forced to travel in heavy rain, strong winds, and thick snow, even when they were sick, in fear of losing their jobs. The Jungle pointed out many flaws in society such as filthy meat and sickening work conditions. When Jurgis and his family arrived in Chicago they thought that they would find life a lot easier. T...

Discuss How Sherriff Presents Human Weakness

Discuss how Sherriff presents human weakness and frailty in Journeys End Journeys End was written with the intention of â€Å"letting the war speak†. The lives of the officers on the front line during 1917 are examined. A key theme that is explored throughout the play is the reactions of the mind and body, under the stress of the war. Each character represents the weakness of the human being in an individual way, but the character on which frailty is mainly focussed is Stanhope. Stanhope is the topic of many conversations within the dugout and the first conversation we see, Stanhope is mentioned.The conversation is between Osborne, the second in command, and the commanding officer of the company being relieved. The commander inquires as to whether Stanhope is â€Å"drinking like a fish†, this indicates towards the audience for the first time, that Stanhope is an alcoholic and is seen to turn to alcohol to cope with the war. Osborne jumps to the defence of Stanhope, expl aining that Stanhope is â€Å"the best company commander†. Despite Stanhope’s coping mechanism of alcohol, he still has respect shown to him by his men.This is shown throughout, yet more so in the final moments of the play when the troops are rallied by Stanhope for the raid. Stanhope is shown to reject reminders of life before the war, and if his family waiting for him back home is mentioned it will not be tolerated. He shows that he does not want to be reminded when Raleigh arrives at the dugout and Stanhope becomes agitated. The conversations between the men and Stanhope are riddled with â€Å"silence† and on stage this would show the tension between the characters build up.We see how the war has also made Stanhope paranoid, and Stanhope’s irritation and paranoia become clear when he is insistent on looking through Raleigh’s letters home, to see if he has put anything derogatory about Stanhope. He is afraid that the truth about him being an alco holic will reach home, and as Sherriff has told us, Stanhope has a fiancee waiting back home, and Stanhope does not want her view of him as this leader of the men to be damaged, especially by Raleigh writing home â€Å"and tell her I reek of whisky all day†.Stanhope’s human qualities are not shown often throughout the play, yet when Sherriff introduces his fiancee who is waiting him back in England; it adds a tender heartedness to the character. Stanhope also seems to distract his self from the war by being obsessed with cleanliness and hygiene. This is also related to the war and shows the characters drive and determination to make it through the war. Stanhope is described in the stage directions as having â€Å"well brushed† hair and is shown to have â€Å"care for† his uniform.Further in the play, the audience witnesses the death of Osborne who is seen as the caring figure within the dugout. After this, Stanhope uses anger along side the alcohol as a c oping mechanism. It is shown how Stanhope appears to have lost everything, because of Osborne’s death. He has also lost Hibbert after using his authoritative powers over him and forced him to â€Å"get out† and â€Å"go to bed†. When Raleigh tries to talk to Stanhope about how he copes, Stanhope tells him to â€Å"get out† and so loses him as well. This scene shows the beginning of the downfall of Stanhope and bodes the ending of the play with the death of his soldiers.In the play Stanhope admits to his need for alcohol to cope with the war, stating that if he was not â€Å"doped with whisky† he could â€Å"go mad with fright†. Possibly showing why he showed sympathy towards Hibbert when he was breaking down, and that if Stanhope can survive the war he could possibly change. Overall Stanhope is presented as a man with is weaknesses yet has the courage (although this could be because of the doping effects of alcohol) to push on throughout his stay in the dugout and the war. He is regarded as a hero in the eyes of his men.Sherriff shows us Stanhope as an officer with a great experience of the war, yet this is juxtaposed with the fresh new recruit who is â€Å"straight from school†, Raleigh. The young soldier is idealistic and has arrived at the front lines with little knowledge of the reality of it all, but is in search of the intangibles, honour and glory. Sherriff shows this to the audience by having Raleigh describe the war like a game at school, using words such as â€Å"cricket† and â€Å"rugger†, which show the youth, innocence and naivety of Raleigh.When the reality becomes clear, Raleigh’s attitude towards the war changes dramatically. The death of Raleigh at the end of the play sums up his characteristics in the best possible way, his innocence is shown until his final moments when he compares the wound in his back to be â€Å"just the same† as getting â€Å"kicked† in a game of â€Å"rugger†. His death signifies much more than the passing of one soldier, added with Raleigh passing, the candle flame extinguishing, shows the death of society in 1917 and of innocence, showing how nothing could return to the way it was in the years previous to the war.After the raid which occurs near the end of the play, Raleigh’s view on the war has changed after he witnesses the first deaths of people he knew. He questions as to how Stanhope can stay drinking â€Å"champagne† whilst Osborne’s body is â€Å"lying-out there†. Again this shows the audience just how naive Raleigh is, as he has never experienced the loss of someone close to him and the effect that the war has on people. Despite Raleigh’s innocence and weakness, he is determined to fight until the end, showing that his character (although naive) has strength.In his final scene, Raleigh is told he has â€Å"got a Blighty one†, yet Raleigh believes he â€Å" cant go home† showing how although it is the end, Raleigh has matured and has become a true soldier, willing to stay and fight on even in the face of adversity. Raleigh has finally achieved his goal of obtaining the intangibles, honour and glory, but the question the audience would be asking is, was his death worth gaining these? The relationship that is built up between Raleigh and Stanhope is examined from the beginning of the play, especially from the view of Raleigh worshipping Stanhope as a hero, â€Å"he’d just got his MC and been made a captain.He looked splendid†. Near the end of the play, Stanhope changes his mood from not liking the fact that Raleigh is a member of his company, to a gentler approach, â€Å"he bathes the boys face†. This shows the audience the relationships which were formed by men during the war, even if this specific event does have feminine connotations. These relationships were a necessity to combat human frailty and weakness. Osborne is conferred in two contrasting ways.In his physical appearance he is â€Å"hard as nails† and is seen as second in command of the company, but at the same time Sherriff also presents Osborne as an â€Å"uncle† to the men, due to his nature of being gentle. Stanhope seems to have a large dependency upon Osborne and this is shown when Stanhope calls him â€Å"dear old uncle†, the use of dear here shows how much Stanhope needs him. Osborne is a humble and intelligent man. This is expressed when Osborne quotes a line from Alice in Wonderland (which is the book he is reading) â€Å"how doth the little crocodile†¦with gently smiling jaws†.The audience is given a depth to Osborne’s character, and the â€Å"kid’s book† shows us his form of escapism from the war. The choice of book that is included could be seen as significant, as the characters in Alice in Wonderland are so mad, this could be used to represent the madness of th e war and how little sense it made to many people. Osborne, in some ways, has more to deal with than the rest of the officers in the dugout, and thus this shows his strength, as he must cope with the problems of the other officers, as they look up to him as â€Å"uncle†, he is an outlet for the men and allows them to show their weakness.Trotters coping mechanism is similar to that of Stanhope’s, in the way that he results to consuming a substance. It is clear that Trotter copes by eating, as he â€Å"has put on weight during the war†. Trotter also draws â€Å"a hundred and forty-four little circles on a bit o’ paper† which represent the one hundred and forty four hours which the officers must stay posted at the dugout and surrounding trench. Trotter is seen to maintain the company’s morale, as his (attempts to the) use of humour to keep spirits up, â€Å"cheer up skipper†.Trotter is shown to be rather emotionless, yet this view change s later on in the play when Stanhope states that Trotter is â€Å"always the same† his reply is â€Å"little you know† showing that Trotter isn’t coping with the war as well as the other officers thought. Trotter is also used in a way, to highlight the culture of intangibles that had swept the younger generations of this times society, as he is honoured to gain the post of second in command of the company after Osborne’s death, showing how many men joined up to escape from their lives back home and go in search of honour and glory on the battlefield.Hibbert is presented as a man whom the war has had a great psychological effect upon. In his first appearance within the play he complains about his â€Å"neuralgia†. The audience that would be viewing this play in 1928 would most likely show sympathy towards Stanhope, as he had to put up with this type of officer, yet a contemporary audience, with a greater understanding of the psychological effects th e war had upon certain people, such as â€Å"shell Shock† or PTS (post traumatic stress disorder) would most likely show sympathy towards Hibbert.Hibbert does not wish to join the other men before the big attack, â€Å"you want me to go up now? † causing him to judge others by his own set standards. Stating that Raleigh is â€Å"too keen† because he was in the trenches with the other soldiers. Hibbert is rude to his commanding officer, Stanhope, as he does not follow his orders, and from a military perspective this would not be tolerated and Hibbert would have been eligible for court martial. Mason, in the play, is the character who is not of officer rank. He is a servant to the officers within the dugout.At the beginning of the war (1914) officers were all form public schools, but as numbers started to diminish by 1917, officers were allowed to be from public or private schools. Masons distractions from the war are rather trivial, such as a tin of â€Å"aprico ts†. The inclusion of a lower class character shows how the war affected everyone, as class did not change the dangers that the soldiers faced. Out of being a servant little is seen of Mason, showing how although in the worst of circumstances, every day things such as cooking had to carry on. Critical Reviews of Journeys EndMany groups could comment upon the play and respond in different ways towards it. A Marxist would state that Sherriff does not achieve his aim, as the play only presents the middle classes who did not have to fight. And thus it does not show the horrific conditions in which many ordinary soldiers had to endure in the trenches. It does not show the fear felt by the men on the front line because the play is set in a (relatively) safe dug out, in which the officers have a servant and in comparison to the ordinary foot soldiers, are well looked after.The military may have taken a dislike to the play, due to its anti war nature and how Sherriff seems to be quest ioning the authority of high command and why the soldiers follow orders without a second thought. A lack of sympathy would have been shown by the military for the characters who suffered psychological illnesses. Sherriff did not intend the play to be anti war, yet was presented this way by the plays producer, who was known for having an anti war view. Sheriff’s aim was to let the war speak and expose the truths of it.A feminist may say that there are no female characters within the play, and that the only females that are mentioned are objectified and will always be waiting for their husbands when they return from the war. They would say the lack of females could mean that the play could not show the coping strategies of humans, and that it does not fully represent their weaknesses. Sherriff claimed that the play was intended to â€Å"let the war speak†, yet the lack of female characters within the play means that it can not show the effect the war had on women.

Political Economy Essay

Approaches to study of Politics Falls under Political Science We’re made to do the impossible Summary 1 paragraph will do. Provide the insight -Data -Theory used -approach used – use other references to prove your point 3 x 5 Surname all caps first name email address mobile number On approach deals with different meaning of politics Political Science What is Politics & its scope ? Banned words Politics is dirt Politics is nothing more than a means of rising in the world Samuel Johnson Systematic organization of hatred Henry Adams Art of governing mankind by deceiving them. Isaac D’Israeli BASIS of POLITICS Intellect and Will Man Capable of Thinking Politics as a rational activity Man has the capacity to think and realize his wants, needs and interest which are potentially in conflict with others’ wants, needs, and interests. Man cannot survive on its own. He needs someone else Politics as a social activity 2 or more persons Politics as a social activity 2 or more persons Associate with society Politics is concerned with social dynamics. POLITICS AS THE ART OF GOVt What concerns the state Study of government and exercise of authority Authoritative allocation of social values Framework Definition does not provide David Easton Authoritative binding to all Allocation done by the government Social Values anything held important by society budget allocation, privatization, elections Henry Mayo 3 characteristics that separate the political from non-poitical Politics is focused on the governing function through which are: Limitation on Easton on Mayo’s concept of Politics POLITICS DOES NOT ONLY HAPPEN IN THE GOVERNMENT POLTICS AS PUBLIC AFFAIRS State DIFFERENCE OF GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS PUBLIC PRIVATE State Civil Society Institutions of the State ( apparatus of government, infrastructure, economy, taxes Autonomous bodies (family, kinship groups, private businesses, trade unions Funded at the public’s Expense Set up and funded by individual citizens Responsible for the collective organization of community life Responsible for the satisfaction of own interests rather than the interest of the larger society. Private with this definition EX: RH Bill It should not be affair of the government. Public Sphere vs Private Sphere Restricted to the acitivites of the state itself and the responsibilities that are properly exercised by public bodies Politics should not meddle on personal affairs and institutions. POLITICS AS COMPROMISE & CONSESUS A daily activity in which differing interests within a given unity of rule are conciliated by giving them a share in power in proportion to their role in the welfare and the survival of the community Bernard Crick Everything will just be fine – for no matter big or small the dispute is, at the end of the day we will just arrive in a compromise. Assumption: Conflict is inevitable Resolving conflict through compromise conciliation and negotiation, rather than violence and coercion. Not limited to government POLITICS IS INEVITABLE LINKED TO THE PHENOMENA OF CONFLICT & COOPERATION Politics as master science. Why Make use other things to make things in order. Existence of rival opinions- conflict People recognize that they have to work with others cooperation Hannah Arendt- Acting in Concert Otto Von Bismarck- Politics is the art of the possible. POWER AS POWER & DISTRIBUTION OF RESOURCES What is power? X has power over Y insofar as Robert Dahl X is able, in one way or another, to get Y to do something That is more to X’s liking And which Y would not otherwise have done. Faces of Power As decision-making – you shape there decisions As agenda setting – You are preventing the person to make a decision As thought control- You are imposing your preference in an indirect or subtle way. Definition of Politics through POWER and allocation of resources FIND THE FOLLOWING QUOTES OF FAMOUS SCIENTISTS Adrian Leftwich- Politics is at the heart of all collective social activity, formal and informal, public and private, in all human groups, institutions and societies. Harold Lasswell Politics is, in essence power: the ability to achieve a desired outcome, through whatever means. Kate Millett â€Å"Politics is a power-structured relationships, arrangements whereby one group of persons is controlled by another. â€Å"POLITICS†- as the constrained use of social power. Robert Goodin & Hans- Dieter Klingemann Constrained because there are already laws establish. Politics takes place in all social activities; politics happen at every level of social interaction Politics concern production, distribution and use of resources in the course of social existence. -Ability to achieve a desired outcome, through whatever means . Approaches to the study of Politics Ontology- the nature of being Epistemology- How do you know what we know? Theoretical – concept & idea Empirical- Evidence, observation History- both theory and experience Methodology- How do we exactly know what we know MAKE A MATRIX OF THE DIFFERENT APPROACHES USING THE FOLLOWING: Nature Ontology Epistemology Methodology Studying Politics requires that we use approaches Approaches presecrbies different ways of studying politics Approaches tell the researcher: Ontology Epistemology Methodology Approaches are lenses in which you see the world In politics Normative Institutional Behavioural Discourse Analysis State-Centered Pluralism Elitism Marxism Brief History of its Development -Philosophical Tradition -Empirical Tradition -Scientific Tradition -Recent Developments Rational Choice Public Choice Discource.

Selecting Employee

Learn how to select and hire the best employees for your open positions. Selection and evaluation techniques are explored that help you pick among qualified candidates. Employee selection processes are critical to hiring a superior staff. Learn to improve your employee selection methods. 10 Tips for Hiring the Right Employee Top Ten Tips for Selecting and Hiring the Right Employee Hiring the right employee is a challenging process. Hiring the wrong employee is expensive, costly to your work environment, and time consuming. Hiring the right employee, on the other hand, pays you back in employee productivity, a successful employment relationship, and a positive impact on your total work environment. Hiring the right employee enhances your work culture and pays you back a thousand times over in high employee morale, positive forward thinking planning, and accomplishing challenging goals. This is not a comprehensive guide to hiring an employee. But, these are key steps to hiring the right employee. 1. Define the Job Before Hiring an Employee Hiring the right employee starts with a job analysis.  The job analysis enables you to collect information about the duties, responsibilities, necessary skills, outcomes, and work environment of a particular job. The information from the job analysis is fundamental to developing the job description for the new employee. The job description assists you to plan your recruiting strategy for hiring the right employee. Job HiringEasy Search & Posting: AyosDito Free Job Posting, No Sign Ups! www. AyosDito. ph Interview Strategy GuideGet a Free interview strategy for HR professionals. hr. mcleanco. om/interview-guide Employment ScreeningInternational Background Checks No hidden fees or minimum orders 2. Plan Your Employee Recruiting Strategy With the job description in hand, set up a recruiting planning meeting that involves the key employees who are hiring the new employee. The hiring manager is crucial to the planning. At this meeting, your recruiting strategy is planned and the execution begins. Teams that have worked together frequently in hiring an employee can often complete this step via email. 3. Use a Checklist for Hiring an Employee  This checklist for hiring an employee will help you systematize your process for hiring an employee. Whether it's your first employee or one of many employees you are hiring, this checklist for hiring an employee helps you keep track of your recruiting efforts. The checklist for hiring an employee keeps your recruiting efforts on track and communicates progress to interested employees and the hiring manager. 4. Recruit the Right Candidates When Hiring an Employee You can develop relationships with potential candidates long before you need them when hiring an employee.  These ideas will also help you in recruiting a large pool of candidates when you have a current position available. The more qualified candidates you can develop when hiring an employee, the more likely you are to locate a qualified potential employee. Read on to discover the best ways to develop your talent pool when hiring an employee. 5. Review Credentials and Applications Carefully The work of reviewing resumes, cover letters, job applications, and job application letters starts with a well-written job description.  Your bulletted list of the most desired characteristics of the most qualified candidate was developed as part of the recruiting planning process. Screen all applicants against this list of qualifications, skills, experience, and characteristics. You'll be spending your time with your most qualified candidates when hiring an employee. And, that is a good use of your time. 6. Prescreen Your Candidates The most important reason to prescreen candidates when hiring an employee is to save the interviewing and selection committee time.  While a candidate may look good on paper, a prescreening interview will tell you if their qualifications are truly a fit with your job. Additionally, in a prescreening interview, you can determine whether their salary expectations are congruent with your job. A skilled telephone interviewer will also obtain evidence about whether the candidate may fit within your culture – or not. 7. Ask the Right Job Interview Questions The job interview is a powerful factor in hiring an employee. The job interview is a key tool employers utilize in hiring.  The job interview questions asked are critical in magnifying the power of the job interview to help you in hiring the right employee. Interview questions that help you separate desirable candidates from average candidates are fundamental when hiring an employee. Job interview questions matter to employers. Here are sample job interview questions. 8. Check Backgrounds and References When Hiring an Employee Effective background checks are one of the most important steps when hiring an employee. You need to verify that all the presented, sterling credentials, skills, and experience are actually possessed by your candidate.  The background checks must include work references, especially former supervisors, educational credentials, employment references and actual jobs held, and criminal history. Other background checks when hiring an employee, such as credit history, must be specifically related to the job for which you are hiring an employee. 9. Extend a Job Offer The job offer letter is provided to the candidate you have selected for the position. Most frequently, the candidate and the organization have verbally negotiated the conditions of hire and the job offer letter confirms the verbal agreements about salary and benefits.  The more senior the position, however, the more likely the job offer will turn into a protracted negotiation about salary, benefits, employment termination, bonus potential, severance pay, stock options, and more. 10. Use Effective Employment Letters These sample employment letters will assist you to reject job candidates, make job offers, welcome employees, and more when hiring an employee. Use these sample employment letters to develop the employment letters you use in your organization when hiring an employee. New Employee Orientation: Employee Onboarding New employee orientation is the process you use for welcoming a new employee nto your organization. New employee orientation, often spearheaded by a meeting with the Human Resources department, generally contains information about safety, the work environment, the new job description, benefits and eligibility, company culture, company history, the organization chart and anything else relevant to working in the new company. New employee orientation often includes an introduction to each department in the company and training on-the-job. New employee orientation frequently includes spending time doing the jobs in each department to understand the flow of the product or service through the organization. Tips for a Better New Employee Orientation When we orient new hourly (non-exempt) employees, we provide a standard HR couple of hours on policies, procedures, company history, goals, culture, punching in and work rules. We give a company tour and hourly employees then train and cross-train on the job. Managerial and salaried (exempt) employees participate in an orientation that is custom-designed for them. It includes the above information that is received by all employees. Additionally, their orientation may last one to two weeks and it enables them to meet the whole organization, their direct reports and more. They should leave this orientation with a clear picture of the organization, its challenges, its goals and their opportunity to assist with progress. It is challenging to make sure salaried employees have the chance to do the orientation while also beginning their new job. Neither can be put on hold. My current new director spent the morning helping to write an RFP for a potential customer rather than attending his scheduled meetings. This is okay, but I don't want his orientation to get off track. It provides fundamental information he needs to succeed in this organization. From an HR perspective, this may not be ideal for making sure he gets the organization overview, but it is ideal for helping him integrate quickly into the working business of the company – and that's the point. Right? The best orientation I have ever known was instituted at Edgewood Tool and Manufacturing. Every manager who hired a new employee was required to write a 120 day orientation for the new employee. It involved one action a day. Actions included meeting the Director of Quality, calling on a customer and having lunch with the CEO. You can bet that new employee was thoroughly welcomed and integrated into the organization after 120 different orientation events. Orientation and Training of New Employees New employee orientation effectively integrates the new employee into your organization and assists with retention, motivation, job satisfaction, and quickly enabling each individual to become contributing members of the work team. New Employee Welcome Letter-A welcome letter to a new employee who has accepted your job offer confirms the employe's decision to accept the position. The welcome letter helps the new employee feel wanted and welcomed. Depending on the goal of your new employee welcome letter, these sample welcome letters will give you a template. See sample welcome letters for new employees. Onboarding-Onboarding is the process of acquiring, accommodating, assimilating and accelerating new team members, whether they come from outside or inside the organization. Effective onboarding of new team members is one of the most important contributions any hiring manager or HR professional can make to long-term success. Onboarding done right drives new employee productivity, accelerates results, and significantly improves talent retention. Yet few organizations manage the pieces of onboarding well. Purposes of Orientation Employers have to realize that orientation isn't just a nice gesture put on by the organization. It serves as an important element of the recruitment and retention process. Some key purposes are: * To Reduce Startup Costs: Proper orientation can help the employee get â€Å"up to speed† much more quickly, thereby reducing the costs associated with learning the job. To Reduce Anxiety: Any employee, when put into a new, strange situation, will experience anxiety that can impede his or her ability to learn to do the job. Proper orientation helps to reduce anxiety that results from entering into an unknown situation, and helps provide guidelines for behavior and conduct, so the employee doesn't have to experience the stress of guessing. * To Reduce Employee Turnover: Employee turnover increases as employees feel they are not valued, or are put in positions where they can't possibly do their jobs. Orientation shows that the organization values the employee, and helps provide the tools necessary for succeeding in the job. * To Save Time for the Supervisor: Simply put, the better the initial orientation, the less likely supervisors and co-workers will have to spend time teaching the employee. * To Develop Realistic Job Expectations, Positive Attitudes and Job Satisfaction: It is important that employees learn as soon as possible what is expected of them, and what to expect from others, in addition to learning about the values and attitudes of the organization. While people can learn from experience, they will make many mistakes that are unnecessary and potentially damaging. The main reasons orientation programs fail: The program was not planned; the employee was unaware of the job requirements; the employee does not feel welcome. Employee orientation is important – orientation provides a lot of benefits, and you can use feedback to make your orientations even better. Use Training and Development to Motivate Staff Building Your Employee Training and Development Program Want to keep your staff motivated about learning new concepts? The quality and variety of the employee training you provide is key for motivation. Reasons for employee training range from new-hire training about your operation, to introducing a new concept to a workgroup to bringing in a new computer system. Whatever your reason for conducting an employee training session, you need to develop the employee training within the framework of a comprehensive, ongoing, and consistent employee training program. This quality employee training program is essential to keep your staff motivated about learning new concepts and your department profitable. Essential Components of Employee Training Programs A complete employee training program includes a formal new hire training program with an overview of the job expectations and performance skills needed to perform the job functions. A new hire training program provides a fundamental understanding of the position and how the position fits within the organizational structure. The more background knowledge the new associate has about how one workgroup interrelates with ancillary departments, the more the new associate will understand his or her impact on the organization. Another aspect of a comprehensive employee training program is continuing education. The most effective employee training programs make continuing education an ongoing responsibility of one person in the department. This is an important function that will keep all staff members current about policies, procedures and the technology used in the department. New Hire Training A solid new hire training program begins with the creation of an employee training manual, in either notebook format or online. This manual acts as a building block of practical and technical skills needed to prepare the new individual for his or her position. In order for the department to understand current policies and procedures, a manager must ensure the department manuals or online employee training are kept current. This includes any system enhancements and / or change in policy or procedure. In addition, keep the user in mind when designing training manuals or online training; keep the employee training material interesting for the learner. Use language that is not â€Å"corporate† and include images and multi-media. Much of this employee training and reference material belongs online these days in a company Intranet. But, if your organization is not ready to embrace the online world, keep the manuals up-to-date and interesting. When possible, in computer training, incorporate visual images of the computer screen (multi-media screen capture) to illustrate functions, examples, and how tos. On the Job Training Another form of new hire training includes having the new associate train directly next to an existing associate. Some call this On the Job Training (OJT) or side-by-side training. This type of employee training allows the new associate to see first hand the different facets of the position. Also, OJT allows the new hire the opportunity to develop a working relationship with an existing associate. This type of employee training reinforces concepts learned in the initial training and should be used to reinforce and apply those same learned concepts. Continuing Education in Employee Training A continuing education program for a department is just as important as the new hire training. When training a new associate, I have found that they will only retain approximately 40 percent of the information learned in the initial training session. Therefore, a continuous effort must be placed on reminding the staff about various procedures and concepts. This continuing education can be formal or informal. (The author’s preference is always with a more informal approach. ) The formal, or traditional approach, to employee training often includes a member of management sending a memo to each associate. The informal, and often more appealing approach to a visual learner, is to send a one-page information sheet to staff. This information sheet, called a training alert, should be informative and presented in a non-threatening manner. Therefore, if the policy or procedure changes, the informal approach would better prepare the department to receive this presentation. New Employee Training – Is It Worth The Investment Getting off on the right foot Many companies provide some sort of introductory training or orientation for most of their new employees. It may take the form of an older employee assigned to show the new employee â€Å"the ropes. † Or it may be left to the HR department or the individual's new supervisor to show them where the coffee pot is and how to apply for time off. Many organizations, especially in government and academia, have created new employee training that is designed, exclusively or primarily, to provide mandated safety familiarization. Yet some companies in highly competitive industries recognize the value in New Employee Orientation (NEO) that goes much farther. They require several weeks or even months of training to familiarize every new employee with the company, its products, its culture and policies, even its competition. There is a measurable cost to that training, but is it worth it? Let's look at some of the issues. Some Background Facts The technology in the workplace is changing very rapidly and companies that can't keep up will drop out of competition. A survey by the Ontario (Canada) Skills Development Office found 63% of the respondents planned to â€Å"introduce new technology into the workplace that would require staff training. A third of the respondents included â€Å"improving employee job performance† and â€Å"keeping the best employees† as desired outcomes. The American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) reports that less than $1500 per employee was spent for training in 1996. The largest part of that (49 percent) was spent for technical and professional training. Only two percent was spent for New Employee Orientation and three percent on quality, competition and business practices training.

Inquiring Minds want to know Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Inquiring Minds want to know - Assignment Example This is far more than what numbers can suggest as the supplementary text allows the reader to understand why the research was conducted (the problem recognition) along with the potential shortcomings of the study (Baer, Smith, Hopkins, Krietemeyer, & Toney, 2006). It further aids the comprehension of statistics and quantifiable metrics. In the words of one author, the use of text allows researchers to provide background information and highlight major trends from the research. The statistical information would be presented in this case by starting from the broader background (problem recognition) and ending with specific details. This is usually used in most research reports that begin with broader context (goals and objectives of research) and end up with specific findings and recommendations. A useful tool for representing statistical data would be drawing a â€Å"five number summary† on a chart known as the box-plot. The spread in customers’ responses shall be indica ted and enable the decision maker interpret the inquiry method towards which customers are skewed. Bar charts can be used to convey values through a scaled axis and make comparison easier along a multitude of dimensions. For instance, two parallel bar charts could be constructed for 1992 and 1997 depicting the inquiry methods used. Next, a pie chart could be extremely useful to depict the responses of the primary research conducted through 676 respondents. Apart from being visually appealing, pie charts allow the percentage of total held by each category, thereby making it easier to assess its contribution towards the total ‘pie’ (Iversen, Gergen, & Gergen, 1997). For instance, the ‘forecasted’ use of internet by respondents during next five years could be compared with the use of internet during the past year using two separate pie charts. Multiple bar charts would also be extremely useful in depicting data pertaining to the â€Å"newer inquiry methodsâ⠂¬  including Web-visits, fax-on-demand and email. These charts would allow the decision maker to not only compare the data within each class but also across classes (Francis, 2008). Furthermore, the data in this case is overlapping and not mutually exclusive. For instance, the use of e-mail (as an inquiry method) in the next five years by 73.7% of the respondents does not mean that these individuals are ‘not’ included in the 72.2% of respondents that will visit the website. In other words, it is highly possible that respondents using e-mail may â€Å"also† visit the web and vice versa. This necessitates using multiple bar charts as, unlike bar charts or pie charts, a ‘total’ is not required here. Since the decision maker is concerned more about drawing the comparison than looking at the respective proportions per se this method of representing data would be highly useful. As far as the data of respondents using telephone as an inquiry method for im mediate needs and mail for non-immediate needs is concerned, tables would be the most effective way of representing data. Tables have, since long, been considered as one of the most effective way of displaying data. They enable the decision make

Globalization impact on supply chain Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Globalization impact on supply chain - Essay Example The supply chain has also seen the impact of globalization on its management, and the globalization practice can be seen in various companies that have global operations and market places (Monczka et al 2010). The essay analyses the globalization practice with discussion on its key elements related to the supply chain management. Furthermore, there is discussion of major benefits as well as risks associated with the globalization practice in the supply chain management so that the issues associated with the practice in the companies can be analyzed. This is analyzed with the help of the case study of a manufacturing organization with barriers on implementation of the globalization practice. Analysis of the globalization practice The forces and practice of globalization are changing the supply chain. The supply chains are becoming disintegrated. Product designers, marketers and manufacturers are widespread over various continents with organizations that have different languages, cultu res as well as different business objectives. The key elements of the globalization practice in supply chain management are integrated supply chain, maintenance of flexibility, balancing of risks and rewards, and clear understanding of the global marketplace and management of costs and complexities (Kersten 2011). It is necessary to understand the global landscape and companies should also have a proper plan in place for the recognition of how to capture the opportunities present in the new market. Maintenance of flexibility is another key element in the globalization practice and the supply chains that are global in nature have to remain flexible enough so that they can quickly shift to the new identified opportunities and grab them quickly (Creating the Optimal Supply Chain 2012). The principles of the supply chain are basic, but the execution of globalization practice in the supply chain is different and complex as under this practice, the company has to navigate through the comp lexities of the global supply chain in the areas such as sourcing, manufacturing and the process of delivering across different parts of the world (Mangan et al 2008). Managing component costs and logistics costs is another key element of the globalization practice in supply chain management. Component costs include costs related to raw material, energy, facility, labour, overhead, and productivity. Logistics costs include transportation, warehousing, administration, packaging and inventory (The Faculty of Thunderbird and The American Graduate School of International Management 2000). The impact of globalization on supply chain is vast. It has made supply chains to become more efficient and has helped the companies to create competitive advantage with creation of strong infrastructure. The impact of globalization practice is such that competitors from different areas around the world are competing against the established market leaders that have a depth of resources, deep customer l oyalty and known brands. This has happened because of the flexibility in the supply chai

HR practices Business Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

HR practices Business - Article Example According to the author evaluating the human resources practices of a firm can help you find way to better employ the talent a firm has (Durkin, 2011). A technique or tool that was mentioned in the article that can help managers evaluate their human resources practice is HR audits. The use of an HR audit can give a manager assurance that the human resources practices of the company meet the current legal standards and uphold the internal policies of the company. It can be beneficial for professionals in the HR industry to belong to professional organizations. An organization that has a lot credibility and power in the industry is the Society for Human Resource Management. The organization’s website has a HR audit tool kit that can be used to perform a preliminary audit of the HR function of a firm. The HR function of a company does not replace the necessity for a legal department. Companies can save money on legal expenses by having a lawyer firm on retainer rather than pay a fixed monthly payment to the lawyers of a department. The implementation of an HR audit can help the firm identify potential legal risks associated with its handling of human resources. The strategy is a proactive approach towards risk management. A problem that is occurring often in corporate America is a lack of knowledge about HR regulations and laws. A lot of companies in the United States are breaking labor laws unknowingly. The fact that many companies do not know the laws does not exempt them from compliance. â€Å"One fundamental human resource function you should inspect is the gathering and filing of employee information, from the application to the termination of employment, and all documentation in between† (Durkin, 2011). A common problem in regards to this type of documentation is proper safeguarding of the information. It all starts with the simple things such as having an employee filing cabinet with a key. The human resource department should separate the per sonal information of employees in various categories. There is sensitive information such as social security number, age, medical record or disability data that should not be in the normal employee file that the managers have access too. Access to such data can lead potential discrimination from the managers towards a specific employee. Companies also have to comply with the Family Leave Act. Employee record retention requirements vary by state law with some common federal laws. Confidential information must be protected to protect both the employer and the employees. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 stipulates companies must keep payroll records up to three years. A topic in human resource that was often discussed in class that I believe should have been talk about more in the article is training and development. The author mentioned that it was important for companies to invest in its human resources, but he did not provide solutions to solve the problem. The performance of employees in a corporation can be improved through training and development. The proper use of training and development can improve the employee retention rate of the company. Investing in training and development should be a company wide initiative, but the firm must also identify talent that deserves advance training because the company determined that the employee has potential. The managers of corporations should receive more training than any other employee since they are responsible for the performance of