Ford and Toyota Case Study Essay

1. Which schools of management thought are illustrated in this case? When Ford was founded in 1903, Henry Ford followed the classical management thought to a â€Å"T† (no pun intended!) They made one car in one color. The classical management thought believes there is â€Å"one best way† to do things to accomplish a goal. Ford wanted to produce cars quickly to meet with demands, so at that time the classical management thought made perfect sense. Another part of the classical management thought is that managers constantly look for ways to improve the process of doing things. Ford then moved onto both quantitative and systems school of management though. They wanted to improve the ways they were using to design cars. Ford began using computers to help them more effectively achieve their goals of designing cars that would please their customers. Also, Ford wanted to meet and exceed any demands their customers may have thrown at them. This illustrates the systems school of management thought. Toyota demonstrated the contingency school of management thought. By studying Ford’s process and recognizing the need for and capability of improvement, they are being creative, learning from the past, and accepting diverse opinions and methods for doing things. Finally, both Toyota and Ford clearly demonstrated the quality school of management thought. Both companies focus a lot of efforts on quality as it is perceived by customers. In order to keep their customers happy, the companies listen to what said customers want. 2. Customers’ perception of quality includes performance, reliability, durability, serviceability, and aesthetics. What else do car customers want? Add to the perception of quality and create a list of the most-desired quality characteristics in a car Adding to what the book says is the perception of quality, car customers seem to want or are interested in consistent safety features, fuel economy, comfort, price, handling, environmental impact, and possible maintenance costs.

Socioeconomic Structures and History in Spanish and Portuguese

Heather Coffey HIST 3401W December 18th, 2012 Socioeconomic Structures and History in Spanish and Portuguese America from the Conquest until Post Colonial Period Throughout the entire history of Portuguese and Spanish occupation of the Americas there were evolving hierarchies, labor regimes, gender relations, sources of wealth, regions of wealth, trade routes, uprisings, economic hard times and high times, etc. A very prominent source behind this constant ebb and flow of the history of Portuguese and Spanish Americas can easily be attributed to the economic forces always at play.It can be seen in the reasons for the conquest of Latin america and South America, the onset of the colonial period and the rebellions of eighteenth century. It is important to understand the economic drives that were in play in the beginning of the conquest because it would inevitably change the social landscape of Mexico, the outlying islands and South America forever. The Age of Exploration brought upon a wealth of knowledge for the world, and specifically for the Kingdoms of Spain and Portugal it also brought a lot of wealth.The rivalry between the two kingdoms and need for financial gains led the two to divide the areas of the world where exploration was viable with the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494 which divided the lands East of the demarcation line (halfway between the Cape Verde Islands) to Portugal and the lands west of that to Spain. Keeping within these boundaries, explorers such as Christopher Columbus, Hernan Cortes and Francisco Pizarro (among many others) scoured the newly discovered Americas in search of new land, but also new sources of wealth.Upon reaching the Americas, both in Mexico and the surrounding areas as well as South America, one of the main goals was the search for wealth in Gold and Silver. The hunt for both as well as other rich resources at first led the explorers on a wild goose chase around the alien lands and native people until areas were found and d eemed suitable for settlement and a worthy and financially sound decision as it would prove to be for Spain and Portugal. †¦where have men seen what they see today, fleets entering loaded with gold and silver as if it were iron? Or where was it known or read that so much wealth could come from one kingdom? So much and so great is it that Spain is full of these treasures, and her cities are populated by many rich perusers who have left there. â€Å"1 Once regions were settled and indigenous resistance to colonizing efforts were temporarily brought somewhat under control the exploitation of the rich resources of the land began.There were shiploads of Spanish and Portuguese men (and some women) brought into Latin America to aid in the settlement process, but it was the indigenous that were used in the farming and mining of these resources as well as the upkeep of the households of the white families by the indigenous women. This aided in the creation of the pyramid of the divisio ns of class and caste throughout all of Mexico and South America, at first drawing distinct lines between â€Å"White† and Indian. As time progresses the indigenous succumb to diseases brought by the white people and the population of Indians from all regions declines drastically.African slave trade was key here as they replaced the vast numbers of Indians lost, but also then entered them into the socio-economic orders. In the times of the conquest and the beginnings of the colonial period the lines of race were much clearer, White, Indian and Black, but this would change and the lines would blur through out the colonial period as races mix. The gender relations between the races began early with, more commonly, the slave women or african or Indian descent brought in to do slave work in white households or to do the â€Å"female† tasks of spinning wool, etc. , women were taken in as concubines and thus the blending of white and indian and black began. By the colonial p eriod and beyond there would be upwards of sixteen different names for the gradations in color and subsequently class. The very bottom of the â€Å"social† pyramid being slaves, mostly blacks who were immovable in the caste system due to their â€Å"involuntary citizenship and thus assumed treachery†3. It's interesting to see how the need for free and cheap labor brought what would shape the future identities that would become those of the Americas.Over time the economies of both Spain and portugal became dependent on the goods, tax revenues and tributes coming from Latin America and through times when the â€Å"goods† weren't doing so well they had to rely more heavily on other aspects. There were periods of time when the silver production at Potosi, for instance, wasn't doing well due to lack of supplies needed for mining. These regions then would be hit heavily with raised tributes from lower social orders as well as enforced and raised taxes on goods traded within the regions as would be the cause of the Repartimiento de Comercio in 1751.These financial strains as well as the enforced labor of men used as tribute as well (mita) left the majority of the population (lower classes) financially and even physically weak. This continued to grow and grow throughout the colonial period caused great discontent â€Å"Conflicts over land distribution, tribute rates, mitt allocations, the succession to ethnic leadership posts, and abuses by local priests and corregidores frequently disturbed local indigenous communities during the eighteenth century. The spread of the repartee often exacerbated such local tensions, leading to an escalation of violence. 4 These issues would like to the uprisings and rebellions that would create chaos for the Spanish and Portuguese throughout the late eighteenth century and on, the most notable being those lead by Tomas Katari, Tupac Amaru II and Tupac Katari in Peru and upper Peru from 1780-1783. The socioeconomic history of Spanish and Portuguese America is a broad topic, hard to even begin to explain in a short paper as this. That being said, I believe that it's important to understand the impact that it had on the entire region.The effects that it had on the populations from the declining population of indigenous from illness brought from Europe, to the subsequent new races of people caused by the blending of populations all forced to live together. Also the strain that this would inevitably put on those being taken advantage of by the colonial leaders and Castilian and Portuguese crowns. This entire history from the fifteenth century until the early nineteenth century was put into motion by cause and effect situations led by the greed of men, this need for wealth that would take over and hange the lives of millions. 1. Quote from Pedro Cieza de Leon in the Discovery and Conquest of Peru, Pp. 33. Lecture notes from Thursday, Sept. 27th. 2. Townsend, Camilla. Malintzins Choices: An Indian Woman in the Conquest of Mexico. University of New Mexico Press, Albuqurque 2006. Pp. 35 3. Weaver-Oldon, Nathan. Lecture Oct. 2 . â€Å"Critical Ways that Indians and Africans Seen As Different. 4. Andrien, Kenneth. Andean Worlds: Indigenous History, Culture ,and Consciousness Under Spanish Rule, 1532-1825. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. 2001. Pp. 202-203

Benefits and Health Risks Associated with Energy giving Drinks Essay

Benefits and Health Risks Associated with Energy giving Drinks - Essay Example Another secondary reason for this report is to understand the reasons why these drinks are used widely by youths or, in other words, and the consumption rate is widespread in youths (Aronson, 2011). A keen study, review, and analysis of the literature reveal that other stimulant and caffeine substances enclosed in these drinks have a positive and direct effect on the users too. The intended impact of energy drinks is to improve performance and provide sustenance, endurance, and concentration. Almost every Manufacturer pitches their products in work fields that require sustained alertness. But these drinks too have got no position in the adolescents and children’s diet (American Academy of Pediatrics, 20110). In addition, frequent or extreme intake of caloric energy drinks can largely enhance the risk for obesity or overweight adolescents and children’s. Discussion regarding educating the ‘users; of this drinks on how to use it appropriately, either by people who p articipates regularly in endurance or high-intensity of vigorous physical activity is the aim of the report (Brown, 2013). Energy drinks are grouped among beverages containing modest to relatively high levels of caffeine concentration, which gives a range of 50–505 mg caffeine/serving; 2.5–35.7 mg caffeine/oz, in comparison with other caffeinated beverages such as 6-ounce cup of coffee that range 77–150 mg; 12.8–25 mg caffeine/oz. In other words, energy â€Å"shots† are low-volume that is, 1–2 oz beverages and hence, records even a higher percentage in caffeine concentration more than other energy drinks (orange 100–350 mg; 90–171 mg caffeine/ oz (Maughan, 2001). The stimulants in these drinks include caffeine that is marketed as a provider of mental and physical stimulation (Brown, 2012). The energy drinks sometimes may or may not be carbonated though some; may also contain sugar or other sweeteners, amino acids, and herbal extracts. They are a subset or a division of the bigger group of energy products that include gels and bars, and distinct from drinks which are advertised to improve and enhance any performance (Millward, 2003).

Journal questions Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Journal questions - Article Example Stories are an excellent way of attaining management objectives; however, the managers must use different narrative patterns for different aims. Discuss this statement while giving examples of occasions when managers will use a particular narrative pattern? I believe that question one provides the historical perspectives and characteristics of stories. Question two is more detailed since it requires one to understand the purpose of stories and factors that may impact on the success of the story. Question three is a better question than two since it considers the use of stories in business organisations and narrative patterns of stories. Question four is an application question that requires the learner to utilize the knowledge of use of stories in inspiring values and beliefs in organisation. Question five is also an application question that tests the overall understanding of storytelling in organisation. Personally, I believe question three is more academic and

Male v. Female differences in stress Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Male v. Female differences in stress - Essay Example While stress is an individual response, it differs across gender. This paper will examine the reasons of difference and the coping strategies in stress in male versus female at workplace. Gender has been defined as the socially learned behaviors and expectations that are associated with the two sexes (Iwasaki, Mackay, & Mactavish, 2005). Thus being a male or a female is a biological phenomenon, being a man or a woman is a cultural process. Gender segregation directs the social relations with others. Under stress the body releases a lot of hormones including cortisol and adrenaline, which raise blood pressure and cholesterol levels and suppress the immune system (Eller, 2000). This puts the stressed people under greater risk ranging from ailments like cold to heart problems. Long term exposure to stress can also lead to weight gain due to cortisol. Research suggests that initially women have the same response to men but gradually women also begin secreting oxytocin from the pituitary glands. This leads to reduction in the levels of cortisol and adrenaline, thereby reducing the damaging effects. While men also secrete oxytocin, the level is much lesser than women. Besi des, testosterone, the male hormone further reduces the impact of oxytocin in men. According to the Law of Stress, stress is the difference between pressure and adaptability of any kind (Dato, ISMA 2001). â€Å"The process of living is the process of having stress imposed on you and reacting to it†(Sarnoff, 1963). A stress produces or threatens to produce alteration in the homeostasis. Stress refers to widespread, generalized responses of the body to various environmental, physical or social situations. It is the force that effects our emotions and motives. It is called the disease of modern civilization. It effects people of all ages and can be both good and bad. Each person reacts differently to stress but we all need some stress in

Analysis of Career Guidance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Analysis of Career Guidance - Essay Example These culture-specific models help in mediating career development at local levels. (ATHANASOU et al 2008). The core conceptual propositions of two of the most famous theories of learning and vocational skills development have been evaluated as follows: The Theory of Work Adjustment or person-environment correspondence theory is a theory which focuses on the difference of vocational behavior amongst individuals. In accordance with the theory, career choice and its subsequent development are viewed as a continuous process of adjustment and accommodation. This theory implies that an individual chooses a job only if its environment is in accordance with his â€Å"requirements†, while on the other hand, the environment opts for that individual which qualifies on the â€Å"requirements† of the organization. The major plus point of TWA is the fact that it develops a battery of measures to measure the various variables associated with the theory such as satisfaction, needs, ab ilities, satisfactoriness, and indexes of correspondence. However, the results of various studies conducted to evaluate the accuracy of the theory yielded mixed results. The study of Tziner, Meir, and Segal (2002) found that higher levels of performance had a strong correlation with extroverted personality style and congruence which was in accordance with the predictions of TWA. ... (ATHANASOU et al 2008). The Holland’s Theory of Vocational Personalities in Work Environment provides a typology framework on career interest and environment which is simple and easy to understand and is used both in career counseling and guidance. In accordance with the theory, vocational interest is perceived as an expression of an individual’s personality. Holland postulated the concept of vocational interest by six typologies, which are Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising and Conventional. A study conducted by Tak (2004) revealed that the arrangement of interest was not clearly hexagonal, therefore, contrary to the postulations of Holland. The general findings of another study conducted by Sverko and Babarovic (2006) revealed consistency with Holland’s circular model. The general findings from other international studies suggested that in accordance with cultural context the six interest levels tend to occupy clusters mirroring the idiosy ncratic cultural values and occupational perceptions. The most suggested arrangement was Realistic-Investigative, Artistic-Social, and Social-Enterprising-Conventional. Such an arrangement is contrary to the hexagonal arrangement postulated by Holland. (ATHANASOU et al 2008). Continuous Professional Development: Continuous Professional Development is composed of diverse dimensions which are different for different institutions and professional individuals. Continuous Professional Development (CPD) is defined as: â€Å"The systematic maintenance, improvement and broadening of knowledge and skill, and the development of personal qualities necessary for the execution of professional and technical  duties throughout the practitioner’s working life† (LORRIMAN 2003, pg 2).

ICT AND LITERACY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

ICT AND LITERACY - Essay Example rofound impact on our education, society and economy .But, teachers are not being well informed on ICT field as in contrast happens with the young pupils, considered as â€Å"digital natives†. Both teachers and pupils have to be taught to use the above devices and retrieve the appropriate information from the suitable web sites. The impact of technology on human lives will surely increase in times to come. The dependence of human race on technology is increasing at a terrific pace. Technology is no more meant for the ones who hold a degree of it like the software engineers and technicians, etc. The arena of technology use has penetrated to the common people segment also. Whether it is about withdrawal of money from an ATM, net banking, or reading voice messages on the telephone, technology has its presence everywhere. Thus, it becomes rather necessary to make the world population technologically literate. This will provide ease to the people to work and understanding the working in this rather technological world of today. Thus, the importance of ICT in literacy not is denied (Alan Rodgers, 2002). ICT has proved to be a huge success in value addition to students in every phase of learning and for every age group, be it children or adults, ICT offers learning advantages to all of them and can be used to provide learning in any discipline. Though, it is important to note that the ICT technologies have to be customized in order to suit the requirements of learners. Accepting the fact that being educated and adapting to today’s school and social needs, in my perspective, constitutes the major challenge of any time and the characteristic feature of the literate citizen in order to be considered productive and useful and not marginalized. And the current challenge regards information and communication technologies (ICT) that play an essential role in supporting daily life in todays digital society. They are used at school, at work, in day-to-day relationships, in

Should thin people have to pay Medicare and other health costs Research Paper

Should thin people have to pay Medicare and other health costs - Research Paper Example In this article, Bhattacharya and Sood address the economic costs of obesity to the society. Through various statistics the authors found out that the existing healthcare program caters for the problems of obese people through the use of funds from normal individuals which should not be the case. Regarding this , the authors suggest that the obese individuals should pay higher premiums to cater for their healthcare problems and to be more cautious with their dietary choices. The importance of this article to this bibliography is that it brings an economical analysis of the costs of obesity. Bhattacharya, Jay, et al. "Does Health Insurance Make You Fat?" July 2009 . Web. 17 April 2012. In this article, the authors critically analyze the concept of healthcare premiums. The authors argue that health insurance tend to make individuals less concerned about their health problems hence increasing cases of obesity. The authors have also indicated that programs such as Medicaid and Medicare fail to address the problem of obesity.... Regarding this , the authors suggest that the obese individuals should pay higher premiums to cater for their healthcare problems and to be more cautious with their dietary choices. The importance of this article to this bibliography is that it brings an economical analysis of the costs of obesity. Bhattacharya, Jay, et al. "Does Health Insurance Make You Fat?" July 2009 . Web. 17 April 2012. In this article, the authors critically analyze the concept of healthcare premiums. The authors argue that health insurance tend to make individuals less concerned about their health problems hence increasing cases of obesity. The authors have also indicated that programs such as Medicaid and Medicare fail to address the problem of obesity. Moreover, the authors have suggested that a difference in wages in which obese people are paid less will help them to take necessary measures regarding health. This article is important to this annotated bibliography as it addresses the concept of pooled insu rance in which obese people benefit unfairly from premiums paid by normal individuals. Bauer, Brad. â€Å"Higher Premiums for Obese Workers Growing.† News and Sentinel, 20 November 2011. Web. 17 April 2012. Bauer is a consultant in insurance-related matters, whose articles on healthcare insurance demonstrate his experience in the field of insurance. In this article, Bauer has highlighted that obese people benefit more from healthcare since they pay equal premiums with normal people. In this article, the author articulates that premiums are being internalized so that the obese individuals can bear the burden that results from costs of catering for their health

International Business Expansion to South Africa Coursework - 1

International Business Expansion to South Africa - Coursework Example It is also seeking to enter an international joint venture with SAPumps to repair and/or produce components and parts. This paper examines these major events in-depth and gives RRP advice on how to proceed with its international expansion drive. In the first part of the paper, we examine the risks involved in the contract RRP has with its existing sole agent, Agent B and the consequences it will bring to the company if it signs a contract with the new agent, A. It goes further to examine how the company can use commission rates, flexibility, and agency arrangements to control A’s performance. In the second part, the research examines the foundations and structures of the new international joint venture that is on the verge of entering with SAPumps. It looks at how inventory will be treated, customer relations and the contract structure as well as marketing and distribution of the final products. The issue with Agency B is a very complicated one. Agency B has the sole agency rights for RRP in South Africa. This makes them the only agency that can source for projects in South Africa for RPR. If care is not taken by RPR, it could get involved in a breach of contract with Agency B if it goes ahead to sign this contract with Agency A. If this happens, Agency B will be entitled to claims for damages. Secondly, if RRP goes ahead to sign this contract with Agency A, granting it exclusive rights without a proper care with regards to the agreement with Agency B, Agency A will not get access to the exclusivity it desires. This could also pose legal problems for Agency A and B in their operations in South Africa. This arrangement is a principal-agency arrangement in an international context. A principal-agent relationship exists when a party pursues to direct the actions of the opposite party to his own ends for mutual benefits like shareholder-manager and employer-employee relationships (Jager, 2008).

Is was necessary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Is was necessary - Essay Example The decision to drop the atomic bomb on Japan is unquestionable and the most momentous made during the World War II. The use of the bomb was integral to the decision to develop it, the assumption was the atomic bomb would be employed when it is ready if it was necessary to win or end the war. According to social psychology there are forces affecting public perception that go beyond the argument about the effectiveness of the U.S government (Okuda 170). These factors affected the policy makers and Truman, who were instrumental leading them to believe in their own misinformation in the decision of dropping the bomb .The psychological social factors resulted to parallel decision of Truman’s decision to drop the atomic bomb and the decision to engage in military conflicts of invading Iraq. The reaction of the policy makers, Truman and the public was the use of the atomic bomb on Japan was in great favor. Truman, the president of United States of America, appointed an interim committee who undertook the Manhattan project which its initiative was to build the atomic bomb. Although the project was immensely expensive, the interim committee had to rationalize their expenses of time, energy and resources. The development of the atomic weapon, for the purpose of using it against the axis was part of the policy from the beginning of war. They considered the atomic weapon to produce deadly explosive weapon of the modern war. The interim committee recommended that the bomb should be used against Japan as soon as possible. The target of the weapon was to be used at the military installation and used without any warning. The project was a special achievement and a special responsibility of the foreign policy. The decision and the extent of the bomb to be used were shaped by the values and the attitudes. The use of the weapon was later motivated by the wish to keep the Soviet Union out of war in the

White Denial-Strong Response Essay Example for Free

White Denial-Strong Response Essay In the article, (Proto)Typical White Denial: Reflections on Racism and Uncomfortable Realities, written by Tim Wise he informs his readers that the article is not his first about white denial. He also reminds his readers that when talking about white denial, someone is bound to get offended. Wise received an email from a man claiming that Wises article was racist against whites and that Wise stating that whites are in denial would be like him making the broad generalization that all blacks are criminals. Wise informs his readers that a generalization based on stereotypes in racism and if the generalization is based on actual proven facts, it is not. Wise proves his point within his article by showing his readers the facts. He gives his readers the surveys and experience that either he has found on his own or that he has found in doing research on the subject. As Wise wraps up his article he explains that until whites that until whites can prove in these tests and surveys that they are not automatically putting blacks in one category and hispanics into another, whites are in fact in denial about being judgmental towards other races. For instance, after reading Wises article it brought back a specific memory I do not particularly enjoy. It was when I realized that some people hold themselves higher than others. In this case, she was better because she was white, I was better because I was white, and someone who had a dark skin tone was a criminal. White privilege was very apparent. I was in the eighth grade and my best friend Codee Ricks was half black and half white; which meant absolutely nothing to either one of us. One morning after a sleepover we decided to walk over to the gas station across the street from my house to get some donuts. We had gone there before plenty of times but this time was much different. There was a new person working, she was a fairly young white woman, we walked in and smiled, she half smiled and from the moment we walked in watched Codee like a hawk. I did not understand what was going on, I was pretty oblivious until the woman told me to come up to the counter for a second. In Wises article he reports of a study he did on his own where he asked different types of questions, When asked to envision a criminal,[ ] almost all white participants[ ]respond that their first image was that of someone who was black or Latino/a. (Wise 96) After I walked up to her counter she acted like she was showing me some kind of deal when she whispered, Watch your friend, I do not want her stealing anything. It was right there that she expressed white privilege to me. She showed how she believed she was better for being white, as well as I. I did not say a word to the lady behind the counter, I was shocked someone could be so ignorant. I told Codee the story as we walked back to my house; I had never seen my friend so sad. White privilege is very vivid in the study, and in the story. In the story the woman at the counter assumed I was not going to steal and that my friend, who was of color would, she was holding whites to a higher standard when I had done nothing to prove or earn that assumption and neither had Codee. In the same study of Wises mentioned earlier, most whites, and even large numbers of participants of color held whites up to a higher standard by assuming that the criminals were of color. In the same study another question asked reaffirmed white privilege, if I ask people to envision an all-American boy or girl, or even worse, God, they invariably admit to envisioning white images(Wise 96). At the gas station the clerk pictured a criminal being black and pictured a young girl of innocence as white. This is similar to what people automatically think when they think of the all-American boy or girl or Santa Claus. Incidents like the picturing of someone as a certain color, is what causes white privilege, and white privilege often leads to white denial. Whites automatically have some sort of unearned power that leads to them feeling as though they are superior to those of different races. Although they normally do not recognize it. For instance, I have a roommate from Kansas City, shes upper middle class, gets whatever she wants and judges whoever she can whenever she can. Just the other day I was sitting in my room talking about Dillards and how I like to go and visit my mom and occasionally shop. My roommate interrupted me with, I do not really like Dillards. When I asked her why she stated, Well, where I come from thats where the, well I am not racist or anything but the blacks and mexicans normally shop. When I asked her why that mattered she said, Well, normally, they do not make very much money. At that point I left the room. This was not the only occasion I had heard I am not racist or anything but leaving me to the conclusion that white denial, as well as white privilege are related. In the case of Codee the lady made a generalization about Codees race in the fact that she felt Codee was going to steal. While my roommate believes that those of color other than white are poor. My roommate holds whites above other races by making the assumption that those of color make less money than those who are not. Although I agree that whites are in denial, Wise himself made a broad generalization about whites, similar to the clerk and my roommate. Later within Wises article he writes of the events during Hurricane Katrina which, suggested that black folks were raping and killing people en masse and goes on to complicate things by stating, Needless to say, were a hurricane to take out Nantucket, or destroy the summer homes of the white and wealthy[ ], and were the media to broadcast rumors to the effect that rich white folks were raping and killing people []no one would believe them without evidence(Wise 97). I do not agree with no one, the reason that I do not agree is because I know for a fact that there would be a lot of people of all sorts of colors, even white, that would believe it, no one is a large statement to make. As well as it is a assumption; he does not provide any other sort of factual evidence when he makes this statement. I know that there are plenty of people who would believe it, like my one roommate, but that is one out of four. Not four out of four, which leads me to believe that there are more good people out there then no one. There are a lot of good people in the world, people who do not look at the color someone is. Like my friend Codee, who even after that incident happened to her does not hold a thing against upper class white people or white people in general. I know that I do not think of color being a difference, I do not think that I should be more privileged than Codee or anyone else for that matter. If I were to see that upper class whites were raping and killing, I would think it would be just as horrible if I could even remember the rumors about the people in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. There are plenty of people in the world who do not think in terms of poor=black or rich=white. When there are stories of serial rapists here in Manhattan, I do not automatically think or picture the rapist as someone of color, I actually picture a creepy older white man; which would be me stereotyping and proving that judgment in general happens about someones own race, or a different race; as Wise and I have both shown. I do not think that it is fair for Wise to state, no one would believe them without evidence(Wise 97). As I stated above, no one is just too broad of a term. Although there should not be anyone out in the world making broad assumptions about a certain race, everyone unfortunately does. Until proven, most people in the world will not believe the the fictional, and often times even the non-fictional. Making it difficult for white denial, and white privilege to completely disappear. Throughout Wises article he makes valid points, shows his readers that is a problem by not only proving it with evidence, but also by showing us in the article that he himself makes judgments about certain types of people. Before reading this article I would not have recognized when people, including myself were judging people solely on there appearance. Not just skin tone but down to the way a person presents themselves. Looking at personal experience with Codee and my roommate, I believe that there will always be some form of white privilege and white denial. If more people were to read Wises articles and others similar to his, there would be some hope that it would go away some more.

Organisations and People Management Report Nationwide Building Society

Organisations and People Management Report Nationwide Building Society Nationwide is Worlds largest Building Society and one of the major players in the U.K. banking sector. Having one of the seven group members as an employee of Nationwide Building Society, this management report has been developed to critically evaluate certain aspects of Nationwide. In this report, we have wished to brief our readers about Nationwides business strategy, structure, culture, management and leadership. This will be followed by a conclusion of the groups review about the chosen organization and finally certain recommendations will be made. Index Contents Page 1. Introduction a. Terms of reference 3 b. Background 3 2. Methods a. Data collection methods 4 b. Issues and challenges 4 c. Analysis 4 3. Results a. Overview of corporate strategy business goals 5 b. Explanation of organisational structure 8 c. Analysis of organisational culture 11 d. Critical evaluation of Management Leadership practices 14 4. To end with a. SWOT analysis 17 b. Recommendations 18 c. Conclusions 18 5. References 20 6. Appendix-1 22 7. Appendix-2 23 8. Appendix-3 24 Organisations People Management Report Introduction Terms of reference: This report aims at providing an overview of Nationwide Building Society and critically evaluates its business strategy, structure, culture, leadership and management. The findings shall present some key features of the organization. Some recommendations provided at the end shall help the management of Nationwide to improve certain practices. Background: Nationwide Building Society, started its journey back in 1946 as carrying the name Provident Union Building Society in Ramsbury, Wiltshire, in 1848 it moved in Northampton as the Northampton Town and Country Freehold Land Society and finally in London as Co-operative Permanent Building society in 1884. Thriving on well-over 160 years glorious history and over hundred mergers, it has become the third largest mortgage provider and second largest savings provider in the UK. More significantly, Nationwide is the largest building society in the world (History (Nationwide Building Society, 2010)). Today Nationwides portfolio consists of over fourteen million customers, total assets over  £200 billion and over 900 outlets countrywide. Being the largest building society in the world (Corporate Responsibility report, 2008/09) Nationwide also thrives with its mutual heritage which made the enterprise unique among other financial industries in the marketplace. The CEO, Graham Beale described Nationwide Building Society in the following way in Corporate Responsibility report (2008/09, p.2): Being a building society makes us fundamentally different from the big banks we compete with. We dont have shareholders, we are owned by our members. So you set our agenda. Methods Data collection methods: To make this venture less difficult, we had an early start with regular group meetings every Wednesday 4pm at room M5 or Main Arts building. Minutes for each meet were maintained. In-depth qualitative and few quantitative data were obtained through a personal interview with a senior Branch Manager, personal observation (and one of our group members personal experiences as a nationwide employee), internet and company publications. Theory and ideas were culled from several books, journals and websites. Issues and challenges: This report is the product of combined efforts of all our hearts and minds and has been framed within a month. Due to limited time and fund, we could gain access to mostly branch level information. After a struggle for appointment, we had been able to explore Nationwide through a senior Branch Manager at local branch. No sensitive questions were asked and no rules were violated during the research process. Analysis: A pure qualitative analysis has been made with a combination of exploratory and descriptive approach using the following process suggested by Saunders et al (2009, p. 489-490) Summarizing : condensation of meanings Categorization : grouping of meanings Structuring: Ordering of meanings using narrative. Results Missions: To describe companys mission large companies publish a statement called mission statement which comprises of organisations purpose and general direction that they are going to follow, its guiding values, principals and goals (Lynch, 2000). Adcock et al. (1995, p.298) provide a comprehensive description on business organisations mission statement which as follows: A mission statement indicates how that organisation intends to fulfil main business objectives while recognising the legitimate interests of other stakeholders such as customers, employees, suppliers, and the communities in which the organisation operates. Hence the mission statement carries a significant value for the organisation in terms of companys business, service, and goals; it has to be dynamic, transparent and easy to understand by all classes of stakeholders, otherwise it could create a confusion among colleagues and customers alike (Trapp, 1999). In light of above argument Nationwides mission statement is below: As a UK based mutual we exist solely for the benefit of our members. We help them and their families meet their financial needs in a sustainable, responsible and secure way as we have done since 1846, in a manner that is open, honest, and fair. (Corporate Responsibility report, 2008/09, p4) Since a financial organisation, Nationwide clearly visualizes its mission by aforementioned statement; which is dynamic, transparent and easily understandable to all; especially about its history (1846), organisation structure (mutual), services (financial needs), qualities (sustainable, responsible and secure), accountability (members) and business strategy (open, honest and fair) and goal (meeting customers financial needs). Nationwides intention is not only generating asset and profit from the business, but also sharing its profit and providing world class financial services to better off its customers in an open, honest, fair and amicable atmosphere; where customers feel valued and secured to conduct their financial businesses. Goals: Mullins (2002, p126) describes the goals of an organisation are the reason for its existence. The activities of the organisation are directed to the attainment of its goals. A goal is a future expectation, some desired future state. It is something the organisation is striving to accomplish. Goals can be described number of ways; such as, the overall purposes of an organisation, the execution of specific requirements, and so on. The core difference between functions and goals of an organisation is, goals are more specific and they are determined by the inputs and outputs of that organisation. Goals can also be named as objectives that every organisation tends to achieve (Mullins, 2002). Goals create a number of functions for the organisation to accomplish. Such as firstly, goals provide a certain standard in organisational structure which help the staff-members to figure out the way of performing their necessary activities, and also help the management to find out the right direction of planning and decision-making towards success. Secondly, goals help to determine the technology that will be compatible with organisations structure to perform all activities securely and smoothly. Thirdly, goals can help reward systems to motivate and drive staff-members of the organisation to accomplish their individual and group tasks. Finally, goals can represent the organisation to the external clients; can evaluate the organisation for further improvement (products and services); also can help to set objectives as well as policies for the organisation (Kast and Rosenzweig, 1985). Being a financial organisation, Nationwide sets up its corporate goals on annual basis (April to following years March). Every year they run a seminar, called Employee Corporate Cascade to indicate corporate plans and goals. According to Employee Corporate Cascade conference presentation (2010) Nationwide declared its business goals based on customer, market positioning, income, profitability, efficiency, capital and liquidity which are as follows: Becoming number-one in customer service satisfaction position; Keeping position on as third largest mortgage and savings provider, obtaining 10% of main current account and 5% of other products provider in the whole UK retail banking market and generating profit contribution of  £50m+ for each business line; Generating Non-margin profit by 50%; Raising  £1bn+ profit in year 2010/11; Gaining cost income ratio 49%; Maintaining core tier1 (a regulation implemented by Bank for International Settlements on banks capital adequacy requirement to continue its business) solvency ratio of 12% or more. Comply with Individual Liquidity Guidance. Above goals are clearly drawing a sketch on Nationwides future and desired expectations; which will assist the management to frame out proper business strategies towards achieving its goals. Business strategy: According to Huczynski and Buchanan (2007, p 524), the direction in which an organisation moves is influenced by the decisions that are made about its strategy. Business strategy is a part of the corporate strategy of the company which related to companys business divisions. Tilles (1969) discuses the importance of having an explicit business strategy to expand the company, he explains without having a certain strategy it is difficult to integrate co-ordinated action with industrial effort. In addition, there are number of other good reasons for company to have an explicit business strategy. Firstly, for making people to or-ordinate each-other to achieve goals with mutual effort; secondly, for changing companys environmental conditions (Mullins, 2002). Without a proper business strategy the company runs like a ship without a captain; nobody knows where to go and what to do. In that situation members of the company may start working cross-purposes; top management may not be able to communicate with lower management who is suppose to drive the employees to set up their target towards the goal. If company continues in absence of a proper business strategy, the survival of that company may be in question. However creative effort is necessary to create a strategy; moreover, to make a strategy successful it may require adapting different methods in behaviour as well as basic change in the way of interactions among managers (Johnson and Scholes, 1998). Being the largest building society in the world, Nationwide is always well ahead with its business strategy which is one of the main instruments of its ongoing glorious success. Nationwides vision is to plan ahead for longer period rather than shorter term, because in short period of time the implementation of new strategy may not acquire proper success. However, Nationwides managers follow a flexible attitude in their business strategy; as they may amend the strategy if necessary. According to Corporate Responsibility report, 2008/09, in September 2009, Nationwide has set up its three years business strategy which includes three core strands. Such as: becoming the full service provider (for, mortgages, lending, savings, consumer banking, insurance, investments, protection and wealth planning); becoming a challenger brand in the U.K. financial market; offering traditional mutual (member-oriented) delivery model in business. From above discussion, it is tangible that Nationwides business strategy is absolutely explicit about what they want to achieve; which helps managers and employees to plan towards its goals and acquiring the successes accordingly. Organisational Structure Various academic literatures have defined the term organizational structure in various ways: As a framework in which organizations achieve their goals or as a division of activities in an organization and how they can be coordinated. However despite these varying views, most cooperate organizations will agree that structures exits to maintain procedures. According to (Huczynski and Buchanan, 2007, p.446)the definition of a structure is a formal system of task and reporting relationship that control, coordinates and motivates employees so that they work together to achieve organizational goals. Mullins (2002, p.530) also defines it as the pattern of relationships among positions in the organization and among members of the organization. Structure makes possible the application of the process of management and creates a framework of order and command to which the activities of the organization can be planned, organized, directed and controlled. Martinsons and Martinsons (1994) say ther e are three types of organizational structure; Functional, Divisional and Matrix Organizational Structure, in which one of these structures is relevant to Nationwide. Functional Structure: This structure depends on groups functions that are present in an organization. This type of structure originates from the beaucratic structure. It is most affective when there is division of work in the organization. Whats more this kind of structure creates the environment for specialization which helps in the functional areas and which helps to smoothen the progress of synchronization among its members (Martinsons and Martinsons, 1994). Divisional Structure: It is adopted by firms when they want to broaden their business and spread their product line. Based upon its different product or market, the company divides into separate units. Pascale (1990) explains the company breaks upon its operations into manageable units or little companies, which then operates under a mechanistic structure. Matrix Structure: This employs both the functional and divisional type of structures allowing a downwards control of its functional departments and coordination of its department. Since its a hybrid of two structures, it has two lines of authority with employees reporting to two bosses. (Huczynski and Buchanan, 2007) Organizational structure helps in identifying the pattern of communication in an organization. The existence of a structure communicates the rules and regulations to the employees, as they are informed as to what is required of them in relation to their jobs. It also makes clear the rewards that are available to deserving employees, in terms of promotion etc. as well as elaborating the goals and objectives of the organization. Secondly, structures also identify authority and responsibilities associated with it by clarifying who makes the decision and who is accountable to whom. Decision making and information sharing is effectively carried out with the appropriate structures in place. When decisions are taken from top management, it is easily dropped down to the lower level management. In the same way the feedback from employees and lower levels easily get back to top management, which leads to job satisfaction. Finally, when the right organizational structure is implemented, it serves as a source of competitive advantage that can accrue economic efficiency and productivity for the organization. As rightly said by Drucker (1989, p.223) Good organization structure does not by itself produce good performance. But a poor organizational structure make good performance impossible, no matter how good individual managers may beà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.to improve organizational structure there for improve performance. Nationwide as an organization believes and recognizes the need to have a good structure to increase productivity and profitability. This is captured in Nationwide Chief Executives annual meeting report. There is no doubt that strong management and sound leadership really make a difference and are important qualities to get right in an executive team. Having the right structure in place to support the delivery of our corporate plan is critically important to our success (Corporate Responsibility Report, 2008/09). Please see Appendix-1 2 for full Organizational Structure Chart and current Management Structure of Nationwide. Nationwide is a mutual society, with its Headquarters in the U.K. It is one of the largest financial companies which deal with a number of profitable products with different customers. Nationwide as an organization implements the Functional form of structure. In this structure there are a number of boards of directors who play key role in the management of Nationwide, but do not interfere in the day to day activities of the society. They deal with major issues concerning Nationwide when it is deemed necessary. However, when it comes to the day to day running of Nationwide the Chief Executive is the one with such responsibility, he occupies the highest position in the hierarchy, with a number of executive directors who are accountable to him. They are, Chris Rhodes (Executive Director Group Product Marketing), Matthew Wyles (Executive Director Group Distribution), David Rigney (Executive Director Group Operations), Mark Remison (Executive Director Group Finance), Tony Prestedge (Executive Director Group Development) and Maxine Taylor (Divisional Director Corporate Affairs) (Management (Nationwide Building Society, 2010)). Beneath these departments are sub units, however attention will be given to the Executive Director and Group Distribution Department and its sub units, since the structure is the same for the various departments. This department has the Divisional Director who operates Branch Network, with assistance of the Regional Directors, Area Directors, District sales Managers and Branch Managers. All work at different levels of the hierarchy as represented by the organizational chart in Appendix-1. This enables Nationwide to assess how well these sub units perform; and if performance doesnt show satisfactory, managers can decide to take right approaches that need to be taken. Functions of key Departments: The Cooperate office headed by Maxine Taylor have the responsibilities of ensuring Nationwides vision, its strategy, goals, values and plans so that it workers can be motivated to give of their best performance. In its media relation and member engagements, it is charged with the responsibility of ensuring that the name and image of Nationwide is well managed in the media, as Nationwide is U.Ks largest building society. This department also manages the Nationwide Foundation charity for the community, as it is committed in making a difference to peoples life. Nationwides Group Finance and Risk with Mark Rennison as the Executive Director are keen to ensuring that their financial objectives are achieved within the set time frame. This they do by ensuring that the Society performs favorably in the financial market and also managing any risk that may arise. They also look out for opportunities such as partnership, merger, and acquisition by investigating the financial benefits before any corporate decisions are taken. Division of Labor and Communication: In Nationwide each department has its own policies to control its day to day activities, even though rules are regulated from the top of the hierarchy. This enables the various managers to take charge of their departments, with the subordinates in those departments accountable to them. This type of structure allows the different departments to function independently but then reports directly to the CEO. The structure also enhances the communication pattern in Nationwide by enabling the various departments at all levels to engage in decision making and problem solving process. Coordination: In Nationwide, each department has given the autonomy to carry out its activities. However, each director in his given department is responsible for coordinating these various activities in his/her department in order to be productive. Nationwide has the Group Product and Marketing Department headed by Chris Rhodes. This department has the sole responsibility of developing products that will add value and meet the needs and expectations of their customers; thus the department needs to coordinate the various activities of its sub units .i.e. Banking, Lending, Investment, Insurance, Business Strategy Marketing Division in a harmonious manner, to achieve its departmental goals.. Organizational Culture For all of the enterprises the organizational culture has been regarded as one of the core competitiveness of corporation. It plays an important role in the process of construction and development of enterprises. As a rising management concept, the organizational culture can determine and influence the behavior of their workforce, members and visitors. Distinctive ethos of enterprises which include the values, beliefs and various patterns of behavior that forms in a long-term development of corporation. It endows the enterprises with vital force which can be a basic element that makes corporation survive, develop and become stronger in the future. However, the meanings of organizational culture may very in different enterprises. Generally, organizational culture can be defined as the collection of relatively uniform and enduring values, beliefs, customs, traditions and practices; which are shared by an organizations members, learned by new recruits and transmitted from one generation of employees to the next (Huczynski and Buchanan, 2007, p. 623). Additionally, in Scheins (1985) Three Levels of Culture theory, the organizational culture can be considered from three levels which include the following steps: Surface manifestation of culture: The surface manifestation of culture is a visible form of culture which can be seen, heard or felt (Huczynski and Buchanan, 2007, p. 625). For instance, the visible form of culture can be regarded as the organizational structure, system, and procedure which can be a norm of organization to condition or influence the behavior of employees. As the most reachable aspect that can be observed by people, the surface manifestation of culture can also help enterprises to transmit a message to their members, visitors and customers by the operating direction, the societal image and the belief of the organization (Huczynski and Buchanan, 2007). In the case of Nationwide, the surface manifestation of culture can be reflected by their operating direction. Nationwide offers products and services including savings, current accounts, loans, mortgages, insurance and so on, which belongs to banking and financial services culture. Moreover, being a mutual organization, Nationwide has its particular corporate banking and financial culture which has been reflected in its aforementioned mission statement. Therefore, the core element which makes Nationwide quite different from any other banking organizations is the meaning of the members. The meaning of members can be explained as that once a person opens an account, he or she becomes the member of Nationwide. Hence Nationwide always considers its customers first due to its mutuality model because Nationwide does not have any shareholder and is oriented by its members. Therefore the goal of its operation is to generate profit and share that profit among the members offering world-class service, cheaper rate on borrowing, more return in investment and so on. According to the chart-1, it is tangible that Nationwides culture based on its CR strategy which comprises of four core elements. Such as, first: improving customers financial capability and become a responsible lender; second: supporting, helping and encouraging members in housing; third: implementing ethical choice in business to save environment, in particular reducing carbon foo tprint; fourth: engaging employees and members to support communities. Chart-1: Nationwides Corporate Responsibility Strategy The corporate values: The corporate values are the core of enterprise culture. It can be defined as operating philosophies or principles that guide enterprises internal conducts as well as its relationship with the external world. Core values are often shown in the mission statement. Based on Scheins (1985) three levels of culture, organizational values have been deemed as the second level which comprises of all sorts of public advocacy values; including mission, purpose, behaviors and standards which support the surface manifestation level. In addition, Peters and Waterman (1982) pointed out that values always combine with enterprise success and many relevant important elements which are staffs, skills, style and strategy. At the same time, values are offered a general direction for all the staffs and affect their behaviors. At Nationwide, one of the specific features is its mutuality. A mutual organization is based on the principle of mutuality. Unlike the co-operative society, members in mutual organization usually do not contribute any fund to the corporate directly; nevertheless the members derive their rights towards profits. Over 160 years of development, Nationwide has become a powerful society. Due to modern mutuality, it forms its unique traditional values to the customers. Banks pay back millions to their shareholders, where as Nationwide shares millions with its customers. Nationwide operates its strong organizational culture called Putting customers first which is based on five distinct values (Corporate Responsibility Report, 2008/09): Open: The Company is an inclusive organization membership that is open to all, and all of their members have a say in how the company run. Nationwide arranges the annual general meeting (AGM) every year which ask for members to take part to express their opinion. Each member can do this by voting on a series of issues. Fair: Nationwide treats customers fairly by offering better rewards those who entrust company with more of their businesses. Responsible: Nationwides business model is low risk, stable and sustainable. They safeguard customers money and data at all times. Unlike traditional business model of investment banks, Nationwide pursuits of low risk and stable in the process of development. Committed: Going the extra mile and taking level best care of customers are traditions of Nationwide. Nationwide always keep its promises, In Corporate Responsibility Report 2008/09, CEO, Graham Beale mentioned we say what we are going to do and then do it. Adult to adult: Nationwide believe in adult relationships. They dont patronize, rather they treat people as equal. Due to the modern mutual with values, customers are also owners who always reserve some special rights, notably the voting right. These are rights that people dont have if they are only customers of other ordinary bank. Customers in Nationwide have the opportunity to assist shaping how Nationwide to run. Each customer can observe whether Nationwide is treating customers equally and offers fairness, low risk, stability, sustainability in its products and services. The core value is obviously that putting customers first in Nationwide. Organizational Management Business Dictionary (2010) defines Management as Organization and coordination of the activities of an enterprise in accordance with certain policies and in achievement of clearly defined objectives. It includes the functions of POSDCORB (Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing, Co-ordinating, Reporting and Budgeting) and also managing the organizational culture and structure discussed previously. Often seen as one of the factor of production, the approach to management adopted differs with the size and function of the organization. Except the military and a few government and private bodies, most companies today are following the modern approach to management due to the various drawbacks of traditional management style like strict result orientation, use of fear force to get the work done, no care or importance given to employees interests, well-being and so on. Now the companies understand that the basic function of management of any service organization like a bank revolves rou nd the well being of the human resources both the officers and workmen staff  working within. (Sen Gupta, 2009) Banking is one of the most prominent among the 12 services classified under the services definition of GATS (General Agreement on Trade of Services). Nationwide certainly has a good hand over banking and being a large sized Building Society, its day-to-day management is primarily in the hands of the senior management team along with a large number of committees all under the power of the Board of Directors. The policies formulated by this Board of directors are implemented by the Chief Executive. With Centralized decision making in place, Nationwide takes good care of its employees and makes sure that they retain the best ones permanently. (Read Bolton and Gold, 1995, Career management at Nationwide Building Society using a soft systems approach.) Simple motivational techniques like praising the employees for the job saying well done; providing training when the performance is not satisfactory; offering good working conditions and facilities; running employee welfare programs; sendin g  £30 as Christmas surprise gift to every employee; and even a simple thank you makes a considerable difference in their performance. Another factor influencing the performance of a building society is market competition which has intensified over time especially in terms of savings and mortgages. Snape, et al. (1993) suggested the integration of business strategy and human resource strategy as a solution to this problem. They also mentioned that a more dynamic market, with a stronger emphasis on sales performance, placed new demands on employees, and many societies responded by espousing the ideals of human resource management. Bartel (2000) in her study confirms that Human resource management related actions have the potential to improve branch level performance in banking industry, but concludes by saying that even though all managers in a bank are given a formal set of human resource policies, they appear to have considerable discretion in their application. A lot of organizational performance also depends on the type of leader; his practices and they way groups are made and function. Groups in Nationwide: According to Nationwide Corporate Responsibility Report, 2008-09, Nationwide is classified into a large number of groups ranging from Branch Network, Intermediary Sales and Corporate Accounts, Business Planning and Research, Internet Channels, Telephone Channels, Channel Integration, Integration and Operations, Regional Brands and Regional Brands Branch Network. The Product and Marketing Division works in close liaison with these teams to build a high performance culture as the teams pull out all the stops to deliver an outstanding customer experience. These teams work in isolation towards achieving vital synergies that lead to significant reduction in their costs and improvement in sales performance. Leadership Business Dictionary (2010) def

The Villain In A Separate Peace English Literature Essay

The Villain In A Separate Peace English Literature Essay In the novel, A Separate Peace, the main villain is Gene Forrester. One reason Gene is the villain is because Genes thoughts and views are envious. Ellis says that Gene is not capable of maintaining Phineass spiritual purity and, as a result, Gene is cruel to Phineas. Knowles informs that Gene assumes that there is no harm to envy your best friend since Gene thinks envying Phineas is perfectly normal. Another reason Gene is the villain is because Phineass death involves Gene and his cruelty. Ellis explains how Gene discovers his private evil, which causes him to hurt Phineas. Knowles describes how Gene already ends his own war, given that he kills his enemy at Devon School. Gene is the villain because his thoughts and views are envious. In the article it says, The tragedy of the novel ultimately is that Gene is not capable of maintaining the spiritual purity that distinguishes Phineas and so must as he discovers his own savagery betray Phineas  (Ellis 314). This quote explains that Gene finds his own odium towards Phineass spiritual personality. Therefore, Gene wants to be better and more superior than Phineas, causing him to be jealous of Phineas. As Gene becomes jealous, he gains savagery against Phineas because he cannot maintain the perfect image of his best friend. Gene also betrays Phineas and their friendship because Gene holds a grudge against his best friend. In conclusion, Gene discovers envious thoughts in which ends irritates Phineass presence. The amount of hatred and greed Gene has against Phineas symbolizes a villains personality. The amount of greed that Gene carries toward Phineas depicts him as a villain. In the novel, it states, I couldnt help envying him that a little, which was perfectly normal. There was no harm in envying even your best friend a little (Knowles 25). This quote explains that Gene starts to feel greed and soon envies his best friend, Phineas. Gene begins to act paranoid about being competitive with Phineas and, as a result, Gene becomes very jealous and alert. As Gene starts to envy his best friend, it shows how untrustworthy and evil Gene can be. It also shows that Gene admits that he does envy his best friend, Phineas, but it takes him a while to finally admit to himself that he feels this sense of jealousy. Gene just explains it in a way so that his thought of Phineas seems normal and uses it as an excuse so that it seems normal and ordinary. These cruel traits that Gene upholds can be categorize in the qualities of a true villain. Another reason Gene is the villain is because Phineass death involves Gene. Ellis states, Gene has discovered that his private evil, which caused him to hurt Phineas, is the same evil only magnified that results the war (318) This quote explains that Gene has an amount of evil within himself and it causes him to hurt Phineas. Gene shows no self control and an adolescent mind since he hurt his best friend due to jealousy. In addition, Phineass death involves Gene because he has so much evil and cruelty to be motivated to jounce the trees limp causing Phineas to fall which led to the beginning of his downfall. If Gene never discovered this internal evil then Phineass life would have never be on risk. Genes evil plays a huge role in classifying him as a true villain because his intense level of hate makes him infuriate about Phineass accomplishments and actions. Genes involvement in Finnys death classifies him as a villain. In the novel, it says, I never killed anyone and I never developed an intense level of hatred for the enemy. Because my war ended before I ever put on a uniform; I was on active duty all my time at school; I killed my enemy there (Knowles 204). This quote explains that Genes involvement in Phineass death was his goal or desire. At Deven, Gene wanted to end Phineass life so that he can look superior and will not have to worry about someone being better than him anymore. This quote also shows the huge amount of hatred and the lack of loyalty Gene has toward Phineas because Gene just wants to finish his own war. He results the end of his war by ending his best friends life and he does success since he takes out with bothered him the most. Finally, the quote illustrates that Gene shows no pity since he did not care as much and Gene also shows any sadness about Phineass death. Similar to a true villain, Gene terminates his ene my by the amount of hatred and envious desires. Therefore, Gene ends his war at Devon School by Phineass death and he was able to accomplish this by the intense level of hatred. Gene Forrester is the true villain in the novel, The Separate Peace. Genes envious thoughts and views make him develop an amount of hatred and greed towards his best friend, Phineas. Gene even finds his odium against Phineass personality, which soon makes him discover his savagery against Phineas. His envious thoughts make him envy his best friend and. as a result, increases the amount of greed and tension between both of them. The involvement in causing Phineass death also clarifies why Gene is the true villain. Genes evil causes him to make a goal, in which it involves the end of Phineass life so that his own war would end. Gene shows a variety of qualities and characteristic in which clarifies why Gene is the true villain in this novel.

Insensitive Listening Exemplified in an Episode of Two and a Half Men E

During the last segment of Two and a Half Men’s, â€Å"Love isn’t Blind, Love’s Retarded† episode there are clear examples of pre-occupational thought, ambushing, and insensitive listening. The person who demonstrates pre-occupational thought is also the airhead of the bunch who has a difficult time listening to anything anybody tells her. For this reason, she’s also the person who used the ambushing technique against Allan when he was trying to have a conversation with her. Unfortunately, for Charlie he was a prime target for insensitive listening even though his girlfriend wasn’t even trying to be so cold to his feelings. Charlie has been seeing Kandi off and on throughout the entire season until meeting another woman by the name of Mia whom he actually falls in love with instead of just using for his sexual desires. Not realizing that she has been replaced Kandi comes over to visit Charlie. With Mia being in the house Charlie convinces his brother, Allan to distract Kandi which he does in order to help the situation. Allen winds up falling for Kandi which permits Charlie to continue his relationship with Mia. After two months of dating Charlie and Mia are finally ready for consummation their mature relationship. Just as everything seems to be going right, everything ends up go wrong whenever Charlie comes close to the coveted carnal deed. Allan and Kandi are sitting on the couch inside Charlie’s living room having an adult conversation after Allan’s son, Jake, goes to sleep. Even though it would appear that Kandi is intently listening to what Allan has to say it soon becomes clear that all that’s on her mind is having sex. For instance, after Allan gives up attempting to get through her uneducated brain he says, â€Å"I’ll ... ...What’s the BIG deal?† Shocked Charlie says, â€Å"What’s the big deal? This is the part of the relationship I’m GOOD at!† Realizing she has just made him feel upset she attempts to brush it off and move onto a moment that could potentially change the mood. This illustration shows that sometimes without even trying you can become an insensitive listener by only picking up the superficial content of a conversation. As Two and a Half Men’s episode â€Å"Love isn’t Blind, Love’s Retarded† adduces even in a short ten minute time frame pre-occupational thought, ambushing, and insensitive listening happen far more frequently than any speaker would hope. Fortunately, there are ways in which to avoid using such actions or listening skills and one of those is simply by learning about them. The next time it’s my turn to listen thoughtfully I’m going to try my best, what about you?

Ruhling Manufacturing Company Essay -- Business Management

1. Why might negotiation be favored over competitive bidding in certain procurement situations? Based on the textbook and my understanding, whenever there are negotiations between a procurer and a supplier regarding a competitive bidding, the first thing that might be favored is the scope of the project, meaning both will sit down and discuss the entire project prior the work begins. Meanwhile, during the negotiations, evaluation criteria should be clear, and stated and defined. As the evaluation is based on the criteria stated and the procurer can request or ask the supplier’s opinions on certain specifications and where things can be improved. There are two characteristics to be considered when negotiating over competitive bidding: a) Must be flexible and allow changes to make and specify the designs of the projects. b) Knowledge is very important because if a project is based or awarded on competitive bidding then a contractor may not know the information about possible design flaws, submit a low bid, and recoup profits when changes are required. 2. Considerations of Epsilon's alternative proposal: a. What is the applicability of a requirements contract from Ruhling’s point of view? Assume that Epsilon will still make a profit resulting from economics of long runs and learning curves From Ruhling's point of views, the applicable of a requirements contract are both legal and mutually satisfactory, as long as performance is met and buyer's requirements exist, it gives certain protection against price increases, and the possibility of a market predictable. b. Assuming Ruhling is now interested in a requirements contract, how should Ruhling proceed with the bidding/award process? Ruhling should start a ... ...anged innumerable times over the project's life. Continual rework and time delays had hampered progress. Bolger had reported design errors that necessitated the refitting of complex equipment and rework of the aluminum welding. Materials requirements included the use of welded aluminum. Bolger normally employed only steel welders; aluminum welders were in short supply and impatient during work stoppages. The Bolger contract was cost based plus a fixed fee. A particularly disturbing problem was Bolger's cost reporting system. Bolger contract negotiators waited for up to three weeks for cost data. Works Cited http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/Resources/equip08.pdf http://faculty.haas.berkeley.edu/stadelis/aucvsneg07_15_07.pdf http://www.nextlevelpurchasing.com/articles/dual-source.html http://corpslakes.usace.army.mil/employees/omcontracts/pdfs/section12.pdf

Stories Told Halfway :: Personal Narrative Sleeping Papers

Stories Told Halfway When I was sick I slept all day, in the shifting patch of sun on my bed. I woke up after fourteen hours and I saw that I had taken Sleep into me. And I thought, I understand why they called Sleep a god, why they gave him a face. If you sleep long enough, you let him in. You can feel the way he lifts your limbs and lets them fall again till they learn to hang, loosely, just so. You can feel the way his hands push down on the back of your neck, gently, and the lazy halo he brushes over the crown of your head with his fingers. You can understand why today he likes Sun, who paints a quiet coat of warmth onto your faded yellow sheets. You can feel him blink and stretch and curl up softly and let Sun paint him golden. And you can also understand why mostly he likes Night, who comes more quietly, dressed in cool gowns, trailing her nets and nets of stars to trap him in. You can see through his eyes, when you have just woken. Things come into your understanding slowly and you are content t o know them only halfway. You do not struggle for meaning. You can see how he blurs shapes into roundness. You can see how he breathes out quiet through you where you go, and you know he is there in the sleepy tilt of your head. And the people around you, when you have just woken, will see Sleep smiling in the lazy lines of your walk. This is Nick's favorite dream: He was being chased. He was all fear. He ran until he started to run on four legs. He felt the spring and the power and the motion that is a wolf running. It was daytime, morning. He followed a rough trail that wove through the woods. He ran and it was not strange. He did not even stop to think, I am a wolf. Only he was. The trail turned cleaner, shafts of new white light urging him on to the east. He was not feeling afraid anymore. He hadn't for a long time. The chase fell away and he was just running, all motion and speed. He came to a place deep in the forest where the trees were narrow and dense.

Changes and continuities of Roman empire Essay

Between 500 BCE and 500 CE, the Roman civilization experienced changes both politically and culturally. Firstly, Rome’s government transitioned from a Republic to an Empire. Later, that empire was split into two parts; east and west. In terms of changes in culture, it was impacted by the shift in religion, as the Romans shifted from polytheism to monotheism. Despite all the changes, Rome still remained culturally diverse. The Romans overthrew the Etruscans in 509 B.C.E. The Etruscans had ruled over the Romans for hundreds of years. Once free, the Romans established a republic, a government in which citizens elected representatives to rule on their behalf. The highest positions in the government were held by two consuls who ruled the Roman republic. A senate composed of Patricians elected these consuls and at this time, lower-class citizens, or plebeians, had virtually no say in the government. Both men and women were citizens in the Roman Republic, but only men could vote. Under certain circumstances, the senate and the consuls could appoint a temporary dictator to rule for a limited time until the crisis was resolved. One of the innovations of the Roman Republic was the notion of equality under the law. In 449 B.C.E., government leaders carved some of Rome’s most important laws into 12 great tablets. During the last three centuries of the republic, Rome experienced a long series of civil wars, economic as well as political issues, and civil crisis caused by the dictatorship of Julius Caesar. After Caesar’s death, another civil war broke out destroying what was left of the Roman republic. Caesar’s adopted son, Octavian, joined forces with a general named Mark Antony and a politician named Lepidus. They took control of Rome for ten years as the Second triumvirate. The alliance ended in violence and jealousy. Octavian forced Lepidus to retire and then became rivals with Mark Antony. Octavian believed Mark Antony was plotting to rule Rome from Egypt, and another civil war erupted. Octavian defeated Antony and became the unchallenged ruler of Rome. Rome was at the height of its power from the start of Augustus’s rule in 27 B.C to 180 A.D. For 207 years, peace and prosperity resided over the Roman Empire, known as the Pax Romana. During this time, the empire spread 3 million square miles, and its population was between 60 and 80 million. The borders were also stable, since there were not any wars going on between Rome and other civilizations. Since Rome was now an empire, this meant that the government would now be ruled by a single emperor instead of two  consuls. Since one person was in full control instead of two, so there was no conflict over power, and there was no need for citizens to constantly elect people to rule. However, during Octavian’s reign he set up a civil service system. He paid workers to manage the affairs of government. Although the senate still functioned, civil servants from the plebeians and even former slaves actually administered the empire. The Romans were heavily influenced by the Greeks in various ways. One facet being religion, the Roman’s were polytheistic due to Greek influence and worshipped many of the same gods. The classical Greek and Roman gods rewarded excellence over mediocrity and did not truly offer any sort of meaningful after-life. However, around 300 CE a new religion started to spread throughout Rome. This new religion being Christianity, a monotheistic religion, and a religion that believed that there was life after death and hailed Jesus as the son of God as well as the incarnation of God. In regards to life after death in the Christian religion, as long as you followed the faith and lived a virtuous life doing good deeds you would be rewarded heaven. But if one has led a life of sin, they would be doomed to spend the afterlife in hell. Those meek and seen as inferior in the Roman empire, the poor, slaves, and women felt elevated and empowered as everyone is equal in the eyes of God, in Christianity. When Christianity began to emerge, it was largely disliked as Christians refused to take part in the worship of emperors as the Romans did. It was this refusal that caused its practice to be illegal and those who chose to stick with the faith were prosecuted. Although people were being killed for practicing, Christianity started to become even more popular. After seeing Christian martyrs risk their lives for the sake of Christianity, many Romans were compelled and attracted to the faith. Also, there were Apostles who traveled around the empire spreading the message of Christianity. Then in 312 CE, Emperor Constantine proposed the Edict of Milan that banned all laws against Christianity. That allowed people to freely worship, without the fear of harsh punishment. He eventually converted on his deathbed. Then in 392 CE, Emperor Theodosius made Christianity the official religion of Rome. Christianity went from being an illegal religion to the official religion of the Roman Empire. At the height of its power, Rome controlled the greatest empire ever seen in Europe at that time. Many of the conquered nations benefited  from Rome. Roman public baths, roads, water supplies, all appeared in Western Europe. The sheer size of the empire was a major reason for the collapse of Rome. In AD 284, the Emperor Diocletian divided the Roman Empire in two parts to make it easier to rule. He created the Western Empire and the Eastern Empire, each with its own leader. Diocletian faced more than just administrative problems. More and more military defenses had to be built across the whole empire. Maintaining an army to defend the border of the Empire from barbarian attacks was a constant drain on the government. Military spending left few resources for other vital activities, such as providing public housing and maintaining quality roads and aqueducts. Frustrated Romans lost their desire to defend the Empire. The empire had to begin hiring soldiers recruited from the unemployed city mobs or worse from foreign countries. Such an army was unreliable and very expensive. The emperors were forced to raise taxes and coin more money frequently which in turn led again to increased inflation. To add to that in AD 307, Constantine became emperor. He moved the capital of the empire to a new city –Constantinople. Constantinople was much further east than Rome and firmly in the eastern empire. This left the western empire very vulnerable to attacks. The eastern empire was closer to the rich soil fertile crescent and was much easier to defend. The west began to deteriorate and went through what was known as a Dark Age. During this time there were no advances in technology, there was turmoil throughout the empire, and literacy declined dramatically. The Roman Empire went from being a thriving world power to two fragmented empires, with the west doing awful and the east maintaining some resemblance of its former glory. Despite the fact that Rome faced numerous changes throughout the centuries it still remained culturally diverse. The start of the Republic was shaped around many cultures. The idea for arches were taken from the Etruscans. The language was derived form the Latin speaking people in the area. The religion, literature, and architecture were influenced by the Greek. During the heights of the empire, war was still ever present. The influence of Rome was spreading to nearby territories and new land was acquired. With the increase in land and population it was only natural for the spread of new ideas to occur. The emergence of Christianity would prove to be a defining feature of the Roman Empire. The fall of the empire produced two weaker half’s of a once  formidable empire. The western side of the empire retained the Latin language and the eastern side chose Greek instead. The resulting wars with neighbors and influx of refugees contributed even more to exchange of languages and cultures. From the beginning of Republic, to the expanding empire, to the halves; east and west, Rome remained multi-cultural. Ancient Rome went through dramatic changes from 500 BCE to 500 CE. It first underwent a change of government; shifting from a republic to an empire. Rome then changed culturally, from being polytheistic and believing in the Greek gods, to being monotheistic and believing in one deity and adhering to the guidelines of Christianity. Furthermore in 476 CE, the Roman Empire collapsed and split into two parts, and was governed by two emperors. Although Rome encountered a these alterations it still remained a multi-cultural civilization.

I will Design and Carry Out my PEP on the Basis of me Being a Football Player Essay

I go disclose initiation and carry step up my powdered ginger on the basis of me being a cornerstone bollock game revivifyer. I am 14 long eon and 6 months old and provoke been performing foot swelling game since close to the age of 5. I roll in the hay the game and I am sort of cheeseparing at it. Although I am quite redeeming(prenominal) I would like to train to go bad break off at the sport and app destruction my boilersuit seaworthiness level. I am in general fit merely there is unimp for each one(prenominal)ably room for rectifyment and I volition look to do so.When I compose up school I plan to tie in the British Army so I would like to become fit so that I just nowtocks fulfil my plans. oer the 6 hebdomads that I carry out the training regime I provide give it 100% and really decide to rectify my fitness and footballing skills. I deficiency to need the take up of my ability at football so I flowerpot enjoy what I do and hopefully it lead benefit the Sunday confederacy club that I ply for.I play for As rive Juniors. I have do so for 5 years straight and enjoy playing for the team. I play in the centre of midfield and play in to a greater extent than of a defensive role. This piazza r final examinationeers me to convulse a lot of exploit in and influence the game. I am a good tackler of the ball and can pass good as well. For the product line that I do on the football pitch I need to have a good stamina (so I can cope with the demands of the football math), good flexibility (so I dont thin my muscles when making tackles), good relaxation (to pass the ball and make resilient tackles), strength (to out muscle opponents and hot flash the ball far), speed (to depress to the ball quicker than the opponent), and good consortion clipping (this is so I can react to the ball quicker than an opponent.) My ginger should overhaul me to rectify all of these skills and as a result I get out become a better fo otball player.I have never suffered any long-run injuries of any kind and have no recurring injuries.Other sports that I enjoy to do argon fishing, golf, tennis and submit tennis. Although I do none of these sports competitively I am inte tranquilityed in them and have done for fun.PEPFor my PEP I leave croup use a pyramid seance to piecemeal plus my fitness during the 6 calendar fakeweeks. I impart use a badminton court as my guide and say that double the aloofness of the court is equal to one length. I will development the lengths as the political program furtherancees to hit an rob required to growth my fitness. I chose a pyramid sitting because I incur it is the approximately authorized counsel of increasing my fitness. Also I know that it will be easier to create an overload in either the measurement of lengths or models that I do if I use a pyramid session. From when I have used this session in the past I have comprise that it always gives me a good workout and can be used to good effect.I will start and progress my PEP over the weeks using the FITT principal. I will increment the frequency by doing some(prenominal) exercises and by doing more(prenominal) than racecourse more often. I will incr ministration the inten mouldy by increasing the measuring stick of exercise that will be done. I will do this by adding more lengths onto my pyramid session and more exercise in between. I will increase the time by putting more time into the exercises in between runs. The emblem will also be changed. I will change the fitness shield that I will do later the pyramid sessions each week.The PEP that I have designed is one that I gauge will improve my overall fitness the most and also improve the skills that I need as a football player. It will start with a 5 small determine. This jog will limber up up my muscles so that they atomic number 18 non too stiff to pass otherwise I will increase the chances of a ripped or torn mu scle. afterward the jog I will move on to my stretches. They will be exhaustively carried out so not to allow any muscle blemish any(prenominal) can occur. The stretches are one of the most important fall ins of the PEP and must(prenominal) be done with care and thought. If these are not done correctly than I will run the chance of pulling or tearing a muscle.The gain seance starts by running the supreme amount of lengths you are wishing to do and past gradually working your way down until there are no more lengths to bang. In between lengths you are required to do exercises. For example, if I was cooking to do 16 lengths I would do 16 lengths because a elect exercise. aft(prenominal) the exercise you and accordingly do 15 lengths thusly the exercise, then 14 lengths then a exercise and so on until there are no more lengths to carry through.This gain Session will progress throughout the 6 weeks of the PEP. week 1 I will be doing 10 lengths, calendar week 2 and 3 I will be doing 12 lengths, workweek 4 and 5 I will do 14 lengths and for the closing week I will do 16 lengths. As the weeks progress an overload is created which will help me improve my fitness.The prompt UpFor my fervid up I will be doing a 5 here and now jog around the each(prenominal) Weather pitch. The w subsection up is to tender the muscles up before stretching so I do not pull a muscle. I will time myself-importance and be sure not to seek myself as this too could result in a pulled muscle if not careful.The outgrowth Exercises Squats, Burpees, Switch Overs, Star JumpsThese exercises will condition up my level muscles and allow me to put more power into a hit man or long pass. These exercises will shape up up the strength and power in my legs and will allow me to hit a ball further and this will improve my skill as a football player. I have done more leg exercises than arm and body exercises because I incur that my legs are needed more on a football pitch.Th e embody Exercises Sit Ups, CrunchesThe body exercises that I will do will allow me to condition up my middle body muscles and will help me to become stronger and flexible in that area. This will help me when I play football because I will be able to ad precisely the middle part of my body easier and this will help me when I am playing.The Arm Exercises Bench reduce, Press UpsBy doing these arm exercises it will improve my velocity body strength and this will make it easier to shrug off opponents when repugn for a ball in a game. The exercises will build up the muscles in my arms and this can help when taking a throw-in.The Cool DownFor the nerveless it down I will do a light jog and then stretch. The cool down is to prevent lactic acid from settling in the muscles and producing cramps. This is just as important as the warm up and is needed to prevent injury after the PEP.StretchesHamstring- I would sit on the ground then bend over attend wards and touch the top of my shi n, I would hold this for 10 seconds. Then I would sit up rest and then bend over front wards once over again only this time touching the toes quite than the shin.Quads- I would stand and balance myself against a wall with one arm then I would grab the left leg bend it backwards so the foot is touching my bum and hold for 10 seconds. Then I would stop rest and change legs.Groin Stretch- I would sit on the ground and put the soles of each foot together in a yoga sort of position. Then slowly put pressure on the intimate of each leg to stretch the groin.Upper Arm- channelize one arm in front of me and place the other arm underneath the arm that is held out and grab the shoulder. After this swap arms and do on the dot the same. Hold each stretch for 10 seconds.hebdomad 1The warm up and the stretches went well and I then began my profit Session. I had planned to do 10 lengths this week. I found that the gain Session worked well. I completed the 10 lengths with ease but the exer cises were quite challenging. At the end of all the lengths and exercises I found myself out of breath but I was glad with the work I had done. I then went out onto the all weather pitch to do a 50 touchstone sprint. I did the sprint in 8.12 seconds which was a individualized best. After the sprint I did a 5 minute jog and then stretched for 5 minutes.EvaluationI was very cheering with what I did this week but thought that I could storage area more lengths than what I had done. The exercises that I did were quite demanding but I thought they would be easier to handle next week and was sounding forward to the contend. I was super cheerful with the speed that I achieved in the 50 musical rhythm sprint and although it wasnt a huge amount of time I did beat my face-to-face best.Week 2This week I had set myself 12 lengths to do but I wasnt particularly worried about the project ahead. I started off with the 5 minute jog and a thorough stretch and then I began my benefit Ses sion. The session went well again this week. Similar to travel week I found that the exercises were again quite tough and challenging but the lengths were completed without much difficulty. After the Pyramid Session this week, I had set my self the throw/ gravel ball tryout. This was not physically challenging but I had to concentrate to get the 35 soft touch that I got. This was not the best marker I had ever had but I was bright with the result.EvaluationI was again felicitous with this week. The increase in lengths never really affected my performance this week. They were more challenging than the prior week but never caused a major job throughout the session. The throw/catch ball test that I did was more about finding a rhythm and concentrating quite a than a physical test.Week 3After the initial warm up and stretch I moved onto another(prenominal) week of the 12 length Pyramid Session. This week it again never caused a huge problem but I was slake tired towards the en d of the session. The exercises still caused similar problems as they did in the maiden week and were tiring. It was this week when I began to feel an proceeds in my fitness. After I completed the Pyramid Session I then went and did the muscular endurance test in the hotel foyer. My front best at this test was 100 seconds but this week I nearly doubled that score with 190 seconds. I was exceedingly pleased with this result. At the end of the session I did a 10 minute cool down.EvaluationI found that the 12 lengths didnt pose too much of a problem for me this week and I was sounding forward to the challenge of 14 lengths next week. I think that the exercises again provided a challenge for me and I began to feel the value in my fitness. I was extremely pleased with the score I achieved in the muscular endurance test. I think that I did well this week and was looking at forward to the next few weeks ahead.Week 4Due to a tooth doctor appointment I was unable to complete the reg ime at school. As a result I set up a training course on a football field behind my house and carried out my session to the best of my ability taking the environment and pretermit of equipment into condition. I worked hard for 1 hour and was pleased with the workout I had.Week 5This week was my first try out in school of attempting the 14 lengths I had set. Firstly, I did the warm up and stretches then got started with the Pyramid Session. It began like the others had but towards the end I found that this session was a lot more tiring than the previous weeks. At the end my legs were aching and I was really tired. I had created the overload and mat up the affect. Although I was tired I was pleased with the task I had done and was looking to the week ahead.The test this week was a standing great jump. I managed to get a score of 1 metre 52 centimetres. I was quite pleased with the score although it was not a personal best. After the test I went orthogonal where I did a 5 minute j og and stretched off to avoid secure muscles.EvaluationI was pleased with the military campaign that I put in immediately and could feel a definite improvement in my fitness. I thought that 14 lengths were very challenging and along with the leg, arm and middle body exercises produced a Pyramid Session which would challenge me.The standing broad jump that I did was not large but I was pleased with the result.Week 6For this week I was vatical to do 16 lengths, but because I missed week 4 I decided that I would carry on with 14 lengths. I went outside and did the warm up followed by the stretches then went inside to carry out the Pyramid Session. The 14 lengths were challenging but I entangle an improvement in my fitness and they were easier to complete than the lengths last week. The test for my final week was a repeat of the throw/catch ball test. I carried it out in the Sports Hall and beat the score I had gotten previously. I got a score of 33, thrashing the score of week 2 and equalling my personal best.EvaluationI was pleased with the work that I had done in my final week. I found that the 14 lengths in the Pyramid Session were easier to complete than the previous week. I was pleased with the level of my fitness and was pleased with the score I achieved in the throw/catch ball test.final exam EvaluationThroughout my PEP I have seen my overall fitness gradually increase from week to week. I would unquestionably say the regime has been a conquest and recommend it to people wishing to improve their fitness. The Pyramid Session provides a challenge from week to week and the exercises between the lengths make it a very demanding regime. I was pleased with the work that the exercises did and at the end of the 6 week program saw an improvement in my leg muscles, middle and upper body strength. I am extremely pleased with the improvement and success that the PEP has had.