Thursday, November 28, 2019

10 teléfonos para resolver dudas migratorias en EE.UU.

10 telà ©fonos para resolver dudas migratorias en EE.UU. En Estados Unidos es una necesidad saber dà ³nde buscar informacià ³n migratoria, verificar el estatus de un caso o encontrar asesorà ­a legal reputada y a un costo asequible. Para ello en  este artà ­culo se indican los telà ©fonos y las pginas web especà ­ficas en las que encontrar la respuesta a las dudas migratorias que puedan plantearse. Telà ©fonos clave para informacià ³n migratoria USCIS: 1-800-375-5283EOIR: para detenidos o asuntos en Corte: 1-800-898-7180Denunciar fraudes migratorios: 1-866-347-2423Buscar abogados: base de datos de AILAReferencias de abogados: Hispanic Federation: 1-866-432-9832 Dà ³nde rastrear informacià ³n con el USCIS El Servicio de Inmigracià ³n y Ciudadanà ­a de los Estados Unidos (USCIS, por sus siglas en inglà ©s) brinda varias posibilidades para obtener informacià ³n sobre asuntos que est tramitando o sobre cuestiones que son de su competencia. Entre ellos destacan: Telà ©fono gratuito para solicitar informacià ³n sobre un caso:  1-800-375-5283Servicio INFOPASS online para cerrar una cita para solicitar informacià ³n Adems, antes de acudir a una cita a una oficina de USCIS es posible utilizar su localizador de ubicaciones de oficinas o de sus Centros de Apoyo a Aplicaciones, donde se toman huellas digitales y otros datos biomà ©tricos a los solicitantes de beneficios migratorios. Adems, si ya se ha presentado la documentacià ³n para una peticià ³n o solicitud, es posible verificar online el estatus de un caso, aunque para ello es requisito indispensable conocer el nà ºmero de recibo del mismo. Asimismo, tambià ©n es posible informarse online de cunto se estn demorando en la tramitacià ³n casos similares. Por ejemplo, si se ha presentado una peticià ³n de familiar, es posible rastrear cunto tarda de media esa gestià ³n en todas las oficinas de USCIS. Informacià ³n sobre requisitos para presentar una solicitud ante USCIS En la pgina oficial de USCIS se puede encontrar informacià ³n sobre trmites como por ejemplo solicitar residencia permanente, naturalizacià ³n, permiso de trabajo, ajuste de estatus, perdones, tambià ©n conocidos como waivers o permisos, etc. Asimismo, esa pgina es el lugar en el que se puede acceder a todos los formularios oficiales para presentar solicitudes al USCIS y descargarlos gratuitamente.  Es conveniente utilizar la versià ³n ms reciente del documento que se necesite ya que USCIS los modifica y actualiza perià ³dicamente y no admite las versiones viejas. Centro Nacional de Visas (NVC, por sus siglas en inglà ©s) En el NVC se tramitan gestiones relacionadas con las peticiones de la tarjeta de residencia permanente cuando à ©stas siguen lo que se conoce como un procedimiento consular. En otras palabras, cuando la fase final se realiza fuera de Estados Unidos y es necesario acudir a una embajada o consulado para ser entrevistado y recibir la visa de inmigrante. Como regla general, el NVC es quien contacta. Pero si surge la necesidad de comunicarse con ellos, tambià ©n es posible. Si bien antes de hacerlo es recomendable verificar el boletà ­n de visas para fechas de procesamiento de green card con cupos mximos anuales, como son las peticiones de ciudadanos para hijos casados o mayores de 21 aà ±os de edad o para hermanos o las peticiones de residentes para cà ³nyuges e hijos solteros. Si se ha pedido una visa de inmigrante en casos en los que hay dichos cupos mximos anuales es imprescindible esperar a que la fecha de prioridad del caso sea ms antigua que la fecha de corte publicada en el boletà ­n de visas. Si no ha llegado la fecha de prioridad para la tramitacià ³n de la visa de inmigrante no se avanza absolutamente nada contactando con el NVC. Informacià ³n relacionada con aduanas Para los extranjeros autorizados a permanecer sà ³lo temporalmente en los Estados Unidos es importante para verificar el I-94, registro de entrada y salida, ya que ese documento muestra fecha mxima de estancia con visa de turista. Tambià ©n sirve esa pgina para obtener el rà ©cord de ingresos y salidas del paà ­s. En la actualidad, el I-94 est digitalizado y en la pgina de oficial de ICE para este registro es posible no solo verificar los datos sino tambià ©n imprimir el rà ©cord. Por otro lado, las personas que siempre tienen problemas cuando llegan a un punto migratorio de los Estados Unidos y son enviados a una segunda inspeccià ³n siempre o frecuentemente puede ser conveniente dirigirse al programa que se conoce en inglà ©s como Traveler Redress Inquire Program, para intentar encontrar una solucià ³n. Ciudadanà ­a de los Estados Unidos Para los ciudadanos de los Estados Unidos es importante conocer las opciones de cà ³mo y dà ³nde pueden solicitar el pasaporte. Para este trmite u otros puede necesitarse copia del certificado de nacimiento, cambio de nombre, matrimonio, pedir una nueva copia de la tarjeta del Nà ºmero del Seguro Social, etc. Para ello hay que dirigirse a la oficina de rà ©cords vitales del lugar donde se ha producido el hecho. Arrestos y detenciones Si se sospecha que un familiar o un amigo puede estar detenido, existe una base de datos para saber si est detenido por la Migra. Si no aparece en una centro de detencià ³n migratorio, hay varias formas de enterarse si se encuentra en una  en prisià ³n federal no migratoria o en una estatal. Informacià ³n sobre un caso en Corte migratoria Se puede marcar al EOIR, es decir, la Oficina de revisià ³n migratoria. Los telà ©fonos son  240-314-1500  o  1-800-898-7180, este à ºltimo es gratuito. Si se desea se puede elegir la opcià ³n de espaà ±ol. Por otro lado, para los migrantes es importante enterarse anà ³nimamente si existe una orden de deportacià ³n  y es posible hacerlo. Este punto conviene destacarlo ya que es totalmente posible que un juez haya declarado la deportacià ³n en ausencia y que el migrante no recibiera la notificacià ³n. En estos casos si por cualquier razà ³n se es detenido, la deportacià ³n proceder automticamente, sin pasar por corte. Dà ³nde reportar fraudes migratorios o felonà ­as Al igual que sucede en muchos otros paà ­ses, en Estados Unidos se puede marcar al 911 para reportar cualquier tipo de delitos o solicitar ayuda. Es el telà ©fono de situaciones de emergencia en todo el territorio nacional. En el caso de violencia domà ©stica se puede, adems, acudir directamente a la là ­nea gratuita que lucha contra esta lacra social. Para ello marcar al  1-800-799-7233. Otra opcià ³n es contactar con la Red Nacional contra el Asalto Sexual, Violacià ³n, Abuso e Incesto, que se conoce como RAINN por sus siglas en inglà ©s. En este caso marcar al  1-800-656-4673. Por otra parte, los migrantes son, lamentablemente, và ­ctimas de fraudes ya que siempre hay personas inescrupulosas que aseguran tener contactos o poder lograr resultados positivos en gestiones migratorias cuando no es verdad. Para estos casos es posible denunciar marcando al 1-877-382-4357. Adems, las actividades delictivas o fraudes relacionados con inmigracià ³n o con aduanas pueden reportarse anà ³nimamente al ICE marcando al 1-866-347-2423, incluidos los casos de matrimonios de conveniencia, es decir, los que se celebran para que uno de los cà ³nyuges obtengan los papeles. Dà ³nde solicitar ayuda o asesorà ­a migratoria No cabe duda de que Estados Unidos es un paà ­s que brinda buenas oportunidades. Pero no es menos cierto que se puede sufrir mucha soledad. Para los casos extremos donde se llega a tener pensamientos suicidas, por favor marcar gratuitamente al  1-888-628-9454, donde se habla en espaà ±ol. Otro de los grandes problemas que afectan a los migrantes es la necesidad de obtener buena informacià ³n sobre leyes migratorias y a un costo no elevado. La base de datos de AILA lista por localidad los abogados de su asociacià ³n especializados en migracià ³n. Adems, la Hispanic Federation puede ayudar con algunos trmites como por ejemplo peticiones de familia, DACA, permisos de trabajo, etc y tambià ©n puede brindar referencias a organizaciones con buena reputacià ³n. Marcar al 1-  866-432-9832. Finalmente, en el caso de mexicanos, siempre se puede marcar al telà ©fono de CIAM que es el y que brinda excelentes servicios gratuitamente. En el caso de los hondureà ±os en EE.UU. existen varios telà ©fonos a los que pueden marcar. Por su relevancia se seà ±alan tres en la zona fronteriza: McAllen, Texas: 214-347-4441Houston, Texas: 713-987-7406Los Angeles, California: 323-283-8623 Este es un artà ­culo informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal.

Approaches To Psychology And Christianity Religion Essays

Approaches To Psychology And Christianity Religion Essays Approaches To Psychology And Christianity Religion Essay Approaches To Psychology And Christianity Religion Essay Integrative Approaches to Psychology and Christianity, written by David N. Entwistle, is a thorough scrutiny sing the integrating of psychological science and divinity, in which both effort to understand human nature. Integration is described as a thing that we discover when we are bring outing the cardinal integrity that God created, every bit good as something we do as we create ways of believing about, uniting, and using psychological and theological truths ( Entwistle, 2004, p. 19 ) . An person s worldview is one s life position, which filters their world. Both the psychologist and the theologian bring their worldviews and presuppositions into their separate methodological analysiss and ends. The writer s theocentric theoretical account unites divinity and psychological science, as both have similar constructs that derive from God s created universe. In order to achieve a holistic position of human nature, both are necessary ( Entwistle, 2004 ) . Before psychological science was classified as a scientific discipline, it had deep roots in doctrine and faith, though it was non successful in covering with serious psychological upsets ( Entwistle, 2004, p. 44 ) . During this clip the church leaders were deemed the religious doctors, caring for the psyches of work forces. ( Entwistle, 2004, pp. 44-45 ) . The church leaders were involuntarily pushed into the back shadows with the rise of psychological science, when wonder began to ship upon the unconscious of adult male, traveling psychological science from analyzing the centripetal systems of adult male to analyzing the mental procedures of adult male ( Entwistle, 2004, p. 49 ) . Integration demands to acknowledge and spot the integrity of all truth , that is that all truth is God s truth, wherever it may be found. A comprehensive integrating will affect, harmonizing to the Alliess paradigm, a holistic position on how human existences unrecorded, learn, believe, experience, believe, and associate to each other and to god ( Etwistle, 2004, p. 239 ) . The book of God s word ( Bible ) and the book of God s plants ( creative activity ) neer struggle, but the readings of adult male may be inconsistent at times ( Entwistle, 2004, p. 262 ) . Human nature is complex and multifaceted. Psychology and divinity must be integrated because human existences are integrated in themselves. It is erroneous to construct truth upon merely a few strands of the whole tapestry, lest we lose sight of the full being. Integration must dwell of the faith reading of both books, analyzing with careful exegesis and hermeneutics, and re-evaluating psychological logical thinking, informations and theories. We must larn to be comfy with the fact that there will be some degree of uncertainness and ambiguity we will ever hold to populate with ( Entwistle, 2004, pp. 273-274 ) . Concrete Response My hubby and I were pastoral leaders in a church where anything outside of the church was non considered ministry. We were told that God wanted us to work in full clip ministry, which meant working full clip with no steady wage. I did nt hold any formal preparation in the bible nor in guidance, yet I preached and counseled. Everything was by religion, with the false belief that all cognition and mending entirely comes through the Spirit of the Lord. All of the instruction and advocate given stemmed from the leader s injuries and experiences. This was of no benefit to the parishioners, particularly to those who had echt mental wellness issues. My hubby and I finally moved off to another province. Whenever I tried to give advocate, I found that spiritual people either felt they did non necessitate it, or believed I was someway non religious plenty. I besides found that nonreligious people tended to be disinterested in hearing anything about God. Every clip I opened my oral cavity, I seemed to happen my pes in it. Five old ages after we left that church I enrolled in Liberty University to go on my instruction in psychological science, still deeply fighting with my anti-psychology beliefs. I eventually take to travel into professional guidance. I desired to be equipped and effectual in reding. Over the old ages I have come to cognize Christians who have had existent psychological issues, but they merely sought out Christian advocate. Most still have those issues today, still concealing behind faith. Contemplation With the integrating of divinity and psychological science, are we trying to make a separate Christian psychological science? If so, would this Christian psychological science be less effectual for those who are non Christians, or do we necessitate transition before they are able to partake of God s wisdom? If so, are we keep backing the really grace and graciousness of God, burying that fact that His Sun rises on the immorality every bit good as the good ( Mat. 5:45 ) . I besides wonder if integrating is realistically possible with all the assorted positions underneath the umbrella of Christian divinity. Christianity has legion opposing theories and decisions, similar to secular psychological science. I do nt believe full integrating will of all time be possible, but I am confident that Spirit filled Christians have the power and ability to spot and move in such a manner to work towards the healing and integrity of each client. Entwistle was really constructive in saying the importance and possibility of integrating ( in which I disagree ) . He outlined assorted historical every bit good as modern-day point of views refering integrating, giving his sentiment on which 1s promote a holistic position. He besides suggested several utile methods of integrating. Although Entwistle acknowledged the metaphysical work of the Holy Spirit in integrating, I was disappointed that he did nt do this a important subject. I find it is of import to incorporate, yet believe that full integrating may be impossible. I would hold besides liked to hold read more about the booby traps of being unequipped in ministry when covering with mental wellness issues. Action Given that each human being is complex, guidance can be debatable. A holistic attack is the lone manner one can tap into the interior elaboratenesss of adult male. I would plead with every Christian counsellor to continuously analyze their Black Marias. Due to the nature of our society and civilization today, I would propose they carefully consider every facet of their client ( organic structure, psyche and spirit ) . If non, they may make more injury than good. I am determined to work out my prejudices, every bit good as my opposition to alter from anti-psychological thought. I will go on to endeavor to garner all truth, which is God s truth, from every relevant subject. My chief end as a counsellor is to be equipped and ready to draw out the most effectual intervention from my grim inner-integration. I believe every effectual Christian counsellor must be filled with the cognition of God s will in all wisdom every bit good as religious apprehension ( Col 1:9-17 ) , so to convey forth direction with ardor and comprehensiveness from his or her interior depot. This will guarantee the conveyance of both fresh wisdom and ancient wisdom ( Mat 13:52 KJV ; Wordstrudy ) . For one without the other stands deficient.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Muddy water blues essays

Muddy water blues essays The blues, a form of music originated by black Americans in the South, has been used throughout its history to express a lifestyle that spoke for many lower class American citizens who usually suffer from unfortunate circumstances. One man that sticks out in the history of the blues and who has had an influence like no other is McKinley Morganfield or more popularly known, Muddy Waters. Waters was born on April 4, 1915 to parents who were sharecroppers on a Southern plantation. When he was three his mother passed away and he was sent off to live with his grandmother, who was also a plantation worker. Waters grew up living a life of poverty in the Mississippi Delta region. Due to the unfortunate circumstances of being poor and having to rely on only his grandmother for support, Waters was compelled to work at a young age. When Waters was 13 and working as a farmhand he began to develop an interest in the regions music and storytelling traditions. By the time he was 14 he had already taught himself how to play the harmonica, which allowed for him to begin to express himself. When he was 17 he had learned how to play the guitar, which gave him and opportunity to combine his musical talents along with his passion While still working on plantations, Muddy Waters broke off from emulating his musical influences and began to develop his own style. During this period he began to play gigs at local joints, which allowed for him to be noticed. After he recorded his first album for the United States Library of Congress archives, Waters moved to Chicago, where he turned to playing electrically instead of acoustically due to the loudness of the nightclubs. This switch gave his music a new sound, which in turn changed his style from the traditional blues he was influenced by into a style of his own known as the urban electric sound of Chicago ...

Final Strategic Plan and Presentation

Final Strategic Plan and Presentation Peter Spaans in Holland started Spaans Cookie Co in 1896; later in 1912, he moved to USA and in 1922 opened a bakery selling donuts, potato chips, and pastries. The bakery was formed with the intention of providing the customers their preferences. The company has, in the time of operation, merged with other businesses.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Final Strategic Plan and Presentation-Spaans Cookie Co specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It was designed to be a premium priced bakery, which targeted customers of a higher income level. The success of Spaans Cookie Co is not only in terms of having smooth operations throughout the company but also in the fact that in this industry, there is a very large margin for premium pricing if the company is able to develop a strong value with its customers. Creating such value is very difficult because they have to cater to the cultural needs of the area they are operating in so t hat the food provided to the customers is acceptable. Spaans Cookie Co caters on providing the experience to the consumers, and for that experience, we need the right people for the job. The company, just like any other business, has faced tests in its operations but has emerged stronger. This paper will explore the strategic plan to be implemented by the company to improve its services. Vision, mission, values Vision statement: the long-term plans of the company are to increase value in such a manner that they remain market leaders. Due to this reason, the mission statement is such that it allows them to progress globally without any problems. The vision statement guarantees success in the long run as it allows future progress in such a manner that it is acceptable to stakeholders. Unless such windows of opportunities are utilized, it would be very difficult for the company to be in the industry in the long- run. For Spaans Cookie Co, the customers are the most important aspect and providing a value for their money their primary objective. Mission statement- Spaans Cookie Co has a productivity mission statement that has been issued to all employees, the employees actively carry out the tasks in fulfillment of the goals in the mission statement, and the management gives high priority to the achievement of those goals.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The productivity norms are integrated with the organizations productivity plans because productivity improvement plan is most effective if it is integrated into the organizations strategy planning. The results of such plans are not evaluated the overall cost of production as far as Spaans Cookie Co is concerned. Value Facet Analysis There is a number of workers of different cultures working in Spaans Cookie Co and as such, cultural issues is a problem in Spaans Cookie Co. However, managers have b een trained to handle cross-cultural teams and to deal with cultural issues within their teams. The top recommendations given have a lot to do with the current organizational culture in Spaans Cookie Co, banking more on complacency, inefficiency, poor communication, less teamwork etc. This trend has to be halted and a new culture of efficiency, competence, effective communication, teamwork etc is brought in. The recommendations suggested would be able to bring in all these traits among the workers as well as in the management. Most of the employees of Spaans Cookie Co seem not to be interested in aligning their values with that of the organizations values. The recommendations suggested would align the values of the employees with that of the organizations values and if any employees values cannot be aligned with that of the organization, then he or she should be forced to leave the organization. There is a good understanding of supplier values in Spaans Cookie Co but the understandi ng can be hampered if supplies of materials are not made on time as agreed upon due to employee negligence and poor productivity at Spaans Cookie Co. There is need to have understanding of supplier values and provide more consideration to their values by Spaans Cookie Co. Any organization should have a better understanding of what the customer values. In the case of Spaans Cookie Co, the customer looks up to company to deliver taste cookies. This goes a long way in meeting those customer values. Spaans Cookie understands the values of third parties like labor unions, the government regulatory agencies etc. If regular employees were sacked for their inefficiency and poor productivity, the labor unions and regulatory agencies would react and from their reactions appropriate steps can be taken that would push Spaans Cookie Co to greater productivity levels and increase efficiency.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Final Strategic Plan and Presentation-Spaans Coo kie Co specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The Spaans Cookie Co management is unyielding in front of the labor unions and the regulatory agencies in their determination to make it a productive and efficient organization. Currently the employees of Spaans Cookie Co who are shepherds of the owner’s assets do seem to be interested in increasing the value of their owners assets. However, some of them do work but their complacency hampers their productivity and therefore the increase in value for the owners assets is hampered. External and Internal Environmental SWOTT Analysis Table Factor Strength Weakness Opportunity Threat Trend External Legal Regulatory Highly trained employees understands how to comply laws of the county Possible errors by accounts Tax incentives High taxes The tax rates are changing time and again Economic Economies of scale High costs of production Increasing demand Inflation and increasing interest rat es Increasing costs Technological Invested in new technology and have improved efficiency Resistance from employees on new technology New technology for production Changes in technology making it irrelevant Changing now and then Environment Implemented corporate social responsibility High costs Take advantage of green revolution Changes of government policy on environment Cost of environment management increasing Internal forces Resources Efficiency of production Resources cannot match demand. Many financial institutions are able to offer credit facility. Misallocate resources Increasing Goals Big brands Increase profits Some are not measurable Some brand have increasing opportunities Increasing prices Improving goals Innovations Many flavors and changes of brand name Different customers have different tastes and preferences requiring many brands Increasing of market for cookies Competitors increasing innovation Constantly changing Business environment Spaans Coo kie Company has continued with growth in sales and remained profitable in the past five years. While it has gained market share in the last few years, some flavors have tended to struggle because of market depression. The whole industry has had to put up with, rising fuel costs and a dampened consumer demand. Spaans Cookie Company has however continued thriving, mainly due to its business model, which dwells on cost control and product quality. Competence in management has enhanced efficiency of operations in the company. In addition, the company has a good capital base that facilitates investments in new technologies to diversify the business activities. There are strengths, weaknesses, opportunities threats, and trends that have affected the company both internally and externally. This paper addresses comprehensive factors that affect operations including the Economic, Technological, Legal Regulatory, Social, Goals, Resource, and Innovation. External forces Economic- The Companyà ¢â‚¬â„¢s unique cookies are of many flavors. As a result, Spaans Cookie Company determines the volume of output and the prices at which the products are sold. This increases the market demand significantly and therefore products are sold at prices that maximize the profits of the organization and hence the welfare of shareholders. The economic power that the organization has enables it to control the marketing of its products and maintain a competitive advantage. Customers are usually willing to purchase highly priced products especially if the products are of high quality and if they are of unique types (Gitman and McDaniel, 2008). Spaans Cookie Company has adopted this strategy since it provides high quality products in the market to maintain its market power. This has facilitated the efforts of the company to meet the market demand and maximize the welfare of its stakeholders including the customers, the employees, and the shareholders. Spaans Cookie reduces inefficiency by produ cing the maximum units of products possible in a day.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Technological- The Company has invested in innovation to facilitate adoption of the most sophisticated technology in production of different flavors that meets the needs of customer. This has led to production of high quality products that are highly demanded in the market. Technology enhances the efficiency of production, which further minimizes the costs of production under the concept of scale economies. Economies of scale refer to the benefits that accrue to a firm as it increases in size. The marginal costs of production keeps on decreasing as production continue ((Sadler and Craig, 2007). Creativity and innovation is paramount to realization of goals and objectives in an organization. The management of Spaans Cookie has recognized this element and therefore measures have been adopted to facilitate efficiency of operations in the organization. Technological advancements have enabled the company to expand its business through invention of new brands to diversify the portfolio of the organization. Legal Regulatory- The Company is also faced by certain legal threats that may hinder development and realization of the set goals and objectives. It is a requirement of the government of the United States for all companies to pay taxes proportionately to the amount of corporate income received. There are fines that are imposed when the company violates the payments of certain taxes. It is possible for errors to occur in the accounting department of the organization and therefore the taxes could be underestimated. Auditing by the government officers could implicate the organizations to tax omissions whose impacts can be to taint the name of the organization in the general society. Environment There are social threats that face the company, which can have negative implications in the future if they are not addressed. During production of cookies, there is emission gases that are said to harmful to environment and therefore they are likely to have negative implicati ons on people in the future. Internal forces Goals: Spaans Cookie is planning to boost its biggest brands in the United States by producing more advertisements and setting limitations for other new product development. With this initiative, the company is expecting an increase in their profit (Spaans Cookie, 2011). This year, the company is acknowledging its plan to give emphasis on cookies. For Spaans Cookie, their goals are aligned with their current strategies against the soaring price of energy and other ingredients. Along with this, the company aims to increase more its advertisements for the next two years looking forward that it will generate sales growth along with their expansion. In assessing the goals of Spaans Cookie, it shows that most of them are straightforward emphasizing what really they want to happen. The goal of Spaans Cookie is very clear, easy to understand, and measurable. Somehow, they are attainable in a sense that the company already identified certain prod ucts where they could have opportunities. Finally, their goal is realistic and with timetable, they mentioned realistic strategies on how to achieve their goals and set a period. Resource Efficiency of production is enhanced by the capability of an organization to allocate the resources efficiently. Resource allocation depends on the effectiveness of the company to mix the inputs of production to facilitate efficiency. The inputs include capital and labor in addition to entrepreneurship and land as factors of production. The company has not been able to meet the market demand due to the inefficiencies associated with resource allocation. The market demand is large to the extent that the resources available in the company cannot meet it. It is therefore important for the management of the organization to increase resource endowment to facilitate increased production in the organization. The inputs of production such as capital and labor should be increased and be combined in the bes t rations to facilitate efficiency of operations in the organization. Improved efficiency in resource allocation will increase the competitive advantage of the organization, which will lead to coverage of a wider market base (Pearce and Robinson, 2009). In addition, the organization will able to meet the needs of the customers by offering the required units of output to facilitate maximization of the welfare of the employees (Sadler and Craig, 2007). Resource allocation is conducted internally under the productions department and therefore when the organization cannot effectively meet the anticipated demand, then the problem becomes a weakness, which should be rectified to facilitate the smooth running of operations in the organization. It is important for the productions manager to seek the knowledge of economists on the best methods to facilitate resource allocation in the organization. Innovation: Venturing into new markets will require the company to develop new flavors since di fferent customers have different tastes and preferences. In addition, the customers could be willing to consume some products but they can be constrained by several factors for example income. Such constraints means that the customers will not be able to maximize their utilities subject to the incomes they have. It is therefore important for the organization to provide a variety of products some of which should be relatively cheap to enhance affordability of different customers. Implementation Stage- The Balanced Scorecard The strategy implementation stage is considered as the most critical stage in the strategic management process (Dess, Lumpkin, Eisner, 2009). The importance of this stage is because the companies face a number of challenges in making sure that the strategy is properly implemented, and unless these challenges are effectively managed, it will be very difficult for the companies to make sure that they are able to get the maximum results out of the strategic plan. In order to make sure that the strategies are rightly implemented, we would be using the balanced scorecard. The balanced score card works by allowing the company to divide its strategy into a number of concerned areas of operation and then set measurable targets, which have to be, achieved (David, 2008). These targets also define the roles required by the company in order to achieve them. The balanced scorecard is a strategy implementation tool, which works on the concept of developing objectives based on the company’s strategy in four areas: finance, customer, process, learning, and growth. The scorecard helps in defining the management what needs to be done in order to make sure that the strategy is able to turn tides for the company (Kaplan Norton, 1996). In the case of Spaans Cookie Company, they must realize it is highly essential to make sure that they are able to come up with the right strategy as well as the right implementation of the strategy so that the improve gro wth. The resources are highly limited and a failure in the implementation of the strategy would make it difficult for the company to grow (Wheelen Hunger, 2010). To make it easier to understand, each of the factors of the balanced scorecard is discussed separately. Financial Perspective: Finances of the company are very important as they help in creating the resources that would be required for the smooth operation of the company. The Company would find it difficult to continue growing if finances are not kept in check. The appropriate strategies to make sure that the company is financially stable are Increase in the market share of the company to an overall 20%. This would be done through increasing the market share of the company, which would help to attract more investors. Maintain a profit margin of 12.3% so that future investors are attracted. Cost saving is essential as well as a continuous check on the books of accounts while marketing would help in attracting more custome rs Customer Value Perspective: Customers are the most important asset for the company and therefore it is important to make sure that the customers are taken into consideration in all areas of operations. The customer perspective is therefore very important, as it would tell what to do in order to make sure that service is able to add value in the customer’s life. In this regard, the following strategies objectives are set: Maintain a customer turnover to an annual 4% of the overall market. Compensations to be given to customers with negative feedbacks in order to retain customers Achieve and maintain a 90% customer satisfaction in the business. Customer values to be created on what the company can deliver so that gap between customer expectations and the service are reduced. Increase customer value by increasing marketing to communicate the true value of the company. Further, to increase customer value to be done by making the service tangible. Process Perspective: The pr ocesses, which the company takes in delivering the right product to the customers, determine how the company is communicating value to the customers. Delivering the value to the customers depends upon the processes that are employed by the company. The following objectives therefore have to be achieved to make sure that the processes of the company are in line with the strategies: Application of efficient production methods for quality cookies, this would be done through the understanding of the ingredients that make good flavored cookies. Increasing production by 10% every year in order to match market demand, this would also good marketing. Expanding the market by 25% through market development into other surrounding countries and all US states would help to attract more customers. Learning and Growth Perspective: The employees especially the drivers are the only human aspect of the company, which the customers can actually see and interact. It is therefore very necessary to mak e sure that the employees have the right skills to perform their respective jobs. Employees are one of the main driving factors of the company and it is therefore necessary to make sure that the employees are involved in the strategic planning process. Maintain a 90% employee satisfaction rate at all times through the development of employee programs, which help, in developing employee skill as well as in understanding the needs of individual employees. Keep the employee turnover rate to at most 3% a year. Employee has to be interacted with at all times to make sure that the employee’s needs are being well understood. Increasing efficiency by 15% every year through the implementation of modern technology Understanding the Balanced Scorecard The balanced scorecard is a mere reflection of the company’s strategies which have been developed through the understanding of the company’s mission statement, vision statement, the external and the internal factors which w ould affect its operations as well as the SWOTT analysis that was conducted in setting up the business. Unless these parts of the strategic plan are not considered, it would be very difficult to make sure that right strategy is formulated. The vision statement determines where the company wants to be and the mission statement further helps in clarifying the methods that the company would be using in order to achieve its vision (David, 2008). However, while the mission statement tells what needs to be done in order to achieve this vision, it cannot tell how this vision can be achieved. The company therefore needs to develop a strategy, which will determine the right path to pursue the company’s vision. The strategies that have been formulated by Spaans Cookie Company are developed through the company’s vision. In fact, it included in the whole process, which starts with the evaluation of the external and internal factors and then led to the SWOTT analysis. In this way, the opportunities as well as the industry trends of the company are highlighted which identified what strategies should be made in order to grasp these opportunities. At times, it is also necessary for the company to make sure that it operates outside the industry trend creating a blue ocean for itself (Spaans Cookie, 2011). In the balance scorecard that has been developed above is the clear representation of the SWOTT analysis, which was conducted before. This includes areas of opportunity such modern technology and understanding the quality production methods to have been integrated into this scorecard. The measures that have been taken in each of these objectives are also created with the understanding of the capability of the company given its resources. The period that has been put in this balanced scorecard also helps to identify when do the objective needs to be achieved so that the company does not falls behind time. When the employees know about the objectives that are to b e achieved in a particular timeframe, they themselves start to make sure that they play their role in the achievement of these objectives (Hrebiniak, 2005). Thus, balanced scorecard is a useful tool for any company as it helps to determine the right approach to be used by the company. A strategy implementation tool, this scorecard helps in the development of the right set of objectives, which the company would pursue in order to make sure that the company’s vision is achieved. Strategic management is a very delicate process, and usually takes time from the development of the strategy to the implementation of it (Pearce and Robinson, 2009). Managers must make sure that while developing the objectives for the scorecard, they have a complete understanding of the company’s capabilities otherwise the objectives developed would be unreachable by the company. Communication plan The communications mix is comprised of advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, and publicit y or public relations. The company combines these four elements with different emphasis on each. More focus has been given on advertising and sales promotion, as they are the most suitable for an industry. Advertising and sales promotion Personal selling and public relations are important for creating brand equity. Each staff member has a sense of responsibility and capability while being attentive to the needs of the customers. Word of mouth is free but it means ensuring a good reputation. Managing Risks This business is prone to both internal and external risks. The management of these risks has been made possible by the company through preparation. One of the major risks that the company has faced is from the employees who are not be able to perform up to expectations. In order to cope up with this risk, motivational strategies have been used such that the employees are kept motivated at all time. The risk of a very strong competition is also very high simply due to the fact that a new competitor may come up in either one or all of the business locations which would negatively impact the revenues. In order to minimize such a risk, the company has come up with specific operational strategies and also resorted in high levels of marketing so that it is able to communicate brand values with the customers. While these risks are controllable, the company has kept in mind the probability of an uncontrolled risk which may have a very significant impact on the business. Similarly, the economic disasters such as inflation and other economic crisis will significantly impact the costs of operations as well as the overall purchasing power of the customers. Conclusion The successful operations of any business depend upon a number of reasons, each of which has to be understood carefully so that the right strategies can be developed. For existing companies like Spaans Cookie Company, it is very important to make sure that all the industrial factors are carefully analyzed a nd understood in so that the right operational strategies are developed. It must also be kept in mind that the success of the business is not only in the generation of the right strategies but also in the fact that the strategies should be applied in an effective manner. In this regard, the balanced scorecard will be used to make sure that the strategy is applied as it has been intended to be and generates the maximum result expected from it. References David, F. R. (2008). Strategic Management: Concepts and Cases. New York: Prentice Hall. Dess, G., Lumpkin, G., Eisner, A. (2009). Strategic Management: Creating Competitive Advantages. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Gitman, L. J., McDaniel, C. (2008). The Future of Business: The Essentials. New York: Cengage Learning . Hrebiniak, L. G. (2005). Making Strategy Work: Leading Effective Execution and Change. New Delhi: Pearson Prentice Hall. Kaplan, R. S., Norton, D. P. (1996). The Balanced Scorecard: Translating Strategy into Action. B oston: Harvard Business Press. Pearce, J. A. II, Robinson, R. B. (2009). Strategic management: Formulation, implementation, and control. New York: McGraw-Hill Sadler, P., and Craig, J. (2007). Strategic Management. London: Kogan Page Spaans Cookie, (2011). Spaans Cookies. Retrieved from http://spaanscookies.com/ Wheelen, T. L., Hunger, D. J. (2010). Concepts in Strategic Management and Business Policy. New York: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Do corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports provide shareholders Essay - 2

Do corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports provide shareholders and stakeholders with useful information on corporate soci - Essay Example Similarly, disclosure of the information related to these CSR activities have become an important part of the CSR activities of the organizations. Importance of CSR Reports This trend has made its mark due to the lack of reliance on the information which is voluntarily given out by the companies as compared to the real contribution to the society. From the perspectives of academics, there is an accepted theory which widely discusses the reasons which motivates the companies to disclose their CSR information. Majority of the information provided in the CSR reports were previously considered to be the decisions or activities belonging to the private domain of these organizations. The theoretical explanation states that the organizations provide CSR performance related information to general public for satisfying their primary needs and portraying themselves as very responsible members of the society. This legitimacy enables the organizations in pursuing the primary purpose of attaining sustainable profitability which is the most important goal of all the business activities. Although the corporate sector provides huge economic benefits to the society, yet there is an increasing concern regarding the abuse or wastage in terms of utilization of the resources of the society. The society provides higher benefits to the corporate sector. It is due to this reason that it possesses the right to seek information related to the return that these organizations are providing to the society. In brief, the increasing public awareness of the public resources decides the legitimacy of the companies, thereby increasing the requirement of disclosure of CSR information in the community. CSR Reports: Providing Useful Information to the Stakeholders The term ‘corporate social responsibility’ revolves around a number of issues concerning the organizations and their interactions with the society. These issues cover governance, ethics and various other social activities li ke, community development, philanthropy, product safety, human rights, equal opportunities to all employees and other environmental activities. Consideration of the CSR activities, from the aspect of accounting, has necessary linkages with the social reporting (Brennan and Merkl-Davies, 2013). The disclosure related to social and environmental responsibilities of the organizations increase the importance of CSR reports. The social and environmental accounting forms an important part of the CSR reports (Mahoney, et al., 2013; Merkl-Davies and Brennan, 2011). The communication of the environmental and social effects of the organizational activities to the stakeholders increases their reliability towards the transparency of their operational activities (Hooghiemstra, 2000). This extends the requirement as well as performance of accountability of all the organizations. Maintenance and presentation of CSR reports have become one of the global initiatives of the governments where they hav e recognized it to be the standard for sustainability reporting. It has provided a framework which disclosed much substantial and contextual information, rather than just presenting their financial performances. This framework has also ensured the fact that the organizations provide meaningful and appropriate information to the stakeholde

Leo Tolstoy and Kurosawa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Leo Tolstoy and Kurosawa - Essay Example The movie revolves around the protagonist’s enlightenment and passion towards life. Both the works (novel and movie), deal with the same theme, but differs in treatment. Thesis statement: The novel The death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy and the movie Ikiru by Akira Kurosawa are two sides of the same coin, fear of death and passion towards life. Compare and contrast The techniques used by Kurosawa in the film Ikuru which differentiates his work form Tolstoy In the film Ikiru, Kurosawa made use of a number of techniques like flash backs and narrative ellipse which differentiates his work from Tolstoy. Yoshimoto makes clear that â€Å"Second, the film presents this story in a complex narrative structure created by flash backs, voice-over narration, and narrative ellipses† (194). Apart from Ivan Ilyich, Watanabe does not try to keep himself aloof from his personal life. When Watanabe came to know that he is going to die due to cancer, he did not try to retrieve from the pr ocess of socialization. Instead, he decides to change his attitude towards life and to enjoy the remaining days. The director made use of the protagonist’s mind and deeds as a mirror which reflects his feeling and emotions. Besides, the protagonist’s enlightenment or self-realization is not a gradual process. ... The element of enlightenment in Ivan Ilyich and Watanabe The enlightenment or self-realization acquired by Ivan Ilyich does not help him to accept his illness. Instead, he considers the truth about life as a wrath exerted upon his life. He was not ready to give up his life. This affected his emotional equilibrium and his remaining days were painful. This negative feeling began to affect his relationship with his family members. Gradually, his anger towards his illness transformed into anger towards others including his co-workers and others. This negative attitude towards life and death did not help him to enjoy his remaining days in his life. His self-centered attitude forces him to think that he will be uprooted from his life. This attitude towards death was not helpful because he was not ready to cope up with death. On the other side, Watanabe was practical because he was aware of the fact that death and life are two different sides of the same coin. His philosophical attitude hel ped him to keep his illness as a personal secret and to enjoy the remaining days with happiness. To be specific, enlightenment in Ivan Ilyich’s life was a gradual process. On the other side, enlightenment was a rapid process in Watanabe’s personal life. Common struggles faced by Ivan Ilyich and Watanabe Both the characters were forced to fight against death and life. Ivan Ilyich hesitated to accept the truth but Watanabe was ready to accept death as the part of his life. Ivan Ilyich was not ready to give up his bureaucratic style of life. But Watanabe was ready to his give up his mechanical life. The struggles faced by Ivan Ilyich and Watanabe were same. Watanabe was ready to accept the same, but Ivan Ilyich was not ready to do so. This transformed their

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

How does the No Child Left Behind Act affect Leadership in Early Research Paper

How does the No Child Left Behind Act affect Leadership in Early Childhood programs - Research Paper Example There is a conflict between the student’s learning ability and performance and the reputation of the school. Hence it might be difficult for the schools to achieve the targets set by the act unless suitable changes are applied.   How does the ‘No Child Left Behind’  Act affect Leadership in Early Childhood programs   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001(NCLB) is a breakthrough educational reform that has been designed to improve achievement of the student and alter the American schooling culture. The then president George Bush signed the NCLB Act on 8th January 2002 as he earmarked its inception as the start of a new era. NCLB’s aim is to guarantee quality as well as equality in educational provision to all students to bridge the gap between the underprivileged students and their prosperous peers. The major functions of NCLB are to support learning activities in the nascent ages of education thereby ensuring prevention of any diffi culties in learning processes that might arise later, provide more information regarding a child’s progress and performance to his/her parents, improve quality of teaching and learning by providing requisite information to principals of schools and the teachers, enrich the schools with more and better resources, provide more funds to research oriented programs and curriculums, provide more flexibility, provide attention to things that work in future (No Child Left Behind- A Parent’s Guide, 2003, pp. 1-3; Glenn, & Marytza, 2011, pp 1-2; Nichols, Dowdy,& Nichols, 2010, pp. 1-2). The paper will assess whether the act has been effectual with respect to the early childhood programs and how it affects leadership in such programs.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The NCLB Act has been subject of appraisal as well as criticism from various circles, though it has obtained very little notice in the legal literature and mostly due to its overemphasis on te sting. There has been a bifurcation among the academicians regarding the feasible targets and real achievements of the NCLB Act. Those in support of this Act are of the view that it has completely succeeded in achieving its impressive targets and they often promote the hard accountability procedures of the NCLB Act. Many academicians and politicians have criticized NCLB’s policies that focus on testing as the main mode of assessment of the progress of a school. They also blame the federal government for heavily interfering with the local and state authorities on issues of education while miserably failing to supply requisite funds for the proceeds of this Act. In truth, the NCLB Act does highlight a quandary at the root of all test-based methods of accountability. However, testing alone is not sufficient to assess the school‘s proper assessment. It in turn binds the teachers to teach things that are related to the syllabus and books and not the wider aspects of the curr iculum, which would lead to a time loss, which could have been utilized, on other educational purposes. Moreover, it encourages institutions that play the leading role in such programs to drop out underperforming students rather than expand resources to help these students perform well in their education. The Act is so designed to elevate the segregation by race as well as class, and throw lower performing students out of the school, which makes it even harder for the destitute students to carry on their competition with the more affluent pupils. The Act claims to provide the best of the

Play and Pedagogy (Early Childhood Education) Assignment

Play and Pedagogy (Early Childhood Education) - Assignment Example What is a curriculum, do we really grasp its meaning, or have we mistaken it for some other related terms Now is the time to know. 'Curriculum' came from the Latin word 'curere' which literally means 'to run'. In educational context, it is 'the course of the race'. As the word evolves, it has now come to mean 'the course of study.' (Wikipedia,2008 )A 'curriculum' is the sum total of all learning activities, content, experiences and resources that are deliberately chosen organized in such a way that learning is maximized and goals are achieved. Therefore, a curriculum is not only a plan for what will happen in the classroom but also a long ranged scheme of the events, activities and practices to achieve the total learning goal set at the start of school year. As much as spontaneous learning is encouraged in preschool, there should a set of learning priorities to be followed. It is important that learning is well planned, suited for the age and physical development of the child, as well as the physical set up of the school. Each school varies in physical and temporal set ups, learning goals, resources and many others; it is vital to program activities around available resources (but not limited to), weather conditions, environment, people and routines. These factors are adjusted to suit the individual and communal needs of the learners to achieve the ultimate goal set by the school. (Zaslow,1991) "Children in well run program acquire a wide range of social skills and become more competent as a result of their frequent interactions with other children." Curriculum Planning Guide When planning a curriculum, there are many things to consider. Carefully think about the following elements when planning: Age appropriateness. Consider the ages of the students involved in the program and organize activities suited to their developmental growth. Individual appropriateness. Children, though of the same age level has different developmental speed or ability. One can distinguish a symbol faster than the other; consider the individual differences and plan activities wherein all children can participate. Family and Culture. Plan activities with respect to individual family and cultures. Do not discriminate, alienate or make fun of differences. Transition periods. Transitions are times that occur between activities; a good maneuvering technique should be developed in order to maximize transition period. Teacher values. What the teacher believes in is also an integral part of the curriculum. What are her interests, personal philosophies and

Monday, November 18, 2019

Implementations of Customer Relations Management System by Royal Mint Essay

Implementations of Customer Relations Management System by Royal Mint - Essay Example The Royal Mint Company requires a CRM system to facilitate the management of marketing information. The company will effectively acquire customer information and process it within the CRM system’s database to make marketing decisions and plans in addition to the evaluation of the impact of the company’s marketing endeavours. In implementing a Customer Relations Management system, Royal Mint stands to gain several benefits including better quality services and increased efficiency. CRM also helps to ensure reduced operational costs, increased profitability, and decision making support. The system leads to customer intimacy and thereby ensures the retention of existing customers. However, in the use of data stored in CRM, Royal Mint has to ensure the security of such data. This is because the use of such data could lead to ethical and legal issues. Access of such data has to be restricted as well as the transfer controlled. Introduction Romano and Fjermestad (2003, p. 233 ) define Customer Relationship Management (CRM) as the process of managing the interactive relationship of a business organization or a company with its customers. CRM is usually automated and applies technology to foster communication between a company and its clients. CRM therefore uses information systems which include computer application software which facilitate communication and interaction between a company and customers who are the major stakeholders of business functions and thus determine the success of the business. The composition of a CRM system is basically made of the hardware and software elements, the people who are involves, processes, procedures and policies which govern the application of the system to realize the goals of the business (Schierholz, Kolbe and Brenner 2007, p. 830). The benefits of CRM include increased profitability, better customer relations and higher quality products. The paper discusses the elements of a CRM system, its benefits and the ethic al issues involved in the use of the CRM system with a special relation on the Royal Mint Marketing strategy. Elements of CRM System According to Mandic (2011, p. 347), information technology is the major element of a CRM system because it is through these computer systems that companies are enabled to effectively communicate with their customer. The Royal Mint which is England’s legal entity which is authorized to mint or manufacture coins and medals has invested in information technology as the most appropriate way of facilitating interaction with its customers as described by Boulton (2011, p. 48). The marketing strategies of the company apply information systems to manage its customer base and enhance communication between the company and these clients. However the company has not utilized CRM system in making marketing decisions. Information technology in making marketing decisions is used to facilitate the management of customer information for marketing reasons. In a C RM system analytical tools and computer systems are used to gather client information and use it to make marketing decisions. Therefore the Royal Mint should apply information technology to maintain a database of its customers and also facilitate the interaction with its market. The use of CRM in marketing includes displaying the company’s products on the internet which can be accessed by the clients through creation of user accounts through the company’

Advertising and promotion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Advertising and promotion - Essay Example This paper aims to explore the role of advertising as part of the integrated approach to marketing communications as well as some relevant models and theories that can help explain the process of communication. This is showed through relevant examples through real-life applications of companies and brand owners of these concepts. Lastly, this paper aims to explore the new trends in the integrated marketing communications industry with changes that are prompted by the onset of new technology. Advertising has a distinct characteristic both as a strong force and a weak force in communicating with consumer (Jones 1990, 233-246). The advertising functions role in the overall marketing communications mix of the company depends on whether the advertising should be used as a strong force, or a weak force. In the older times, advertising has always been viewed as a strong force—it is the main function that is being used by companies to promote products. With advertising, brands are created as they help gain peoples attention, and later on create attitudes toward these brands (Duncan 2005). When advertising is used as a strong force, it is usually aimed to create awareness from the target audience (Jones 1990, 233-246). This is apparent in an advertisement campaign which is developed in the late 1990s for the Meat & Livestock Commission: The advertising developed by BMP DDB, ‘Recipe for love’, first slowed and then reversed the market decline. The ads ‘dramatised the unique pleasures of red meat meals’ and ‘encouraged people to make a little more effort and cook them more frequently (instead of ready meals, chicken and so on)’. There was also a ‘reassurance’ campaign that gave basic information about the nutritional benefits of red meat. Sales of both beef and all red meat grew in 1997 over 1996 (Broadbent 2008, 763). However, other people believe that advertising, in

Friday, November 15, 2019

Women’s Movement and the Kenyan State

Women’s Movement and the Kenyan State The Women’s Movement and the Kenyan State: Cooperation or Conflict? Gloria Mmoji Vuluku   Abstract State intervention in Kenya’s women movement is inhibiting progress on women equality. This intervention has taken the form resources that aid and influence their activities as well as laws that essentially make women movements dependent on government to achieve their objectives. The resulting scenario is an association between women movements and the state that is more cooperative than conflictual. Hence any meaningful changes in gender relations are essentially slow as change is achieved through constant consultation and compromise. These were the conclusions made after an examination of women organizations and policies on women in Kenya. The Kenyan government aid women’s organizations by availing various resources, like direct funding and government offices through the 1/3 gender rule on public offices. Data collected through an analysis of various women’s programs show how this allows the government to influence the women’s movement. In addition, data was collected on 10 women organizations between 2004-2014 indicate a diverse and vibrant women’s organisation that is on the decline. This is because government policies curtail the development of women organizations into full time professional organisations. Therefore, cooperation between the women’s movement and the government is institutionalised, has led to co-optation, minimizing conflict and curtailing any meaningful change in gender relations in Kenya. Key Words: Women Movement, State, Conflict, Cooperation, Social movement. Introduction State intervention in Kenya’s women movement is inhibiting progress on women equality. This intervention has taken the form of direct resources that aid and influence their activities as well as policies that essentially make women movements dependent on government to achieve their objectives. The resulting scenario is an association between women movements and the state that is more cooperative than conflictual. Hence any meaningful changes in gender relations are essentially slow as change is achieved through constant consultation and compromise. The Kenyan government aids women’s organizations by availing various resources, like direct funding through the UWEZO fund and government offices through the 1/3 gender rule on public offices. This allows the government to influence the women’s movement. The resultant effect is the apparent decline in a once diverse and vibrant women movement. This can also be attributed to policies made especially in the last decade t hat curtail the development of women organizations into full time professional organisations. The policies have made cooperation between the women’s movement and the government institutionalised, minimizing conflict and curtailing any meaningful change in gender relations in Kenya. In this paper examine the effect state intervention has had on the women’s movement in Kenya. How has government intervention contributed to the demobilization of the women movement? What are the effects of institutionalization of the Kenyan women movement? What needs to be done for the women movement in Kenya to achieve meaningful social change—equality? These are the fundamental questions that the paper tries to answer. Since the study of women’s movements is premised within the wider field of social movements, I start by critically analysing the definitions of movements. Emphasis here is on the definition of social movements as â€Å"outsiders† with respect to conventional politics, and utilise unconventional or protest tactics (Diani, 1992). The argument here, and which runs throughout the paper, is that social movements are formed to meet undefined or unstructured situations and mostly use unconventional means to achieve their objectives outside institutional channels. Once the state intervenes, most of these movements become institutionalized, the tactics become part of the conventional repertoire, large numbers of movement leaders co-opt and cooperation takes precedent over conflict. The resulting scenario is social change achieved through bargaining and compromise which is slow. Second, I show data from 2004 to 2014 supporting the argument that state intervention has led to the decline in the women movement in Kenya. Data will show that the decline of the movement began the day Kenya declared victory against the repressive regime of its second president in 2003. Subsequent regimes have provided aid to women’s organizations by availing various resources, like direct funding and government offices through the 1/3 gender rule on public offices. This section will show how this aid has contributed to the demobilization of the women movement in Kenya. The section goes further to show how policies formulated to enhance women equality have worked against the movement and in the process weakened it. I then turn in a third section to a discussion of what needs to be done for the women movement in Kenya to achieve meaningful social change, focusing on both the conditions that help foster movements—like use of unconventional means to achieve objectivesâ₠¬â€ and traditional factors that lead to the decline of a movement. Conceptualizing Movement-State Interaction Theory of social movement relies heavily on the assumption of a dichotomy between social movements and the state. Early studies on the subject were based on the assumption that movements had limited access to institutional resources like the state and hence confrontational towards such institutions, with the state being its main target. Multiple definitions of social movements underscored this position with the main principles being their location outside the state (Gamson, 1990); and the target being the state (Tilly, 1978). However, in the last three decades, scholars of social movements have observed a move that has seen social movements become more accommodating to the state, they have become institutionalized, tactics have become more routinized and have adopted cooperation rather than conflict in relation to the state (Costain Mcfarland, 1998; Giugni Passy, 1998; Meyer Tarrow, 1998; Mcadam, Tarrow, Tilly, 2001). Likewise, the state has become more accommodating to social mo vements (Banaszak, Beckwith, Rucht, 2003). This has led some scholars to term this association as â€Å"conflictual cooperation† (Giugni Passy, 1998), while others have introduced the concept of a â€Å"social movements society† (Meyer Tarrow, 1998). In fact, to some scholars, this increased institutionalization of movements and the integration of social movement ideas and the state could be seen as a success of social movements (Gamson, 1990). In the same line, there have been a number of works to show the mutual influences between social movements and the state. Topics such as framing protest issues (Gamson and Meyer; 1996), repression (Kurzman, 1996; Rasler, 1996), movement outcomes (Dalton, 1995; Misztal and Jenkins, 1995) and most commonly political opportunity structures (Kriesi,1995; McAdam, McCarthy and Zald, 1996; Tarrow, 1996). The separation of movement politics from institutinalized politics was clearly illustrated in Tilly’s 1978 works where he presented social movements as ‘challengers’ seeking to enter the institutinalized world where there is routinized access to power. Gamson (1990) who saw movements as ‘outsider’ groups whose challeges succeded as such groups became recognized actors in institutional politics. Therefore, students of social movements commonly associate institutinalization with demobilization, as social movements are necessarily extrainstitutional (Katzenstei n, 1998). The integration of movement and state is seen as coà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ optation and a deà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ radicalization process that equates to the end of protest politics. Women’sMovements, andtheState:ABlurredDivideBetweenProtestandInstitutions In the course of the 1980’s ‘autonomous’ women movements started declining. States were displaying increasing openness to women’s movements ideas and actors, a new vision of the relationship between women’s movement and the state started to proliferate. Women movement scholars increasingly viewed the state as a possible and new arena for women movement action. This was against the dominant viewpoint that women movement and the state had an irreduciblerelationship (Ferguson,1984). The viewpoint was generally referred to as ‘state feminism’ (Hernes,1987). Three approaches have been used to explain how and why the women movement and the state have increasingly interacted; the femocraticapproach has associated state feminism with the presence of individual actors promoting gender equality within the bureaucracy, driving change from within the state. This approach argues that the state can ‘empower’ women (Hernes, 1987) through t hepresenceof women activists withinthestateandindividualadvocatesofwomen’srightsworkingwithinthebureaucracy (Franzway,Court,Connell1989;Eisenstein1990;Sawer1990;Watson1990;Eisenstein1995a;Eisenstein1995b). However, the biggest criticism of the approach lays in the accountability notion. Indeed, whatistoguaranteethatoncetheyrisetopositionsofinfluenceandpower, women will remain true to the interests of the mass of women? This is because working within state institutions itself imposes a number of constraints. The women activists within the state are first accountable to the government before the masses of women so as to maintain their position causing tension in the women movement. TheRNGSapproach, focuseson women’s policy agencies as (potential)institutional relays of women’s movements ideas and actors within the state. Inthisapproach, women’spolicyagenciesareatthecenteroftheattention,focusisplacedontheextenttowhichtheywillreflectwomenmovementdemandsandachievetheirintegrationintopublicpolicy (Revillard2006b).Themainissueaddressedbythisapproach to state feminism is whether or not public policies could integrate feminist perspectives and towhatextentwomen’spolicybodieswereinstrumentaltotheprocess.TheRNGSresearchdesignproposed to study state feminismbycomparingtheeffectivenessofwomen’spolicyagenciesinadvancingwomen’s movementsgoals in the policymaking processesofpostindustrialdemocracies(RNGS2006). Finally, the coalitionapproach, coalitions have drawn attention to the blurring boundary between social movements and the state with specific reference to the women movement (Mazur2002;Stoffel2005;Holli2008). There is conscious ly initiated cooperation by women groups tofurthertheiraimsorachievegoalsperceivedasimportant in a policy process (Holli,2008). The Kenyan Women Movement and the Kenyan State: The Kenya women’s movement has played a key role as a change agent in respect to advancement of women’s rights, gender equality, social justice and promoting good governance in general. However, its impact has varied over time and in different contexts. Hence I seek to locate the women’s movement in Kenya during the different periods of Kenya’s history while analysing its relation to the Kenyan state over these periods. The periods that have shaped the women movement in Kenya are; the colonial period (before 1963); one party state (1969-1992); liberation movement (1992-2002); and, Kenya’s transition to democracy (1992-2002). After independence, between 1963 and 1992 there was little change in women’s status and State support for women’s empowerment initiatives was minimal at best. The government co-opted or controlled women’s organizations, e.g. 1987 merger of MYWO with the ruling and only political party-KANU. The Kenyan state that was intolerant to such organizing, unless such a group condoned and promoted the oppressive political status quo (Nzomo, ). Capacity to organize and engage politically was lacking. The only three national women’s organizations allowed to function at the time, namely, Maendeleo ya Wanawake (MYWO), National Council of Women of Kenya (NCWK) and the Nairobi Business and Professional Women’s organisation operated strictly on government’s terms: they had to be non-political and non- partisan in all their actions and had to limit their women’s agenda, strictly to social welfare provisioning, promoting the role of women as homemakers, mobilizing and organizing women at grassroots level into women’s groups to support agendas of male political elites. The period after 1992 has been dubbed the â€Å"Second Liberation† in Kenyan politics, as it marked the return to political pluralism in Kenya and the beginning of opening up of political space for exercising basic and universally accepted democratic freedoms. References Banaszak, L. A., Beckwith, K., Rucht, D. (2003). Womens movements facing the reconfigured state. New York: Cambridge University Press. Costain, A. N., Mcfarland, A. S. (1998). Social movements and American Political Institutions. Lanham, Md: Rowman Littlefield. Giugni, M. G., Passy, F. (1998). Contentious Politics in Complex Societies: New Social Movements between Conflict and Cooperation. In M. G. Giugni, D. McAdam, C. Tilly (Eds.), From Contention to Democracy. Lanham, MD: Rowman Littlefiel. McAdam, D., Tarrow, S., Tilly, C. (2001). Dynamics of Contention. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Meyer, D. S., Tarrow, S. (Eds.). (1998). The Social Movement Society: Contentious Politics for a New Century. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield.

Impact Of Social Media On Business Commerce Essay

Impact Of Social Media On Business Commerce Essay Social media or in other words New Media defines social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, Flicker, Youtube along with many more sites that engage users to participate in,comment on and create content as means of communicating with their social group,other users and public.It can take place via a computer(like laptops and netbooks),tablets(like iPads,iTouch and others) and mobile phones(smart phones).Social media in todays world has become a global phenomenon. Social media in todays world is a part of any business, no firms are able to sell there products without the help of social media because social media is a mass communication media which takes the detail of quality and price of the product to the consumers. Hence social media helps the firm fully to bring the profit in from the business . 1Agnihotri, Raj; Kothandaraman, Prabakar; Kashyap, Rajiv; Singh, Ramendra. (2012). impact of social media on business.  Journal of Personal Selling Sales Management.  . 32 (16), p333-348. This article is very interesting, it provides useful information about the history of social media and it explains how social media impacts business. It has useful information about the impact of social on business In different fields of business. I will use this source in my final essay because it explains about different terms for example sales management, business intelligence, business planning and many more. Furthermore, it explains how the organistaions achieve goals using social media. Its a fastest growing process in business organizations which sketches a goal in an organizations. However social media is a very important tool which explains how to maintain tasks in various fields like a salesman to maintain a job in a better way to create a job value. This article is giving me different ideas how the business is done with the help of social media. As you can see this article has the common points about the social media marketing strategies, firms strategies, business planning and sales management. Dave Ray . (2010).  The Positive Effects of Social Media.  Available: http://www.searchengineisland.com/2012/05/positive-effects-of-social-media-online.html. Last accessed 28th oct 2012. This site explains about the positive impact of social media on business. It explains how to use social media for future online business whatever it may be, a product or marketing which will pay you dividend at the end of the day. This site also gives information about how social media has grown in the world wide mostly in business, as you can see nowadays no business runs without the help of social media. However using this site for my final essay will be more useful because it point out how the business firms use networking websites to keep in touch with customers, examine the, and know there taste and preference . Therefore this website is giving me different ideas and it clarifies about different networking social and business oriented social network websites and it also throw light upon how the firms achieve their goals with the help of social media networking websites ( for example facebook, twitter and myspace) john souza. (2011).  social media features for a boost in business.Available: http://socialmediamarketinguniversity.com/10-musthave-social-media-features-boost-business/. Last accessed 28th oct 2012. I am taking this site as my source because it gives me detail about social media features which helps the firms to improve their business. It illustrate about various social media websites like facebook, twitter, linkedin and youtube. For example: facebook pages helps the enterprise in advertising their product on their pages which are liked by many members and whenever a commodity is liked by a member it goes on his/her personal profile therefore the enterprise freely advertised and it saves the cost of the commodity. As well as in twitter, if an account is upgraded to professional then their will be many members to tweet you which means more profit for the firm. Therefore I should use this source in my final essay because it defines social media in a better way and it teaches how the business firms make their brands name popular and how they make they profit by using social media network pages . Catherine Lovering. (2010).  Negative Effects of Social Media on Business.  Available: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/negative-effects-social-media-business-25682.html. Last accessed 27th oct 2012 I am taking this article as my source for the final essay , different articles explains different things as this explains me how social media creates problems for business firms . In these days no company can use negative products as they are noticed by media, because if they do, media makes negative stories about their products which creates a big problem for the company and company is publicized with the bad name in the market . Social media is a big part of the business ,social media invites everyone to its community employees, labors and consumers . social media makes difficulty for the companies to say about their brands that are negative, because customers are openly invited to media and they would comment on the brands that defamatory . Thus, using this article as a source in my final essay will be more helpful then any other because it points out many negative topics about social median negative impacts on business and how does it creates problem for companies like speaking of unauthorized workers on organizations behalf. Rodriguez, Michael; Peterson, Robert M.; Krishnan, Vijaykumar. . (2012). impact of social media on business.  Journal of Personal Selling Sales Management.  . 32 (14), p365-378. In this article Michael, Robert and vijay kumar has explained how the social media influence business firms. According to Neilson company(2010), social media users world wide grew nearly 30 percent in 2010, from 244 million to nearly 315 million users. Research from Gartners consumers technology and markets groups forecasted that global spending on social media would total $14.9 billion in 2012(Gupta 2011) (content.ebscohost.com/ContentServer.asp?EbscoContent ) Therefore, as the use of social media rises, the price of the product also rises and the customer who are called king of the market tend to change to its substitutes of that commodity which has the deserving price rather than the commodity that is advertise through means of social media. This article has discussed about the negative impacts of social media which says that because of social media many big business firms loses its customers every year for many different reasons.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

The Impact of Birth Order on Personality Essay -- Expository Classific

The Impact of Birth Order on Personality Before I had children, I did not believe that birth order could affect the personality of a person. But now I have three beautiful yet very different daughters. So different that not only is it sometimes hard to believe they come from the same two parents, it’s sometimes hard to believe they come from the same species! I have come up with three categories to describe the peculiarities of birth order, the Perfectionist, the Tornado, and the Princess, at least as they pertain to my daughters. The Perfectionist is the oldest child. Miss Perfection has been the center of attention since the moment of conception. The parents just know that this child would be the smartest, most compassionate, most beautiful child ever born on the face of the earth. The parents then pour all their energies into making sure this is true. The child then decides that this is what life is like. The oldest child believes that their hair has to always be perfect with a hair bow that is the exact shade of their carefully chosen ensemble. Their schoolwork reflects th...

Clothing in Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter Essay -- essays research pa

Clothing: A Form of Rebellion â€Å"Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used by the author to represent abstract ideas or concepts.† Symbolism in literature is the depth and hidden meaning in any piece of work. The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a powerful and evocative novel laced with symbolism. The most obvious is the symbol of the scarlet letter itself, representing Hester’s sin of adultery. Hawthorne’s other symbols are less obvious and are very often obscured in the novel. Clothing is an important but often forgotten symbol in The Scarlet Letter. Clothing is defined as â€Å"garments collectively, clothes, raiment, apparel†¦ a covering† (dictionary.com). The second part of the definition, which describes clothing as â€Å"a covering† is the most relevant to its symbolism in the novel (dictionary.com). Hester is a seamstress and uses it as her source of income to support herself and her daughter Pearl. Hester uses clothing as a covering or escape from her sentence of having to wear the scarlet letter on her bosom all the time. The connotation of the word throughout the novel is a form of rebellion. Her work supplies an outlet for Hester’s artistic sensibilities, which she exercises in the work she does for others and in the clothes she embroiders for Pearl. With Pearl’s attire, Hester can give â€Å"the gorgeous tendencies of her imagination their full play† (Scarlet). Hester dresses Pearl in bright colors rather than the dark, drab colors that were so prevalently worn in Puritan society. In Chapter 1, the beginning scene of the novel, Hawthorne describes a group of Puritans in front of the prison. They were wearing â€Å"sad-colored garments and gray†¦hats.† Some were wearing hoods (Scarlet 42). Already Hawthorne is sh... ...l anyone of his crime. Moreover, clothing has vague significance because the reverend is wearing a black veil, like Chillingworth who wears black all the time, and that gives insight to his evil nature. In conclusion, clothing is used for multiple reasons in the novel. Hester uses it as a form of rebellion, it is her way to express her feelings through garments. In addition, it is her way of rebelling against Puritan society, by dressing Pearl in colors much not the norm to the society. In addition, clothing is also used to reflect character and situation in the novel. The clothes worn by Chillingworth and by the witch foreshadow their character. Colors of clothing are also important. The use of bright colors, such as crimson, and gold conveys how dissimilar Hester and Pearl are viewed by the Puritan society, which generally dresses in plain, emotionless colors.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Pipeline Systems Essay

Drawbacks of the Pipeline for Alberta Oil mining is the pillar industry in Alberta and building pipeline system is the most efficient way to transport oil into other areas. However, whether pipeline systems are appropriate technology has been debated for many years. Appropriate technology means the ‘technology that is designed with consideration to the environmental, ethical, cultural, social,political, and economical aspects of the community it is intended for. ’ [1] Many people believe that the Conduit System pipeline is not appropriate technology. The reason is that though it is profitable , it decreases the motivation of developing new environmental-friendly power systems. Also some of the First Nations think it is so ridiculous to sell the precious resources which is given by our ancestors and nature. Moreover it is not a environmentally beneficial system. This paper will support the point of view that the conduit system is actually an inappropriate technology by illustrating examples in such three perspectives. In the first place,the project is certainly â€Å"a tremendous display of the short sighted thinking†[2] because it only thinks about the short-time economic gain without considering the environmental problems. Also the construction of Pipeline system decreases the motivation of developing new environmental-friendly power systems. Once the conduit system pipeline is built up,more and more companies would follow and build more of the pipelines, since it is a profitable and a most easy way to transporting oil. However, once the pipelines are set up, the companies has to run it rapidly, otherwise the construction cost would never be recovered. Under this situation, it limits the sustainable economy development . Thus the construction of pipeline system are strongly discommended. Furthermore, the conduit system pipeline leads to disagreements and conflicts with the Canadian society, especially between the First Nation and the government. Every individual and social group has their own belief and way of life. We do not support this pipeline project. We believed that the project has the potential to harm our environment ,as well as our way of life. We hope that our voice is heard and taken into consideration. †[3] said by the First Nations leaders. It contradicts the economy growth valued by the Conduit company, as well as the government, therefore confits appears. Therefore, it is obvious that the Conduit company pipeline would trigger dispute between First Nations and other social grou ps. Lastly, it is not environmentally beneficial for the human race to build the pipeline system in the long term. Oil spilling is a serious challenge for oil transporting industry, especially for long distance pipeline system. The Enbridge oil spill [4] is a strong example, over 190000 liters oil seeped out. The impact of oil spill is catastrophic. Carbon dioxide will be released to atmosphere increasingly, the green-house-effect will be more serious. At the same time the eco-system will be ruined, the fields can not be grown in 10 years or more. It is a disaster for both human and nature. â€Å"An oil spill from this pipeline will have major media coverage, which would effectively destroy Canada’s reputation. †[5] said the politician. Furthermore the oil of Alberta is non-renewable energy resource, it can not be produced in thousands years. Though the pipeline system is the most efficient way to transport the resources, what we can leave to our next generations if the oil is exhausted. Overall, it is obvious that the conduit system is actually not an appropriate technology for Alberta. According to the examples and analyses above, the pipeline system is a immature technology which creates social conflict,damages the planet and leaves even more environmental issues to the younger generations. [6] Consequently, the applying of the conduit system still needs more consideration. (1)Engineers Without Borders -Case Study Conduit Systems https://eclass. srv. ualberta. ca/mod/resource/view. php? id=551299 (2)http://www. cbc. ca/news/canada/story/2012/07/28/enbridge-wisconsin-spill-pipeline-closed. html (3)Engineers Without Borders -Case Study Conduit Systems https://eclass. srv. ualberta. ca/mod/resource/view. php? id=551299

Class Prophecy 2012 Essay

Having stayed for five years in France for my masteral studies and job as historical journalist in CNN, made me long to go back to my country. I wanted to stay with my family, reunite with old friends, and render my hard work to my countrymen. I know that my studies and my work have led me to different places across the globe, meet new peoples, and lead a wonderful and meaningful life. However, as the rugged saying goes â€Å"there is no place like home†. Upon the completion of my thesis my concluding documentary, and my book about the Philippines in France, I bade everyone â€Å"au revoir† â€Å"until next time† and happily went back to Philippines. Inside the plane we were given all the luxuries that we can afford in this long ride home, that almost always include a newspaper. As I browsing through the pages of the newspaper, I was awestricken by the names that I saw in the bylines. They were of Jenzen Anzano – writing news for the Metro; and Valeriano Onia – reporting about the recent battle of Ginebra versus Rain or Shine. But the good news doesn’t just end there, Mila Mary Lyn Maralit’s chemical invention have earned her an award from the President of the Philippines, Alyssa Mae G. Daraog. Then on the Health and Fitness Section was the full-page length column of the famous psychologist Richard Sanchez. With all their abilities and talents way back our high school years, we knew that these former classmates would indeed become successful and it is heartwarming to learn that these Lucians were pioneers in adhering to the CORE values that we cherished in our high school years. Many hours passed and the song in the plane shifted from The Beatles; to the Lady Antebellum’s; to SNSD’s; to the Hotdog’s Manila. By then we knew that we are approaching the Philippine territory and in no more than an hour we shall be landing. Suddenly, a lady in black dress approached me. It was Mara Cassandra Gomez! She told me that she was in France for two weeks to attend for an international conference in Psychology. We talked and talked until we are notified to go back our seats and fasten our seatbelts for our landing. I can feel the plane slowly going down and sudden gosh of excitement and relief that embraced my being when I finally felt the bump of the wheels in the land of my country. I’m finally back! My first two weeks were spent in countless reunions and homecoming then I wondered where are my high school schoolmates, classmates, friends? I hope to meet them again. However, now is not the time to think about those, we will soon find our ways. By now, I have to work-on my job in the National Historical Commission of the Philippines. Right there and then, I was accepted and given projects. First on the list was the Bangon Tribe in Mindoro. I am thrilled because I am the one in-charge of such meticulous and comprehensive task that we shall carry-on. I decided to go to the bookstore to enhance my knowledge and to at least familiarize myself with their environs. As my car was driving along EDSA the billboard of Rowielyn Singh and Jaypee De Castro, the hosts of WilTime Big Time was prominently displayed, then there is also another billboard of pop star singers, Ma. Diana Derpo, Binna Azucenas, and Ericka Faye delos Santos inviting everyone to join in their concert at the Mall of Rommel Concepcion’s Concert Grounds. Lucians of batch 2012’s progress can’t be stopped. From De Castro to Rosario Village/Tramo ; now Lucians are domineering EDSA and filling up the key positions in our society! As I went inside the bookstore, my attention was caught by the book at top of the best-sellers list. That was the name of Rhoxanne Villasin, she is the author of this year’s bestselling book. I grabbed my copy of her book then bought the materials that I needed for my work. Nearby I saw a new mall named Von’s. I went inside and I was really amazed with the beauty and intricate details of the place. While strolling along I heard someone shouted my name. Few steps away from me was Glenn Rose Baculanlan! Dressed like a Parisian doll, she and four other ladies in office attire went to me. Glenn Rose is now a model and the four ladies with her are Roselyn Monforte, Louise May Mackay, Cynthia Mae Pama, and Angel Mae Bahay were the accountants at Von’s the mall that Christian Von Geminiano owns. We went inside the pub named Muppets and had some coffee. While having our funny chats, we reminisced the good-old days wherein being a historian, an accountant, and a model were just a confusing dream†¦ a vague possibility. Just when we are about to part ways a lady appeared before us and introduced herself as Shirlyn! Indeed it was she†¦ Shirlyn Alvario the owner of Muppets restaurant. She informed us that Lucians are involved in the foundations of her restaurant with Bhenz Benig (now a food technologist) as her business partner. Joseph Perez and Rances Marticio were in charge of the place’s architectural design, Bernardino Rodelas for the engineering plans and construction, and the famous artists: Cedrick Caguing, Cyril Flora and John Paul Dogillo for the details and designs. Neither one of us wouldn’t want to end our girl talks and reminisces but then we knew that we have works to do so we exchange contact numbers and promised to meet soon. Back to work, I indulged myself with my project. Busy all day studying, preparing, preparing, studying. One day, three days before my five-member team went to Mindoro, I was informed that certain groups would like to join our trip and they all had their recommendations. Of course, I do not like them to go with us because our work might be exploited by their presence. But then, I couldn’t just discredit their requests so I immediately called my assistant to call their representatives to explain their intentions at exactly two p.m. today. After an hour, my secretary informed me that all the persons that we’ve been waiting to talk to are already inside the conference room and they are quite noisy. I immediately went inside my conference room and . . . it seems like I’m a high school student once more! The faces inside are all my high school classmates and friends. Indeed all of them, wow! Aarone Jhone Julian is now the managing president of the Apple Company in the Philippines; Jennelyn dela Cruz, Ma. Kathleen Adona, and Mark Anthony Borja are now the Division Supervisors of Pasig City; Kimberly Mae Chua, Stefany Cabantog, and Mharianne Yalega, are now head doctors of Lucia General Hospital; Francesca Ann Balmonte, is recognized as one of the bests photographers in country; and Sir Eljun Velga is now the Principal of Sta. Lucia High School. They explained to me that they wanted to join to help and contribute something for progress that has always been OUR dream. Right there and then, I agreed and we’ve planned the flow of our own respective missions consecrated towards the fulfillment of one goal. At home, I packed my things for our mission then watched the news anchored by Merleen Mercolita. News about Ramlou Demegillo’s outstanding performance in the International Dance Sport Competition; Nigel Paulino, Renmar Moses, Julius Caesar Brutas, and Marcelino Loza’s gold in the recent Olympic games; Jovy Ann Sta. Ana, manager of SNSD; Arjay Gervacio-Ventura, the new business tycoon; Ronnel Villamar tops the Bar Exams; and Shelly Ann Ruales’s proclamation as the Philippine Ambassadress to the USA.