Organized Crime in the Windy City Essay

Known for its long period of criminal activity and rise to becoming one of the strongest crime entities, the Chicago Outfits are one of the most notorious and infamous organized groups that had ever hit Chicago. From the time it rose from Mike McDonald to the fall of Al Capone’s Chicago, this group has successfully continued to grow and rein the streets of Chicago. The structure of this group and criminal activities have made a dent if America’s society. According to Michael Maltz, â€Å"An organized crime is a crime in which there is more than one offender, and the offenders are and intend to remain associated with one another for the purpose of committing crimes. † (Abadinsky 2) and according to Donald Cressey it is â€Å"any crime committed by a person occupying, in an established division of labor†¦.. includes at least one position for a corrupter, one position for a corruptee, and one position for an enforcer. † (Abadinsky 2) and even the Federal organized Crime Control Act of 1970 attempts to define what is organized crime is. They broke it down into eight attributes that include and not limited to the following: no political goals, hierarchical, limited/exclusive membership, unique subculture, perpetuates itself, use of violence, monopolistic and governed by explicit rules and regulations. However the term is defined, all three prove that it is a group of more than one individual working together to commit a series of crime that is done in a matter that is planned out. The structure on organized crime in Chicago is based on the group called the ‘Chicago Outfits’ which are made up of ‘made’ members. According to Lindberg, â€Å"the term ‘made’ comes from La Cosa Nostra terminology and requires a blood ritual. This included Italian bloodlines, sponsorship and support of high-ranking members in a complicated process. † (Lindberg) And through this blood ritual, ‘made’ guys who are sponsored by current captains of La Cosa Nostra bring in the one being sponsored. The blood ritual that they mentioned is exactly what it means, a ritual that requires blood. â€Å"They prick your trigger finger and make it bleed, and then they put a little piece of paper; they set it on fire and you burn it in your hand, and you repeat after them that you will never betray La Cos Nostra, or you will burn like the paper is burning in your hand. Your life does not belong to you anymore; your life belongs to them. † (Abadinsky 86) Membership into the crime group is exclusive only to family members of the father’s side that can range from immediate members to distant members, but as long as they have blood ties to the boss, this secures the possibility of undercover agents infiltrating the family crime group. The ‘made’ guys hold senior advisory status while everyone else is a worker. Unlike the organized crime groups in New York, Chicago crime groups are more cooperative with other groups that are usually dominated by Italians. The structure of Chicago’s crime groups is based off of the Patron-Client network which â€Å"consists of a collection of connected points or junctures†. Bibliography Abadinsky, Howard. Organized Crime, St. John’s University, ninth edition Lindberg, Kirsten, Petrenko, Joseph, Gladden, Jerry, Johnson, Wayne A. Mar98, Traditional Organized Crime in Chicago. , International Review of Law, Computers & Technology, 13600869, Vol. 12, Issue 1.

Nokia: Values That Make a Company Global

STraTeGiC Hr MaNaGeMeNT case study with teaching notes Nokia: Values That Make a Company Global By Geraldine Willigan, MBA Project team Author: SHRM project contributor: External contributor: Copy editing: Design: Geraldine Willigan, MBA Nancy A. Woolever, SPHR Ram Charan, Ph. D. Katya Scanlan, copy editor Terry Biddle, graphic designer  © 2009 Society for Human Resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBA. This case was prepared by Geraldine Willigan, MBA, former editor at Harvard Business Review, under supervision of Ram Charan, Ph. D. , former faculty member at Harvard Business School, winner of best teacher award at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, and a regular teacher in executive programs across the globe. The authors gratefully acknowledge the help of Juha Akras, Ian Gee, Antti Miettinen, Arja Souminen, Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, Hallstein Moerk, Tero Ojanpera and Shiv Shivakumar. Note to Hr faculty and instructors: SHRM cases and modules are intended for use in HR classrooms at universities. Teaching notes are included with each. While our current intent is to make the materials available without charge, we reserve the right to impose charges should we deem it necessary to support the program. However, currently, these resources are available free of charge to all. Please duplicate only the number of copies needed, one for each student in the class. For more information, please contact: SHRM Academic Initiatives 1800 Duke Street, Alexandria, VA 22314, USA Phone: (800) 283-7476 Fax: (703) 535-6432 Web: www. shrm. org/education/hreducation 09-0353 Nokia: Values That Make a Company Global Introduction In the summer of 2006, the global competitive landscape in which Nokia was operating was changing at an astoundingly fast pace. Market growth was shifting to emerging countries, mobile devices were being commoditized, handset prices were declining, networks were combining (Nokia had just merged its own networks infrastructure business with that of Siemens, forming Nokia Siemens Networks, or NSN), Microsoft and Apple were making moves toward mobile devices, new technologies were being developed, and new strategic opportunities were arising as mobile phones were becoming the gateway to the Internet. To win in such a fast-paced and intensely competitive environment, the company had to move with speed and do a superb job of satisfying consumers. Decision-making would have to occur at the lowest possible level to reflect the peculiarities of the local markets while leveraging the power of Nokia’s diverse people, its brand, its financial resources, and its technology and design expertise. Collaboration between locals and headquarters and among multiple cultures and partners was paramount. Nokia conducted extensive interviews with people inside and outside the company, including partners and suppliers, to understand how Nokia was perceived and how it might have to change. That research informed a number of actions and renewed the focus on Nokia’s culture and, in particular, its values. From Paper Mill to Conglomerate to Global Brand Nokia, headquartered in Espoo, near Helsinki, Finland, is the world’s largest mobile handset manufacturer. It holds some 40 percent of the global device market as of the second quarter of 2008. It operates in 150 countries and had more than 117,000 employees, including NSN, as of late June 2008. It is the top-rated brand globally. Annual revenues for 2007 were $74. 6 billion (51. 1 billion euros). The company began in the late 1800s as a paper mill, then evolved into a diversified industrial company and was an early entrant in the mobile era in the 1980s. In the 1990s, CEO Jorma Ollila restructured the conglomerate to focus on mobile phones and telecommunications, and Nokia became the technology and market leader, starting first in Europe, then expanding to the United States and dozens of other 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa 1 developed and emerging economies, including China and India. In the early 2000s, Nokia was briefly challenged by Motorola and Samsung but was able to maintain and soon to increase the lead. In 2006, Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo (OPK, as he is known at Nokia) became CEO. Nokia’s strategy at that time was changed to c over both the mobile device market as well as services and software. In 2007, Nokia announced that it would become more like an Internet company. Transforming the Culture for the New Challenges As Nokia’s leaders pondered what would hold people together and enhance collaboration and speed across their large global company, they arrived at an answer—culture, of which values had long been a foundation. Values align people’s hearts and emotional energy and define how Nokia employees (â€Å"Nokians†) do business with each other and the rest of the world. Because Nokia’s existing values had been unchanged for more than a decade and research showed there was some ambivalence about them internally, the executive board, comprised of the CEO and about a dozen senior leaders, decided it was time to re-examine the values. OPK selected a team of people to create a process for doing so. The challenge to the team was to get all the people of Nokia intellectually engaged. In keeping with Nokia’s culture, the values would have to be the result of â€Å"the many† communicating with â€Å"the many. † Assigning this task was not trivial. It required that senior management be committed to live with the outcome. The values that emerged from the bottom up would have to be taken seriously and stick—or the organization would be seriously harmed. As the team got to work and explored the options, they determined that the best approach would be to combine high tech and high touch. The high-tech part of the values-creation process would be through the â€Å"Nokia Jam†Ã¢â‚¬â€using IBM’s Jamming technology that would allow all Nokians to engage in an online dialogue. The hightouch part would come through the use of the World Cafe methodology. The World Cafe methodology had sprung up in the mid 1990s to accommodate a large group of people from diverse disciplines and far-flung locations around the world who wanted to discuss issues of common interest. 2 That group was known as the Intellectual Capital Partners. To create an informal conversation among so many people, participants were divided into small groups seated around tables to discuss a given question. The groups would then repeatedly disperse and individuals would rotate to other tables, so ideas were disseminated, cross-pollinated and combined. As the conversations continued, facilitators compiled the ideas that emerged. The World Cafe methodology had been used in some small pockets within Nokia but had never been tried on a companywide scale. The concept was right, but it was impractical for all 50,000-plus Nokians to directly engage in a dialogue. So the idea emerged to have a subset of people from across Nokia get together to discuss Nokia values with a totally clean slate, as if they were recreating Nokia on the planet Mars. 2  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa A trip to Mars became the metaphor for assembling a cross-section of Nokians to participate in the World Cafe format and create the new values. Nokia’s Trip to Mars Nokia produced 5,000 elegant, visually exciting invitations that looked like boarding passes and airline tickets. These were sent in bundles through snail mail to people at various organizational levels and functional areas, including HR, in each of the business units. The instruction to the recipients was to find a way to randomly distribute their bundle to people in their offices and factories whom they would trust to have a discussion about Nokia’s values and culture. The recipients could also keep a ticket for themselves. Each ticket was in a â€Å"wallet† that described what Nokia was doing. It stated the current values and gave instructions for how to proceed, first by going to the Nokia Way web site to learn more and to register for a cafe in their local area. Participants also got two luggage tags, which they were supposed to discuss with their colleagues beforehand: a green one, which represented the values or ideas Nokia should be sure to take with it as the company moved forward, and a gray one, for things that could be left behind. Nokia held 16 cafes in 60 days around the world. More than 100 employees representing a cross-section of Nokia attended each one. The day of the cafe, small groups discussed a predetermined set of questions. One person served as host and stayed at the table while everyone else rotated to other tables, eventually returning to their original spots. People had taken the preparation very seriously and interviewed their teams ahead of time; some brought stacks of paper with various notes and ideas. As the discussions took place, ideas began to emerge and converge. Facilitators captured them graphically and in written scripts. The outputs from each cafe were then uploaded to the Nokia Way web site, and everyone at Nokia had access to it and was invited to comment. Several thousand more employees were able to participate in the dialogue through the means of the web site, giving their opinions and making suggestions and sometimes asking questions they hoped the next cafe would address. The sessions were also videotaped and edited into short video blogs that were so funny and engaging that they logged approximately 30,000 visits. The video blogs, too, elicited comments from fellow Nokians. The mix of people attending the cafes was just what Nokia’s executive team had hoped for: an assortment of people from offices and factories and from every functional area and organizational level. The cafe process allowed those diverse viewpoints to be heard. Engineers said Nokia needed greater tolerance for risk, for instance, while marketing people wanted more stability. In the process, it broke down biases and misconceptions and began to build social bonds. â€Å"Latin Americans were not the only people with emotions! one participant commented. Another said: â€Å"At first it felt like I couldn’t even find a common language with my Mexican  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa 3 marketing colleagues in Nokia. It was exciting when we found a common language and vision, and everybody was on board. † As the cafes took place, four values began to emerge. These were to be presented to the top 30 leaders at the final global cafe to be held in Helsinki. But instead of writing them on a PowerPoint slide, the values were presented in a way that was experiential. Representatives from each of the Nokia Way cafes were chosen to attend, and on day one of the Helsinki cafe, they got together and brainstormed how to make the values come alive. They recreated some of the skits, songs and visual aids their local cafes had generated to express the thoughts and feelings that underlay the values. The representatives from the Finnish cafes built a bird’s nest and a sauna in the hotel meeting room to represent Nokia’s passion for innovation (the bird’s nest was for the hatching of ideas, the sauna to represent the fire of passion). The next day, the group made their presentation to the senior leaders, and after some discussion, the four values that had came out of the cafe process were affirmed. OPK, who, like many Finnish people, was ordinarily quite reserved, was visibly moved by the intensity and sincerity of the feelings expressed. He felt as though he could hear the voices of Nokians around the world, and he, too, wholeheartedly supported the values. He asked that a representative present them to a group of 150 top leaders that was meeting three or four weeks later as part of the annual Strategy Sharing process. The group selected Ganeas Dorairaju, a native Malaysian who had been working in Finland for the past decade, to represent them. He stood in front of the top leaders and explained the values and the process by which they were created. At the end of it, the audience gave him a standing ovation. One leader wondered if the values could be turned into a catchy tune. Soon after, an employee teamed up with her husband and did just that! Nokia’s New Values3 Nokia’s new values and the explanation of them are as follows: n achieving together. Achieving together is more than collaboration and partnership. As well as trust, it involves sharing, the right mind-set and working in formal and informal networks. engaging You. For us, ‘engaging you’ incorporates the customer satisfaction value and deals with engaging all our stakeholders, including employees, in what Nokia stands for in the world. Passion for Innovation. Passion for innovation is based on a desire we have to live our dreams, to find our courage and to make the leap into the future through innovation in technology, ways of working and through understanding the world around us. Very Human. Being very human encompasses what we offer customers, how we do business, how we work together, and the impact of our actions and behavior on n n n 4  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa people and the environment. It is about being very human in the world—making things simple, respecting and caring. In short, our desire is to be a very human company. The world cafe process generated values that are different and more open-ended than most companies’. As leaders at Nokia note, the values require discussion. People might not know right away what â€Å"very human† means, but once people start to discuss it within the context of Nokia, it becomes very clear. People do, in fact, have those discussions. They use them to say, â€Å"Hold on a minute, is this engaging you? Are we meeting that value in what we’re doing? † ‘Very Human’ is closely associated with technology; it reflects the fact that Nokia has to develop devices that are easy to use. And ‘Achieving Together’ is about customers and suppliers as well as fellow Nokia employees. ‘Achieving Together’ also helps remove the fear associated with being an industry pioneer. The values are aspirational but also model what was already working well at Nokia. In India, for instance, where Nokia has built a dominant market position of some 75 million subscribers in a very short time, the values were evident before they had been articulated, which likely influenced the input of the three cafes conducted in that country. One of the key factors that drove business success in India was the distribution system, which Nokia and its business partner, ATL, built from scratch when large consumer electronics retailers declined to carry mobile phones because of their low margins. Working together to find an alternative, Nokia and ATL hit on the idea to mimic the small (sometimes just 5 x 5 feet) kiosks that are found in villages across India from which vendors sell fruits and vegetables. They recruited individuals interested in running their own kiosks, trained them and ensured they would have products in the right quantities and at the right margins for those vendors to make a living. The Nokia team wanted to be sure that whatever arrangement they designed would benefit Nokia, ATL and the individual mobile phone vendors. That way, they would Achieve Together. The Nokia team in India—a mix of native Indians and technology and other experts from such far-flung Nokia locations as Finland, China and Indonesia—collaborated in listening to and observing people in various parts of India to understand their needs. Their approach was collaborative and Very Human. As a member of the leadership team in Nokia India explains, â€Å"One thing that Nokia prides itself on is that it is not arrogant. That comes across in every interaction. People never take for granted that they know everything. Because of conditions in parts of the country, Indians needed a mobile device that was dustproof and didn’t slip out of sweaty hands. They wanted a device that could be an alarm clock, radio and flashlight (or â€Å"torch†) as well as a phone. Nokia’s Passion for Innovation drove the team to find the technology solutions Indians needed. Nokia found that the process of creating values itself had merit. It allowed the many to connect with the many and demonstrated that heterarchy was more important than hierarchy. It captured Nokia employees’ understanding of the challenges they were facing personally and organizationally and their desire to create an organization  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa 5 that could meet them. It also reflected the spirit of bonding across cultures, functions and silos. As a member of the executive team says, â€Å"It is proof that a strong global corporate culture is possible. † The next order of business was to track the effectiveness of the values. To that end, the company has created a number of vehicles. Nokia includes values in its annual employee survey, â€Å"Listening to You,† and made them a key part of the change pulse survey it undertook during a recent reorganization. The suggestion arose to have pictures to demonstrate the new values, so the company staged an employee competition for photos that represent the values. Photos were posted online, and employees voted for their favorite. The top prize went to a quality manager in one of Nokia’s Chinese factories, who got to accompany Nokia’s brand people on a photo shoot in Paris. Given the quality of Nokia’s artistic skills, it was a choice prize. More than 22,000 employees took part in the competition, and Nokia has a rich bank of photographs to represent the new values. Nokians now are learning to create 90-second films that tell how values are making a difference in their work. These films can be uploaded to a video hub where fellow employees can view them. As of October 2008, more than 60 films had been uploaded to the internal VideoHub, and they have had over 50,000 viewings. 6  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa Teaching Notes Global companies require the alignment of their employees and partners not only on the strategy itself but also on the values needed to make that strategy successful. Values reflect and shape corporate culture. A shift in strategy often requires a shift in values. The Nokia case explores the connection between values, strategy, and the collaboration, innovation, speed and flexibility that are required for Nokia to succeed. Nokia is a very large company, with one of the highest brand recognitions in the world. It has the rare ability to design a new strategy and reshape its culture to deliver the strategy at the same time. The Nokia case describes Nokia’s social process for achieving alignment on values—a component of corporate culture—across geographies, silos and hierarchical levels. The learning objectives of the case are as follows: n note NOTE note Instructor’s Note Distribute only pages one through sixNOTE case study document to of this students. A PDF version of this document is also available online for your convenience. To learn the social process of engaging multicultural, multi-country employees in generating and agreeing on a set of values. To concretely demonstrate one way to build a workforce receptive to crossfunctional, cross-cultural teaming that can therefore make fast, high-quality decisions and increase the organization’s flexibility. To probe and deepen understanding of the relationships between strategy, culture, values and business outcomes. To encourage participants to brainstorm alternative ways to engage employees and accomplish similar results. To challenge participants to think critically about whether Nokia’s approach to creating values can apply to other business issues. n n n n The case is appropriate for graduate students in higher-level HR courses and for HR professionals at the highest levels.  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa 7 The classroom instructor might want to pose the following questions for discussion: 1. Why did company management choose values as a foundation for taking the culture to the next level? Nokia needs collaboration because it must routinely leverage its technology platforms, global brand and manufacturing footprint, experience base in multiple countries, and in-depth knowledge of consumers and the marketplace. While individuals must have some degree of freedom to act, they cannot know everything or understand in depth all of the implications of various trade-offs that must be made in the ordinary course of business. As people come together to exchange information and make trade-offs, they must also have a common glue to hold them together. Values can be a uniting factor; they can be the glue. In the process of creating values, discussions touch on other topics, such as strategy, management style, opportunities, competition, priorities, and the inadequacies of organizational structure and reward systems. Values can fill in the gaps or provide what formal mechanisms miss—for instance, they can support open communication outside of formal reporting relationships. 2. What is your view about the four values the cafe approach produced? Note that they are few in number—four instead of 12. They describe the kind of company many people would like to work for. They can be applied in the real world and are relevant to any job function or organizational level. They are in keeping with requirements for Nokia to succeed. They capture the sense of higher purpose and human dignity people long for in their personal and work lives and therefore encourage positive, authentic behavior. 3. How do Nokia’s values compare with those of your company? Graduate students can compare with a company they are familiar with or one the instructor presents. One option is to look at the values of a competitor—for instance, Apple, given that Apple is now going into the cell phone business. Consider whether people â€Å"connect† with the values, or whether the values are too abstract or too generic to be meaningful. How many are there? Are they actually practiced? Do they relate to company strategy? 4. How will Nokia’s values help execute the change in business strategy? The process and content of the values build trust, making people more receptive to information and ideas from elsewhere in the company. Information flows are likely to be nonhierarchical. Nokia should therefore be able to innovate and respond to change better and quicker. Take, for example, the value â€Å"achieving together. † This value is now fully socialized at all levels in the company. It gives a lower-level person the freedom to call a higher-level person for collaboration and expertise where needed. By reinforcing this behavior, the values help break hierarchies, silos and other barriers. 8  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa 5. concisely define the behaviors that were stimulated through the cafe approach at Nokia. What information channels got opened? Individuals took time to think about the company and how it does and should operate. They expressed their ideas, knowing their ideas could have wide visibility and make a difference. Before attending the cafes, people sought input from their peers. Participants listened to the views from many other employees. They sought commonality among the viewpoints. They experimented with creative ways to express their ideas. Employees became excited about the company and renewed their emotional commitment to it. Information flowed across boundaries. Because participation in the value creation process required no special knowledge, every participant was on equal footing, including newer employees, whose fresh ideas and energy got released. Thus, information flowed up even from some of the youngest Nokians, who represent the future of Nokia. 6. What’s your evaluation of the social process for engaging thousands of employees across the globe in defining the values? It was an efficient way to engage a broad, diverse set of people. The ready acceptance of the values (the output) indicates that the process was effective. It mirrored the patterns of communication and cooperation in a matrix organization. 7. What does Nokia’s cafe process say about its senior leaders? The senior leaders were secure about their role in the company and heir personal power. Once they committed to the process, they had to be prepared to accept the output. They also had confidence in Nokia employees. They were willing to â€Å"let go. † Senior management of any company should not feel insecure about the outcome of the bottom-up process. Because the process is open, it has built-in sincerity. People want to do the right thing. Also, broad participation is a check against a few radicals who want their way. 8. If Nokia were to use the cafe process again in 2010, what change in values would you anticipate? The outstanding goal of this process is to produce a set of values that are enduring. If the company were to do it again, the values themselves might not be very different, but they might be deepened or tweaked because people will have examples of how they have been used, or not used. The exception is if Nokia were to make a 180-degree change in strategy direction. Then some new values might be needed. If such new values did not emerge through this process, consider whether the strategy shift will succeed. Also consider how the outcome might be different if some regions are far more successful than others going forward, and how working relationships might be affected. Consider, too, the values of younger people who will be entering the workforce around that time.  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa 9 The instructor needs to press participants on how concrete the values are, how engaged the people are, what are the pros and cons of having values cascade upward, why this process generates energy, and how management can measure whether the values are indeed being practiced and having the intended results. The instructor can jumpstart discussion by dividing the class into eight small groups and having each group discuss one of Nokia’s four values, addressing the following: If the group participants were the leaders, how would they ensure that the value takes deep roots and builds a superb social fabric while at the same time improving business results? The instructor may choose to broaden the discussion to explore issues around new theories of organization and management, such as Enterprise 2. 0 and the use of Web 2. technologies that promise to overcome the bureaucracy associated with hierarchy and make the organization more agile and productive. 4 What some people refer to as Enterprise 2. 0 or depict as a flat organization includes the direct exchange of information among people at lower organizational levels and bottom-up decisionmaking. Nokia’s value-creation process is representative of this new way of engaging employees and doing business. The following questions c an prompt discussion: n Is there a negative side to mass participation, or connecting the many to the many? Lack of knowledge or commitment can cause people to generate bad ideas that nonetheless gain momentum. Senior management will appear to be heavy-handed if it derails or ignores them. The major risk is when management is not trusted by employees, is erratic or seen as incompetent. Under those conditions, this process will fail. If that failure gets the attention of the board, which in this day and age is likely, the board might well insist on a change in management. Good management should learn from anything that comes in that does not match their expectations. In what situations, or for what issues, does a cafe-type approach work or not work? Any time a new leader is starting to take charge of a unit or company, cafe-type approach is a fantastic tool to energize and align people and hear what’s on their minds. This could be used to generate ideas around any particular topic—for instance, to gather ideas for coping with the global financial crisis. Do you think employees want to weigh in on all issues? In this knowledge worker society, tapping everybody’s brain and energy can create momentum and be a competitive advantage. People want to participate. There may be some managers who don’t want to hear what people have to say. The blockage tends to be from management, not the employees. n n 10  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa n How do you know if the masses are generating a better or more authentic solution than a smaller number of experts? The adoption and application will reveal the validity of the solution. Let’s remind everybody that â€Å"experts† are also employees. All experts can learn from the front lines. Experts also can be narrow. An open process will surface those conflicts in point of view. In a fast-moving, highly volatile environment, it is hugely important to draw those conflicts to the surface and get them resolved. Even if the outcome is not better in some absolute sense, it will be better accepted. to what extent does engagement affect business performance? How can you measure it? An employee audit or pulse survey are common tools to measure engagement as well as perception of business performance beyond financial numbers. Have people shown more commitment? In this case, the value of achieving together might be evident in shorter decision cycle times. n  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa 11 For Further reading Lawler, E. E. III, & Worley, C. G. (2006). Built to change: How to achieve sustained organizational effectiveness. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Shirkey, C. (2008). Here comes everybody: The power of organizing without organizations. New York: Penguin. Charan, R. (2007). Know-how: The 8 skills that separate people who perform from those who don’t. New York: Crown Business. McGregor, D. (2005). The human side of enterprise. New York: McGraw-Hill. Hamel, G. (2007). The future of management. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business School Press. Goldsmith, M. (2007). What got you here won’t get you there: How successful people become even more successful. New York: Hyperion. 12  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa endnotes 1 For more on the history of Nokia, see â€Å"The Story of Nokia† on the Nokia web site, www. nokia. com/a4303001. For more on the World Cafe methodology, see www. theworldcafe. com /reading. htm. Nokia’s earlier values are as follows: 2003 n Customer Satisfaction n Respect n Achievement n Renewal 1992 n Customer Satisfaction n Respect of Individual n Achievement n Continuous Learning 3 4 For more on theories of organization, see, for example, Andrew P. McAfee. (2006, Spring). Enterprise 2. 0: The dawn of emergent collaboration. MIT Sloan Management Review.  © 2009 Society for Human resource Management. Geraldine Willigan, MBa 13 SHrm members can download this case study and many others free of charge at www. shrm. org/education/hreducation/pages/c ases. aspx. If you are not a SHrm member and would like to become one, please visit www. shrm. org/join. 1800 Duke Street Alexandria, VA 22314-3499

Commentary for Plato,s allegory of the cave Essay

Commentary for Plato,s allegory of the cave - Essay Example Being a Greek philosopher of his era, Plato adopts a common way to narrate the story through series of conversations between Socrates – his mentor, and Glaucon – a student. In the dialogue, Socrates instructs his student to imagine a cave, where prisoners are held. They are all chained and immobile. They can only see in front of them where there is a wall. There is a fire behind the prisoners which they cant see. There is also a passage where they can walk. The prisoners carry objects with different shapes and figures. They are like puppeteers, behind a window-dressing, because they can see the flickering reflection of the object they carry on the wall and believe that they are real. However the shadowy representations are not the real image. The plot offers a twist. Socrates is to free one of the prisoners from his chains, so that he can turn around and see that the images which his fellow prisoners believe to be true are only reflections produced from the fire behind them. The liberated prisoner will also be allowed to exit the cave. The light of the sun to which his eyes are not accustomed may blind him. Now in the outside world, he can see different dimensions like the reflection of his image in the water. The prisoner now learns how wrong his fellow cave companions were. However, even if the enlightened attempts to explain the true nature of the shadowy images and the real ones, the other prisoners will not believe him, because they dont hold any other perceptions of the world in order to compare the two. One of Platos predominant ideas (and of Socrates too) is that of the form of things. This is explained in the allegory with the help of reflections. The world consists of forms – ideal and perfect, however people can only filter them as reflections through their eyes. Thus, human beings can grasp half images of these reflections

Article Assignments Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Article Assignments - Essay Example The Roe v Wade accused some courts of violating the right to privacy because they were violating this right; a woman had the right to terminate a pregnancy if she wanted according to Roe v Wade. The role of the judiciary when it comes to policy making will also be looked at, as well as the pros and cons. Edmund Burke was an Irish statesman and also a political philosopher. He is greatly remembered for his speech on the idea of representation in Congress. Edmund criticized the British Parliament as being inhabited by a congress of ambassadors from different and hostile interests. He urged that electors were supposed not to vote by numbers, but to vote accordingly. Edmund held that a representative owed his supporter or his constituents’ unbiased opinion, his mature judgment and should have an enlightened judgment. He held that a representative was supposed to work to educate his constituents on matters regarding public policy, and was against individualism. The wishes of the constituents ought to have great weight on their representatives; however, the representative should also not work to the pleasures of his constituents, because he is going to be answerable to that. Rather, he or she should use reason and judgment. He continues to argue that the parliament should deliberate assembly of one nation, with one interest; that of a whole nation, but should never serve local purposes or prejudices, but the general fold. To his supporters, he told them that when they choose a member to represent them, he was not to be a member to represent them only, but rather to represent the whole nation. He told them that their representatives were required to act towards the betterment of the whole nation, and not their pleasure. Edmund burke told his supporters that they should remember that they are members of a rich commercial city, which is part of a rich commercial nation which itself part of a great empire. He argued that the diverse interests

Coursework 2 Report Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Coursework 2 Report - Dissertation Example This social media suit has certain tools which will assist them to enhance the Facebook pages, and it will also permit L’Oreal to evaluate the transactions of the salons who have taken the distributorship of L’Oreal. These salons can also launch dynamic videos on their Facebook page, register appointments, bookings, and information sharing on behalf of the company (Thomson â€Å"Is B2B Social Media Marketing behind B2C"). The company also supplied their distributors and suppliers with various educational resources to enhance their social marketing strategy, and as a token of motivation each distributors were also given an advertisement credit of $25. The company received strong response from around 21 million supply points around the world (â€Å"L’Oreal, Salon Campaign by Buddy Media"). They were also successful in reaching out to more than 6000 salons and approximately 1.7 million clients (â€Å"B2B and B2C Brands Discovered the Value of Social Media marketi ng in 2012"). Social Media Networking for B2C Segment L’Oreal is even more active on social media for its B2C segment because this is for attracting the retail customers. The social media marketing vice president of L’Oreal said in an interview that L’Oreal is a big company, with different product lines, so social media chosen for every product line is based on the nature of the product and target customers. In terms of social media resources, L’Oreal experiments with various channels such as Instagram, Pinterest and even Tumblr. However, the major channel for social media marketing is still Facebook and Twitter obviously because of its huge user base. Facebook is a partner with L’Oreal for its social media marketing. Twitter is however, still a guide of innovation, and brands like Maybelline are being promoted on Twitter. Georges Edouard Dias, the vice president of the digital business at L’Oreal, said in his interview in â€Å"Marketing W eek†, that in order to understand the needs and requirements of the customers, the company should have to reach out to their target customers through various means of communication (Handley â€Å"Q&A: Georges-Edouard Dias, L'Oreal†). He said that they get approximately 250,000 posts for their brands every day. The company also uses social media for cross selling in various countries like China. Beauty has been always regarded as a component of social conversation. YouTube plays a significant part in this context, where women get to see how the products are used or put on. The video content is being optimized regularly for this purpose. The company has also segregated the video division, which concentrates on social media marketing videos on YouTube (Edwards â€Å"L'Oreal Social Media Chief Rachel Weiss Tells Us Why She's Bored of Pinterest†). Work Cited â€Å"B2B and B2C Brands Discovered the Value of Social Media Marketing in 2012."  Brafton Editorial. Brafto n, Incorporated, 28 Dec 2012 Web. 5 June 2013. â€Å"L’Oreal, Salon Campaign by Buddy Media"  International Advertising Bureau UK. International Advertising Bureau, 23 Aug 2012. Web. 5 June 2013. Edwards, Jim. â€Å"L'Oreal Social M

Wk2 Journal Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Wk2 Journal - Assignment Example The company relies on its brand reputation to market its internet services. To meet the needs of different consumers, the company has various subscriptions depending on the type of data connection a customer wants (Lamb, Hair & McDaniel, 2008). With shops in almost all major cities in the US (Place), customers can be sure to get internet connections whenever they want. Additionally, customers can visit the shops during working hours or call the company’s customer care lines for home connections. Verizon Wireless acknowledges that pricing (Price) is a critical factor in marketing and as such, the company provides internet connections at varying rates depending on the needs of consumers and their financial capability. In so doing, the company targets both low income earners and high-income earners. Pricing is also made with consideration of the company’s competitors (Lamb, Hair & McDaniel, 2008). Equally, the company promotes (Promotion) this service through advertising on TV, radio and billboards. This ensures that it remains competitive in the market and that potential customers are reminded, continuously, of the company’s

BUSINESS ETHICS PAPER WALMART (UNCLASSIFIED Essay

BUSINESS ETHICS PAPER WALMART (UNCLASSIFIED - Essay Example This essay will discuss Wal-Mart’s success as an organization and its ethical problems and conflict with the rest of the consuming public. We will also discuss other complaints and so-called human rights violations committed by the company, and how this huge-sized company is able to proceed working and operating for its consumers with its everyday low price strategy. Success comes in many forms, and not without sacrifices and a price. For Wal-Mart, this happens in the course of suits, public hatred at times, and more and more complaints coming from the very core of its business, the public. How Wal-Mart overcame and reached to where it is now is the subject for this paper. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is a success story as we all know. Its accelerated rate of growth is phenomenal that after it opened its first variety store in 1945 and successive opening of other variety stores, discount store, supercenters, and supermarkets, the family of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton has now a combined fortune of about $90 billion. (Ferrell, Fraedrich, & Ferrell, 2008, p. 394) In its website, the story is told that Wal-Mart began when it opened its first discount store in Rogers, Ark. in 1962. Five years later, there were 24 Wal-Mart stores ringing up $12.6 million in sales. In 1972, when it opened its stocks to the public in the New York Stock Exchange, it had 276 stores in 11 states. (Wal-Mart History Timeline, 2008) Wal-Mart Stores comes in three sizes: discount stores, which are about 100,000 square feet; supercenters, which are about 187,000 square feet; and the neighborhood markets, which are about 43,000 square feet in size. (Ferrell et al., 2008, p. 293) Wal-Mart’s critics include feminists, human rights activists, anti-sprawl, activists, and labor unions. The controversies are its alleged â€Å"not-so good† treatment of its employees, suppliers, the environment, and the overall economic impact on communities. One major issue: Wal-Mart has engaged in

Sex, Lies and Conversation Article Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Sex, Lies and Conversation Article - Essay Example Particularly, girls and women usually face each other in a direct manner, anchoring their eyes on the interlocutor’s face. Unlike women, man and boys, regardless of age, tend to sit at angles to each other. Moreover, they typically do not fix on each other’s eyes but rather look elsewhere around. Only periodically do they glance at their interlocutors. At the same time, as Tannen observes, males are evidently attuned to each other, which becomes clear as one sees their echoing movements. Misunderstandings arise because women often think that if men do not face them directly or face away, they do not listen or are unwilling to talk. For instance, one girl found herself really frustrated once she started talking to her boyfriend. Whenever she told him she would like to talk, he would just lie down on the room’s floor, put his hands over the face, close his eyes, and listen to her while staying in such position. For him, that obviously meant that he was super concen trated as normally he would rather look around his room and could be distracted easily. As he lied down on and closed his eyes, he was able to follow the conversation in a more effective manner (Tannen). Another example is a conversation observed by Tannen between two boys in the 10th grade. The boys were sharing their problems. Their position was as follows: sprawled across chairs, keeping their bodies parallel, looking straight ahead and rarely glancing at each other, the boys â€Å"looked as if they were riding in a car, staring out the windshield† (Tannen). Of course, it is hard to imagine two girls sharing about their problems and feelings in a similar physical position. Next, there is a difference in how men and women focus on topics while talking. While for men it is typical to change topics frequently, women like to talk a lot about one topic. Tannen observed that while the second grade girls were telling each other stories about people they were familiar with, boys o f this age jumped from one topic to another: teased each other, spotted things in the room, told jokes, and talked about finding a game to play. Similarly, the girls in the sixth grade would talk at length about some problem (a mutual friend, for example), whereas boys at this age talked about as many as 55 topics, different from each other and each lasting just for a few turns. As a result, for women it is unnatural to switch topics in a conversation and they think men do not listen if they tend to change topics. Moreover, there is a clear difference as to how men and women perceive the role of talk. For a male, a talk is a means of showing his independence and maintaining his status, since men’s perception of the world is hierarchical. Men feel as if they were on guard to protect their statuses and to prevent being pushed around or pushed down. Tannen writes that for a man a talk is a way to establish a position in a group so that the one who is talking is perceived as the one who has power. On the contrary, women perceive talk as a way to form and maintain intimate relationships and closeness. Specifically, a conversation is like a cornerstone of friendly relationship for women. It is an instrument to keep close and see that you are loved. Therefore, men feel challenged to talk at public more than women. At the same time, women prefer to talk more at home where they feel relaxed, free from fear of being misunderstood, pushed away, sounding offensive

Puritan tiger beetle controversy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Puritan tiger beetle controversy - Essay Example upy beach regions, has been classified as endangered species because of reduced population level of the insects as a result of development along the beaches. Therefore, legislations have been passed in order to promote preservation of Puritan Tiger Beetle in their ecosystems, something that has not been received positively by people with economic interests along the beaches. This essay will discuss the controversy surrounding the preservation of Puritan Tiger Beetle and further explain actions that should be taken to effectively preserve the insects. To start with, the Puritan Tiger Beetles are insects with unique characteristics associated with the name of the insect. According to the Wildscreen Arkive, Puritan Tiger Beetles, whose scientific name is Cicindela puritan, are insects that prey on invertebrate organisms found along the beaches their long legs, tactics that can be associated to those used by tigers to capture their prey (n.d). The insects have brown- like color on their outermost covering and a blue-like color on their lower side (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2013). In addition, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service states that the length of Puritan Tiger Beetles is estimated to be less than half-inch (2013). Of more concern, the distribution of Puritan Tiger Beetles is limited to only two regions namely â€Å"Chesapeake Bay in Maryland and along the Connecticut River in New England† (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2013). This signifies the extent to which the distribution of Puritan Tiger Beetle species is limited. Secondly, the Puritan Tiger Beetles represent one of the most endangered species existing on earth to date. Entomologists from different parts of the world have demonstrated that insects are capable of inhabiting ecosystems that are distributed in different parts of the world. However, this has not been the case for the Puritan Tiger Beetles that inhabit small ecosystems found in the U.S. According to Wheeler, Maryland remains to be the

Postmaster Brown Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Postmaster Brown - Essay Example However, the public did not send much airmail because it was expensive, and neither the Post Office nor the airmail carriers made money" (Freeman, 2003). Improvements made by postmaster Brown were radical. He had convened the conference "to get airline operators to agree to a consolidation of the various airmail routes into three or four coast to coast networks operated by the best equipped and most financially stable companies" (ecommcode2.com, 1999). It was United Airlines that kept the northern airmail routes; Transcontinental and Western Airlines (TWA) operated in the middle of the US; and American Airways flew across the southern part. Additionally Brown stripped all the benefits for air mail transportation and created incentives for passenger flights. Unfortunately, Brown fall into political disfavor when the new democratic president Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected. In 1993 charges were made against the postmaster fro collusion, illegal administration and unfair mail awards. Small aviation companies, which were pushed out of the business complained along with Senator Hugo Black who investigated the air mail case, were accusing Brown for improper use of power he gained. The conclusion was Brown has made it so, that air mail business has gone completely to friends of the Hoover administration. Nevertheless, they could not charge Brown for incompetence or unsuccessful policy.

History of Fast Food Essay Example for Free

History of Fast Food Essay Fast food has been a growing phenomenon for since its introduction in 20th century. The changes in American culture pushed the fast food industry into a staggering growth arena and have changed the way consumers purchase and eat forever. The fast-food industry that now extends throughout the world has its roots in the United States. Fast-food restaurants are often regarded as emblematic of a new global culture, but the industry has indisputably been shaped by its American origins. (Leidner 8). Fast Food has developed from being a convenience to a necessity, widened the financial gap and became an international phenomenon. The first drive-in restaurant, Royce Haileys Pig Stand in Dallas, Texas, was opened in 1921, and offered pulled pork BBQ and introduced Texas Toast. As one southern fan of Royce Hailey’s pig stand put it: â€Å"Folks went hog wild when the first Pig Stand opened in Dallas in 1921. Agile car hops leaped onto running boards of Model-Ts to deliver curb service to a generation on the go. It was the age of the automobile, and Pig Stands multiplied across America faster than you can say soooo-eeee. It took the Great Depression of the 30s to slow The Pig down. †(Sowa). Drive-in services were not very popular at this time because automobiles were expensive and few and far between during the Great Depression. Then nearly three decades later the drive-in restaurant enjoyed a degree of success during the 1950’s. Drive-ins celebrated the cultural importance of the automobile and Drive-in restaurants proved (to be the) most popular, places where carhops served customers directly in their parked automobiles (Young, and Young 29). This convenience which enabled people to order their food and eat it in the open air without having to unbuckle their seatbelts changed American fast food forever (Woloson). Car hops, as they were also called, became familiar congregation centers for teenagers as well† (Woloson). The rise of the fast food restaurant would not have been possible without constant changes in American culture. The 1950’s brought about American lifestyle changes. With the end of the war Americans had saved money and moved to the suburbs. For the first time in history middle class married women with women with children were entering the work force. â€Å"Married women comprised the majority of the growth in the female work force throughout the 1950s, and between 1940 and 1960 there was a 400 percent increase in the number of working mothers; by 1960, women with children under the age of eighteen accounted for nearly one-third of all women workers†(Coontz 161). The working women and the decrease of free time may be a direct contributor to the growth of the fast food industry. The development of an affordable automobile and the simultaneous governmental support of new road systems physically reinforced this cultural melding, enabling car owners, especially, to go to places they had never been before. There was a boom in the tourist industry in the 1950’s and 1960’s. The key to the expansion of tourism demand was the rise in disposable incomes in the 1950s and 1960s. (Beauregard 225). Travelers, who once went by rail, boat, or horse, were now moving faster by car. Consumers began to value things such as speed and convenience as part of their trips. Fast food restaurants began making their food faster and faster and Americans love the convenience of letting someone else do the cooking, especially when they are vacationing (Bijlefeld, and Zoumbaris 51). As travelers not only did they need affordable and reliable places to stay they needed quick, convenient, and inexpensive eateries. The need for fast, reliable, affordable, and convenient food, along with an increasing acceptance among Americans of more fast pace culture, led to the rise of the fast food industry. Fast food restaurants sprang up in both urban areas and along the nations highways in record numbers after the introduction of the fast food phenomenon known as McDonalds. â€Å"The first fast food restaurant (was) opened by the two McDonald brothers in 1937 in Pasadena, California. Their established restaurant had experienced high demand at specific times (for example, workers’ lunchtimes) and they responded with a circumscribed menu (burgers) and were able to serve large numbers at high speed and low price. The assembly line procedures, with food preparation and serving made into simple repetitive tasks, combined with a specialized division of labor for each stage, have been recognized as constituting the first ‘fast food factory’† (Beardsworth, and Keil 120). This enabled people to get their food faster and set the standards for the future of the fast food industry. As the McDonalds chain grew and other chains started to sprout up people began to accept the new culture of food service. The working-class food held largely in disrepute. The gaining widespread popularity of fast food made it a staple food in diets of many Americans diets. The most successful of these stands quickly multiplied, taking advantage of the growing popularity of this new fast food and applied industrial principles of standardization to its development. McDonald’s is considered the first fast food restaurant and recognized the potential of this relatively fast and simple food. The organization of McDonalds created standardized methods in its production. The history of White castle dates back to the 1920’s is seen as the first and most influential restaurant chain (â€Å"White Castle†). â€Å"White Castle is credited for beginning the franchise system that inspired many â€Å"(Woloson). White Castle set standards, began standardization of the cooking line, and created the first restaurant which duplicated the original. In retrospect it can be said that White Castle was the start and set high standards for all the other franchise restaurants in the United States. The hamburger fulfilled economic as well as cultural needs for inexpensive food. Although there was not a food shortage during the great depression food was expensive and affordable food options like the local hamburger stand was a blessing. By the end of 1930, White Castle had sold over 21 million hamburgers and then by the end of 1937, this number had increased to over 40 million (Woloson). Fast food began to make a steady incline towards the end of World War II. â€Å"Franchises were not unique to the 1950s; they had been around since the early decades of the twentieth century, patronized by a public increasingly used to and insistent upon the supposed reliability and trustworthiness of branded goods†(Woloson). White Castle, A W Root beer, and Howard Johnsons, were some of the first and most successful restaurant franchises. Although it took the ideals of postwar culture to wholly support the fast-food franchise it laid the foundations for the companies to make billions of dollars. In 1955 Ray A. Kroc, a Chicago Milkshake salesman, discovered the McDonald’s restaurant in California and saw a goldmine. He partnered with the McDonald’s brothers, opening 228 franchises by 1960. Kroc happily bought out the McDonalds’ shares of the company in 1961. Kroc, an incredible entrepreneur, wanted to make the customers to identify with the restaurant and make it seem homey. â€Å"By 1988, McDonald’s had opened its ten thousandth restaurant and today there are over 30,000 McDonald’s restaurants worldwide† (â€Å"History of Franchising†). â€Å"Krocs success lay in his approach not specifically to cooking individual food items, but in conceiving of his franchise operation in its entirety† (Woloson). The methods and success of McDonald’s Franchises have set a tone for the fast food industry. Although â€Å"White Castle was the first restaurant that encouraged carry-out for those customers on the go the restraint developed standard floor plans and architectural designs that could be easily duplicated† and set these standards for others in the industry (Woloson). McDonalds uniform restaurants, kitchens, dining rooms, and methods of standardized cooking techniques set this great restaurant apart and distinguish it from the other fast food restaurants. Ray Kroc had some competition with the introduction of popular fast food restaurants such as Taco Bell, Wendy’s, and Burger King. One may say ethnic food could be considered a genre for the fast food franchise system, Taco Bell originated in 1962 and was the first ethnic franchise restaurant, paving the way for many more. â€Å"Wendys, specializing in bigger, better, and more expensive hamburgers and introduced the first drive-thru windows at their restaurants, which were so popular that Burger King and McDonalds had to follow suit†(Woloson). As an industry fast food will continue to grow, change, and adapt to the needs of the culture around it. Expanding to international markets the fast food industry offers cultural acceptable products. â€Å"Multinational fast-food chains have now become household names, and in terms of sales and units tend to dominate national markets. Indeed, the industry is becoming more internationalized with brands like Burger King being bought by the British multinational Diageo; and McDonalds has recently bought a stake in Pret a Manger. However, some of the largest brands in this sector are still American-owned, such as McDonalds, KFC, Pizza Hut, and Wimpy†(Royle and Towers 3). One great concept is international fast food chains often support the local economy, buying local products, but sticking to the same well known recipes to get desired results. The fast food franchise of the 20th century has set and defined a world-renowned concept of the way people order, eat, and enjoy the food that they purchase. The fast food industry is one of enormous power and economic strength. Fast food restaurants represent Americas cultures and, in many ways, how other cultures strive to be like America.

Study On The Oriental School Of Economic Thought History Essay

Study On The Oriental School Of Economic Thought History Essay The oriental school of economic thought basically deals with the study of the origin of economic thought from various ancient societies including the Hindu, Hebrew, Indian, Roman, Greek, and Islamic societies. It has been observed that the main area looked into by the Hebrews and Hindus was based on agricultural economics and all this information was drawn from the writing of the pious law givers who were present at the time. These ancient writings consisted of ideas on various economic aspects such as: division of labour, cottage industries, forest and mines, trade and trading practices, concept of wealth, transport, banking and loans, etc. Some of the writers who also played a role in the development of this economic thought include Roman writers such as Cicero, Pliny Gato, Varro and Columella. During this period, and until the industrial revolution, economics was not a separate discipline but part of philosophy. Its evolution into a distinct discipline of study in the social sciences can be attributed greatly to these early writers. Roman law also developed the contract recognizing that planning and commitments over time are necessary for efficient production and trade. This large body of law was unified as the Corpus Juris Civilis in the 530s AD by Justinian, who was Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire. In Ancient India, Chulavamsa records that Parakramabahu of Sri Lanka had debased the currency of Ancient Sri Lanka in order to produce money to support this large scale infrastructure projects. Parakramabahu also pioneered free trade during his reign. Many of the topics discussed during these ancient times are still prevalent in modern economics, including discussions on the management of a solid and efficient economy and the ethics of economics. These ancient thoughts als o focused on issues of welfare, for instance, redistribution of wealth during a famine. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Ancient economic thought is very much wide and its study provides a broad basis for comparison of the ancient approach to economic issues as compared to issues arising in the modern world economies. The large number of ancient thinkers who contributed to this thought differed in beliefs and practices. Also, information on some of these ancient cultural-economic practices is very scanty and thus makes this enquiry into the oriental school of economic thought necessary so as to be able to get a better understanding of the underlying economic issues of both the past and present. JUSTIFICATION With the evolution of economics, many writers have come up with different theories about different areas in the subject. So as to be able to critically assess these different theories and understand the unity which connects us with the ancient times, knowledge on the origin of the early stages of economic thought is necessary for one to be able to take a well informed and unbiased stand on contentious economic issues arising today and hence the need for this study. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY To understand the principles and concepts of the oriental school of economic thought. To know the key contributors of ancient economic thought. To evaluate and criticize how the ancient societies carried out their economic activities. To find out the major contributions of the oriental school of thought to the body of knowledge that exists today. To get a clearer understanding of the position of economics as a distinct member of a group of social sciences. Ancient near East Economic organizations in the earliest civilizations of the Fertile Crescent were driven by the need to efficiently grow crops in the river basins. The Euphrates and Nile Valleys were homes to earliest examples of codified measurements written in base 60 and Egyptian fractions. Keepers of royal granaries and absentee Egyptian land owners reported in the Heganakht Papyri. Historians of this period note that the major tool of accounting for agrarian societies, the sales used to measure grain inventory, reflected dual religious and ethical symbolic meaning. The Erlenmeyer tablets give a picture of Sumerian production in the Euphrates valley around 2, 200 2, 100 B.C., and shows an understanding of the relationship between grain and labour inputs (valued in female labour days) and outputs and an emphasis on efficiency. Egyptians measured work output in man-days. The development of sophisticated economic administration continued in the Euphrates and Nile Valleys during the Babylonian Empi re and Egyptian Empires when trading units spread through the Near East within monetary systems. Egyptian fraction and base 60 monetary units were extended in use and diversity to Greek, early Islamic culture, and medieval cultures. By 1202 A.D, Leonardo Pisa Fibonacci use of zero and Vedic-Islamic numerals motivated Europeans to apply zero as an exponent, birthing modern decimals 350 years later. The city states of Sumer developed a trade market economy based originally on the commodity money of the shekel which was a certain weight measure of barley, while the Babylonians and their city state neighbours later developed the earliest system of economics using a metric of various commodities, which was fixed in a legal code. The early law codes from Sumer could be considered the first (written) economic formula, and had many attributes still in use in the current price system today, such as codified amounts of money for business deals (interest rates), fines in money for wrong doing, inheritance rules, laws concerning how private property is to be taxed or divided, etc. Ancient Greco-Roman world Some prominent classical scholars assert that relevant economic thought was based on metaphysical principles which are incommensurate with contemporary dominant economic theories such as neo-classical economics. However, several ancient Greek and Roman thinkers made various economic observations especially Aristotle and Xenophon. Many other Greek writings show understanding of sophisticated economic concepts. For instance, a form of Greshams law is presented in Aristophanes Frogs, and beyond Platos application of sophisticated mathematical advances influenced by the Pythagoreans in his appreciation of flat money in his Laws: (742 a-b) and in the pseudo-Platonic dialogue, Eryxlas. Bryson of Heraclea was a neo-platonic who is cited as having heavily influenced early Muslim economic scholarship. The influence of Babylonian and Persian thought on Greek administrative economics is present in the work of Greek historian Xenophon. Discussions of economic principles are especially present in his Oeconomicus, his biography of Cyrus the Great, Cyropaedia, Hiero and Ways and Means. Hiero is a minor work which includes discussion of leaders stimulating private production and technology through various means including public recognition and awarding of prizes. Ways and Means is a short treatise on economic development, and showed an understanding of the importance of taking advantage of economies of scale and advocated laws promoting foreign merchants. The Oeconomicus disc uses the administration of agricultural land. In the work, subjective personal value of goods is analyzed and compared with exchange value; Xenophon gives an example of a horse which may be of no use to a person who does not know how to handle it, but still has exchange value. In Cyropaedia, Xenophon presents what in hindsight can be seen as the foundation for a theory of fair exchange in the market which will result in the analysis of better fit or suitability to either party who wants to purchase the same item. Xenophon discusses the concept of division of labour, referencing specialized cooks and workers in a shoe making shop. Marx attributes to Cyropaedia the idea that the division of labour correlates to the size of a market. Roman law developed the contract recognizing that planning and commitments over time are necessary for efficient production and trade. Ancient India Chulavamsa records that Parakramabahu I of Sri Lanka had debased the currency of Ancient Sri Lanka in order to produce monies to support his large scale infrastructure projects. Parakramabahu I also pioneered free trade during his reign, a war was fought with Burma to defend free trade. Chanakya (c. 350 BC 275 BC) considered economic issues. He was a professor of Political Science at the Takshashila University of Ancient India, and later the Prime Minister of the Mauryan Emperor, Chandragupta Maurya. He wrote the Arthashastra (science of material gain). Many of the topics discussed in the Arthashastra are still prevalent in modern economics, including its discussions in the management of an efficient and solid economy. Chanakya also focuses on issues of welfare, for instance, redistribution of wealth during a famine and the collective ethics that hold a society together. The Arthashastra argues for an autocracy managing an efficient or solid economy. The qualities described are in effect that of a command economy. It discusses the ethics of economics and the duties and obligations of a king. Chanakya writes on the economic duties of a king: The king shall be ever active in the management of the economy. The root of wealth is economic activity and lack of it brings material distress. In the absence of fruitful economic activity, both current prosperity and future growth will be destroyed. A king can achieve the desired objectives and abundance of riches by undertaking productive economic activity. Ancient China Ideal and effective economic policy was long sort for in ancient China, one of the greatest early reformers being the Emperor Qin Shi Huang (r. 221 BC 210 BC), who standardized coin currency throughout the old warring states once he unified them under a strong central bureaucracy (which the Zhou dynasty had always lacked). However, one of the greatest reformists in China lived during the medieval Song dynasty (960 1279 AD), that being Chancellor Wang Anshi (1021 1086 AD). Wang Anshis political faction of the New Policies Group enacted a series of reforms that centered on military reform, bureaucratic reform and economic reform. The economic reforms included low cost loans for farmers who he considered the backbone of the Chinese economy in terms of production of goods and the greatest source of the land tax. Replacing the corvee labour service with a tax instead, he enacted government monopolies on crucial industries producing tea, salt, and wine, introduction of local militia to ease the budget spending on the official standing army of one million troops and the establishment of a Finance Planning Commission staffed largely by political loyalists so that his reforms could pass quickly with less time for conservatives to oppose it in court. Medieval Islamic World To some degree, the early Muslims based their economic analyses on the Quran (such as the opposition of riba, interest) and from Sunnah, the sayings and doings of Muhammad. Early Muslim thinkers, Al-Ghazali (1058 1111 A.D.) classified economics as one of the sciences connected with religion, along with metaphysics, ethics and psychology. Authors have noted, however, that this connection has not caused early Muslim economic thought to remain static. Persian philosopher Nasir al-Din-al-Tusi (1201 1274) presents an early definition of economics (what he calls Hekmat-e-madani, the science of city life) in discourse three of his ethics: the study of universal laws governing the public interest welfare: in so far as they are directed, through cooperation, toward the optimal (i.e. perfection). Many scholars trace the history of economic thought through the Muslim world, which was in a Golden Age from the 8th to 13th century and whose philosophy continued the work of the Greek Hellenistic thinkers and came to influence Aquinas when Europe rediscovered Greek philosophy through Arabic translation. A common theme among these scholars was the praise of economic activity and even self-interested accumulation of wealth. The influence of earlier Greek and Hellenistic thought on the Muslim world began largely when Abbasid Caliph al-Mamun, who sponsored the translation of Greek texts into Arabic in the 9th century by Syrian Christians in Baghdad. But already by that time numerous Muslim scholars had written on economic issues, and early Muslim leaders had shown sophisticated attempts to enforce fiscal and monetary financing, use of deficit financing, use of taxes to encourage production, use of credit instruments for banking, including rudimentary savings and checking of accounts, a nd contract law. The origins of capitalism and free markets can be traced back to Caliphate where the first market economy and earliest form of merchant capitalism took root between the 8th and 12th centuries, which some refer to as Islamic capitalism. A vigorous monetary economy was created on the basis of expanding levels of circulation of a stable high-value currency (the dinar) and the integration of monetary areas that were previously independent. Innovative new business techniques and forms of business organizations were introduced by economists, merchants and traders during this time. Such innovations included the earliest trading companies, credit cards, big businesses, contracts, bills of exchange, long distance, international trade, the first forms of partnerships and the earliest forms of credit, debt, profit, loss, capital (al-mal), capital accumulation (nama-al-mal), circulating capital, capital expenditure, revenue, cheques, promissory notes, trusts, startup companies, savings accounts, transactional accounts, pawning, loaning, exchange rates, bankers, money changers, ledgers, deposits, assignments, the double entry bookkeeping system, and lawsuits. MAIN FINDINGS After going through the history of the oriental school of thought in the previous section, the following economic aspects come out clearly as having been discovered and practiced by these early thinkers: The Concept of Production and Technology Ancient leaders stimulated private production and technology through various means including public recognition and awarding of prizes to successful inventors and producers. Economies of Scale Ways and Means was a short treatise on economic development written by Xenophon, which showed an understanding of the importance of taking advantage of economies of scale in production activity and advocated for laws promoting foreign merchants. Administration of Agricultural Land Agriculture was considered the most dignified occupation. In ancient India, the state took a leading part in developing agriculture and also demanded a fixed share of the gross produce. Price system The early law codes from Sumer were the first (written) economic formula, and had many attributes still in use in the current price system today, such as codified amounts of money for business deals (interest rates), fines in money for wrong doing, inheritance rules, laws concerning how private property is to be taxed or divided, etc. Grain and Labour Inputs Relationship The Erlenmeyer tablets gave a picture of Sumerian production in the Euphrates valley around 2, 200 2, 100 B.C., and showed an understanding of the relationship between grain and labour inputs (valued in female labour days) and outputs and an emphasis on efficiency in production. Output of Work The Egyptians measured work output in man-days. Monetary Units The Egyptian fraction and base 60 monetary units were extended in use and diversity to Greek, early Islamic culture, and medieval cultures. By 1202 A.D, Leonardo Pisa Fibonacci use of zero and Vedic-Islamic numerals motivated Europeans to apply zero as an exponent, birthing modern decimals 350 years later and hence the development of monetary units. Value Subjective personal value of goods was analyzed and compared with exchange value. Xenophon gave an example of a horse which may be of no use to a person who does not know how to handle it, but still has exchange value. Theory of Fair Exchange Xenophon presented what in hindsight could be seen as the foundation of a theory of fair exchange in the market which will result in the analysis of better fit or suitability to either party who wants to purchase the same item. Division of Labour Xenophon discussed the concept of division of labour, with reference to specialized cooks and workers in a shoe making shop who specialised in different tasks. Free Trade Parakramabahu I pioneered free trade during his reign, this is evident because a war was fought with Burma to defend free trade in ancient India. Welfare In India the leaders insisted on ensuring that the population as a whole has to be well looked after. For example, Chanakya focused on issues of welfare, for instance, redistribution of wealth during a famine and the collective ethics that held a society together. Standardized Coin Currency Emperor Qin Shi Huang of Ancient China, standardized coin currency throughout the old warring states after he unified them under a strong central bureaucracy. Low Cost Loans For Farmers In Ancient China Wang Anshis political faction of the New Policies Group enacted a series of reforms that centered on military reform, bureaucratic reform and economic reform. The economic reforms included low cost loans for farmers whom he considered to be the backbone of the Chinese economy in terms of production of goods and the greatest source of the land tax. Land Tax This was a source of revenue for the Ancient Chinese government from farmers, because during that period agriculture was the main driver of the economy. Fiscal and Monetary Financing The Muslim leaders enforced various policy measures including fiscal and monetary financing, use of deficit financing, use of taxes to encourage production and use of credit instruments for banking. Banking The early Muslim leaders had shown sophisticated attempts indlucing rudimentary savings and checking accounts, and contract law. Monetary Economy Between the 8th and 12th centuries, which some refer to as the period of Islamic capitalism, a vigorous monetary economy was created on the basis of expanding levels of circulation of a stable high-value currency (the dinar) and the integration of monetary areas that were previously independent of each other. SUGGESTIONS The social organization manifested by the ancient civilizations should be critically looked at and applied to solve some socioeconomic problems still present today, especially in the developing nations. The organization of government and formulation of policies during the ancient times leaves a lot to be admired. Governments of the modern economies should pick some of these values. The concept of politics being looked at separately from economics and policy formulation should be followed in todays modern economies for faster development and equality in the distribution of wealth. Welfare economics should be taken as seriously as it was taken in ancient times. For example, during periods of drought or famine, governments should not let particular groups of people suffer and instead they should distribute the available resources to the entire population. CONCLUSION Theres no question or doubt as to whether ancient economic philosophies are still in extensive use today. The modern economy has evolved over centuries to become what it is today. The study of the history of economic thought enables the student to appreciate the contributions various writers have made to development of economics as a discipline. Although ancient economic theories were sometimes unclear, contradictory, or presented in a rudimentary manner, they form the basis of economic analysis today. These theories are still being used today by the worlds largest and most complicated and sophisticated economies. BIBLIPGRAPHY Falgas, Matthew E.; Zarkadoulia, A. Effie, (2006). Arab Science in the Golden Age (750-1258) and Today. The FASEB Journal 20(10): 1581-1586. Hosseini, S. Hamid (2003). Contributions of Medieval Muslim Scholars to the History of Economic Thought and their Impact: A Refutation of the Schumpeterian Great Gap. S. Lowry (2003). Ancient Medieval Economics. In Biddle, Jeff E.; Davis, Jon B.; Samuels, Warren J.A Companion to the History of Economic Thought. Malden, MA: Blackwell pp. 11-27. Schumpeter, Joseph (1954). History of Economic Analysis. New York, Oxford University Press.

The Electronic Fuel Injection System Engineering Essay

The Electronic Fuel Injection System Engineering Essay The Electronic Fuel Injection system can be divided into three: basic sub -systems. These are the fuel delivery system, air induction system, and the electronic control system. The fuel delivery system consists of the fuel tank, fuel pump, fuel filter, fuel delivery pipe (fuel rail), fuel injector, fuel pressure regulator, and fuel return pipe. Fuel is delivered from the tank to the injector by means of an electric fuel pump. The pump is typically located in or near the fuel tank. Contaminants are filtered out by a high capacity in line fuel filter. Fuel is maintained at a constant pressure by means of a fuel pressure regulator. Any fuel which is not delivered to the intake manifold by the injector is returned to the tank through a fuel return pipe. The Air Induction System The air induction system consists of the air cleaner, air flow meter, throttle valve, air intake chamber, intake manifold runner, and intake valve. When the throttle valve is opened, air flows through the air cleaner, through the air flow meter (on L type systems), past the throttle valve, and through a well tuned intake manifold runner to the intake valve. Air delivered to the engine is a function of driver demand. As the throttle valve is opened further, more air is allowed to enter the engine cylinders. Mostly the L type EFI system measures air flow directly by using an air flow meter. The D type EFI system measures air flow indirectly by monitoring the pressure in the intake manifold. Electronic Control System The electronic control system consists of various engine sensors, Electronic Control Unit (ECU), fuel injector assemblies, and related wiring. The ECU determines precisely how much fuel needs to be delivered by the injector by monitoring the engine sensors. The ECU turns the injectors on for a precise amount of time, referred to as injection pulse width or injection duration, to deliver the proper air/fuel ratio to the engine. Basic System Operation Air enters the engine through the air induction system where it is measured by the air flow meter. As the air flows into the cylinder, fuel is mixed into the air by the fuel injector. Fuel injectors are arranged in the intake manifold behind each intake valve. The injectors are electrical solenoids which are operated by the ECU. The ECU pulses the injector by switching the injector ground circuit on and off. When the injector is turned on, it opens, spraying atomized fuel at the back side of the intake valve. As fuel is sprayed into the intake airstream, it mixes with the incoming air and vaporizes due to the low pressures in the intake manifold. The ECU signals the injector to deliver just enough fuel to achieve an ideal air/fuel ratio of 14.7:1, often referred to as stoichiometry. The precise amount of fuel delivered to the engine is a function of ECU control. The ECU determines the basic injection quantity based upon measured intake air volume and engine rpm. Depending on engine operating conditions, injection quantity will vary. The ECU monitors variables such as coolant temperature, engine speed, throttle angle, and exhaust oxygen content and makes injection corrections which determine final injection quantity. WHAT ONE HAS TO DO TO CONVERT CARB TO EFI IN CASE OF A CAR Heres what is required for complete conversion EFI head and intake manifold with everything still attached. Crossover tube, MAF sensor and air box Fuel tank with fuel pump Entire wiring harness from the car. EFI computer EFI distributor EFI coil/igniter EFI gauge set in the dash Knock sensor, main relay Anything else that was attached to the wiring harness Other things which are also essential LC Engineering EFI Pro cam Fel Pro head gasket set Fluids These are the steps Out with the old Air cleaner off valve cover off Head off Head on the bench with the intake removed. EFI intake and EFI head Carb head and EFI components installed Certain small things that we found were different were: There was some sort of smog device bolted to where the EFI fuel filter goes. It isnt used with EFI and was discarded as were the air tubes that go above the header. The high pressure fuel line has to be either made or salvaged. The vacuum hose for the brake booster is different between carb and EFI. The upper radiator hose is different between carb and EFI The good thing is that two of the plugs that go into the computer can be disconnected and are only go to the engine. So, if you unplug these from the intake, then pull the intake intact. The third plug has the power and other things going to it for the EFI. All game is to take your time and check each wire coming out of the computer. There seems to be only 3 components outside of the normal EFI stuff.   The main EFI relay located in the interior fuse panel under the drivers side dash. The circuit opening relay located under the passenger side dash. This is controlled by the MAF sensor and turns on and off the fuel pump. It is also tied into the main EFI relay. The solenoid resistor is connected to a switched power source (IGN) and goes to the fuel injectors. This is located in the engine compartment passneger side. Pretty much, the only thing that is not straight forward is how these three components are wired.   Mathematical Formulation; Top of Form Most EFI systems have a standard set of sensors. These include: The  Barometric Pressure (BARO) Sensor, which provides the ECU with the atmospheric air pressure reading. The  Engine Coolant Temperature (ECT) Sensor, which provides the ECU with the engines current operating temperature. This is important because fuel vaporization varies for different engine temperatures. A cold engine requires more fuel while a hot engine requires less. The  Intake Air Temperature (IAT) Sensor, which the ECU needs to take into account when determining pulse duration. The  Mass Air Flow (MAF) Sensor, which is a tube positioned after the air filter in the air intake duct. The MAF sensor has a fine platinum wire that spans across the tube. The wire is heated by electrical current to maintain a constant temperature above ambient. The air flow past the wire cools the wire and more current is required to maintain the constant temperature. Thus, the amount of current required to maintain the constant temperature indicates the air flow rate. The air flow rate is divided by RPM to determine the pulse duration. The  Manifold Absolute Pressure (MAP) Sensor, which uses manifold vacuum to measure engine load. An EFI system that uses a MAP sensor does not require a MAF sensor as it can use the input from the MAP sensor to determine the required pulse duration. The  Oxygen Sensor (O2S), which is used to measure the amount of oxygen that is not consumed during combustion. This is important for the correct operation of the catalyst converter and is used for emissions control rather than performance or economy. The O2S is located in the exhaust system and is an after-the-fact measure of the air/fuel ratio. Too much unburnt fuel in the exhaust indicates a lean mixture while too little oxygen indicates a rich mixture. The  Crankshaft Position (CKP) Sensor, which is important for timing purposes as it tells the ECU which spark plug to fire and which injector to open at any given point in the  Otto cycle. The  Throttle Position (TP) Sensor, which is another important sensor as the throttle position and the rate of change in the throttle position indicates the what the diver wants the car to do. Top of Form The modifications we can perform on an  OEM EFI  are somewhat limited because the OEM ECU is  not reprogrammable. However, there are a number of things we learned that we mechanical engineers do to modify the EFI system without having to reprogram the ECU. We can  increase the fuel pressure  as this is one reading that the ECU of a normal efi kit used in the cultus eg does not take into account it assumes the fuel pressure is a constant 30 psi(an estimated value given by Pak Suzuki ) above intake manifold pressure; we can  intercept the pulse signal  form the ECU, alter it using input from the manifold pressure and send it to the injector; we can  increase the injector nozzle size; or   increase the number of injectors. However, your best option, performance wise, is to install an  aftermarket ECU. In the next few pages well discuss each of these options. Bottom of Form Bottom of Form Top of Form There are a few important factors that our study shows that must be taken into account when  installing an efi engine. These are: the  pulse duration  of the injectors and the  duty cycle. The injector pulse duration is the amount of time that the injector is held open so that it can inject fuel into the combustion chamber. The pulse duration is controlled by the engine control unit (ECU) and is dependent on various sensors in the electronic fuel injection (EFI) system. The longer the pulse duration, the more fuel is added to the air/fuel mixture. The amount of fuel required at any one time varies by the amount of  air flow, the  air density, the  engine load, and the  engine temperature. Therefore the pulse duration will vary. However, there is only a limited amount of time that the injector can be held open at each revolution of the engine. This amount of time is reduced as  engine speed  increases. For example, at 600 RPM the available time is 0.1 seconds (60 seconds in a minute divided by 600 revolutions) but at 6,000 RPM it is only 0.01 seconds. The pulse duration relative to the available time at the engine  red line  is called the duty cycle and is expressed as a percentage. Thus a duty cycle of 80% means that at the engine red line the pulse duration (the amount of time the injector is help open) is 80% of the available time. Top of Form INCREASING THE DUTY CYCLE Top of Form INCREASING INJECTOR NOZZLE SIZE Top of Form Performance ECU Chips Top of Form Replacing the  stock ECU chip  with a  reprogrammed performance chip  is a good option for anything up to a 10% increase in engine power. This is mainly due to the way in which the stock ECU chip is programmed. In essence, the stock ECU is programmed for optimal performance at  peak torque  so as this ensures that the car is drivable at low engine speeds. As most cars would be driven at low engine speeds of up to 3,500 RPM, ensuring that the car drives perfectly at these engine speeds is perfectly reasonable; unless you want to modify your car! A reprogrammed performance chip will be programmed for optimal performance up to the  engine red line, releasing a moderate power increase but making the car less drivable at lower engine speeds. Top of Form THE FUEL PICKUP The fuel pickup should also get some consideration, especially on a modified street race car with a  steel fuel tank. On such vehicles the fuel level in the fuel tank can drop below the fuel pickup during  hard cornering  or  heavy acceleration  and  heavy braking  and can cause a momentary drop in fuel pressure and engine performance. The solution is to have a  secondary fuel pump  supply a small  fuel reservoir  or swirl pot that feels the primary fuel pumps. The fuel reservoir is a simple cylinder with an fuel inlet from the secondary pump at the side, a fuel return line at the top and fuel pickup lines to the primary pumps at the bottom. The fuel reservoir should have a capacity of at least 1 liter and should be mounted low, beside the fuel tank. With a fuel reservoir, the primary fuel pumps will always have a fuel supply even under hard cornering of heavy acceleration and braking conditions. Calculation on this bases were done and were utilized in MATLAB program Bottom of Form

Analysis of Superstitions :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

Superstitions Mysterious happenings are all around us today. I personally have done extensive studies in the histories of many of these superstitions, from the common to the absurd. Science tends to claim that all superstitions are pointless, and, in some cases, I agree, such as the fear of black cats, but the fact of the matter is that some superstitions come from a rich pre-Christian background. Many superstitions have been doubted since the rise of science, but it has been said that "In spite of advances and science, people are still superstitious." First, today's superstition is yesterday's magick; second, many people still practice the old ways; and finally, even common people practice. Superstitions are a part of our everyday lives and always have been. First, today's superstitions are yesterday's magick. Magick is the term practitioners use to describe the direct but subtle influence over reality; magic is a term for stage tricks. Long before the age of science, magick was a common element in every religion, even Christianity. Even science in its beginning, was based on old magicks like numerology, begun by Pythagoras, and alchemy. Since then, we have several leftovers from the old ways, my favorite of which is knocking on wood. The ancient Celts (pronounced Kelts) began this practice as a way of thanking the wood fairies, who were seen as mostly responsible for good luck. Today, when speaking of one's good fortune, it is common to knock on wood, though most people do not know why. Despite science's attempts to turn the old ways into useless or forgotten superstitions, the remnants of them are still around. Second, many of us still practice magick, roughly 10,000 in America. Collectively, the religion is known as Wicca, though not all Wiccans practice magick, and not all of those who practice magic are Wiccan. Obviously, the scientific community would prefer to believe that we are either insane, delusional, or con-artists, but none of that is true. I have seen magick work and have done it myself. In fact, my favorite way to gain the trust of a new friend is by granting him or her one wish, as long as the wish is not too grand; as I said before, magic is subtle.

Unemployment Essay -- essays papers

Unemployment Definition of Unemployment The unemployment rate is the percentage of the US labor force that is unemployed. It is calculated by dividing the number of unemployed individuals by the sum of the number of people unemployed and employed. An individual is counted as unemployed if they are over the age of 16 and actively looking for a job, but cannot find one. Students, who choose not to work, and retirees, are not counted in the unemployment rate. In March 2001: Description Total civilian population 211,171,000(Excluding those under 16, members of the military, and persons in institutions) - Not in Labor force 69,304,000 (Retired, students, individuals choosing not to work)= Labor force 141,868,000 (Total population minus those not in labor force)- Employed 135,780,000 (Individuals with jobs)= Unemploye 6,088,000 (Individuals without a job and actively searching) Unemployment Rate =6,088,000 135,780,000 + 6,088,000 = 4.3% The unemployment rate for the month of March 2001 was 4.3 percent, a tenth of a point increase from the January and February 2001 rate of 4.2%. The number of individuals employed decreased by 86,000. An unemployment rate of 4.3 percent for March 2001 is the highest unemployment rate since July 1999, but only slightly higher than the 3.9 to 4.1 percent range from October 1999 to the end of 2000. Prior to that, the unemployment rate had been in a steady decline since shortly after the last recession in 1990-1991. The average monthly increase in employment was approximately 155,000 in 2000 and 220,000 in 1999. For almost ten years, unemployment has fallen and the number of employed persons has increased by more than 15 million. In March 2001, the number of jobs decreased by 86,000, the largest monthly decrease since 1991. Job losses were most prominent in the manufacturing sector (81,000 jobs), but there were also losses in the retail trade sector (46,000 jobs). These losses were partially offset by employment increases experienced in the construction and finance sectors. Growth in employment in 2000 was 1.9 million; in 1999, the increase in employment equaled 2.8 million. Changes For most of 2000, unemployment remained between 3.9 and 4.1 percent of the labor force. In the first three-quarters of 2000, the numbers of individuals in the labor force were i... ...te of growth in real GDP increased to 3.9, with the last three years being over 4.3 percent per year. A five percent increase from 1999 to 2000 is the highest level of yearly increase since 1984. The recent upward trend (until the last two quarters) in economic growth has been accompanied by increases in the rates of growth of consumption spending, investment spending and exports. Productivity increases; decreases in unemployment, expansion in the labor force, and increases in the amount of capital have allowed real GDP to grow at faster rates. Yet during this same time period, consumers have reduced their savings. Conclusion After reviewing the unemployment, inflation and the GDP history of the last decade it is obvious why the United States economy has been ranked number one in the world. The economy has averaged a 5% or less unemployment rate, a 3.5% or less inflation rate and a GDP rate that has fluctuated from 2.2% to 5% throughout the nineties. The future outlook of the next decade is promising, however, many economists are skeptical when asked if this trend can continue at its current rate. References www.econedlink.org www.economicsameria.org Unemployment Essay -- essays papers Unemployment Definition of Unemployment The unemployment rate is the percentage of the US labor force that is unemployed. It is calculated by dividing the number of unemployed individuals by the sum of the number of people unemployed and employed. An individual is counted as unemployed if they are over the age of 16 and actively looking for a job, but cannot find one. Students, who choose not to work, and retirees, are not counted in the unemployment rate. In March 2001: Description Total civilian population 211,171,000(Excluding those under 16, members of the military, and persons in institutions) - Not in Labor force 69,304,000 (Retired, students, individuals choosing not to work)= Labor force 141,868,000 (Total population minus those not in labor force)- Employed 135,780,000 (Individuals with jobs)= Unemploye 6,088,000 (Individuals without a job and actively searching) Unemployment Rate =6,088,000 135,780,000 + 6,088,000 = 4.3% The unemployment rate for the month of March 2001 was 4.3 percent, a tenth of a point increase from the January and February 2001 rate of 4.2%. The number of individuals employed decreased by 86,000. An unemployment rate of 4.3 percent for March 2001 is the highest unemployment rate since July 1999, but only slightly higher than the 3.9 to 4.1 percent range from October 1999 to the end of 2000. Prior to that, the unemployment rate had been in a steady decline since shortly after the last recession in 1990-1991. The average monthly increase in employment was approximately 155,000 in 2000 and 220,000 in 1999. For almost ten years, unemployment has fallen and the number of employed persons has increased by more than 15 million. In March 2001, the number of jobs decreased by 86,000, the largest monthly decrease since 1991. Job losses were most prominent in the manufacturing sector (81,000 jobs), but there were also losses in the retail trade sector (46,000 jobs). These losses were partially offset by employment increases experienced in the construction and finance sectors. Growth in employment in 2000 was 1.9 million; in 1999, the increase in employment equaled 2.8 million. Changes For most of 2000, unemployment remained between 3.9 and 4.1 percent of the labor force. In the first three-quarters of 2000, the numbers of individuals in the labor force were i... ...te of growth in real GDP increased to 3.9, with the last three years being over 4.3 percent per year. A five percent increase from 1999 to 2000 is the highest level of yearly increase since 1984. The recent upward trend (until the last two quarters) in economic growth has been accompanied by increases in the rates of growth of consumption spending, investment spending and exports. Productivity increases; decreases in unemployment, expansion in the labor force, and increases in the amount of capital have allowed real GDP to grow at faster rates. Yet during this same time period, consumers have reduced their savings. Conclusion After reviewing the unemployment, inflation and the GDP history of the last decade it is obvious why the United States economy has been ranked number one in the world. The economy has averaged a 5% or less unemployment rate, a 3.5% or less inflation rate and a GDP rate that has fluctuated from 2.2% to 5% throughout the nineties. The future outlook of the next decade is promising, however, many economists are skeptical when asked if this trend can continue at its current rate. References www.econedlink.org www.economicsameria.org