Paul Poiret Biography

Name: Paul Poiret [pic] Born April 20, 1879— April 30, 1944 Biography: †¢ Born in Paris to a wealthy family an attended a Catholic lycee. †¢ After school he started an apprenticeship with an umbrella maker, which did not suit him. †¢ In 1896, as a teenager, he began working for Jacques Doucet, a prominent Parisian couturier of the time. †¢ In four years Poiret worked up the ranks to become head of the tailoring department for Jacques Doucet. †¢ Poiret designed for many actresses of the time, while working on the play L'Aiglon, he snuck into a dress rehearsal and his harsh critique of the sets and costumes got him fired from the movie.But, that did not stop actresses from requesting his designs. †¢ Joined the House of Worth in 1901 as an assistant designer, there he deigned clothes in a stark contrast to the opulent garments from Worth; his were more for the everyday woman. While he felt himself that his fellow designers looked down on him for his more simplistic designs, they were commercially very successful. †¢ While at the House of Worth, Poiret designed his first Asian-inspired piece, which was a simple Chinese-style cloak called Confucius.It offended a Russian princess, who though it was too simple, and not grand enough for anybody but peasants to wear. After opening his House of fashion the mandarin-robe-style cloaks were best sellers. †¢ In 1903 he opened his own couture house, in 1909 he relocated to a very large and spectacular location with a parterre garden. †¢ In the October 1908 publication of Les Robes de Paul Poiret, it featured Poiret’s designs using the pochoir method of printing, giving the images brilliantly saturated areas of color. Poiret worked with artist Paul Iribe to achieve this.Who juxtaposed Poiret’s graphically striking clothes to stylishly arranged backgrounds. With this they helped fuse fashion and art even further. †¢ Also, in 1908 Poiret introduced his lean, high-waisted silhouette. Featuring narrow lines, high waists, covered arms, and low decolletes, making the hourglass silhouette passe. †¢ Poiret’s designs removed the corset, which interfered with his narrow lines, and with that many other designers followed and corsets started to become a thing of the past. †¢ The Poiret Rose became a trademark for the designer after a hree-dimensional silk chiffon rose was sewn to the empire bodice of Josephine, one of the 1907 dresses that was featured in Les Robes de Paul Poiret. †¢ While producing his second album of designs, Les Choses de Paul Poiret (1911), Poiret asked artist Georges Lapape for inspiration for a new look. But Mme. Lepape was the one who inspired one of his most iconic designs, the jupe-culotte, with her sketch. †¢ In April of 1911 Poiret opened Martine, named after one of his daughters, which was a school where creativity could flourish and not be stifled by discipline or only being taught one way. Also, in the same year, 1911, the house of Poiret introduced their first fragrance, Rosine, named after another daughter. Poiret was involved in every aspect of the production of the fragrance. He expanded the fragrance to include soaps and lotions, which was then replicated by other designers. †¢ Poiret was a military tailor throughout the war and had to relaunch his business in 1919 after the war was over. †¢ But by 1929 the House was doing poorly and he sold his business, it is due to this that he lost the rights to his name. Poiret passed away on April 28th 1944 from Parkinson’s disease. Signature looks: [pic] [pic] [pic] Significance: Paul Poiret was incredibly significant because he pushed the boundaries on what was then considered fashion. He changed the shape of the femal body with his daring silhouettes. Poiret revolutionized the way fashion photography was done and essentially created editorials. Poiret also is a great example of a â€Å"spirit of the ti mes† with his lavish lifestyle and designs; he very much captured the spirit of the 1910’s and 20’s.Poiret was influenced by many other cultures and would often bring it in to his designs, especially Asian and Persian. The softly ballooning legs, turbans, and tunic effect become Poiret signature looks. Poiret is regarded by many as the first genius of fashion; he himself proclaims that he is the â€Å"King of Fashion† in his autobiography of the same name. He is also the first designer to have come out with a beauty line, which has since set the standard for fashion houses. Signature Looks Today: [pic] [pic] Works Cited †¢ Caroline Milbank, A-Z Fashion, Berg Fashion Library, Berg Publishers, online, 10/21/12.Images Cited †¢ Online Image, Timeless Fashion and Art, 2007, 10/21/12 †¢ Online Image, Sun Sentinel: Fashion and Style, December 15th, 2011. †¢ Online Image, FIDM Museum Blog, FIDM, August 19, 2009 †¢ Online Image, Zappos. com , Zappos, 10/21/12 Online Image, Styleite. com, Styleite Paris Couture Week, July 6th, 2011 ———————– Poiret’s jupe-culotte and tunic, 1913. Poiret’s fragrance, featuring trademark rose. Asian influenced designs, 1913. Modern couture take on Asian-influence fashion. Baggy trouser pants similar to Poiret’s jupe-culotte.

Assessment of the Essay of “the Fourth World War Has Begun

Globalization is a process that integrates all the nations around the world, by the unification of global economy with the worldwide exchange of products and services (David, 2002). With that unification, the other matters, such as politics, technology, capital, labor force and culture, all have to undergo a international interaction and fusion. The rapid developments of information and telecommunication technology in recent years, as well as the construction of infrastructure like transportation, have promoted and accelerated the globalization process by connecting people more closely and compressing the time and space for communication.As a result, the nations are becoming more closely interdependent in today’s world. The four basic aspects of globalization identified by the IMF (International Monetary Fund) in 2000 includes: the trade and transactions cross borders, capital flow and investment, international migration of people and spread of knowledge. Globalization is a ra ther controvertial topic and the supporters and opponents are both numerous. The essay of â€Å"The Fourth World War Has Begun† by Marcos focuses on the negative sides of globalization on a global perspective.First, the greedy and warlike logic of contemporary capitalism and markets, which has prospered since the end of the Cold War, is described. A comprehension of globalization as â€Å"world war† has been provided, and this war is fought between the candidates of ruling power of world economy, and the victims are the poor and the humanity, as well as the independence of states and national culture. What the war seeks is a redistribution of the world, and in the process more serious inequality has been caused.The national states have been subordinated to the logic of transnational financial power and commercial free trade, and are reduced to play the sole role of securing markets. Then a fragmented world caused by globalization, which intends on the unification, is d escried. And the tattered picture contains seven pieces that could not be combined together. The seven pieces are: inequality and poverty, globalization of exploitation, migration of people, the globalization of crime and state power, legitimate violence, the emergence of mega-politics, and the various forms of resistance. In the end of the essay, a fable is presented.The perspectives of Marcos will be assessed in the following respects. 1. Is globalization essentially evil? The interactions between people and states are necessary and inevitable with the progress of human society. It is recognized that the trade benefits all participants in the respect of absolute advantage and comparative advantage of goods production by different entities. The globalization has achieved this goal as the worldwide trade is realized in a single major market joined by the whole world. In that unified economic world produced by neoliberalism, the commodities not the people circulate freely.But the pro blem is the problem of justice for the current pattern of unification. Marcos has declared in the essay that the globalization has caused a fragmented world rather than a wholesome one, as certain groups of people who are no use to the new economy, like the indigenous, have been excluded, and it is the purpose of the ZNLA (Zapatista National Liberation Army) to maintain the unification of the Mexico country rather than split. It is declared that the threatening factors to the indigenous include the exploitation of the natural resources, environment pollution and so on.The fragmentation and inequality problem caused by the globalization are the results of the neo-liberal logic. The principles of free competition and maximization of individual profits classify people in the categories of â€Å"winner† and â€Å"loser† (Angelis, 2005). Those who are not adapted to the system are rejected as â€Å"losers†. As the economy framework is fundamentally designed based on the western ideas and criteria, the extension of it to other parts of the world would surely encounter resists and inadaptations.Under the claim of globalization, the transnational enterprises pursue the maximization of profits by the organization of primary materials, labor force, capital, technology, production process and consuming market on a worldwide scale. All the nations and regions that are serviceable to the process are reshaped and included in the major market. In the reorganization process, the resistant factors of people, culture, internal industry and market, as well as political system, have to be wiped out.The unification of the world may be the trend for the future, but it could not be done in a mode which is dominated by a sole culture, that of the western world. The diversification of the nations and regions have to be respected, considered and integrated in the system harmoniously. 2. Is globalization bad for the poor? In the essay, Marcos argues that globalizati on has exacerbated the problem of inequality and poverty. It is stated that the wealth have been accumulated for the few and the poverty for the majority of people. And more poverty is produced by with the progress of the major transnational companies.Whether the globalization has worsened the inequality problem is rather controversial. Lindert & Williamson (2003) argued that the globalization of products and factor markets probably has alleviated the rapid rise of income inequality between countries that are integrated into the global economy. It is found that the income distributions are converged in countries which are integrated more fully in the global economy, and the distributions are diverged between the active participants and the countries that remain isolated from the global economy.And among the participants in the global market, the effects are different regarding to the development stage of the country: the highly advanced, the regions of new settlement and the rest. A nd for the income inequality within nations, the effect globalization has gone both ways. For example, it is indicated that the market-oriented trade liberalization and globalization in Brazil, i. e. , the Mercosur trade reform, has a redistributing and pro-poor effect. It has been shown that the consumption good prices decreased after entering the Mercosur.Decreased poverty has been found after national trade liberalization but no significant inequality effects have been obtained (Borraz et al, 2012). It is found that both the inequality and poverty decreased with rising export exposure but the poverty increased with import penetration (Castilho, 2012). 3. The unemployment caused by the globalization It is argued in the essay the economic growth of companies has produced unemployment, poverty and precariousness of the workers by the reorganization of the economy process, namely, the production, circulation and consumption of goods.With that rearrangement is the reorganization of wo rk force and destruction of small and medium companies, which causes an excess of workforce that is disposable and precarious treatments for them. Inevitably, the migration for work becomes a nightmare for those without a job. It is indicated that the jobless growth has been made in the recent decades by the globalization of labor market, as the structure of economy has undergone a great change, which is indicated in the essay, as the workforce for agriculture has shrunk, and the service tertiary industry has greatly expanded.So the traditional jobs are reduced while new kinds of jobs have been created in the process, but they are not made for the indigenous people due to the cultural and educational factors. The unemployment indicated by Marcos is categorized as the structural unemployment, which is caused by the restructuring of the global economy and the emergence of global labor market due to the technology revolution (Overbeek, 2003).The globalization is characterized as a stag e of intensified commoditization in the global economy, where the globalization of labor markets is manifested. It is argued by Overbeek (2003) that this structural transformation is accompanied by the emergence of global neo-liberalism, as ideological orientation is permeated by the hegemonic concept of control. The competitiveness has become a key imperative and caused a massive shedding for the labor force, especially in the time of recession and economy crisis.The labor market reforms carried out in the 1990s were seen as one of the spear points of capitalist restructuring, not only by national governments and by international organizations, but also by business pressure groups. And in this process, unemployment has been defined as a trouble of individual employability and personal ability, rather than a result of the economy cycle. The recent global economy slowdown may produce a reduction of employment, and a re-alignment of labor force may be issued, which would produce a red istributive labor. 4. The role of the government in the globalization processMarcos declares that with down fall the national market, the material base of the state are dissipated by the power of free commercial markets, and the governments have been reduced to the economy managers and are commanded or teleconmmanded by the mega-enterprises, and the rights and interests of the citizens could not be protected. Not only the material bases of the states are destroyed, but also the history and culture of nations. This may be not true for all the countries that participate in global economy, as the national sovereign rights are not devoured in that degree.However, it is authentic that government policies are influenced by the major transnational commercial powers. There are various evidences for this argument. Rogowsk (2005) has studied the restraining of governmental policy by the capital mobility in the wave of globalization and neo-liberalism. With the progress of globalization, capit al flow faster and more easily between nations. In order to attract more investment, countries compete more actively and carry out capital-accommodating policies, while the local preferences or factor endowments are less regarded.It is controvertial whether the developing countries would benefit from the globaliziaiton when speculating the problem from different perspectives. Lindert & Williamson (2003) indicates that the countries that benefit most from the globalization are the developing countries that have adjusted their polices to make use of it, while those have not done that achieved the least. Besides the difference of effect on participants and non-participants, the impacts of different sources of globalization are also different. The influence of globalization on national economy depends on the position of the state in the global economy chain.The countries that merely provide natural and human resources are at the least significant end of the economy chain, while the deve loped countries with advantages in technology, capital and market enjoy most of the gains of the economy globaliziation. Without the development of national industry, the conditions of state could not be improved fundamentally and the growth is unsustainable. However, if the transformation and promotion of the national enterprises could be achieved in the globalization process, the country becomes a real beneficiary. The expeience of China is a good example of benefiting from globalization.While the Afircan and Ltain American countries undergo a slower progress and the economy mode has not been changed at root. The essential reason is the political independence of the state government. If the government fell to be the managers for the major transnational economy as stated in the essay, the state could not achieve a substantial development and industry transformation. And the independent government could also protect the history and culture of the state in the wave of globalization, ensuring the independence and integrity of the culture and achieving an advancement by the interaction with foreign cultures.

Analysis of The Scarlet Letter Ch

Nathaniel Hawthorne expresses Hester Prune's self-perception by using the concept of physiognomy, the notion that the outer appearance of a person reflects his or her Inner qualities. One of the common methods through which people display their beliefs and emotions is the manner In which they present themselves to society. Hester displays her beliefs about her own character through her choice of clothing. Hawthorne also uses clothing In order to depict Hester Implementation of self enmeshment, which is a result of her negative self-perception.She alms to express that her appearance has become so unattractive as a result of her sin. In other words, her the unbecoming state of her heart which has become Impure Is reflected In her clothing made of â€Å"the coarsest materials† with colors of â€Å"the most somber hue. † The most eye-catching article of her outfit, the scarlet letter, also greatly contributes to the physical display of her sin. Purposely reminding the peopl e and herself about that which she is guilty of is how Hester punishes herself mutinously.Her self punishment involved not only wearing â€Å"plain† clothing, but also practicing asceticism in order to prevent her from experiencing any form of enjoyment. When Hester â€Å"devoted[sees] so many hours† to sewing â€Å"coarse garments† she is limiting herself from reaching her true potential of artistic talent. The coarse garments are symbolic of the bland dull distractions she turns to in order to restrict herself from working on that which she is truly passionate about, in other words, to refrain from creating beautiful and arabesque articles of clothing.Initially one would find Hester adornment of Pearl ironic in regards to her decision to live simply without any form of enjoyment. However, after closer inspection, it can be inferred from the diction within the text that this might be another form of self punishment. Hester makes beautiful clothing for her daugh ter Pearl to wear, however this is not for the sake of her passion to create elaborately designed needle-work. The fact that Hawthorne chose to introduce Pearl's attire in this specific paragraph nits that there is a relation between Hester self punishment and the reason behind why she adorns her daughter.The implied â€Å"deeper meaning† refers to the same reason why Hester wears plain clothing. Pearl's beautiful clothing makes her stand out when seen in the community, and the color and fancy design of the cloth reminds both Hester and the people of the scarlet letter. Thus, Hester uses Pearl's attire as a way to punish herself; the clothing will never allow her nor society to forget what she did. Even today, clothing Is one of the mall WAP through which people express themselves.It Is also a way through which they reward themselves. The opposite of this case Is seen in chapter 5 of The Scarlet Letter; Hawthorne uses clothing to depict how Hester displays negative self-perce ption. She believes that she must atone for elaborate embroidery. She also uses clothing as a form of self punishment when she dresses her daughter, as it will serve as a constant reminder of her scarlet letter and of the fact that she is forever labeled as an adulteress.

Analytical report on the mediation process Essay - 1

Analytical report on the mediation process - Essay Example Mediation is based on standards of problem-solving that highlights the requirements and interests of the contestants; equality; confidentiality; freedom and the best interest of all parties. These principles are planned to support and lead public, private, controlled, and obligatory mediation. The way of execution and mediator devotion to these principles may be subjective to local regulation or court law (Goldberg et al, p. 259). Mediation is practical support of an impartial third party. The responsibility of the mediator is specifically to facilitate the parties in finding their own acceptable, feasible solutions by being an efficient catalyst and providing organization, focus, and support with communication. The function of the mediator is to offer impartial, neutral help from the position of someone with no other attachment or investment in the result of the argument. Mediation has a high rate of fulfillment. Parties who have arrived at their own modified agreement are usually more expected to pursue through and stand for and adhere to its terms than those whose agreement has been forced by a third-party decision-maker. Parties that discuss their personal agreements have more power on the result of their argument and gains and losses are more knowable when they retain the decision-making authority than when results regarding the outcome of arguments are turned over to external third parties. Mediation involves reciprocally acceptable contracts in which all parties have at least a few of their interests met to the level that they are ready to support the general agreement. Mediation assists in maintaining continuing associations. Mediation agreements, which cause negotiated solutions that concentrate on all of the parties’ requirements (a win-win situation), are much better capable of preserving present and future working associations than win-lose procedures. If a future working association is essential, an agreed

HR & Communication in Projects - Communication Plan Coursework

HR & Communication in Projects - Communication Plan - Coursework Example The aim of this plan is to define and identify the roles to be played by the people taking part in this project. The Denver International Airport project entails the design and construction of a new airport that is founded on a â€Å"Home-on-the-Range† design since Denver City needs a broadly open entry point for people visiting it (Kerzner, 2012). The airport is supposed to maintain a distinctive appearance that will make it easily identifiable by the travellers and this design should meet the specifications of Denver City (Henkin, 2012). The new airport is supposed to allow more traffic in and out, and at the same time decrease congestion through improving the runways to create a more efficient operation of the regional airspace. This will considerable decrease delays as well as the costs associated with operating airlines. The new airport is also supposed to result in considerable reduction in noise impact as its construction is taking place on a comparatively site which is not populated (Dempsey, Goetz & Szyliowicz, 1997). The walking distances for the passengers will be greatly red uced by the overall layout, which also boasts of a greater interior design and curb appeal. Further, the operations of the airlines will be expected to run more smoothly as a result of the new baggage system along with various other specialty systems. Construction is supposed to start in 1989 and the project team has started collecting various requirements to make sure if a successful achievement of the project objectives. In the process of the implementation of the project plan for the Denver International Airport, it is important that timely and effective communication be in place for the various parties who will be affected by its results. The project manager will be required to take a practical role in making sure the communication associated with the project is effective. A

Historical essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Historical - Essay Example Lovell had been promised to fly Apollo 14 but his boss Deke Slayton informed him that his team would fly Apollo 13 instead. Lovell and his team Ken Mattingly and Fred Haise had to embark on the mission at hand came out as a cooperation affair. The launch was to take place, but one of the teammates Ken Mattingly was diagnosed with measles attack and immediate replacement was inevitable. In conjunction with Carpenter and Carl’s ideas, I perceive that this was to show that humans have no power to fight the evil in the society with nature and all that is available within the environment. Jack Swigert replaced Mattingly, but Lovell looked as not happy about it, but he gave into it because he was threatened by Slayton, his boss that he might lose his position as a commander. In the movie Marylyn Lovell’s wife had nightmares about the trip his husband was to embark on, but she gained courage and went to see him off to Cape Kennedy the very night before the launch. The flight director Gene Kranz on April 15, 1970, gave permission for the launch from the Mission Control Center in Houston. I like how the launch began with the release of the rocket Saturn V to the sky, the engine cuts off prenatally at the second stage, but the craft eventually reaches the Earth Orbit. The third stage was the actual sending of Apollo 13 to actual entry to the moon was particularly captivating. Swigert anchorages the command service module with the lunar module and later jerks it from the expanded phase. This was the start of testing the heroes as mentioned by Carpenter and Carl. I did not understand why the crew tried to send a live broadcast after three days from the command module, yet there was a network failure. It is during this normal cleaning process done by Swigert, tank-carrying oxygen explodes leaving only one tank with liquid oxygen for the

Logistics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Logistics - Essay Example Defined as "the management of product and information flows from original source to final customer in a manner which adds value to the external customer," (Baudin 2005, p. 5) logistics represents a key bundle of resources that can be applied successfully to the task of providing best net value for the customer (see Appendix table 1). Following Naylor (2002), the first is that of the logistics concept itself, and the proposition that it represents a comprehensive process that is of strategic importance as well as boundary-spanning in terms of significance. Second, global logistics systems provide unique and meaningful opportunities to create customer value. Third, a number of contemporary tools and approaches validate and facilitate the effectiveness of logistics to the task of value creation. Fourth, logistics is well positioned to take advantage of the new strategic management process. In fact, there is considerable justification to think of logistics as one of the key strategic sys tems responsible for providing certain customer-valued products and services. Intermediaries are often defined as a third party logistics which means â€Å"the use of an outside company to perform all or part pf a firm’s materials management and product destinations function† (Simchi-Levi et al 2008, p. 249). The main benefits of the intermediaries are (1) lower total cost (through logistics improvements), (2) faster response to changing volume needs (through the closer location), and (3) faster provision of technical consulting help (Stroh, 2006). They have also implemented the process changes enhancing value to be delivered to the customer and reducing sacrifice. Similarly, manufacturing decisions that appear to reduce cost may in fact be unwise from a global system perspective. Product in long runs or delaying a switchover may reduce efficiencies and unit costs. As a result, revenue can be lost owing to the

World War 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

World War 1 - Essay Example In May 1915, a German submarine successfully sank a British ocean liner â€Å"Lusitania† and killed approximately 128 U.S citizens out of the total 1,200 individuals who were in the ocean liner. Even after this event, the United States still remained neutral but they kept on assisting the Allies materially. On the other hand, the Americans viewed the Germans as aggressors. This is because they used U-boats and submarines to attack the ships which were carrying relief aid to the Allies. Their main aim was to starve the British and force them to surrender. The Americans also felt connected to the citizens of Great Britain because of their cultural similarities. After the sinking of Lusitania, the Americans faced a national security threat, hence; most of the citizens urged the government to join forces with the Allied Powers to fight against the Germans. The main cause of the war was because the British intercepted a telegram from the Germans. This telegram was being sent to the Mexican Government. The telegram was named after its sender Arthur Zimmerman. The Zimmerman telegram noted that Mexico was to declare war on America in order to conquer states such as New Mexico, Arizona and Texas in case there was a war between Germany and USA. Research also asserts that the involvement of the United States in World War I was attributed by propaganda from both sides. The US president did not want to get involved with the war but, when Teddy Roosevelt made a decision for running for presidency, Wilson felt threatened, and he announced that there was a high possibility of the country going to war. The main aim of President Wilson was to enhance safety in the world and promote democracy in the United States. Thus, the United States of America declared war against German on 6th April, 1917. Question b: Why did the Allies win World War I? World War I comprised of two powerful forces. The Allies comprised of Poland, the United Kingdom, China, France, United States and t he Soviet Union among other countries. Research asserts that the Allies won World War I because they were more powerful and prepared as compared to the Central Powers. It is quite clear that World War I was an attrition war and Germany lacked most of the resources at the end. The British had blocked all the supplies. The Allies had also waited to for the United Stated to join the war. The United States facilitated the win after they deployed new technological weapons which were used in the warfare against the Central Powers. On the other hand, the Allies had enough resources from the United States. This that the USA played a significant role in World War I. Germany was equipped with a massive army, therefore; they were destined to lose due to scarcity of resources. After 1914, the German army gave up the plan to the Allies who were located on the Western front. In this period, the Allies made several mistakes, which led to numerous deaths. In 1918, they united together and deployed new tactics, which involved the use of tanks and airplanes in the war. The use of this machinery significantly overpowered the Germans who were underdeveloped in terms of technology. The ultimate defeat of the Germans was enhanced by the blockage of German ports by the British. This led to the German Revolution and the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm. The Germans had also lost the war after the failure of the Schlieffen Plan. Various scholars claim that the Allies were able to win the war because the Germans did not have adequate food and resources to sustain them in the warfare. Question c: What were the goals and terms of Wilson’s 14 Points and Versailles Treaty? On 8th January, 1918, President Wilson

Evaluation of CRM Contribution Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 20250 words

Evaluation of CRM Contribution - Dissertation Example Like for every other industry, CRM can prove to be an effective strategy for UK banks which will not only help them build and survive in tough competition and harsh economic scenarios but will also help them grow and enjoy customer life time value only if implemented carefully and properly. Evaluation of CRM contribution in order to gain customer retention in the UK banking industry – A case study of Barclays Bank Richmond branch 1 INTRODUCTION Approaching customers and selling company’s offerings is not a new concept; what is new is the change in focus. Previously, companies tend to focus on selling their products and services to the customers irrespective of the fact that whether the solutions offered are required or not and honestly there was no need either because there were quite a few alternatives available which makes the sales of any product easier. However, with the change in time where markets became tight and competition became tough there comes the need to r emodel selling techniques. Now the modern marketing concept, as stated by Jobber & Fahy (2009, p. 3), suggests â€Å"achievement of corporate goals through meeting and exceeding customer needs better than the competition†. Another necessity which aroused with time is the need to retain existing customers than to attract new ones. Research shows that attracting new customers is more expensive than retaining old ones (Jobber & Fahy 2009) and this changed the focus even further. Among several strategies adopted by companies, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) has become a focal point. According to Nili & Keramati (2011, p. 527) CRM â€Å"is a business philosophy that provides the organization a vision to deal with customers better†. It helps enhance customer’s experience by offering them real business benefits which not only enhance customer loyalty but also promise increased revenues and profitability for the businesses (Russ 2006). CRM has become an important strategy for all industries and financial markets are no exception. According to Russ (2006) â€Å"Retail banks are facing greater challenges than ever before in executing their customer management strategies. Intensifying competition, proliferating customer contact channels, escalating attacks on customer information, rising customer expectations and capitalizing on new market opportunities are at the top of every bank executive’s agenda.† Given the importance of Customer Relationship Management in financial markets, this research aims to critically evaluate the contribution of CRM towards customer retention in the UK Banking industry. Barclays Bank Richmond branch has been selected as a case to fulfill the purpose of this study. 1.1 Background and Context Customer satisfaction is the main aim of every business as the businessmen know that it is easy to do business with a satisfied customer because it requires fewer resources and less time. The success of a business relies mainly on one factor â€Å"customer retention† and to retain customers it is very important to make sure they are satisfied. Customer retention can increase profits and productivity and forms long term relationships which are beneficial to both parties. Customer Relationship Management is found to be one of the key factors in retaining customers which further ensures company maintains a strong and loyal customer base. With the help of CRM, the customer service personnel can create, allocate and manage any request for service made by the

Development of an Assessment Plan for the Howard Univ College of Article

Development of an Assessment Plan for the Howard Univ College of Liberal Arts Undergraduate Program - Article Example The mission of the Howard University College of Liberal Arts is to provide its graduates with an education that is rooted in â€Å"Pursuit of knowledge, social justice, artistic expression and intellectual freedom† (Howard University, 2013). It seeks to foster creative and critical thinking in artistic and scholarly arenas. Furthermore, it intends on providing solutions to human and social problems. Nurturing cultural diversity is part of its mission. The College intends on building responsibility towards the global community. The assessment plan will dwell on measurement of critical thinking and oral and written communication skills. Since critical thinking has been mentioned as one of the goals in the Liberal Arts College, then the analysis will openly indicate whether this goal is being achieved. Measurement of written and oral communication skills will assist in artistic expression as well as creativity, which are all cited in the College’s mission. They will contri bute towards achievement of the knowledge, intellectual freedom and social justice goals, as well. ... Technical correctness is not such a valuable trait, and using curriculum-specific tests would reinforce it. Instead of such an approach, students need to be tested on their ability to inquire and question various situations. Critical thinking, oral and written communication skills are the parameters that are most relevant to rational inquiry. 2. Tools and Instruments for assessment i) CLA CLA (Collegiate Learning Assessment) is designed to measure a range of tertiary competencies that include problem solving, written communication competencies, analytic reasoning and critical thinking. The measurement of such broad abilities makes the assessment applicable to almost all types of colleges. Furthermore, the measures cut across different disciplines. One should note that this is not an assessment of intellect or any content abilities. The test is designed in such a way that it gives students holistic tasks to which they must respond. Some of the tasks may focus on written communication while others dwell on work sample performance. Usually, those questions come from real-world scenarios such as education, policy and daily work practice. The concerned students must employ analytic and critical thinking skills in the situation. They must them communicate these decisions in proper written English and then justify their choices (Hatfield, 2009). Usually, the test is administered online and the responses to the essay-type questions will be scored online through particular software. Humans need to participate in marking the performance- type questions. However, they must have undergone thorough training so as to grade the answers on the basis of certain standards. An example of a task is the argument type assignment, which asks

Comment on the poetic devices Essay Example for Free

Comment on the poetic devices Essay I am going to study two poems based on conflict. The first poem is Belfast Confetti by Ciarà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½n Carson and the second poem is Slough written by John Betjeman.  Belfast Confetti  From what I understand, Carson comes from an Irish background and possibly used to be a local reporter. His attitude to conflict is that he feels war and conflict is confusing, so by associating with something he understands he can relate to, for example: journalism, he uses punctuation to explain the confusion in the riot. Belfast Confetti is a poem, which is from when Carson was a journalist in Belfast. It is a bleak picture of modern society and its about when he became stuck in the middle of a riot It describes how Carson runs down alleys to escape but is always trapped. He compares the riot, an unknown experience, to journalism a familiar experience. This is done by metaphorically describing the explosions, gunfire, and thrown missiles, linking them to punctuation and he describes it and his feelings to the reader.  Carson also experiences an explosion while in the riot and is unfortunately deeply affected by the explosion-he loses his sense of identity because of what happens and he feels confused and disorientated. The poet doesnt actually mention whether he thinks the bombing is right or wrong, which is refreshing in a time when everyone has an opinion about the freedom of Ireland from England. However, the title is confusing, making the reader think that this is going to be about celebrations, but it in fact, turns out to be about a bomb.  The first stanza describes the riot as Carson remembers the events, and the sheer violence comes tumbling out.  As soon as the poem begins, the reader is hit in an urgent, dynamic fashion.  Suddenly, as the riot started. This creates a sense of panic and causes the reader to explore the possibilities about why the riot squad has been involved in action. It also sets the tone for the rest of the poem. In the second line, we see an exhaustive rush of words, which is describing about a car exploding. The poet finds it impossible to shape the sentence together. This may possibly be because he is distressed on recalling the event.  Nuts, bolts, nails, car-keys.  We see some use of onomatopoeia in the poem between fire and stuttering.  This hyphenated line, a burst of rapid fireI was trying to complete a sentence in  my head, but it kept stuttering. The letters t and f are onomatopoeic. Here, he (the poet) shows confusion and difficulty in expressing himself. The use of punctuation words means that there is a running theme through out the poem.  raining exclamation marksan asterisk on the maphyphenated linepunctuatedwith stops and colonsa fusillade of question marks.  A meaning that could be taken from this is that sentences are one of a few things that differ us from animals. The fact that he was trying to complete a sentence in his head speaks volumes about his state of mind at the time.  Also, the actual use of punctuation in the poem slows the poem down so that the reader can reflect on what has happened but the full stops also represent gunfire and a dead end to for-fill his achievement -unable to escape anywhere. Every move is punctuated. Crimea Street. Dead end again  In the second stanza, in the second last line, the poet inserts an empty line. He has done this to emphasise his disorientation and confusion from the bomb/explosion.  It is also rather odd that the poet has used question marks in the poem, as a good poem shouldnt need to have unanswered questions at the end. These specific question marks are used for effect and also mean that he doesnt have to formulate an opinion about whats happening, an opinion that could upset those around him. They also allow the reader to make up their own opinion. My name? Where am I coming from? Where am I going?  By saying Saracen, Kremlin-2 mesh. Makrolon face-shields. Walkie-talkies, he gives the reader an inhuman picture of the army by depicting it as a collection of military equipment, intimidating in its coldness. The actual sound of the line too with the predominant consonant k and heavily fragmented lines contribute to this effect.  Also, I think that when Carson says Balaclava, Raglan, Inkerman, Odessa Street- why cant I escape? he is unsure of an area that he knows because of everything that is happening. This maybe because the memories of the incident haunt the writer as he struggles to explain the events. He is also, maybe unintentionally, dropping names as freely as confetti.

Credit Card Essay Example for Free

Credit Card Essay Credit card has undoubtedly made our lives easy but it is important that you use credit cards in the right way so that you can make the most of it without getting caught in the credit trap. All you have to do is to keep a track of your purchases, remember you payment cycles, try to settle full credit card payments at the end of every month, avoid spending in excess and carry your cards cautiously. If handled properly, credit cards can serve to be very convenient but they can also lead you to a huge debt if misused. So just play carefully with the tiny plastic thing that is placed in your wallet.

Parmalat Accounting Scandal | Summary

Parmalat Accounting Scandal | Summary The Parmalat Accounting Scandal 1. What were the events leading up to the Parmalat accounting scandal and ultimately the revelation of the accounting fraud and the reasons behind the scandal? Evolving from a small dairy shop into an international concern, Parmalat appeared to be a gigantic and stable dairy producer. At some point in time, it may well have been gigantic and stable, but in December 2003, shocking news was broken to Parma, Italy, and the world at large. Parmalat was no longer a success as it once may have been, and it was bankrupt, and had been bankrupt for several years without this ugly truth being exposed. The truth had apparently been concealed due to a number of people being at least somewhat aware that something was amiss with transactions on the books, but had not spoken out. Through the years that Parmalat was going bankrupt, there were several events that took place before Parmalat’s condition was finally exposed. To begin with, as early as 1990, there were signs that Parmalat was in debt. In accordance with what has been uncovered, Parmalat’s fraudulent activities are said to have ‘taken off’ in 1990. This was when their stock went public, and reflected the need for a big company like Parmalat to perform in the international market so that their performance improved and met investor expectation (Family Arrests in Parmalat Scandal, 2004). The following year [1991] the Tanzis purchased Parma Football Club of which Tanzis son, Stefano, was president, and also was Parmalat board member. With this purchase, the football club rose to fame quickly, but faced large losses that recorded a deficit of over â‚ ¬77m in 2002. According to investigations, Parma Football Club was the first asset to be sold[1]. Another set of purchases that went along with purchasing the Parma Football Club included Tanzi buying up his competitors. Once he had established Parmalat Milk in the global market, his financial ventures proved to be devastating. This included his family’s financial interest in football and tourism, as well as his failed attempt to outdo Belosconi when he purchased a TV network, Odeon TV. At this point, Parmalat’s finances were a mess. Purchasing Odeon TV Network was a disaster as Tanzi had to sell the network off for a around  £30m. From this point on though, it is said that Parmalat still progressed in spite of its major losses. This was largely achieved through altering the books and attaining bank loans and investments against falsified figures. Parmalat had spent â‚ ¬130 million on Odeon TV, but it collapsed within 3 years. In order to prevent bankruptcy at this point, Parmalat had to sell itself to a company that was already listed on the Milan stock exchange. This helped to produce â‚ ¬150 million from external investors, and paved the way for Parmalat to be in public view in 1990. It also enabled them to patch up some of its accounts[2]. It is thought that Parmalat began altering its books in 1993. If Parmalat had not ‘cooked’ its books it would have registered financial losses every year. However, they registered profits, which meant that they would still be viewed as a viable organization and one that was worth investing in. Therefore, they managed to avoid being suspected of any losses and attracted much investment. Parmalat managed to cover losses through a combination of fictitious transactions and aggressive acquisition. This commenced in 1992, when Parmalat started ‘snapping up’ various companies in Argentina, Italy, Brazil, Hungary and the U.S. However, beyond 1995 it is thought that Parmalat was not able to fund its own needs. Yet it managed to prove to investors that it was registering significant profits. Perhaps, Parmalat’s profits registered were so convincing that the Bank of America alone, in 1997, provided $1.7 billion through bonds and private placements for U.S. investors. It also received $30 million or more as payments and commissions[3]. One of the main events that lead up to the Parmalat accounting scandal exposure includes the company changing its external auditor. In accordance with Italian law, an external auditor can be changed once in 9 years. So, in 1999, Parmalat, in accordance with Italian law replaced Grant Thornton with DeLoitte and Touche. Grant Thornton was keen to keep working with Parmalat, which was a high profile company, as it would be good for their reputation still being developed. Therefore, they recommended that Parmalat spin off its travel and other businesses, and permit these to be under them [Grant Thornton]. Such an arrangement would be convenient to both Parmalat itself and Grant Thornton. Through such an arrangement Parmalat could then satisfy its new external auditors [DeLoitte and Touche] with Grant Thornton making illicit payments to Parmalat. This was made possible through the executives at Parmalat creating debts, and Grant Thornton creating false accounts from which Parmalat could be paid. Grant Thornton would then produce these records to DeLoitte and Touche who saw little wrong with them. Numerous reports reinforce that Grant Thornton was aware of the ‘shell games’ that Parmalat was playing. One example of these games includes case of â€Å"cooking the books,† that reports the Cayman Islands subsidiary Bonlat claiming to have sold a large quantity of powdered milk in a span of one year to Cuba. It claimed that this quantity was sufficient to produce 55 gallons of milk for every individual on that island. Another interesting event that lead up to Parmalat’s exposure of the accounting scandal was that Grant Thornton and Deloitte Touche signed off on its increasingly surreal accounts. In return, it is said that they booked millions of dollars (Parmalat Scandal Deepens†¦, 2006). In Parmalats final weeks, Deutsche Bank had taken on helping it work with Standard Poors, hardly ten days before the exposure. Around this time, analysts around the world kept encouraging investors to continue purchasing its stocks and bonds. In 1999, finance director Alberto Ferraris laid out a financing scheme. He managed this through a Delaware company known as Buconero. This was the Italian for black hole, that Citigroup established for Parmalat in 1999[4]. This company loaned out $137 million to a Swiss subsidiary of Parmalat. From here, the money was transferred to Parmalat companies. In return for Buconero’s service to Parmalat, it received a return of around 6%, in addition to $7 million in payments for Citigroup. Just like Parmalat made use of Buconero, it also used other offshore companies to dress up its debt till the time of its exposure[5]. Back in 1995, Parmalat also commenced concealing its debt through shell companies. It had been losing $300 million annually in Latin America, and decided to wipe this debt off the companys financial records. It managed to do so by using 3 shell companies situated in the Caribbean. The huge debt patchwork through the 90s began to raise concern by the end of the decade. Esteban Pedro Villar, expressed concern and filed an early warning report (Gumbel, 2004). This was regarding Parmalats Latin American set-ups. He had so many questions that his concerns were termed as offensive and ridiculous† (Gumbel, 2004). Then suspiciously, Deloittes Parmalat business in Argentina was terminated. In response, Deloitte was silenced, and the accounts were certified. In addition to the above concern that was demonstrated by a Deloitte partner in Latin America, there were others. On March 28th, 2003, Deloittes Maltese office raised questions regarding a $7 billion intercompany transfer they suspected was fictitious. Wanderley Olivetti, the Deloitte auditor in Brazil, raised such concern at the Milan office regarding Parmalats Brazilian accounts that the matter went straight to Deloittes chief executive in New York City at that time, Jim Copeland. However, Olivettis objections were mysteriously ignored and he was soon removed from dealing with the Parmalat account. Deloitte claims it behaved within its rights to remove any employee it wishes to, and this may be done for a number of reasons. It also said that the investigation of Parmalat started in October 2003, after Deloitte Italy had drawn attention to Parmalats financial dealings[6]. Following the suspicions raised by auditors, Epicurum was established in an attempt to show that Parmalat was due considerable amounts of money. However, this attempt to erase debt from the records at Parmalat failed, and the company admitted that it could not retrieve the amount they were due from Epicurum. One of the key events that led to the exposure of Parmalat includes Tanzi and his son’s meeting with private equity firm Blackstone Group in New York. Tanzi and his son Stefano, one of the main executives at many of the family’s concerns, met with the Blackstone Group to discuss the sale of 51 percent of the family’s share in the food empire. It was in the course of conversation regarding preparation for the books to be opened to a transition team from Blackstone, that Tanzi and his son slipped out with the fact that the cash on hand was less than the 3 billion Euros registered in the company’s annual report. In addition to this, they revealed that there were barely any liquid assets. They even further stated that the company was in debt of about 10 billion Euros. In addition to the suspicion that was brought against Parmalat through observations of its faulty accounting records, it is this final attempt to sell of 51 percent of family shares that marks the end of the road for Parmalat’s long trail of fraud. The following facts presented date-wise are interesting to note as they map the path that Parmalat took since its inception till its end on 13th December 2003: 1961 Parmalat was founded by 22-year-old Calisto Tanzi. It was established as a small family food business that pasteurised and sold milk 1963 Parmalat introduces Tetrapak for packaging its ‘long-life’ milk products. 1980s Parmalat starts producing fruit juice, biscuits and ready-made sauce. 1990 Parmalat is listed on the Milan stock exchange. Through the 1990s Parmalat grows after flotation. It then reaches into America, Brazil, few South American countries, and Eastern Europe and Australia. Tanzi aims at expanding a television network to outdo tycoon Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. However, his Odeon television foray flops and costs Parmalat  £30m. Parmalat products also get sale in 20 countries. 1999 Parmalat‘s Bonlat subsidiary is established in the Cayman Islands. 2003 11 November Crisis escalates when shares are hit after auditors raise questions regarding accounting of transactions with mutual fund Epicurum [a Cayman-based company linked to Parmalat]. 15 November Alberto Ferraris resigns from the position of Finance director. 8 December Parmalat admits failure to recover â‚ ¬496.5m from Epicurum. This amount was needed to service debt. 15 December Tanzi resigns as chairman and CEO. 16 December Enrico Bondi takes control of the company. 17 December Bank of America denies the credibility of documents that affirm Bonlat account existence. 24 December Parmalat files for irregular administration operations. 27 December Italian authorities hold Tanzi in their custody in Milan [7] 29 December Tanzi admits to siphoning off â‚ ¬500m of company funds; Bondi takes charge as Parmalat administrator; US Securities and Exchange Commission bring charges against Parmalat for fraud. 30 December Tanzi is formally charged with fraud. 31 December Parmalat officials are arrested. These included former CFO Fausto Tonna and Luciano Del Soldato, and two officials from Grant Thorntons Italian branch that audited Bonlat. 2. How was fraud perpetrated and how was the company able to continue with the fraudulent practice for such a long time? Parmalat started out as many other businesses have. It was first a small dairy shop that slowly progressed and expanded its range of products, and finally turned into a large dairy producer that sold its products in several countries. From the early 1990s and onwards, Parmalat appeared to make significant progress, registering profits annually that was encouraging enough for investors to go on investing in the company. However, the truth of the matter was that these very investors were all being deceived due to Parmalat’s fraudulent practices largely perpetrated by Tanzi, top managers, the Parmalats external lawyer, Gian Paolo Zini, and two external auditors, Maurizio Bianchi and Lorenzo Penca. However, Zini, Bianchi and Penca claim that they are innocent[8]. Falsifying Credibility and Obtaining Loans and Investments: Tanzi and all those who were allegedly involved in what is known to be one of the biggest scams, managed to borrow money from banks and even justified these loans for Parmalat through inflating revenues and fictitious sales in records between 1990 and 2003. They would also ‘cook’ its books in order to make debt vanish. They managed to do this through transferring debt to offshore ‘shell’ companies. In addition to covering up debt in this manner, there were other tactics that Parmalat resorted to (Parmalat Dream Goes Sour, 2004). One of the other methods Parmalat used in order to cover their debt when it got too big to cover with the offshore shell companies included their invention of a bogus milk producer, supposedly situated in Singapore. Parmalat claimed that the company had supplied 300, 000 tons of milk powder to Cuba. This process included Bonlat, a Caymen Island subsidiary of Parmalat. Bonlat had a fictitious account in the Bank of America. This whole setup is so surprising that it has left many baffled as to how could such a fraudulent concept have been so successful and convincing when there was no concrete evidence in it[9]. Looking at the above example of the manner in which Parmalat faked transactions, it can be observed that the whole concept is such that it would have an ordinary person believe that it was authentic. Who would have suspected that any of it was fictitious, particularly because Parmalat had been a company in operation for several years? Ordinarily, one would suspect a company if it had a single concern that was being publicized. However, since Parmalat was projecting trade being conducted that included different physical points, there was little suspicion raised. There was the exporter in Singapore, the importer in Cuba, and Bonlat involved too in the Caymen Islands. The scheme thought up was very believable also because of the fact that Bonlat supposedly had an account in the Bank of America. Different Roles Played to Conceal Debt: Considering the debt that was actually showing up in the books, Parmalat had to have people who could cover it up well enough. This called for people on the inside as well as the outside to co-operate. External auditors, internal auditors as well as the top-notch individuals at Parmalat had to play their roles. One the inside, the books were maintained in the hands of trusted people. External auditors were told to keep this quiet. In this case, it was chiefly Grant Thornton that aided Parmalat in carrying out its fraudulent practice for so long. Grant Thornton’s Role: Grant Thornton played a major role in helping Parmalat continue its long-term fraudulent practice. It did so because it had a great deal to gain from Parmalat, and so did Parmalat have a lot to gain from Grant Thornton working with them. Grant Thornton was and up and coming auditing firm that needed to be have sound clients in order to help its reputation in the market. Parmalat paid Grant Thornton considerable amounts to conceal debts. Quite obviously, this seemed to work for several years, and did so till 1999, when Parmalat were compelled to replace Grant Thornton with DeLoitte and Touche. This was necessary because by Italian law, an external auditor should be changed every nine years. Parmalat abided by the law, but was also proposed a way of continuing its fraudulent practice. With DeLoitte and Touche taking charge as external auditors meant that debts would no longer be concealed, and Parmalat could be exposed. This could have happened in 1999. However, since Parmalat maintained Grant Thornton for its spin offs [its travel and other businesses], they were able to continue tricking everyone far and wide. This scheme was simple as well, and included another series of false records in order to show that Parmalat was still making profits annually. This was possible through illicit payments that these spin offs could make to Parmalat. Executives at Parmalat would create debts while Grant Thornton would create false accounts from which they could make payments to Parmalat. They would produce these records to DeLoitte and Touche, and they would be approved[10]. More Actions that helped to Conceal Parmalat’s Debt: Basically, it could be asserted that it was the executives on the inside of Parmalat and the external auditors that were hand in glove; together they managed to conceal debt. However, in addition to this practice that lasted for many years, the innovative idea of offshore concerns enhanced credibility. In addition to this, the fact that Parmalat products were popular in several countries meant that fewer questions would be asked. Also, for a whole decade none of the auditors in any location raised any concerns. It is thought that the amount concealed by 1995 amounted to $300 million annually in just Latin America. By this time, debt was already enormous and it is obvious that a great deal was being done to conceal it well enough. However, since Parmalat’s increasing debt went unnoticed for a few more years, it is obvious that more action needed to be taken in order to make sure that it stayed covered. This meant that Parmalat had to transfer debt off its financial statements. In order to do this, it had to make use of ‘shell’ companies in the Caribbean. These companies had to show sales, and Parmalat would send them fictitious invoices in order to legitimize the sales. Parmalat would then make out notes to banks in order to show them that they were owed so much finance. Against these notes, Parmalat would be granted loans, as it appeared that the Parmalat was making profits. In order to make their debts disappear, Parmalat transferred its debts to its offshore subsidiaries that were based in tax havens (Parmalat Dream Goes Sour, 2004). The Beginning of the End: Parmalat had been making use of offshore shell companies until 1999. Parmalat shifted operations of its three offshore shell companies to Bonlat, in the Cayman Islands in 1999. This is thought to be the beginning of the end for Parmalat. At this point, debt was so high that it was becoming difficult to conceal it. Fictitious assets at Bonlat amounted to around $8 billion, which forced Parmalat to create a Cayman Islands-based investment fund, Epicurum, which would take over part of the fictitious credit. It was Epicurum that caught auditors’ attention as well as Italys stock market regulator [November 2003]. It was just a matter of a month before everything was exposed and the company officially was declared bankrupt[11]. Finally, it may be asserted that it was the auditors through which Parmalat managed to deceive everyone for so long with the help of top-level management at Parmalat. If Parmalat had not been able to get Grant Thornton to work in their favor along with their internal auditors and top-level management, the entire scam would not have been possible. This dates back to the beginning of the fraud when Parmalat first began to conceal its debt. If it did not have an external auditor on its side to conceal the large debt it incurred because family business and unnecessary purchases, Parmalat’s debt would have been in public view in the early 1990s. However, this was not to be due to a ring of people working to conceal debt. Though there were several people involved in making debt disappear off the records, it can be observed that it was the auditors that made each of Parmalat’s fraudulent schemes possible. This is true to say whether one looks at the debt covered in the earlies t days of fraud or towards the end. The fictitious transactions with shell companies too were made possible due to the auditors who ‘cooked’ the books. However, it can also be asserted that the auditors were not solely to blame in making sure this fraud lasted for so long, as there had to be others in on these schemes too. This included key people of Parmalat such as the executives, its CEO, its internal auditors as well as external auditors and individuals at key financial institutions. In order for a fraudulent scheme to last as long as it did in the case of Parmalat, there had to be a whole ring of people involved, which also explains why it took such a long time and deep investigation to uncover all those were responsible for the scandal. 3. The role and the responsibility of auditors in preventing financial scandals and ensuring and upholding the principles of good corporate governance. In organizations such as Parmalat and other large organizations where there are several shareholders and many people dependent on the progress of these corporations, executives and top-level managers have a responsibility towards them. Generally, it can be asserted that corporate governance refers to ways in which rights and responsibilities are shared between various corporate participants, the management and the stakeholders[12]. Governing corporations such as Parmalat consists of fixed processes, customs, policies, laws and institutions that impact the way it is directed and administered. These are processes that should have been conducted responsibly in order to make sure that Parmalat made progress. If Parmalat was facing debt, executives and all those concerned should have been honest and made sure that these debts were made known (Gumbel, 2004). This would have saved the organization in its earliest days of trouble. Therefore, it can be asserted that being honest and responsib le in corporate governance is important. It is important to assert that corporate governance also encompasses the relationships among the many participants involved in the process (the stakeholders) as well as the goals for which the corporation is managed or governed. The principal participants are the shareholders, management and the board of directors. In addition to these main players there are other stakeholders: employees, suppliers, customers, banks and other lenders, regulators, the environment and the even community[13]. This is because all these people and institutions are affected in one way of another by the actions and repercussions of a corporation and the decisions it makes. In view of the many people that corporate governance impacts as in the case of Parmalat, accountability, fiduciary duty and mechanisms of auditing and control are of immense importance. Responsibility of Auditors: Auditors, whether they are external or internal auditors, have responsibility towards all those involved with a corporation. Particularly, it may be asserted that there are many individuals who are not directly involved with the operations of a corporation, but they may be dependent on its operations significantly. These are the kinds of people that really need to be protected, and auditors have a great responsibility towards them (Gunz and McCutcheon, 1996, 7-15). To begin with, a very basic and generally stated duty of auditors is to make sure that a corporation’s operate efficiently, their records are maintained properly, and its taxes are handed in on time. Auditors generally offer these services to their clients, which include government, public and management accounting. In offering these services, their role includes preparing reports, analyzing, and verifying financial statements and documents for the purpose of providing information to their clients. By performing these tasks honestly and not concealing any information auditors fulfill their duties (Gunz and McCutcheon, 1996, 7-15). This is precisely what is required of them when they deal with huge corporations like Parmalat. The role of auditors would include exposing whether the corporation is actually making huge annual profits or whether they are concealing their debts[14]. In addition to the roles that auditors play in offering their services to corporations, other services they provide include financial and investment planning, budget analysis, information technology consultation, and limited legal services. However, these are services can only be carried out if they perform their fundamental duties responsibly. This is because the figurers that they provide after performing their fundamental tasks impact these additional processes. For example, if debts of a corporation are not presented accurately and annual profits are fictitious, how can an authentic and realistic budget be prepared? Therefore, it can be asserted that auditors cannot work and produce any realistic figures if they distort debts and profits made annually. In recent times, this is what has been occurring. Corporations hire auditors to check their statements. Somehow, these auditors have gotten involved in illegal behavior and have hidden debts and elevated profits. Based on these fig ures they helped in painting pretty pictures for the corporation’s reputation in the market. This is how Parmalat managed to remain in the global market for a long time without being suspected of having immense debt. Having asserted the above, it is also important to consider the fact that in the US there are limitations imposed on auditors that investigate a corporation’s financial statements. Due to the fact that there have been corporate scandals that have involved auditors being involved, it is now illegal for an accounting firm that audits a corporation’s financial statements, to advise areas such as investment banking, legal matters, etc. of that firm. One exception to this prohibition is that auditors may provide advice on tax issues that would benefit the company (Young, 1997). Forensic Auditing: Having asserted the necessity of making accurate reports of financial figures regarding a corporation’s annual budgets or debts, it must be asserted that one major and specialized accounting practice is forensic accounting. Several public accountants specialize in this, as it is of growing importance in today’s world where corporate scandals appear to occur frequently. Forensic accounting includes investigation and interpretation of white-collar crimes. This type of crime includes bankruptcies, securities fraud and embezzlement, and contract disputes. In addition to this, criminal financial transactions, such as money laundering, are also included in white-color crime. It can be asserted that auditors who specialize in forensic accountancy play an important role in preventing corporate scandals such as the one that took place with Parmalat. However, it should be remembered that auditors who do not specialize in forensic accountancy are no novices. This means that if there are any unusual entries and irregularities in records, any auditor should be to detect them, and this is why all auditors are said to have responsibility to report any irregularities[15]. Though auditors generally are able to detect any irregularities, those that specialize in forensic accounting make use of accounting and finance knowledge, law and investigative techniques. They use this combination in order to detect illegal activity in a corporation, and it is obviously a greater advantage to them as they are more specialized. It is known that there are several forensic accountants that work in tandem with personnel from law enforcement departments during investigations. However, this occurs normally after a corporate scandal has been detected. Considering this, it might be a good idea for forensic accountants to work in this manner as part of regular and standard procedure in order to safeguard everyone involved with a corporation. If such a practice were adopted as standard procedure, it would become more difficult for financial scandals to take place. This is considerate of acknowledging that corporations usually appoint their own auditors. Auditing firms might be required to adhere to practices that would make regular procedures more thorough and transparent as a result[16]. Aside from considerations for current practices of audit firms and ones that could be included in order to prevent financial scandals, the general concept of internal and external auditors reviewing and analyzing financial statements of firms aims at doing the same thing. Fundamental Responsibilities of Auditors: It is the primary responsibility of internal auditors to make sure records are accurately maintained. These records are also checked for any form of irregularity, which may include things like mismanagement or even fraud. Internal auditors are not only supposed to maintain records of financial figures, but their roles also encompass examining the firm’s operations with regard to finance and information systems, management, and internal controls. Examining these operations are important as they help to make sure that financial records are accurately maintained. In addition to this, these steps also examine the adequacy of controls to protect the firm against financial scandals (Gunz and McCutcheon, 1996, 7-15). Further, it can be asserted that internal auditors have the responsibility of evaluating important areas of the corporation such as effectiveness, compliance with all standards and corporate policies and procedures, efficiency, laws, and government regulations. Since there are so many types of operations to take care of in a corporation, there are areas of specialization for internal auditors as well. Some of these may include environmental, engineering, electronic data-processing, legal, insurance premium, banking, and healthcare auditors. The reason for specialization in these areas is because there are technical procedures that need to be understood in order to evaluate things like efficiency and effectiveness. Having deeper understanding of individual industries helps internal auditors to evaluate a corporation’s operations more specifically (Bavly, 1999, 25-30). Among the important steps that internal auditors may take towards better controls within a corporation, recommendation of better controls is high on the list of priorities for better auditing processes. An example of recommendations that internal auditors may make in a firm, internal auditors may help managers through co

The Power Struggle in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart Essay examples

The Power Struggle in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart is a powerful novel about the social changes that occurred when the white man first arrived on the African continent. The novel is based on a conception of humans as self-reflexive beings and a definition of culture as a set of control mechanisms. Things Fall Apart is the story of Okonkwo, an elder, in the Igbo tribe. He is a fairly successful man who earned the respect of the tribal elders. The story of Okonkwo’s fall from a respected member of the tribe to an outcast who dies in disgrace graphically dramatizes the struggle between the altruistic values of Christianity and the lust for power that motivated European colonialism in Africa and undermined the indigenous culture of a nation. Okonkwo's father was laughed at by the villagers, and was considered a failure. However, this was not true of Okonkwo, who lived in a modest home. Okonkwo's prosperity was visible in his household. He had a large compound enclosed by a thick wall of red earth. His own hut, or obi, stood immediately behind the only gate in the red walls. Each of his three wives had their own hut, which together formed a half moon behind the obi. The barn was built against one end of the red walls, and long stacks of yams stood out prosperously in it. Unfortunately, the clash of the cultures that occurs when the white man's missionaries come to Africa in an attempt to convert the tribal members, causes Okonkwo to lash out at the white man and results in his banishment from the tribe. Okonkwo had a bad temper which he often displayed: Okonkwo ruled his household with a heavy hand. His wives, especially the youngest, lived in perpetual fear of his fiery temper, and so did his little children. Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man. But his whole life was dominated by fear of failure and of weakness. The cracks within Okonkwo's character are not so much external as internal, manifestations of those aspects of his being that have been his greatest strengths: acting without thinking; never showing any emotion besides anger; inflexibility; fear of being perceived as weak and, therefore, womanly. Slowly, these characteristics that have served Okonkwo so well in the past, begin to alter the direction of his life. The first such incident occurs when Okonkwo accidentally breaks the W... ...s return to Umuofia at the end of his exile when he returns home. The white men send their a messenger to the village. Okonkwo is still enraged about Nwoye's conversion. He sprang to his feet as soon as he saw who it was. He confronted the head messenger, trembling with hate, unable to utter a word. The man was fearless and stood his ground, his four men lined up behind him. â€Å"In a flash Okonkwo drew his machete. . . . Okonkwo’s machete descended twice and the man's head lay beside his uniformed body† (204). In the end it is Okonkwo’s inability to recognize change that forces him to commit suicide. It is the white missionaries’ inability to recognize that the Africans did not wish to change which adds to his demise. The missionaries represent the ruthlessness of the white man in Africa. The native Africans were expected to accept the ways of the white culture, for their own benefit, or suffer the consequences. In this light the missionaries can only be seen as brutal, and anything but true Christians, but rather religious zealots who like Okonkwo wish to force their world view upon others. Works Cited Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart. New York: Anchor Books, 1959.

Racism :: essays research papers

Racism can ‘destroy the personality and scar the soul.’   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Martin Luther King Australian society is made up of a wide variety of groups. These groups of people have different cultural traditions and economic and social background. The success of the communication and interacting of these groups depends largely on the attitudes, values, and behaviour of people towards different groups. Racism is probably the first form of discrimination we think of. It is the belief that some races of people are inferior to other ‘races’. Racism usually involves negative acts against the group of people considered inferior. Genocide is the deliberate extermination of a whole race or ethnic or religious grouping of people. The impact of racism on the Aboriginal people is not just horrific but genocidal. Racism is a problem for Aboriginal Australians. This includes occupation of Aboriginal land under the ‘Terra Nullius’ principle, assimilation, the stolen generation, and Aboriginal Australian’s health. Before the arrival of European settlers, Australia was probably inhabited by as many as 500 different tribal groups of Aboriginal peoples. Many of these groups, their cultures, and their languages have been wiped out by white settlement. Aboriginal Australians traditionally owned land on a group or tribal basis according to birthright. Being a member of a tribe entitled an individual to dwell on a certain designated area of land and to utilise the natural materials from that land. The land was inalienable, that is ownership could not be transferred, because no one really ‘owned; the land in the European sense of the word therefore disputes about land did not arise between Aborigines. Upon European settlement in Australia, all useful available land was carved up by the settlers according to the notion of possession of land based on English law. This division of land failed to recognise any land rights held by the original dwellers. Dispossession had a devastating effect on Aboriginal society To the Aborigines the land was part of their very being. It had a special religious significance and they believed there was a direct relationship between the spirit and the site from which the spirit came. That place was the person’s life force and that person was inseparable connected with it and these sites were considered sacred. Within a generation of the first white settlement, many tribal groups were decimated or wiped out. By the 1850s many were on the point of extinction, others were extinct. In the Port Phillip area, for example, government records show that a pre-contact population of about 10000 was reduced to less than 2000 in only eighteen years.

Computers and Firefighting :: Firefighters Computers Technology Essays

Computers and Firefighting It seems that the advances of today are moving far more rapidly than people have ever thought about. The only question is that how much farther can we go in the advancement of computer technology to support people. One of the ways to support people is in the area of Firefighting. In this field the firemen with help of computers is allowed to help civilians when they are in need. The job of now is becoming a little safer to do because of newly advances by computers in the firefighting field. Three important ways computers have contributed is in the ways firemen can refine their own personal knowledge of the job, personal protective equipment (PPE), and one of the tools invented to locate people. The topic for computer advancement, is of a field that is one of the most critical services given to people. Why? It is one of most demanding jobs because of what the fireman actually does. In most senses his or her job is not to only fight fires, but also to search out for life within the fire, administer aid if needed, along with the searching for clues to what might have been the cause for the accident or blaze. The Fireman combines the work ethic of not only his or her job, but along with knowledge of a nurse and police officer. True, he or she does not always play a role on the other areas besides fighting fires, but they have to be able to pick-up where ever they are needed in whatever role. In order to broaden the knowledge of the firemen, it is most commonly done through new types of studying and training. A firemen can take lessons of a CD with help of a computer, and run simulations on their own to refine and expand their own personal abilities as a fireman. Now all the y have to do it go to a computer and learn what they need to know, at times even through interactive lessons, instead of using the old method of reading textbooks, magazines, journals, or where ever else the information lies for them to find. In the area of the firemen ¡Ã‚ ¦s own personal protective equipment, it too has be advanced because of computers. Twenty-five years ago, the turnout gear worn by firefighters was used to keep the firefighter from getting wet mainly then with the introduction of Nomex, which was a self-extinguishing man-made material, then came Gortex and PBI.

Abolitionist movement Essay

With the enlightenment and awareness of people regarding human rights came the abolitionist movement. Slavery was something that violated the basic tenet of human rights and dignity, and so it had to be abolished. Northern states have begun to pass acts which declared that all men were born free and equal. Several movements that involved religion and political movements highly influenced the strength and expanse of abolitionist ideals throughout the country. The movements that supported abolitionism varied in method and degree. Some were pacifist, as they tried to use the legal system and passed legislation seeking to make slavery illegal. Others utilized literature and the press like Harriet Beecher Stowe, the author of the famous novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Religious movements declared slavery to be sinful and un-Christian, to discourage believers from keeping and owning slaves. Only a minority of abolitionists used to armed revolt and instigation of unrest and anger among the slaves as the main machinery to further their cause. The movement continued its stride to abolish slavery, but its strongest anchor point came with the election of a known contester of slavery, Abraham Lincoln, as president. With the head of state holding this position of opposition of slavery, the south felt that their way of life was endangered and threatened. Economic repercussions will be felt by their planters in the cotton, tobacco and sugar farms if the hands that worked in the plantations were to be set free. The zenith of the tensions between the south and the north was the American Civil war. It broke out when the south organized and removed themselves from the control of the American government. Rise of Abolitionism Historian James McPherson defined an abolitionist as a person who has fought for the abolition of slavery in the United States before the Civil war. American abolition started early on, as there were several groups already fighting for the liberation of slaves, such as the Society of Relief of Free Negroes Unlawfully Held in Bondage, and there were several institutions which prohibited slavery already. Several states had passed laws that completely prohibited slavery in their territories. Those who joined the American Anti-Slavery Society or other groups were abolitionists. These movements were not unified, and so could not boast a unified strength. Vermont was the first territory to make slavery illegal, and Pennsylvania was the first state to abolish slavery in 1780. Then several states followed Pennsylvania’s example while some states chose to limit slave trading. Many of the states in the south retained the institution of slavery as it was the region’s life line in their plantations. Their strong adherence to the institution drove them to take a defensive stance against the rising popularity of the abolitionist movement. Many abolitionist writers distributed many anti-slavery writings and literature to the south to help spread the ideologies. Novels, pamphlets and other forms of writing began to circulate not just in the north, but also in the southern region. Southern officials were enraged at the act, and thus moved to ban all types of literature that might instigate rebellion and changes in the south. Violence was even employed to stop the circulation of antislavery media in the south. Elijah Parish Lovejoy, the editor of an abolitionist newspaper was murdered by a mob of pro-slavery southerners. His printing press was also destroyed. Abolitionists recognized the fact that slavery needed to be abolished everywhere in the country, but the north cannot interfere with the affairs of the south because of federal ruling. Because of this, many abolitionists focused on liberating the north and skipping the southern states. Some abolitionists were frustrated and did not like this idea, as they believed that every state should be free of slavery. The movement was further fortified by the support of free African-Americans and their church. With the issue of the constitution, the American Abolitionist movement split up into two groups, the Garrisonians, led by William Garrison and Wendell Phillips and another camp led by Spooner and Gerrit Smith. The Garrisonians believed that the constitution promoted slavery while Spooner’s group believed the constitution to be antislavery. Since slavery was unconstitutional, it could be abolished with the blessing of the law. More divisions in the abolitionist movement arose, but because of the social classes of the abolitionists themselves. The artisans and elites divided themselves on the issue of slavery as well. The Underground Railroad was used as a venue by many abolitionists to become more active in the cause for abolition of slavery. Many of the fugitive slaves were illegally transported away from their masters to be free men via this rail. But the railroad was made illegal by the passing of the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850. But this did not stop the abolitionists from providing shelter and transporting slaves to freedom. After the Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863 was done, many abolitionists moved to liberate slaves in the slave states. There were also movements to improve the social and living conditions of African-Americans all over the country. The Thirteenth Amendment finally ended all slave subjugations in the country.

Link Crew Portfolio Essay

Unit 1: Getting to know your grade nine’s 1. I am fortunate to have gotten to know and to have been able to mentor all my grade nine-link students, I have gotten to know that all of them are special and talented in their own ways. The grade nine-link student that I will be profiling is one of those many; I remember the first time I met this grade nine and how excited she was to be starting high school and unlike all the other grade nines we had who all looked nervous she looked ready and energized for what was waiting ahead of her. I also remember that on the first day of high school she had her career plan already set, she wanted to be a veterinarian and she also knew what university she wanted to attend and what school courses up to grade twelve she had to take. I was so impressed with her because I remember my first day of high school I was a nervous wreck who did not want to meet any new people or go out my comfort zone. This link student would always come to me if she had any questions about school and most importantly, she always wanted to know when our next link AFU was, this always made me happy because I knew that she was interested in what we (my link partner and I) had to say. This link student’s learning style would have to be visual, I say this because back during the first day of school we had a discussion on books, more specifically the Hunger Games since I noticed that she had a Hunger game necklace after mentioning that she told me that she had read the Hunger Games 64 times already. Sixty four times is a lot of times to read one book and that is quite impressive for a young girl, the thing that makes her a visual learner though is right after she said that she told that she had to read that much times in order to visualize it and memorize it since it was her favourite book. I also say she is a visual learner because every time we would give out examples during our AFU she would always ask us to write it down or show her an example so she could visually see it. I would also say that she is linguistic due to the example given above about her reading a book 64 times , she is also very outspoken and she is able to portray her feeling and thoughts through language and speaking. For her socio-economic background, I would have to say that in my perspective she has a stable socio-economic background and that she has never once come to me about socio-economic problems, or have I ever heard anyone once say that she has socio-economic issues. Since my grade nine student is really outspoken she is sometimes portrayed from her peers as very talkative, and just from my link group I could see that some of my link students get annoyed of her because she likes to answer her questions in detail, which is a good thing. I feel that people can’t really get to know her well because they make rash decisions based on their first impression and to some people their first impression of her is sometimes negative. The negative impression from others rather sets back her social development but other than that, her mental health seems to be fine. There isn’t really a huge problem with her physical health as well, and this allows her to be very energetic and spirited. Some appropriate future goals would for this link student would be to be more aware of other people thoughts, and to take into consideration other people’s opinions. This hinders my grade nine from getting to really understand other people, and to see where others may be coming from, and this limits her social interactions with her peers. In addition, it is sometimes difficult for my grade nine to communicate with her teachers as well. Even though she has a lot of time ahead of her if she could improve on this, she would be both socially and academically ready to face all of high school. 2. For me personally a good example where school or community services helped students overcome barriers to learning would have to be my story of overcoming my barrier to learning a new language. Growing up I was never the brightest person, I had difficulties learning in elementary school. When I first arrived to Canada, I knew nothing and to make matters worse it was difficult for me to get new concepts, such as a new language. Therefore when I finished first grade my mom decided to have me held back and put back in to grade one again. I was sad at first because I wanted to be in the same grade as my friends but then I was put into ESL, why they didn’t put me into ESL my first year I have no idea. After I was put into ESL though I could see myself continuously improving and the thing I liked most about it was that I never felt any pressure from my ESL teacher, and I was able to learn at my own pace. It became gradually noticeable that I was improving and after a year or so, I did not need ESL anymore. Soon following that, I was able to go back to my original grade because ESL helped me achieve and overcome my barriers to learning. 3. A meaningful mentorship interaction between my link kids and me would be the time I helped one of my link kids have a better communication with one of her teachers. My link kid was having trouble understanding one of her teachers and the way I figured this out was that one day during lunch while I was talking to one of my friends in the cafeteria I noticed my link kid sitting at one of the tables. I went up to her to say hi but then I noticed that she was looking gloom and my link is always a happy cheerful person and full of spirit. I became curious and so I asked her if she was okay. I could see she was resistant at first to tell me what was troubling her, but after a brief second or two, she started to open up and tell me how she was having trouble understanding one of her teachers, and how the teacher was always yelling at her for reasons she didn’t understand. She went on to tell me how she tries her best to do everything her teacher asks of her to do, put even then her teacher still picks on her. After listening to her story I decided to tell her about the miscommunication I had with one of my teachers when I was in ninth grade. I told her how I also didn’t understand where my teacher was coming from and how I would blame this teacher for my mistakes. Right after I said that though I added that it wasn’t really the teachers fault and the it was my fault due to the fact that I didn’t efficiently communicate with my teacher and that I never went up to inform my teacher whenever a problem arose. I also added that I never gave my teacher the opportunity to understand where I was coming from and so it was difficult for us both. After hearing this my link student knew that she had to go and talk to her teacher in order for them to have an effective communication and then there would be no misunderstanding. A week later, my link student came up to me to thank me, and she said that her teacher and she were getting along better now, now that there was better communication. Unit 2: Personal Profile 1. Learning styles: My learning style would be intrapersonal and linguistic learning styles. I am able to feel energized and charged when I am alone, I also think better and I am able to understand new concepts better when I am alone and in a quiet place. I also like to write down a lot of my thoughts and new ideas that come to me, and I feel that it is easier for me to express myself by using language and writing then by talking. Interpersonal skills: Even though I am intrapersonal, I have a pretty good ability of listening and understanding others. In most cases, I am able to know where most people are coming from, clearly listen to other people’s problems, and understand their situation in order for me to come up with a solution for them. I can also notice most people emotions by their tone and or posture. Teamwork skills: Some teamwork skills I have are my ability to help others solve any problems they may have, my ability to share my ideas with my team, and my ability to effectively participate with my team. Management skills: I have good team management skills; I am able to effectively and efficiently work in a team and successfully accomplishment whatever it is that needs to be done in a team. I am also able to follow instructions and give out instructions when it needs be. 2. Given my personal profile, one area of improvement would have to be my personal management skills more importantly my time management and stress management skills. I have difficulties having the ability to recognize and solve time management problems. I am a huge procrastinator and it usually works for me, but I can fell the stress it has on me especially during my grade twelve year. In addition, I have difficulties managing my stress because when everything piles up I start to panic and make stuff more difficult than it has to be. 3. My personal strengths will help me achieve my futures goals by allowing me to excel in group collaborations and perhaps excel in things like research since I do like to research and this allows me to work on my own and to work with others. It will also help me get jobs and all the skills listed above would be excellent to put on my resume. Unit 3: Management 1. An example of miscommunication or a challenge communicating in link crew was during the first day that we were playing the ‘Win as Much as You Can’ game. I remember we were confused as to how to play the game and like every other group we wanted the most points. Olivia caught on to the meaning of the game though early on and she started to tell us that it wasn’t really about getting the most points as individuals but as a whole team. I remember we didn’t really listen to her though and most of us were just interested in manipulating our way to winning. After a while though we decided to take Olivia’s advice and pick the Y hoping everyone else also picked the Y, unfortunately no one else pick the Y and we ended up losing more points and since we were already behind we dropped Olivia’s idea once again and we started thinking about ourselves once more. In the end, our miscommunication was so bad that Olivia ended up tearing the X so everyone was able to see that we were supposed to be picking the Y from the beginning. This is basically the only example of miscommunication I have had in Link Crew. Some strategies that could have been utilized to communicate more effectively would probably be for the people in our group to have received and correctly understood Olivia’s message, and for Olivia to have been clear and concise about the message she was sending us. Our group in the beginning had the mindset of winning the most points and so we were not able to clearly hear Olivia’s message and Olivia wanted to play the game the right way and for everyone to win so she wasn’t able to send out her message clearly and because of that the game became very jumbled and confusing. In addition, we should have been more open to Olivia’s point of view because she was right and we weren’t able to see until the end. 2. A conflict that occurred within my link group would have to be during our second AFU. During my second AFU my partner and I were partnered up with another partner as we do for every AFU, the problem with this AFU collaboration and what made it different than the others was that my partner was having some sort of conflict with one of the people in the other group that we were collaborating with. I wouldn’t say conflict actually more like they did have a conflict and were now at odds with one another and so once we were told that we were partnered up with the other group, my partner told me right away that I would have to stay with her during the whole AFU. What ended up happening was that my partner and I in some ways separated from the other group. Due to that, I had to make a choice of either helping the other group out and effectively contributing to the AFU as a whole, or being beside my link partner so that there were no awkward interactions between her and the person in the other group. Even though there were no awkward interaction, between them two, the whole AFU was just awkward and it did not go at all as we planned it to. A better way to have approached this situation was to have had both my partner and the other person from our collaborating group talk out their problems before the AFU so that their dispute or awkwardness or whatever it may have been would not affect the AFU as a whole . Also another way that I personally could have approached this differently would have been to use the â€Å"I feel† stamen that was thought in class during effective communication. By using this I would have been able to effectively and concisely state my feelings and with that things might have gone better. Action Plan for post- secondary destination: I will first need to improve on my time management and organizational skills. I will improve on this by: 1. Making a personal calendar that will allow me to record everything I have do, this will allow me to plan each day and by doing this I will be able to have more control over my time and be less stressed. 2. I will need to prioritize my time to ensure that I send my time and energy on the things that are truly important to me. This will also allow me to have stress relievrs during post-secondary and I will need many of those. 3. I will need to say no to nonessential tasks; I have tendency to take on more than I can handle and then crash because of all the workload. I will need to consider my goals and schedule before agreeing to take on additional work 4. I will also probably take a time management course during the summer to enhance my time management skills. There are also many time management courses offered in post-secondary schools so I might take them as well. 5. I will also need to limit distractions; this is one of the main reasons for my procrastinations and I am a person who gets distracted easily. Some other strategies and goals that don’t involve time management and or organizational skills but will help me in my transition to post secondary would be: 1. Good sleep, exercise, and eating habits, this will help me be healthier and feel good about myself. This will also improve my focus and concentration which will be a huge advantage during my post secondary years. 2. Stop making things more complicated than they should be; I have a complicated way of making things complicated. If I could stop this my life, not just my transition to post secondary environment will be a success!