Masculinity and Femininity in Human Culture Essay

Masculinity and Femininity in Human Culture - Essay Example In essence femininity pleases man because it creates a stark contrast and paints them as the ultimate power and competence. On the other hand to paint masculinity is to paint man as "success objects". He is perceived to be the 100 percent red-blooded certifiably male and a lot of expectation are being showered upon him. Unfortunately the men never realize that like women, they come in a variety of types-and that there is never an ultimate need to outdo one another for every person's ability depends on his capacity to recognized his role to himself, to the family and to the society in general. In Miller (1988)1 Willy told Linda that "In the greatest country in the world, a young man with such-personal attractiveness gets lost". His belief dwells on the idea that success means "being well-liked". He has been led to believe by the society he lives in that men are success objects. Failure is not treated as acceptable among males. Anxiety therefore created his negative behavior and responses further admitted when Willy recalls admitting to his older brother Ben that he feels "kind of temporary about"2 himself. To analyze, man can probably never vocally complain about being a "success object" and be valued for the money that he earns. Family responsibilities have depended on him to fulfill a certain role of strength that he simply forgets that his masculinity has sunk to its lowest when the realization of his dreams became mere figments of his imagination. According to Ladd in Roscoe(30)3 "Men are responsible for the universe. Women are responsible for the family and the tribe ." Such belief evolved from the sterner and conservative society who has not recognize the understanding that man has a complex nature as Ladd further added, "These roles were distinct but complementary; both were essential to the welfare of society as a whole". Structural straining is encouraged in a fast-paced society to mobilize the genders to achieve and attain certain degree of success in his social strata. Such viewpoint heavily suggests that failure have only them to blame. Recent development in the social structure of the masculinity has been greatly affected by the influence and re-emergence of the "third sex" or the gay community. Genetics appropriately claimed that association between directly inherited traits of behavioral patterns provides the analogy for the possible meaning of homosexuality whereby the association between the two ends. It may be difficult to explain how the environment and society contributes to homosexuality or androgyny in males however Chauncey added that "The determining criterion in labeling a man as "straight" (their term) or "queer" was not the extent of his homosexual activity, but rather the gender role he assumed."4 Across the developmental stage of man, we encounter the emergence of the Elektra and oedipal complex right after the child passes the toddler stage. Parental attachment and other inter-familial relationships sought to

A brief History about football Essay Example for Free

A brief History about football Essay Argyle has 69 sponsors this season that all helps the club in one way or another by sponsoring them money witch helps the everyday running of the club from security to help pay the team wages and transport to away games and keeping home park looking clean and tidy. scale and econmic importance Plymouth Argyle is of a great econmic importance to the city of Plymouth, the scale of with is involving people with jobs locally within the club to helping company sponsors like ginsters who takes on more staff as need to keep up with demans and getting their lines of food to the ground on time. There is many people that benifit from the club like on match days there is over fifty security staff working keeping everyone safe,also catering staff selling the drinks and food threw out the game and staff taking tickets and money on the turnstiles leading up to the game. When the football season starts Plymouyh Argyle helps bring money into Plymouth and everyone locally benifits from this as every home game, home and away fans travel to Plymouth some spending the nite or more others just spending the day in Plymouth but during the duration of their visit they will spend money in our shops,pubs,clubs,food outlets and other places. Role of education in the sport Plymouth Argyle play a big role locally to show people from all walks of life that there is plenty of jobs at a football club even if u cant play football, from being a cleaner or doing ground maintenance all the way up to being a member on the board. there are plenty of opportunies of all different kinds of jobs that may interest people to getting involved with there local team. Plymouth Argyle runs many different kinds of clubs to educate people with day to day running that happens at the club. They ran a programme last year called kick off that helped people get back on track in life and do good and give a little back to the community. During this programme they taught them basic computer skills, built their confidence up and taught them other skills that may help them get a job in the future and keep out of trouble and not go back to old addictions. Plymouth Argyle also educates children and adults on why they should keep to a healthy diet and the positives they will get from it, and why junk food is no good for them in many ways. Influence from media and sponsorship P1. 5. There is lots of influence from media to do with Plymouth Argyle. It can be good our bad for the club or the person or players involved, for example our local newspaper the herald does a write up about the club and how they did or whats going on. It can be good to attracts people to come watch the teams next home game when the team is doing good or they have signed new players but it also has its down side when the team is not doing as good as expected and negative things are put in the paper or they get on at one player. Plymouth argyle has there own website run by the fans for the fans where they can get all the latest gossip speak to other people online watch clips of the latest games and managers comments on how the team preformed last. This site is also first to get any breaking news to do with Plymouth argyle. Televised games has a big influence on the income profit for the club each season so the better the team does in the cup and the league the more chance there is to be televised by either sky sports or bbc what pays for the rights to televise the teams and helps both teams that our playing out and they get better national publicity and also get paid for there team being televised. Plymouth Argyle has over 70 sponsors this season including coca cola who sponsors the league that Argyle plays in. The money that the sponsors pay to sponsors Plymouth Argyle gets used in many different ways from helping with the everyday running of the club to team transport, players wages, ground maintenance, and better facilities within the club for the fans and the players. The sponsors get a board around the ground advertising there company and some times get a mention at half time and some times get a few free tickets to a selected home game. p3. Employment Plymouth Argyle has many people employed behind the scenes that helps keep the club day to day running run smoothly. There is over 70 members of staff that do there part thought-out the week without including the squad of players and the extra staff that is needed for the home games like security, police, catering staff and turnstile staff. Here our a few of the names and the job that they do for Plymouth argyle football club. Paul Stapleton who is the chairman, Robert Dennerly who is the vice chairman, Tony Wrathall Phill Gill who are directors, Michael Dunford who is chief executive, Ian Holloway who is team manager. All these People and many more play important roles within Plymouth Argyle football club. Without each Person playing there role then the club would not run smoothly and would struggle. p. 3. 4 Level of participants Plymouth Argyle play there football in the second tier of English football know now as the coca cola championship, it use to be known as the first division until coca cola sponsored the old division one ,two and three changing the name of all three leagues. Plymouth Argyle is a well established team within the championship with this being there third season and been playing there football in the coca cola championship since it changed its name from division 1. Plymouth Argyles best position in the league and in the clubs history was last year where they ended up finishing 11th in the table. Financial turnover of the club. Here below is a table showing how the club as developed financially since 1994, and how the club itself as made a high percentage in profits and is still climbing. (www. footballeconomy. com/stats2/eng_plymouth. htm)

Dantes Inferno: Dantes Journey Toward Enlightenment Essay -- Dantes

Dante's Inferno: Dante's Journey Toward Enlightenment While reading Dante’s Inferno I couldn’t help but draw parallels between the journey of the protagonist and the belief system of the Buddhist religion. Dante believed we must understand sin before we can reject it, and Buddha believed that before we can reject sin, we must suffer also. Examining these two tenets side by side makes the similarities undeniably apparent; they both seem to be purporting the message that there cannot be pain without pleasure, truth without dishonesty or enlightenment with suffering. Dante’s version of hell is based on that of Medieval Catholicism, which professes to be quite divergent from the Buddhist faith. Yet the similarities are actually quite prevalent when reviewed from an impartial perspective. The first resemblance I noticed between the two faiths was in regards to the Roman epic poet Virgil, who acts as Dante’s mentor and protector while accompanying him on his extraordinary journey through Hell. This immediately made me think of the spirit guides that Buddhists believe channel them towards salvation. Dante views Virgil as many Christians view God; as a father figure, from whom guidance, information, and forgiveness is actively sought. Dante refers to Virgil as "Master", "Guide", "Teacher", "Poet" in the beginning; yet he eventually begins to refer to Virgil as "Lord", implying that he sees Virgil not as a traditional father figure, but as a spiritually divine one. This is evidenced even further in Canto XXX, line 130 – end, in which Dante needs Virgil’s forgiveness, which suggests that his clemency bears some divine power of atonement. This Christian tendency to have a spirit guide take on the characteristics of a ruling de... ... the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering. More simply put, suffering exists; it has a cause; it has an end; and it has a cause to bring about its end. The notion of suffering in Buddhism then, is not intended to convey a negative world view, but rather, to connote a pragmatic perspective that deals with the world as it is, and subsequently attempts to remedy it. The concept of pleasure is not denied, but is rather acknowledged as fleeting in that the pursuit of pleasure can only sustain what is ultimately an unquenchable thirst. Works Cited [1] Carter, John Ross and Mahinda Palihawadana, trans. and ed. The Dhammapada. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987, verses 116-119. [2] Alighieri, Dante. The Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri: Inferno. Trans. Allen Mandelbaum. Notes Allen Mandelbaum and Gabriel Marruzzo. New York: Bantam Books, 1980

Stakeholder management

A stakeholder is a party, an individual or a group of people who influence or can be affected or affect the actions of an organization examples are customers, suppliers, employes and owners or a given organization. Stakeholder management is a way of emphasizing that people support each other and taking an opportunity where others are not able to succeed.Stakeholder management is very important when it comes to success of any project in any given organization, this includes giving the right people the right responsibilities in the project, as one involves more people in the development of a project as the more people will affect the project development, and those people will come to rule out how the project will shape up and finally they will be the   more powerful people in that organization so great care should be taken when selecting stakeholders in the management of a project in the organization, as they will be sole determinants of the success of an organization .The success or failure or a project is greatly influenced by the way the management in the organization pursues and expects of their stakeholders, and how much they want to involve them in the development of the project.Research is necessary while deciding who the stakeholders should be while planning out a project; the management should have people carry out exclusive research to get the best possible stakeholders who will directly be affected by that specific project.Before making a decision on which the stakeholders should be you should try to allocate enough time on stakeholder management to decide on the critical decisions depending on how hard the project goals are, communication time and how much help you will need from the stakeholders to achieve your goals.It’s always important that while planning a project that the relevant people who are directly related to that project must be involved, this is because they are the ones who will make strategic decisions which will directly affe ct the success of the project.Each and every stakeholder should be involved to the extent of the success of that given project.   The management at the same time should not over involve stakeholders in their new project because they may end up interfering with the outcome of the project, only a limited number of stakeholders should be involved in the project.One needs to have a full understanding of the key stakeholders and how they are likely to be affected by the project.   Priority should be given to those that are affected more by the project and least priority to those that will be less affected. They need to communicate with the basic stakeholders so that they can always the part of the project and contribute to the success of the project in the best possible way.In conclusion, it’s important to note that the success of any project will depend on the involvement of all the stakeholders if positive results are to be realized.Maximum positive results can be achieved w hen all the stakeholders management communicates effectively to its important stakeholders incase the are to make any changes of while in progress with the project, the management should not keep changing its stakeholders from time to time because this will lead to inconsistent results due to different ideas contributed from the various stakeholders that will be involved.Reference: Earned Value Project Management, Third Edition by Quentin W. Fleming and   Ã‚  Ã‚  Joel M. Koppelman   

Chanel’s Exhibition Compared to Vermibus Essay

Two exhibitions, both held during October 2012, will form the bases of this comparative essay. Chanel’s fashion photography exhibition entitled ‘The Little Black Jacket: Chanel’s Classic Revisited’ held at the Saatchi Gallery 12th October – 4th November 2012, and Vermibus’ display of appropriated adverts called ‘Unmasking Kate’ shown at the Moniker Arts Fair 11th -14th October 2012 will be used to explore the links each exhibition has to the themes of advertising and celebrity. ‘The Little Black Jacket: Chanel’s Classic Revisited’ is a celebration of the ‘timelessness’ (Saatchi, 2012) that is the Chanel jacket first introduced in 1953 (Armstrong, 2012), which Karl Lagerfeld, the creative director for Chanel, has revamped for the twenty-first century. ‘The Chanel jacket is a man’s jacket which has become a typical feminine piece†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Lagerfeld cited Making of- The Video, 2012), co-writer and photographer for the exhibition Lagerfeld, articulates the versatility of the garment, which is a key theme expressed throughout the show. The exhibition consists of 113 photographs of celebrities modelling (Saatchi, 2012) the jacket to which the entire exhibition is a tribute to (Saatchi, 2012). In contention with the notion of product and brand celebration the Spanish-born artist Vermibus presented his ‘Unmasking Kate’ series at the Moniker Arts Fair, ‘†¦now in its third year, the fair†¦[of] contemporary artists with urban roots†¦[is] an assembly united by a desire to rebel’ (Spence, 2012). Amongst the rebels is street artist and ex-branding photographer turned contemporary artist (lamono, 2012), Vermibus. The principle of his work is the appropriation of designer advertising posters found publically, as a statement against the image of our materialistic consumer driven society (Finucane, 2012). The title of Vermibus’ current series ‘Unmasking Kate’ refers to both his method of appropriating the posters and to his subject, namely the model Kate Moss. Vermibus argues that he uses Moss’s image ‘†¦because she has been the flagship of fashion for the last 20 years’ (Lamono, 2012) and is therefore an easily recognizable icon of modern fashion and consumer society ‘Kate Moss †¦had to construct thousands of masks to hide her fears†¦ [she] internalized those masks from the beginning and we bought them all†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢(Lamono, 2012) Vermibus reveals his ideas about masks fueled by the advertising industry. He further uses Moss’ image to show, simultaneously, the vulnerability of the human subject and the medias exploitation of the notion of celebrity. This theme parallels the way Andy Warhol used Marilyn Monroe’s image after her death (Modern Masters: Andy Warhol, 2010). Likewise, the Chanel exhibition echoes some Warhol themes, yet using the celebrity image to celebration its brand and product originally from the 1950’s (Modern Masters: Andy Warhol, 2010). The exhibitions work on Warhol themes differently either to criticize or celebrate advertising and product branding (Modern Masters: Andy Warhol, 2010). The title of the exhibition ‘The Little Black Jacket: Chanel’s classic revisited’ uses a play on the now clichà ©d notion of ‘the little black dress’ this seemingly playful reference to an item that Coco Chanel arguably made ubiquitous in 1926 (Fritz, 2012) as ‘a uniform for all women of taste’ (Crystal, 2007) carries the suggestion that the redesigning of the Chanel jacket has caused the garment to become as revolutionary and versatile as the little black dress and thus deserves the same universal appeal and fashionable credibility. This is further reflected in the exhibition’s promotional use of words such as ‘classic’ (Armstrong, 2012), ‘iconic’ (Saatchi, 2012) and ‘timeless’ (The Exhibition Opening – The Film, 2012), phrases often made in reference to the little black dress, conveying the item as an essential part of both a man and woman’s collection, in this way almost surp assing the success of the little black dress. Despite their difference, the most prominent connection between both exhibitions is the use of fashion photography. While Vermibus appropriates already publish photographic based adverts, Lagerfeld endeavours to create a series of fashion photographs, seemingly ready for an advertising campaigns (fig:1) sans the alluring taglines and buyer information. However, perhaps text is not necessary in conveying advertising messages: ‘As advertising has become so subject to the influence of photography that in some cases it is nothing other than fashion photography in its pure form.’ (Zahm, 2003 p.267) Lagerfeld’s photography could, therefore, be read as adverts for the Chanel jacket. This is illustrated in the use of a shallow depth of field added to the blank studio backdrop, uniform in all of Lagerfeld’s shots and reminiscent of many advertising campaigns. The technique seems to encourage the viewer to read the model as the main focus of the shot. The positioning of the models, strictly following the rule of thirds in all displayed images, seems actively styled to further accentuate the Chanel jacket as it is after all the subject of the photographic exhibition and perhaps the product to be endorsed. Looking at the images from this angle makes the work seems more sinister; putting the gallery viewer in the position of a consumer. Vermibus’ acquired advertising posters are often comparable in style and content to those featured in the Chanel exhibition. The Vermibus technique involves the systematic removal of layers of gloss and colour from the face of the models (fig:2) using solvents such as white spirit ‘in a unique painting counter-action’ (Open Walls Gallery, 2012) creating gestural, painterly brush marks reminiscent of Lucian Freud ‘s ‘naked’ series (fig:3). This method of working directly on to the photographic image creates an interesting juxtaposition between the flat, glossy, original photographic elements left untouched in the clothe and hair of the advert compared to the textured, painterly brush marks and colours crated by the solvents application on the glossy flesh of the models image (Finucane, 2012). This all helps to convert the adverts ‘†¦flawless and sanitized icons†¦into harrowing and contorted figures evocative of ‘Francis Bacon’s seminal works’ (Finucane, 2012) (fig:4). Through this treatment Vermibus is trying to uncover the essence of the figures by ‘dehumanizes those figures †¦ trying to find the aura of the individual, the personality that was lost†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢(Moniker Art Fair, 2012) in the world of advertisement, which seems in direct contention with the image and brand driven concept of the Chanel exhibition. Nonetheless, a form of distortion is also evident in the instillation part of the Chanel exhibition (fig:5), large glass etched version of selected prints create intertextual connections to the work of pop artist Roy Lichtenstein (fig:6) namely in the use of the pixelated bendy dots and primary colours. Through pixelating the benday dots Lagerfeld seems to marry a nostalgic past of image reproduction with modern-day digital innovations. This mirrors the merging of past and present in fashion exhibition. The link to Pop Art is further contextualised as the original Chanel jacket would have debuted around the time that the pop art movement was emerging (Gersh-Nesic, 2012). Unlike many Pop artists and Lagerfeld’s work, Vermibus eradicates branding from his work. Then returns the adverts to their original places in the advertising shelters as ‘gifts for the passers-by’ (Moniker Art Fair, 2012 p.19). As he stats that ‘private companies have taken over these spaces and what I want to do is return them to the public’ (Lamono, 2012). Chanel’s exhibition in this way also stands in contrast to the notion that a luxury brand ‘buys its way into our public spaces [and it] must be passively accepted as a one-way information flow.’ – (Klein, 2002). This is an argument held and expressed within the work of Vermibus. Instead of following this traditional model of advertising which relies heavily and spend vast amounts of money on limited single-way communication advertising (Jackson, 2009), Chanel arguably used a credible gallery to advertise under the guise of culture enrichment; a ‘more interactive, experiential and customised communication’ (Jackson, 2009, p. 273). However, Anderson (2000) argues that shows like this ‘illustrates [the] approaches taken by those in the commercial sphere, who are completely unfettered by museological traditions’ (Anderson, 2000, p.386). However, the Saatchi gallery; was set up by Charles Saatchi like many ‘high net worth individuals who operate their collections like museums for the public’ (picassomio.com) thus needs not to uphold traditions of the museum and is not duty bound to provide advertisement-free exhibitions. This may seem like devious undercover advertising ‘†¦however visitors will construct their own coherence†¦.which may or may not comply with that of the curator†¦'(Hooper-Greenhill, 2000, p.7) thus the advertising undertones of the exhibition may be passively accepted or rejected by viewers. In this way Chanel opens the flow of communication, although, arguably ‘even the best fashion photography is still an industry in service of industry’ (Zahm, 2003, p.265). Therefore, in blurring the lines between free cultural experiences and marketing gimmicks Chanel is clearly attempting to increase their revenue, as Lagerfeld affirms ‘I am not a commercial person †¦ but the final complement is†¦when you buy [the product]’ (The World of Karl Lagerfeld, c.2010). The fact that Lagerfeld’s creative and corporate elements merge in the exhibition is sinisterly convenient ‘†¦it is undeniable that the motivations of designers to co-operate with curators in having their work displayed in museums are largely about prestige, self-promotion and profit’ (Anderson, 2000, p. 375) marring the impression of such exhibitions as nothing more than an oblique advertising campaign. The ‘anti-publicist’ (Lamono, 2012) Vermibus’ illustrates his distain for the advertising industry which Lagerfelds work seems to represent, ‘the brands goal is to remove the model’s identity†¦the model is not a person any more but an image whose only value is for selling’ (Finucane, J. 2012). Vermibus’ ideas are reminiscent of the Situationist International’s concepts of the spectacle (Debord, 1957-61) equally, Vermibus’ appropriated posters carry strong connections to their notion of detournement ‘reusing preexisting†¦elements in a new ensemble’ (Debord, 1957-61). Thus Vermibus’ symbolic use of white sprit on adverts, can act as an allegory for reestablishing identity from the spectacle. This notion of brands taking over ones identity is also suggested in the Chanel exhibition video ‘†¦and with each person’s personality the jacket lives through them †¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Chloe Moretz cited in ‘The Exhibition Opening -The Film’ 2012) presenting the consumer product as a sort of symbiotic parasite using and replacing the identity of the wearer. This relates further to Williamson’s (1995) argument that ‘people are made to identify themselves with what they consume’ (Williamsons 1995 p.13). People become use brands and styles to project their identity through non-verbal communication thus: ‘Advertisements are selling us something else besides consumer goods†¦in providing us with a structure in which we and those goods are interchangeable, they are selling us ourselves.’ (Williamson, 1995 p13) This would explain why so many of the videos produced by Chanel surrounding the Black Jacket exhibition continuously stress the versatility of the jacket ‘†¦ You can do a lot with it†¦it suits everyone’ (Carine Roitfeld cited in Making of – The Video, 2012) conveying almost subliminally that people need to have this item that can fit their already established style; ‘the bohemian look, the Victorian look, the more kinda [sic] fun Kate Moss look†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Chloe Moretz cited in The Exhibition opening -the film’ 2012) further promoting its value and illustrating the ‘cannibalistic’ nature of fashion (Zahm, 2003 p. 266), which feed into the spectacle (Debord,1957-61) by assimilating and reproducing the same items and feeling of desire within society. The Chanel exhibitions use of celebrity images differs to that a Vermibus, as it seems to reflect the wider marketing idea that using celebrity endorsements is a ‘strong marketing plus†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Jackson, 2009 p191). Along side the photographers the behind the scenes film presents testimonials from celebrities ‘I consider it [the Chanel jacket] a prized possession. I feel very lucky’ (Sarah Jessica Parker cited in Making of- The Video, 2012) enticing the viewer to desire the item. Atkin (2010) contend that this is because humans are prehistorically ‘hardwired’ to want to glean information about how to become successful survivors by watching and copying the most successful in our society, i.e. the celebrities (Star Suckers, 2010). advertisers like Chanel are manipulating this evolutionary flaw to give ‘[a] product which initially has no meaning †¦.value by a person†¦who has a value to us†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Williamson, 1995, p.31). In contrast, celebrities are utilized by Vermibus to liberate the human being from the celebrity ‘mask’ evoking sympathy from the audience however, it is not clear how much the celebrity image entices the viewer’s prehistoric urge and interest in Vermibus’ work. In conclusion the two exhibitions on the surface have very different and opposing motivations. However, on inspection both deal with similar themes of fashion photography, advertising and celebrity in different ways. Although it falls beyond the scope of this essay compare every element of the exhibitions it has attempted to demonstrate that Lagerfeld’s approach has strong advertising undertone, while Vermibus’ work is anti-publicist in nature. Therefore, despite displaying work at arts fair, with the purpose of promoting and selling his work, the artist maintains his anti-establishment ethos ‘Being at [an art fair] is another way to attack from within’ (Lamono, 2012) which conveys the fundamental difference between the two exhibitions; they both exploit the image of celebrities to draw attention to their work but while Vermibus’ ideology remains paramount it would seem that for Lagerfeld the financial gain is the principal purpose of the exhibition. References: Anderson, F (2000) ‘Museum as Fashion Media’, in Bruzzi, S. and Gibson, C. (eds.) Fashion Cultures: Theories, Exploration and Analysis. London : Routledge pp. 371-389. Armstrong, L. (2012) ‘Chanel’s Little Black Jacket: How Chanel split the fashion atom’, Telegraph [Online] Available at: http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/news-features/TMG9602510/Chanels-Little-Black-Jacket-How-Chanel-split-the-fashion-atom.html (Accessed 3/12/2012 Crystal, (2007) Little Black Dress Quotes. Available at: http://no-white-marks.blogspot.com/2007/10/little-black-dress-quotes.html (Accessed: 3/12/2012) Debord, G. (1957-61) ‘Writings from the Situationist International’ in Harrison,C and Wood, P.J. (eds.) (2002) Art Theory 1900-2000. Oxford:Blackwell. pp.701-707 Finucane, J. (2012) New art New Ideas London: Moniker Arts Fair Fritz, M. (2012) A Short History of the Little Black Dress. [Online]. Available at: http://www.realsimple.com/beauty-fashion/clothing/dresses-skirts/little-black-dress-00000000046948/index.html (Accessed: 29/11/12) Gersh-Nesic, B. (2012) About.com. Available at: http://arthistory.about.com/od/modernarthistory/a/Pop-Art-Art-History-101-Basics.htm (Accessed: 08/11/12) Hooper-Greenhill, E (2000) Museums and Interpretation of Visual Culture London: Routledge Jackson, T. and Shaw, D. (2009), Fashion Marketing Hampshire: Palgrave Klein, N. (2002) No Logos. New York:Picador Lamono (2012) Vermibus, Attack From Within [Online]. Available at: http://lamonomagazine.com/hunter/vermibus-ataque-desde-dentro/ (Accessed 28/11/2012) Making of – the video,’ 2012, by Chanel [online] available at: http://thelittleblackjacket.chanel.com/en_GB/makingof (Accessed 16/11/12) Modern Masters: Andy Warhol – Documentary – Artist, (2010) by Alastair Sooke, UK [Online] available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWU7I6fGpMI&feature=share&list=LLU15G_d3N4Dd14H85X-eCCg (Accessed: 08/11/12) Moniker Art Fair, (2012) Moniker Art Fair About. [Online] Available at: http://www.monikerartfair.com/2012/ (Accessed: 18/10/12) Open Walls Gallery (2012) Vermibus [Online] Available at: http://www.openwallsgallery.com/artist/vermibus (Accessed 15/11/12) Picassomio, General Art Articles[online]. Available at: http://www.picassomio.com/art-articles/what-is-the-difference-between-a-museum-and-a-gallery.html (Accessed: 28/11/12) Saatchi gallery (2012) The Little Black Jacket. [Online] Available at: http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/current/the_little_black_jacket.php (Accessed: 15/11/12) Spence, R. (2012) ‘Go forth and multiply’, The Financial Times [Online] Avalible at: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/0a062f4c-1486-11e2-8cf2-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2EEPdaatD (Accessed: 14/11/12) Star Suckers, (2010) by Chris Atkins UK [DVD] The Exhibition Opening – The Film, (2012) by Chanel [Online] Available at: http://thelittleblackjacket.chanel.com/en_GB/exhibition/london (Accessed: 16/11/12) The World of Karl Lagerfeld, (c. 2010) by Anjali Rao China [Online] Avalible at: http://youtu.be/m0ljhBgy0Hc (Accessed 20/11/12) Williamsons, J (1995) Decoding Advertisements: Ideology and Meaning in Advertising. London: Marion Boyars Zahm, O. (2003) ‘On the Marked Change in Fashion Photography’, in Welters, L. and Lillethon, A. (eds.) (2007) The Fashion Reader. Oxford: Berg, pp. 263-269.

Collective bargaining Essays

Collective bargaining Essays Collective bargaining Essay Collective bargaining Essay A labor union is an association of workers formed for the primary objective of influencing the employers decisions and policies concerning employment conditions. In the event that demands of employees are not met by management, employees turn to the labor union for assistance. Labor isolation Labor relations are governed by a number of legislations. Said legislation provides among other things the following: 1 ) Procedure for union elections 2) Requirement for employers to bargain with a union 3) Defines and prohibits certain unfair labor practices on the part of the employer that might discourage fair bargaining) Controls for improper practices 5) Rights of union member 6) Government-regulated system of collective bargaining COLLECTIVE BARGAINING G Collective bargaining is a social process. It requires negotiations between representatives of management and labor to accomplish in writing an agreement covering terms and conditions of employment. Collective bargaining is aimed at working toward the attainment of new equilibrium between two social forces and to make easier the maintenance of the established equilibrium. Notwithstanding the difficulties to be met, elective bargaining is an effective practice to preserve labor-management autonomy in a free and democratic society. Collective bargaining is a continuous process. Although negotiations take place only periodically, after the contract is signed, a number of parts of the bargaining process remain to be performed. Stipulations contained in the contract must be communicated to managers, employees and other union officers. Meanwhile, both parties keep watching for flaws in their contract so that they can introduce amendments at the succeeding negotiations. They furthermore study local industry-wide and nationwide labor relations developments to see how their own contract may, in some ways, be affected. Collective bargaining is a flexible, give and take process, it, therefore, requires both careful preparations and skilful maneuvering with flexibility. Negative attitudes bring about a wrong emotional tone in bargaining sessions. Planning for Negotiations Management must first look into the state of its labor relations because each forthcoming bargaining will be contingent on what has gone before that. This will help the management determine if they will be antagonistic or cooperative. Management should also consider the possible attitude it would face across the bargaining table. Trouble existing within the union may spill over the bargaining sessions. Top management should appoint a bargaining team and work with it in developing the basic bargaining strategy and an effective bargaining plan. Participation by supervisors and middle managers should be encouraged by top management in planning for negotiations. They are the people who are actually posted on the provisions of the contract and are well-informed on the strong and weak points contained therein. Bargaining Tactics The following are the three (3) tactics commonly used by bargainers to make their bargaining more effective: 1) A recess Whenever negotiators become fatigue or when members of a bargaining committee desire to discuss some important points privately, they request a recess. This allow the parties to return to the conference table with united front, after reconsidering their position and after gathering more information to back up their stand. ) Delay of Deliberation When negotiations are stalled on troublesome issues they request that the matter be tabled and taken up in subsequent meetings. They expect that the situation or the negotiating atmosphere will change to enable them to more easily resolve the issue under consideration. 3) Counterproposal Alternative solutions to problems are presented by negotiating parties. Usually the union does most of the asking. Management, on the other hand tries to reduce whatever may reverse the one-way relationship and grab the initiation of ideas away from the union negotiators. Mediation and Contract Settlement In the event that an agreement cannot be reached, the union may stage a strike or a mediator brought to the negotiating table by one of the parties or by the government. The mediator must be an outside specialist who is unbiased, emotionally stable and with a wide experience. He must be able to present fresh viewpoints, not previously considered, in settlement of the issues under consideration. He serves as a confidential intermediary for both parties. When an agreement is reached, it should be put into writing as clearly and to the point, as much as possible. Unless most readers can understand it, it will not be of benefit. The contract is written to stabilize relationships so that the use of legal terminologies should be minimized. After the signing of the contract, the next Step is to communicate it to those who are to work under its rules, in accordance with it stipulations. GRIEVANCE SYSTEMS A grievance system is a formal system through which disputes over working rules are expressed, processed and judged in an organization. It provides a means by which all edged wrongs may be justifiably resolved among an organizations members. What is grievance? Grievance is defined as any real or imagined feeling of personal injustice that an employee has about the employment relationship. In some unionized organizations, a grievance is taken to mean any protested violation of the labor agreement. A person harboring dissatisfaction may present a grievance with for himself and/or for others. A person may file a grievance with the grievance system formally. If stated informally, it is at times referred to only as a complaint or a gripe. Grievance Rates The grievance rate is stated in terms of the number of written cases in a erred. Grievance rate is usually 5 to 20. A low rate is not necessarily desirable because it may manifest a suppression of grievances. Grievances are developed by all employees of all types and at all levels. Ways to reduce grievance: 1) Effective contract administration- Fair, open and prompt adjudication of problems that arise tends to lessen misunderstanding underlying many grievances. 2) Participative management- Whenever employees participate in decision-making regarding working conditions, they have fewer reasons to file grievances about them. Benefits of Grievance System ) Helps make employees problems known 2) Encourage solution of problems before they become serious 3) Helps prevent future problems 4) Gives employees emotional release for their dissatisfactions 5) Helps establish and maintain a working relationship in the group 6) Provides a check and balance on arbitrary management actions Grievance Procedures 1) Employee (the grievance) discusses grievance with the supervisor 2) Employee presents grievance in writing to the supervisor 3) Steward present grievance to department head 4) Union present grievance to general manager 5) Grievance is submitted to impartial arbiter It is important that a grievance be processed within a short span of time and that, delays should be avoided. Delays in action prevent immediate settlement, which may be misunderstood by the grievance. A supervisor who delays acting a grievance in effect strengthens the grievances cause and gives the impression that the impression that the supervisor sees the soundness of the grievance which he is afraid to face. Arbitration If the grievance is not settled at the organizations hierarchical level, either labor or management may submit the case to arbitration, for a final and ending decision by a third party or parties. The arbitrators decisions govern only until the next collective bargaining negotiation. The interpretation of what the existing contract means is referred to as grievance arbitration. Arbitration to establish new contract terms is referred to as contract arbitration. The former leads to grievance settlement, whereas the latter replaces collective bargaining agreement. Benefits of Arbitrators in Arbitration 1) Arbitrators are outsiders who bring a fresh perspective. 2) Arbitrators are not emotionally involved in the dispute ) They can render a decision that usually is enforceable in the courts.

Imprisonments Effect on Recidivism

Imprisonments Effect on Recidivism Free Online Research Papers The subject of recidivism in the Criminal Justice System has been long studied. It has also been argued over as to the extent of its effectiveness. Recidivism is defined as the repeating of a negative action after experiencing negative consequences from that action or receiving treatment for that action. In regards to the criminal justice system, recidivism occurs when one is rearrested after serving a sentence. With this in mind, recidivism is only discovered when an arrest and or conviction has occurred. Therefore the true number of recidivism cases only covers reported cases. The question develops of just how does incarcerating criminals affect the rates of recidivism? As of mid 2008 there was approximately a population of 2,310,984 held in federal or state prisons or jails in the United States. Of these 1,540,805 were serving out sentences under federal or state jurisdiction. There was an increase of 509 from 506 sentenced prisoners per 100,000 United States residents from yearend 2007. This was an overall increase of 0.8% from the previous yearend. This was however less than the average increase of 2.4% annually for the years 2000 to 2007. (1) These numbers show the growth of the United States inmate population which leads to problems with overcrowding. Within the next year the Federal Bureau of Prisons will open three federal correctional institutions which can hold an approximate 10,500 federal inmates at maximum capacity. (2) According to a national study in 2003 showed that seven out of ten male prisoners that were released will return to prison. (Viser) The question of how does incarceration effect recidivism seems to be obvious. It doesn’t have an impact on those who serve there sentences in prisons or jails. However there are factors that could influence those who serve time and thereby have an impact on recidivism. The dependant variable of the articles reviewed is recidivism itself in the reincarceration of those who were released. The independent variables found were substance addiction, mental illness, and readjustment to society after release. One problem in an inmate’s rehabilitation is dealing with addiction. In 2002 half of jail inmates were held for drug as well as violent offenses. Drug offender population was up by 37% and more than two thirds of the population growth in local jails was due to the increase of those charged with drug law violations. (4) In a personal interview with a federal inmate I was told that most of those who are in violation of drug laws of possession and trafficking do so to support their own drug addiction. This inmate had been in and out of the judicial system since 1972 stating that â€Å"every time I get out I end up on the dope again†. Because of this problem substance abuse treatment has become implemented into the recovery mind set of incarceration. A qualitative study over a five year period tracked a cohort of nonviolent inmates participating in an alcohol and drug treatment program in Monroe County. The success of this program was shown through the finding that of those who participated in the program were less likely to recidivate within the first year than the control group (Turley). Mental illness is another problem impacting recidivism of inmates. A number of studies have shown that many inmates have shown signs or have been diagnosed as having mental disorders in comparison to other inmates. In a study of 79,211 inmates serving sentences from September 2006 thru August 2007 information on mental disorders and history of incarceration during the previous six years was collected from statewide medical information system and studied. It was found that inmates that had major mental disorders including depressive disorders, bipolar disorders, schizophrenia, and non schizophrenic disorders had a substantially increased chance of reincarceration .Inmates with bipolar disorders were found to have a 3.3 times more likely to have had four or more previous incarcerations than those without the disorder. (Baillargeon) One issue that arises is those who have been labeled as â€Å"career criminals† or those who have the label of being psychopathic. Psychopathy is defined by an uninhibited gratification in criminal, sexual, or aggressive urges and being unable the make improvements with treatment. Those who have this disorder receive gratification and to some extent pleasure from their antisocial behavior. These subjects are also found to have little to no remorse for actions. This includes the not only the consequences for their victims but for themselves as well. It has also been shown that those with psychopathy have a 2.5 times higher probability of being released from incarceration than those who are undiagnosed as suffering from this disorder, even though they are more likely to recidivate. This is in part to the findings that psychopathy is mostly unaffected by not only punishment but rehabilitation techniques as well. Not only does rehabilitation not affect psychopathic individual s but incarceration leads to them becoming better at hiding their disorder and their behavior. (8) Yet another reason that many inmates find themselves incarcerated multiple times is that they have a hard time adjusting to life after being imprisoned. Many inmates become accustomed to the structured life that imprisonment establishes with set times and procedures for working, going to school, eating, and sleeping. In a majority of cases those who are released from incarceration are released under parole and under some extent of supervision. The planning for ones release should begin before their release as well as afterwards. According to an analysis conducted by the Florida Department of Corrections based on 18,414 inmates from 1996 to 1997 showed that those who completed reentry programs including education, vocational, and substance abuse programs were less likely to recidivate than those who did not participate or complete these programs (7). The success rate was increased when reentry programs were continued after release. Part of the hardship with reentering society after being imprisoned is the reintroduction to an environment that brought about their original incarceration. While it is important for those who are incarcerated to distance themselves from the environment and those within that environment that lead to their incarceration it is just as important to for them to strengthen their relationship with those who support them and support their recovery. A study was conducted in Florida with 7,000 inmates who were released to observe the testing of the influence of visitation on recidivism. They looked at whether visitation occurred, the frequency of visits, as well as whom the visitors were (family, friends, or other). They also took into account the inmates age, sex, as well as the reason for incarceration. Overall they found that visitation did have an impact on the amount of time recidivism was delayed over a two year period after release. Within this the closer the visit was to the end of in carceration and the visits of spouses over other family and friends had more affect on the amount of time between recidivating.(9) The results of research seem to show that incarceration itself has little overall effect on recidivism rates o prisoners. It is only with rehabilitation programs that any improvement can be found. Even so the success that is found is more in extending the amount of time between recidivism than with reducing it. Substance addiction issues require long term treatment after release in order to increase the rate of recidivism for these offenders. Recidivism rates with those who suffer from mental disorders are a more difficult problem to control. The problem is more due to the lack of diagnoses and the treatability of the disorder than the matter of long term treatment. Review of articles shows that while incarceration is not the answer to recidivism the treatment and training that inmates receive while incarcerated improves the time between recidivism if not the chances of recidivism. To see more improvement there needs to be an improvement not so much with the treatments and programs p rovided but in the duration of these treatments and programs. Bibliography (1) (n.d.). Retrieved October 1, 2009, from www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/prisons.htm (2) (n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2009, from www.bop.gov (3) Viser, C. A. (2003). â€Å"Transitions from Prison to Community: Understanding Individual Pathways†. The Urban Institute, Justice Policy Center, District of Columbia Washington, 20037. (4) Retrieved October 15, 2009, from ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/crimoff.htm (5) Turley, A., Thornton, T., Johnson, C., Azzolino, S. (2004). International Journal of Offender Therapy Comparative Criminology, 48(6), 721-728. (6)Baillargeon, Jacques, Ingrid Binswanger, Joseph Penn, Brie Williams, Owen Murray: American Journal of Psychiatry; Jan2009, Vol. 166 Issue 1, p103-109, (7) (n.d.) Retrieved September 16, 2009, from dc.state.fl.us/pub/recidivismprog/execsum.html (8) (n.d.) Retrieved October 2, 2009, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7833672.stm (9) Bales, w. D., Mears, D. P. (2008). Inmate Social Ties and the Transition to Society Does Visitation Reduce Recidivism?. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 45(3), 287-321. Research Papers on Imprisonments Effect on RecidivismThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationThe Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug UseQuebec and CanadaResearch Process Part OneInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married Males19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenTwilight of the UAWRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in Capital

Hotel and Motel Beginner English Language Practice

Hotel and Motel Beginner English Language Practice Make sure to understand the use of the verb like when checking-in to a hotel, as well as how to ask polite questions with the modal verbs can and may. Understanding vocabulary related to travel will help you communicate when you are in a motel or a hotel. Getting a Room for the Night Desk clerk: Good evening. Can I help you?Guest: Yes, please. Id like a room for the night.Desk clerk:  Would you like a single room, or a double room?Guest:  A single room, please. How much is the room?Desk clerk:  Its $55 per night.Guest:  Can I pay by credit card?Desk clerk:  Certainly. We take Visa, Master Card and American Express. Could you fill in this form, please?Guest:  Do you need my passport number?Desk clerk:  No, just an address and your signature.Guest:  Ã‚  (fills out the form) Here you are.Desk clerk:  Heres your key. Your room number is 212.Guest:  Thank you.Desk clerk:  Thank you. If you need anything, dial 0 for the reception area. Have a good stay! Key Vocabulary Can I help you?Id like a roomSingle, double roomCan I pay by credit card?Fill in this formPassport numberRoom numberReceptionWhere is the...ElevatorLobbyIs breakfast included?Do you offer room service?

Final paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Final paper - Essay Example The destruction of Qing dynasty in 1911 put seeds for the economic development of modern China. All the administrations followed by the Qing dynasty played their own part in making China in its present form. The economic progress of China during post Qing dynasty period can be classified into many stages. Leaders like Sun Yat Sen, Chiang Kai Shek, The nationalist era, Mao Zedong, Deng Xiao Peng etc played their roles effectively in restructuring and streamlining the Chinese economic growth back on track. Foreign policies and international relations of China are also debatable. Even the leaders of the same communist regime adopted different foreign policies. But the basic purpose of such policies were aimed at the economic progress of China rather than anything else. Sun assumed power immediately after the destruction of Qing dynasty, but forced to resign in 1912 because of his differences with the Nationalist party and the government. But he was successful in regaining the power in 1923 and worked hard for revival of the Chinese economy. He has received immense political, economical and moral supports from USSR. â€Å"Sun summarized his policies in the Three Principles of the People--nationalism, democracy, and socialism† (Chinese Cultural Studies). Sun was a great admirer of Soviet Union and the socialist policies implemented in Soviet Union. He made every conscious effort to plant a Soviet model of economic growth in China. At the same time he was aware of the value of democracy and nationalism in promoting economic growth in China. He never tried to rule China with iron fist unlike the communist regime at present. The Qing dynasty has destroyed the Chinese economy because of their dictatorship and visionless policies. Sun Yat Sen, the father of modern China can be considered as the first person who worked hard for the revival of Chinese economy after 1911. After the death of Sun Yat Sen in 1925, Chiang Kai Shek assumed power and continued

Case study assignment Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Case study assignment - Coursework Example ‘Open Systems’ Approach and Icy Foods Open system approach is fundamental to the survival based on external stimuli (Kreitner, 2009). Open systems approach came into effect after World War II when management began thinking that organisations are no more a self-contained unit – free from external influences. The company under discussion namely Icy Foods began its operations in 1999 and continued to grow exponentially at least until 2005. The Smiths adopted a very flexible policy approach for organisational management as that suited to them most for meeting market needs. The informal way of working in Icy Foods encouraged workers to learn varied skills passing through different departments as per the needs. Even the company operated night shifts and weekend working when order book forced them to do so. In fact, the Smiths’ approach was quite flexible in people management. It can be gauged from the fact that employees were trained in several areas of company o perations providing them enough liberty to move where they find themselves more suitable. The Smiths were always keen to invite employee view points on operational aspects to bring efficiency in the operations. The fact remains that employees enjoyed considerable freedom in their overall working including their freedom related to leave. Icy Foods paid them above industry average apart from paying bonuses to high performing workers. The Smiths also motivated workers by declaring monthly awards for performers. The management motivated their workforce to deliver their best in many ways and that is reflected in low rates of employee turnover. Thus, Smiths’ were largely following open systems approach responding well to environmental influences; however, things changed when Icy Foods became a subsidiary of one of the large super market chains namely Megastar Plc. Megastar Lacked Open Systems Approach in Managing Human Resources Brown and Grundy (2012) emphasise that human resource (HR) "strategy is very much a part of an open system with many interdependencies" (p 34). Management of the Megastar not only streamlined the operations but also rationalized the product portfolio keeping only four products while discarding remaining. It is true that the company did a commendable job on operational aspects improving efficiency by 35 percent; however, the company fared badly on human resource development aspects. Employee turnover and absenteeism increased significantly. Employees remained grossly unsatisfied with the management because they were not involved in the decision making. They felt that decisions are thrust upon them by managers and headquarter. It is quite clear that in the process to improve operational efficiency of the firm, the management moved away from the ‘open systems’ approach of management. Trained Workers and employees are not only an important but scarce resource for any organisation and ‘open systems’ approach dicta tes that they must be not only preserved or retained but also allowed to develop within the organisation. It is a fact that new management improved the efficiency of the organisation without making it effective to external influences. Environmental Influences Play Critical Role Cole (2005) argues that several environment factors such as economical, social, technological, or political along with competitive forces keep on exerting influence on any organisation. Most of these external environmental factors are not in control of the firm –

Gender Socialization Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Gender Socialization - Research Paper Example Toddlers and elementary-aged youths have not yet reached this level of self-awareness in terms of identifying with their social environment, thus the clothing is more streamlined than with the unique patterns and styles available for older youths in their adolescent years. For teenagers and preteens, much of the clothing available did not exhibit any noticeable sexuality aspects other than the short skirts available for teenaged girls. Â  The toys available were generally the same across the shelves, except for those more masculine toys for teenagers that included military-garbed action figures while young girls were being exposed to promotional products that included make-up, homemaker accessories, and other feminine-minded products adorned in pink and light blue packaging. At the bookstore, most of the products were similar for boys and girls until reaching the section for older teens that were more themed related to gender, such as books by Judy Blume that dealt with identify for mation for girls related to their sexual development and curiosity about their bodies. Â  Consumer products, based on the research, seem to group children into appropriate gender roles, only after they have reached the elementary age and seem to carry more depth related to socially acceptable gender roles after they have reached early adolescence and beyond. There is definitely a trend that indicates consumer products expect more gender segregation for the preteen and teenaged children, toys and books for younger children.

Albert Einstein Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Albert Einstein - Essay Example This man is considered as the father of Science for the extensive research done by him in this field. An insight into his life would enlighten any human mind. Albert Einstein was born on the 14th of March 1879 to Hermann Einstein (Father), an Engineer and salesman and Pauline Einstein (mother) who was also well educated (Peter D 1-3). He was born at Ulm in Wurttemberg, Germany and after six weeks the family moved to Munich. He began his schooling at Catholic elementary school from the age of five and later at the age of eight he went to Luitpold Gymnasium for his primary and secondary schooling education for seven years and Einstein was a good student As Einstein grew up he developed interest for science and began brooding over the theories behind every mechanism. He was inquisitive to learn and would do anything to understand a theory. During his course of learning, his family faced financial crisis due to a loss in the business but Einstein continued his studies at Luitpold Gymnasi um for some time. Later he wrote his first scientific work "The Investigation of the State of Aether in Magnetic Fields"(â€Å"Einstein symposium 2005†). He finished his secondary schooling in Switzerland. ... Later Einstein struggle finding a job for himself and has finally done that as an Assistant examiner at the Federal office for intellectual property. His job at his work place influenced him to form a group with his friends and colleagues at Bern, who when met, discussed about science. He presented many papers of his work and â€Å"The Principle of Relativity†, â€Å"Sidelights of Relativity†, â€Å"Space and time in pre-relativity physics†, â€Å"Relativity Field† and â€Å"Quanta† are a few to name and on the 30th of April 1905 he received his doctor’s degree. One of his famous works was the â€Å"Theory of Relativity† in which he proved that energy contained in a particle of matter is equal to the mass of that matter multiplied by the speed of the light. This actually proved that energy is actually concentrated in a particle. This theory put forward by Einstein has earned him worldwide acclaim. â€Å"Who could have guessed that an article by an unknown patent clerk, appearing in the German scientific journal, Annalen der physik, volume 17, in the year 1905, would turn the of science topsy-turvy?†(William 26) .This was simply put into an equation E = mc2 and this is also called mass-energy equation. After these events, he had his recognition and held several positions like lecturer, professor and director at several Universities like University of Bern, Humboldt University of Bern etc. Einstein worked hard in trying to find the relations between â€Å"Time and Space† and â€Å"Mass and Energy†. His efforts finally paid and he was awarded the â€Å"Nobel Prize in physics† in 1921("Albert Einstein - Biography") for his photo-electric effect.

AT&T MOBILITY LLC v. CONCEPCION ET UX Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

AT&T MOBILITY LLC v. CONCEPCION ET UX - Essay Example The Ninth Court held a 5-4 decision that was written by Justice Scalia. The majority held that the provision was unconscionable under the provisions of California law as held by the Discover Bank. Laster v. AT&T Mobility LLC, 584 F.  3d 849, 855. This paper will analyze this case by explaining the issues involved, the majority opinion and also provide a stand on whether the minority dissent was better than the majority opinion. In the AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion et ux. case, the Supreme Court in U.S ruled against the use of a state judicial doctrine that made the enforceability of an arbitration agreement limited. This decision dealt a blow to consumers but proved a success to corporations and merchants. The Supreme Court ruled that the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) obstructs the application of a judicial doctrine (Discover Bank rule) used in California that gives courts the permission to hold unconscionable class action arbitration waivers in agreements with consumers concerned. The above doctrine applies in cases where the class proceedings involve an adhesion consumer contract, when disputes attract small amounts of damage and that the superior party in the contract has deliberately conned many consumers’ large sums of money. The Supreme Court ruled that the FAA obstructs the California rule, thereby eliminating strong basis for protecting consumers (Sergeant, 2012). This paper will discuss t he AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion et ux. case and the ethical issues in it. Vince and Liza Concepcion made a cell phone agreement contract with Cingular Wireless in February 2002. This contract had an arbitration clause that mandated all claims to be brought in the individual capacity of the party as opposed to a plaintiff or class member in ant representative proceeding or purported class. The agreement gave the service provider permission to make unilateral amendments willingly. AT&T Mobility LLC took over Cingular in 2005 with all its consumer

Business Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Business Plan - Essay Example There are three types of business structures to choose from. The three business structures are sole proprietorship, partnership, and corporation. A sole proprietorship is a business owned by a single person. Most owners of sole proprietorships are also the managers of the business. One of the cons of sole proprietorships is that the owners are personally liable for the debt of the business. Two advantages of sole proprietorships are absolute control over decision making and the owner gets 100% of the profits. A partnership can be defined as the relationship existing between two or more persons who join to carry on a trade or business (Irs, 2012). Partnerships share in the profits and losses of a business based on the partnership agreement. Some of the advantages of partnerships are flexibility, greater human capital, and transferability. The third form of business is corporations. A corporation is a legal entity that exists separate from its owners. Three advantages of corporations a re limited liability of stockholders, continuous life, and the ability to acquire capital. Some of the cons of corporations include separation of ownership and management, governmental regulations, and additional taxes. The business structure chosen for Pizza Heaven is corporation. ... The business will start by opening a restaurant facility. After one year of operation the company will start selling franchises. The franchise will sell for under $100,000. Investors interested in a smaller investment will be able to buy mobile units franchises for $30,000. The business will sell personal pizzas, medium and large pizzas, calzones, frappes, mozzarella sticks, nachos, breadsticks, sodas and sandwiches. The company’s products are going to be priced to compete with the industry leaders. Accounting is going to play a very large role in the success of the company. The corporation seeks to have a franchising model. It is imperative to keep track of the sales of all the franchises due to the fact that the company will charge a 5% royalty on all sales. To attract investors the accounting books of the company must be up to date following the generally accepted accounting principles. Pizza Heaven must release its financial statements on a yearly basis. The four financial statements are the income statement, balance sheet, statement of return earnings, and statement of cash flow. Once the company becomes public it must register with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). All companies register with the SEC are mandated to release trimester and yearly financial statements. Hiring the correct accounting staff is very important because accountants play a key role in the administration of a company. All members of the accounting staff must have a minimum education credential of a bachelor in business administration in accounting. Applicants that have an MBA degree or have a CPA license will be given preferential treatment in the recruiting process. The members of the accounting staff must have at least one year of experience

AT&T MOBILITY LLC v. CONCEPCION ET UX Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

AT&T MOBILITY LLC v. CONCEPCION ET UX - Essay Example The Ninth Court held a 5-4 decision that was written by Justice Scalia. The majority held that the provision was unconscionable under the provisions of California law as held by the Discover Bank. Laster v. AT&T Mobility LLC, 584 F.  3d 849, 855. This paper will analyze this case by explaining the issues involved, the majority opinion and also provide a stand on whether the minority dissent was better than the majority opinion. In the AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion et ux. case, the Supreme Court in U.S ruled against the use of a state judicial doctrine that made the enforceability of an arbitration agreement limited. This decision dealt a blow to consumers but proved a success to corporations and merchants. The Supreme Court ruled that the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) obstructs the application of a judicial doctrine (Discover Bank rule) used in California that gives courts the permission to hold unconscionable class action arbitration waivers in agreements with consumers concerned. The above doctrine applies in cases where the class proceedings involve an adhesion consumer contract, when disputes attract small amounts of damage and that the superior party in the contract has deliberately conned many consumers’ large sums of money. The Supreme Court ruled that the FAA obstructs the California rule, thereby eliminating strong basis for protecting consumers (Sergeant, 2012). This paper will discuss t he AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion et ux. case and the ethical issues in it. Vince and Liza Concepcion made a cell phone agreement contract with Cingular Wireless in February 2002. This contract had an arbitration clause that mandated all claims to be brought in the individual capacity of the party as opposed to a plaintiff or class member in ant representative proceeding or purported class. The agreement gave the service provider permission to make unilateral amendments willingly. AT&T Mobility LLC took over Cingular in 2005 with all its consumer

Pregnancy, Labor and Birthday Practices of Asia (India) Essay

Pregnancy, Labor and Birthday Practices of Asia (India) - Essay Example All societies have their unique labor and birthing practices and India as a society is no different. This paper will be a discussion on laboring practices of Asia, India, focusing on the role of the family and taboos before, during and after birth. With over 375 million children, India accounts for the highest population of children in the world. A majority of these are Hindus but there are other minorities such as Sikh and Muslims. According to Info Change, a non-profit organization that concentrates on sustainable development and social justice in South East Asia, about 36 percent of the population lives below poverty line. Of this percentage, women and children account for 73 percent. These may be attributed to the socio-economic conditions and Hindu beliefs that greatly influence child rearing practices in India. Along with strict rearing practices of children in India come a number of practices that are associated with its coming into the world. First of all, eating patterns of a woman are restricted (NCBI 533). This ranges from the kinds of food that she can eat to the amount that is to be taken. It is believed that when a pregnant woman eats too much, the fetus will not have room to move. This is argued by the fact that the abdomen is supposed to contain both the food and the fetus, however, in this case, the latter’s space should be given more priority. Since women from poor backgrounds are still expected to work in the farm and around the house during early months of her pregnancy, it is believed that eating a lot would make them gain excess weight that would interfere with their productivity while working. There were some directions regarding taking hot or cold foods. In Asia, pregnancy is believed to be a hot condition; therefore foods that are considered hot are restricted. The body is believed to be already out of balance and hot foods would only make the condition worse (Greene 34). Another practice that is prevalent all over India is calle d the shrimata. When a woman is in the seventh month of her pregnancy, there are special rituals that are performed and special types of sweet are given to the parents to be. This is to encourage the woman for having reached near full term with the pregnancy as well as to give her moral support. This shows the connection that the community has. They all participate in welcoming a child. During this time, the family is especially helpful. They treat the expectant woman with a lot of care and assist her with anything that she may require, ensuring that she is completely comfortable. In the Asian Indian community, the actual birth process is mostly carried out by a traditional birth attendant or other close family members. Most women prefer their mothers’ to attend to attend to them when they are giving birth (Greene 33). However, a certain percentage of Indians go to the government hospital to give birth with an even smaller percentage opting for private hospitals. Men were not allowed to get in the room where the birth was taking place or if it had occurred in the open, they were not allowed to see the birth process. After the birth, there are some rituals conducted on the child. Mothers ceremoniously plunged the infant into the river, this was meant to strengthen the child and rid them of any deforms that

To Kill a Mockingbird Essay Example for Free

To Kill a Mockingbird Essay Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird incorporates historically accurate material into an otherwise fictional story. Drawing upon current events, social conditions, and attitudes prevalent in the United States during the 1930s, the novel’s setting, characters and themes depict a realistic interpretation of life in a southern town during the Depression. This classic novel takes place during the early 1930s. The novel accurately portrays the social system and troubles of the Depression era, where poverty and unemployment affected numerous states, including Alabama. Poverty seemed to have been the main struggle for families in the 1930s. Atticus Finch, the protagonist of the novel, an educated lawyer, who goes to work in clean clothes, and owns enough money to hire a black housekeeper to watch over his children belonged to the elite of local society, however they too were low on money. Poverty seemed to have contributed to making the south a class-conscious society. As Jem said â€Å"There’s four kinds of folks in the word. There’s the ordinary kind like us and the neighbors, there’s the kind like the Cunninghams out in the woods, the kind like the Ewells down at the dump, and the Negroes.† (page 103) To further explain, the Finches stand towards the top of Maycomb’s social hierarchy, following the townspeople beneath them. After the townspeople come the ignorant farmers such as the Cunninghams, then the white trash Ewells resting at the bottom of the totem pole. However at the very bottom of the list come the African-Americans. These social divisions are what make up Maycomb, causing children’s perplexity at the class status, and prejudice in human interaction amongst Maycomb’s few residents. It is evident that the way things are in the small town of Maycomb, are the way they have always been. At this time, in the early 1930’s, automobiles had only been around for a few years, it was common for most families to depend on horses for transportation, while the more elite were fortunate enough to drive automobiles. The Great Depression affected every group of Americans during the tough era. Whether one was a farmer like Mr. Cunningham or a lawyer like Atticus Finch, black or white, young or old, they were affected. However in those years, there was a clear hierarchy and difference between those that had money and lived in nice, furnished houses, compared to those who struggled to operate their own farm. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee focused more on the differences between whites and blacks in the society. To Kill a Mockingbird portrayed the racial injustices and prejudice against African Americans in the United States during the Great Depression. These criminal rights issues were shown during the Trial of Tom Robinson. All black men were viewed as rapists, after a false rumor and accusation. It is evident Maycomb has always been racially segregated. The African-Americans of Maycomb have their own church and cemetery outside the cities border. Inside the courtroom, the white hav e good seats on the floor, while the blacks sit up in the balcony in their own separate section. Similar to this, in movie theatres designated doors were assigned to coloured and whites with signs written on separate doors. White and black children attended different schools until school segregation was established in 1954. Whites and blacks were not allowed in the same jail cells, and the inequality amongst races in the courtroom during trials. Once Mayella, Mr. Ewell and Tom Robinson had all testified, even though it was clear Tom Robinson was innocent, the jury claimed him guilty because they wouldn’t allow a black man free against the testimony of two white people. Similar to Tom Robinson’s trail is the Scottsboro trial that took place in March of 1931 in Alabama. That day, two white girls were allegedly raped by nine black teenagers on the Southern Railroad. Although there was no evidence connecting the boys to the women, they were all charged with rape and sent t o jail. This court case caused many trails, convictions and punishments for a crime that was never committed. Both Tom Robinson and the Scottsboro trial dealt with the word of a white woman against the word of an African-American and the fact there was no real evidence. There were several instances where a black man had been killed before he was put on trial. This type of racism occurred because the white people saw themselves as better and more civilized people The families and characters in To Kill a Mockingbird were accurately portrayed in traditional, old fashioned households in the early 1930’s. Girls were expected to act like ladies, and boys to act like gentlemen. The traditional woman jobs included stay at home house wives, and teachers such as Miss Caroline. Scout is unlike more girls her age. She prefers overalls and a button up shirt as supposed to a dress with stockings. However, Atticus’s sister, Aunt Alexandra is the perfect southern lady. She has very strict and traditional ideas of how Maycomb’s society works and the roles a Southern woman must play. She earnestly tried to pass along and teach Scout to becoming a lady, who is not predominantly interested. Her concernedness and determination lead to her stay with the family the summer of Tom Robinson’s trail to â€Å"properly† raise Jem and Scout. Atticus treats his children as adults, and expects to be treated with respect. Majority of the population of Alabama at this time were Christians, and attended church every Sunday morning. Calpurnia, the Finchs coloured house keeper took Jem and Scout to the church for African-Americans outside of town on Sundays. There, the kids saw that Calpurnia acted differently with her friends they she did in the Finches household. That Calpurnia led a modest double life never dawned on me. The idea that she had a separate existence outside our household was a novel one, to say nothing of her having command of two languages. (page 128). Back in 1930, the majority of the African-American population was uneducated. They did not have the same opportunities as the whites. A typical colored family in the 1930s consisted of the wife working as a maid or housekeeper, the man working a very low income job, and the children often did not attend school, and instead helped provide an income for the family. After Tom Robinson was put in jail, Helen, his wife, no longer had an income. The old fashioned households are to say were due to the stubbornness of the society, and the unwillingness to change. Atticus Finch, unlike most Maycomb residents, was the only one to come into Tom Robinson’s defense, demonstrating his kindness and his firm beliefs of equality. To Kill a Mockingbird depicts multiple themes, however the most important theme is the exploration of moral nature of humans. In other words, whether people are good or evil. This is shown through Jem and Scout’s childhood innocence being transitioned into a more adult perspective. Like any kids, Jem and Scout assumed that all people are good, because they had never seen evil. However, after witnessing the Tom Robinson trial, the children see that there is evil that exists. Despite Tom’s conviction Scout struggled to understand yet still maintained faith in human nature. However Jem’s faith in humanity was damaged once discovery the evil of racism. A prime example of goodness is Atticus Finch. All throughout the novel, he stood up for his personal beliefs. He taught his children, as well as the town that people contain aspects of good and evil, however the good often will prevail. Atticus struggles to change the society’s perspective, however continues to stand wall because he believes goodness will prevail over all evil, including racism and racial equality will soon exist. Conflicts are caused between certain individuals and the community, when each has a different standard of right and wrong. Due to Atticus’ decision to defend Tom Robinson in his trial, the farmers, including Mr. Cunningham and Mr. Ewell were not happy with Mr. Finch. Atti cus stood tall from the beginning to the very end of the trial, in hopes of proving to the town about goodness. Scout developed as a character in the novel through her gradual development towards understanding Atticus’s lessons about goodness. In the final chapters, she viewed the world from Boo Radley’s perspective and has a strong belief that in the end, goodness prevails. Published in 1960, some believe To Kill a Mockingbird is an autobiography of Harper Lee’s life. However she denied that the story is not an autobiography and simply wrote â€Å"what she knows†. There are numerous similarities between the characters and setting and her own childhood and life growing up. Harper Lee grew up in Monroeville, a small town in Alabama similar to Maycomb. Similarities between herself and Scout’s life are unmistakable. Her father, A.C. Lee, was her inspiration for Atticus’s character. He too was a lawyer and defended two black men accused of murder. However these two men were found guilty and were hung. Lee described her childhood in an interview as being a â€Å"rough n tough tomboy†. Growing up she was surrounded by racism and occasional violence, and said her childhood inspired her to write To Kill a Mockingbird. Through the use of setting, characters and one of the many themes, To Kill a Mockingbird accurately represented the southern United States in the early 1930s. Written 30 years later, Harper Lee was able to loosely incorporate similar events, environments, and social aspects of Alabama during the years of the Great Depression. One reason why this novel is considered an all-time classic is because of its lasting significance that portrays different aspects or events and issues, making it worthwhile and memorable. Works Cited Crow, Jim. The Scottsboro Case (1931). PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2012. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_events_scotts.html To Kill a Mockingbird: Scottsboro Trials. To Kill a Mockingbird: Scottsboro Trials. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2012. http://resources.mhs.vic.edu.au/mockingbird/scottsboro.htm Themes in To Kill a Mockingbird. Themes in To Kill a Mockingbird. N.p., 09 July 2009. Web. 12 Dec. 2012. http://www.slideshare.net/es99.trish.turner/themes-in-to-kill-a-mockingbird. To Kill a Mockingbird. Study Guides Essay Editing. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2012. http://www.gradesaver.com/to-kill-a-mockingbird/study-guide/major-themes/.

Definition and History of Alternative Schools :: essays papers

Definition and History of Alternative Schools The first thing one should know is what alternative schools are and how they came about. The World Book Encyclopedia (2003) defines an alternative school as, â€Å"†¦ any public or private school that differs from traditional schools in curriculum, purpose, or teaching methods.† This definition can be traced back to the 1960’s, when free schools were created. These types of schools usually consisted of a small number of students and staff. During this time period, there were many popular beliefs about children and education. First of all, people believed that children would learn things at their own pace. Secondly, teachers and faculty were supposed to be mentors, rather than figures of authority. In comparison to public schools, which were seen as oppressive, free schools were a suitable alternative for many students (Miller 2002). One of the main reasons why this was the case, is because the free schools took student’s needs into consideration (Boss 1998). The needs for a flexible curriculum and self-paced learning were met by the free schools. All of these ideas have remained a part of society, as seen by the development of current alternative school settings. Funding In order for alternative schools to continue to operate, adequate funding is necessary. Thus, schools should work to gain a place in the budget of the local school district. According to the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory (2001), there are many ways in which alternative schools can be funded. Funds can come from local school districts, grants from state or federal governments, and or donations from local businesses. It is possible for some alternative schools to run based on a combination of sources. Purpose of Alternative Schools Students who attend alternative schools do not necessarily lack the ability to learn. The main issue that students struggle with is that they each have different needs when it comes to learning. According to the Waterville Alternative School (2003), located in Waterville Maine, public schools are created on a â€Å"one size fits all† basis. That is, there is one set curriculum, one set schedule, and one set teaching style. Each student is expected to learn at the same pace, however, this is not the reality. Thus, alternative schools have been created as a way to meet each student’s individual needs.

Wireless Network Security Essay -- Wireless Networks Technology Essays

Introduction Wireless networks have grown in popularity. This is largely due to the increase in the value of a network as more users are attached to it. The value added to a network by nature of connecting more devices to it, is summarized in 'Metcalf's law.' Metcalf's law states that if you 'connect any number, 'n,' of machines - whether computers, phones or even cars - and you get 'n' squared potential value.'[1] The incredible growth of the Internet seems to validate Metcalf's law. It then seems reasonable that eliminating physical constraints to connecting to a network would provide value by allowing more devices to be connected to a network regardless of physical location. Wireless networks provide that ability. Wireless networks operate over the full spectrum of network topographies. These topographies include: Personal, Local, Controller, Metropolitan, and Wide area networks. A Personal Area Network (PAN) is the interconnection of information technology devices within the range of an individual person, typically within a range of 10 meters.?[2] A Local Area Network (LAN) is a group of computers and associated devices that share a common communications line or wireless link and typically share the resources of a single processor or server within a small geographic area (for example, within an office building).?[2] A Campus Area Network (CAN) is a fiber-optic network that physically interconnects entire buildings into one giant network. While each building may have several discrete LANs within it, each building represents a single node on the CAN. [3] A Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) is ?a network that interconnects users with computer resources in a geographic area or region larger than t hat covered by even a large [LAN] but smaller than the area covered by a wide area network (WAN [- explained next]).?[2] A Wide Area Network (WAN) is ?a geographically dispersed telecommunications network.?[2] Wireless networks come in many configurations and use many technologies. Figure 1 depicts an example of the wireless technologies and standards used for each of the networks types defined above. The figure indicates two major categories of wireless technologies: fixed and mobile. The figure also indicates 10 technologies in use: Bluetooth, irDA, 802.11, IR LAN, IR Bridge, Ricochet, RF Bridge, Cellular, MCS and Satellite. Virtually all of these tec... ...e issues addressed in the 802.11i standard, third party software vendors are rapidly creating and marketing wireless security services and third-party solutions. As the wireless market matures, it will become increasingly difficult to ?crack? wireless network security. References [1] http://www.seas.upenn.edu/~gaj1/metgg.html - Metcalf?s Law and Legacy [2] http://www.whatis.com - Whatis?com [3] http://www.lib.siu.edu/faq/network1.faq.html - LAN FAQ1 [4] http://local.cips.ca/queencity/Events/archivedEvents/2000-01/SpringSeminar01/kentonjanzen/sld003.htm - Canadian Information Processing Society [5] http://www.tml.hut.fi/Studies/T-110.557/2002/papers/zahed_iqbal.pdf - Wireless LAN Technology: Current State and Future Trends [6] http://www.athenasemi.com/market/index.html - [Wireless] Market Overview [7] http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treeview/default.asp?url=/technet/columns/cableguy/cg0302.asp - Microsoft TechNet [8] http://csrc.ncsl.nist.gov/publications/drafts/draft-sp800-48.pdf - Wireless Network Security [9] http://www.whatis.com (war driving) ? Whatis?com [10] http://www.netgear.com/pdf_docs/10StepsWirelessSecurity.pdf - Ten Easy Steps for Wireless LAN Security Wireless Network Security Essay -- Wireless Networks Technology Essays Introduction Wireless networks have grown in popularity. This is largely due to the increase in the value of a network as more users are attached to it. The value added to a network by nature of connecting more devices to it, is summarized in 'Metcalf's law.' Metcalf's law states that if you 'connect any number, 'n,' of machines - whether computers, phones or even cars - and you get 'n' squared potential value.'[1] The incredible growth of the Internet seems to validate Metcalf's law. It then seems reasonable that eliminating physical constraints to connecting to a network would provide value by allowing more devices to be connected to a network regardless of physical location. Wireless networks provide that ability. Wireless networks operate over the full spectrum of network topographies. These topographies include: Personal, Local, Controller, Metropolitan, and Wide area networks. A Personal Area Network (PAN) is the interconnection of information technology devices within the range of an individual person, typically within a range of 10 meters.?[2] A Local Area Network (LAN) is a group of computers and associated devices that share a common communications line or wireless link and typically share the resources of a single processor or server within a small geographic area (for example, within an office building).?[2] A Campus Area Network (CAN) is a fiber-optic network that physically interconnects entire buildings into one giant network. While each building may have several discrete LANs within it, each building represents a single node on the CAN. [3] A Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) is ?a network that interconnects users with computer resources in a geographic area or region larger than t hat covered by even a large [LAN] but smaller than the area covered by a wide area network (WAN [- explained next]).?[2] A Wide Area Network (WAN) is ?a geographically dispersed telecommunications network.?[2] Wireless networks come in many configurations and use many technologies. Figure 1 depicts an example of the wireless technologies and standards used for each of the networks types defined above. The figure indicates two major categories of wireless technologies: fixed and mobile. The figure also indicates 10 technologies in use: Bluetooth, irDA, 802.11, IR LAN, IR Bridge, Ricochet, RF Bridge, Cellular, MCS and Satellite. Virtually all of these tec... ...e issues addressed in the 802.11i standard, third party software vendors are rapidly creating and marketing wireless security services and third-party solutions. As the wireless market matures, it will become increasingly difficult to ?crack? wireless network security. References [1] http://www.seas.upenn.edu/~gaj1/metgg.html - Metcalf?s Law and Legacy [2] http://www.whatis.com - Whatis?com [3] http://www.lib.siu.edu/faq/network1.faq.html - LAN FAQ1 [4] http://local.cips.ca/queencity/Events/archivedEvents/2000-01/SpringSeminar01/kentonjanzen/sld003.htm - Canadian Information Processing Society [5] http://www.tml.hut.fi/Studies/T-110.557/2002/papers/zahed_iqbal.pdf - Wireless LAN Technology: Current State and Future Trends [6] http://www.athenasemi.com/market/index.html - [Wireless] Market Overview [7] http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treeview/default.asp?url=/technet/columns/cableguy/cg0302.asp - Microsoft TechNet [8] http://csrc.ncsl.nist.gov/publications/drafts/draft-sp800-48.pdf - Wireless Network Security [9] http://www.whatis.com (war driving) ? Whatis?com [10] http://www.netgear.com/pdf_docs/10StepsWirelessSecurity.pdf - Ten Easy Steps for Wireless LAN Security

International Retail Buying & Merchandising

International Fashion Branding International Retail Buying & Merchandising ‘Evaluate the various buying structures that exist in order to support a retail buying function and the impact of these buying structures on the roles and responsibilities of the retail buyer. Use illustrative examples to support your answer. ’ Within the retail environment customer satisfaction and company profitability are a crucial consideration in the merchandise choice of the buyer (Diamond & Pintel, 2008).The range of the buyer’s duties will depend on the size of the business and can be seen as three main buying approaches; centralised, decentralised and a combination of the two. Throughout this essay the buying structures will be explored in depth and the advantages and disadvantages of each will be underlined. The difference between these three approaches will highlight further the roles and responsibilities of the retail buyer and how they change depending on the type of organisati on. The buyer’s role within the retail sector is an extremely crucial one.A fashion buyer selects a range of products targeted at a specific clientele within a certain price range to hopefully gain profit for a retail company (Kang, 1999). Therefore getting the merchandise collection correct has been described as ‘the engine of success’ within retailing (Aufreiter et al. , 1993). A successful buyer requires a variety of skills including communication, calculation, analysing market positions, the power of negotiation and should also be creative (Varley, 2005).There are three roles of a buyer as stated by Hirshman and Stampfl (1980), firstly as a change agent where the buyer inspires the consumer to consider purchasing new and exciting goods, secondly as a gatekeeper where the buyer will coordinate the movement of the product from supplier directly to the customer. Finally the opinion leader role will encourage the customer’s outlook however this does not ne cessarily result in a direct purchase from the company.The key activities which a retail buyer must carry out are as follows; analysis of market opportunity which helps understand consumer buying behaviour, the creation of a merchandise plan which will incorporate a range of goods and merchandise within that category. The buyer needs to then select and build a solid relationship with a supplier to give the business a competitive advantage. The development of the product will ensure an exclusive feel of the brand, precisely tailored to meet the desires of the retailer and their customer. These goods will then me packaged, presented and promoted accordingly (Fernie et al. 2003). The buying role can differ between companies due to the size of the organisation, the budget allocated, classification of merchandise, the number of employees and where the stores are located (Diamond & Pintel, 2008). These attributes clearly define the organisational structure that a business will use to appr oach the buying role. The first of the three approaches, which large chain stores favour, is a centralised structure. This is where a whole buying team are involved and all purchase decisions are made at Head Office.Usually buyers will have separate departments and select a specific product range, for example lingerie or footwear (Goworek, 2001). As the size of a company grows, the buyer’s role becomes more intense as they deal with larger sums of money, a greater number of products and competition increases. More staff is brought in to help spread the workload and this in turn separate the buying role from the marketing one. This can be perceived as a negative as buyers are required to be kept up to date with promotions and merchandising decisions (Rosenbloom, 1981).On the other hand, there any many advantages of buying taking place in Head Office over store level. Stores with full point-of-sale data capture systems can accumulate up to date information on sale trends and bu ying patterns for each item and store them to allow forecasts to be more precise. This helps provide buying power with the negotiation of supply prices and allows a single point of communication for supply base. Subsequently allocating more time to the buyer to analysis market trends and discovers new products for their customer.In short the cost of buying function is lower as economies of scale are achieved. Tighter quality control techniques can be applied to improve production and delivery performance whilst buying and stock control choices are levelled across all stores. This gives store managers the opportunity to focus on motivating their staff and the running of their store (McGolderick, 2002). However while centralised purchasing does have its advantages, it can occasionally not recognise the needs and variation in demand of an individual store as well as that of the store manager.With buyers working from Head Office quarters there is very little informal communication with the various units making ‘the organisation less adaptive to marketplace and environmental changes’ (Stampfl, 1978). Every store will have a different set of customers and product assortment. However as the retailer is not in control of buying the merchandise they must work with the allocated product from the central buying team (Wang, L, 2010). This in turn can demotivate managers at local levels as they feel their input or contribution to the buying activities is invalid.All buying teams within centralised structure main goals are to become the front runner in the marketplace. Marks and Spencer are one of the many chain stores which are constantly reviewing their buying strategy to ‘deliver lower stock levels, shorter lead times and greater flexibility’ (marksandspencer. com, 2013). Decentralised merchandising can be found within independent retailers selling products with stable demand. In such cases the store managers often take on the function of buying locally as well as many other numerous management roles.It is favoured when a number of decisions need to be made at store level based on customer’s needs. A well-known brand which takes this type of approach is Johnson & Johnson who offer a range of health care products. This is due to the various businesses they are involved in which have different customer desires. By having a diverse range of businesses, with more than 250 autonomous units, the company has managed to modernise and grow regardless of its size (Singer & Abelson, 2010). Giving store level management more opportunity to have an element of control over the buying for their stores.A method of enhancing customer service and the stores efficiency against the large companies who use the centralised method is to allow the small retailers to cater fully to their local product choice (Varley, 2005). A major plus of using a decentralised structure is the ability for a store to adapt to change within the local market without having to wait for the centralised buying team to give the go ahead. This can boost self-esteem of store managers as they feel they have a large contribution with the buying decisions.The CEO of Johnson & Johnson, William Weldon stated a negative with having a decentralised approach, the head of the company will have to gain a good deal of trust with their store managers to make the correct decisions. Having decisions spread out amongst the company can also lead to inconsistency across the organisation. Weldon also pointed out that by having a decentralised approach it allows his business to advance internationally. They count on local employees in overseas markets to make critical business decisions (Kokemuller, n. ). A combinative structure is the third approach that a retailer may adopt where the ability to purchase takes place at both central and local level. This may involve the central buyers buying the core lines for all the stores and products to suit local needs are bought in turn by local managers. This method has been utilised by international food retailers whose head office buy main brands sold in all stores. The local management are in control for obtaining goods from local suppliers in order to fulfil customer tastes.In 2001 Waitrose itself has encouraged the use of local produce by stocking over two thousand lines alongside other large chains such as Asda and Co-operative Group (Morrell, 2010). Another method used within this structure involves a centralised buying team who select a range of goods from which store level managers choose according to the desires of their consumers. Whilst this does not entirely give the opportunity for the store manager to select exact products for their outlet, it does allow them to have some say within the buying decisions.An example of this would be the franchise restaurant Subway, where their Head Office takes control of the marketing, menus and food quality but the store managers themselves take cont rol over matters such as hiring and training of staff (DuBrin, 2009). A further illustration would be the famous clothes apparel Benetton, who create a variety of styles. Although the individual licensee cannot buy from outside suppliers, the single units have the opportunity of selecting the clothes from the company that they believe will suit best with their customer (Diamond & Pintel, 2008).A combinative method fulfils the demands and expectations of customers through the organisations ability to buy centrally, prices are more competitive and the local taste is also met (Bruce, 2004). The roles and responsibilities of a retail buyer can vary in terms of what purchasing structure is used within a business. For a small organisation the buyer can be involved with the sales and promotional sides of the business whereas in large chain stores they have various positions at different levels such as buying directors, managers, buyers, buying assistants and trainees (Goworek, 2001).Single units opt for a decentralised buying approach where the store level management are responsible for all buying tasks. Shop owners operate their own store as they believe they could provide a tailored product and service specific to their customer. Independent stores generally sell one arrangement of products or restricted amounts of merchandise; this is purchased by the store level manager. Within single units the owner takes on many roles but with chains, that have hundreds of stores, the role of the buyer becomes more constrained and focused on purchasing (Diamond & Pintel, 2008).A crucial skill of the buying team within a centralised structure is to be efficient communicators as they are constantly speaking with suppliers and other departments. As the distance between stores increase, it becomes more challenging for a buyer to make frequent visits to each store. These units are controlled at Head Office with very limited contact occurring between buyer and store manager. The main focus being purchasing and communication is achieved through telephone and e-mail, information is also accumulated via electronic reports (Diamond & Pintel 2008).Within a smaller business the range of merchandise is usually wider, for example men’s business-wear which would include suits, shirts and ties. With large chain store such as Bhs and Oasis, buyers are given a more concentrated product range for instance men’s shirts. This in turn leads to further pressure to generate more sales for their specific department. In comparison to individual stores which acquire a more flexible buyer with a broader skill set to assist with quality control.The roles and responsibilities of a buyer within a combinative structure is a mixture between the buying department at Head Office purchasing the core lines of a range and the store manager’s contribution to providing the store with local good they believed to cater to needs of their customer. This could be difficult to ma nage as purchasing will take place at both levels, for this to be successful, the general manager and the buying team would need to communicate regular so that merchandise within the store was consistent.Overall a buying structure is needed in order to help support a retailing company deliver its market with a carefully selected product range, providing them with a competitive advantage and in turn hopefully generating profit. Three main approaches were evaluated and linked with different types of businesses which best suited them. Centralization is more broadly used by larger retailers such as chain stores; decentralization provides a structure for independent retailers and thirdly a combination of the two which takes elements of both of these to create a core line as well as using local produce.When companies are considering both the handling of data and of merchandise then the decision must be made as to which is the preferred method. A centralised approach allows organisations t o have a larger buying department with greater efficiency which becomes more focused on areas of purchasing. Some retailers see this as restricting as store managers have limited say within this process, therefore they opt for a more flexible method offered within the decentralised approach.After clear assessment of all three structures it was concluded that a combination of centralised and decentralised approaches would be an overall satisfactory method to put in place for most organisations as the main ranges within a retailer would be controlled by Head Office with an experienced buying department but also store level managers would contribute to the buying decisions as they had expertise with what the customer would desire. References Aufreiter, N. , N. Karch and C. Smith Shi (1993) ‘The engine of success in retailing’.McKinsey Quarterly, 3, 101-116. Bruce, M. (2004). The anatomy of retail buying. In: Butterworth-Heinemann, E International retail marketing : a case study approach . Oxford: Elsevier Ltd. 64-68. Diamond & Pintel. (2008). The Buyer's Role. In: Vernon R. A Retail Buying. 8th ed. New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.. 3-32. DuBrin, A. (2009). Organizing. In: Calhoun, J and Acuna, M Essentials Of Management. 8th ed. Mason: South-Western Cengage Learning. 219-295. Fernie, J et al. (2003). Principles of Retailing. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. p145-150 Goworek, H. (2001).The Role of the Fashion Buyer. In: Blackwell Science Ltd Fashion Buying. Great Britain: DP Photsetting. 4-14. Hirschman, E. C. ; Stampfl, R. W. (1980). Roles of retailing in the diffusion of popular culture: Microperspectives. Journal of Retailing 56 Kang, KY. (1999). Conceptual Framework: Retail Buying Process. In: Kang, KY Development of an Assortment Planning Model for Fashion Sensitive Products. 1-14. Kokemuller, N. (n. d). Decentralized Company Business Structure. Available: http://smallbusiness. chron. com/decentralized-company-business-structure-20629. tml. Marks and Spencer. (2013). Careers. Available: http://corporate. marksandspencer. com/mscareers/opportunities/head_office_roles/headoffice_buying. McGolderick, P. (2002). Product Selection and Buying. In: Alcock, T and Howell, C Retail Marketing. 2nd ed. Berkshire: McGraw-Hill Education. 279-301. Morrell, L. (2010). The benefits of local sourcing. Available: http://www. retail-week. com/in-business/supply-chain/the-benefits-of-local-sourcing/5010688. article. Rosenbloom, B (1981). Retail Marketing. New York: Random House. Singer, N and Abelson, R. (2010).After Recalls of Drugs, a Congressional Spotlight on J. ; J. ’s Chief. Available: http://www. nytimes. com/2010/09/29/business/29tylenol. html? pagewanted=all;_r=0. Stampfl, R. W (1978). Structural constrains, consumerism and the market concept, MSU Business Topics, 2 (4), 37-66. Varley, R. (2005). The Role of Product Retail Managers. In: Taylor and Francis Retail product management : buying and merchandising . 2nd ed. Oxon: Routl edge Ltd. 21-41. Wang, L. (2010). Buying committees in Chinese retail industry. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics. 22 (4), 492-511.