The Financial and Economic Environment of a US website business Essay

The Financial and Economic Environment of a US site business focusing on South African understudies - Essay Example The administrations gave are colleges/universities subtleties with their separate courses, course subtleties, and online assets, vocation directing through messages, phone and internet conferencing, and understudy visa help. Value: The cost charged from the understudies depends on the sort of participation. There are two kinds of enrollment Basic and Premium. The administrations for the Premium individuals are notwithstanding the administrations which Basic individuals will benefit. The participation expense is US$30 for Basic individuals and US$50 for Premium individuals on yearly premise. Spot: The client will have the option to buy in and pay on the web. As per the participation, the client will be furnished with a login id and secret key from which it can get to the administrations offered to him/her. Advancement: As this is an online assistance, the objective gathering of clients can be connected through publicizing in vocation magazines, nearby papers, online by means of person to person communication destinations, and limited time battles arrangement in the schools and universities grounds. Budgetary and Economic Environment South Africa has an all around created monetary and legitimate condition with its stock trade the world’s eighteenth biggest trade, positioned seventeenth with showcase esteem $1.013 trillion out of 2010. It is one the most exceptional creating nations on African mainland. It is a center pay economy with inexhaustible regular assets. The country’s previous financial approach was preservationist for the most part centered around controlling swelling and diminishing spending shortage. The approaches despite everything exist except the ongoing worldwide downturn has put strain to furnish with the fundamental administrations to less fortunate areas and accommodate business ensures. The joblessness remains at 25% which is high when contrasted with different economies, for example, US and UK which are at 107... The paper tells that South Africa has a very much evolved money related and legitimate condition with its stock trade the world’s eighteenth biggest trade, positioned seventeenth with advertise esteem $1.013 trillion out of 2010. It is one the most exceptional creating nations on African mainland. It is a center pay economy with copious normal assets. The country’s previous monetary approach was traditionalist chiefly centered around controlling expansion and decreasing spending shortage. The strategies despite everything exist except the ongoing worldwide downturn has put strain to furnish with the fundamental administrations to more unfortunate segments and accommodate business ensures. The joblessness remains at 25% which is high when contrasted with different economies, for example, US and UK which are at 107 and 87 individually. In 2000 populace underneath neediness lines was half. South Africa is positioned 30th as far as Foreign Direct venture at home. South Afri ca’s principle exchanging accomplices incorporate China, Germany US, Japan and UK. The nation was the host for 2010 FIFA World Cup which helped its business incomes and framework. USA is the market-situated economy with the most trend setting innovation. In numerous earlier years the nation has been the net merchant of the merchandise and ventures being the number 1 shipper on the planet and positioned fourth in sends out. Its populace beneath destitution line remains at 15.1% and joblessness rate at 9.6% in 2010. The nation is likewise the biggest buyer of oil. The US and South Africa marked a $120 million speculation subsidize convention under OPIC (Overseas Private Investment Corporation) in 1996 for value interests in South Africa.

Chapter 4 : Account Titles and Preparation of Financial Statements

Part 4 : Account Titles and Preparation of Financial Statements| Article 14 : The monetary record things shallbe sorted as follows: 1. Resources. (1) Current resources. (2) Funds and long haul ventures. (3) Property, plant and hardware. (4) Depletable resources. (5) Intangible resources. (6) Other resources. 2.Liabilities. Article 15 : Current resources mean unhindered money and money equal, momentary speculations, and different resources that are convertible to money or consumed inside one year. Order and assessment of current resource titles alongside required logical notes are as per the following: 1.Cash and Cash equal: money close by, stores with banks, money for rotating use, negligible money, and present moment and exceptionally fluid speculation that can be changed over into a fixed measure of money with premium vacillation having little effect consequently, barring those effectively saved for use or confined by law or agreement; the record nature and required notes are as pe r the following: (1) Non-request stores with development longer than a year will be indicated. 2) Time stores (counting debatable declarations of store) will be renamed as different resources whenever gave as lien to a drawn out risk or as other current liabilities whenever gave as lien to a present obligation, and will be determined in the notes for the reality of collateralization.Refundable store shallbe named a present or other resource by the long-or transient nature, and will be indicated in the notes. (3) Compensating balances will be delegated current resources if emerging from transient advances, or renamed as different resources or long haul speculations if emerging from long haul liabilities. 2.Short-term speculation: characterized as venture that is present moment; the nature of titles and assessment thereof and the necessary illustrative notes are as per the following: (1) Financial resource with change in reasonable worth being recorded as increases or misfortunes and money related resource ready to move will be esteemed utilizing the reasonable incentive on the asset report date; the reasonable estimation of recorded or OTC stock and safe receipts show the end cost on the monetary record date. 2) Financial resources which should be undercuts inside a timeframe, in this manner changing in reasonable worth and acquiring an increase or misfortune, must be reflected in the money related resources records or while deciding how to quantify the additions or misfortunes, you chose utilizing reasonable incentive to mirror these adjustments in reasonable worth, these figures should likewise be reflected in your monetary resource records. 3) Financial resource ready to move will mean the non-subordinate money related resources other than the budgetary resources with change in reasonable worth being recorded into increases or misfortunes, which monetary resources are to be held until the date of expiry. 4) Short-term ventures gave as a lien, insurance or re fundable store will be recorded as a transient speculation if the obligation for such a speculation is given as an assurance; if a momentary speculation is given as an assurance to a drawn out risk, such ventures shallbe recorded as long haul ventures. Realities with respect to the guaranteeshall be determined in either case. 3.Hedging money related resources: characterized as the budgetary resources set up in supporting bookkeeping, which are utilized as successful supporting instruments, will be estimated by reasonable worth and separated into current and non-current as indicated by the liquidity of the things to be supported; non-current supporting monetary liabilities will be recorded as supporting budgetary liabilities under different resources. 4. Notes Receivable: characterized as different notes which are gathered by the business entity.The bookkeeping nature, valuation and required notes are as per the following: (1) Shall be esteemed at the current worth, or might be estee med at the assumed worth if developing inside one year. (2) Notes receivable that were limited or moved to others will be deducted and indicated. (3) Notes receivable emerging from activities will be introduced independently from those not emerging from tasks. 4) Large-entirety notes receivable from related people will be introduced separately. (5) Notes receivable that are given as security will be determined in the notes. (6) Notes receivable resolved to be uncollectible will be discounted. (7) Notes receivable will be esteemed at shutting for the uncollectible sum, and any stipend for the uncollectible sum will be appropriately given and introduced as the contra record of the notes receivable. 5.Accounts Receivable: characterized as the case of the business element emerging from selling products or administrations; the bookkeeping nature, valuation and required notes are as per the following: (1) Shall be esteemed at the current worth or might be esteemed at the book esteem if de veloping inside one year. (2) Large-whole records receivable from related people will be introduced separately. (3) Unrealized intrigue incomes from portion deals will be introduced as the contra record of the records receivable. 4) Accounts receivable to be gathered more than one year, will be indicated in the notes for the measure of anticipated assortment of every year. (5) â€Å"Designated Collateralized Accounts Receivable† will be uncovered in the notes. (6) Accounts receivable that incorporates receivables from a drawn out development contract will be introduced and indicated in the notes for the saved segment that has been charged in accordance with the development account.Where the normal assortment of the held sum runs recent year, the normal measure of assortment for every year will be determined in the notes. (7) Accounts receivable decided as uncollectible will be discounted. (8) Accounts receivable will be esteemed at shutting for the uncollected sum, and a stip end for the uncollectible sum will be appropriately given and introduced as the contra record of the records receivable. . Different Receivables: characterized as the receivables that don't have a place with the classifications of receivables in the former passage; the record nature, valuation and required notes are as per the following: (1) Other receivables surpassing five percent of the total of current resources will be introduced independently ordinarily or object. 2) Other receivables will be esteemed at shutting for the uncollected sum, and a recompense for the uncollected sum will be appropriately given and introduced as the contra record of the receivables. Where the receivables are characterized more noteworthy detail, , the stipend account will likewise be introduced as needs be. 7.Inventories: characterized as product or merchandise, either completed products or results available to be purchased in ordinary activities alongside products that are work-in-procedure to be s old upon consummation, or crude materials or supplies utilized legitimately or in a roundabout way in the creation of products (or administrations) available to be purchased; the record nature, valuation and required notes are as per the following: (1) Inventories will be esteemed utilizing the lower of cost or market value technique. 2) Inventories with imperfection, harm or outdated nature causing a conspicuous decrease in esteem will be esteemed dependent on the net feasible worth. (3) Inventories that are given as lien or assurance, whose use is regulated by lenders, and so forth will be indicated. 8. Prepayments: characterized as different expenses and costs prepaid.With special case for reserves required by contract for the acquisition of fixed resources and development assets for incomplete development reserves, which should both be arranged as fixed resources. 9. Other Current Assets: characterized as present resources that don't have a place with the past seven classificati ons of current resources. In any case, any of the past classifications of current resources, except for money, not surpassing five percent of the total of current resources might be converged into other current resources. Article 16 : Funds and long haul speculations are characterized as the different subsidizes put in a safe spot for operational purposes and long haul ventures utilized by the business for unique purposes; the record classes, valuation and required notes are as per the following: 1. Assets: characterized as resources accommodated unique purposes, including sinking assets, improvement and development reserves, possibility misfortune reserves and other related common assets. The goals and execution technique on which allocation of the assets is based will be determined. 2.Long-term Investments: characterized as speculations of a drawn out nature, for example, interest in different ventures, acquisition of long haul securities or interests in land or other related vent ures; the record nature, valuation and required notes are as per the following: (1) Long-term ventures will be indicated for the valuation premise and will be introduced independently ordinarily. (2) The bookkeeping treatment of long haul value ventures esteemed by value strategy will follow the arrangements of the Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. reported by the Accounting Research and Development Foundation of the Republic of China (hereinafter alluded to as the â€Å"Statement of Financial Accounting Standards†). (3) The bookkeeping treatment of long haul value speculations not esteemed by the value technique will follow the arrangements sketched out in the Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 34. (4) Long-term ventures that are given as lien or subject to limitations, restrictions, and so on corridor be determined. (5) Long-term value speculations estimated by cost implies the individuals who have the accompanying protections without material eff ect or the subordinate items moving alongside such protections and convey through such protections: 1. Value protections that are not exchanged at the stock trade or not exchanged over the OTC. 2. Developing stock. (6) Financial resources in held-to-development: characterized as non-subordinate monetary resource with fixed or decided assortment sums and date of expiry, which business have forceful expectation and ability to hold until the date of expiry. Bond ventures which are held until the date of expiry will be estimated by amortized cost; speculations held until the date o

Youre stressed.

You’re stressed. This is a season of stress. The release of Early Action decisions, for one thing. MIT finals, for another (AHHHH). Deadlines for regular decision applications to college, and, for many of my senior friends, applications to graduate schools and fellowships. My stress falls mainly under the second category, so you may wonder why Im posting and not studying. I wasnt going to blog tonight, actually; earlier this week, I resolved to spend every waking hour of my weekend either studying for my three finals (AHHHH), sleeping, eating, showering (hygiene is important, kids) or taking a (very) brief study break. But something whisked me away from studying that I cant help but share with all of you the first thing I did upon getting home was log onto the admissions blogger interface. I need to tell you a story, prospective students and fellow MIT-ers and whoever else is reading this: you, who are stressed. I apologize if this post sounds rushed and hastily thrown-together, but I dont have much time; at midnight, a blogger moratorium kicks in. To respect the release of Early Action decisions, we arent allowed to blog on Saturday or Sunday. It is now 11:04pm on Friday. I therefore have 56 minutes to open a little window to campus and show you how we here deal with stress. I didnt leave the dorm yesterday and this morning, cabin fever hit me hard. So, at 12:30 this afternoon, I zipped up my big poofy winter coat, tugged on gloves, and called up a friend who I havent seen in months, because were both busy and our lives never seem to overlap. He picked up on the third ring, and I asked if he wanted to go to lunch. He did. So, off we went, strolling down Mass Ave, catching up, laughing and chatting with a cold winter sun beaming down on our heads. After our Chinese food, we split up, I towards Harvard to buy a Christmas present for the French House freshmen, and he back to campus. As I got off the bus back at MIT, I found myself with a sudden overwhelming rush of energy: I sprinted all the way back to New House, and up the stairs home. There, I found stress. Lots of stress. As I mentioned, this is a season for fellowship application deadlines, and a big one was due at 5pm today. My senior friends either sat huddled over their computers or rushed back and forth between other seniors rooms, asking for advice or clarification on the wording of an essay prompt. For a little under two hours, I played proof-reader, character-count-reducer, reassurer, admirer (all my dorm-mates are ridiculously impressive people) and calculator; with three minutes to go, one of my friends needed to add up six big numbers and divide by four (dont ask why.) I have never punched numbers into my phone so fast. Finally, they all pressed submit, and it was over. Exhale. At 5:10pm, I scurried back to my room, shut the door, and whipped out my orgo notes. And studied. And studied some more. Practice test, old pset, old pset. Practice test. Brief dinner, delivered to my room by my very kind boyfriend. More studying. At 7:30, my friend Davie R. 12 asked if I was going to go carolling with other French House-ers, and I declined, explaining that I had way too much studying to do. And regretted it, as I sat in my room for the next hour, thinking about how beautifully my dorm-mates sing and how it would be my last chance to carol with many of them (including Davie, who is one of the most amazing singers I have ever come across.) At 8:30, a big group of people came past my door. It was the carollers: they were just leaving, late for some reason. I jumped up, slammed my computer shut, and accepted a packet of music. Orgo could wait. So could physics. And neuroscience. Lizi 12 baked 2+ trays of cookies, while Davie printed booklets of carols in four parts and brought along a tuning fork. We traveled around New House, from living group to living group, regaling groups of strangers with music. I was totally mortified, at first, but as people applauded and smiled and took cookies, I realized that we were cheering people up and there exists no better study break than that. We even got people to join us. Now around ten singers strong, we decided to head over to Burton Conner and continue carolling there. Out on dorm row, we sang Silent Night, and a group of passers-by joined in.  Led by a resident (a friend of Lizi and Davie from concert choir I dont know who you are, but thank you!*) we made our way through the five floors of Burton-side and four floors of Conner-side, singing and delivering cookies and picking up more carollers along the way. We crashed a party. We crashed a movie night. In one lounge, a resident joined us by playing the piano. Everywhere, people were smiling and thanking us and telling us how great we sounded; one girl even filmed us. Faces peeked out of doorways. Eyes were wide. Slowly, residents gathered in the hallways to listen. And this was all totally impromptu!  No substantial planning, no practice, no musical ability required. Others joined. Now around fifteen people strong, we delivered our grand finale (Hark the Herald Ang els Sing)  to the Burton-Conner housemasters, who gave us chocolate and smiled wonderful delighted smiles. *Christy S. 13, apparently. Youre the best! I saw so many smiles tonight. Tonight, of all nights when people are crazed with stress and up to their necks in old papers and notebooks and binders. It was refreshing (literally; its cold out there) and rewarding and SO much fun, and I dont regret a second of it. I completely forgot my stress, somehow. It disappeared along with my voice (my vocal chords are totally burnt out.) I wanted to tell you all this because it helped me. It was soothing to get outside to talk with an old friend, to do things with people I care about, to channel my rocketing levels of stress energy into creating music for others. I thought this was probably a story worth telling on this kind of occasion. And now, its nearly midnight, so Im off; Ill re-emerge on the other side of finals, late Wednesday afternoon. A friend and I have arranged to watch The Elegant Universe after our last exam, so I have that to look forward to. Once, in high school, I was freaking out to a teacher about an upcoming bout of exams, and he described an approach that I liked; he said we would bow our heads and charge, get through it, and look up only once we reached the other side. Its almost time! Bow your head, steel your nerves, and remember that above all you are NOT in any way defined by the school you attend quite the opposite. MIT is great, but only because of the people who come here; its just a bunch of empty (kind of ugly) buildings otherwise. It is physically impossible to fit every student that the admissions office would like to fit. Therefore, some of you will go elsewhere. But that makes MIT less great, not you and it makes other schools greater, as you sling your hard work and thoughtfulne ss and energy over your shoulder and bring them elsewhere, doing the things you would have done if you were here: namely, taking advantage of every resource at hand. In the meantime, Im going to bow my head and steel my nerves as well. Waves and vibrations, organic synthesis, structure elucidation, ion channels and hormones, here I come. Lets charge together. Ready?

Instruction and Assessment Unique to Each Student

If teaching were as simple as using the one best way to teach everything, it would be considered more of a science. However, there isnt just one best way to teach everything and thats why teaching is an art. If teaching meant simply following a text book and using the same size fits all approach, then anyone could teach, right? Thats what makes teachers and especially special educators unique and special. Long ago, teachers knew that individual needs, strengths and weaknesses must drive instructional and assessment practice. Weve always known that children come in their own individual packages and that no two children learn the same way even though the curriculum may be the same. Instructional and assessment practice can (and should) be different to ensure that learning happens. This is where differentiated instruction and assessment comes in. Teachers need to create a variety of entry points to ensure that student differing abilities, strengths, and needs are all taken into consideration. Students then need varying opportunities to demonstrate their knowledge based on the teaching, hence differentiated assessment. Here are the nuts and bolts of differentiated instruction and assessment: Choice is key to the process. Choice of learning activity as well as choice in the assessment (how the student will demonstrate understanding).The learning tasks always consider the students strengths/weaknesses. Visual learners will have visual cues, auditory learners will have auditory cues etc.Groupings of students will vary, some will work better independently and others will work in various group settings.Multiple intelligence is taken into consideration as are the students learning and thinking styles .Lessons are authentic to ensure that all students can make connections.Project and problem based learning are also key in differentiated instruction and assessment.Lessons and assessments are adapted to meet the needs of all students.Opportunities for children to think for themselves is clearly evident. Differentiated instruction and assessment IS NOT NEW! Great teachers have been implementing these strategies for a long time. What does differentiated instruction and assessment look like? First of all, identify the learning outcomes. For the purpose of this explanation, Ill use Natural Disasters. Now we need to tap into our students prior knowledge. What do they know? For this stage you can do a brainstorm with the whole group or small groups or individually. Or, you can do a KWL chart. Graphic organizers work well for tapping into prior knowledge. You may also consider using a who, what, when, where, why and how graphic organizers individually or in groups. Key to this task is ensuring that everyone can contribute. Now that youve identified what the students know, its time to move into what they need and want to learn. You can post chart paper around the room dividing the topic into sub topics. For instance, for natural disasters I would post chart paper with different headings (hurricanes, tornadoes, tsunamis, earthquakes etc.). Each group or individual comes to the chart paper and writes down what they know about any of the topics. From this point you can form discussion groups based on interest, each group signs up for the natural disaster they want to learn more about. The groups will need to identify the resources that will help them gain additional information. Now its time to determine how the students will demonstrate their new knowledge after their investigations/research which will include books, documentaries, internet research etc. For this, again, choice is necessary as is taking into consideration their strengths/needs and learning styles. Here are some suggestions: create a talk show, write a news release, teach the class, create an informational brochure, create a powerpoint to show everyone, make illustrations with descriptors, give a demonstration, role play a newscast, create a puppet show, write an information song, poem, rap or cheer, create flow charts or show a step by step process, put on an informational commercial, create a jeopardy or who wants to be a millionaire game. The possibilities with any topic are endless. Through these processes, students can also keep journals in a variety of methods. They can jot down their new facts and ideas about the concepts followed by their thoughts and reflections. Or they can keep a log of what they know and what questions they still have. A Word About Assessment You can assess the following: completion of tasks, the ability to work with and listen to others, participation levels, respects self and others, ability to discuss, explain, make connections, debate, support opinions, infer, reason, re-tell, describe, report, predict etc.The assessment rubric should contain descriptors for both social skills and knowledge skills. As you can see, you have probably already been differentiating your instruction and assessment in much of what youre already doing. You may be asking, when does direct instruction come into play? As youre watching your groups, there will always be some students who will need some additional support, recognize it as you see it and pull those individuals together to help move them along the learning continuum. If you can answer the following questions, youre well on your way. How are you differentiating content? (variety of leveled materials, choice, varied presentation formats etc.)How are you differentiating assessment? (students have many options to demonstrate their new knowledge)How are you differentiating the process? (choice and variety of tasks that consider learning styles, strengths, and needs, flexible groupings etc.) Although differentiating can be challenging at times, stick with it, you will see results.

Vygotsky s Theory Of Cognitive Development - 1149 Words

Piaget and Vygotsky are two well-known individuals in the history of psychology. The two psychologists held different beliefs regarding Cognitive Development in children. According to the text, â€Å"Piaget’s theory of cognitive development proposes that a child’s intellect, or cognitive ability, progress through four distinct stages† (Pg. 25). The stages are Sensorimotor Stage, Preoperational Stage, Concrete Operational Stage, and Formal Operational Stage. Piaget found that each stage occurs as a child ages. He also suggested that child cannot skip a stage. According to the text, Vygotsky’s concepts on cognitive development is based on two ideas (Pg. 33). Vygotsky believed that development occurred through â€Å"sign systems†. Sign systems are†¦show more content†¦Certain people seem to be untrustworthy to him, including his father. At times, the child does not accept being with different individuals well. I think it’s because he do es not associate with that individual often. The child has a strong sense of trust with his mother because she satisfies the child’s needs. The text stated, â€Å"The mother, or maternal figure, is usually the first important person in the child’s world. She is the one who must satisfy the infant’s need for food and affection† (Pg. 46.) I would think the child’s psychosocial development is negative due to him rejecting most people. †¢ Stage 2: Autonomy versus Doubt: According to text, â€Å"the child’s desire for power and independence clash with the wishes of the parent† (Pg. 46). Stage two occurs during the age range of 18 months to 3 years. While talking to a friend, his son refused to drink water. Apparently, the child drunk milk and became constipated. He couldn’t properly use the restroom and became frustrated. His mother and father told him drinking water would help. However, the child refused. It seems that the child became more frustrated with the parents’ wishes because he wanted to use the restroom without their help. I would think the child’s psychosocial development is positive due to his urge to be independent. †¢ Stage 3: Initiative versus Guilt: My mother has a friend whose son is currently in stage three. He’s very aggressive and vigorous towards his environment. Once, IShow MoreRelatedVygotsky s Theory Of Cognitive Development917 Words   |  4 Pages Hoy and Margetts (2012) demonstrate that cognitive development is much more than the addition of new facts and ideas to an existing store of information - maturation, activity and social transmission influence cognitive development. One very respected researcher of cognitive development and, in particular, sociocultural effects on such development, was Lev Vygotsky, whose original Russian journal articles are now available in English. Vygotsky’s theory revolves around peer-mediated learning, andRead MoreVygotsky s Theory On Cognitive Development Essay733 Words   |  3 Pages â…“ of a page on vygotsky Lev Semionovich Vygotsky was a Russian psychologist and constructivist learning theorist who was known for arguing against the theories of psychologist Jean Piaget. Piaget believed that in order for any learning to occur there had to development within the individual first, but Vygotsky argued the contrary. He argued that in order for development to occur, the individual would first have to have learning take place through instruction and example in a given appropriate environmentRead MoreVygotsky And Vygotsky s Theory Of Cognitive Development Of Thought And Language Essay1060 Words   |  5 PagesAilà ­n Florencia Thought and Language: independent processes. With the passing of time, the development of thought and language has been the object of study for psychologists such as Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. The former drastically influenced the study of thought and speech with his theory of cognitive development and his clinical method. The latter also made his contribution with his sociocultural theory. Although language and thought may be analysed as associate one to the other, both of themRead MoreVygotsky s Theory Of Cognitive Development1365 Words   |  6 PagesVygotsky’s Theory of Cognitive Development the Biopsychosocial Framework In researching various development theories, one of those that stand out is cognitive development theory. Cognitive development theory studies â€Å"how people think and how thinking changes over time† (Kail Cavanaugh, 14). One of the leading theorists in this area was Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky. He was one of the first theorists to consider the sociocultural influences on a child’s development. His research allowedRead MoreComparing Piaget And Vygotsky s Theory Of Cognitive Development813 Words   |  4 Pagesand Lev Vygotsky are considered to be very prominent figures in the area of cognitive development. Both of these men considered themselves a constructivist, which entails a viewpoint that is concerned with the nature of knowledge. In their lifetime, both of them made contributions in the area of education and even after death, their theories still influence teaching methods. The purpose of this paper is to show some similarities as well as differences in the theories of Piaget and Vygotsky and whatRead MorePiaget And Vygotsky s Cognitive Development Theory1114 Words   |  5 PagesWhen you think about cognitive development, you cannot help but to think about two specific contributors to this area of study, Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. First, let us discuss what exactly is cognitive development. Cognitive development is the process of how thought is constructed. This includes language learning, problem solving, reasoning, decision-making, as well as any other mental abilities. Cognitive development begins in childhood and continues to develop all the way through adulthoodRead MoreVygotsky s Concepts Of Cognitive Development Theory2311 Words   |  10 Pagesthen, that I did want to end up like them. I also remember thinking that if I had any children that I would do my best not to expose them to the same environment I was exposed to when I was growing up. According to Vygotsky’s concepts of cognitive development theory, my interactions with others in my neighborhood caused me to alter my environment which guided me, regulate me and redefined who I am now. So to answer the question, why did I not end up like some of my friends? I don’t know. I think thatRead MoreJean Piaget And Vygotsky s Theory On Children s Cognitive Development1507 Words   |  7 PagesJean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky, have shared their knowledge on children’s cognitive development. Both psychologists had their own vision of what stimulates and helps a child grow. Jean Piaget s theory was shaped through the thinking and understanding of how knowledge is built through a series of four stages; preoperational, sensorimotor, formal operational and concrete operational. He believed that the development was with the child themselves. On the contrary, Lev Vygotsky s theory is shaped throughRead MorePiaget s Eight Stages Of Development And Vygotsky s Theory On Cognitive Development Essay2193 Words   |  9 Pagesthrough life has helped me to understand that everything that happens is just apart of life. Two theories that I would like to focus on that I believe have had the biggest impact in my life are, Erikson’s eight stages of development and Vygotsky’s theory on cognitive development. Erikson’s theory is based off of 8 stages ranging from ages â€Å"zero† (birth); where we learn to either trust our caregiver(s) or we develop mistrust where we may become suspicious or anxious. Up until death, where we end withRead MoreVygotsky And Piaget s Theory Of Cognitive Development Innate Or Learned?1241 Words   |  5 PagesComparing Vygotsky and Piaget Jayne Enneking Northcentral University Comparing Vygotsky and Piaget Which comes first, the chicken or the egg? Is cognitive development innate or learned? These are two age old questions that have been discusssed extensively. The purpose of this paper is to offer insight into the answer of the latter by briefly comparing and contrasting Lev Vygotsky and Jean Piaget’s cognitive developmental theories. Both psychologists’ theories will be outlined, as will the similarities

Preventing Tooth Decay in Hispanic Preschool Children Program Development Free Essays

string(67) " arise from the potential adverse effects of infection and caries\." Preventing Tooth Decay in Hispanic Preschool Children: Program Development School of Nursing Health Teaching and Promotion Preventing Tooth Decay in Hispanic Preschool Children: Program Development Dental caries is a single most prevalent chronic infectious disease amongst US children (US Dept of Health and Human Services, 2000). Caries progression in younger children is more rapid and severe than in adults, resulting in the ailment known as Early Childhood Caries. According to National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) morbidity report almost 20% of children 2-5 years old had untreated dental caries (2012). We will write a custom essay sample on Preventing Tooth Decay in Hispanic Preschool Children: Program Development or any similar topic only for you Order Now In order to prevent tooth decay and promote good oral hygiene in young children, the community nurse will coordinate with East Los Angeles day care centers to hold a series of short classes for groups of parents 10-14 at a time just before the end of day care’s business day. These classes will focus on preventing caries development in preschool children by raising awareness amongst parents. The education will target Hispanic day care centers, and the goals of the program will be achieved by educating parents and their preschool children on factors that contribute to cavities formation, and strategies to prevent caries progression. Health Prevention Need According to Dental Health Foundation (DHF) children in California have twice as much untreated dental caries as the rest of the nation (2000). DHF further indicates that national minorities are at higher risk to develop dental problems. Variables such as socioeconomic status and educational level directly correlate with the rates of the dental disease prevalence (US Dept of Health and Human Services, 2000). According to NCHS, almost 40% of Mexican children from families that are below 100% of poverty level have untreated dental issues. Additional factor that contribute to dental cavities progression is lack of insurance. More than quarter of Californian preschoolers and elementary school students have no dental coverage (DHF, 2000). The practice of giving a nocturnal bottle is still utilized by more than 30% of Californians, and is considered as most common factor that contributes to tooth decay (US Dept of Health and Human Services, 2000). Caries in children may be source of severe pain, interfere with learning, diminish overall quality of life, and potentially lead to life-threatening infections. Fortunately, dental caries is easily preventable by following basic oral hygiene strategies. However due to lack of knowledge and other socio-economic and cultural barriers, these guidelines frequently are not followed, and children suffer from tooth decay and associated problems. The goal of this educational course closely replicates oral health goals set by Healthy People 2020, which emphasizes importance of education and prevention (U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2012). A joint effort of public health professionals, day care centers personnel, and individual parents’ involvement can halt the progression of caries and prevent the tooth decay in children. Characteristics of Learners This program will involve parents and their preschool children, and child care providers. Considering the geographical location of proposed courses (East Los Angeles), the most of the participating children are of Hispanic heritage, three to five years old; include both gender, and most likely bilingual. Piaget coined a term of preoperational intelligence to describe the cognitive learning in children ages 2 to 6 (Berger, 2008). Preoperational cognition, according to Piaget, denotes learning that occurs before understanding logical operations. Children’s cognitive processes at this age are magical and egocentric (Berger, 2008). Lev Vygotsky, in contrast to Piaget’s theory emphasized the social learning as an important part of knowledge formation. Vygotsky recognized the importance of guided participation in learning process of preschool children. He provided four steps created by caregivers that motivate children to learn: challenge presentation, assistance availability, instructions, and encouragement. Another prominent social development theorist, Eric Erikson described preschool children being in the initiative versus guilt state, which characterized by child balancing effort and expectations of adults (Berger, 2008). Preschool children may have prior knowledge of basic oral hygiene strategies, but need assistance and supervision. Additionally children at this age are able to follow two or three step instructions, curious and motivated, do distinguish cause and effect in simple situations. Berger states that young preschool children have healthy growing organisms, but greatly influenced by genetics, nutrition, socioeconomic status, and other factors (2008). The long standing tradition of encouraging children to eat traced in low-income Hispanic families is turning into the overeating epidemic in the US (Berger, 2008). Besides overeating, poor dietary choices, such as snacks with little nutritional value, but high in sugar, fat, and salt pose a direct danger to oral health. The second category of learners in this course is comprised of adult Hispanic parents of preschool children, and caregivers at day care centers. Both parents and caregivers are most likely emerging adults with ages ranging from 21 to 35. Most of them belong to lower socioeconomic status, with public health being the only source of healthcare coverage. As much as 45% are uninsured (NCHS, 2012). Almost 25% of these adults live below poverty level, and median per capita in income is almost 2. 5 times less than that of rest of California (United States Census Bureau, 2012). Forty four percent of East Los Angeles population reported having a high school diploma, and only 5. 4% achieved baccalaureate degree as highest level of education (United States Census Bureau, 2012). As much as 97% of population is of Hispanic descent, and almost half of them are foreign born individuals. Catholicism is a predominant religion amongst Hispanic population. People of Hispanic origin have strong values of family relations, religion, tradition and customs. They might have preconceived ideas of oral hygiene, but most likely not follow the guidelines. Hispanics have a strong respect to healthcare providers, and their culture prescribes obedience and compliance, making them open to learning to certain degree (Berger, 2008). They might have limited English proficiency and be illiterate, which makes learning process harder. Nursing Diagnosis A multitude of nursing diagnoses are applicable to the situation of poor oral hygiene. Various problems arise from the potential adverse effects of infection and caries. You read "Preventing Tooth Decay in Hispanic Preschool Children: Program Development" in category "Papers" But for this educational course two interrelated nursing diagnoses were identified. The first nursing diagnosis is ineffective oral health maintenance related to knowledge deficit, cultural beliefs, and lack of material resources as evidenced by reported poor dentition status in children (Wilkinson, 2005). The second diagnosis directly stems from the first one: knowledge deficit related to lack of exposure and unfamiliarity with information resources as evidenced by inadequate demonstration of proper teeth brushing and flossing techniques (Wilkinson, 2005). These two diagnoses will guide the content of educational course with focus on relevant needs. Client-Centered Educational Goal Wilkinson includes goals into the nursing diagnoses for evaluation of outcomes (2005). Goals are descriptions of desired family or client actions that can be measured or directly observed (Wilkinson, 2005). Upon completion of this course parents will express knowledge of importance of proper oral hygiene, demonstrate correct brushing and flossing techniques, and identify strategies that reduce progression of caries. The following education plan is tailored to the client-centered goals with objectives that reflect clients’ needs. Learning Objectives Rankin, Stallings, and London state that leaning objectives have to be clearly formulated, time-limited, verifiable (measurable), and attainable in order to achieve effective learning (2005). A curriculum for health professionals and child care providers by California Childcare Health Program was used in the process of objectives identification (2005). To achieve stated educational goal six objectives: two of each learning domain were formulated. Cognitive objectives: 1. After attending a class on oral hygiene (condition), parents will state (performance) the detrimental effects of snack and drinks high in sugar, and nocturnal bottle on progression of teeth decay prior to the end of class (criterion). 2. After attending a class on oral hygiene (condition), parents will state (performance) the need to assist children with brushing until age of 8 by the end of class (criterion). Affective objectives: 1. After discussing a recommended routine of oral hygiene (condition), parents will verbalize (performance) their feelings associated with changes in the routine by the end of the class (criterion). 2. After discussing effects of sugar on tooth decay and importance of dietary modification (condition), parents will state their challenges associated with breaking he nocturnal bottle habit in their children (performance) routine by the end of the class (criterion). Ppsychomotor objectives: 1. After observing instructor perform correct brushing techniques (condition), parents and children will demonstrate a repeat demonstration (performance) routine by the end of the class (criterion). 2. After attending the class (condition), children will demonstrate â€Å"lift the lip† technique (per formance), to allow their parents inspect the teeth by the end of the class (criterion). Content Outline Content outline allows structured learning environment and provides guidance to the instructor. The content outline for oral health should include information on basic teeth anatomy, teeth eruption pattern, signs and symptoms of caries and teeth infection. The signs of infection may include gum or facial swelling on affected side, foul odor, drainage, and visible cavities and discoloration (California Childcare Health Program, 2005). The information of possible outcomes of untreated infection need to bi disclosed. Children may complain of pain and discomfort. Further, content outline should include demonstration of correct brushing techniques, both for parents and children, and information on relationship of sugar and night-time bottle to tooth decay. The session should include questions and answers section to allow parents and children validate their understanding. Active discussion is encouraged to promote disclosure of feelings associated with necessary changes. Content outline need to incorporate information on public health resources available to low income families to meet material needs. Instructional Strategies and Media The proposed education program will take place in the day care centers in East Los Angeles, CA, 1 hour prior to the end of business day. The course will be divided into 2 parts, first focusing on dental health concepts, and the second will be devoted to the correct brushing techniques and evaluation of learning. Teaching will be conducted in group format with estimated 10-15 participants. Group format allows sharing of concepts between members and more comfortable environment (Rankin et al. , 2005). The first part will be in the lecture format, reinforced by booklets both in English and Spanish anguages. Video material and plaster model of jaws will be utilized, to demonstrate teeth anatomy. Rankin and others note that instructional videos are more effective in conjunction with practice and return demonstration (Rankin et al. , 2005). Therefore, the second part of the session will focus on demonstration of brushing strategies, different positions to assist parents with brushing, and dental products. Demonstration can reinforce psychomotor objectives achievement, and lectures and videos are effective in meeting cognitive objectives (Rankin et al. , 2005). At the end, parents will be allowed to ask questions and reflect on their feelings, which will result in achievement of affective learning objectives. Instructional media listed above will include resources and materials recommended by â€Å"Promoting Children’s Oral Health: Curriculum for health professionals and child care providers† with permission of its developer – California Childcare Health Program. These include 4-minute â€Å"Lift the Lip† video on basic oral exam for parents and day care center providers, â€Å"Healthy teeth begin at birth† booklet, and the â€Å"What do you think? questionnaire to evaluate parents understanding and validate their feelings and concerns. All the materials are available in English and Spanish (California Childcare Health Program, 2005). Evaluation of Objectives and Program Evaluation Strategies To evaluate the outcomes of educational session, the lecturer will use a modified and simplified â€Å"Evaluation questionnaire† available from â€Å"Curriculum for health professionals and child care providers† to reflect both on cognitive learning, and to assess program perceived effectiveness (California Childcare Health Program, 2005). This tool includes questions with answers utilizing Likert scale to elicit feelings related to course effectiveness, and a simple test to assess knowledge. Observation of return demonstration of teeth brushing by both parents and children will serve as evaluation strategy for psychomotor objectives. Observation allows the teacher to provide feedback and corrective measures (Rankin et al. , 2005). The questions and answers session at the end of the class will assist the evaluation of achievement of both cognitive and affective objectives, by allowing participant verbalize their feelings, and validate their learning. Several open ended questions are included in the written questionnaire as well. Conclusion The oral health of children is greatly impacted by such socioeconomic variables, as their parents’ income, education, culture, prior experience, and insurance status. Preschool children from Hispanic families in state of California are at higher risk to develop dental cavities compared to the rest of the state. Basic strategies and spread of information about dental health can prevent progression of dental caries and greatly improve future quality of life in preschool children. This program will teach parents, caregivers, and children on proper teeth brushing techniques, disseminate knowledge on basic oral health concepts, and provide a list of public resources available to overcome financial barriers. References Berger, K. S. (2008). The developing person through the life span. ( 7th ed. ). New York. NY: Worth Publishers. California Childcare Health Program. (2005). Bright Futures Toolbox: Health Professionals and Human Services Providers. Retrieved from National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center: http://www. ucsfchildcarehealth. org/pdfs/Curricula/oral%20health_11_v7. df National Center for Health Statistics. (2012). Health, United States, 2011: With Special Feature on. Hyattsville, MD. Retrieved from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: http://www. cdc. gov/nchs/data/hus/hus11. pdf#076 Rankin, S. H. , Stallings, D. K. , London, F. (2005). Health promotion: Models and applications to patient education. In Patient Education in Health a nd Illness (5 ed. , pp. 27-46). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams Wilkins. The Dental Health Foundation. (2000). The Oral Health of California’s Children: Halting a Neglected Epidemic. Oakland, CA: Dental Health Foundation. United States Census Bureau. (2012). State County QuickFacts. Retrieved from United States Census: http://quickfacts. census. gov/qfd/states/06/0620802. html United States Department of Health and Human Services. (2012, August). Oral Health. Retrieved from Healthy People 2020: http://www. healthypeople. gov/2020/topicsobjectives2020/overview. aspx? topicid=32 United States Department of Health and Human Services. (2000). Oral health in America: A report of the Surgeon General. National Institutes of Health, How to cite Preventing Tooth Decay in Hispanic Preschool Children: Program Development, Papers

Observe Organizational Behavior Firsthand

Question: Give a brief discussion on organization behavior. Answer: The organization behavior is influenced by plethora of dimensions such as organizational culture, organizational structure, team spirit, organizational change, communication, diversity, power, leadership, motivation (Gordon, 1991) etc. It is quite essential to get into the organization and closely monitor the processes so as to have an insight into the domains of organizational behavior. The organization selected for the purpose of critical analysis is a supermarket and retail outlet having plethora of products for sale. The supermarket is present in the residential cluster providing buying facilities to the consumers of the region. The supermarket is fully equipped with various products to offer and is composed of highly trained staff at different levels of management and customer service. I got into the organization of this retail store as an intern to refine my skills of management and got a chance to closely observe the sales representatives and all the functions handled at the s upermarket. As an intern, my role was to observe the customer support representatives and give an honest review of the employees in the form of a written report and analysis sheet given to me by the top management of the supermarket. Other roles included helping the sales representatives to set up the supermarket according to the code of display and provide help services to them as and when required. It would help me to have deep insights into the operations and strategies adopted by the management team organized in a hierarchy and would help me to acquire high level of management skills and principles. I got well into the organization when I talked with the higher management to allow me to observe the processes and the operations going on in the organization in return I would be able to give honest and in depth reports for the employees of the organization and would help them in the in store tasks. This was quite a new experience for me in the contemporary times as I never had a job experience and this internship taught me a lot about the inherent secrets of a retail store or a supermarket and all the marketing strategies deployed by the top management to attract and allure the customers towards their brand. It was an altogether enthralling and exciting experience which helped me to learn many new skills and gain a command over in depth practical knowledge about management of a supermarket. The activity in which I got engaged was a routine activity of the supermarket for customer service and retail marketing. Therefore, the action under analysis is a routine action of the organizat ion for which I helped the entire team and provided them with reviews at the end of my internship period. Action Component and Analysis Two of the main determinants of organization behavior are organizational culture and the team management under the supervision of efficient leadership. Organizational culture is the system of shred meaning involving shared value system and belief system. This set of values and rituals act as an adhesive to glue the members of the organization together. The core values that form the framework of the organizational culture of this supermarket are respect towards the individuals, integrity in action, service for the customers and excellence in the strategic management (Jones, 2010). The associates of the customer service department are motivated to serve the customers being the topmost priority of the company. The value system of the company is held high by the means of open communication and ways to share information. The foundation of the supermarket is based over integrity which is fueled by honesty, fairness and objectivity to make decisions. The company strives for excellence by innovating and improving with positive modeling and by working in a team. The management believes that the organizational culture initiates from the top l evel of the company and then permeates down to other employees. The employees of the supermarket have a particular code of conduct which is taught to them in the period of their training. They have a unique uniform which have a quote saying, How May I Help You?. This quote opens up doors of interaction between the customers and the representatives of the supermarket team when they will be humble and generous in their approach (Casey, 1999). The culture of the company is upheld with plethora of benefits given to the employees in return of their hard work and commitment. They are provided with competitive pay, healthcare facilities, retirement plans, and promotions to make them feel as a part of the whole big family of the retail store. The hard work of the employees are rewarded to make a strong work culture of the team. The culture of the supermarket is characterized customer orientation and giving best of the value at some lowest prices. Employee is projected to be an image of a so cially responsible entity serving the company. The employees are tracing the roots of the organizational culture and are formulating them in coherence with the growth and success of the company. The culture of the supermarket is quite interactive and innovative. There have been use of latest trends and technologies in the campus of the supermarket which forms a part of the contemporary culture of the retail store. The corporate culture of the supermarket is very well refined and as per the norms of this industry. The employees are quite humble and when anyone says Thank you in return of their favor and service, the customer support representatives say Its my pleasure in return (Ogbonna, 1988). This culture is imbibed in the behavior of the employees and it presents a form of politeness and regard. The culture of the company is sustained by regular intervention from the top management in the form of discussions and value enrichment of the employees. It was a long time back when the company and the top management realized that the rule based culture of the company was no longer able to cope with the agility of the world demanding a higher pace of globalization and technological development and hence the culture had to be made flexible and value based to win over the trust of the employees and make them understand the value delivered by the company. The company lays a higher amount of stress over the values that are required in the sustainable environment with thorough training given over the performance with purpose (Russell, 1985). The culture of the company is more than just ethical culture rather it is a conglomerate of all the belief systems of the company, the rituals followed at plethora of events strengthening the bond of the employees, the values imbibed followed by the entire management team, the stories that are disseminated by the management in regular meetings of the staff and the symbols in variety of forms. The symbols used in the supermarket to uphold the culture of the staff are the uniform of the customer service representatives that follows a serviceable message, the posters on the walls guiding the customers to correct stalls, the employee of the month displayed over bulletin board in the entrance to motivate the employees, the badges worn by some highly efficient employees and other forms. The success stories are discussed by the team in every informal meeting where the top management narrates their experience and inspires the team. The values of the company totally restricts an inflexible and harsh culture of blind obedience and therefore, there is no top down hierarchical strict culture rather a democratic culture where everyone participates in the decision making to give their valuable suggestions to improve the marketing content and the customer service facilities. Management of the entire team is a challenging task for the leader and which in turn has an effect over the organ izational behavior. The leaders of the supermarket forming a large share of the top management like to be surrounded by the right kind of people having big and widespread domain of ideas and are not afraid to take any kind of risks to implement those ideas (Boye, 1997). The supermarket have developed a leadership training program for the managers and employees in other management roles. This training includes real world based simulation techniques to be able to train the team to coherently bind with each other and work with each other under the supervision of the leader. The leaders are responsible for motivating the employees for every kind of task such as stock replenishment, online shopping aid, administrating services, customer service, food safety and sales driving. The department managers have glued and integrated the teams in one single unit for an effective and efficient job. Management must play a brilliant role to determine the capability of the individuals and to leverage it efficiently in the field of operational approach. The team management is done in the front line to make the employees learn by the means of experience. The team is divided into various roles but each of the role in integrated into one single functional unit. The team leader, administration roles, online shopping, counter assistance, customer service assistance, warehouse assistance, merchandizing control, online customer service assistance, general assistance and other roles are coherently tied up to each other to form a comprehensive team of support. Hence, the leadership of this store and supermarket is handled efficiently and flexibly. As per the observation it can be noticed that the supermarket has strengths of having a great flexible and friendly culture which is upheld by various determinants of culture. The leadership and the formation of the team of the organization is very well in coherence with the trends of the retail market. The employees are inspired to get themselves aligned around the core mission of the company. This democratic and participative culture of the company have given birth to the culture of innovation wherein the supermarket have adopted various innovative strategies to attract the customers in a sustainable environment (Damanpour, 1991). Some of recommendations that can be considered by the team in order to attract the customers and form a huge base of loyal customers are use of tablets installed in the campus wherein the customer can give their feedback, look for discounts, find the location of a particular product in the supermarket; technical improvements in payment system by the means of optical scanning machines; use of membership cards to give away points and discounts on the same and other related innovations made for the support services of the customers. The supermarket need to orient their strategies towards inclusion of diversity in the work group to invite innovation in their operations and strategies. Otherwise, the whole internship period was refined by extraordinary skills represented by the management team and a willingness to share values and beliefs. References Gordon, G. G. (1991). Industry determinants of organizational culture.Academy of Management Review,16(2), 396-415. Jones, G. R. (2010).Organizational theory, design, and change. Pearson. Casey, C. (1999). " Come, join our family": Discipline and integration in corporate organizational culture.Human relations,52(1), 155-178. Russell, J. S., Terborg, J. R., Powers, M. L. (1985). Organizational performance and organizational level training and support.Personnel psychology,38(4), 849-863. Boye, M. W., Jones, J. W. (1997). Organizational culture and employee counterproductivity.Antisocial behavior in organizations, 172-184. Ogbonna, E., Wilkinson, B. (1988). Corporate strategy and corporate culture: the management of change in the UK supermarket industry.Personnel Review,17(6), 10-14. Damanpour, F. (1991). Organizational innovation: A meta-analysis of effects of determinants and moderators.Academy of management journal,34(3), 555-590.

Allan Bloom Clearly Distinguishes Between Prestigious Private Liberal

Allan Bloom clearly distinguishes between Prestigious Private Liberal Arts Colleges and State Universities in the Liberal Studies selection of his book, The Closing of the American Mind. He strongly believes that the University has to stand for something. There is not a clear definition of what an educated human being is, and it is the responsibility of a University to decide what subjects are going to be required by their students to obtain a degree. Allan Bloom characterizes the prestigious institutions as colleges that are supposed to provide liberal education. He classifies the State Schools as colleges that are to prepare specialists to fit the systematic demands of this complex society. He is trying to imply that there is a problem with today's liberal studies program with most universities in the United States. He thinks that the various courses that are required are all unrelated to each other. He states two approaches to the liberal studies problem, and he suggests his own personal solution. The first approach is to take a course in each general department of the university. The second approach, which is usually turned down by the majority of universities, is to take composite courses. This is basically a joining of several departments into one course. His solution to the liberal studies problem is the ?Great Books? approach. The Great Books approach is a list of generally recognized classical texts that would be required by the students to read. If this were the case, then the students would not be forced into the specific categories of the university. All that they would have to do is simply read the books. A question that I have is how would the students be te sted on their comprehension of the reading. The professors could not just assume that everyone read these books, let alone understand them. I think that the students could just go buy these books at a bookstore if they wanted to read them, instead of paying tuition to read these various books. Another issue that he addresses is the morality of liberal studies. Both schools almost have to feel guilty for their own self-interest in making money and for ripping the students off. They know that it would not take four years to graduate if we were to specialize in our major the whole time. He also thinks that the undecided student is an embarrassment to the university. I do not agree with this because the student has probably already narrowed down their choices, and now just trying to pick the right one. Overall, I agree with him that there may be a few liberal studies problems, but I do not know if his approaches are the correct answers to the problem.

Montaigne on Barbarism essays

Montaigne on Barbarism essays Montaigne wrote that, Each man calls barbarism whatever is not his own practice. He describes that we as people are not very accepting of others, who are not like ourselves. If they do not do things the way we do, we call them barbarians. We are as a society very close minded and do not take the time to understand people who are different from us. Instead, we believe that since that do not do things like we do, then there must be something wrong with them. Although he wrote his essay in the 16th century, we can very much still apply his ideas to Americans in todays society. One area where Montaignes essay applies is in the debate over whether gays or lesbians should have the right to get married. Many people are used to a marriage being between a man and a wife and refuse to believe that it can be any other way. These people do not even want the marriage to be called a civil union, because they feel that it is not right for people of the same sex to become a legal couple. They them faggots or dykes and some refuse to even be in the same room as them. Another group of people in todays society where Americans are not accepting of them is people of Arabic descent. After the attack of America, these people were singled out due to the extremists from their home country. Even if these people were American citizens, they were harassed and discriminated against. People admitted to looking over their shoulder when they believed that someone was near them that could have originally come from a terrorist country. Some people refused to get on airplanes if there was someone on the plane who was Arabic descent. These people are labeled as terrorists, even if that is not the case. Still another area in which Americans tend to not be accepting of our own people is when some people see a younger person with tattoos, body piercings, or dyed hair. Someone who is more conservativ...

To analyze the production of M. Butterfly and how it represents Asia Essay

To analyze the production of M. Butterfly and how it represents Asia through the story, scenic design, costume design, movement, sound, and lights - Essay Example M Butterfly play is one of the most popular plays and which was a highly applauded Asian American plays during the late 20th century. The importance of this play and the new visibility of Asian American theater reveal the growing attention given to cultural, political and intellectual issues. The intellectual issue includes ethnicity, gender, race, and sexualities (David pg. 12). The main strategies of understanding the play depend on the background of political histories between North America, China and Europe as well as on the cultural political of Orientalism. Critical reading of M butterfly varies from debates over the re3prewsentation of sexualities and ethnicity, theories of performance, politics of Orientalism, and the notion of the masquerade. This paper intends to look at how M. Butterfly represents Asia through several things. The image of a woman of Asia as both dangerous and sensual is important. The clash in this combination of need for fear of Oriental women gives some light on the manner in which inter-racial relationship get viewed in America (David pg 24). The plot of an Inter-racial romance that is seen in this play about a European American mans fateful love affair with a lady from another culture and race, almost ended in the nonwhite tragic pregnancy of a woman or her final sacrifice. It depicts the best of the two worlds like Gina Machetti states while apparently confirming a complete separation of the races; it also gives way for the possibility of assimilation through adopting mixed-raced child. This kind of unfortunate love between white men and Asian women becomes an efficient cultural means of accepting the interracial relationships; it is a method that emphasizes the splendor of love as an ideology and, concurrently, introduces the transitory and the tragic nature of inter-racial love. T he symbol of Butterfly serves well the cultural trends of her time: she reflects the persistent fantasy on the submissive,

Social Entrepreneurship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Social Entrepreneurship - Essay Example Entrepreneurs are individuals who facilitate the organization to grow and support the activities of the organization by enabling access to required resources and planning of production and marketing activities. However, bbusinesses should not overlook their moral and social obligations to the community in which they operate and serve. Government policies and regulations should be directed towards social benefits that prevent misuse of power and wealth, promotes effective resource allocation, and is instrumental in reducing the rich-poor divide. The concept of social entrepreneurship is based on the practice of organizations that exist for facilitating society and community benefits. The primary difference between business entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs lie in the fact that the former is always seeking profits while the latter is driven by the urge to improve the society in which they live. The paper discusses various concepts and theories related to social entrepreneurship an d its impact on the business environment. The paper also highlights the different perception of the concept in UK and US and its implications. A social enterprise as opposed to business enterprises focuses on reinvesting the earnings for the welfare objectives instead of maximising profits for shareholders and owners. This kind of enterprise is run as non-profit organizations or associations that work for the benefit of the society and are driven by social or environmental objectives. These types of enterprises work in a similar fashion as other profit generating business organization but the earnings of a social enterprise are re-invested into the business for achieving the enterprise objectives. The focus of these enterprises remains on the community for which they exist and work towards the pre-defined social objectives or mission of the enterprise. A marked difference between a social entrepreneur and a

Consequences of Outsourcing Human Resources

Consequences of Outsourcing Human Resources This essay will attempt to highlight the issues pertaining to the effects of outsourcing human resource management. The essay will be structured as follows: An Overview on Outsourcing of HRM The Rationale of Outsourcing The advantages of Outsourcing The disadvantages of Outsourcing An analysis on effect of Outsourcing An Overview on Outsourcing of HRM-The HRO The Outsourcing is the new management mantra which came into existence during the turbulent times of 90s, where it was seen as an effective tool for cost cutting. Outsourcing basically means hiring of the relevant business function from a third party. This phenomenon made rapid advancement and very soon engulfed nearly all area of the business. The function of Human Resource management has also been affected by it. Although in HRM outsourcing is a relatively newer term but the economic crisis of global meltdown has helped it to a stage where more and more organisations and businesses are opting for it. Following are main findings of the survey carried out by CIPD (2009) in the UK- HR outsourcing (HRO) is used by 29% of the survey respondents. Most organisations are increasing their use of HRO. Over the last five years, 20% reported significant increases in HRO activity, and 44% reported a slight increase in HRO activity. Only 11% have reduced their reliance on HRO. Only 44% of those organisations that outsource other business functions also outsource HR. HR outsourcing is used predominantly in private sector organisations, with 69% of those outsourcing HR working in this sector. HRO is pursued by 25% of public sector organisations in this sample. The private service industry dominates the use of HRO, with 50% currently undertaking HRO activities. Twenty-four per cent of HRO activity is in manufacturing, 22% in public services, and 4% in voluntary and charitable organisations The top drivers for HRO include access to skills and knowledge (71%), quality (64%) and cost reduction (61%). Organisations stressing clear objectives and targets in these areas are also more likely to have achieved them. The top three wholly outsourced areas include legal activity (69%), payroll (66%) and pensions (64%). The areas partially outsourced the most include training (49%) and recruitment and selection (47%). HRO is not relieving pressure for the internal HR team, with 43% confirming HRO failure in this case. Source- CIPD survey 2009 Introduction to HRO HRO is often confused with the two more associated terms -HR shared services and HR expert leasing. To begin, it is necessary to distinguish HRO from HR shared services and HR expert leasing. The main reason for this confusion is the complexity involved in Shared Services and HR expert leasing. HR shared services are also known as co-sourcing (Shen et al. 2003). The shared service has two forms. First, there is a shared service set up by large organizations to provide assistance and services not only to their own departments or subsidiaries, but also to external client organizations as an outsourcing business. Second, the other type of shared service refers to those set up, again by large and often multinational or multi-establishment organizations, aimed at restructuring their service provision through recentralization and of a creation of an internal market system. This is very popular in large enterprises, such as Motorola, Fuji, HSBC, IBM and Nokia. HR expert Leasing refers to the concept used by some professional employer organizations of leasing HR experts to clients (Laabs 1996) due to the fact that when the option of leasing employees is used, HR is more likely to be kept in-house, thus HR expert leasing should not be regarded as HRO. Similarly the shared services which are designed at providing services to internal and external clients cannot be in strict sense be regarded as HRO. Thus we see that in both the cases, i.e. HR expert leasing and the Shared services, there is no significance of the third party, which as per the definition of HRO is an prerequisite for them to be classified as Outsourcing. Hence we see that there is a clear demarcation between all the three services being used to provide HR support to the organisation. The commencement of Outsourcing in HR functions commenced primarily with the field of Recruitment. The Business organisations felt the need for recruitment as an independent function which could be transferred to third party for a measure of cost cutting and bettered shared service. Soon the functions such as Pay roll management, benefits and legal advice, were also outsourced. If we analyse the key decision for whether the particular function is outsource or not is based on the fact that whether the function is a core function or not? The rationale behind the Outsourcing The five competitive forces (Charles R Greer; Stuart A Youngblood; David A Gray, 1999) that can be called as the driving force for the companies to outsource some or all of their HR activities are: downsizing, rapid growth or decline, globalization, increased competition, and restructuring. Downsizing: The inevitable restructuring of entire industries has recast HR departments as formulators and implementers of downsizing. The pressure of reducing costs has now made HR themselves as targets of downsizing due to the overwhelming demands for reduced costs for HR services. Rapid Growth or Decline: Again the Costs as a major factor, the retrenched firms, or those in decline, face incredible pressures to reduce costs, while high-growth firms face similar pressures to monitor costs. HR outsourcing presents the option of cost reduction Globalization: Due to this, the companies now staff comprising of host country or third party nationals, this required harmonizing pay and benefit packages in accordance with the local laws demands specialized expertise. Larger vendors that focus on compensation and benefits offer these specialized services and deliver expertise built on experience and concentration in particular regions of the world. Increased Competition: Increased competition, both on domestic and international front, emphasizes the value-added role of products and services. Firms that subscribe to the balanced scorecard approach to measure effectiveness look not only at financial measures of firm success, but also at customer and employee measures of service quality. As per General Electrics CEO Jack Welch- He pays attention to only three measures of firm effectiveness-cash flow, customer satisfaction, and employee satisfaction. If HR departments are to be responsive to both internal and external customers, they  must look for ways to improve the quality and responsiveness of their services. Proponents argue that outsourcing offers HR an option to satisfy competing demands for improved service and responsiveness at a reasonable cost. Structuring: Firms that redeploy HR generalists to serve key divisions or business units of the organization can transform HR into a service role. Such a transformation serves as a source of competitive advantage for the firm. These new, service-quality cultures are not easy to build and sustain, particularly among established, traditional, or entrenched HR departments. Strategically, HR outsourcing decisions can potentially be part of a larger pattern of responses designed to deliver hard-to-imitate, hard-to-substitute, value-added services that enhance the value and quality of the firms products and services. After having seen the driving force behind the HRO we will now try to analyse various models of HRO as conceptualised by the resource-based view (RBV) (e.g. Barney 1991; Ulrich 1996); that suggests that the resources of a firm are rare and valuable and cannot easily be substitutable, are more likely to achieve sustained competitive advantage. According to the RBV, a firm should only outsource those resources which are replaceable or imitable not its core functions. This concept is in line with the core and periphery concept (Atkinson 1984), which can be applied to evaluate what HR activities are more likely to be outsourced. According to Atkinson, the core is defined as a numerically stable core group which will conduct the organizations key, firm-specific activities (Atkinson 1984: 29). The core can be redeployed easily between activities and tasks and has functional flexibility. All other function which support the core are known as the periphery, this provides the organization wit h an advantage to vary the numbers with fluctuation in labour demand (known as numerical flexibility). Ulrich (1998) suggested that core activities creates unique value to employees, customers and investors and are transformational in nature. Non-core activities are easily duplicated and replicated and are of transactional nature. Thus we find that HR core activities include top-level strategy, HR policies, employee relations, and line management responsibilities (e.g. appraisal and discipline) and the peripheral activities include specialist activities (e.g. recruitment and outplacement), routine personnel administration (e.g. payroll and pensions), relocation, and professional HR advice (e.g. legal advice related to employment regulations) {Finn (1999) and Lepak and Snell (1998)}. Thus according to the core and periphery theory, while the administrative and transactional functions (periphery) can be outsourced, it is in the interest of the firm to keep the strategic parts of HR (c ore) remain in-house. However, in practise, the core and periphery concept is difficult to distinguish as some HR activities appear to be purely administrative, but actually are not. For instance, recruitment is often seen as suitable for outsourcing, but its a key function that should stay in-house. To ascertain these arguments, we next shall analyse the advantages and the disadvantages of Outsourcing of HR functions. The advantages of Outsourcing As mentioned above one of the major benefits of HR outsourcing is Cost Saving but is not the only advantages of the Outsourcing. It provides a wide array of advantages specially to the small and rapidly growing businesses with limited resources, to achieve the same level of efficiency and service consistency in their HR functions as larger companies, without having to invest in large amounts of capital. The advantages of outsourcing can be enumerated as follows:- Cost Savings. Companies can realise substantial cost savings by outsourcing HR activities and functions. Torode (2000: 2) reported a success story about cost reduction about Trident Inc. reducing its HR administrative burden by 65 per cent and uncovering US$40,000 in overpayments for insurance premiums by using Employease Inc.s web-based human-resources application. The same is also supported by Gilley et al. (2004) that outsourcing training and payroll could lower administrative and overhead costs of training staff. Greater Focus on Core Business Activities. Due to globalisation companies face aggressive competition both locally and from abroad and thus can incur a tremendous amount in terms of lost business and loss of competitive advantage by spending more than required time and resources in non-core or administrative functions. Outsourcing enables companies to focus on their core competencies and to direct their full attention towards market dynamics and business strategy. Greater Participation by HR in Value-Adding Activities. Outsourcing certain HR administrative tasks enables the HR department to free themselves of time-consuming administrative tasks and direct their attention towards helping to improve their companys business performance thus fulfilling there roles as that of a strategic partner. Greater Efficiency. Due to the vertical specialisation and intense competition the outsourcing providers can usually perform the task more efficiently than the internal HR department. This is also due to the fact that service provider has a specialised team and since provides wide array of services to various outsourcer, hence at times can have more resources as well as experience to deal with any situation. This is specially true for medium and small firm which have a smaller HR department. Greater Flexibility of a Decentralized Structure. The business environment is very volatile, presenting newer challenges to companies. Outsourcing provides flexibility by removing those responsibilities and constraints that make it difficult to react effectively to changing conditions and issues. A leaner, more focused company engaged in fewer activities, is better able to react to environmental changes. Risk Reduction. Risk reduction is a major benefit of HR outsourcing. As the outsourced tasks are the outsourcing providers core competency, they are unlikely to make lesser mistakes as compared with the clients internal HR staff. Furthermore in case of eventuality of mistakes, the service provider can be held accountable for losses to its client thus lowering the level of risk. More so ever the firms can enjoy the benefits of the HR functions without having to invest heavily in those HR functions, at the same time also keeping the option to change the outsourcing supplier if required. More Objective Process. Outsourcing provides a certain degree of objectivity to the functions of HR department as service providers are not affected by political, cultural and bureaucratic conflicts intrinsic to the firm, which prevents the department from being fully productive and aligned with the strategic goals of the organisation. Outsourcing HR functions brings the objectivity of a third party into the process. Disadvantages of Outsourcing Cost-Savings Not Always Achieved. Laabs (1996) argued that HRO in fact leads to increasing costs because it may be less expensive to administer HR functions in-house, the same is also supported by Friel (2003),who argues that one major reason for higher costs of HR outsourcing is that HRO is still in its infancy. For example, software products must be tailored to organizations requirements, pushing up development costs. The following are examples showing increasing costs as a result of HRO. BP Amocos international contract with Exult increased costs by one third in 2001 (Broad 2002). BT admitted that costs were on the rise in its contract for HR service provision with Accenture HR Services in 2002 (Broad 2002). The September 2002 audit revealed that Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in the United States paid up US$2.6 million to VA sytems well above the original estimate of US$1.2 million.(Friel 2003). Transportation Security Administration (TSA) of America paid NCS Pearson, US$700 million as against originally estimate of US$103 million,by the end of 2002. (Friel 2003). Greer et al. (1999) found in their study that specialized vendors were unable to achieve greater economies of scale and cost savings due to the magnitude of the internal HR operations of some large companies,. More importantly, as Greer et al. (1999) warned, outsourcing produced no cost savings when only two or three vendors dominate a specialized market. Caulkin (2002: 10) has supported Greer et al. by arguing that the argument of economies of scale and specialization is self-serving, benefiting providers, not purchasers. People Issues. This is one of the most debatable aspects of Outsourcing. An extensive study by Hackett Benchmarking Research revealed that companies consider the greatest obstacles to outsourcing to be cultural and political factors. The services being outsourced to an outside entity poses a threat to the employee trust in the system. Further more the vendor working environment and ethics might not be commiserating with the firms which would bring out contention of issues. For example (Broad 2002), when Bank of America formed an alliance with Exult which included a major outsourcing arrangement, employees were worried about the implications of the deal for their positions. It is only when they understood that it was Exult, and not Bank of America, that would make the required investments, that they became reassured and accepted the alliance Problems with the Outsourcing Provider. The providers might be faced with issue where he is forced to cover up for any mistakes for which the service provider can be held liable. Further more the organisational culture of the provider would also be a binding factor as they can be a cause low service standardsr, a lack of attention to regulatory and business requirements, or unmet objectives and timeframes by the outsourcing provider. Loss of Control. Outsourcing HR functions can lead to a loss of control by the buying company. According to recent study by Accenture, 48% of executives surveyed stated that the fear of a loss of operational control was the greatest impediment to expanding their use of outsourcing. Their can be a fundamental mismatch of hierarchy in the firm as the line manager and the service provider might not be able to synchronise their working. Consequences of outsourcing Major implication, both in terms of their (changing) roles and their experience of the HR services of Outsourcing have been felt by HR professionals, line managers, employees who receive the services, and outsourced HR staff who provide the services. In-house HR Professionals. Most noticeable impact on in-house HR professionals will be in terms of the nature of their work and their career patterns, although due to scarce literature, the extent is difficult to predict. Ulrich (1998) proposes four new roles for HR; among those he recommends sharing of HR work in varying proportions among the line management, employees, external consultants, and other groups. But he does not really discuss the rationale by which this distribution of work would be determined (Procter Currie, 1999). Nor have the implications for their career prospects been contemplated. Greer et al.s (1999) study suggests that as a consequence of outsourcing of HR activities, the user company would mandatorily have to deploy in-house HR generalists who know can manage the outsourcing relationships. However, this also poses a threat of work intensification for these HR professionals, as they might still be relied by their colleagues to provide the service because they may be used to it or are unfamiliar with the new system. For example, Shen et al.s study (2004) indicates that the job content for the NHS maintenance manager of National Health Services (NHS) trust hospital in the United Kingdom has undergone severe work intensification and radical change ever since the outsourcing of maintenance. The same can also happen to the HR managers when outsourcing HR takes place, since both functions require intimate knowledge of the organization and a relatively high level of relationship management. HR outsourcing also raises concerns about the career prospects of the HR staff. One of the significant changes to career prospect would be Availability of fewer career development options for specialists as compared to generalist. At the same time, as there would be only a limited activities being performed in-house, general HR experience would be hard to gain. This will also raise question about the type of training to be provided to HR professionals that existing training for the HR profession is generalist-oriented, while in future the service provider would need specialists. Therefore, outsourcing HR could affect the in-house HR staff in ways such as job intensification, change in job content, reduction of career development opportunity, and increased levels of stress, especially when the relationship with the service provider is strained and the quality of services unsatisfactory. More broadly, the role that HR professionals play will be dependent upon their interaction with other groups both within and outside the organization (Procter Currie, 1999). Communication can be more difficult, especially when there is geographical, as well as organizational, separation. But if the onward march of HR outsourcing is a given, then the HR professionals will need to learn how to play the game (Turnbull, 2002). Line Managers. One of the apparent rationales of Outsourcing has been to delegate the softer aspects of the HR function to the line management ie involvement in and ownership of HR decisions. For example, Vernon et al. (2000) found that in Europe it is a common practise for sharing responsibilities between the HR specialists and the line management, in regard to the policy making: About a third of senior HR specialists reported an increase in line management responsibility for HR issues over the last three years (Vernon et al.,2000, p. 7). The role of line managers in executing HR policies and shaping HR practices has long been acknowledged (e.g., Currie Procter, 2001; Marchington Parker,1990; McConville Holden, 1999; Procter Currie, 1999). This has resulted in line managers taking on additional responsibilities, thus intensifying their role. This can at times all draw away or cloud the focus of line manager from their primary role. Also in reality, some of the smaller tasks may take longer to explain via electronic devices and are easier for the line managers to do themselves. The lack of HR support on-site seemed to have caused work intensification for the line managers, since they no longer have easy access to the HR staff. Another aspect which is pertinent to mention here is the competence of line manager. Line managers in the United Kingdom have been criticized for their lack of HR skills and competence, especially on legal matters such as discipline, dismissal, redundancy, and equal opportunities (e.g., Currie Procter, 2001; Hall Torrington, 1998; Mc-Conville Holden, 1999). They have also been criticized for their lack of interest in managing human resources, as HRM tends to be low down in their operational priority. In addition, they tend to focus on the hard, rather than soft, aspects of the HRM issues. Employees Receiving HR Services. The most significant outcome of this has been on the employees as they find difficulty in divulging confidential or private information with unknown HR person over the phone or online. This can also be termed as loss of Human touch from the term Human Resources. Research carried out by Feng Lee Cook (2006) about the employees response in Consult-Corp UK also indicates the same. Number of employees felt loss of emotional aspect as they felt that staff in the services centre, provide answers by reading off the screen or the manual and the entire process is mechanical. Another consequence of the outsourcing has been the lack of clarity of ownership of problems that may occur in HR services. With no HR department, at times the employees could find a void for issues such as grievance against their line manager itself especially when the grievance concerned the line manager or if the line manager responsible for their performance appraisal. All these change s may cause some fear and resistance among the workforce. BP Amocos outsourcing of HR is a case in point (see Higginbottom, 2001). As a result, it may actually be more costly for the organization to acquire the HR services from the external provider when all the indirect costs (both financial and emotional) that may incur in-house are calculated. This is especially true for large organizations in which employees are highly professional and highly paid. Outsourced HR Staff. Traditionally, skilled and knowledge-intensive work such as HR activities has been provided by workers of status. Employers tend to have an employment relationship with these employees that is characterized by relatively high levels of trust in order to elicit greater commitment and effort from the workers (Streeck, 1987). It has been argued that the tacit knowledge possessed by these workers is vital for the organizational competitiveness (Cooke, 2002; Manwaring, 1984; Pavitt, 1991; Polanyi, 1966; Willman, 1997). Outsourcing of this type of work replaces the status approach by a (short-term) contractual relationship of tight specifications of all aspects as a predominant mechanism of control. This mode of employment relationship does not encourage workers to provide extra-functional contribution to enhance the firms competitiveness (Fox, 1974). In fact, the potential problem of gaining commitment from the nonemployee workers is well recognized by organizations a nd academics (Cooke, Hebson, Carroll, 2005). For the employees of the service provider, job security may be low and firm-specific knowledge may be lacking as a result of multiclient services and the standardization of work processes. Indeed, lack of critical expertise and a customer service focus, or failure to take the interests of their client into account when delivering their HR services, have been found to be some of the main reasons for the failure of the HR outsourcing relationships (Greer et al., 1999). Additional complications in the employment relationships may occur where the HR outsourcing decision involves the transfer of existing HR staff to the external service provider (see Table 1). For the employees concerned, the transferred HR staff are likely to be protected, at least in principle, by some sort of employment regulation of the specific country (e.g., the Transfer of Undertaking Protection of Employment [TUPE] regulations in the United Kingdom). In theory, the em ployment contract of the transferred workers is preserved intact under TUPE regulations. In reality, however, their terms and conditions and other experience of work may change significantly, albeit incrementally (Cooke et al., 2004), since the impact of TUPE has proven to be only marginal to date (Colling, 1999; Wenlock Purcell, 1990). As Domberger pointed out, the principal effect of TUPE is to ensure minimum standards are maintained in negotiated transfers. The legislation is designed merely to assure the continuity of employment (Domberger, 1998, p. 143). For example, Cooke et al.s (2004) study of outsourcing in the public sector reveals that work intensification and increased performance monitoring are common features of post-transfer working life. Outsourcing offers the new employers opportunities to improve organizational performance by creating change through reducing staff numbers; introducing new skills and working practices; and by modifying individual incentives, employ ment terms and conditions, and attitudes to the workplace Domberger, 1998). None of these changes can be prevented effectively by TUPE, although not all of these changes necessarily point to a worsening scenario to the disadvantage of the workers (Cooke et al., 2004). However, this raises a question as to the extent to which the client organization can expect their ex-employees to (continue to) demonstrate loyalty and commitment in providing their services. These employees may be resentful that they are being dumped by their former employer and/or may have taken on their new employers organizational values that are not necessarily in line with those of their former employer. These issues may be exacerbated if the new employer has also taken on staff from other client organizations, thus creating a work environment with multiple cultures, multiple identities, and competing demands for preferential treatment from client organizations (Rubery et al., 2003). These issues also present a serious challenge for the new employer. The outsourcing firm has to manage a fragmented workforce, one where employees have different employment packages. At the same time, the outsourcing firm is trying to implement a coherent HR strategy and a consistent organizational culture while delivering customized HR services to its client organizations. Conclusions The aim of this article has been to provide an overview of the various aspects of HR outsourcing with a combination of empirical evidence and academic debate. The intention has been to provide a critical review of the state of affairs in the practice of HR outsourcing and to raise issues that require further academic research and attention from organizations interested in HR outsourcing. Existing literature on HR outsourcing appears  to be rather limited in general. This is perhaps due to both research and practice in HR outsourcing being in its early stages of development. There is a longer tradition of firms outsourcing discretional aspects of HR (e.g., payroll, training, health and safety,  legal advice), areas in which they lack inhouse expertise and that are deemed noncost- effective to develop and maintain inhouse. Existing evidence suggests that HR outsourcing has increased substantially over the last decade, although some authors remain cautious about the future growth of HR outsourcing. Training and payroll appear to be the favorite aspects of HR outsourcing. In addition, recruitment, taxation, and legal compliance are often outsourced. However, employee relations, HR planning, career  management, and performance appraisal are less likely to be outsourced, as they are more likely to be seen as core competencies or activities. Even so, there are no clear patterns of the types of HR activities that are outsourced. Existing evidence also suggests that the primary motives for HR outsourcing are to reduce cost, to gain external expertise, to enhance strategic focus of the in-house HR function, and to improve service quality. Cost reduction and sell-out strategy are also important factors for making decisions. While the overwhelming objective for outsourcing appears to be cost reduction, both the transaction-cost economics model (Williamson, 1985) and the resource-based view of the firm (Barney, 1991) seem to influence firms HR outsourcing decisions. T he diverse evidence as to whether the HR outsourcing trend is set to grow or not and/or at what rate implies pragmatic decision making by firms when considering whether to outsource HR activities. Due to the limited number of empirical studies on various aspects of HR outsourcing and the fragmented and inconclusive evidence they have yielded, it is difficult to draw clear conclusions on the types of HR activities that should be outsourced and the effectiveness of HR outsourcing. In fact, evidence seems to suggest that organizations decisions in outsourcing are not always rational  (Vernon et al., 2000), nor is their process successful or the outcome effective. It is possible, however, to identify a number of research issues and practical implications that require further attention from academics and practitioners. Conclusion The resource-based view (RBV) (e.g. Barney 1991; Ulrich 1996) suggests  that a firms resources that are valuable, rare, and not easily imitable or  substitutable are more likely to achieve sustained competitive advantage. According to the RBV, a firm should focus on its core competencies and  outsource those not valuable, and imitable or substitutable resources. The  RBV is consistent with the core and periphery concept (Atkinson  1984), which can be applied to analysing what HR activities are more  likely to be outsourced. According to Atkinson, the core is defined as a  numerically stable core group which will conduct the organizations key,  firm-specific activities (Atkinson 1984: 29). The core can be redeployed  easily between activities and tasks, by means of multiskilling or through  flexible career structures, known as functional flexibility. The periphery,  however, provides the organization with the ability to increase or decrease  the organizations headcount in response to every fluctuation in demand  for labour (known as