Theory on selected topics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Theory on selected topics - Essay Example These products are usually categorized according to their characteristics of market growth rate and market share. A typical BCG matrix is shown in the figure below: As we all know that McDonald’s Corporation is made up of world-wide business, such as McDonald’s USA, McDonald’s Europe, McDonald’s Asia and McDonald’s America. We are going to use the lens of BCG matrix to determine the position of each of these businesses in a BCG matrix for McDonald’s Corporation. (QuickMBA, 2009) STARS: Stars are those products that have a large market share in a rapidly growing industry. In simple words, these are successful products that need continuous investment to maintain their dominating position in the market. According to the statistics given in McDonald’s Corporation’s annual report, McDonald’s USA is a star. It has a high market share in the market which is booming rapidly. However, due to increased competition in the market, McDonald’s Corporation should invest in McDonald’s USA heavily, so that they do not lose out market share to other competitors like Burger King or KFC. (Daft, 1997). A question-mark is a business that has low-market share in the rapidly growing industry. In order to increase the market share, the business will need more and more resources. However, it is not guaranteed that the business has enough potential to become a start. In the case of McDonald’s corporation, McDonald’s Europe falls under the category of a BCG Matrix â€Å"Question Mark†. McDonald’s Europe has found it tough to break into the food industry which is already congested with various firms in the industry. The culture diversification in the different parts of Europe has also resulted in low-demands and cash returns for McDonald’s Europe, making it a question mark. The only way to cure the problem is that McDonald should carry out a market research to find out what people

French Revolution Essay Example for Free

French Revolution Essay The French Revolution was a very important series of events for all of French history, making a big impact on all the lives of past and present French citizens. There was no one factor was directly responsible for the French Revolution. Years of feudal cruelty and taxing, public revenues and public debt mismanagement contributed to a French society that was on the edge of revolt. The French Revolution, the revolutionary movement that shook France between 1787 and 1799, reached its first climax there in 1789. After taking notice of the falling economy in the late 1700s, King Louis XVI, very self-centered, thought his authority to rule came from god himself. He brought in a number of financial advisors to review the weakened French treasury. Each advisor reached the same conclusion, that France needed a large change in the way it taxed the public, and each advisor was, in turn, kicked out. Eventually the king realized that this taxation issue really did need to be solved so he appointed a new controller general of finance. The new general of finance suggested instead of taxing the poor, tax the ones that would be able to pay, the nobility, the ones that were exempt from paying taxes before. The nobility refused. Financial ruin thus seemed imminent. The French Revolution was a very important series of events for all of French history, making a big impact on all the lives of past and present French citizens. There was no one factor was directly responsible for the French Revolution. Years of feudal cruelty and taxing, public revenues and public debt mismanagement contributed to a French society that was on the edge of revolt. The French Revolution, the revolutionary movement that shook France between 1787 and 1799, reached its first climax there in 1789. After taking notice of the falling economy in the late 1700s, King Louis XVI, very self-centered, thought his authority to rule came from god himself. He brought in a number of financial advisors to review the weakened French treasury. Each advisor reached the same conclusion, that France needed a large change in the way it taxed the public, and each advisor was, in turn, kicked out. Eventually the king realized that this taxation issue really did need to be solved so he appointed a new controller general of finance. The new general of finance suggested instead of taxing the poor, tax the ones that would be able to pay, the nobility, the ones that were exempt from paying taxes before. The nobility refused. Financial ruin thus seemed imminent. The French Revolution was a very important series of events for all of French history, making a big impact on all the lives of past and present French citizens. There was no one factor was directly responsible for the French Revolution. Years of feudal cruelty and taxing, public revenues and public debt mismanagement contributed to a French society that was on the edge of revolt. The French Revolution, the revolutionary movement that shook France between 1787 and 1799, reached its first climax there in 1789. After taking notice of the falling economy in the late 1700s, King Louis XVI, very self-centered, thought his authority to rule came from god himself. He brought in a number of financial advisors to review the weakened French treasury. Each advisor reached the same conclusion, that France needed a large change in the way it taxed the public, and each advisor was, in turn, kicked out. Eventually the king realized that this taxation issue really did need to be solved so he appointed a new controller general of finance. The new general of finance suggested instead of taxing the poor, tax the ones that would be able to pay, the nobility, the ones that were exempt from paying taxes before. The nobility refused. Financial ruin thus seemed imminent. The French Revolution was a very important series of events for all of French history, making a big impact on all the lives of past and present French citizens. There was no one factor was directly responsible for the French Revolution. Years of feudal cruelty and taxing, public revenues and public debt mismanagement contributed to a French society that was on the edge of revolt. The French Revolution, the revolutionary movement that shook France between 1787 and 1799, reached its first climax there in 1789. After taking notice of the falling economy in the late 1700s, King Louis XVI, very self-centered, thought his authority to rule came from god himself. He brought in a number of financial advisors to review the weakened French treasury. Each advisor reached the same conclusion, that France needed a large change in the way it taxed the public, and each advisor was, in turn, kicked out. Eventually the king realized that this taxation issue really did need to be solved so he appointed a new controller general of finance. The new general of finance suggested instead of taxing the poor, tax the ones that would be able to pay, the nobility, the ones that were exempt from paying taxes before. The nobility refused. Financial ruin thus  seemed imminent. The French Revolution was a very important series of events for all of French history, making a big impact on all the lives of past and present French citizens. There was no one factor was directly responsible for the French Revolution. Years of feudal cruelty and taxing, public revenues and public debt mismanagement contributed to a French society that was on the edge of revolt. The French Revolution, the revolutionary movement that shook France between 1787 and 1799, reached its first climax there in 1789. After taking notice of the falling economy in the late 1700s, King Louis XVI, very self-centered, thought his authority to rule came from god himself. He brought in a number of financial advisors to review the weakened French treasury. Each advisor reached the same conclusion, that France needed a large change in the way it taxed the public, and each advisor was, in turn, kicked out. Eventually the king realized that this taxation issue really did need to be solved so he appointed a new controller general of finance. The new general of finance suggested instead of taxing the poor, tax the ones that would be able to pay, the nobility, the ones that were exempt from paying taxes before. The nobility refused. Financial ruin thus seemed imminent.

Opinions on Referral Guidelines from Audiology to ENT

Opinions on Referral Guidelines from Audiology to ENT

Loyalty in Sir Patrick Spens and Bonnie George Campbell :: Patrick Spens Bonnie George

Loyalty in Sir Patrick Spens and Bonnie George Campbell Is loyalty really a thing to die for? Sir Patrick Spens and Bonnie George Campbell Sure did think so in the two poems they were a part of The term loyalty means to be faithful and true to anything one is a part of Both Sir Patrick Spens and Bonnie George Campbell exemplify this trait. This trait of loyalty makes these two characters similar in their poems. They are similar in ways such as how they both have to go on missions, both are leaving something behind, and both are skilled at what they do. The situations Sir Patrick Spens and Bonnie George Campbell are involved in, along with the loyalty each exemplifies teach important lessons in the poems. This lesson is the ironic outcome of loyalty. Sir Patrick Spens' and Bonnie George Campbell's similarities in that they both have to go on missions, both are leaving something behind them, and both are skilled at what they do relates to their loyalty and the ironic outcome of this loyalty. Sir Patrick Spens and Bonnie George Campbell decided to go on missions in which they knew there was a good chance they would never come back. This is shown in "Sir Patrick Spens" by what the poem says referring to Sir Patrick Spens' reaction to a letter he receives that tells him that he has to go on this mission. The poem says about his reaction: The first line that Sir Patrick red, A loud lauch launched he, The next line that Sir Patrick red, The teir blined his ee. ( I 1- 16) Although Patrick was very sad about having to go on his mission, he still went to be loyal to his king. -The same situation occurred with Bonnie George Campbell in his poem. It can be inferred by the way he says good bye to his mother and bride that he is sad to leave and that he knows he may never come back. George still goes on his mission because he feels he needs to be loyal to his country when they need him in this time of war. Sir Patrick Spens and Bonnie George Campbell were both leaving something behind to go on their missions so they can be loyal to their king and country Bonnie George Campbell leaves his family behind him to go on this mission as shown by these lines:

Best Buy Case Study

ESLSCA: GROUP 39D | | | | |Best Buy Co. , Inc. pic] | |Strategic Audit | |August 2012 | | | | | Presented to Dr. Sanya EL Galaly Table of Contents About Best Buy Co. , Inc4 Best Buy’s History4 1. Current Situation5 A. Current Performance5 B. Strategic Posture5 . Mission5 2. Objectives5 3. Strategies5 4. Policies6 II. Strategic Managers6 A. Board Members6 B. Top Management7 III. Market Overview7 IV. External Environment8 2. Natural Environment8 2. Social Environment8 2. 1. Economic8 2. 2. Technological8 2. 3. Political–Legal8 2. 4. Sociocultural8 3. Task Environment9 V. Internal Environment9 1. Corporate Structure9 2. Corporate Culture9 3. Corporate Resources9 3. 1. Marketing9 3. 2. Finance9 3. 3. R&D10 3. 4. Operations10 3. 5. Human Resources10 3. 6. Information Systems10 VI. Analysis of Strategic Factors10 . Situational Analysis (SWOT) (SFAS Matrix; see Exhibit 3)11 1. 1. Situational Analysis11 1. 1. 1. Summary of Internal Factors11 1. 1. 2. Summary of External Fact ors11 1. 1. 3. Review of Mission and Objectives11 VII. Strategic Alternatives and Recommended Strategy12 1. Corporate Strategy12 2. 1. Growth Strategy12 2. 2. Stability Strategy13 2. 3. Retrenchment Strategy13 3. Business Strategy13 3. 1. Cost Leadership Strategy13 3. 2. Differentiation Strategy14 4. Financial Positions14 4. 1. Best Buy Income Statement as of 2009-201214 4. 2.Best Buy Balance Sheet as of 2009-201211 4. 3. Cash Flow Statement for period ended in 2011-201212 B. Recommended Strategy14 VIII. Implementation14 IX. Evaluation and Control14 X. List of Tables15 Exhibit #1 Ratio Analysis Table15 Exhibit #2 IFAS16 Exhibit #3: EFAS17 Exhibit #4: SFAS18 Exhibit #5: TWOS Matrix19 Exhibit #6 IFinancial Position Documents20 About Best Buy Co. , Inc. Best Buy Co. , Inc. (NYSE:BBY) Headquartered IN Richfield, Minnesota, is a leading multi-channel global retailer and developer of technology products and services. 1,100 stores in U.S (21% Market Share), also operated over 2,800 stores global (Canada, Mexico, China and Turkey), 170,000 employees whom are committed to helping deliver the technology solutions that enable easy access to people, knowledge, ideas and fun. The company’s subsidiaries such Geek Squad, Magnolia Audio Video, and Pacific Sales, and operated under both name Best Buy & Future Shop labels In CANADA People at BB are aware of their role and impact on the world, and are committed to developing and implementing business strategies that bring sustainable technology solutions to consumers and communities.For information about Best Buy, visit www. bby. com and to shop at Best Buy, visit www. bestbuy. com. Best Buy’s History: In 1966 Best Buy incorporated with original name as Sound of music, the company started as a retailer of audio components and expanded to retailing video products in the early 1980s with the introduction of the videocassette recorder to its product line. In 1983 Best Buy name has been changed to Best Buy Co. Inc. (Be st Buy). Shortly thereafter, Best Buy began operating its existing stores under a â€Å"superstore† concept by expanding product offerings and using mass marketing techniques to promote those products.Since 1989 the company altered the function of sales staff structure (policy) dramatically to be transformed from commission basis oriented to be educators and customer assist oriented. Simply sales mission was to generate sales but now changed to answer customer’s question to help for decide which product fit for their needs. In 2000 the company step up to Market space by launched: BestBuy. com (online retail store), which is very important for BB’s customers thus expanding among them to access to store easily without physical visit. I.Current Situation: A. Current performance Volatility of financial position, declining in company’s income compared with last fiscal year, increasing debts as well as operating costs ? Facing increased fears competition ? Rais ing in operational costs and increasing in debt & reducing liquidity of cash. ? Adverse economic climate and financial stress (declining in net income) B. Strategic Posture Mission ? To make technology deliver on its promises to customer ? Keeping customers centered in technological changes â€Å"To make life fun and easy†. To improve customer’s awareness of their needs. Objective ? The top objective of company were sustained growth and earnings (growth oriented) ? Differentiation in retail industry by present unique product & service that customer never get before. ? Keeping cost down without sacrificing customer experience given by Best Buy. Strategies ? Developed in 1966 as (a low price strategy) and moved to be service-oriented firm (differentiation strategy) in 1989. ? Global & national growth through acquisition and alliance with Car phone Warehouse Group, UK. Use its economies scale with over 1,000 locations to obtain cost advantage from suppliers due to high qu antity of orders, also increase its Advertising budget for massive campaigns In order to cove over entry market barriers. ? Having multiple brands for different customer lifestyles through M&A merge and Acquisition. ? Providing customers with highly trained sales associates who available to educate customers regarding product features. ? Construct a diversified portfolio of product offerings by building a significant customer data-base (Customer centricity model) Policies Growth oriented by expansion vertically & horizontally. ? Cost reduction is very important (restructure commission sales scheme, shipping the correct inventory to the correct locations). ? Training & educate employees regularly, promotion from within at all levels. ? Rapidly response to external change. II. Strategic Mangers A. Board Of Directors ? Sixteen members –three are outsider. ? Chairman and founder (Richard M. Schulze), his beneficial ownership of 17. 1 % ? Brian Dunn as Previous CEO, Currently (Mik e Mikan) as Interim CEO of Best Buy, who has been Director since 2008. All directors and executive officers as a group, and each person we know who beneficially owns more than 5% of the outstanding shares of Best Buy common stock. [pic] [pic] [pic] [pic] [pic] Richard Shultze Mike Mikan Shari Ballard Jim Muehlbauer Carol Surface Founder, Chairman Interim CEO President International CFO VP, Chief HR & Enterprise EVP B. Top Management The two former CEO’s was Richar Shultze and Brad Anderson, but recently Brad stepping down, Brian Dunn replaced, and now replaced with Interim CEO. ? June 7, 2012  Ã¢â‚¬â€ The board of directors of Best Buy Co. , Inc. (NYSE:BBY) today announced the appointment of Hatim A. Tyabji as chairman of the Company, effective immediately. Mr. Tyabji, currently Chairman of the Audit Committee, has served as a director since 1998. ? Top managers are recently promoted internally and externally hired ? Top Mangers whom : Richard Shultze: Founder & Chairman. G. Mike Mikan : Interim CEOShari Ballard : President, International and Enterprise EVP. Jim Muehlbauer: Executive VP. And CFO. ? Top management members are very experienced in Industry III. Market Overview The Best Buy family of brands and partnerships collectively generates more than $49 billion in annual revenue and includes brands such as †¢ Best Buy; †¢ Best Buy Mobile; †¢ Audio visions; †¢ The Carphone Warehouse; †¢ Future Shop; †¢ Geek Squad; †¢ Jiangsu Five Star; †¢ Magnolia Audio Video; †¢ Napster; †¢ Pacific Sales; and The Phone House. Community partnership is central to the way Best Buy does business.In fiscal 2010, the company donated a combined $25. 2 million to improve the vitality of the communities where best Buy employees and customers live and work. Strategic priorities focus on growth opportunities, operations, and improved international returns. IV. External Environment (EFAS TABLE; see Exhibit 1) Natural Environme nt 1. Global warming that increasing by emissions of technology usage. (T) 2. Energy availability a growing problem. (T) Societal Environment 1. Economic a. Unstable economy (stumble) along with eliminate of consumer expends. (T) b.Individual economies becoming interconnected into a world economy. (O) c. Financial crisis that hit EU, might be essential reason to eliminate the Investment in Euro zone. (T) 2. Technological a. IT & communication revolution. (O) b. Entering computerization at all fields such â€Å"Manufacturing, business, Agriculture,†¦etc. † (O) c. Trend of social media online & digital marketing. (O) 3. Political-Legal a. NAFTA, EFTA, and other agreements between countries to free trading cycle are opening doors to penetrate markets in Latin America and other emerging markets. (O) b.Regulations of Federal Reserve Bank that effect on retail sector's credit systems. (T) c. Environmentalism being reflected in Laws on pollution and energy usage. (T) 4. Socio C ultural a. Decreasing of unemployment rate which is indicator of increasing of families income then Expands rate. (O) b. Transforming in purchasing behavior from market place to market space. (T) c. Trend of using digital devises rather than paper & blocks for daily functions such â€Å"news, reading books, schedule organizer,†¦etc†. (O) d. Trend to value for money as a concept of consumers behavior. (T) Task Environment 1.North American market mature and extremely competitive—vigilant consumers demand high quality with low price in safe, environmentally sound products. (T) 2. Industry going global as North American and European firms expands internationally. (T) 3. Rivalry High. GameStop Corp, Amazon. com, Wal-Mart expanding into consumer electronics and stepping price competition†¦ (T) 4. Buyers’ Power Law. Technology and materials can be sourced worldwide. (O) 5. Power of Other Stakeholders Medium. Quality, safety, environmental regulations increasi ng. (T) 6. Entry Barriers High. New entrants unlikely except for large international firms. T) V. Internal Environment (IFAS Table; See Exhibit 2) (IFAS Table; See Exhibit 2) A. Corporate Structure 1. Good Domestic Management through separating the Market into Eight territories each is Divided into Districts (S) 2. Best Buy had an international operation Segment (S) B. Corporate Culture 1. Every employee must have the company’s vision embedded in their service and attitude (S) 2. Best Buy had a reputation for retaining talent and was widely recognized for its superior service (S) C. Corporate Resources 1. Marketing a. Using Customer Centricity Model to market various products (S) b.Supply products that address the needs of Customer (S) c. Meet Customer Needs through End to end Solutions (S) d. More training to BestBuy Employees help it supply customer with Knowledge service which is A Value added Service (S) 2. Finance (See Exhibits 4 and 5 â€Å"Ratios & cash flows† ) a. Increase in Long Term Debt from fiscal 2008 to 2009 (W) b. After the Acquisition of Napster and BestBuy Europe Decrease in Available Cash in 2009 (W) c. Increase in Company Total Assets and Revenues due to Successful Acquisitions (S) d.Declining in the Net Income and operating Margin (W) e. The Risk of Having Bad Debts Due to increase in inventory and increase of Revenues However it’s not matching the Big increase in Account receivable (W) 3. R a. Best Buy is Willing to participate in tests of New products (with limited cost to company) (W) 4. Operations a. Increasing Revenues By growing its Customer Base and Increasing its market share Internationally (S) b. Good Domestic Management through separating the Market into Eight territories each is Divided into Districts (S) c.Best Buy had an international operation Segment (S) 5. Human Resources a. Main Objective is supplying the customer with the right knowledge of products and services (S) b. Changing the compensation struc ture into non-commissioned-based (S) c. Claims that Best Buy employees misrepresented the Manufacture warranty in order to sell its own product service and replacement plan (W) d. Best Buy had undisclosed â€Å"Anti-price matching policy† (W) 6. Information Systems a. Consolidate Data from Retialers , Act as a clearing house for info and results.Communicate the common needs and encourage innovation (S) VI. Analysis of Strategic Factors Situational Analysis (SWOT) (SFAS Matrix; see Exhibit 3) 1. Strengths. †¢ Company Image and Profile †¢ Sales Stuff Policy †¢ Strong financial Position †¢ Customer Centricity Model †¢ Diversified portfolio in Global Markets †¢ Good Horizontal Integration †¢ Talent management †¢ Good Domestic management †¢ Successful Acquisitions †¢ Credit payment policy †¢ Value Added Services 2. Weaknesses †¢ Market Space Sales †¢ Pricing Policy †¢ Assets Management †¢ Operational Cost à ¢â‚¬ ¢ Increase in LTD and Debt Management Fluctuating Leadership 3. Opportunities †¢ Potential market of Medical Portable Devices †¢ Gaming Segment growth and Smart Phones †¢ Technology Revolution †¢ Bankruptcy of Circuit City †¢ Expansion of Global Market place 4. Threats †¢ Regulations of Federal Reserve Bank †¢ Economic Down turn †¢ Decreasing the entry barrier †¢ Online Competitor †¢ Price War with Wal-Mart †¢ Wal-Mart Deal with Nintendo and Apple †¢ Strong penetration Of Competitor Review of Current Mission and Objectives 1. Bad financial position according to last 2 years. 2. Facing a fierce competition and new challenge expected. VI.Strategic Alternatives and Recommended Strategy: Strategic Alternatives. Corporate Strategy 1. Growth Strategy †¢ Growth vertically through open new stores across U. S to fill gap in fierce competition. Pros: come over competitors expansion’s strategy Cons: Cash Liquidity Iss ues. †¢ Continuing of global expansions, and focus on emerged & untapped markets. Pros: supporting of Best Buy’s overseas position to be Leader in this Marekts. Cons: domestic regulations in foreign countries and security. †¢ Horizontal integration by joint venture with new suppliers. Pros: more control on operational costCons: Management issue, and conflictions. 2. Stability Strategy †¢ Hold acquisitions in Euro zone according to economic crisis, and in Canada as well. Pros: saving more capital & cost to be invested in North America and other virgin markets. Cons: allow to competitors to raising their market share in such left market. 3. Retrenchment Strategy †¢ Develop downsizing policy in costly labor markets such (Europe). Pros: Divesting BBY improves bottom line and focus ME & Asia Markets. Cons: loosing Europe’s market share. †¢ Decreasing some of discretionary expenses in such (Advertising ) in one or two of states that saturated.Pros: s aving a lot of regular cost to be invested in domestic expansion. Cons: risk of loose customer’s positioning by time. Business Strategy 1. Differentiation Strategy †¢ Develop trade-off strategy that allow Best Buy’s customers to replace their own devices by new technology devices in justified prices. Pros: another source of money that generate liquidity for company Cons: adding operational cost line 2. Alliance strategy Build a solid strategic Alliance with a reliable brand in market space that has urgently need to access to retail market. (Win/Win) Pros: Access to know-how of online market.Cons: reveal of operations and management techniques. RECOMMENDED STRATGIES 1. Growth Strategy †¢ Growth vertically through open new stores across U. S to fill gap in fierce competition. Pros: come over competitors expansion’s strategy Cons: Cash Liquidity Issues. †¢ Continuing of global expansions, and focus on emerged & untapped markets. Pros: supporting of B est Buy’s overseas position to be Leader in this Marekts. Cons: domestic regulations in foreign countries and security. †¢ Horizontal integration by joint venture with new suppliers. Pros: more control on operational cost Cons: Management issue, and conflictions. . Differentiation Strategy †¢ Develop trade-off strategy that allow Best Buy’s customers to replace their own devices by new technology devices in justified prices. Pros: another source of money that generate liquidity for company Cons: adding operational cost line. VII. Implementation: †¢ As the recommended strategies is growth strategy so business development dept. should select strategic locations across U. S that include high traffic . †¢ The operations and mainly the supply chain department must do their best for getting best prices and cutting operations cost. Maintain the current global expansion plan and build solid studies for emerging markets and developing countries customer†™s culture there. †¢ Developing more powerful CRM application and POS systems to recognize customers data. XI. Evaluation and Control: †¢ involving the top managers, key persons and employees in operations efficiency programs †¢ Monitoring the performance regularly especially after new application applied. †¢ Follow up the plan of domestic operations that related to supplier. Exhibit 1 E F A S Exhibit 2 I F A S Exhibit 3 S F A S Exhibit 4 | |BEST BUY CO. , INC. | |CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET | |($ in millions, except per share amounts) | | | | | | | | | | | |  |February  28, |  |  | | | |2009 | | | |  | Assets |  |   |   |  |  | |Current Assets |  |   |   |  |  | |   |C|   |$|4| | |a| | |9| | |s| | |8| | |h| | | | | |a| | | | | |n| | | | | |d| | | | | |c| | | | | |a| | | | | |s| | | | | |h| | | | | |e| | | | | |q| | | | | |u| | | | | |i| | | | | |v| | | | | |a| | | | | |l| | | | | |e| | | | | n| | | | | |t| | | | | |s| | | | |   |  |To|   |  |8| | | |ta| | |,| | | |l | | |1| | | |cu| | |9| | | |rr| | |2| | | |en| | | | | | |t | | | | | | |as| | | | | | |se| | | | | | |ts| | | | |   |L|   |  |7| | |a| | |5| | |n| | |5| | |d| | | | | |a| | | | | |n| | | | | |d| | | | | |b| | | | | |u| | | | | |i| | | | | |l| | | | | |d| | | | | i| | | | | |n| | | | | |g| | | | | |s| | | | | |  |   |6,940 |  |  | |   |L|   |  |2| | |e| | |,| | |s| | |7| | |s| | |6| | |a| | |6| | |c| | | | | |c| | | | | |u| | | | | |m| | | | | |u| | | | | |l| | | | | |a| | | | | |t| | | | | |e| | | | | |d| | | | | |d| | | | | |e| | | | | |p| | | | | |r| | | | | e| | | | | |c| | | | | |i| | | | | |a| | | | | |t| | | | | |i| | | | | |o| | | | | |n| | | | |   |  |Ne|   |  |4| | | |t | | |,| | | |pr| | |1| | | |op| | |7| | | |er| | |4| | | |ty| | | | | | |an| | | | | | |d | | | | | | |eq| | | | | | |ui| | | | | | |pm| | | | | | |en| | | | | | |t | | | | |Tradenames |  |   |173 |  |  | |Customer Relationships |  |   |322 |  |  | |Equity and Other Investments |  |   |395 |  |  | |Other Assets   |   |367 |  |  | |   |  |   |  |  | |Total Assets |  |$ |15,826 |  |  | |   |  |   |  |  | |Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity |  |   |   |  |  | |Current Liabilities |  |   |   |  |  | |   |A|   |$|4| | |c| | |,| | |c| | |9| | |o| | |9| | |u| | |7| | |n| | | | | |t| | | | | |s| | | | | |p| | | | | |a| | | | | |y| | | | | |a| | | | | |b| | | | | |l| | | | | |e| | | | |   |  |To|   |  |8| | | |ta| | |,| | | |l | | |4| | | |cu| |3| | | |rr| | |5| | | |en| | | | | | |t | | | | | | |li| | | | | | |ab| | | | | | |il| | | | | | |it| | | | | | |ie| | | | | | |s | | | | |Long-Term Debt |  |   |1,126 |  |  | |Minority Interests |  |   |513 |  |  | |Shareholders' Equity |  |   |   |  |  | |   |P |   |  |—| | |r| | | | | |e| | | | | |f| | | | | |e| | | | | |r| | | | | |r| | | | | |e| | | | | |d| | | | | |s| | | | | |t| | | | | |o| | | | | |c| | | | | |k| | | | | |,| | | | | |$| | | | | |1| | | | | |. | | | | |0| | | | | |0| | | | | |p| | | | | |a| | | | | |r| | | | | |v| | | | | |a| | | | | |l| | | | | |u| | | | | |e| | | | | |:| | | | | |A| | | | | |u| | | | | |t| | | | | |h| | | | | |o| | | | | |r| | | | | |i| | | | | |z| | | | |e| | | | | |d| | | | | |  | | | | | |—| | | | | |4| | | | | |0| | | | | |0| | | | | |,| | | | | |0| | | | | |0| | | | | |0| | | | | |s| | | | | |h| | | | | |a| | | | | |r| | | | | |e| | | | | |s| | | | | |;| | | | | |I| | | | | |s| | | | | |s| | | | | |u| | | | | |e| | | | | |d| | | | | a| | | | | |n| | | | | |d| | | | | |o| | | | | |u| | | | | |t| | | | | |s| | | | | |t| | | | | |a| | | | | |n| | | | | |d| | | | | |i| | | | | |n| | | | | |g| | | | | |  | | | | | |—| | | | | |n| | | | | |o| | | | | |n| | | | | |e| | | | |   |  |Total shareholders' |  |  | | | |equity | | | |Total Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity |  |$ |15,826 |  |  | |   |  |   |  |  | BEST BUY CO. ,  INC. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS ($  in millions) (Unaudited and subject to reclassification)    | |CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS | |($ in millions) | |(Unaudited and subject to reclassification) | | | | | | | | | | |Mar. 3, 2012 | |Feb. 6, 2011 | |ASSETS | | | | |Current assets | | | | |Cash and cash equivalents |  $            1,199 | |  $            1,103 | |Short-term investments |                           -| |                          22 | | |   | | | |Receivables |                 2,359 | |                 2,348 | |Merchandise inventories |                 5,731 | |                 5,897 | |Other current assets |                  1,079 | |                 1,103 | |Total current assets |              10,368 | |              10,473 | |Net property & equipment |                 3,471 | |                 3,823 | |Goodwill |                 1,335 | |                 2,454 | |Tradenames |                       130 | |                       133 | |Customer relationships | 29 | |                       203 | |Equity and other investments |                       140 | |                       328 | |Other assets |                       403 | |                       435 | |TOTAL ASSETS |  $         16,076 | |  $         17,849 | | | | | | |LIABILITIES & EQUITY | | | | |Current liabilities | | | | |Accounts payable |  $            5,435 | |  $            4,894 | |Accr ued liabilities |                 2,968 | |                 2,771 | |Short-term debt |                       480 | |                       557 | |Current portion of long-term debt |                          43| |                       441 | |Total current liabilities |                 8,926 | |                 8,663 | |Long-term liabilities |                 1,099 | |                 1,183 | |Long-term debt |                 1,685 | |                       711 | |Equity |                 4,366 | |                 7,292 | |TOTAL LIABILITIES & EQUITY |  $         16,076 | |  $         17,849 | | | |BEST BUY CO. , INC. | |CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EARNINGS | |($ in millions, except per share amounts) | |   |  | | | | | |Feb. 8, | | | | | |2009 | | |Revenue | | |$ |4 5,015 | | |Cost of goods sold | | |34,017 | | |Gross profit | | |10,998 | | |Gross profit % | | |24. 4% | | |Selling, general and administrative expenses | | |8,984 | | |SG % | | |20. 0% | | |Restructuring charges | | |78 | | |Goodwill and tradename impairment | | |66 | | |Operating income | | |1,870 | | |Operating income % | | |4. % | | |Other income (expense) | | | | | |Investment income and other | | |35 | | |Investment impairment | | |(111 |)| |Interest expense | |)|(94 |)| |Earnings before income tax expense and minority interests | | |1,700 | | |Income tax expense | | |674 | | |Effective tax rate | | |39. % | | |Minority interests | | |(30 |)| |Equity in earnings (loss) of affiliates | | |7 | | |Net earnings | | |$ |1,003 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Earnings per share | | | | | |Basic | | |$ |2. 43 | | |Diluted(1) | | |$ |2. 39 | | | | | | | | |Dividends declared per common share | | |$ |0. 4 | | | | | | | | |Weighted average common shares outstanding (in millions) | | | | | |   | | | | | |Basic | | |412. 5 | | |Diluted(1) | | |422. 9 | | |BEST BUY CO. , INC. | |CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EARNINGS | |($ in millions, except per share amounts) | | | | | | | |Feb. 7, | | | | |2010 | |Revenue | | |$ |49,694 | | |Cost of goods sold: | | | | |Cost of goods sold | | |37,534 | | |Restructuring charges – cost of goods sold | | |— | | |Total cost of goods sold | | |37,534 | | |Gross profit | | |12,160 | | |Gross profit % | | | 24. 5 |% | |Selling, general and administrative expenses | | |9,873 | | |SG&A % | | |19. 9 |% | |Restructuring charges | | |52 | | |Operating income | | |2,235 | | |Operating income % | | |4. |% | |Other income (expense) | | | | |Investment income and other | | |54 | | |Interest expense | | |(94 |) | |Earnings before income taxes and equity in earnings of affiliates | | |2,195 | | |Income tax expense | | |802 | | |Effective tax rate | | |36. 5 |% | |Equity in earnings of affiliates | | |1 | | |Net earnings including noncontrolling interests | | |1,394 | | |Net earnings attributable to noncontrolling interests | | |(77 |) | |Net earnings attributable to Best Buy Co. , Inc. | |$ |1,317 | | | | | | | | | | | | |Earnings per share attributable to Best Buy Co. , Inc. | | | | |Basic | | |$ |3. 16 | | |Diluted(1) | | |$ |3. 10 | | | | | | | |BEST BUY CO. , INC. | |CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EARNINGS |($ in millions, except per share amounts) | |(Unaudited and subject to reclassification) | | | | | | | | | | | | |Twelve Months Ended | | | | |Mar. 3, | |Feb. 26, | | | | |2012 | |2011 | | |Revenue | |  $ 50,705 | |$49,747 | | |Cost of goods sold | |38,113 | |37,197 | | |Restructuring charges – cost of goods sold | |                 19 | |                 9 | | |Gross profit (24. 8%, 25. 25. %) | |     12,573 | |  12,541 | | |Selling, G&A expenses | |  Ã‚  10,242 | |10,029 | | |Goodwill impairment | |1,207 | |  Ã¢â‚¬â€ | | |Restruc turing charges | |                 39 | |           138 | | |Operating income | |        1,085 | |      2,374 | | |Other income (expense): | | | | | | |Gain on sale of investments | |                 55 | |  Ã¢â‚¬â€ | | |Investment income and other | |                 37 | |              43 | | |Interest expense | |         (134) | |           (86) | | |Earnings from continuing operations before income tax    | |        1,043 | |      2,331 | | |expense and equity in (loss) earnings of affiliates | | | | | | |Income tax expense | |            709 | |           779 | | |Effective tax rate | |68. 0% | |33. 4% | | |Equity in (loss) earnings of affiliates | |               (4) |                 2 | | |Net (loss) earnings from continuing operations | |            330 | |      1,554 | | |Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax | |         (308) | |        (188) | | |Net (loss) earnings including noncontrolling interest | |               22 | |      1,366 | | |Net earnings from continuing operations attributable to | |     (1,387) | |        (127) | | |noncontrolling interests | | | | | | |Net loss from discontinued operations attributable to | |            134 | |              38 | | |noncontrolling interests | | | | | | |Net (loss) earnings attributable to Best Buy Co. , Inc. | |  $(1,231) | |  $ 1,277 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Continuing operations | |  $   (2. 89) | |  $    3. 51 | | |Discontinued operations | |  $   (0. 47) | |  $ (0. 37) | | |Basic (loss) earnings per share | |  $   (3. 36) | |  $    3. 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Continuing operations | |  $   (2. 89) | |  $    3. 44 | | |Discontinued operations | |  $   (0. 47) | |  $ (0. 36) | | |Diluted (loss) earnings per share | |  $   (3. 36) | |  $    3. 08 | | | | | | | | | |Dividends declared per Best Buy Co. , Inc. common share | |  $       0. 2 | |  $    0. 58 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Basic | |        366. 3 | |      406. 1 | | |Diluted | |        366. 3 | |      416. 5 | | |F|   | |e| | |b| | |r| | |u| | |Febru |   | |BEST BUY CO. INC | |CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS | |($ in millions) | |(Unaudited and subject to reclassification) | | | | | | | | | |Twelve Months Ended | | | |Mar. 3,   | |Feb. 6,   | | | |2012 | |2011 | |OPERATING ACTIVITIES | | | | | |Net earnings including noncontrolling interests | |  $                  22 | |  $             1,366 | |Adjustments to reconcile net earnings to total cash provided by| | | | | |operating activities: | | | | | |Depreciation and amortization of definite-lived intangible | | 45 | |                     978 | |assets    | | | | | |Goodwill impairment | |               1,207 | |  Ã¢â‚¬â€ | |Realized gain on sale of investments | |                    (55) | |  Ã¢â‚¬â€ | |Other, net    | |                    462 | |                     209 | |Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of acquired | | | | | |assets and liabilities: | | | | | |Receivables | |                    (28) | |                    (371) | |Merchandise inventories | |                    120 | |                    (400) | |Accounts payable | |                    643 | |                    (443) | |Other assets and liabilities    | |                    (23) | |                    (149) | |Total cash provided by operating activities | |               3,293 | |                  1,190 | | | | | | | |INVESTING ACTIVITIES | | | | | |Additions to property and equipment | |                  (766) | |                    (744) | |Other, net    | |                     42 | |                     175 | |Total cash used in investing activities | |                  (724) | |                    (569) | | | | | | |FINANCING ACTIVITIES | | | | | |Repurchase of common stock | |              (1,500) | |                 (1,193) | |Borrowings (repayments) of debt, net    | |  

Definition and Examples of Cleft Sentences

Definition and Examples of Cleft Sentences In English grammar, a cleft is a construction in which some element in a sentence is moved from its normal position into a separate clause to give it greater emphasis. A cleft is also known as a  cleft sentence, a  cleft construction, and a  cleft clause. A  cleft sentence  is a sentence that is cleft (split) so as to put the focus on one part of it. The cleft sentence is introduced by  it, which is followed by a  verb phrase  whose main verb is generally  be. The focused part comes next, and then the rest of the sentence is introduced by a  relative pronoun, relative  determiner, or  relative adverb. If we take the sentence  Tom felt a sharp pain after lunch, two possible cleft sentences formed from it are  It was Tom who felt a sharp pain after lunch  and  It was after lunch that Tom felt a sharp pain. Take, for example, the simple declarative sentence, Jerry went to the movie yesterday. If you would want to emphasize one element or another, the sentence could be rewritten in several different ways: It was  Jerry  who went to the movie  yesterday.It was to the  movie  that Jerry went  yesterday.It was  yesterday  that Jerry went to the movie.   English has many different varieties of cleft constructions, but the two major types are it-clefts and wh-clefts.  Wh- clefts use  wh words, which is most often what in the construction. However, why, where, how, etc. are also possibilities. Examples and Observations It-Clefts It was only last month that  I decided to go back to school.It was my father who  sent Dyer out to proselyte.  It was my father who  had the blue-ice eye and the beard of gold.It was Roosevelt who impetuously blurted out the unconditional surrender ultimatum at a press conference in Casablanca, to the surprise of Winston Churchill, who was sitting at his side and who had no alternative but to nod approval. Wh-Clefts What I needed was a weapon. Other people, hitchhikers, told me they always carried a little something, a knife or a can of Mace, and Id laughed, thinking there was no greater weapon than the human mind. You idiot.Strange, but  what I really wanted was  a dad who would come down to the police station, ​yell his head off, and then take me home to talk about what happened, to come up with a new plan for how Id act in the future, etc. All the other guys had that. But not me. My dad left me alone in jail for the night. Sources Douglas Biber et al.,  Longman Student Grammar. Pearson, 2002George N. Crocker,  Roosevelts Road to Russia. Regnery, 1959David Crystal,  Making Sense of Grammar. Longman, 2004Zane Gray,  Riders of the Purple Sage, 1912Sidney Greenbaum,  Oxford English Grammar. Oxford University Press, 1996David Sedaris,  Naked. Little, Brown Company, 1997Michael Simmons,  Finding Lubchenko. Razorbill, 2005

Crime Laboratory Analysts Essays

Crime Laboratory Analysts Essays Crime Laboratory Analysts Essay Crime Laboratory Analysts Essay When Jane Elliott debriefed her third graders at the end of the two day exercise, what comments did the children make concerning what they had learned from the exercise? The children were able to feel how it felt to be segregated against. One child said that he felt like he was a dog on a leash. The children learned to not Judge people by their color. (a)What feelings did they express as third graders when they were in the circle during the debriefing? Those that that their eye color group was on the bottom felt stupid and worthless, while those who eye color group was at the top felt Like kings ND Like they were above everyone else. . Notice the unexpected academic results Jane Elliott obtained as a result of this exercise. (a) During the flash card exercise what happened to the performance grades of children when their eye color group was on the top? The children had a significant higher grade performances when their eye color group was on the top. (b) What happened to the children s performance grades of children when their eye color group was on the bottom? The childrens performance grades were significantly rower when their eye color group was on the bottom. One child mention that he was thinking about being brown eye, and felt stupid during the flashcards. (c) What happened to all the childrens grades after the two day exercise was complete? After the two day exercise was complete, the childrens grade maintain a higher level for the rest of the year. (d) Why did MISS Elliot believed this (c) happened? What did she say? MISS Elliot believe that after the two day exercise the children are finding out how great they are and are responding to what they know. As adults won teenage ten reunion Ana reenacted Deck upon tenet canola experience, what comments did the adults make in their debriefing circle during their conversation with Jane Elliott? During the debriefing, an adult mention that she hated that Jane Elliott put them through the exercise when she was young. Another adult said that it was hard having a person be your friend one day and then your enemy the other. (a)What did they express as the benefits of this exercise? Benefits the adults gained from the exercise is that they were able to understand coordination and were able to stop themselves for discriminating against others. (b) How did it make them better people? Explain. The adult were able to put themselves in others shoes when it came to discrimination. They were also able to spread their knowledge on discrimination to their children. Explaining to them, to not Judge a person by their skin color. 4. Which particular children attracted your interest in the video? Why? Explain. The boy who punch his classmate in the stomach because he was called brown eyed really caught my attention. The children have been friends and classmates but when an authority figure segregated them, they had so much hatred against each other. 5. Discuss your overall reaction to A Class Divided. Explain. I really enjoyed A Class Divided. I thought it was a have interesting documentary. Jane Elliot is a brilliant teacher, who Just doesnt care about educating her student but molding them into good people. I think that every student should go through the two day exercise. I believe with students will understand how it feels to be discriminated against.

Free Essays on Teen Speech

â€Å"Adolescents get a bad rap today, but many are choosing an unfamiliar route: Doing good,† says an article called ‘Teens Get Real.’ That statement is very true. Good deeds are happening all around, and plenty of them are being conducted by teenagers. For this speech, I’m going to be writing about the Class of 2007 at Granby High School, and also, the Class of 2007 at Chicopee Comp High School. On December 26, the Asia-Pacific region was hit with a massive earthquake, causing a tsunami. It killed over a quarter of a million people, and left more than five million people homeless, and in need of help. There have been many countries and organizations that have been trying to help. Water, food, supplies, money, clothes, children’s toys, etc., have been sent over seas to help the tsunami victims. It’s known that when money is raised through Red Cross and other organizations, not all of the money goes over to the relief that the money was raised for. These tsunami victims need as much as they can, their homes were destroyed, everything was. There’s hardly anything left. Here at Granby High School, the class officers of 2007 decided to have a fundraiser for the tsunami victims. There were cans and jars everywhere that you could possibly imagine. In each classroom, outside of the cafeteria, students would walk around with the jars, and mostly they received ni ckels, dimes, and quarters, although people did donate plenty of dollars, most of it was change. This school raised over $700 to send overseas to the tsunami victims. Every last penny went overseas. That’s something to be proud of, because we are all teenagers, in an extremely small school, and to raise so much money, in such a short amount of time, is a great accomplishment. The article ‘A Loud Minority’ states that â€Å"While most kids are doing well, the exceptions often grab front-page news, and their stories are chilling: Teens are addicted to hard drugs and ex... Free Essays on Teen Speech Free Essays on Teen Speech â€Å"Adolescents get a bad rap today, but many are choosing an unfamiliar route: Doing good,† says an article called ‘Teens Get Real.’ That statement is very true. Good deeds are happening all around, and plenty of them are being conducted by teenagers. For this speech, I’m going to be writing about the Class of 2007 at Granby High School, and also, the Class of 2007 at Chicopee Comp High School. On December 26, the Asia-Pacific region was hit with a massive earthquake, causing a tsunami. It killed over a quarter of a million people, and left more than five million people homeless, and in need of help. There have been many countries and organizations that have been trying to help. Water, food, supplies, money, clothes, children’s toys, etc., have been sent over seas to help the tsunami victims. It’s known that when money is raised through Red Cross and other organizations, not all of the money goes over to the relief that the money was raised for. These tsunami victims need as much as they can, their homes were destroyed, everything was. There’s hardly anything left. Here at Granby High School, the class officers of 2007 decided to have a fundraiser for the tsunami victims. There were cans and jars everywhere that you could possibly imagine. In each classroom, outside of the cafeteria, students would walk around with the jars, and mostly they received ni ckels, dimes, and quarters, although people did donate plenty of dollars, most of it was change. This school raised over $700 to send overseas to the tsunami victims. Every last penny went overseas. That’s something to be proud of, because we are all teenagers, in an extremely small school, and to raise so much money, in such a short amount of time, is a great accomplishment. The article ‘A Loud Minority’ states that â€Å"While most kids are doing well, the exceptions often grab front-page news, and their stories are chilling: Teens are addicted to hard drugs and ex...

Article 2 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

2 - Article Example Customers of the counterfeits often use them as trial versions of the real brands and nearly half of them actually endorse the real brand after the trial version is successful. Meanwhile, people wearing the product of the counterfeits ignite a spark in the public to endorse the real brand, which makes it free advertising for the real brand. Numerous studies to date have found positive effects of copying on the real brands. Most studies have found the advertising effect stronger than the substitution effect irrespective of whether it is a formal brand or an individual creator benefiting from the counterfeit. The rule applies in all industries ranging from garments to the hotel and hospitality industry. Paradoxically, a copy is a more sincere advertisement of the real brand as compared to the conventional advertisement because conventional ads derive their appeal to the audiences from the charisma and halo effect of the celebrity in the ad whereas a copy focuses only the

Set of Codes and Ethics in the Profession Assignment

Set of Codes and Ethics in the Profession - Assignment Example There is also a notion that ethics evolve over time with respect to the problems that professionals face and with the establishment of ethics there is a promotion of confidence in the profession. In its Code of Ethics the American College of Nurse-Midwives it is states that â€Å"midwives support and maintain the integrity of the profession of midwifery and thus contribute to a profession worthy of being considered by society as a public good† (Midwife). Ethics can also help to solve any price stated ethical or moral dilemma that one might face (Husted and Husted, 2008). As a professional in the field of midwifery there have been moments where there is a certain ethical/legal situation that one comes across and does not know how to deal with (Frith and Draper, 2004). At times patients divulge certain facts about their lives and health that, they wish others not to know and expect that they be kept a secret from others. Such facts may well be of such a nature that it becomes di fficult not to discuss them with others for the fear of the safety of the patient. A situation similar to what I was confronted with when a 28 year old Russian woman in her twelfth week of pregnancy came for her booking appointment. A registered midwife was supervising the booking which I was doing at that particular time. was Once the booking had begun the midwife told me that she had to step out of the room for some time and told me to carry on with my work. Once the midwife had left the room the woman who had come in started to disclose to me that she was a victim of domestic abuse at the hands of the man who was now her ex. The woman had told me this information in confidence and requested that I keep it as such and not tell anyone else what she had told me, especially not the midwife. She even requested that I not make a note of it anywhere in the documents. I tried to make her understand that though I would keep the conversation between us a secret, I still needed to inform my superior of the facts upon which she begged me not to. I was in the process of asking her questions about whether she felt safe when the midwife returned to the room and the conversation ceased and I resumed the booking. During the time the woman remained in the room I said nothing to the midwife about the disclosure of domestic violence that the woman had made. Once the woman took her leave I told the midwife what the woman had told me upon which she said to leave the matter the way it was for now. I had concerns about the situation the woman was in and it seemed to me that there should have been a referral and support given to her. I was trying to support the woman into getting herself some support and perhaps break free from the violence that she was in. by telling my supervising midwife I was hoping that something would be done to help the situation the young woman was living in or she would be shown other routes that would help her cause. Nothing was done for her who made it d ifficult for me as I had thought otherwise. It is not clear what the consequences of the decision to sit by and do nothing were that day but they may not have been well received.  

Decriminalization or Legalization of Marijuana in Canada Essay

Decriminalization or Legalization of Marijuana in Canada - Essay Example When used in moderation marijuana is undeniably less detrimental compared to alcohol and tobacco (Joffe and Yancy 636). The detriment allied with other drugs to a user stems from its worldwide handiness, usage and acceptability in most countries. Therefore, regulating the consumption of a drug by decreasing its obtainability and use can minimize the effect associated with its abuse. There are various health effects associated with abusing drugs. According to research, most doctors agree that marijuana is less addictive than tobacco and alcohol. Therefore, the government should consider legalizing marijuana by get rid of the authorized ban connected with cannabis (Caulkins, Hawken, Kilmer and Kleiman 56). Efforts geared towards legalizing marijuana should not only center on adults but also pay attention on its outcome to the youth. The legalization of marijuana will absolutely result to advertisements which could reassure teenagers to use the drug. Therefore, when considering authorization of marijuana, regulatory measures should be established to prevent promotion of the drug to adolescents. Decriminalization of marijuana in Canada might encourage the youth into abusing the drug since the consequences associated with its possession will be decreased (Joffe and Yancy 636). Canada’s legal framework is in line with the society’s values. Statistics confirm that a greater portion of youth use marijuana as compared to adults in Canada. Furthermore, approximately 600,000 Canadian citizens use marijuana (24% of this number are youths aged 12-17 years). Approximately 30,000 arrests are made yearly translating to $500 million in expenditure used by the government in enforcing drug laws. Leaders such as Stephen Harper who is the Canadian Prime Minister has been involved continuously in pushing reforms to intensify marijuana’s prescription since its criminalization is expensive (Raaflaub 334). The Canadian economy can be significantly

HRM 'Managing Human Resources' Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

HRM 'Managing Human Resources' - Assignment Example The HRM function is of particular importance in the post-industrial economy (Harris, 2003) In this emerging system, the critical factor in production has shifted from machines and equipment to the "knowledge" worker (Marchington, 2002). That is, service has replaced production as the driving force in the economy, and the prominent way value is added is through the expertise of knowledge workers and the ministrations of service providers. In systems like this, it becomes even more important to obtain and use the full talents of all employees in the organization. Thus, the skilful adoption and use of HRM policies becomes a significant lever through which to move and direct the performance of the organization. As Gibb (2000) noted, HRM is really a series of policy choices about how employees are to be treated, paid, and worked. These policies will in turn impact and condition the nature of the employment relationship. Different policies lead to different outcomes in employee commitment, competence, and congruence with organizational goals. Likewise, each policy choice presents the decision maker with a distinctive cost and benefit alternative. For example, compensation policy choices to pay either at the low, average, or high end of the labour market have rather dramatic implications for employee commitment to the organization and for costs to the employer. The fundamental rationale for effective management of human resources should be to identify and implement those policies, programs, and procedures that will yield the desired levels of loyalty, skill, and direction in the most cost-effective manner possible. In this sense, HRM offers to organizational decision makers a set of people in vestment opportunities. Managing human resources effectively has never been as important as it is today and will be tomorrow. In today's service economy of knowledge-based, high-discretion jobs, the commitment and competence of employees can spell the difference between those organizations that win and those that are merely in the race. Establishing policies, programs, and practices that produce these results on a cost-effective basis and comply with laws and regulations is a complex undertaking. HRM can and should play a strategic role in the management of the organization. According to Chandy (2001), a large number of organizations have encountered severe difficulties finding personnel in recent years. We have little knowledge about how organizations are coping with these difficulties and are going about hiring staff. Considering the supply/demand trends of the last few decades - when the labour market used to be a buyers' market and a considerable pool of unemployed formed a buffer that could absorb cyclic fluctuations in labour demand - it is almost not astounding that most studies focused on employees' job seeking activities. (Chandy, 2001, pp 403-405) Research on the theoretical and empirical facet of organizations' behaviour to find appropriate staff, has studied first and foremost the selection behaviour: how to select personnel from a group of applicants. Nearly all vacancies are filled from a group of applicants that is created soon after posting the vacancy. On account of the economic expansion of the first

Research Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Research Paper - Essay Example Panem is the nation that Hunger Games took place which is in North America. This nation has 12 districts with Capitol being one of the districts that are wealthiest district. All the other 12 districts are poor but District 12 is located in a region where coal is available in plenty, the region was known as Appalachia. In each and every district on annual basis a boy and a girl who are in the age of 12 to 18 are taken where they compete in battle of death where one individual should only remain after the battle. The selection of the participant is done by a lottery method. In the theme of inequality between rich and poor in Panem wealth is concentrated on the hands of few individuals who live in Capitol and other certain districts. This is due to the difference between individuals who are rich and those who are poor. This difference is revealed in the novel but the most notable difference is on food. In those districts which the poor are numerous, many of the individuals do not have anything to eat and they starve while others have plenty in the Panem. Katniss lives in the district 12 and thus as a resident she notes starvation is a common to all the residents of district 12. This means that she has to take all the measures possible so that she can get something for the family using illegally ways. She even goes to an extent of going beyond the borders of the district 12 so that she can get food for her family. Most of the residents in district 12 do not know to hunt and thus they see as if katniss family has a lot while it was just something small. A fter the hunt Katniss family concludes that if one has something to eat others are luxuries. Katniss, while looking for food learns that peeta’s family has a lot since they have a bakery and thus they are considered as the rich in the district. Katniss is not able to buy the food and thus depends on the leftovers. When she is in Capitol, she finds that everybody who is there is enjoying lavish feast and other

Quality Management of processes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Quality Management of processes - Essay Example The first step is to establish a strong feedback as an important element of any quality assurance process. Evaluation should be a continuous process and not just left until the end of the project. The results of evaluation processes should be discussed with the researchers, perhaps by means of completing a record of achievement and current strategies. To avoid adversely, it is crucial to involve key researchers into the process of quality control requirements. A potential problem area in many institutions is the role played in it by middle management (Dale, 1994). They have a pivotal role because they both maintain the day-to-day operation of the project and act as one of its most important communications channels. They can often block change if they have a mind to or they can act as the leaders of teams spearheading the impetus for quality improvement. In this case, the quality control should be identifies as an important measure against possible pitfalls and mistakes caused by huma n factors. The quality control should interpreted as a preventive measure which helps the research project to save time and resources caused by possible errors and poor quality (Christensen, 1997). A special attention will be given to such principles as process approach, continual improvement and qualit

HRM 'Managing Human Resources' Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

HRM 'Managing Human Resources' - Assignment Example The HRM function is of particular importance in the post-industrial economy (Harris, 2003) In this emerging system, the critical factor in production has shifted from machines and equipment to the "knowledge" worker (Marchington, 2002). That is, service has replaced production as the driving force in the economy, and the prominent way value is added is through the expertise of knowledge workers and the ministrations of service providers. In systems like this, it becomes even more important to obtain and use the full talents of all employees in the organization. Thus, the skilful adoption and use of HRM policies becomes a significant lever through which to move and direct the performance of the organization. As Gibb (2000) noted, HRM is really a series of policy choices about how employees are to be treated, paid, and worked. These policies will in turn impact and condition the nature of the employment relationship. Different policies lead to different outcomes in employee commitment, competence, and congruence with organizational goals. Likewise, each policy choice presents the decision maker with a distinctive cost and benefit alternative. For example, compensation policy choices to pay either at the low, average, or high end of the labour market have rather dramatic implications for employee commitment to the organization and for costs to the employer. The fundamental rationale for effective management of human resources should be to identify and implement those policies, programs, and procedures that will yield the desired levels of loyalty, skill, and direction in the most cost-effective manner possible. In this sense, HRM offers to organizational decision makers a set of people in vestment opportunities. Managing human resources effectively has never been as important as it is today and will be tomorrow. In today's service economy of knowledge-based, high-discretion jobs, the commitment and competence of employees can spell the difference between those organizations that win and those that are merely in the race. Establishing policies, programs, and practices that produce these results on a cost-effective basis and comply with laws and regulations is a complex undertaking. HRM can and should play a strategic role in the management of the organization. According to Chandy (2001), a large number of organizations have encountered severe difficulties finding personnel in recent years. We have little knowledge about how organizations are coping with these difficulties and are going about hiring staff. Considering the supply/demand trends of the last few decades - when the labour market used to be a buyers' market and a considerable pool of unemployed formed a buffer that could absorb cyclic fluctuations in labour demand - it is almost not astounding that most studies focused on employees' job seeking activities. (Chandy, 2001, pp 403-405) Research on the theoretical and empirical facet of organizations' behaviour to find appropriate staff, has studied first and foremost the selection behaviour: how to select personnel from a group of applicants. Nearly all vacancies are filled from a group of applicants that is created soon after posting the vacancy. On account of the economic expansion of the first

Quality Management of processes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Quality Management of processes - Essay Example The first step is to establish a strong feedback as an important element of any quality assurance process. Evaluation should be a continuous process and not just left until the end of the project. The results of evaluation processes should be discussed with the researchers, perhaps by means of completing a record of achievement and current strategies. To avoid adversely, it is crucial to involve key researchers into the process of quality control requirements. A potential problem area in many institutions is the role played in it by middle management (Dale, 1994). They have a pivotal role because they both maintain the day-to-day operation of the project and act as one of its most important communications channels. They can often block change if they have a mind to or they can act as the leaders of teams spearheading the impetus for quality improvement. In this case, the quality control should be identifies as an important measure against possible pitfalls and mistakes caused by huma n factors. The quality control should interpreted as a preventive measure which helps the research project to save time and resources caused by possible errors and poor quality (Christensen, 1997). A special attention will be given to such principles as process approach, continual improvement and qualit

Critically evaluate an assessment process Essay Example for Free

Critically evaluate an assessment process Essay The assessment system being evaluated is Competency Based Training (CBT). This is used by myself and my colleagues in the Automotive Trade section. This report will include the processes implemented by my section, and what issues are present that impact on how the assessment is conducted. A critique along with personal recommendations that may enhance the process will also be included. Assessment can be defined as the process of collecting evidence and making judgments on whether competency has been achieved, or whether specific skills and knowledge have been achieved that will lead to the attainment of competence. This appears to be a simple credo although all too often seems to fail either the candidate or the industry that represents them. To trace the events leading up to assessment, we must first look at the source. Industry identifies a need in the workforce and, in conjunction with Australian National Training Authority (ANTA), they develop a training package which may be described as the bare bones of what is required to be achieved. The automotive sector adheres to the training package AUR99. From this TAFE unpacks the training package in which staff can retrieve a translation in the form of units of competency contained in the syllabus for a particular module. This is available to staff on the Course Information Documents Online (CIDO) website. The units of competency can be further broken down into elements of competency. These elements can be translated into further detail through the performance criteria from which the learning outcomes are derived. An example of a module being taught in Automotive is called Electrical system minor repairs. This module addresses the unit of competency AUR18708A retrieved from the National Training Information Service (NTIS). This module is undertaken by stage one auto-electricians, light vehicle mechanics, and heavy vehicle mechanics. . The module purpose is to provide these trainees and apprentices the knowledge and skills to carry out minor repairs on automotive electrical circuits and systems. In order to assess a candidate effectively, there are basic principles of assessment that must be adhered to. This report will address and evaluate the above module, and define the principles as outlined below along with observed critiques. Validity is a process ensuring that the assessment task actually assesses the candidate in the way in which it was designed to. The module is valid in the assessment as it addresses the outcomes and the learners must successfully complete theory and practical tasks. There is a question of age in the resources used in the section, but as technology in this area has changed little, I believe industry validity is current. Having said this, the inclusion of practical assessments creates its own problems, availability of enough resources, OHS etc. Because of the financial constraints of having fifteen cars and equipment available at the one time, it is normal to break the class into three groups, with one group doing a theory test in the classroom, another doing one practical task in one part of the workshop and the last group doing another practical in another part of the workshop. Apart from the obvious OHS issues, there is also the question of how valid an assessment can be if the students doing the theory can copy from each other while it is impossible for the assessor to view the whole of the practical task o f all ten people in the workshop. Reliability. This principle refers to the consistency of an assessment outcome regardless of varying locations, time and assessors. Although the definition is idealistic, this principle seems to be lacking in many colleges. Due to my experience having taught this module in the light vehicle and auto-electrical sections, and having viewed the heavy vehicle assessments, it is notable that, taking away the human element, each section constructs its own test questions and practical resources without consulting each other, even though at my college these three sections are next door to each other. Therefore, the outcomes to these assessments are unreliable. Flexibility allows candidates to negotiate time and place with their assessor  and should make allowances for reasonable adjustment in the case of possible obstacles such as disability or literacy issues which may or may not inhibit the ability for a candidate to achieve a competency. Upon teaching this module among other modules, I have noticed that although The government prides itself on flexibility it does not necessarily occur to a great extent in the automotive trades. If a practical task is being assessed and a candidates level of literacy could possibly hinder their successful completion of this competency, the education department does have provision for translators or scribes, but to my knowledge, no student is able to negotiate time and place for their assessment to take place when more suitable for them. Fairness is a process to ensure that no one is disadvantaged during assessment. The candidates must be fully informed about assessment opportunities and be confident that there are no hidden agendas. The assessment must be accessible to all eligible students regardless of age, gender, disability, race, social background, language or geographic location. I believe no one is specifically disadvantaged in the above categories, except for location.. Although students are forewarned when an assessment is taking place, if a student that is traveling from far away experiences difficulties during this trip due to traffic etc, there is no flexibility with regards to starting later for instance. The next time they are able to sit this assessment may be up to six months away. Authenticity refers to the fact that the evidence used to make an assessment is the students own product or performance. This is possible in this module, and indeed most of the automotive modules, as there is rarely homework or projects for the students to complete outside college grounds, therefore students should be constantly observed by their teacher whether in a quiet room for a theory exam or workshop practical observation. In CBT, there are four types of assessments to be used. They are as follows; Diagnostic. This type of assessment is used to assist in identifying educational or training needs and determine if a candidate is ready to undertake the desired course. This would include a numeracy, literacy and language test, often called a screen test. This type of testing does occur at the beginning of the trade course certificate III, but not at the beginning of each module. If a student is identified as requiring extra assistance in these areas, we will provide tutorial support. Formative assessment is done during the learning process and provides feedback about the students progress towards to competency. Although I have seen no official policy in place for formative assessments, it is up to the teacher to provide this in good faith. I personally give students formative assessments to keep them steered in the right direction. Summative assessment is more formal and conducted at the end of a module to determine whether the candidate has achieved their outcomes to the competency successfully. This process is always undertaken in my section at work. Holistic assessment brings together the three domains of learning (cognitive, affect and psychomotor), with an attempt to include technical hands-on skills, problem solving and ethical attitudes in the assessment event. This is normally more complex and requires more than simply one assessment tool. It ideally requires various formats in the shape of written tests, oral questioning, and direct visual evidence by an assessor. I would once again question whether this occurs due to financial constraints as all of the students assessment tasks, both practical and theoretical are marked, but individual direct evidence is costly and time consuming. One fundamental flaw between the nationally endorsed training package from ANTA and the translated syllabus from CIDO is the issue of grading within a competency-based assessment, which I believe is a contentious issue. The words competency-based infer that the candidate should be judged as either competent or not yet competent. This does not leave room for the high achievers as these people are being encouraged, through lack of recognition, to only put in enough effort to be deemed competent. Most learners who have put a lot of effort into a piece of work often do not wish to simply see a satisfactory label on their results. The system is contradictory and unclear in this issue as it is modeled on CBT system but chooses to grade some modules, such as this one, and conduct other modules in an un-graded format as simply pass or fail. As most automotive trade tests are Category C, grade code 71, this allows the section to locally set and mark their own assessments. Grading is as follows; Distinction = 83 Credit = 70 Pass = 50 Fail 50 It interests me that 50% is the pass mark. What has determined this? Should it be 60% or 70%, or why not 40%. In most cases in my view, 50% seems way too low. Work Evidence Modules (WEMs) also play a part in the assessment as in the course of the students apprenticeship they must gather work evidence to be signed by their employer in order to validate that they have completed authentic practical tasks. I have seen flaws in this system as some employers are simply signing WEMs books enmasse without scrutiny as I have  seen various trade tasks signed off in some apprentices books where I am well aware that their particular workshop does not undertake certain facets of the trade, thus leaving this system open to corruption. Students workbooks are also used in module assessments, which may total up to 50%. There is an inconsistency marking workbooks with some teachers giving half marks, and others having a black and white rule meaning all or nothing. This means that dependant on whose class an apprentice ends up in can decide on the level of his/her grade. Recommendations In the case of assessment validity, I would recommend that two staff be made available to team teach during assessment events in order to view all facets of each task. In the case of reliability where the same subject is taught across different trade sections, there should be policy in place for the exact same test paper to be used by all as an example as mechanics arent given a less challenging electric theory test than an auto electrician as is currently taking place in the autonomous climate. I recommend that there should be a change in local policy that students should have a negotiated assessment time and place within reason, once again, with a second staff member being available to supervise. Fairness could be further enhanced for the students who have to travel, but this issue can be appeased if coupled with the flexibility recommendation. In the grading debate, we must decide on which side of the fence we stand, whether it be CBT un-graded, or graded. I prefer grading students on their merit, because I believe some are more competent than others. Although, if we made a stance on one side of the fence and stuck to it, I would accept either graded or un-graded, but not both throughout the course. WEMs books should be eliminated, as I believe they will be in the not to distant future. They dont work, and we used to produce fine trades people in the past without them. With the above review and personal recommendations made as is apparent, there are flaws to our assessment processes, but this is part and parcel of being an educator. So long as we are reflective and continue to consult both industry and practitioners we will further fine tune our system in order to better serve future students which in this day and age is the customer. References Australian National Training Authority. (n.d.). Retrieved Aug 14, 2004, from http://www.anta.gov.au/ Certificate IV in assessment and workplace training. (2003). NSW., Australia: TAFE. CIDO. (n.d.). Retrieved Aug 14, 2004, from https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/cgi-forte/fortecgi.exe?servicename=CDOTemplateName=cdo_logon.html Everyones guide to assessment. (2004). (2nd ed.). Darlinghurst, NSW., Australia: TAFE and NSW DET. National Training Information Service. (n.d.). Retrieved Aug 14, 2004, from http://www.ntis.gov.au/ NCVER. (2002). Research at a Glance. Competency Based Training in Australia, pp. 159-166.

Child Adoption In England And Finland Social Policy Essay

Child Adoption In England And Finland Social Policy Essay This essay attempts to illuminate the differences and similarities in issues related to child adoption in England and Finland while offering an examination into the contexts in which social workers and associated professionals have to function. While both England and Finland are states within the European Union (EU), they demonstrate distinct and differing approaches to the adoption of children. In Finland along with other countries in Scandinavia, child adoption and the permanent transfer of parental rights is less of a central a concern, or worry than currently so in England where child adoption is featured prominently across a range of professional, political and popular discourses. In terms of social work practice the involvement of children and families, coupled with certain factors of the adoption process have been handled in a distinctly different way between the two countries. This can be seen where in Finland adult adoptees were allowed to gain access to records regarding th eir adoption or their birth parents far earlier than their English counterparts where this was not permissible until much later earlier through the Children Act 1975 (Triseliotis, 1973, p. 1). According to Lowe (2000) in the late-nineteenth century attempts were made to introduce adoption, but it was not until 1927, subsequent to the Adoption of Children Act 1926, that child adoption became legally recognised in England. Since then many factors including; reports, legislation and case law have all had an impact, this has resulted in refined policy and changes in social work practice. More recently media attention has illustrated social workers alleged shortcomings in relation to child adoption processes. In recent years, adoption policy has been influenced by a number of socio-cultural and political factors. During the Conservative government of the 1990s politicians and policy makers made attempts ineffectively to restructure what were viewed as unsatisfactory adoption procedures (see PIU, 2000, p. 31). These services were impaired because social workers were driven by political correctness (Hopton, 1997). The white paper Adoption: The Future was published In November 1993, representing a common sense approach to adoption (Department of Health, 1993). In 1996, the DoH published a Draft Bill with an emphasis placed on child adoption as an alternative to single parenthood during the consultation period. The Bill failed to progress any further due to the General Election in May 1997. With a change in government, the then Prime Ministers (Tony Blair) Review of Adoption was published in 2000 (PIU, 2000). Followed by a White Paper, Adoption: A New Approach (Department of Health, 2000), wh ich was followed by the publication of the Adoption and Children Bill in 2001. The Bill failed to materialise due to the General Election later in the same year. It was however re-introduced in October 2001 and the Adoption and Children Act received royal assent in November 2002. The first Adoption of Children Act in Finland was in 1925, a year earlier than the English equivalent. The present Finnish Adoption Act stems from 1985 followed by an additional Adoption ruling in 1997 which dealt specifically with adoption counselling and inter-country adoptions. Specific to Finnish adoption system is the role of Save the Children originally created in 1945 following the merging of two previous organisations (Homes for Homeless Children which were practicing adoption since 1922 and Save Finlands Children, which was set up after the Second World War in an attempt to help orphaned children). This organisation is now part of the International Save the Children. Save the Children has had an influential position as a provider of adoption services in Finland. In addition to civic welfare bodies, Save the Children is still the only private child welfare organisation in Finland licensed to provide adoption counselling (Pylkkanen 1995) In Finland, adoptions have dramatically changed during the last 30 years, in 1970, 243 Finnish children were adopted through Save the Children. Over the last few years this has decreased to less than fifty. Partly as abortion became more freely available following the Abortion Act of 1970; the number of unplanned children born to young single mothers fell. (Garrett, 2003 p.21). England too has seen a decrease in adoptions, (PIU, 2000, p.10) This may be attributed to the rise in use of the contraceptive pill and the acceptance of single mothers. According to Lowe (2000) The largest decline is in respect of babies (children under the age of 12 months) put up for adoption; in 1968, 12,641 babies were adopted (51% of all adoptions), but only 195 babies were adopted in 1998 (only 4% of all adoptions) According to Bennett (2009) Only 4,637 children were adopted in 2007, the lowest number since 1999. In both states, adoption is far more likely to involve children in public care-or looked after children (In England under the Children Act 1989) who are older, are child protection concerns, or have disabilities (DoH, 1998). This is in part due to the fact that there are very few healthy babies available for adoption. In England there are approximately 60,000 children looked after. (Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), 2007). 62% of these children were removed, on a compulsory basis, from their family. Approximately 1% of all children under 18 years live in foster care, with about 48% in family foster care, 40% are in childrens homes, and the remaining 12% in new formats of family professional care (Kalland Sinkkonen, 2001). In July of this year these statistics were even worse according to sources obtained by Bennett (2009) who claimed that this figure was now almost three quarters of all adoptions, she agrees with the reasoning behind the removal of children form their families stating The increase in alcohol and drug abuse among parents is also a growing factor in care proceedings, with parents often being given several chances to break their habit before children are removed. It may possibly be argued that many of those children in long-term placements should and probably could be adopted, but this is not the overriding view of Finnish society, indeed the dominant view is that of family preservation. Several contributors share the opinion that childrens best interests are met when every effort is made to keep the family together. If foster care is needed, it should always be of limited duration (Garrett, 2003). These views echo FOX HARDING CHECK WHICH PERSPECTIVE AND MENTION Many of these Finnish children in long-term foster care could have been adopted if they lived in England. Evidently, foster care makes it possible for children to keep some contact with their birth family. Unfortunately, this is not always advantageous for the child because of the severe difficulties including both psychological and behavioural of some parents (Quinton et al., 1997). The placement faces the risk of breakdown where the birth parents have sufficiently dealt or recovered from their difficulties, and desire to be a complete family with the return of their child. This may be successful, but may also be short-lived resulting in endless short-term placements. This will have an adverse effect destroying the childs ability to form any meaningful attachments in adulthood. Adoption would offer the child an opportunity to form a stable relationship but this would cut the connections with the birth family. In Finland adoption against the will of the natural parents is far from th e norm. As a result, there are very few contested adoptions. According to the Finnish Adoption Act, the consent of both biological parents is needed before the adoption can take place. It should be noted that there are two exceptions to this; firstly, adoption can be granted if it is believed that the adoption is definitely in the best interests of the child and the refusal of consent of the parents is not suitably justified, secondly, the parents cannot logically express their will due to illness or disability, or if their whereabouts are unknown. Additionally the mothers consent is only accepted after she has recovered from the birth (no earlier than eight weeks). In Finland the feelings and desires of the child are taken into account, this is according to the age and level of maturity. If the child is 12 or older, their opinions must be taken into account. In recent years England has evolved a degree of openness in the adoption process (DoH, 1999, Ch. 5). This is because traditionally in England, the adoption of children resulted in the cutting off of the relationship with the birth mother and birth family. The developments in this area have been provoked through professionals whose opinion that openness is important for the mental health and identity needs of adoptees (Kirton, 2000, p. 108). The ability for English adoptees and their family to gain access to records is relatively recent, in fact as recent as 1973 Scotland and Finland were the only countries in the Western world where an adopted person could obtain information from official records that could help them trace their original parents Triseliotis (1973, p. 1). The move away from high levels of secrecy can also be attributed to adoptees who wanted to find birth relatives (Campbell et al., 1991), birth mothers also campaigned for larger levels of openness in adoption in Engl and (Logan, 1996). These actions coupled with the Natural Parents Support Group, an organisation of birth mothers, who lobbied the UK parliament for a public inquiry into the injustices which occurred through the mass adoption in the 1950s and 1960s (Rickford, 2000, Fink, 2000). The Children Act 1975 gave adopted people over the age of 18 years the right to apply for access to their original birth certificates. The recent openness has enabled in some instances, contact arrangements between the child and birth family after the adoption has taken place (Lowe, 2000, p. 326-329). The Adoption Act 1976 amended by the Children Act 1989, made it compulsory for the Registrar General to set up an Adoption Contact Register in an attempt to make it possible for adopted people to contact their birth parents and other birth relatives. It the opinion of Hughes Logan (1995) that these measures are in part due to the increasing awareness of the importance of post-adoption services. The view in Fin land however has been far more open indeed; Save the Children has mediated between the adopted child and biological parents since the 1960s. It should be mentioned that large proportions of adopted people in Finland still do not wish to seek contact with their original families, usually those that felt disappointment about being adopted inn the first instance (Garrett 2003). This all means that while the recent drive toward adoption being more open is obviously important, it must be recognised that openness is not simple or straightforward. Kalland et al. (2001) shows that mortality rates in Finland for both sexes on the child welfare registry are in excess compared with the general population. Another Finnish study showed aggressive behaviour, delinquency and attention problems were associated with children and adolescents in childrens homes and that children may also be at risk of sexual abuse in these homes with the person responsible for the act often being an older adolescent (Hukkanen et al., 1999). What is important though is, none of these negative instances can be entirely attributed to poor quality or damaging care that children get whilst in public care. Numerous children arrive in these institutions already suffering from been highly traumatised in some cases due to parental addictions. In short, it is not simply the looked-after experience which leads to poor outcomes. Whereas in contrast concerns about the poor outcomes of children who are looked after (Parker et al., 1991) in England such as; ineffective health provision available for looked after children (Butler Payne, 1997), poor levels of educational achievement (Aldgate et al., 1993, Fletcher-Campbell, 1998), the bullying that takes place in care settings, the high pregnancy rates amongst teenagers in care in 2007 there were 360 mothers aged 12 and over who were looked after, an increase of 15 per cent from the previous year, (Corlyn McGuire, 1998, DCSF, 2007), the disappointingly high number of moves from care environment to care environment (Sone, 1997), and the lack of preparation for those leaving care, and poor after-care support (Biehal et al. , 1995) has led to the English adoption system making wholesale reform In July 2000 the then Prime Minister, Tony Blair published the governments Review of Adoption which contained over 80 recommendations. Four of these recommendations focused on plans to; develop and implement a National Adoption Register, drawing up of new National Standards for local authorities to follow, the setting up of an Adoption and Permanency Taskforce to promote best practice and challenge poor performance, and conducting a rapid scrutiny of the backlog of children that were waiting to be adopted (PIU, 2000, p.4).This was followed in December 2000, with the White Paper, Adoption-A New Approach. The aim of establishing a National Adoption Register and an Adoption and Permanency Taskforce were again set out. A national target was to be set with the aim of increasing the number of looked after children adopted. Other processes highlighted in the consultation paper integrated within the plan were to introduce new National Standards for councils and adoption agencies. To enforce these standards, powers were put in place emergency inspections and special measures to deal with problematic service providers. Other plans included, timescales for children enabling a sound plan for their permanent future, this would be made within six months of their starting to be continuously looked after. When the decision was made that adoption was to take place, a new family should be found within a further six months. In an attempt to aid adoptive parents new plans to support them were briefly set out. Other significant measures included: a new legislative option, called special guardianship, this would provide a sense of stability for the child, but fall short of legal separation from their birth parents. Unlike England there is no National Adoption Register and there are no plans to develop and implement one in Finland, a National Register however, could possibly help in advancing research and practice in a Finnish framework. Likewise an Adoption and Permanency Taskforce similar to that of England would be welcomed by many in Finland. Finlands parliament however, have this year voted to give people in same-sex couples who are registered in an official partnership the legal right to adopt the naturally-born child of their partner.(Finnsson, 2009) No further plans to speed up adoptions of looked after children are planned. This is, perhaps, because as suggested earlier of the dominant position Fox Harding again which places an emphasis on family preservation services. There are very few Finnish waiting to be adopted. There are however in contrast, hundreds of couples waiting to adopt a child. There has been some discussion in the media about the intense frustration of these couples. It may take four or five years to have a child adopted. This has raised the notion of an adoption industry which is fed by the child protection system, Regrettably, in many cases, the emphasis has changed from the desire to provide a needy child with a home to that of providing a needy parent with a child. As a result, a whole industry h as grown, generating millions of dollars of revenues each year, seeking babies for adoption and charging prospective parents enormous fees to process paperwork.(Pragnell, 2008) It is also his view that the interests of the child are now the cause of atrocities committed against children and parents by well-meaning and well-intentioned employees of state and related agencies but whose acts are leading to immense suffering for children.

One of the Best Shots Ever Essay -- Narrative Memoir Essays

One of the Best Shots Ever   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The soft moon rock jumped off the face of the club, as I moved through impact. All I saw was the perfect arch of the rock as it hurled through the air and over a small rock infested river that runs in front of the oblong green. I had just pulled off one of the best shots ever in my golf career.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It all started on a brisk August morning. That day I had to get up before the first rays of the sun could be noticed on the horizon. I awoke to the droning sound of my green digital alarm clock, and immediately jumped into a hot steaming shower to wake me up from a sleepless night. As I jumped out of the shower, I realized that I only had thirty minutes to be completely ready and do my morning warm-up. I flew through everything and still had to wait fifteen minutes for Jim to pick me up.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The drive down to Cedaredge took an eternity, since I was ready to get on the golf course. We drove in and noticed that we were the first of our team to arrive. This gave me plenty of time to get ready. I went inside the plain glass doors of the clubhouse and received a large, green, plastic bucket of range balls, picked up my clubs and headed to the driving range. I noticed that as I walked there was a slight coat of dew on everything. I set my bucket of balls down on the right side of the hitting area where I always went and proceeded to go through my routine. The ground was very supple, but I couldn't even make a divot in it early in the morning because I was so stiff. My swing had not yet gotten adjusted to feel each piece of the grass as it went over the ground. The first shot into the horizon was a promising one. It traveled perfectly with even a little right to left action, or a draw. Then the... ...ine the ball would be traveling on and noticed a crater of a ball mark from a previous shot hit to the green. I fixed the indention in the green so I was ready to putt. I used the red star of my marking to place my ball on the right line. I knew the putt was slick with a foot of break to the right which was perfect for me since I putt left handed. I lifted my belly putter out of my bag and took my stance over my Hogan ball. I felt my smooth stroke just tap the ball and heard the plunk of it dropping into the earth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I had just planted a small moon rock into the center of the earth. It was no ordinary rock and it happened on the hardest hole I have ever played on a golf course. I knew as soon as my Hogan ball dropped the day was mine and all I needed was that one perfect shot (or lucky break of not going in the water) to get me started in my golfing career.