The Importance of Culture for Managing and Controlling the workforce Literature review

The Importance of Culture for Managing and Controlling the workforce - Literature review Example Undeniable changes are taking place in the workforce mainly due to globalisation and changing composition of national populations of individual countries. National population composition is changing as a result of increased immigration and cumulative effects of high birth rates among minority groups. Apparently, this is reflected in the workforce (Inceoglu, 2002, p. 37). Globalisation has made both small and large companies face competition resulting from overseas companies at home while at the same time confronting the need to be competitive in the foreign markets. In order to prevail from the competition, organisations require adopting new ways of carrying out business, with sensitivity towards the needs of diverse cultural practices. Businesses have to struggle for the best gifts they can find, as well as look for ways to obtain the best from workers they currently have. Most of these employees will be situated at different nations as many firms move to a worldwide way of conducti ng business. As a result, culture becomes important in managing and controlling the workforce. People from different cultures bring forth diversity, which refers to the ways in which people differ, not just the more common aspects like ethnicity and gender (Idea group publishing, 2005, p 580). Literature review Organisations exist on the productivity and output of employee interaction with clients and customers. A company with productive workers is able to offer better customer service that result in more income. Employees’ productivity and customer relations and interactions are influenced by how workers feel about their work. Such emotions are heavily dependent on the culture in the workplace. Sandra Collins (2009, p 30) defines culture as the system of shared values, beliefs, norms, language and social institutions, which steer the daily lives of a group of people. Culture may be collectivist or individualist, reflecting on the extent to which people value their associatio n with the group against their independence as individual. Collectivist cultures value the group above an individual whilst an individualist culture places personal independence above the group. Western Europe, United States and Canada countries have an individualist culture while South American and Asian countries embrace a collectivist culture. Both collectivist and individualist have different approaches towards conflict. Collectivists tend to avoid conflict and prefer harmony, whilst individualists do not enjoy conflict, though they are less likely to stay away from it. Culture builds an atmosphere in which human resources work and establish their value and worth in the company, their opportunities within the organisation as well as their opinion of their management team. The culture could also be measured in terms of conflict resolution policies, language, dress code and industry. Communications also varies with culture, with some opting for direct communication while others em brace indirect style. Cultures that adopt indirect communication usually have relational exchanges before involvement into the business. Such cultures tend to be context-dependent since an immense deal of the message’s meaning lie in the context of the communication. Cultures also differ in terms of time interpretation, with some placing value on multitasking, and others opting for doing one thing at a time. The management is able to build models

Service visit and analyzes assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Service visit and analyzes assignment - Essay Example As added proof of the almost excellent knowledge that Starbucks baristas have, he was able to prepare this drink without having to look up how it is mixed while all along explaining to me what went on in its making (Bussing-Burks 55). Another service aspect that I find to be particularly outstanding at Starbucks is the fact that the restaurant never sells any coffee that happens to have been sitting for more than 30 minutes. While on my visit to the shop I personally noted that the baristas would rather throw away coffee than attempt to serve anything old they deem to be old. There are however a number of aspects that left me with a negative perception during my service visit to Starbucks. The service at Starbucks can at times prove to be rude. One striking case that comes to mind is that while I was quietly seated at a corner sipping at my nutella latte while all along analyzing the service at the Starbucks store I was visiting. An incident occurred that I deemed to not be quite appropriate. During a rare lull when there were actually no customers waiting to be served at the store. The cashier started chatting with one of the barista’s, a lady walked into the store proceeded to go and stand in front of the coffee makers while awaiting to be served. Despite having noticed the presence of this customer, the cashier and barista continued with their conversation and ignored the customer who was rapidly becoming inpatient. After about two minutes of idle waiting, the customer demanded to know why she was not being served upon which the cashier rudely replied that the customer was not standing at the proper location where people order. This greatly infuriated the customer who walked out in anger and promised to file an official complaint. I found this to be quite unprofessional and it had the effect of negatively influencing my perception of the overall customer experience at the

Coalitions in Europe Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Coalitions in Europe - Essay Example Discussing the history of coalitions, it is important to look through and analyze all the pros and cons of this approach. Analyzing the examples of two countries, the given paper will prove that coalition is not the best form of government for all the European states. Considering the importance of coalitions in Europe, it is essential to discuss the experience of England. Twice in its history England had to make difficult choice related to the formation of coalition government. The first time was after the World War II and the second in 2010, when David Cameron was the Prime Minister of the UK. Speaking about the after war period, it is essential to mention that human factor played a very important role, when the consequences of war such as great panic were considered. Introducing changes into the governmental system seemed the only correct and appropriate decision. According to David Cameron, the economic setback was the reason or motive force for this decision. No one can state for sure that this method or change could be beneficial for country in general. However, â€Å"the coalition could, and should, embark on new reforms, chipping away at the green belts that constrain development around big cities, for example. But its main task is to see through the revolution that it started in 2010. The programme is hugely ambitious, especially given the lack of money available. It is also broadly right—and some reforms that are not right, such as the elected police commissioners, cannot now be reversed. Even health reform can be rescued. Finishing the job would be good for Britain† (Britain’s coalition government. Divided they fall) Zakocs and Edwards state that in case when single party does not gain the majority during the elections, the variant with creating a different parties coalition and as a result provide the parliamentary support is the best one. Coalition is the most typical form of governments in Europe. This tendency is pretty unders tandable as all the political powers tend to fight for every seat in the parliament and by the means of coalition they obtain the possibility to get most of them. Ireland, Italy and Germany have the coalition government. The main dispute that arises is what is more favorable for country and what type is the most suitable. â€Å"Quite generally, a priori indices of voting power aim to illustrate the influence of actors deriving from weighted voting schemes. In their more traditional forms, they do not attempt – as this sometimes appears to be assumed – to provide a measure for the â€Å"effective power† of actors in a specific policy situation and policy domain. This latter aim can generally better be pursued by approaches related to the spatial theory of voting, assuming specific constellations in the distribution of preferences among actors and institutions† (Bilal & Hosli, 1999). Analyzing England as an example it is possible to make a conclusion that i n difficult times the tendency to create coalitions appeared in order to overcome these difficulties. Certainly, there are explanations for such behavior or pattern. One of them is wish or necessity to work or better to say to interact with one another, like one team. According to Marie Hojnacki, â€Å"This [strategic engagement in coalitions] is especially true today because the growth in the number and diversity of organized interests in national politics has made it more difficult for any one group to dominate the decisions made within a particular policy area. To be effective, rational group leaders must choose strategies that enhance their chances for advocacy success.†

Should public funding be used to provide early childhood education to Essay

Should public funding be used to provide early childhood education to all children - Essay Example However, this fact notwithstanding, the following analysis will consider the extent to which governmental funding of early childhood education would be a net good or an overall net bad from educational, economic, and societal standpoints. As a function of answering such a broad question, it is the hope of this particular author that the reader will be able to draw a more well rounded answer to a question that would otherwise evoke a rather emotional response from the perspective shareholders within the process as well as the taxpayers that will ultimately be left holding the bill regardless of what particular approach is engaged. By analyzing these determinants, it is the further intention of the author that the pros and cons of such a broad and overarching funding will be made manifest and allow the reader to come away with a rather clear understanding of the benefits and drawbacks of such a system might be. Firstly, and perhaps most importantly, one must integrate an understanding and appreciation for the economic constraints that universal government sponsorship of early childhood education would portend. ... As a function of understanding the means by which the United States government ultimately operates, one comes away with the understanding that the elected representatives are responsible to the shareholder citizens with regards to the legislation and proposed budget. In this way, it is easy to see how, regardless of current budgetary shortfalls, a large enough response from the electorate would force the hand of the federal government to act in a way to provide such services to the electorate. Naturally, in doing so, this would have a strong negative impact upon other vital functions of the government, to include many other forms of needed social programs; perhaps Medicaid, Medicare, and/or Social Security funding (Hart 64). As such, it is necessary for the reader/researcher to consider the fact that without exponentially raising tax rates, it will be impossible to seek to add a broad new level of government services without directly robbing from one program to help to pay for anothe r one. From the educational standpoint, the application of universal childhood education can have a massive benefit to the further development of educational standards within the lifetime of the student and can serve to provide a sound basis upon which the educators involved can seek to build. Within the current system, only some shareholders within the student body have the opportunity and/or the means to engage within childhood education. Although this should not be seen as a definitive disadvantage, the fact of the matter is that it provides an unequal footing upon which the first few grades must integrate with the students. A level of basic assumption cannot be provided with relation to what has been covered and what has not. In

Trauma in Conflict Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Trauma in Conflict - Essay Example FitzPatrick and Hartsock observe that throughout history military nurses have stood with physicians and assisted them in carrying out emergency medical interventions. Nurses have served as care providers in many regions of conflict such as Somalia, Croatia, Desert Storm and recently in Iraq and Afghanistan (Flint et al. 2007). The evolution in trauma nursing has opened up new roles for nursing such as injury prevention, data management and the use of new technologies for dealing with trauma injuries. One such medical intervention is the military tourniquet. The military tourniquet is used for supporting poly-trauma patients. The Combat Application Tourniquet (CAT) is a common military tourniquet used by military nurses. This essay will discuss the potential dilemmas arising out of the use of tourniquets, particularly CAT. The issues will be considered in the context of trauma conflict situations. Patients in military operations in Afghanistan will be considered too. According to Beac hley, military nurses have contributed significantly towards the effective management and care of severe injuries. Amongst such measures are triage rapid evacuation, stabilization and surgical procedures (Flint et al. 2007). It is necessary for military nurses to master the interventions that are required for dealing with blast and gunshot victims. The frequency of such injuries has increased significantly over the past few decades owing largely to the fact that they are not confined to the military anymore. The proliferation of weaponry and its use out of the military has made the civilian population yet more susceptible to trauma. The role of nurses has become increasingly important in managing trauma ever since the Crimean War. Effective management of penetrating trauma, which has occurred in wars and military operations, requires the nurse to be apt at the working knowledge of the interventions (O'Shea 2005). A critical aspect of emergency care of trauma victims is gaining contr ol of and stopping haemorrhage. It has been reported that taking measures to prevent deaths occurring from blood loss from the limbs are the most vital means of saving lives. Haemorrhage has been cited as the most important reason for death after trauma (Lerner & Soudry 2011). In the protocol used for managing a trauma patient, circulation is now being given increased importance. The treatment procedure has changed from ABC to ABC to highlight the significance of controlling blood loss (Brodie et al. 2007). These changes are also being introduced into training programs for military trauma nurses. A device used in such cases is tourniquet. Tourniquets are devices which can reduce arterial and venous flow by compressing it. In the UK, tourniquets are a part of the personal first aid kits of soldiers going to the field. They are encouraged to make use of tourniquets when faced with excessive amounts of blood loss. Despite the effectiveness of tourniquets on stopping blood loss, their u se in conflict situations is subject to debate. There are strong arguments both favouring and discouraging the use of tourniquets in critical situations in the war zone. The arguments against the use of tourniquets are that they lead to the unnecessary loss and amputation of limbs. This highlights the gravity of the issue and the medicolegal aspects surrounding their use. Tourniquets are used for medical or tactical reasons. They help to deliver care-under-fire,

Assessment Portfolio and Analysis Essay Example for Free

Assessment Portfolio and Analysis Essay The purpose of assessment. b.Your plan for including assessment when working with children. c.How you can use assessment to document children’s work. d.How you will use children’s interests and ideas when assessing. Assessment Portfolio and Analysis The mission is to help children/students to better themselves and be able to finish any task that they have started to the fullest. The goal is to determine where the child is at developmentally/educationally. I will learn where the child stands, what they already know and how farther they can be pushed to achieving our goal. According to the text, â€Å"Assessment is the process of gathering information about children from several forms of evidence, then organizing and interpreting that information† (Wortham, S.C. (2012). I know that it is the teacher’s responsibility to test the students, from that the teacher will be able to understand where each individual child stands. My plan for including assessment when working with children is to be able to carefully be assess the child and take my time. I will make accurate decisions regarding the child and will include the child’s parents as well for their input. One way that I can use assessment to document the child’s work is through portfolio. According to teacher.scholastic.com, â€Å"These purposeful collections of childrens work illustrate their efforts, progress, and achievements over time. Teachers and children can compile the collections together from work completed in the classroom. As they talk together about the childs interests and progress, they develop new activities for the child to focus on.† (http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/assessment/perfassess.htm)

Canterbury Tales: Wife of Bath Analysis

Canterbury Tales: Wife of Bath Analysis Prioress and Wife of Bath Canterbury Tales, by Geoffrey Chaucer, is a frozen picture of life in the Middle Ages. Chaucer places his characters on a pilgrimage, a religious journey made to a shrine or holy place. They are traveling on horseback from London to the shrine of martyr Saint Thomas a Becket at Canterbury. Chaucer has very opinionated views of the manners and behaviors of women and expresses it strongly in the Tale. In his collection of Tales, he portrays two extremes in his prospect of women. The Wife of Bath represents the extravagant and lusty woman where as the Prioress represents the admirable and devoted follower of church. Chaucer delineates the two characters contrastingly in their appearances, general manners, education and most evidently in their behavior toward men. Two female characters in Canterbury Tales portray themselves differently to what would be expected of their class and status. The Wife of Bath represents â€Å"liberal† extreme in regards to female stereotypes of the Middle Ages. Unlike most women being anonymous during the middle Ages, she has a mind of her own and voices herself. Furthermore, she thinks extremely highly of herself and enjoys showing off her Sunday clothes. Because of her obnoxious attitude, Chaucer makes her toothless, fat and large. The Prioress on the other hand, serves as a foil to the Wife of Bath. Chaucer describes her as a â€Å"tender-hearted† (154) who cannot bear the sight of pain or physical suffering. â€Å"She used to weep if she but saw a mouse caught in a trap, if it were dead or bleeding† (148-9). Chaucer paints a very delicate and elegant picture of the Prioress. Chaucer describes her table manners as very â€Å"graceful, not a drop of anything would fall from her mouth, and she was very polite when talking things at the tale† (131-134). Chaucers last description of Prioress the letter â€Å"A † around her neck that stood for â€Å"Amour vincit omnia† (166) meaning â€Å"Lover Conquers all.† The symbol that she wore showed that she is perfect and obviously a representation of what most men of that time wanted but they couldnt have her. Accordingly, the Wife of Bath is daunting, ostentatious, and ugly. She is nothing in comparison to the Prioress who is elegant, well mannered and above all loving. The Prioresss superiority over the Wife of Bath is shown again in the presence of education. The Wife of Bath has traveled a great deal and seems knowledgeable about things of the world. She brings up many valid points throughout the prologue, but Chaucer voids her opinion because of her social class and looks, when in truth she is actually wise. On the contrary, the Prioress is considered â€Å"scholastic† and high class due to her good manners. Her ability to speak French puts her character in a higher class category. Thus, once again the Prioress is considered intelligent. Wife of Baths action and thinking not only differ from the Prioress, but almost from everyone else in the Middle Ages. The Wife of Bath is radical especially when it comes to relationship with men. She is characterized as knowing much about love, which is illustrated by her physical description being gap-toothed, which symbolizes â€Å"sexual accomplishment.† Its interesting how the Wife of Bath is always striving to have sovereignty and the Prioress was granted sovereignty even though she didnt seek for it intentionally. The Wife of Bath and the Prioress alike have power over men once again this characterization would scare men. The Prioress, as her name suggests is a â€Å"superior being in a monastic community for women† is so important that â€Å"three priests were in her company† (168); as this shows her status as the boss, which would be fearful for men at that time. Early in the tale, there is a quotation by the Wife of Bath supporting the idea of mens fear. â€Å"I dont deny that I will have my husbands both my debtor and my slave, and as long as I am his wife he shall suffer in the flesh. I will have command over his body during all of his life, not he.† In other words she is saying that she will have total control over herself, her husband, and their household. Wife of Bath has a choice of not giving in to the man, but she decides to let the man have pleasure for his desire not hers. Because from her past experience, she knows how much men enjoy when women are submissive . Ironically, â€Å"She (Prioress) was all sentiment† (154), this is shown through her use of the Jew as the villain of her tale. However, there is no historical evidence of ritual murder of Christian children by Jews, but that would have not mattered to the pilgrims. This tale also reinforces her devotion to the church and this characterization can be seen as a fear to some men as they are unable to obtain her. This is the only time we see that Chaucer is telling us that the Prioress is not as perfect as she might have first seemed. She is basically a fake. A Prioress should take care of people but instead in Canterbury Tales, â€Å"she had little dogs,† (150) which was against the rules of the Church. She also loved to show off her dress, which is not something a nun would do. Chaucer now contrasts feelings in the Prioress with senses of the Wife of Bath. Prioress embodies fastidious sensibility. The Wife of Bath is the pole of elemental vitality. Prioress is â€Å"simple and coy† (123) and she never curses. However, she subtly violates the laws of her order by keeping pets, overdressing and taking on to a pilgrimage. On the other hand, Wife of Baths aggressiveness demonstrates of her instincts, appetites and will. She makes the institutions of Church: pilgrimage and marriage serve to her temperament. Chaucer developed two basic traits of her; Experience and desire for mastery. Its interesting to know that how Chaucer manipulates the mode of medieval romance with Prioress physically resembling a romance heroine, and the Wife of Bath is used in a romantic setting in Canterbury Tales. Both ways of using romance are connected with irony. Religious issues bring up another interesting contrast between the Wife of Bath and Prioress. Wife of Bath embodies empirical knowledge of facts; the Prioress embodies blind religious faith. Chaucer is trying to educate women through these tales, and say that there are times that one should be a feminist and times one should be not. In his compare and contrast, he shows in both women what men fear. Wife of Bath is excessively sex appealing, and the Prioress is generally filled with feelings. As we all know by now, that both of the womans are not what they seem to be, but they are the opposite of their class and status.