A lost property Essay Example for Free

A lost property Essay A lost property is one which is found in a locality where it is likely that its true owner had no intent of placing it and the owner is not likely to find it. On the other hand, misplaced property is one which the true owner placed it somewhere and forgot to pick it up. Conversely, abandoned property is one which the true owner intended to leave somewhere due to the state it was in (Litka Inman, 1983). This plane could have been termed as lost or abandoned. The collector of the airplane Doug Chaplin, thus lost in the court ruling since the plane was a lost and found property (Stewart, Warner Portman, 2008). The plane could have remained to be the property of Chaplin but since The Navy found it and because they are the true owners; they have a right to repossess it. Chaplin should have turned the plane over to the proper authorities. Moreover, if the owner does not go to claim it for a certain time period, then the plane could be reverted back to Chaplin (Warda, 2005). The plane was ruled to be belonging to The Navy even though Chaplin could have been rewarded for his effort to recover the plane. The court could also have ruled that the plane constituted an abandoned property and thus was supposed to be a property of the government of which The Navy was also part of the government. Chaplin could never win the case because the plane’s true owners were claiming it, in addition, the law holds that lost property should be returned to the owner. Even if Chaplin collected the plane as a relic, the plane still belonged to The Navy since under the common law of America, relics are entitled to their collector unless the true owner reclaims them. References Litka, M. P. ; Inman, J. E. (1983). The legal environment of business: Public and private laws. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Stewart, M. ; Warner, R. ; Portman, J. (2008). Every landlords legal guide. Berkeley, California: Nolo. Warda, M. (2005). Landlords rights and duties in Florida. Chicago, IL: Sourcebooks, Incorporated.

Personal Development Through Reflective Practice Personal Development Essay

Personal Development Through Reflective Practice Personal Development Essay The learning set was created on the first day of the course. Members were chosen at random based on their seating position in the room and that fellow work colleagues could not be part of any group. Our set therefore consisted of six strangers from different backgrounds and organisations. No direction was given about learning sets theory or practice. We met as a group over a period four months. Initially we struggled with making our learning set work. At times we wanted to apply formal structures. For example in week 3 we tried a self evaluation exercise from a text book (Pedler, Burgoyne, Boydell, 2007). Whilst that was helpful from an individual perspective it did not fully clarify what we were meant to achieve via the set or satisfy the eagerness of some members to put structures in place. However over a period of time the group has now gelled and is less negative about the concept of the learning set. We are still not fully behaving as a set as defined by theory e.g. we dont always spend time at each meeting to discuss specific issues, often digressing into wider debates (Revans, 1978) As a group we have followed the various stages of Tuckmans classic team development model. (Alan Chapman/Businessballs.com, 2010). The application of this model is shown in Appendix 1 Account of Learning Gains I was initially critical of the learning set process, as like others, I could not see where it was going beyond being a talking shop. Nonetheless I can see now that the process has developed me personally. This is not uncommon. for those who have persisted with the process (of action learning sets) this talk has proved to be a powerful agent of personal and business change (Clarke et al, 2006). I have learnt about my own and others learning styles. My learning style is activist/pragmatist (Appendix 2) compared to others in the group who were more in the styles of reflectors/theorists and therefore wishing to apply a more rigorous approach before engaging in the process. The set has allowed me to reflect on this style and I am now more reflective in my actions. I now consider options before acting whereas before I would almost identify the route to resolving a problem and determine my actions accordingly. My reflective diary shows that I have become more aware of group dynamics and how people behave in groups (appendix 3). This in turn has helped me make changes to my managerial style and behaviour in situations at work. It has also made me realise that as a manager you need to be continually reflecting and re-acting to deal with an ever changing world. I can now see that learning can be a social process and that learning is dynamic and affected by social context. Whilst we as a group have only had limited formal learning set time, what has really been effective is the informal time we have had as a learning set and as a cohort with other learners. In that time we have shared our experiences and learnt from each other. I have also developed friendships through this process. I am a now also more questioning and challenging of assumptions I may have held. The academic reading has helped me to do this but so too has having the opportunity to question and be questioned in a safe environment. At times this has been uncomfortable but the rigour of keeping a reflective diary has been invaluable in enabling me to see this. A Learning Set Process Review One of the key issues the set struggled with was not having a facilitator or any formal input to guide us from the onset. This had the potential to make the set a talking shop, which in the early days it was. Some timely input was provided but as Revans stated it is by being comrades in adversity i.e. having to make sense of the learning set for our MBA that we managed to progress. (Revans, 1978). On balance I would say that having a facilitator to provide the set with a steer and maintain focus would be something I would change in future. Alternatively an introductory session on the principles of learning sets would have been helpful, though I appreciate, having been through the process, that this could potentially bias the learning that could be achieved. Bourner et al found that setting up set randomly had the potential of creating a group of group of leftovers who did not benefit from the learning set process. (Bourner Weinstein, 1996). This happened in our overall group and did influence my thinking about whether I should move sets but my overall comfortableness with ours and what I had surmised about others clouded my own thoughts around whether I should move sets (appendix 3). We had consistent attendance from members, except for one person who missed the initial sessions as well as the mining museum event. He subsequently did not return. I would argue that for the process to benefit an individual then s/he must attend regularly so that relationships as well as confidence to question can be built up. Commitment to the process is therefore critical. Time in meetings was also a critical factor. We probably only have had a handful of set meetings where we followed our agreed structure of each member putting forward an issue for debate. As we met only once a week meetings often did not get going and on occasions the time was taken up with other course related activities. We should have created opportunities to meet outside the set or used electronic means to communicate. Having people who were outside of each others work context helped set members gain views that are independent but also enabled members to talk frankly without fear of breaching confidentiality or work related sensitivities. This is a very powerful tool as often managers do not have access to such individuals. However that does require a certain amount of trust between members. This particularly helped me with the issue I brought to the learning set (appendix 3). The process also allowed us to have some thinking time outside of normal day to day work activities, again something that managers dont often find time to do. One hour just was not enough. I would change the time to at least one and a half hours. KEY SKILLS Ability to build sophisticated relationships with a variety of stakeholders and customers to help meet strategic organisational goals Dynamic leadership and management skills to lead and motivate individuals and teams to achieve targets and outcomes Excellent negotiating and problem solving skills Excellent influencing skills with excellent interpersonal and communication skills, both oral and written EMPLOYMENT HISTORY Development Manager Childrens Workforce Development Council May 2008 present Manage a team of 3 staff over seeing England wide youth workforce reform projects totaling over  £4m Member of management team for overall youth workforce reform programme with a total three year budget of  £25m Interim Head of Operations, North of England/East Midlands Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) October 2007 April 2008 Managed the setting up of four English regions for the newly created EHRC Provided leadership and direction to help each region produce strategic scoping reports mapping the equalities terrain to help inform future planning Regional Director, North of England and East Midlands Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) Oct 2006 to Oct 2007 Directed 4 regional offices with 13 staff based in Manchester, Leeds, Newcastle and Nottingham and ensured very effective working relationships with key regional agencies Prepared, delivered and evaluated the regional business plan Introduced and managed innovative art based projects in Merseyside, West Yorkshire and Middlesbrough respectively to support local level equality voluntary sector Carried out a fundamental review of equality networks across the North of England Diversity Director, North of England (secondment) Acas April 2004 to October 2006 Managed Acas equality work for the North of England Specialist diversity lead on three person Acas team that delivered collaborative working training to the United Nations in New York Developed first ever Acas/North West Development Agency Memorandum of Understanding for work on equality and diversity across the whole North West region Managed the first ever joint Business in The Community/Acas equality conference in March 2006 Conceptualised and project managed the first ever Fair Employment Zone with a budget of  £200k to provide employers with support, guidance and training on equality and diversity Head of Private Sector, Commission for Racial Equality October 2002 to March 2004 Lead the CREs national private sector team of 12 staff based in multiple locations and a budget of  £600k Developed and managed the CREs new strategy for working with the private sector Negotiated sponsorship of  £100k from HSBC and Post Office Ltd for the CREs Guide to Small to Medium enterprises Oversaw the production of the revised CRE Statutory Code of Practice in Employment Director, Equality Direct June 2001 to September 2002 Successfully set up and managed the first ever national government helpline on equality and diversity for employers. Trained, managed and supported 8 helpline advisers Drafted the Department for Education and Employments 10 point plan for employers Various positions including Head of Regional Strategy, Head of Legal Action Team, Social Policy Officer, Employment Officer, Commission for Racial Equality January 1988 to May 2001 Successfully project managed five public education exhibitions attended by over 2000 individuals and employers Managed the CREs funding ( £1m)of Race Equality Councils in the North of England, which included supporting the development of new organisations Developed in conjunction with the Rugby Football League the first ever campaign to tackle racism in Rugby League- Tackle It Deputy Supervisor/ Trainer, Dewsbury Trust Fund March 1984 to December 1987 Supervised a Community Programme scheme which provided and created training and employment opportunities for over 20 long term unemployed ethnic minorities ANALYSIS OF THE CHILDRENS WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL Introduction The Childrens Workforce Development Council (CWDC) is an England wide executive non-departmental public body set up in 2005 whose vision is to create a world-class workforce for Children, Young People and Families. It does this in two ways by supporting people working with them have the best possible training, qualifications, support and advice and by helping children and young peoples organisations and services to work together better (CWDC, 2010) It receives an annual grant from the governments Department of Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) for distinct projects and core management costs. Its budget and staffing have seen massive growth over the last five years. The organisation is strategically managed by a Board of Directors and operationally managed by a senior management team (SMT) consisting of the Chief Executive and five Directors. The SMT is supported by a small planning and performance unit (Appendix 4). Each Directorate consists of smaller teams which are responsible for programmes of work and projects. Woodward refers to these as task functions, namely the basic activities related to producing organisational outcomes. Central functions such as IT, Finance and Procurement, Human Resource Management referred to by Woodward as element functions i.e. those activities that support the task function sit within separate Directorates. (Woodward, as quoted in Mullins, 2007). The HQ is in Leeds with a small number of home-based staff. The majority of these are senior staff, but also includes singleton regional managers in the nine English regions. Appendix 5 shows how the delivery of programmes for the workforce is managed within one of the directorates. Projects are grouped into programmes consisting of small project teams. Each programme is answerable to a programme board consisting of key officials from CWDC and its sponsor body, DCSF. Critical Appraisal Appendix 6 provides a SWOT analysis for CWDC. This shows that as a public body it operates in a complex and challenging environment, facing pressures and demands from a large group of stakeholders/sources. CWDC is an infrastructure body that does not provide direct services to the workforce it serves and is attempting to upskill and reform the workforce to make it more effective in working with children and young people. To achieve this CWDC has put in place a significant bespoke electronic project management system into which all projects relate. This has yielded benefits in terms of consistency, accountability and close management of projects. However it is a heavily bureaucratic system which takes up significant staff time and has lead to a feeling that the system is driving the organisation. Accountability has become a key driver for CWDC and is influencing its way of delivering its aims. All projects have significant sign off processes including SMT approval. Outward facing activity such as press releases, publications, conference speeches also require sign off at this level. Whilst this is appropriate as it ensures alignment with organisational strategy, it does create a risk averse culture and makes decision making feel longer as well causing managers to feel that they cant make decisions. CWDCs structure is a tall hierarchical one that has evolved as it has grown in size. The SMT have large directorates and responsibility for staff is devolved and within Urwicks span of control is within the optimum number of six. Fayols scalar chain showing the direct line from the top to the bottom is clear and well understood across CWDC. Whilst this brings advantages in terms of clear lines of authority and accountability, it can also lead to demotivated and disempowered staff, where staff may feel that they have no say or involvement in decision making. Having a centralised base enables CWDC to ensure that there is a consistent approach to strategy and implementation across the organisation and enables more interaction between directorates. On the whole this is effective but having the majority of its senior staff as home workers and out of the office on a day to day basis can mitigate against this. To avoid this there is a significant use of emails and teleconferencing as well as two all staff conferences each year. The excessive use of email is however potentially counterproductive as it can lead to poorer communication, information overload, be a substitute for face to face contact, be used as a control tool thereby creating stress to staff. CWDCs limited regional staff presence also has the potential to create distance between the end user (the workforce) and CWDC. This is however compensated for via strong links with representative or employer bodies as well as regional roadshows. A DETAILED ANALYSIS OF THE MANAGERIAL JOB ROLE. Definition of Managerial Role Despite the fact that the theory on what a manager is or does have developed significantly over the last 100 years ago, it is not easy to define the role of a manager. In the early 1900s, F. W. Taylor pioneered the idea of one best way model to manage employees and structure to achieve maximum performance. Taylorism put forward the idea that the role of the manager was different to that of a worker. Around the same time. Henry Fayol identified five key functions of a manger namely planning, organising, co-ordinating, commanding and controlling. These hold true today though arguably the function of commanding has been replaced with motivating staff to achieve. (Stewart,1999) The work of Stewart and Mintzberg several years later took a slightly different approach to the work of the manager. They identified some key aspects such as managers not operating in orderly well organised worlds, managers interacting and managing relationships with lots of people not just their direct staff, and continually having to work in a fragmented world of variety, at pace and with little free time. (Stewart 1999,) This is particularly true for me where I find that day to day plans can easily be thrown out of kilter due to unplanned events or circumstances. Mintzberg identified ten roles common to all managers, which he put into three categories as set out below. Mintzberg suggested that a manager had to perform various roles dependent on the particular situation or context. The table (appendix 7) sets out the groupings alongside examples from my work practice: In todays world, many of the roles identified by early theorists are relevant, however the world has changed dramatically since then. The significant advances in technology, impact on how managers carry out the informational roles Mintzberg refers to. For example in my experience e-mails, internet and the company intranet now play a major role in enabling information to be disseminated without the need for the manager to do so. Today, managers also need to have the right set of hard and soft skills to manage the complex and ever-changing world, including interpersonal skills.(Mullins 2007). Important issues for the future include managing change, leadership and motivation of staff, managing diversity, the development of human resources..(Mullins 2007) Making operational decisions On a daily basis I make operational decisions namely those decisions that concern the day to day running of my area of responsibility (Teale et al, 2003) and those whose impact is immediate on the organisation (Beckford 2001). Such decisions tend to be programmed ones namely those that relate to recurring problems that have occurred often enough to enable a standard response (Daft Marcic, 2009).In my context such decisions include decisions on which supplier to use, use of agency staff, procuring of supplies, recruiting, retaining staff. The factors I take into account, dependent on the context, will include: existing organisational policies and practices. This is to ensure consistency as well as compliance to company processes and policies whether I have all the facts available to me or if I need to obtain further information budget availability e.g. when replacing staff, or sanctioning costs for services risk evaluation e.g. considering the risk to the organisation in the decision. Most of these operational decisions will be minimal risk as they fall under my command of control. However on occasions for example terminating a contract may have wider ramifications which may well involve consultation with more senior staff impact on staff in team e.g. making decisions of staff leave requests and whether cover is available whether I need to consult with others to help arrive at the decision Options available to the manager for influencing senior managers Research has identified the importance of upward influence as a key factor in the effectiveness of managers (Case, Dosier, Murkison, Keys, 1998). There are a number of options available to do this. Reason or using a logical well prepared and presented argument with supporting data and documentation appears to be an effective one when trying to put a case forward (Case, Dosier, Murkison, Keys, 1998; Bhatnagar, 1993). An example of this in my practice is attached at Appendix 8. However there is more to influencing than just having a good argument, building relationships is extremely important. (Paulson, 1991). A manager will therefore need to: See things from their senior managers perspective Keep the manager informed to enable them to do their job Be friendly but keep a professional distance Put forward solutions to problems Support the manager but not to the point of being a yes person and express reservations in private This last bullet point has some relevance to me. My reflective diary (incident of 14-16/10/09-appendix 3) shows I need to recognise this aspect more and where appropriate challenge my boss. Operational management-level meeting A key to the success of any meeting is preparation (Kendrick, 2004). Appendix 9 shows an example of how this works in my meetings. This particular meeting refers to the contract inception meeting with a contractor for a complex  £4m project. As such prior to the meeting I met with one of my team and agreed all the areas to be covered. An agenda is always produced, based on the purpose of the meeting and expected outcomes from it. The agenda is structured in such a way that it allows time for reviewing action points from previous meeting and prioritising the major items for discussion in order of priority. It also includes an item at the end for round of agreed actions. This is to ensure that participants leave the meeting with a clear understanding of the nature of and owner of the agreed actions. A note taker is critical in key meetings to ensure accurate note taking and enable me to chair and facilitate the meeting. Minutes reflecting the key areas of discussion and action points are always produced within a few days of meeting, so as to ensure completion of actions in advance of the next meeting. Following the meeting a de-brief is held with the note taker to ensure all points have been captured but also to check that the meetings objectives have been realised (Kendrick 2004). Due to the importance of these meeting I chair them. This enables me to ensure control as the contract manager. However my style is participatory and informal to allow full contribution from all participants, as it is in the organisational interest that contractors work together with us to deliver this project. Delegating effectively Time is at a premium for a manager (Stewart, 1999). Delegation is necessary to ensure that decisions are made at the lowest level to save organisational cost and free up time for management duties (Mullins 2007). However delegation must not be seen as a reason for merely dumping work onto staff or abdicating managerial responsibilities (Jones, 1979). Not all work, though, can be delegated e.g. supervision, planning, disciplinary matters which must remain with the manager (Ghazda, 2002). The key to successful delegation lies in having a planned and systematic approach to it (Mullins, 2007). Before determining whether to delegate the manager needs to be clear on the task and whether the task is being delegated for results or for employee development (Ghazda, 2002). Assumptions should also not be made about the willingness of the employee to take on the task (McConalogue, 1993). They may be afraid of failure or lack confidence (Jones, 1979). Managers need to be aware of this. The manager should also set clear objectives and identify with the employee what the expected results are (Ghazda, 2002), which should be written down (Jones, 1979). Guidance and support should be provided throughout without being too instructive as this will inhibit employee development (Mullins, 2007; Jones, 1979). Employees must be able to feel that authority has been passed on without fear of the manager constantly interfering or checking on them i.e. having the freedom of action within agreed terms (Mullins, 2007). Monitoring of the task is important and should be defined at the onset through agreed milestones (Ghazda, 2002). Manager should also check progress informally and through ongoing supervision. On reflection my practice covers most of the requirements for effective delegation. However I need to do more on formally considering employee willingness to carry out the tasks delegated to them and write down clear objectives as per paras 18-19 above. Mentoring and supporting others There are numbers of definitions of mentoring, but one that is interesting is below which highlights that mentoring can be beneficial to both the mentor and mentee. Mentoring is a learning partnership between two people with different levels of experience and with the potential to achieve new learning, new insight and personal growth (Poulsen, 2006) Mentoring uses all types of helping to learn styles i.e. coaching, counselling, guiding and networking (Clutterbuck, 2004). Mentoring can be formal and structured or informal, but for it to succeed it needs to have a structure but operate informally (Clutterbuck, 2004). On reflection, I can say that I have not formally mentored my staff but I believe that at times I have followed the four learning to help styles primarily in a job task completion context. Nor did I realise its potential development benefits for me and staff. A follow up action is for me to informally mentor a member of CWDC staff and this has been incorporated into my Learning and Development Plan (see Appendix 10) PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT Training and Development History Appendix 11 sets out my personal training and development history. My development has been primarily related to my previous career within the equality industry. In particular my development has been through spending twenty years rising up the ranks at the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE), achieving a high level position managing four regions within England. During that time I also went on secondment twice to enhance my knowledge and experience of working in other organisations. Following closure of the CRE, I became a consultant. This did not last long as I found the lack of uncertainty around work to be unsuitable and I missed the security of working within teams an established organisation. My self analysis using Belbins eight group roles showing me as a team worker supports this (Appendix 12). I therefore chose to take a lower level job in a new area (workforce reform policy) on the understanding that I would, within 2-3 years, obtain a higher level position within the new company or outside it. Learning and Development Plan My learning development plan (LDP) at Appendix 10 is based on my work related appraisal (appendix 13), issues arising from my assessment against the CMI standards (para 10 below) as well as the completion of the University of Huddersfields Guide to Reflective Practice Workbook (appendix 14). A key area I would like to focus is developing my own resilience to deal with situations in a more rounded manner. This will require me to be continuously reflect on my behaviours in different contexts. I have found the rigour of using a template for reflection for my learning set particularly useful and have started to extend this to other situations. A significant strength that has been identified is my competency to develop effective working relationships both within my team and externally. Comments from my line manager support this: One of your strongest competences (working with others). You inspire others to work with you and balance a range of personal and external demands. The learning on your management course is beginning to pay dividends and providing a theoretical background to your personal approach. It is helping you to achieve at the higher levels of this competence (Appendix 13) Reflection on the significance of the MBA programme The programme is significant for me for the following reasons: It will provide me with a qualification to support my 20+ years of management experience, which in turn will lead to new opportunities for progression to a more strategic management position within my existing employer or externally It will enable me to engage with current and new management ideas and practices thereby influencing my future practice. I will hear views and perspectives from other managers from other sector Both of the above will make me a better manager and leader. I am already benefitting from attendance on the programme. In particular it has helped me identify my strengths as well as areas for development. My knowledge of the theoretical aspects of e.g. managing people is also influencing my approaches to work situations. Attendance on the course has particularly given me the confidence to think differently and if necessary challenge in situations where previously I would not have. Progress in meeting the Chartered Manager standards. Appendices 15-16 provide a self assessment against the Chartered Manager standards using the National Occupational Standards for Management and Leadership. (http://www.management-standards.org). This shows that I meet many of the required standards either in my current role or through previous experience. Areas for improvement are: Consistently apply strategic thinking Adapt leadership style to take account of diverse situations Identify opportunities for change and development Establish information management and communication systems Manage complexity to positive effect Optimise use of financial and other resources Demonstrate resilience on achieving personal goals

Americans without Health Insurance Essay -- Medical Insuance Health

The Uninsured States of America Nearly 48 million Americans had no health care coverage in 2005, and the number will continue to grow if this country does not enact new policies to defuse this crisis (Families USA 2). Families USA, a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization that advocates for public health contracted with Dr. Kenneth Thorpe, Professor and Chair of the Department of Health Policy and Management at Emory University, to analyze data from the U.S. Census Bureau and other national databases to study the fiscal impact on this country of so many uninsured people. This study, released in June 2005, found that the overwhelming majority of uninsured people are workers in low-wage jobs (Families 10). With the advent of national welfare reform in 1996, millions of people entered the low-wage workforce and lost their Medicaid eligibility. According to Judith Feder, Dean of Policy Studies at Georgetown University, â€Å"Since most people leaving welfare find themselves in low-paying jobs without coverage, loss of public coverage leaves them without health coverage altogether† (Feder 29). Moreover, many corporations, pressured by global competition to hold down labor costs, are increasingly asking their employees to share a greater portion of the escalating cost of health insurance premiums, if employers offer benefits at all. In fact, a study by the Commonwealth Fund reports that more than one-quarter of workers in companies with over 500 employees do not receive employer-based coverage, and that one in every three full-time workers with incomes below $35,000 is uninsured (Commonwealth 1). Low-wage workers are therefore caught in an untenable situation. They do not qualify for Medicaid and cannot afford to buy hea... ..."The State of Health Care." The Heritage Foundation. 21 January 2004. The Heritage Foundation. 13 Mar. 2006 . "Paying a Premium." Families USA. 1 June 2005. Families USA. 20 Mar. 2006 Rowland, Diane. Committe on Ways and Means. 9 March 2004. House Committee on Ways and Means. 13 Mar. 2006 . "The Uninsured: A Primer." Kaiser Family Foundation. 1 January 2006. Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured. 20 Mar. 2006 . Wilson, Katherine. "Snapshot: Health Care Costs 101, 2005 Edition." CHCF. June 2005. California Health Care Foundation. 13 Mar. 2006 .

The Prioress Tale :: essays research papers

The Prioress’ Tale Prologue Prioress, now it is your time, Speak up loud, be not a mime. â€Å"Fine then, I’ll tell you a tale from my mother, ‘Twill be unique, unlike any other. My story will teach you change isn’t good, Understand it you will, make you better it should.† The Tale Across the town and down the street People stopped to sample his delicious treat Sweet, thick and full of custardy goodness There was a man, not Elliot Ness Who fulfilled the Bronx’s pudding needs. A fat man, he was, pudding was his seed To plant on the earth to grow. The lunch rush on Monday was quite slow, But Pudding Man knew not what to do. So he shut down his shop and put on his shoe And walked right home and started to nap, He fell asleep quick, unlike dripping maple sap. All of a sudden something made him scream, Was it a seizure, no it was just a dream. The dream inspired him to rethink his life Should he shut down his shop or kill himself with a knife? No, Pudding Man thought to himself, Just remodel the shop and add some new shelves. Change his image and his shops image too, Add new flavors of pudding, none tasting like poo. The next day Pudding Man began his plan, New recipes, new store front, new sign that read â€Å"Pudding Man.† Even with the new image, no business came. In fact his new image was incredibly lame. Then Pudding Man began to think, Appeal to new customers, along the lines of a mink. â€Å"I’ll cater to animals of all different kind, I’ll make new recipes that I think up in the mind.† Scour the world is what Pudding Man did, Looking for new ingredients, like Beruitan Malkafid, Venezuelan Tapioca and Chinese Vanilla Bean, Would make his pudding quite peachy keen. And for decoration add a bone or catnip His pudding was so good, his dog licked his lip. Pudding Man thought to himself, â€Å"I don’t know what I should, Oh well, I’ll make it up, just knock on wood.† He opened for business at a quarter to eight, He arrived early, not to be late. The first customer strolled in at 7:46, Hoping for goo business, he prayed not for a jinx. The customer brought in his pet porcupine. â€Å"My pet ‘pine likes pudding, and yours looks quite fine.† The man told our jovial Pudding Man. So, He ordered a bowl of Mongolian Poe. â€Å"What is exactly Poe, my good fellow?† Pudding Man didn’t know but he acted quite mellow. â€Å"Ummmmm†¦it tastes likes a mixture of apples and grapes.† But what Pudding Man didn’t know, is that Poe was the snot of apes.

The Inflence of Rivers and Climate on Baghdad, Iraq Essay -- Environme

The Inflence of Rivers and Climate on Baghdad, Iraq The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, along with their reaction to the climate, have both helped and hurt Baghdad, Iraq. The rivers provided pathways to other civilizations, allowing Baghdad to grow into the transportation and cultural center of Iraq. Its fertile soil, deposited by flooding, provided the area with the ability to become the birthplace of civilization through tremendous agricultural production. Although the flooding of the rivers greatly enhanced the area, it has also had disastrous effects, severely damaging food production and the culture of its people. Baghdad’s geographical location has allowed the city to flourish due to the availability of transportation. The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers have encouraged trade between societies, enhancing cultural and economic development. Every new development of transportation has helped the expansion of Baghdad, an example being the invention of the steamboat. The relatively fast moving ships brought significant wealth to the area by permitting more frequent communication and travel to other societies. Less navigable sections of the rivers were later made passable by the establishment of navigation channels. The need for more transportation systems led to the construction of railways, including more than thirty bridges crossing the rivers which connect Baghdad with much of the rest of the country.1 Baghdad, possessing vast highways, railways, canals, and an airport as a result of its ease of development by geographic and climatic advantages, is the center of Iraqi transportation. The hot, arid summer climate of Iraq precipitates next to no rain, causing winter rains to significantly increase water levels. The clima... ...ad, occupied Iraq †, International Action Center, New York City, New York, 22 November 2004. http://www.iacenter.org/wct_ghazwan.htm Al-Obaidi, Hisham and Toumia, Noor J., History of Iraq, 2004. 2 November 2004. http://www.geocities.com/iraq4everjo/history.htm Eating the Iraq Way, 22 November 2004. http://www.settlement.org/cp/english/iraq/eating.html Office of the Iraq Programme Oil-for-Food, Oil-for-Food, 4 November 2004. 9 December 2004. http://www.un.org/Depts/oip/background/index.html Railroads, Water Resources, Country Studies US, 9 December 2004. http://countrystudies.us 1 Railroads, Water Resources 2 Al-Obaidi, Hisham and Toumia, Noor J., History of Iraq 3 Al-Mukhtar, Ghazwan, â€Å"WTI testemony from Iraq: Baghdad, occupied Iraq † 4 Eating the Iraq Way 5 Railroads, Water Resources 6 Office of the Iraq Programme Oil-for-Food, Oil-for-Food

Leadership Styles and Employee Ethical/Unethical Behavior Essay

Transformational leaders encourage followers to embrace moral values and to act in the interest of the collective rather than self interest. Transformational leaders are thought to raise followers’ level of moral development and to focus followers’ attention on higher level needs and values. Transactional leaders rely on rewards and punishments to direct followers’ behaviour. Transactional leaders are inconsistent with moral leadership because transactional approaches ignore followers’ needs and aspirations and that transactional leaders focus on the status quo rather than on an inspiring vision of the future and may be motivated by their own achievement and power rather than followers’ needs. Multidimensional transformational leadership construct with the following dimensions which consist on individualized consideration, intellectual stimulation, idealized influence, and inspirational motivation. Transformational leadership has been associated with many positive outcomes such as workers’ satisfaction with work and the leader, organizational commitment, citizenship behaviours, and job performance. Ethical leadership is not a rare phenomenon in today’s business organizations. Ethical leaders are both â€Å"moral persons† and â€Å"moral managers†. We think of the â€Å"moral person† as representing the â€Å"ethical† part of the term â€Å"ethical leadership,† and we think of the â€Å"moral manager† as representing the â€Å"leadership† part of that term. Ethical leaders are thought to be moral persons because they are honest and trustworthy, take good care of their people, and do the right things in both their personal and professional lives. They make decisions based on values and ethical decision rules, and they are fair and concerned about stakeholders’ interests and long-term outcomes. As moral managers, ethical leaders are clear about their expectations of followers. They are visible role models of ethical behaviour, communicate with their people about their ethical and values-based expectations, and use the reward system to hold followers accountable for ethical conduct. The relationship between leadership and employee ethical conduct can be explain by social learning and social exchange. In accordance with a social learning perspective, they behave ethically in their personal and professional lives, and they make decisions based on ethical principles and the long-term interest of multiple stakeholders. Ethical leaders send clear messages to organizational members about expected behaviour and use the reward system to hold everyone accountable to those expectations. This aspect of ethical leadership depends on social learning and can be viewed as more transactional than transformational because followers behave ethically and refrain from unethical conduct largely due to the observed consequences. In social exchange perspective, ethical leaders were described as being trustworthy and as treating their people with care, concern, and fairness. As such, they are likely to create social exchange relationships with their subordinates, who can be expected to reciprocate this care and fair treatment by engaging in citizenship behaviours and by refraining from unethical conduct. Ethical leaders are likely to influence their followers to engage in ethical conduct and to refrain from unethical conduct by way of multiple processes that rely on both transformational and transactional approaches to leadership. There are several potential limitations on the role of leadership. First, we expect that some employees will be less influence by leaders than will others. Second, employees at the lowest levels of cognitive moral development (preconventional) should be less influenced by leaders than by reward system contingencies. Third, ethical leadership may be less influential in homogeneous settings where leaders and their followers share values based on age and cultural similarity. Fourth, Supervisory leaders may be more or less influential depending on characteristics of their work group such as size and type of work. For example, the larger the span of control, the more difficult it may be to communicate ethical standards and to hold work group members accountable. Fifth, individual leaders may also be less influential to the extent that the organization has a strong ethical climate and culture that incorporates formal and informal systems to support ethical conduct. Lastly, some organizations have a strong culture and climate that supports unethical conduct. For example, Douglas Durand had worked for 20 years at Merck & Company which had a strong ethical culture where ethics and social responsibility were taken seriously. Once he arrived, he quickly discovered a culture where sales representatives bribed doctors, did not account appropriately for free samples, and engaged in Medicare fraud. Durand tried to change the culture but failed to do so. Much leadership research does not distinguish between the executive and supervisory levels, although such a distinction is likely to be important for leaders’ influence on ethics related outcomes. Based on our executive ethical leadership data, we inferred four types of executive leader which are ethical leader, unethical leader, hypocritical leader and ethically neutral leader. In conclusion, leaders should play an important role in influencing employee and to be an ethical leader who can be viewed as an attractive, credible, and legitimate role model who engages in normatively appropriate behaviour and makes the ethics message salient.

From 1600 †1763

From 1600 – 1763, several European nations vied for control of the North American continent. Why did England win the struggle? Support your answer with details of each nation's successes and failures. From the early 1600’s to the mid 1700’s, several European nations vied to control North America. Spain, Great Britain, and France were all powerhouses trying to colonize the free world and create a massive empire. Out of the three, England won the struggle because of failures made by the Spanish and French in the years before the American Revolution.The Spanish were the most powerful nation before the colonizing of the West Indies began. They had the Spanish Armada who was known for never losing a single battle. They also had all the riches in the world from all of their explorations. Unfortunately, during the early 1600’s, the Spanish began to experience fatigue from overextension with their army. The Spanish had to take care of problems in their Dutch terri tories causing them to leave the West Indian Islands and Jamaica open for grabs.Great Britain would eventually claim it and they began to work with sugar, the rich man’s crop. One difference between the British and Spanish motives for colonizing was that the Spanish based part of their time converting people to Catholic. The British were not concerned with religion, but more concerned with expanding their empire and making a profit. So by now, the British had colonized most of the Atlantic coast from Maryland down to Georgia. Another nation that wanted to have control over North America was the French.The French owned land from Quebec all the way down to the end of the Mississippi River in New Orleans. They basically controlled â€Å"middle† America. The French were in the business of trapping and fur trade. A very profitable business, but not a very sustainable one on its own. The French never really had a chance to control the New World because they were not as power ful as the Spanish or the British. France lost their hopes of having control in North America when they lost the French and Indian War with Great Britain.Great Britain’s victory over the French caused them to give up most of the land that they claimed and now half of the United States was in control of the British. England won the struggle for control of North America because when they saw a chance to pick up more land from another country, they would grab it. They had the army power to go to war with France and the Spanish had too much on their plate which weakened them. The English controlled the east coast of North America and had many profitable industries such as tobacco, sugar, and indigo. England won based on their power and strategy.