The Revolution Of The Banking System In China Finance Essay - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 16 Words: 4899 Downloads: 6 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Narrative essay Did you like this example? Introduction When discussing the impact of Basel ÃÆ' ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒâ€šÃ‚ ¡ on banking risk management in China, the liberalization process and considerable reform of banking industry in China will significantly interpret the establishment of modern banking industry and the environment of risk management in banking industry in the past thirty years. Furthermore, this section will indicate particularly significant problems which banks face during the implementation of risk management. This section will introduce the history of liberalization process of banking industry in China and the overall picture of banking risk management in China. 3.1 The Reform of Banking Industry in China As Open Door policy implemented in 1978, the banking sector has experienced the series of specific reforms and other important corresponding deregulation and regulation processes. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Revolution Of The Banking System In China Finance Essay" essay for you Create order Early Stage Prior to the economic reforms in 1979, Chinas banking system, as a product of centrally planned economy, was not modern; the role of banks was only for collecting revenue from state-owned enterprises and allocating investment through budgetary grants (Huang 1992). Mainly, the large-amount of funds states-owned enterprises (SOEs) required were supplied by the Ministry of Finance; the Peoples Bank of China, established in 1948, issued cash simply for the reason of providing extra credits needed by the SOEs to cover labour cost and purchases of working capital. Also, the PBC was responsible for the execution, supervision and accounting of the country. The crucial institutional changed was brought by the former leader Deng Xiaoping who transformed China from a command to a socialist market economy, With parallel to the economic reconstruction, the government introduced the two-tier banking system in February 1979. The monopolistic position of PBC ended after the setup of four stated -owned commercial banks. The Agricultural Bank of China was formed to take over PBCs rural banking business of a network of 60 000 credit cooperatives. The Bank of China focused foreign currency transactions; the China Construction Bank focused on the construction industry; the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China focused on commercial lending and borrowing. The PBC become entirely a central bank in 1994, of which all the commercial banking activities were transferred the forth SOB, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (International Monetary Fund, 1996). After that, the Peoples Bank of China no longer dealing with deposit and loan business and only functioned for planning of monetary policy and for supervising the financial system. But it was acknowledged that PBC was not an independent regulatory body, which was under the State Council, and it implied that setting monetary policy was subject to the approval of the Council (Sayuri Shirai 2001). In addition, the problems o f PBC were authorized to allocate loans under the aggregate credit ceiling, while this autonomy left a room for the collusion between branch officers and the local governments who wished for more money. Under the reform, those state-owned banks, on top of commercial business, furnished policy loans to those SOEs, which were not for the purpose of profit making. That was, even it was known that a state-owned enterprise suffered from massive losses, and the loss would be continued, the specialized banks still had the obligation to supplied them loans. Providing loans to money-losing SOEs was the main reason why the non-performing loans grew so fast in the 1990s as these policy loans nearly constituted one third of total loans. China International Trust and Investment Corporation (CITIC), as well as other international trust and investment companies, was found in the 1980s, which functioned as a channel of raising funds from foreign sources. At the same time, there were local tru st and investment companies planted by the four SOBs as affiliates to expand another form of business, and by the local governments that required a higher return of deposits and that needed to finance priority projects. Also, it was acknowledged that other banks started such as China Investment Bank and CITIC Industrial Bank. On top of that, there were very distinctive non-bank institutions, rural and urban credit cooperatives, which were unique to the command economy (S). The rural credit cooperatives (RCCs) were small financial institutions jointly owned by farmers through equity stock to receive deposits and grant loans to the rural areas. Similar to RCCs, the urban credit cooperative (URRs) provided saving and lending services in medium- and large-size cities. Despite the fact that these cooperatives were controlled by the government, they were able to enjoy a certain degree of autonomy. Reforms since 1990 The major reconstructions of Chinas banking sector were in the aspects of privatization of banks, financial liberalization, strengthening of accounting and regulation and the management of non-performing loans. Separating from policy-lending to commercial activities Owing to the issues of policy-lending that pushed up banks bad debt, the Peoples Bank of China implemented a major reform in 1994, whose focus was on the separation between commercial business and policy-lending (International Monetary Fund 1996). Nearly all the policy loans from the four SOBs were transferred to the three newly-instituted policy-lending banks, Agriculture Development Bank of China, Export-Import Bank of China and China Development Bank. It was intended that the state-owned banks were transformed into commercial banks with acceptable capital adequacy ratio and better management. As the Commercial Banking Law was promulgated in 1995, the commercial banks were subject to more vigorous regulations on working capitals and human resources. For instance, the minimum registered capital of state-owned commercial banks and share-type commercial banks was set at RMB 1 billion. Senior managers were required to possess, at least, a university degree in finance and 8 years of e xperiences in the financial sector. This was, in addition, the first time for China to introduce macro-economic control. As the deficiency of PBC in controlling credit allocation and in monitoring non-bank institutions induced funds shifted from banks to unregulated sectors, bubbles in real estate and stock markets were formed. As a result, the tightening policy was executed to reduce the decline in banks deposits on one hand, and to solve the liquidity squeeze on the other hand. Yet, the installation of policy-lending banks did not solve the question that the big four still extended credit to many non-profitable state-owned companies. It was true that some of those SOEs with very unacceptable performance became more difficult for extra funding since the state banks gradually turned into more prudent and were more flexible in choosing their clients. Policy-lending, for all that, existed in the state-owned banks, which in principle, only dealt with commercial activities (Cao 20 00). Though it was not very explicit, central government continued to intervene, even until now, the allocation of funding in the four main banks to those loss-making SOEs. The role of private financial institution was very restrained. Furthermore, there, as mentioned before, were interferences of the local governments on the branches of state-owned banks. The corruption in lending activities was, at least to some extent, controlled by the rule that headquarters of SOEs had the exclusive right to appoint bank managers of provincial branches. It was no longer the case that the selection process required the agreement to both local governments and those headquarters. The influence of local government on commercial loans, consequently, was refined (Sayuri Shirai 2001). It was noted that there were share-type commercial banks which started very different to the prevailing banking system. These banks possessed not only the policy-oriented nature as they required to follow governmen t policies, but also conformed to market principles of a well-defined equity structure. The banks, established by local governments for supplied capital resources for the Special Economic Zones (SEZs), were aimed at breaking the monopolist position of the four state-owned banks. The banks with new structure enjoyed a close relationship with local government, at the same time, were independent in the sense that they were able to conduct business according to proper legal procedures and coping with the needs of economic development. Examples included Guangdong Development Bank, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank and Shenzhen Development Bank. On the other hand, it was acknowledged that in 1986, the PBC authorized the establishment of the Huitong Cooperative Bank of Chengdu, which was the first private banking institution. In 1996 first public traded private bank, the China Minshen Banking Corporation was created. But it was the fact that the presence of private bank in China was very ne gligible (S). Interest rate deregulation Interest rates were always closely related to the banking system. To privatize the banking system implied that it was necessary to liberalize interest rate markets. Banks in the late 1980s were permitted to change lending rates within a certain margin below and above the administrated rate. Next, the central bank launched a set of lending rate ceilings and fools: a ceiling at 20% of the basic rate, and a floor at 10% on commercial banks; a ceiling at 30%, and a floor at 10% on urban credit cooperatives; a ceiling at 60%, and a floor at 10% on rural credit cooperatives. Although PBC lessened this flexibility in 1996, the liberalization process went on the ceiling was set at 20% for loans to small and medium enterprises, and at 50% for UCCs in 1998, and the ceiling for lending to state-owned enterprises was further increased to 30% (S). Afterwards, the rates of lending and saving were allowed to adjust within a range of the benchmark rate provided by the government. In January 20 04, PBC broadened the floating range of financial institutions lending rates (the Peoples Bank of China 2004). The upper limit of commercial banks and urban credit cooperatives lending rates increased to 1.7 times the benchmark lending rate, with that of rural credit cooperatives was raised to 2 times the benchmark rate. The lower limit of financial institutions lending rates was kept unchanged to 0.9 times the benchmark rate. And it was noted that this flexibility in lending rates applies to all types of financial institution, regardless of their ownerships or sizes. Another major reform was the liberalization of interest rates on foreign currency loans and on the foreign currency deposits of $3 million or more. The rates on deposits of less than $3 million were set by the China Association of Banks. Besides, the interbank markets were emerged into a computer-based national market in January 1996, (Sayuri Shirai 2001), for which PBC fixed a reference rate. Six months later, the market became more elastic as the ceiling on interbank rates was eliminated. In 1997, an interbank market which, for the most part, handled repo arrangements was instituted. This secondary bond markets, as a tool of open market operation, helped the government implement monetary policies. Notwithstanding the fact that interest rates in China became more flexible, the rates were served as monetary tools and on the whole, determined by the Peoples Bank of China. Management of non-performing loans The Chinese leaders began to address the issue of bad loan in 1994 by constructing the three policy banks. Nevertheless, it was not sufficient that this problem continued to grow, a series of reforms emphasizing recapitalization and management of NPLs were adopted. In 1998, the government, by issuing of bonds, injected RMB 270 billion into the 4 state-owned banks (Mo 1999). In 1999, International Finance Corporation (IFC) completed an equity investment in the Bank of Shanghai, as well as contributed US$ 27 billion in the Nanjing City Commercial Bank in 2001. In addition, the IFC assisted those small and medium-sized non-state banks that conducted business in the western part of China. Apart from recapitalization, PBC also arranged a debt-equity swap of RMB 5 billion for saving the nearly bankrupt Everbright Trust and Investment Company (ETIC), which could not repay its maturity debt. At the same time, this swap protected the companys largest creditors including a state oil firm and 2 SOBs. Another way of Chinese government used for reconstructing the Chinese banks was the declaring closure and bankruptcy insolvent financial institutions. During the period of 1997-1998, PBC closed the very financial problematic Hainan Development Bank, as well as 3 trust and investment companies. Also, the Guangdong International Trust and Investment Company applied to the court for bankruptcy in 1999. The financial restructuring covered the merging of 2000 urban credit cooperatives into 88 city commercial banks from 1995 to 1998. This schedule consisted of re-evaluation of assets and capitals, write-off of a proportion of bad debts and introduction of new shareholders. The transformation of troublesome UCCs to regional banks indicated that local governments intended to lessen, or at least conseal the issue of bad loans in the cooperatives and transferred some of responsibility to the central government. In the year of 1995 and 1997, Hainan Development Bank acquired a nu mber of trust and investment companies and UCCs, while in 2001, PBC approved the merger of 1658 rural credit cooperatives into 81 joint stock rural commercial banks in Zhangjiagang, Changshu, Jiangyin, and Jiangsu Provinces (Sayuri Shirai 2001). The very critical reform in NPL management was the establishment of the four asset management companies (AMCs) in 1999, each of which received RMB 10 billion by the Ministry of Finance to recover the four state-owned banks bad loans: Cinda worked with China Construction Bank; Great Wall worked with Agricultural Bank of China; Oriental worked with the Bank of China; Huarong worked with the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China. The AMCs were independent corporate persons owned by the state and were under the supervision of PBC. The job of these temporary financial institutions was to purchase, manage and dispose of NPLs during 10-year life span. In addition to restructuring, they also had to be deal with the reconstruction of state-owned enterprises. Financing by issuing bonds of RMB 850 billion and by borrowing RMB 550 billion from PBC, the four companies, by 2000, had picked up NPLs of RMB 1.4 trillion, which accounted for almost 20% of combined outstanding loans (Lin 2000). It was noted that although these companies were permitted to apply various methods financial channels to dispose assets like conversion, transfer and sale, debt repackaging, corporate re-organization and securitization, majority of the non-performing assets were re-organized using conversion of debt to equity (Wu 2000). By 2000, the total valued of recovered asset was only RMB 101.3 billion, where the recovery rate was only 33.6%. The total cash recovered was RMB 63.15 billion with a recovery rate 22.9%. It seemed that the AMCs were not very effective in managing those bad loans, which largely related to prevailing banking structure of China with poor accounting system. As a result, the quality of asset was in doubt. On the other hand, mor al hazard problem existed because many SOEs refused to repay debts and just waited for debt-to-equity conversion (Huang 2000). Strengthening of accounting, regulation and supervision After 1990, a considerable number of non-bank institution entered to the banking market in China because regulations controlling the firms scope of business were not clear. For the reason of better administration, the government introduced the China Security Regulatory Commission (CSRS) and the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) in 1998. The former functioned to supervise the security market; the latter functioned to supervise the insurance market. The peoples bank of China no longer took their responsibility. For the purpose to extend the independence of PBC, the supervisory capacity of its provincial branches was transferred to 9 trans-provincial branches in 1998, while a financial supervisory system of responsibility was created to define the responsibilities of head offices and branches in 1999. Furthermore, China implemented an international accepted five-tier classification of loans in 1998, as well as the Administrative Rules for Financial Statistics in 2002 as so to enhance the accounting system (Hong 2001). Aiming at tackling the problem of money laundering and corruption, Rules for Anti-money Laundering by Financial Institutions were exercised in 2003. It was acknowledged that those rules were not got into practice even though there were leas governing. On the other hand, there was vital structural modification-the China Banking Regulatory Commission was instituted, which took over the responsibility of the PBC to supervise the banking system. Followed the formation of the CBRC, a series of regulations were executed for strengthening the soundness of the banking sector in China. The Structure of Chinas Banking Industry State CouncilFigure 3.1.1 Structure of the Chinese Banking Industry China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) Peoples Bank of China (PBOC) (Central Bank) Over 27 000 credit unions 144 commercial banks 3 state policy banks Over 180 Foreign banks 127 city commercial banks 12 nationwide or regional shareholding commercial banks 5 state commercial banks Over 250 branches Over 200 representative offices About 190 000 branches Source: Structure of the Chinese Banking Industry in Multinational Banking in China Theory and Practice (Meng, 2009). 3.2 The Overall Picture of Banking Risk Management in China In this sector, I will first briefly introduce the history and transition of the Chinese banking system, together with problems associated to different stages like lending bias. Then I will discuss the studies in the recent Chinese banking reforms, which aimed at limiting the size of non-performing loans. After that I will go to a research studying the banking system with Chinas accession to the WTO. Over the last 20 years, Chinas banking system, in parallel to the economy, has underwent a series of reforms that aimed at reconstructing the centrally-planned mono-bank system to an open and private one. But most of state-owned banks (SOBs) suffered from the legacy of policy lending, and burdened by a large stock of non-performing loans (NPLs). Zhou and Zhu (1987) researched the Chinese banking structure at the early stage of banking reform and pointed out some observations: 1) The lack of comprehensive macroeconomic regulations caused the loan agent improbable to implement a so und loan or investment structure. 2) The local governments frequently intervened the business of local branches of the Peoples Bank of China (PBC), branches of investment banks and those of commercial banks. 3) The central government was often involved in the monetary policies of PBC. 4) The inflexible interest regime could not reflect the real cost of capital. From the above findings, it was shown that the problems has existed for a long period of time and were rooted in the long-standing structure of the banking system. The study of Wei and Wang (1997) also confirmed that there was a lending bias of state-owned banks. According to data from 370 cities in 1986, 1989, 1990 and 1991, their empirical results showed that systematic lending bias in favour of state-owned enterprises existed in the Chinese SOBs, revealing that the cities with a higher SOE share of output more likely came up with a faster loan growth. Because of this bias, the effectiveness of restructuring the SOEs and that of developing the private sector diminished. The implication in policy was that the reform of banking sector should be undertaken in conjunction with the reform of state-owned enterprises. As the restricting of banking sector continued, Lardy (1998), using the economic and banking data of China from 1978-1998, indicated that the performance of the Chinese financial sector during this period was very unsatisfactory: both of the capital adequacy and profitability were very low in Chinese banks, while the growing non-performing loans deteriorated the asset quality. He argued that the recapitalization program of the domestic banks carried out by the Chinese government in August 1998 were far short of the actual amount of money needed to solve the trouble of bad loans. Given that recapitalizing the large financial institutions was necessary but not sufficient, he suggested that a sizeable increase in the competition among banks was required to push up the working efficiency. For rising competition, the Peoples Bank had to allow the stronger domestic financial institution to setup, and allow foreign banks to expend their domestic currency business. The regulations on the geographic and other constraints on those banks could be related. Another method of intensify competition was to create genuinely private banks which were subject to an appropriate minimum capital standard. On the other hand, Lardy argued that reconfiguration of the SOBs that slammed up offices networks and staffing, and improvement in the tax system were essential to make the banking system more effective. From above, it was argued that one of the complications of banks in China related to their sizes. Wei and Wang (2000), on top of that, looked into how the scale of the Chinese banks affected the operating efficiency. They collected simple data from 12 local banks, which included the 4 main SOBs and new commercial banks. Applying the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), they carried out an investigation on technical efficiency, pure technical efficiency, scale efficiency and returns to scale. The result indicated that only 5 banks possessed technical efficiency; the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China was the only one of the big four state-owned banks could be regard as technical efficient. The other four banks, the Bank of Communication, CITIC Industrial Bank, China Everbright Bank and China Minsheng Bank, were all new commercial banks. The study also pointed out that the technical inefficiency of Chinese Banks probably linked with pure technical inefficiency, especially for the four SOBs. Among the new commercial banks, technical inefficiency was more likely related to scale inefficiency. Apart from this, they found that, besides the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the returns to scale dropped quickly in three of the state-owned banks. So it was suggested that, for each level of technology, those banks suffered from the scale of production as the y were too large. For the new commercial banks that were regarded as technically inefficient, return to scale was raised rapidly. It showed that, given the level of technology in use, they benefited from the scale of production. As a result, this study revealed that it was crucial for the 4 SOBs to resize and new commercial banks had the advantage in efficiency. To uncover a suitable structure of banks, Wang (2000) worked out research on the deposit expense rate, loan expense rate, asset expense rate and return on assets of local banks in 1995. He classified the banks with deposits over RMB 200 billion as large-scaled, those with deposits between RMB 10-200 billion as medium-scaled, and those with deposits under RMB 10 billion as small-scaled and noted that the return on assets of those commercial banks experienced a U-shaped trend. Return on assets of medium-scaled banks was nearly 3 times of that of large-scaled, where the result was similar compared to that of small-scaled ban ks. The efficiency of scale was the highest among the banks with medium scale. Apart from that, it was argued that the operating cost rate, which measured cost efficiency, dropped quickly when the size of deposit increased. The loan expense rate of bank with medium scale was 0.36% less than that of small-scaled banks; the loan expense of banks with large scale was 0.523% less than of medium-scaled banks. The loan expense rate of large-scaled banks was 67.14% of that of small-scaled banks. By comparing the above ratios, it was suggested that those with medium scale were the most efficient. Sayuri Shirai (2001) examined the reforms and the performance of banks in China. The research, which based on the panel data from 1994 to 2000 of Chinese money banks complied by the Fitch Bankscope, regressed profitability, income proportional to asset and cost of production against a number of characteristics of domestic banks like types of banks, reserve requirement and investment in governmen t bonds, size of bank deposit, scope of business and location. The empirical results were: 1) the banking sector was dominated by the disproportionately large state-owned banks. 2) Commercial banks were more profitable, cost-efficient, capitalized and less leveraged than SOBs, which implied that commercial banks were sound in structure. 3) The performance of commercial banks deteriorated, though some of them performed better than those of SOBs. It probably related the spillover effect of their entry on the business of state-own banks. 4) The decrease in profitability of commercial banks was likely due to the increment in their liquidity holdings beyond the legally required reserves. 5) Broadening the scope of business of banking was vital, particularly to news banks which would benefit from higher earning. 6) The performance of policy-lending banks was as unsatisfactory as that of SOBs. On the other hand, Park and Sehrt (2001) argued that the financial sector reforms during the 1 990s did not enhance the competitiveness of the Chinese banks. Using Chinese provincial data from 1991 to 1997, they tested whether financial reforms in the mid-1990s increased efficient intermediation by different financial institutions, and found that those banks, in which savings could not be correctly distributed to profit-making investors, were inefficient as financial intermediate. Policy lending by state banks did not drop; lending by financial institutions did not respond to economic fundamentals. Dealing with the troublesome bad loans of Banks in China, Bonina and Huang (2001) compared the experiences of the Resolution Trust Corporation in the United States and bank restructuring in the Central European transition economies to the four asset management companies (AMCs) introduced by the Chinese government. They stated that the financial fragility manifested of domestic banks was caused by the high proportions of non-performing loans and low capital-adequacy ratio. The in stallation of asset management companies would not be prosperous in cutting the existing NPLs, nor in blocking the formation of new bad loans. They proposed that the relationship between the parent banks and AMCs was required to change so that the problematic deposits from state-owned enterprise would transferred along with their non-performing loans from parent banks to AMCs. The government has to develop those asset management companies into financial institutions competing with the four stated-owned banks. In addition, it was suggested that the Chinese capital markets were allowed to open for potential buyers from private corporations and foreign strategic investors. Lardy (2002) analyzed the impact of Chinas accession to the WTO on Chinese banking system. From the data of banks up to 2002 and the WTO entry commitments of China, the more competition would hasten the development of domestic banks in terms of efficiency, but the losing market share from local to foreign banks wa s a concern. However, he argued that there was a restriction that the domestic currency liabilities of foreign banks could not be exceed 50 percent of their foreign currency liability. Even foreign banks could build up the deposit of domestic currency by extending the share of total foreign currency loans, the diminishing in the absolute amount of dollar lending by foreign banks in 2000 implied that the increase in the domestic currency deposit was constrained. In addition, the lower growth rate of foreign currency loans compared to that of RMB in 2000, on top of that, proposed that foreign financial institutions would face the same barrier. As long as this regulation existed, the foreign banks would not be able to absorb a large amount of RMB deposits in the first few year after China entered the World Trade Organization; the lost of local banks market share was limited. In long run, the health of Chinese bank system depended on the performance of state-owned enterprises and the re structuring of Chinas Banks. Domestic banks, particularly the state-owned banks, had to be injured if most of the SOEs, with which foreign exports would directly compete after protections removed, ran into a trouble. Based on the above review, it can be concluded that because of the non-performing loans and the non-profitable state-owned banks, Chinese banking system is problematic. As China became a member of the WTO in 2002, there will be additional challenges such as the lost of market share in the RMB deposits business to foreign financial institutions. There above review mainly concerned with the fact until 2003. Nevertheless, there were crucial structural changes in the Banking system during 2003-2004, such as the establishment of the China Banking Regulatory Commission. How the banking system performed with respect to this reconstruction? Also, the Peoples Bank of China implemented the very critical policy of financial macro control in the first half of 2004. Why did th is policy executed? Was it related to the banks in China? At the same time, as China entered the World Trade Organization after 2 years, that was, some of the impacts of the WTO accession emerged. Current Supervision Framework and Methods in China Financial supervision in China is conducted according to the laws and regulations in force. With the enactment of the Law on Securities at the end of 1998, the three major supervision authorities, namely, the Peoples Bank of China (the PBC), the Insurance Regulatory Commission of China and the Securities Regulatory Commission of China, now supervise the three types of financial institutions and their business activities based on the Law of The Peoples Bank of China, the Law of Commercial Banks, the Law of Insurance and the Law on Securities respectively. The financial institutions adhere strictly to the principle of segregation of financial business. Banks in China cannot engage in trust, insurance or securities business, nor can the y invest in trust or investment companies; while the securities and insurance institutions cannot be involved in banking and trust business. As to the supervision of commercial banks in China, both the supervision system and the framework are designed strictly in line with the requirements of the Basle Accord. In the past, the financial system in China was established in line with the administrative structure, as was the PBC system. Therefore, there was segregation in the supervision of financial institutions, which meant that supervisory bodies supervised the commercial financial institutions at the same administrative level while being ignorant of the overall situation of a commercial bank confronted with risk. In consideration of the existing financial risk in China, especially the changes in the international financial environment and the lessons from the South-East Asian financial crises, the method of financial supervision in China is now changing towards risk evaluation of the legal person of a commercial bank and the resupervision of the management structure inside every financial institution. Based on the Basel Core Principles, the supervisory measures have been enhanced in some aspects, such as the design of some indicator systems and the monitoring of the risk situation of financial institutions, especially non-performing assets and the risk faced by medium- and small-sized financial institutions. In addition, procedures for the exit of problem financial institutions were introduced in China in 1998. Viewed from the market angle, this is an issue which

The Cotton Mill Was Extremely Hot Today - 1518 Words

The cotton mill was extremely hot today. Westley had been forced to work at this mill at the age of 5 and continues today. Westley was skinny and short with chestnut brown hair that covered his face. He had a short nose and eyes as brown as the River Thames. His boney face was dotted with freckles. He almost couldn’t believe that he had been working here for 10 long years. How had he lasted being the way he is? The conditions were horrible and he was treated like garbage but he could never leave. He would be stuck here in London his entire life. All he ever wanted to do was move to America and become a land owner but that would never happen. Everyday all he did was clean the cotton out of machines. His only hope in life was his friends,†¦show more content†¦Richard hadn’t said anything the entire time but he was more of a silent type and Westley knew that but he would like to talk with Rich some more. However, there was still a friendship there and as long as i t continued, Westley would never feel alone. ... Two months had passed and it had still been the same routine. Westley was just hoping that he could make it through the day when there was an earsplitting noise coming from the other end of the mill. He rushed to check. One of the machines had exploded and cotton was flying everywhere. The manager was running around frantically like a fox chasing after a rabbit and everyone else either stood horrified or ran out of the mill. One thought came to Westley’s mind: his friends! He didn’t know where they were or what had happened. All he knew is that both Thomas and Richard worked on machines. He started to run around frantically. â€Å"Thomas! Richard!† He shouted running through the mill. Then he saw it. Lying there on the floor was Thomas. Richard was on his knee pressing on Thomas’ chest. He inched forward terrified. Thomas was blue and he lay there stiffer than a log. Westley had just come up to Thomas when the manager, who almost no one knew anything about including his name, pushed him out of the way. The manager stared hitting Thomas’ chest until a look of sudden realization fell upon his face. â€Å"Breathed in too much cotton†¦ dead.† said the manager. â€Å"There has

Reflaction On Business Management

Question: Discuss about the Reflaction On Business Management Process. Answer: Introduction The subject of designing, implementing and developing processes has a significant impact on the minds of students who are business oriented. The knowledge and experience gained from learning events and experiences of such elements enable one to logically combine various business activities with the aim of delivering something of value to the organizations they have established. Individual critical reflection of the subject can enhance self-assessment and henceforth develop proper professional skills and values in the future (Bart, 2011). Management of processes revolves around various initiatives such as; supply chain management, operations improvement, cost reduction, business integration and automation and establishing new venture opportunities (Brocke and Rosemann, 2010). Implementation of the designed processes enables firms to cope up with changes in technology, market conditions, competition and other internal and external business environments that may either positively or negatively impact the performance. Process improvements lead to the elimination of inappropriate activities that increase the risk of losing value. Reflection on designing, implementing and improving process subject When I heard about the subject of business process designing, implementing and developing at the first time, all I could do was to wonder what it entailed. I never thought that it could be helpful towards the achievement of my career goals and objectives. All I knew was that effective process design leads to improved efficiency and greater productivity, and it should not be discussed in the lecture rooms, but it is appropriate in organization set ups. But I did not know that it is important since it is a way of enhancing my profession. As a college student, I thought that we were to learn simple business production processes that are apparently known to everyone. I thought the semester could be boring since all we could learn was the production of goods and services. Surprisingly, that was not the case because after skimming through the course outline, there were so many inspiring and motivating discussions on how to design, implement and improve a process (Wynn, et al. 2009, p.74-92). I started imagining how they could relate to this subject. I still formulated personal interpretations until the time the lecturer started analyzing and explaining what the topic entailed. Over the semester we read different articles and chapters relating to business processes in our lecture rooms. Although I was familiar with some basic terms that were introduced by the instructor, some concepts remained new and difficult to comprehend. At first, the subject was too boring due to the broad definitions of various concepts. With time we started practical application of the defined concepts through different learning events, workshops and group discussions. Apparently, I came to realize that the subject was interesting as some of my colleagues who understood the concept of the business process could elaborate the various terms in a simplified way. As a result, all members had deep insights into the true meaning of efficient management of activities in an organization (Jacoby, 2010). Honestly, I had never thought that a manager needs to develop measures and strategies that enhance the various operations of a firm. All I knew was that he just commands other employees to carry out the activities without his/her participation. Perhaps, that was blatant lies. As we held different discussions and learning events, I came to realize that for the success of an organization, managers need to combine an appropriate sequence of activities to enhance the performance of work (Johnson, 2010). Hence, I benefited a lot from the new things I learned and also refreshed my memory on the concepts and ideas that I already had knowledge about it. The instructor played a crucial role in shaping my time management skills by ensuring that any activity assigned is completed in time. We could be given tiresome assignments which we should complete within a particular period. This kind of challenge gave me an opportunity to develop time schedules that govern each task and duty I undertook (O Hare McGuiness, 2009, p.123-131). The instructor aimed at ensuring that all the students could develop efficient business processes and ensure their effective time management for better performance of the organization they could be employed. I also realized my strengths and weaknesses throughout the lesson plans. As I progressed through the course highlights and attending the lectures of the subject, I learned more about the significance of process management. I never thought that there is the need for the instructor to give us detailed explanations of the importance of managing operations. But with time I came to realize that it was crucial. This experiences enhanced my awareness concerning business owners appropriate decision making and applying different entrepreneurial skills such as innovation to ensure that they design, implement and improve the business processes to ensure adaptability to the unstable conditions such as changing marketing conditions and technological advancements (Harmon, 2007). Besides, I learned that business process management leads to reduced costs about execution of activities and higher revenues. There is also the proper establishment of redefined programs that reduce the extensive labor needed and techniques of monitoring. Also, something of value that I realize d concerning managing process is that it allows business owners to document procedures that ensure compliance with the government laws. They can set internal control measures that lead to the safeguarding of the assets by the employees. I never enjoyed attending discussions and activities regarding the subject at the start of the semester due to my perception that we were to learn complicated things that could not add any value to my academic life. However, with the assistance of the instructor and the colleagues, I came to realize that they were important and never missed even a single activity or discussion. We shared different opinions and ideas concerning the subject which totally influenced my views on what entail business process design, implementation, and improvement (Brocke, et al. 2010). I previously knew that the subject would only focus on the production process, but that came to be false. The involvement in the discussion significantly helped me to understand that this topic meant the proper collection of the linked tasks with the aim of accomplishing the organizational goals. Assuming that I have been hired to be a manager of an organization, I shall utilize all the knowledge and skills learned from the subject of designing, implementing and improving the process in different ways. First, I will ensure that the procedures regarding planning, production, and marketing of sales are adequately established and implemented. As a result, there will be increased performance due to coordination of all the activities involved. Secondly, I will explain to the supervisors the importance of commitment and tasks accomplishment in all the management processes, which include; procurement and acquisitions, hiring, onboarding of new employees and promotion (La Rosa, et al. 2012). The expected performance standards for each process should be accomplished according to the policies laid down by the organization. I can also ensure that there is a routine analysis of the business processes used so that my firm gains the potential benefits associated with proper process design. As there is intense competition in different industries, I can use my knowledge and skills learned from the subject to facilitate careful observation, monitoring, and control of business activities (Weske, 2007). However, the subject does not provide a detailed evaluation on how to ensure that all the processes implemented can be incorporated to the junior employees. It will be an arduous duty to achieve if I do not get any other extra knowledge and experience before becoming a manager. In addition, the subject helped in realizing various strengths that I possess but I could not identify them before. In my life, I never thought that I could be a good leader. As we used group thinking on various occasions, my friends and I came to recognize that I have leadership skills (B?l?nescu, 2011). I used to communicate my ideas to the group in an organized way and also accommodated all the views of other group members. Although we were involved in different activities and discussions, I expected that we attend workshops that could enhance my knowledge regarding emerging trends and social issues that have an impact on business processes. Conclusion In conclusion, reflection on the subject of designing, implementing and improving business process has enhanced my professional development. I am sure that after getting a deeper insight into all the experiences I am in a position to effectively manage processes in various business environments. The subject has helped me to compare what I expected and what I learned from the topic. Although self-knowledge description is difficult, I can get the actual meaning of the whole subject and how I could apply it in my lifetime. I trust that such individual assessment gives me an opportunity to be a producer and not just a consumer of knowledge given shared to us by the instructor. The different learning events, group discussions, and experiences foster growth in career development. References B?l?nescu, V. (2011). The evolution in Business Process Theory: Modern Approaches in Organizational Management and Economy: Bucharest. Brocke, J., and Rosemann, M. (2010). Handbook on Business Process Management: Strategic alignment, People and culture, (electronic version). Bart, M. (2011). Critical reflection adds depth and breadth to student learning. Faculty Focus. Retrieved from https:///www.facultyfocus.com/articles/instructionaldesign/criticalreflection-adds-depth-and-breadth-to-student-learning/ Wynn, M., Verbeek, van der Aalst, H., Hofstede, M., and Edmond, D. (2009). Business Process Verification: Finally a Reality! Business Process Management Journal, 15(1):7492. La Rosa, M., Dumas, M., Uba, R., and Dijkman, M. (2012). Business Process Model Merging: An Approach to Business Process Consolidation. ACM Transactions on Software Engineering and Methodology. Islam, S. M. (2015). What are the Importance and Benefits of Critical Thinking Skills? Retrieved from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-importance-benefits-critical-thinking-skills-islam Jacoby, B. (2010). How can I promote deep learning through critical reflection? Magna Publications. Retrieved from https://www.magnapubs.com/mentorcommons/?video=25772a92#.UjnHBazD-70. Weske, M. (2007). Business Process Management: Concepts, Languages, Architectures. Springer- Verlag, Berlin. Johnson, A. (2010). The benefits of critical reflection and critical thinking. Retrieved from https://www.examiner.com/article/the-benefits-of-critical-reflection-and-critical-thinking Brocke, J., Rosemann, M., and Springer-Verlag, H. (2010). Handbook on Business Process Management. Introduction, Methods, and Information Systems, red. Harmon, P. (2007). Business Process Change. A guide for Business Managers and BPM and Six Sigma Professionals, Morgan Kaufmann Publishers. K2OHare, L., McGuiness, C. (2009). Measuring critical thinking, intelligence, and academic performance in psychology undergraduates. The Irish Journal

The Essay by Essay free essay sample

The fact of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary is related in Luke 1:26-38. The Evangelist tells us that in the sixth month after the conception of St. John the Baptist by Elizabeth, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to the Virgin Mary, at Nazareth, a small town in the mountains of Galilee. Mary was of the house of David, and was espoused (i. e. married) to Joseph, of the same royal family. She had, however, not yet entered the household of her spouse, but was still in her mothers house, working, perhaps, over her dowry. (Bardenhewer, Maria Verk. , 69). And the angel having taken the figure and the form of man, came into the house and said to her: Hail, full of grace (to whom is given grace, favoured one), the Lord is with thee. Mary having heard the greeting words did not speak; she was troubled in spirit, since she knew not the angel, nor the cause of his coming, nor the meaning of the salutation. We will write a custom essay sample on The Essay by Essay or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page And the angel continued and said: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God. Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of David his father; and he shall reign in the house of Jacob forever. And of his kingdom there shall be no end. The Virgin understood that there was question of the coming Redeemer. But, why should she be elected from amongst women for the splendid dignity of being the mother of the Messiah, having vowed her virginity to God? (St. Augustine). Therefore, not doubting the word of Godlike Zachary, but filled with fear and astonishment, she said: How shall this be done, because I know not man? The angel to remove Marys anxiety and to assure her that her virginity would be spared, answered: The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee. And therefore also the Holy which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. In token of the truth of his word he made known to her the conception of St. John, the miraculous pregnancy of her relative now old and sterile: And behold, thy cousin Elizabeth; she also has conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month with her that is called barren: because no word shall be impossible with God. Mary may not yet have fully understood the meaning of the heavenly message and how the maternity might be reconciled with her vow of virginity, but clinging to the first words of the angel and trusting to the Omnipotence of God she said: Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done to me according to thy word. Since 1889 Holzmann and many Protestant writers have tried to show that the verses Luke 1:34-35, containing the message of conception through the Holy Ghost are interpolated. Usener derives the origin of the myth from the heathen hero worship; but Harnack tries to prove that it is of Judaic origin (Isaiah 7:14, Behold a Virgin shall conceive, etc. ). Bardenhewer, however, has fully established the authenticity of the text (p. 13). St. Luke may have taken his knowledge of the event from an older account, written in Aramaic or Hebrew. The words: Blessed art thou among women (v. 28), are spurious and taken from verse 42, the account of the Visitation. Cardinal Cajetan wanted to understand the words: because I know not man, not of the future, but only of the past: up to this hour I do not know man. This manifest error, which contradicts the words of the text, has been universally rejected by all Catholic authors. The opinion that Joseph at the time of the Annunciation was an aged widower and Mary twelve or fifteen years of age, is founded only upon apocryphal documents. The local tradition of Nazareth pretends that the angel met Mary and greeted her at the fountain, and when she fled from him in fear, he followed her into the house and there continued his message. (Buhl, Geogr. v. Palaest. , 1896. ) The year and day of the Annunciation cannot be determined as long as new material does not throw more light on the subject. The present date of the feast (25 March) depends upon the date of the older feast of Christmas. The Annunciation is the beginning of Jesus in His human nature. Through His mother He is a member of the human race. If the virginity of Mary before, during, and after the conception of her Divine Son was always considered part of the deposit of faith, this was done only on account of the historical facts and testimonials. The Incarnation of the Son of God did not in itself necessitate this exception from the laws of nature. Only reasons of expediency are given for it, chiefly, the end of the Incarnation. About to found a new generation of the children of God, The Redeemer does not arrive in the way of earthly generations: the power of the Holy Spirit enters the chaste womb of the Virgin, forming the humanity of Christ. Many holy fathers (Sts. Jerome, Cyril, Ephrem, Augustine) say that the consent of Mary was essential to the redemption. It was the will of God, St. Thomas says (Summa III:30), that the redemption of mankind should depend upon the consent of the Virgin Mary. This does not mean that God in His plans was bound by the will of a creature, and that man would not have been redeemed, if Mary had not consented. It only means that the consent of Mary was foreseen from all eternity, and therefore was received as essential into the design of God

Heart Of Darkness Essays (3810 words) - Congo Free State

Heart of Darkness Heart of Darkness Conrad's novel, Heart of Darkness, relies on the historical period of imperialism in order to describe its protagonist, Charlie Marlow, and his struggle. Marlow's catharsis in the novel, as he goes to the Congo, rests on how he visualizes the effects of imperialism. This paper will analyze Marlow's "change," as caused by his exposure to the imperialistic nature of the historical period in which he lived. Marlow is asked by "the company", the organization for whom he works, to travel to the Congo river and report back to them about Mr. Kurtz, a top notch officer of theirs. When he sets sail, he doesn't know what to expect. When his journey is completed, this little "trip" will have changed Marlow forever! Heart of Darkness is a story of one man's journey through the African Congo and the "enlightenment" of his soul. It begins withCharlie Marlow, along with a few of his comrades, cruising aboard the Nellie, a traditional sailboat. On the boat, Marlow begins to tell of his experiences in the Congo. Conrad uses Marlow to reveal all the personal thoughts and emotions that he wants to portray while Marlow goes on this "voyage of a lifetime". Marlow begins his voyage as an ordinary English sailor who is traveling to the African Congo on a "business trip". He is an Englishmen through and through. He's never been exposed to any alternative form of culture, similar to the one he will encounter in Africa, and he has no idea about the drastically different culture that exists out there. Throughout the book, Conrad, via Marlow's observations, reveals to the reader the naive mentality shared by every European. Marlow as well, shares this naivet in the beginning of his voyage. However, after his first few moments in the Congo, he realizes the ignorance he and all his comrades possess. We first recognize the general naivet of the Europeans when Marlow's aunt is seeing him for the last time before he embarks on his journey. Marlow's aunt is under the assumption that the voyage is a mission to "wean those ignorant millions from their horrid ways"(18-19). In reality, however, the Europeans are there in the name of imperialism and their sole objective is to earn a substantial profit by collecting all the ivory in Africa. Another manifestation of the Europeans obliviousness towards reality is seen when Marlow is recounting his adventure aboard the Nellie. He addresses his comrades who are on board saying: "When you have to attend to things of that sort, to the mere incidents of the surface, the reality-the reality I tell you---fades. The inner truth is hidden luckily, luckily. But I felt it all the same; I felt often its mysterious stillness watching over me at my monkey tricks, just as it watches you fellows performing on your respective tight ropes for---what is it? half a crown a tumble---(56)." What Marlow is saying is that while he is in the Congo, although he has to concentrate on the petty little everyday things, such as overseeing the repair of his boat, he is still aware of what is going on around him and of the horrible reality in which he is in the midst of. On the other hand, his friends on the boat simply don't know of these realities. It is their ignorance, as well as their innocence which provokes them to say "Try to be civil, Marlow"(57). Not only are they oblivious to the reality which Marlow is exposed to, but their naivet is so great, they can't even comprehend a place where this 'so called' reality would even be a bad dream! Hence, their response is clearly rebuking the words of a "savage" for having said something so ridiculous and "uncivilized". Quite surprisingly, this mentality does not pertain exclusively to the Englishmen in Europe. At one point during Marlow's voyage down the Congo, his boat hits an enormous patch of fog. At that very instant, a "very loud cry" is let out(66). After Marlow looks around and makes sure everything is all right, he observes the contrasts of the whites and the blacks expressions. It was very curious to see the contrast of expression of the white men and of the black fellows of our crew, who were as much strangers to this part of the river as we, though their homes were only eight hundred miles away. The whites, of course greatly discomposed, had besides a curious look of being painfully shocked by such an outrageous row. The others had an alert, naturally interested expression; but their faces were essentially quiet. .

Free Essays on To Autumn

In the poem â€Å"To Autumn†, by John Keats, there are three stanzas, which are almost like three different poems in one. The first stanza describes summer, the next fall, and the last is looking for spring. In the first stanza, Keats begins to describe summer. He doesn’t tell you this right away, but from the wording and the metaphors you can figure it out. â€Å"Seasons of mists and mellow fruitfulness,† which is summer, â€Å"Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun,† which is saying that summer and sun go together. The entire wording in this first stanza makes summer sound like a person and really gives it a personality. Saying that summer and the sun are going to decide how and how much each plant will grow or bare fruit. They are the bestest of friends and will decide the fate of how nature is going to happen. Will this plant bare the most fruit, or will this one? But then they will decide when summer will end, â€Å"For Summer has o’er-brimmed their clammy cells.† When nature has had too much, that is. In the second stanza of John Keats’ poem â€Å"To Autumn†, the topic switches to autumn. How ironic. â€Å"Who hath not seen thee†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he asks. Where is Autumn? â€Å"Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind,† is such a greatly worded line. Here, the author is talking about Autumn, again like a person like he did with Summer. Keats is saying he Autumn has hair, and that Autumn’s hair is a billowing cloud of straw. Now, this isn’t what he is saying that happens really, it’s just a metaphor. But such a beautiful way to describe a season! Autumn is surrounded with the smell of poppies, and twined flowers. Autumn lays its head across a brook, or on a cider-press, and watches as it slowly fades away and becomes the next season, Spring. The last stanza, Keats describes the songs of Spring. A little different than the first two stanzas where he was describing the actual seasons. Instead of the season Spring, it’s the son... Free Essays on To Autumn Free Essays on To Autumn In the poem â€Å"To Autumn†, by John Keats, there are three stanzas, which are almost like three different poems in one. The first stanza describes summer, the next fall, and the last is looking for spring. In the first stanza, Keats begins to describe summer. He doesn’t tell you this right away, but from the wording and the metaphors you can figure it out. â€Å"Seasons of mists and mellow fruitfulness,† which is summer, â€Å"Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun,† which is saying that summer and sun go together. The entire wording in this first stanza makes summer sound like a person and really gives it a personality. Saying that summer and the sun are going to decide how and how much each plant will grow or bare fruit. They are the bestest of friends and will decide the fate of how nature is going to happen. Will this plant bare the most fruit, or will this one? But then they will decide when summer will end, â€Å"For Summer has o’er-brimmed their clammy cells.† When nature has had too much, that is. In the second stanza of John Keats’ poem â€Å"To Autumn†, the topic switches to autumn. How ironic. â€Å"Who hath not seen thee†¦Ã¢â‚¬  he asks. Where is Autumn? â€Å"Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind,† is such a greatly worded line. Here, the author is talking about Autumn, again like a person like he did with Summer. Keats is saying he Autumn has hair, and that Autumn’s hair is a billowing cloud of straw. Now, this isn’t what he is saying that happens really, it’s just a metaphor. But such a beautiful way to describe a season! Autumn is surrounded with the smell of poppies, and twined flowers. Autumn lays its head across a brook, or on a cider-press, and watches as it slowly fades away and becomes the next season, Spring. The last stanza, Keats describes the songs of Spring. A little different than the first two stanzas where he was describing the actual seasons. Instead of the season Spring, it’s the son...

Peer pressure Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Peer pressure - Essay Example In most cases, a young person’s personal values  are altered  and shaped by his peer group so as to increase his  similarity  with the other group members. Peer groups are usually well established in most high schools, workplaces and members of the  group  exert pressure to the new members joining the group. Friendship among teenagers is one of the most  important  factors during development. Friendship gives them  secure  venue to discover their identity and experience a sense of belonging. It also cultivates their social skills  relevant  for their future success. On the contrary,  friendship  can  influence  them negatively or positively whereby they end up submitting to negative or positive peer  influence. Young people  become  influenced because of their self-image and self esteem. This serves as a  motive  for them to  identify  with groups that they  fit  or groups that will  accept  them. Those dimensions of the  self  that  are valued  by one’s own peer group become  very  outstanding  in each young person’s self-assessment.   Some peer pressure can be  good. This  is measured  by their outcome whereby positive  influence  of friends  is seen  to play  important  roles among the lives of peers. Positive peers  set  good  examples among themselves, and they tend  to become  good  role models for each other. They can influence each other on goal oriented activities such as working together in  school  work, discussing problems and personal issues together that can help one to make  good  decisions, listening to each other, offering  good  advice and developing a positive  culture  among others. Positive peer pressure can be used to encourage and promote social behavior, because as observed peers can have a  powerful  effect  on self-esteem. Well accepted children can  display  positive  academic skills, social behavior and even

Management Accounting Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Management Accounting - Assignment Example Each of the method has a different approach to evaluating the worth of an investment or project for an organization. Whereas the last three techniques focus on cash flow, the first technique (the accounting rate of return (ARR) also called return on investment (ROI) uses accounting profit during its appraisal calculation, offering a view of the general profitability of the investment project. 1. The accounting rate of return The accounting rate of return also referred to as the return on investment method calculates the estimated general profit or loss concerning an investment project and connects that profit or loss to the amount of capital injected in the project as well as the period for which that investment is required to go. The profit referred to in the appraisal process here is the one that is directly linked to the investment project and, therefore, costs or revenues made elsewhere in the business are not included. There is a minimum rate of return required for any investmen t that a business wants to undertake. This is connected to the business’s cost of capital. ... r the years of life of the investment project and dividing the total life of the investment project in years and the average investment is found by adding the investment in the first year to the remaining value at the end of life of the project and dividing by two. With these two values, we can comfortably calculate the ARR. This calculation gives the uniqueness of product as well as its drawbacks as we can see in the subsequent discussions and comparisons. The main advantages of accounting rate of return are: Accounting rate of return considers the general profitability of the investment project. The method is simple to understand as well as easy to use. The method’s end outcome is expressed in form of a percentage, permitting projects of varying sizes to be compared. The major drawback is: The method is based on the accounting profits and not the cash flows. Calculation of profit as well as capital employed is based on expenditure items, which are treated as revenue (those a ppearing on the profit & loss account) and as capital (appearing on the balance sheet). Even though there are guidelines relating to this area, this practice can be quite subjective. Various accounting policies, for instance, relating to depreciation can generate different figures of profit and capital employed, therefore permitting the profit as well as balance sheet numbers to be manipulated in some way. This is why capital projects are also appraised in terms of cash flows. Accounting rate of return method does not consider the timing of cash flows of the project. For instance, we may have two projects M, and N. Project M may result in an accounting rate of return of 19 percent whereas project N may have ARR of 17 percent. Nevertheless, investment M may be a six year investment whilst

The History Of Jazz Music Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The History Of Jazz Music - Essay Example The genre is said to have taken roots in New Orleans because of its port, which was one of the important terminals in the New World. This port not only facilitated trade and commerce but also served as the meeting point of many cultural influences. Besides, slave culture was still prevalent in New Orleans and African Americans and slaves and free people used to gathering for an evening of music and dance. Despite the fact that elements that shaped jazz such as blues, Ragtime Brass band music, hymn and spiritual music, minstrel music were simultaneously prevalent in other cities of United States, it was the Creole population in New Orleans who played a crucial role in the development of jazz. (Weinstock.L ) The Creole population after living under the French and Spanish rule came to be known as Americans after the Louisiana Purchase and Louisiana statehood. The sect rose to the highest levels of the society in the 19th century and had an impact on the economic and cultural influences of that period. Creole musicians played at the opera and symphony halls and formed some of the best society bands of that time. These bands characterized the style of the upper classes with its precise technique, formal knowledge of European music and soft tone, embodying the upper class cultural values. On other end of the spectrum, an impoverished section of blacks lived in the Westside Street of New Orleans, newly freed but deprived of economic and cultural benefits. The musicians hailing from this section of the society drew inspiration from blues, gospel music and work songs. While the Creole bands reveled in correct rendition, the Westside bands used improvisation to mark their performances. The bands played music was inspired by Ragtime era but included elements of European music and brass bands playing funeral music. These bands were popular since their songs were about the highs and lows of life. This gave rise to a new genre altogether, which was based on creative expression, imagination and blues. Though it was called as the "local flavor" of Ragtime, it did not have much similarity to Ragtime music and was played by small marching bands or solos with pianos or banjos. The turning point occurred in 1894 when a racial segregation law placed a lot of restrictions on the Creole people and they were forced to live with Westside blacks. But they soon overcame it and got back at the helm of musical leadership of American section. This clash of cultures is the underlying theme of many songs composed by Jelly Morton, an important development in jazz history. Morton added a swinging syncopation to music such as Ragtime, Opera, French songs and dances. He also improvised on music from opera to blues, which soon came to be known as "Hot Jazz", one of the first styles of the genre. Thus jazz originated from the strong underlying beat provided by the African music and the dance rhythms provided by the European music, which gave Jazz its characteristic swing. Together with the scale of the blue notes and with the socio-cultural influences of that era especially in New Orleans, jazz got its character- freedom of expression. Joe Oliver and Louis Armstrong were some of the early Jazz musicians during the period who were known for their "Dixieland" style of music."Hot jazz" became more popular after musicians moved to Chicago from New Orleans after pubs in Storyville in New Orleans, the main venues for this music, closed down. Musicians from Midwest now began gravitating towards Chicago because of better

Most popular selection methods

Most popular selection methods In this assignment the two most popular selection methods i.e., Panel Interviews Assessment centres, will be discussed as both of them are widely used and are quite efficient methods of selection. The limitations of each selection method will be discussed and their role in the formation of psychological contract will also be defined. Later on, towards the second half of this assignment there will be a comparison in between different views that the selection methods just perform predictivist objectives the view that they can help in the formation of a viable psychological contract. In the end there will be a conclusion, which would discuss the inference drawn from the study of selection methods their contribution in formation of a psychological contract. I have chosen this assignment as being a masters student of H.R employee relations, it is very important to have a deep understanding of the first step or base of H.R, which is employee selection. This study will help me in understanding the drawbacks shortcomings of the selection methods would also help me in understanding the Psychological Contracts formation and its implications. If the psychological contract is well understood if it is transparent, then I think most of the issues related to H.R employee relations will be dealt with there would be no absconding by staff, no strikes, no clashes in between management employees no problems in the functioning of the organisation which would further lead to profit maximisation, employee satisfaction would make work place a better place to be in. PRESENTATION OF VIEWS: Definition of psychological contract: The psychological contract can be defined as the exchange relationship that exists in between the individual employee and their organisation. It is not a formal written contract on a paper but a relationship based on mutual contributions (Rousseau,1985 cited in Muchinsky,1999). Psychological contracts are of two types, Transactional contracts are short term contracts which are explicit have an economic focus. Relational contracts are long term contracts which are implicit have a socio-emotional focus(Rosseau,19 90). SELECTION METHODS Selection method is not a gate that must be crossed to form a relationship with the organisation, but it in itself is the part of that relationship. It helps applicants know how the organisations deal with people once theyre hired, how they view their social responsibilities, and how worthy their products employees are to them. This process gives both the candidates the organisation, their first opportunity to craft a deal between themselves (Davenport,1999). Personnel assessment and selection is one of the most important ways available to organisations to ensure that they have efficient workforces (Smith Robertson, 1993). PANEL INTERVIEWS: Panel Interviews are widely used method for the selection of candidates. For the candidates it presents an opportunity to show their ability in front of the assessors, to seek answers for their questions, to know how the organisation is structured and managed, its organization chart, current initiatives etc. Such questions help the candidates in fitting himself in the picture of the organisation; this in fact is the first step in the formation of the psychological contract (Tolleywood,2010). For interviewers it gives an opportunity to assess the candidate on the basis of work values which are: achievement, honesty, fairness and concern for others. Recruiters carry with them criteria based on which they decide a candidates employability and match it with the organizational values. Interviewers in panel interviews get a chance to convey the broad outlines of the organisations psychological  contract (Davenport,1999). In general, three interviewers are there as panel members (including line manager) who are seated right in front of the candidates vision, so that the candidates feel exposed and vulnerable. It is done to see if the candidates can deal with pressure, on the assumption that they will be able to transfer that ability to the workplace, as dealing with pressure is a major criterion of the organisations psychological contract. In such interviews one person asks the candidates questions around an area of competence, another one probes into some aspect of their CV such as their previous work experience, qualifications, interests. Similarly, candidates can ask what an organisation produces or what services it provides; its origins and history, the place on the training course that is on offer (TolleyWood,2010). There are behavioural situational variety of questions asked that help the organization in creating psychological contract (Redman Wilinson,2006) for e.g. Past experience questions (Situational) Many interviewers ask candidates to tell them about their previous job challenges in other organization also ask them to cite an example wherein they handled a difficult situation the outcome of that situation. It helps the organisation in knowing the calibre of the candidate and ensuring that he wouldnt be a misfit as per their psychological contract Hypothetical question (Behavioural) The interviewer describes a situation to the candidates and asks them what they would do in those circumstances. For e.g. How would they deal with an irate customer? Such kinds of questions help in determining the situation handling skills of employee foretell whether the candidate has managerial traits or not (TolleyWood,2010) Contribution of Panel Interviews towards creating psychological contract by the candidate (this part is entirely based on general knowledge personal experiences) Panel interviews contribute the most towards the formation of psychological contract on the end of the candidate as the candidate has the maximum opportunity of asking questions to the management, other types of selection methods like bio data, presentations, group activities dont encourage the candidate to ask questions. Certain questions that the candidates use in forming psychological contract are: Q: What is the hierarchy in the organisation? By asking this the candidate does not want to know who does what but he is interested in knowing the time required to reach the next level so that he can know when can he reach the next level if selected this is a common part of every candidates psychological contract i.e. promotion.. Apart from asking indirect questions the employee can bluntly ask questions that can help him in forming the psychological contract. For e.g. what is the career progression plan in the organisation? Or How often is the appraisal done for an employee? Or What are the added benefits of working with the organisation? Such questions are the best questions that put forward clear picture of the organisation if a candidate asks such direct questions, instances of psychological contract breach will be minimized. Critical Analysis of Panel Interviews: In spite of the evidence for the great predictive validity of panel interviews, organisations still largely prefer unstructured or one-on-one interviews (Graves Karen, 1996, cited in Hough Oswald, 2000). It is because of the managements reliance on intuition to make decisions (Beach, 1990; Dawes, 1988, cited in Dipboye, 1997) and a tendency for interviewers to have faith in the accuracy of their own judgements. A panel interview has been viewed as deskilling the role and reducing it to merely a monotonous exercise (Dipboye, 1997); less structured interviews appears to be more attractive to managers because it gives them great authority (Torrington et al, 1991). Applicants generally prefer one-on-one interviews over panel interviews because they give them more control over the situation (Schuler, 1993, Latham Finnegan, 1993, cited in Dipboye, 1997). Panel Interview has a limited usage and is generally used in business government sectors (Milia,2004). In the 1970s and 1980s, it was common for management selection to depend on the assessment of candidates made by interviews but a research found interviewer decision to be doubtful of reliability and validity (Keenan,1975, 1977). Moreover, in interviews candidates can use impression management technique to form an influential bias which can undermine the accuracy of interviewer outcome decisions(Anderson,1992). ASSESSMENT CENTRES (AC) As seen in The Advertiser, when employers are judging a candidate for a job, they are looking for more than just a resume and the interview process, hence, the need for assessment centres developed(Jinarek,2004). An  assessment centre, also called the Rolls-Royce of selection methods, gives the candidates unusual care, hence they start forming a psychological contract thinking that an employer who takes pains to find the right people will take equal pains in their training and career development (Schofield,1998). Assessment centres use a range of selection techniques to test candidates intellectual, interpersonal, intrapersonal skills(which cannot be identified using other techniques). Candidates are asked to undertake a series of assessments that have been designed to reveal to the assessors if the candidate can: work effectively in the relevant job; benefit from a further training opportunity; or cope with the demands of an education programme (in short, forming psychological con tract). The assessment process can take anything from a few hours to a couple of days. In the latter case, both the candidates and the assessors are likely to be in residence at the same place. Assessment centres generally includes: an aptitude (ability) test; a personality questionnaire; a group discussion; perhaps a case study; an in-tray/in-basket exercise interviews(Tolley Wood,2010). Personality questionnaires Personality questionnaires are designed to measure personal characteristics or traits such as candidates motivation to work or how candidates handle their emotions. Contribution to Formation of Psychological contract: It helps the organisation in knowing how candidates personality is likely to affect their future performance. It checks whether the candidate can stay calm but alert in the conditions that prevail in a particular workplace, or have the ability to adapt to the culture of their organization (Tolley Wood,2010). Group discussion (GD): In GD candidates are given an open-ended or philosophical topic. All candidates join in a half-hour discussion are observed by the assessment panel. Contribution to Formation of Psychological contract: It helps assessors to notice candidates who take the lead, redirect the discussion, and contribute, this pro activeness shown in GDs is very essential ingredient in the organizations psychological contract (Lynn Et. al,1998). Case study It aims to test the ability to analyse information; think logically clearly; and make decisions based on the data provided. For example, candidates could be asked to read a business proposal or a set of documents present their analysis (Sunday Tribune,2007). Contribution to Formation of Psychological contract: It helps in checking the clarity of thought of candidates. If the candidate can think clearly in dealing with such problems he/she can definitely handle problems at workplace, it will give him confidence in accepting the job role forming the psychological contract. In-tray/in-basket exercises: In it the candidate is required to respond to organize materials typically found in a managers in-basket like letters, memos, phone messages etc (Smither,1997). Contribution to Formation of Psychological contract: It helps in boosting the confidence of employees and the organisation can be sure that they are hiring someone who will fit in their psychological contract (TolleyWood,2010). Critical analysis of Assessment centres: As per Kleinmann (1993) candidates can fashion their behaviour to impress assessors, especially when candidates are aware that their performance is being evaluated. So assessment methods may at times lead to selection of wrong candidate. Klimoski Strickland (1977) proposed that since assessors supervisors hold common stereotypes of the ideal employee, they may hire candidates who look like good company people, hence eventually the organisation will be filled with people who are mirror images of each other not with creative people who can go out of the way to innovate(Muchinsky,2003). Some candidates find assessment centres to be quite stressful, because they think that they are being assessed all the time, even during informal breaks in the proceedings. The use of tests in assessment centres is based on the assumption that there are stable job-related differences between candidates, which can be measured. The ability tests chosen for use are generalised and do not take into factor that every individual is different. Lastly, small companies cannot afford the expense involved for using different techniques in assessment centres (Tolley Wood,2010). SELECTION METHODS: Perform predictivist objectives Or form psychological contract Selection methods are they Predictivist: As per this approach the job is viewed as a stable entity into which the most suitable candidates need to be recruited. Person-job fit is of most importance (Cook,1993 cited in Chimel,2000) and the entire power lies in the hands of the recruiting organization (Anderson Cunningham cited in Chimel,2000). Predictive validity means the extent to which a selection method can predict the subsequent job performance (Smith et al, 1993) such as error rate, production rate, appraisal scores, absence rate, or other criterions important to the organisation (Feathers,2000). The predictivist approach is inappropriate because of its assumptions that individual differences can be assessed accurately and because it ignores the criteria for translating the decision into action. Successful performance on the job is dependent on ability motivation as well. An ideal person selected for a job but given no training or development opportunities is more likely to fail than a moderately suitable person who is given such opportunities (Redman Wilkinson, 2006). In the 1920s it was realised that different studies conducted on the same selection method gave different results. Predictive validity results for the same method and same job were very different for different studies. Later in the 1930s and 1940s the belief developed that this variation resulted because of certain differences between jobs that were difficult for job analysts and job analysis methods to predict. Therefore, researchers concluded that the validity of a given procedure was different in different settings for what appeared to be the same job, and that the conflicting findings in validity studies were just reflecting this fact of reality (Schmidt Hunter, 1977; Schmidt, Hunter, Pearlman, Share, 1979 cited in Schmidt Hunter, 1998). This led to the formation of view that selection methods help both the parties in forming a psychological contract, which keeps on getting evolved. Selection methods form viable psychological contract: As per Herriot(1989) during the selection process, expectations of the organization potential employee both build up they both use it to construct a viable psychological contract .Nowadays job roles are becoming flexible and organisations have become aware that they need to compete for best candidates. As per this approach selection consists of a series of social episodes providing an opportunity to both the organisation candidates to explore whether a future working relationship would be possible. Selection process provides an opportunity for information exchange and development of mutual expectations obligations. Hence selection not only aims at person-job fit but also at person-organisation fit person -team fit (Anderson Cunningham cited in chimel, 2000). The selection process provides information for decisions to both the employer and the potential employee (Torrington Hall, 1991). However, because of the predicted skill shortages and the fact that selection is also concerned with the future life plans of individuals, the predictive validity of selection methods is not valid anymore both for organisations and for individuals(Meijer, 1998 cited in Feathers,2000). Thesis to prove that Selection methods not just serve predictivist role but form a viable psychological contract: A thesis was done on the psychological contracts formed by higher education lecturers in a University Business School in the UK. Interviews were undertaken which allowed participants to provide life history accounts and the data suggested that each individual had analysed the extent to which a new employment context would deliver transactional, relational, and ideological reward and thus had formed their psychological contract. The notion that selection methods just perform predictivist role was not supported it was found that they help in the formation of psychological contract in higher education (Gammie,2006). CONCLUSION It can thus be seen that selection is a crucial step that leads to the formation of a psychological contract between the candidate the organization, however it is very important to use the correct selection method that would give maximum chance of interaction in between the management the candidate. By the use of correct selection methods like assessment centres panel interviews a viable psychological contract can be formed as in these selection methods both the parties are at each others display, asking questions setting expectations. It has also been seen that the thinking that selection methods just perform predictivist role has become obsolete because of the shortage of skilled labour approaches like person-organization fit selection methods serve the purpose of forming a viable psychological contract both for the employer the employee.

Is Grendel Evil? Essay -- essays research papers

In a world of chaos, he who lives, lives by his own laws and values. Who is to say that the death of millions is any worse or better, for that matter, than injuring a cockroach. And in the case of an existing power in the form of God, who is presumed to be all which is good, presiding and ruling an organized universe, why then does evil exist? The prosaic response of â€Å"without evil, there is no good† no longer holds any validity in this argument as the admitted goal of good is to reach an existence without evil. So even if a God does exist, I think it is fair, at this point, to say that he is the embodiment of both good and evil. And if humoring those who would answer the previous question with the response that there can be no good without evil, then can we assume that evil is simply a subsection of a defined good? Or perhaps even a good thing? If it is essential, those who chose the side of evil are simply abiding by good values. In the case of a world ruled by Chaos, ev il is a non-existent word or value, rather. The system upon which a person’s actions are judged also disappears leaving nothing but an instinct for natural survival as basic and primary as the life within the forests which we tear down to build our houses. Ethics is a wide field of philosophical study to which the core of every question within falls to one side of a blurred line. On the right, is good; the value which is popularly believed to be the correct alignment for which a person should live their life according to. On the left, is evil; that which is the cause of most human misery, and prevents peace on earth. In John Gardner’s book Grendel, the retelling of the ages old story Beowulf, further blurs the line between good and evil. Circumstance and perhaps a confused view of reality allow the monster, Grendel, to conceivably defend his evil beliefs. In order to better understand evil, using Grendel as a guide, I intend to attempt to justify it. Grendel is born a neutral being, perhaps even good, but nevertheless, without hate. The transition which he undergoes to become evil is due to misunderstandings between himself and humans and also meeting with a dragon who is questionably evil. As a young â€Å"monster†, Grendel knew nothing other than the cave he lived in and his mother who could not speak any distinguishable language. He was a playful creature who seemed to be like a â€Å"bla... ...orals is an act of creation. A religious act. Murder and Mayhem are the life and soul revolution†¦   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The essence of good in evil is contained within this speech given by Red Horse. That which should be, will come from revolution. The people will fight for what they consider is the truth and if certain morals or institutions stand in the way of that, they must be torn down. The reason for destruction is to actually create anew what is better for existence. This is what I believe the old man is trying to say. That sheer brutality, and that which is considered evil, is the only way to achieve change and therefore a newer, better way of life. It is a concept which sounds harsh and uncompromisingly hurtful to those who are on the opposing end, but it is actually similar to sociology's conflict theory. Without conflict, and therefore the resolution of conflict, there can be no change. Without change, life remains stagnant and in the same cycle of trading one man’s pain for another man’s happiness. Therefore, without evil as a means to achieving good, the world would remain a constant struggle without advancements of living and without advancements of life.

Endeavour Journal Essay

This journey followed close upon the visit of the expedition on Tahiti to observe the transit of Venus. On 8 June 1769 the transit of Venus was successfully observed from three different points. After fulfilling his mission on Tahiti Cook resumed his voyage to fulfil the task given to him secretly by the Royal Society. On 7 September 1769 the Endeavour reached New Zealand, which had never been visited by any European after Abel Janszoon Tasman had discovered it on 13 December 1642. Tasman’s stay at New Zealand was not successful in the means of its discovery. No trading had been done between the native Maori and Tasman’s crew. The first discovery by the Dutch businessmen Tasman was only the western coastline of New Zealand, which had been mapped afterwards. The first seven days of the journal had been taking place at ‘Cannibals Cove’ where the HMS Endeavour anchored for about twenty-three days. James Cook has given the name after he had an encounter with indigenous people, which will be described in the following. During the stay Joseph Banks refers to several encounter with indigenous people of New Zealand. He describes the behaviour and findings in a large extend. As an example he describes the encounter of members of HMS Endeavour’s crew and a double canoe. They have been told that the indigenous people lost a female child that according to their narrative â€Å"had been stole and eat by some of their neighbours†. Another group of crewmembers reported that they have met people who told them that they ate a child the day before. As a result of these stories Banks describes the conclusions of the crew as thefts of this kind are common for those Indians. Afterwards he tries to analyse and evaluate these stories. He assumes that the crewmembers met the same people and interpreted the stories differently which have been told by the indigenous people. Nevertheless he does not exclude this either, since families that came of to the ship â€Å"often brought women and young children in arms as if they were afraid to leave them behind. † Banks’ interest in the indigenous people of New Zealand can also be illustrated by his encounter of an Indian family. He describes them as being affable, obliging and unsuspicious and observed any order or subordination. By making known his regret of not being able to stay with the family for one night his interest in people and their behaviour can be seen. On the following days Banks describes how the exploration of the Cook Straits took place. The officers’ spread their thought that the land they have been round might be an isthmus that is between their current position (Cook Strait) and the Cape Turnagain, which they have last seen 17 October 1969. To confirm this Cook ordered the crew to sail northward until the cape could be seen. Whilst sailing in this direction HMS Endeavour came across indigenous people which in Banks’ journal entries are described as richer and more cleanly than any people they have seen since their stay at the Bay of Islands 3 November 1769. This makes him believe that they might have met subordinates of the Dominions of Teratu. As it turned out they were not this kind of people and thus they had to go on sailing northward looking for a well-known part of New Zealand. On 9 February 1770 an important discovery had been made. Cape Turnagain came back into sight, which proved that the land, they had been visiting, is an island. Besides Banks’ depictions of the exploration of New Zealand and the description of the indigenous people in huge detail he described Albatrosses and other animals to a small extend. His task as botanist plays a minor part during these days. By shooting Albatrosses as often as possible he tries to nourish the crew with fresh meat. The last four days of the journal at hand take place at the east coast of the future southern island of New Zealand. On 16 February 1770 Banks reports the sighting of a new island. This island will be later called â€Å"Banks’s Island† according to the chart of New Zealand based on Cook’s mapping. The fact that this is not an island but rather part of the southern island of New Zealand will be unknown for the rest of the journey. This error happened because Captain John Gore believed that he saw land in south eastward direction. To pursue this Cook decided to follow this direction and validate Gore’s assumption so â€Å"that nobody should say he had left land behind unsought†. On 18 February 1770 Banks states that no land could be found and the voyage will continue in westward direction. In the journals’ last entry Banks describes the discovery of land that might be either part of the New Zealand or the beginning of the southern island, which they have long yearned for. What can be seen in this part of the journal is the personal conflict of Banks. Intelligence obtained by the Indians during their last anchoring stop tells them that this might only be an island, nevertheless Banks does not want to let go of the â€Å"strong hopes that we had at last completed our wishes and that this was absolutely a part of the Southern continent†. The journal at hand includes without limitation information on the discovery of the Cook Strait and exploration of New Zealand. The subsequent days of the journey will clarify if the land they have spotted is either part of the southern continent or an island on its own. Nevertheless an outcome of this journey so far is a detailed map of northern New Zealand and the discovery of the isthmus between the northern island and the southern part. The nature of this journal is a very objective description of the happenings during the voyage.

Realistic and romantic elements in essays

Realistic and romantic elements in essays Realistic and Romantic Elements of The Overcoat Gogols The Overcoat has many realistic and romantic elements. In my opinion there are more romantic elements. It seems that this is a type of bedtime story for a child. Its purpose conveys to me a lesson of treat everyone as equal or you will be humbled yourself. Some of the realistic elements I have picked up on are as follows: The compassion of the new clerk and the reaction of the person of consequence after his friend leaves seem somewhat realistic because some people feel sorry for those in compromising situations and feel regret after scolding someone who may not necessarily have deserved such intensity, but as did the person of consequence when he went to his friends house after learning of Akakys death, they get on with their lives. Unlike Akakys leisure time activities, the pastimes of the other clerks seemed realistic, for example, they played cards, went to movies and parties and gossiped with others. The timidity of Akaky seemed to be an exaggeration of realistic. I have known many people to be timid and to use vague phrases and unfinished questions, maybe not quite as much as Akaky, to get their points across. They also seemed incapable of asserting themselves or sticking up for themselves to a superior. Another realistic element was when the narrator claimed not to know what Akaky was thinking about the picture in the window made this absolutely true story seem more realistic. The person of consequences power happy attitude toward his subordinates seemed realistic; this is best exemplified by young police officers when dealing with teenagers. The main characters name being Akaky, resembling kaka or defecator is one of many romantic elements. Among others is the way he is treated by his coworkers, before he gets his new coat they pick on him as children might do to another, an...