Misc-En-Scene Sin City

For my essay on mise-en-scene, I will be talking about Sin City, written and directed by Frank Miller, Robert Rodriquez and Quentin Tarantino. In this film, there are many unique techniques used by the directors to portray emotions, hidden meanings and to determine mood. Sin City is a bold and brutal adaptation of the graphic novels written by Frank Miller. Mise-en-scene is a cinematic term, which refers to techniques used by directors to help construct a specific onscreen representation. It consists of the setting of the film, costume and make up, lighting, staging, and last of all, time and space. The scene that I will be analyzing would be the scene in which Marv confronts Cardinal Roark and forces him to confess, after which Marv kills him. Marv, a brute of a man, is one of the protagonists in this film. He wakes up after a one-night stand with a prostitute ‘Goldie’ and she lies beside him dead. Marv realized that he has been framed and goes on a vengeful rampage to uncover the truth. He kills Kelvin who is a cannibal who murders and consumes people, and finds out the Kelvin was the cardinal’s ward. The setting of this scene is in the Cardinal’s room where it is dark and we can barely make out the furniture present inside. Color symbolism is extreme in the entire film; the film is almost entirely inked in black and white. The directors created the film using the visually stunning black and white style of film noir to emphasize cynical and extreme attitudes and sexual motivations. Film noir is used to depict the darker aspects of modernity, and is usually set in a criminal milieu; exactly what this film needed. The narrative and existential angst that drives a male protagonist and a voluptuous femme fatale who seduces the protagonist for her own benefits are the gist of film noir, which are present in Sin City. Goldie used Marv for his huge size and brute strength to protect her, while Marv had feelings for Goldie. Her murder drives him mad and fuels his rage to find her killer. Sin City can be classified as a neo-noir film, which possesses elements of film noir, but with updated themes and visual elements that were absent in classic film noir. However, it is the color rendering in this film that is unique. The retained or added color to certain objects is an amazing technique, bringing out the emotions of the character or empathize the significance of the object. In the confrontation scene, the eyes of Cardinal Roark are painted green and it is the only other color present in that picture of black and white. The color of the eyes shown would make the audience focus on Cardinal Roark as he confess, and to be drawn to ponder on his sick thoughts and emotions. Green color may have been used to depict a sense of evil and perverse present in the Cardinal, and true to the saying â€Å"The eyes are the windows to a person’s soul. The color red is rendered many times in the strikingly monochromatic film, mainly in the form of bloodshed or love objects like the heart-shaped bed where Marv and Goldie had their one night affair. Red is meant to depict extreme violence, death, love and vulnerability in Sin City and it plays an important role in stimulating the emotions of the audience. In spite of this, red is only used when it is required and not all blood is painted red. In some scenes, the blood is left as white colored to show that it is not as significant in the film. There is a scene in the flashback during Cardinal Roark’s confession, in which Goldie is fully colored from her yellow locks to her fiery red dress and the color of her skin. The idea was to illustrate how beautiful Goldie was in Marv’s eyes and how full of life Goldie was to Marv in the dreadful Sin City. Besides the color in the scene I have chosen, there are flashes of brilliant color at different junctions of the film. There is one scene where the prostitutes in Old Town, depicting justice served in a crude way, stain the skies red during the massacre of mercenaries. One very distinct color I would like to point out would be the Yellow Bastard’s skin color at the last part of the film. The connotation of yellow in this case, will be to represent dirty, pungent and obnoxious, so true to Yellow Bastard’s character that even his blood bleeds yellow. The costumes and makeup play another important element of mise-en-scene. As in the case of the dressing of the prostitute Goldie, the elegant and sexy dresses that she dons in the film help her play the part of the seductress. The blonde locks along with the blood-red lipstick she possess give the audience the vibe that she is a femme fatale. On the other hand, Marv is clothed throughout in a black trench coat with a white singlet inside, displaying his heedless of caution attitude. The actor playing Marv, Mickey Rourke is portrayed as the graying behemoth embodied underneath a ton of facial make-up to make him look grotesque and fierce. Besides that, Kelvin wears a pair of glasses to invoke the look of a creepy psychopath killer. All this costumes and makeup contribute in building the personalities of the characters in Sin City, empowering them with attributes the directors require them to have. In the lighting context for Sin City, low-key lighting is utilized throughout the film. Low-key lighting or chiaroscuro is present in the scene that I mentioned, with artificial light shone through the windows of the Cardinal’s room. The room is supposedly pitch dark and the only light present comes from outside the window. Thus creating a dimly lit scene, which gives the audience a feel of the impending doom of Cardinal Roark. Strong shadows engulf both the Cardinal and Marv, generating tension between the both characters. Marv’s face is barely visible at times, only a portion shown by the lighting. I believe by making the room so dark, it forces the audience to focus on what is visible. The weak light shone on Kelvin’s decapitated head also creates an eerie feel. At the final part of the scene whereby Marv presumably cuts Cardinal Roark’s throat, the darkness and shadows conceal the gore that ensues. The low-key lighting acts to dampen the effect of the violence as the details are being obscured. Furthermore, in the flashback during the confession of the cardinal, there is a shot of Kelvin with bright lighting shown from behind him. His entire face is black due to the shadow and his glasses were the only thing white in color. The effect creates such a deviant character and literally sends chills down one’s spine. On the whole, the sinister environment of Sin City is primarily submerged in low-key lighting, except in dramatic epic sequences, where the directors want the audience to see the details clearly. Another important aspect of misc-en-scene used in a film is the staging. Staging refers to the movement and placement of actors and objects. In the chosen scene, Marv breaks into Cardinal Roark’s room, shows him the decapitated head of Kelvin and places it on the table. â€Å"The dog ate the rest†, Marv tells Roark straight in his face. Marv does that to show his hostility towards Roark and to instill fear in him, but it does not seem to work as Roark just got out from his bed to examine the head. The act of Marv drawing his gun from his holster tells the audience that Marv was all ready to shoot Cardinal Roark in the head. His stance is in standing position while Roark just sat there without fleeing. This shows that Roark was ready to accept his fate. Yet, Marv did not blast his head to smithereens. He sat down across Roark to listen to his confession before murdering him. He smokes a cigarette as he listened to Roark, taking his time. All of this staging tells us that he wanted pleasure in killing the cardinal slowly. Expression on the characters is a critical part of staging and in a scene of confrontation as such, it plays a huge role. The expression on Marv’s face in the cardinal’s room remained unusually calm, without showing much rage. It creates a very tense atmosphere in the room, keeping the audience in suspense over when Marv would end Roark’s life. On the other hand, Roark was almost expressionless when he confessed to Marv about his perverse deeds and till the very end when he was killed in cold blood. There was only a slight tinge of nervousness when he saw Kelvin’s head. This scene illustrates vividly about a man who knows he is about to meet his doom and a man who is determined to take the life of another. It is the part where dark truth is revealed. Speech used is another element of mise-en-scene, not only can it invoke thoughts in the audience, it can bring out the true nature of the character. The rampaging Marv finally achieves his maniacal madman majesty when he answers Cardinal Roark’s final question of whether killing him would satisfy him, Marv answers â€Å"The killing? No, no satisfaction. Everything up to the killing, it’d be gas. † From that, we find out that although the diabolical priest and his ward deserve to die, Marv in fact enjoys torturing people and the speech alone reveals the sadistic nature in him. The camera is focused all the time on the closed-up faces of Marv and Roark when either one is speaking. In cinematography, facing the camera is the position with the most intimacy as the character is looking in our direction and we are able to see the expressions on his face, engaging our attention. Hence in a scene like this, the closed-up face positioning would be best. Close ups give the audience time to judge a character and create mood and tension between the two characters present. In the scene, I realize that the camera points upward towards Marc, giving the audience the perception that he is the powerful and dominating character now. The camera is high angled when focused on Roark, the cannibalistic cardinal, making him seem powerless and pitiful. The computer-generated monochromatic landscape of Sin City is both elegant and vivid. Presence of retro sets and vintage cars make the city seem like a city decades again, except when one of the thugs in the film drives a Ferrari from the modern world. This means that it could be a retro-modern world or it could be set today, just that the city is still in the 40s era. The costumes donned by the characters are weird for modern day fashion, from trench coats to stripper wear. It is perhaps pulp noir imagination and visualization of a world found only in graphic novels. The use of shallow depth of field in the scene I choose, allowed the subject to be isolated from the background. It serves to direct the audience’s gaze upon the expressions of the two characters. Depth is also created by lighting, which reveals or hides the parts, which the director want the audience to see. The scene is also set up in a small room to confine the background and focus on the characters. In this essay, I have analyzed how the directors used cinematographic elements of mise-en-scene to convey meaning and stimulate response in the audience in the particular scene. Mise-en-scene is extremely important in filmmaking and has to be incorporated in every film, how well the individual or combined mise-en-scene techniques are used will help create the desired meanings in each scene.

Alternatives to Incarceration

Incarceration is the state of confinement where non violent offenders could be exposed to hostile environment. Alternative programs provide better rehabilitation and successful reintegration to society. Some of them are controversial. One is less successful than the others. Incarceration is the state of confining an individual who committed a crime to prison for a certain period of time. The main purpose is rehabilitation.The offenders have the chance to correct the mistakes and upon release, the successful reintegration to society. The justice system upholds the protection and safety of men, women and children. It enforces social control by penalizing criminals who violated the law. Without the effective justice system, society will be in chaos with criminals running amok and on a wild spree for victims. Incarceration will serve as punishment for unmitigated violence. (Champion, D. 1994)However incarceration per se is not the answer especially for non violent or first time offenders since prison is a favorable place to adapt hostile behavior with hardcore criminals lurking around. Alternative programs were introduced reduce crime, cut prison costs, help people and communities, build better societies. The programs best serve the purpose of rehabilitation and successful reintegration of offenders to society. It also reduces recidivism. Recidivism is a form of relapse where convicted criminal upon prison release reverts back in committing the same or other crime.The reason is due to series of failures; failure of the individual to avoid trouble, failure of the institution to provide the right program for rehabilitation, failure of society to embrace the offender back in its arms, failure of the family to provide the necessary emotional support, failure of the individual to rehabilitate himself, failure of the individual to avoid committing the same or other crime after prison release. ( Matlz, Michael D. 1984 p1)Parole and probation officers are relevant and alte rnative programs produced great impact on the roles, responsibilities and difficulties of these officers as well as their supervision tasks. Officers have to conduct strict surveillance deterring the offenders to commit the same of other crime. They have to facilitate work or education depending on the need. This is time consuming and emotionally exhausting. However success of the alternative program will serve as a personal triumph and sense of accomplishment Special needs population affect offender’s supervision and this includes the juveniles.Parole officers should exercise high level of flexibility in dealing with juveniles without compromising their competence. Approach should be dynamic recognizing individual need (Rutherford, A. 1992). They have to talk to the families and friends. They have to seek assistance of school administration in case the juveniles are attending a learning program or went back to class. Talk to counselors if offenders are undergoing counseling therapy, talk to religious or civic group if offenders are providing community based service.This will help in monitoring the progress of offenders However, violation of the program’s terms and conditions will force the officer to make the necessary recommending that is sending the offenders to prison. The major tasks of parole and probation officers are the rehabilitation and successful integration of offenders to society. They need to set out a solid plan. There are goals and expectations. They are under political and public scrutiny. These officers suffer from external and internal pressure, they have to deliver good outcome, they have to satisfy the family, the public, the institution, the offenders as well as themselves.All these could lead to stress and burn out. Various alternative programs provide positive impacts. Community based service, offenders are sent to work like graffiti cleaning, lawn mowing, sorting books at the public library, cleaning up of parks. This wi ll help them actively participate in the community and help reach out to with society. Acceptance is an important factor. Families, peers, religious and civic groups play an important role. The primary goal is community service and safety. Work is unpaid.However, this is therapeutic and enhances self esteem. (Day, J. , Laufer, W. , 1987) Literature programs provide classroom training and enhance mental skills. This environment reduces personal stress and offers relief and comfort. It bolsters teacher student relationship. The offenders can mingle with other students. They can pursue an education for career development later. This facilitates a straight path where offenders become goal oriented enhanced by books and learning. Education has been the best weapon in fighting ignorance.It makes juveniles stay out of trouble and make them healthy members of the school and community. House arrest allows the offenders to sustain employment and family relationship. They are given freedom of mobility however their movements are restricted and under strict supervision. This is also known as electronic surveillance. A device is attached to the body mostly the ankle so location and whereabouts are monitored. House arrest provides reduction of high prison cost. (Jungen_Tas, J, Onderzoek, W 1994) Counseling therapy is effective for juvenile delinquents.There is interaction between counselor and offenders. Juveniles are given listening ears where they could express current emotions as well problems in the past that lead them to commit the offense. This could be performed individually, in group or together with the family. The success will depend on the willingness of the offenders to open up and accept the counsels to be provided. What programs are controversial and why? Boot Camp is also known as shock incarceration, offenders undergo rigorous training similar to the military.This serves well with juvenile offenders. They learn discipline, patience and team work. It enables them to gain self respect and develop effective ways of interacting with others. However boot camp is defiled by controversies. Some critics said that participants become frustrated and hostile due to the military way of instigating discipline. There were instances of deaths in boot camps. Drug courts and treatments is another controversial program because some offenders are forced to undergo drug rehabilitation without their consent.Substance abuse has been a perennial problem of any society however it will need a deeper analysis to check if the drug use is the root or mere manifestation of an underlying problem that needs serious treatment. Least successful of the programs is restitution. This is for cases of petty theft or stealing small amount of money, the offender is ordered to return the money to the victim. Rather than serving time in jail this program drastically reduces prison cost. However, this is the least successful among alternative programs due to the inability of th e offender to give the money back.Offenders committing petty crime are members of the indigent population with no monetary capabilities. Whatever alternative program best suits the offenders, the goal is to make him or her better member of society. Family, peers and the community will need to work together to facilitate adjustment and healing. Parole and probation officers are guides and mentors. These special need population suffer from emotional imbalance. They are outcast and needs care and understanding. But with proper nurture they could always go back to society.It will take time to regain the much needed respect however through patience, hard work and support there will always be a second chance. Reference List Champion, D. (1994) Measuring offender risk: a criminal justice workbook USA Greenwood Press Day, J. , Laufer, W. , (1987) Crimes, values and religion USA Ablex Publication Jungen_Tas, J, Onderzoek, W (1994) Alternatives to prison sentences: experiences and development s. Amsterdam, New York: Kugler Maltz, M. (1984) Recidivism Florida Academic Press, Inc. (p1-27) Rutherford, A. (1992) Growing out of crime: the new era. Winchester Waterside Press

Identification of Country Specific Social Infrastructure Problems Essay

Having a sound understanding on the economic procedures of different nations can greatly help each one of them to combat internal social problems. With the establishment of international organizations to assist poor countries in structuring their societies, it is of utmost importance to provide them with the basic facts of the dilemmas experienced by low-performing economies. A great deal to support the functional institutions is to assist them in coming up with a credible and non-biased sets of facts about the countries which they intend to assist.   Apparently, there are some cases in which monetary assistances do not actually reach the full potential of social projects due to inevitable factors such as inefficient fund allocation, corruption and unidentified resolution effects. In this aspect, it is very important to have a reliable source of information about the priority problems of each country in terms of social infrastructure building. Objectives The main objective of the research proposal is to come up with a reliable database which will tabulate the economic problems of each underdeveloped economy. These information will be used to support the programs of international funding organizations such as IMF and the World Bank. These databases will incorporate the designation of a single standard outline which will then effectively identify the problems of the states, the key priority acts in resolving them and the estimated enough allocation of funds. Methodology In order to have a database of country profiles, it is necessary to collect data at the lowest parameter of the study-the countries themselves. Primarily, each country has its own varying degrees of social law implementation which addresses the supposedly obvious problems of each economy. 1. Global Identification of Developing/Underdeveloped countries. The list of countries belonging in these segments is available from the United Nations’ country data profile. This may save the research procedure some time and financial resources since countries will be narrowed down into a specific list. 2. After the gathering of country profiles, the next approach is to retrieve data values from respective government agencies of each country through personal office visits, e-mail transmission or telephone and telefax reception of data. The main facts which will be needed are yearly budget allocation for social welfare programs, population of each country, GDP rates, specific population of women and children, government yearly spending on health care and general infrastructure budget allocation which are all basically used as country performance indicators (Cool Fire Technology, 2004). These values will be tabulated on a computer program for easy filtering and ranking of data values in prioritizing specific country concerns. 3. Upon the retrieval of the designated data, they will then be compared to the instructional references of the World Bank or IMF to identify which of the countries will most likely need to get assistances from the two international organizations. Afterwards, a full recommendation for assistance may be requested from them to highlight the importance of helping the countries based on the specific country profile report gathering. Timeline The procedures involving the retrieval of country specific data may be regarded as the most extensive and most demanding factor in terms of time frame allocation. This procedure is projected to cover at least three to four months. If the latest country data is available from reliable resources, then those data will be used instead of conducting country specific data retrieval and interviews. On the procedures which involve the submission of reports to the funding agencies, the time expected for completion is at least two weeks after the end of country specific database construction.

Outline the Ways in Which Rubbish Can Be Said to Have Value in a Consumer Society Essay

Shopping is an important part of the modern consumer lifestyle. It is enjoyed as a social activity and is about identity and expression as much as the usefulness of the purchase. People define themselves not only by their jobs, but also by their possessions and the things they own. Rubbish is only considered rubbish because people disvalue it. People want it to be invisible; once the rubbish goes out for collection, it can be forgotten. However, consumer society does value rubbish as value is personal and is never fixed. It can change over time and become re-valued again whether economically or aesthetically or both. This essay will look at the ways in which rubbish is valued in a consumer society by outlining consumption and the increase in rubbish, Bauman’s theory of the seduced and the repressed; Environmental & Economic value and Thompson’s Rubbish Theory. Rubbish per household has increased over the years. Between 1957- 2006, household rubbish had risen by 28%. (Brown, 2009, p.107) This could be attributed to a rise in affluence and the availability of credit, which enables more people to participate in consumer society. Disposable income increases the likelihood of people spending on luxury goods rather than just the essentials. Other possible factors are the increase in mass consumption during that period; shops offer lower prices and more choice. People also eat more; use more services; and buy more clothes and white goods. 9% of total expenditure was spent on services in 1957, compared to 25% in 2006 (which includes personal goods; household and leisure services) (Brown, 2009, p.110) and data collected by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) (Hetherington, 2009, p.23) shows that the average household spends more on recreation and culture (luxuries) than non-alcohol and food (essentials). Although the data cannot take every circumstance into account, it does suggest that as people became more affluent over the years, the amount of money spent on luxuries increased and with affluence and choice people tend to dispose of items more readily then they would have 50 years ago. Consumers can feel pressured to keep up with the latest trends. The constant changes in fashion and technology encourage people to upgrade their goods before the lifespan of the existing item has expired. It gives them a sense of worth in society, as it helps them to fit into a certain lifestyle. The data supports Bauman’s theory (Hetherington, 2009, p.26) that being a part of consumer society helps people to establish identity and self expression. It also reflects a lifestyle that others might aspire to. He calls these people the seduced, as they have the means and the desire to consume effectively and are therefore valued in society. In contrast, the repressed, who may not be able to consume as effectively due to a lack of income, age or disability for example; can feel excluded from the consumer society. However, these categories are interchangeable and people can move between the two categories. The result of consumption is waste, and increased consumption equals an increase in rubbish. It could be argued that the seduced, being the more active consumers, are more likely to create the most rubbish, due to their greater consumer habits. Regardless of this, eventually all of the items, food and appliances that we consume end up as rubbish and it needs to be dealt with. Despite rubbish generally being viewed as negative, some people view it positively. There are people whose business is rubbish and therefore, it is of value to them economically, such as, restoration and re-sale or a large company profiting from its disposal. Rubbish collecting can also be a resourceful hobby. A discarded item from a skip or the dump can be salvaged or restored and made into an item of value again, whether it’s use value, aesthetic value or both. Environmentalists also value rubbish by pursuing a ‘greener’ lifestyle. Recently, the Government has put more emphasis on environmental issues and it has made people more aware of the impact they are having on the planet. Although reducing consumption would be the obvious answer; in the meantime, reuse & recycling schemes and fortnightly rubbish collections have encouraged people to consider the value of rubbish and the environment. The UK is still a poor performer when compared with other European countries and although there is still a long way to go, recycling has increased. Information provided by Defra, 2007 (Brown, 2009, p.117) shows that the percentage of total rubbish recycled has steadily increased. In 1983/4 the rate of rubbish recycled was 1% compared to 31% in 2006/7. Although the total amount of rubbish also increased during earlier years, as of 2003/4, the amount of rubbish began to decrease as the rate of recycling increased. Due to the increase in environmental awareness, rubbish has become valued by people who want to contribute to a greener, more environmentally friendly lifestyle. Being environmentally friendly has also become about identity and image, and it has become a positive social attribute. However, it is not just environmental issues that give rubbish value. The downturn in the economy has prompted people to re-use and re-sell their unwanted items instead of throwing them away. Mobile phones can be recycled for money and various unwanted items can be sold on with the aid of local newspapers and internet auction sites. While one person is disposing of their rubbish for profit, someone else is gaining something that they value. In Thompson’s ‘Rubbish Theory’ (Brown, 2009, p.122) he explains how some items considered as rubbish can evolve and gain value again. He suggests that some items can move from the transient category (items produced for use) via rubbish (items that become of little or zero value) into the durable category (where value increases over time) and be valued again. When an object moves from transient to durable its value first drops before it begins to rise again. Thompson’s example of this would be Stevengraphs (Brown, 2009, p.124). Thomas Stevens made a profitable business by selling his silkworks in the 1800’s, but by the mid twentieth century, they had become almost valueless. Over time the items became collector’s pieces and their value began to rise. This example shows that value is not fixed; an item can lose or gain value over time. Thompson suggests that one of the reasons for this rise and fall is because of supply and demand (Brown, 2009, p.126). From a collectors perspective, buying a Stevengraph when the supply was plentiful compared to the demand, meant that it could be purchased relatively cheaply. As the supply diminished over the years, the remaining pieces became rare and therefore more valuable to the collectors. When the demand outweighs the supply, it results in an increase in price and value. To conclude, it can be said that rubbish has value in a consumer society. Although generally viewed negatively, it does have value to a number of different people. Rubbish is valuable to people who work in the waste industry and gain profit or wages from it. Environmentalists’ value rubbish as it helps them to contribute to an environmentally friendly lifestyle by reusing and recycling. And people suffering in the economic downturn have found a new way to value rubbish, by selling it on and buying items second hand in order to save money, which consequently, saves on waste. Finally, Thompson suggests that rubbish can be re-valued as items move from the transient category via rubbish, into the durable category where its value rises again.

Analysis of Peter Pan Essay

In this study, we are going to talk about two histories of Children’s Literature, histories that are part of the history of this literature. The tales we are going to talk about have marked and for sure will mark the the childhood of many children in the world. This tales are â€Å"Peter Pan†, by James Matthew Barrie (1860–1937) who was a Scottish author and dramatist; and â€Å"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz† by Lyman Frank Baum (1856-1919), American children’s literature author, playwright and journalist. We are going to talk about their authors, about the time when this books were published and then we are going to analyze in depth the tales, talking about their settings, their characterisation, their narrative progression, their language and their plot. We are going to compare the book with their respective film and finally, we are going to compare â€Å"Peter Pan† with â€Å"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz† stories. 2. MAKING OFF: 1. 19th December: We went to Vallecas’ library. Here we showed us the individual information and we thought about the essay’s structure . We looked for more information about the stories, author, time†¦ Finally, we made the introduction of the work. We took books to take home to complete the individual information. 2. 10th January: We went to Vallecas? library. We had done our individual part and we had seen the two movies. We made together the individual most important parts (setting, narrative, progression, plot †¦) and the comparison between Peter Pan and the Wizard of Oz: Similarities and differences. Finally, we made the conclusion of the work. 3. 14th January: We went to the university library. We completed the bibliography on work and finished the index and the title page. 3. PART A – PETER PAN: AUTHOR: JAMES MATTHEW BARRIE James Matthew Barrie, (9 May 1860 – 19 June 1937) was a Scottish author and dramatist, best remembered today as the creator of Peter Pan. The child of a family of small-town weavers, he was educated in Scotland. He moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright. There he met the Llewelyn Davies boys who inspired him in writing about a baby boy who has magical adventures in Kensington Gardens (included in The Little White Bird), then to write Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up, a â€Å"fairy play† about this ageless boy and an ordinary girl named Wendy who have adventures in the fantasy setting of Neverland. Barrie was born in Kirriemuir, Angus, to a conservative Calvinist family. Barrie was the ninth child of ten (two of whom died before he was born), all of whom were schooled in at least the three Rs, in preparation for possible professional careers. Barrie wished to pursue a career as an author, but was dissuaded by his family He was to attend a university, but would study literature. He enrolled at the University of Edinburgh, where he wrote drama reviews for Edinburgh Evening Courant. He was extremely introverted, and was shy about the fact he was in college and only approximately five feet. He would go on to graduate with his M. A. on April 21, 1882. Meanwhile, Barrie’s attention turned increasingly to works for the theatre. The production of Barrie’s play at Toole’s Theatre in London was seen by William Archer, the translator of Ibsen’s works into English, who enjoyed the humour of the play and recommended it to others. Barrie travelled in high literary circles, and in addition to his professional collaborators, he had many famous friends. In 1896, his agent, Addison Bright persuaded him to meet with Broadway producer Charles Frohman. Frohman would become not only his financial backer, but a close friend as well. Frohman, who was responsible for producing the debut of Peter Pan in both England and the U. S. , as well as other productions of Barrie’s plays, famously declined a lifeboat seat when the RMS Lusitania was sunk by a German U-boat in the North Atlantic. Actress Rita Jolivet, who stood with Frohman, George Vernon, and Captain Alick Scott at the end, survived the sinking and recalled Frohman paraphrasing Peter Pan: ‘Why fear death? It is the most beautiful adventure that life gives us. Barrie argues that, before birth, all babies are birds, hence the image of Peter was born, a boy, when I was a baby, flew out the window of his room while his mother slept, because he had not lost faith that could fly. Believing be direct bird flew back to Kensington Gardens, where the serpentine lake within which lies the island of birds, also called â€Å"Neverland. † Peter Pan quickly overshadowed his previous work and although he continued to write successfully, it became his best-known work, credited with popularizing the name Wendy, which was very uncommon previously. Barrie unofficially adopted the Davies boys following the deaths of their parents. Before his death, he gave the rights to the Peter Pan works to Great Ormond Street Hospital, which continues to benefit from them. The first appearance of Peter Pan came in The Little White Bird, which was serialised in the United States, then published in a single volume in the UK in 1901. TIME: Although James Barrie was born in Scotland, he moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright. In England, the queen Victoria had the longest reign with 64 years of government in the history of the British monarches, and the cultural, political, economic, industrial and scientific changes that happened during his reign were notable. When Victory ascended to the throne, England was essentially agrarian and rural; to his death, the country was highly industrialized. Between 1860 and 1870 the industrial revolution happens. The children must go to the school, but families need money, some children don? t go to school. For this one installs a Foster? s Law (1870): Obligatory education. Children to be educated at school. The literature was a very popular way of amusing itself in the Victorian Epoch and big writers arose. In children? s literature, the writers write for girls and for boys. Normally, woman writer write for girls. The type of book for girls is a domestic history: In house, with a family†¦ The type of book for boys is an adventure books. These topics were faraway places. The girls read adventure? s books hidden. In 1854 Charles Dickens publishes Oliver Twist. This book is a very famous because is a real boy the center of novel. This is a big innovation.

Aggregated demand Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Aggregated demand - Research Paper Example From time back, suburban and new cars have made the economy powerful and pushed recoveries. In contrary, Millennial have no interest in the two. The same way sale of cars have dropped in this age cohort, young people’s share on mortgages from the year 2009 to 2011 has dropped to half of what was 10 years back. Majority of the generation of America might never consume compared to the lavish spending of their parents. At the time Zip car was formed, a gallon average price was 1.5 dollars and I phones never existed. From then, it has been the largest car sharing firm in the world. Zip car bases its success on two factors. The first being the doubling of gas prices that made the sharing attractive. Secondly, smart phones became present everywhere that made the sharing of cars easy. Besides, the mobile market has given power compared to car sharing. It has enabled friends to communicate from a distance. This could result to shifting from automobiles to mobiles and s decline in spen ding habits. Millennials are sharing most things such as living quarters. Most of the millennials lived with their parents due to the great recession (Cam Marston, pp 85) The society where people owned houses has been replaced by squatters and renters. As much as most millennials may want to have their own houses they have been faced with challenges like low savings due to low pays and tough conditions of banks. The debt of students trail most buyers as they look for car loans or mortgages. At minimum individual ownership of houses rates are not likely to return to peaks that they hit at the time of housing bubbles. In 10 years, most people consisting mainly of millennials will pull together to make new households. As a whole living aside urban sensibility, small houses and townhouses are cheap, and developers have in mind that in order to attract this group, they need to provide for bank accounts that are in tatters. The kinds of property the millennials buy now differ from what wa s purchased five years back. The houses are placed within the perimeter of shopping centers. Such buyers require shares of zip cars and bikes. In short in future, the buyers may require cars and houses that are small and cheaper that is specifically meant for the new economy. If millennials do not post own and post drive generation, they will be less owning and less driving generation. The situation would lead to tough adjustments of the economy in the near future. In the past decades, the industry of houses has always solved the problems of recession. At the time the federal dropped the interest rates at the time of recession in the 1980s, it aided fuel the recovery of Regan (Eugene et al. pp 2) As the housing market declined, the government has lost the main means of manipulating the economy by reduced interest rates. Instead, the service recovery that is there is not strong. The small houses that are constructed in mixed used, dense areas in general take long to construct than ma nsions in other places. And because the small houses require few furnishings and fixtures, their building stimulates less activity in the economy. To add to that, both auto making and construction are basically blue collar jobs. These sectors employ many middle class employees that would be hurt through changing from auto manufacturing and home construction. Companies that deal in internet connection of high speed and personal electronics do not require many employees. Moreover, the jobs that they create skew steadily towards the peak of socioeconomic ladder. On the other hand, in the long term or long run, there is cause for sanguinity. There

Evaluation of the Company's Strategy Coursework - 1

Evaluation of the Company's Strategy - Coursework Example The company operates in two segments that include retail and financial services. Its financial services include personal banking mainly mortgages, credit cards, personal loans, and savings (Tesco Plc, 2013). Analysis and critical evaluation of Tesco’s strategic position In the first assignment, the SWOT analysis, Porter’s five forces model and PESTEL framework have been used to analyze the external environment surrounding Tesco Plc. Its opportunities include opening up of its stores within the country and outside it, the building up of its clients around the world, and its strategy to expand to the Indian market. In 2009 the company opened up 620 stores out of which 435 were international thereby creating a network of commercial stores which would help Tesco benefit economically and reduce systemic threats. Its 1 million clients in 2010 provided an excellent opportunity for it to attract customers. Also its expansion in the Indian market would enable Tesco to maintain a nd grow. This will result in the strengthening of Tesco’s position in the global market. However threats continue to surround Tesco as the economical conditions are changing continuously economic recession and the financial crisis has to lead to unemployment and a decrease in sales. Moreover, as new giant departmental stores are emerging in the retail business Tesco is facing stiff competition as a result. Due to the financial crisis in the UK and the subsequent contraction of the economy, Tesco has faced problems in consolidating its position in the UK market. A decrease in sales has resulted due to low income and unemployment that people face and are therefore changing their buyer habits. As a result consumers are changing their behavior so as to allow them to spend on products and... As Tesco continues to explore its opportunities to expand in countries where there exist high returns, it also aims to be competitive by realizing its customer demands and needs so that they are able to provide them with a great experience. For that it needs to conduct frequent market reviews to analyze customer satisfaction. Also due to inflation the price setting should be done such that it attracts customers thereby creating a greater competitive environment. The focus is also on improve the performance of its current markets to maintain and grow its market share. The implementation of strategies that focus on customer reviews to tackle competition and grow could lead to better performance as most of the threats and weaknesses Tesco is as a result of rivals and the economic conditions. Sustainable growth is one of Tesco’s strategies. This means that profits are not the only governing factor in expanding but growing with responsibility thereby creating a sustainable operatin g environment. Knowledge Hub was started by Tesco for its suppliers to encourage the sharing of environmentally friendly ideas. Tesco wants to create a sustainable supply chain and by 2020 it aims to cut down emissions by twenty to thirty percents.

How effectively does the model of large-scale, integrated managerial Essay

How effectively does the model of large-scale, integrated managerial enterprise provide a corporate blueprint to explain the performance of leading national economies - Essay Example Chandler stresses the importance of the managerial functions that had been necessitated by the development of and electric power, and the accompanying enormous capital mobilization which sought to exploit the opportunities that these new technologies presented. Industries thus shifted focus and became more capital intensive, which put overwhelming pressure on the managers to increase their performance so that the large investments could be safeguarded. Chandlers’ work identified three capitalist systems that emerged in the midst of this second industrial revolution, namely personal capitalism which he connected to the United Kingdom (Great Britain), competitive capitalism, associated with the United States, and co-operative capitalism, which is depicted in the economy of Germany. Though each system is quite distinct from the other two, there are several elements that run right through all of them, especially in terms of their function such as enabling the effective focus of ca pital and labour in profitable ventures, increasing a country’s technical in terms of important technological knowledge and also ensuring the growth of managerial skills. The question concerns the application of this theory to the real world, and whether the ideas presented therein hold true for the real world. The theories put forward by Chandler enjoy massive empirical support and I therefore agree with them for the reasons that will be mentioned in the forthcoming sections. The approach will consist of analyzing each of the different capitalism structures in the context of their associated economies, and also in other similar economies where their effects can be traced, and relevance of the theories to the wide range of economies that will be covered. Associated with the Great Britain, personal capitalism is characterized by major large scale businesses being run by

Edit lesson Plan 2 and 5 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Edit lesson Plan 2 and 5 - Assignment Example After the story, the children will engage in a game of treasure hunt - just like in the story - but this time wearing a leprechaun mask as if they were a leprechaun; and be the first to shout â€Å"We found it!† once they find all 5 treasures. The students will be motivated to participate in the game of treasure hunt as their curiosity will be aroused on what treasure they will discover. 9:03 – Teacher will say that in order to find the leprechaun, they have to read the story of St. Patrick’s Day (holding the book in her hand). The teacher will read the story, showing the lift-the-flap pages. As the teacher reads the story, the teacher will identify 3 important figures/objects in the story and say its name out loud (as the teacher encounters it through the pages of the story) and have the class repeat the word. 9:10 – Teacher is done reading the story, and begins to distribute the leprechaun masks. As the teacher distributes the masks, she will tell the students that they are now leprechauns who will go treasure hunting. 9:12 – Teacher will divide them into Group Coins & Group Shamrocks. Group Coins will get coin map. Group Shamrock will get shamrock map. The teacher will now lay down the instructions for the activity to the students. certain the students do not forget the phrase, the teacher will ask â€Å"What will you shout after finding all 5 treasures?† this way, the children would have to shout back the phrase â€Å"We found it!† The teacher will then ask the class what they think of the treasure that they found in the map, whether or not the treasure was easy to find; were they able to find all 5 treasures before the rainbow disappeared; ask whose group shouted â€Å"We found it!† after finding all the treasures; do the student’s like the story of St. Patrick’s Day, do they like the masks, and other questions that will draw responses from the students in relation to the activity or the

Enterprise Resource Planning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Enterprise Resource Planning - Essay Example Therefore, it becomes essential to revamp these to attain maximum output within the existing resources. The process of revisiting the existing performances, processes or parameters in order to revamp them and improve them to make goals and targets more achievable is called Business Process Re-engineering. They are also denoted by the terms, Business Process Re-design or Business Process Improvement. ERP systems are a single interface integrated systems that enable data sharing and complete management control throughout the organization over multiple departments. It encompasses all aspects of the organization from planning to delivery. Although in theory these systems are supposed to be extraordinarily useful in concept but in reality there are a number of failed implementations of ERP, a very few documented but most of them not being recorded for fear of publicity. ERP systems are expensive and time consuming and therefore failure of the implementation often spells disaster for the company. The ability to utilize and expand on the existing system and put it to better use often demarcates success and failure for the organization Enterprise resource planning is employed to plan and manage the available resources in a company. It is basically an integrated software system that manages the entire range of business processes inclusive of purchase, inventory control, personnel, shipping and financials among an exhaustive list. In essence, an ERP is typically a single database platform of complete information sharing allowing the comprehensive range of inputs and outputs from and to all the departments Challenges in the Implementation of ERP Systems It is clear that for an ERP system to be successfully implemented, they have to be integrated with all the processes and procedures in the enterprise. This is necessary since this integration helps them to function as an entity and enable it to work effectively. When implemented correctly they add enormous value to the company but when not properly implemented, they may poses risks to the company in the industry and business environment, user or management behavior, create bottlenecks in the processes and system functionalities, and jeopardize ongoing business continuity and maintenance time frames. Because the nature of ERP is such that it's a company wide concern, all the risks associated with it need to be looked at as a whole, with respect to organization vision. It cannot be controlled in isolation with respect to a single process alone but has to be considered in close alignment to business objectives and organization goals. Any process that is to be integrated into the enterprise must be evaluated for its capability to meet organizational goals. Once the process has been identified to be integrated, then it is prudent that the process is considered a " best" practice

Hegels Interpretation on Universal Love Research Paper

Hegels Interpretation on Universal Love - Research Paper Example The fragment starts with the author’s reasoning on equality. These contemplations of the equality of man in front of the Lord must have been aroused in Hegel by the events and ideas of the French revolution. In this fragment, Hegel states that the equality of right brings on the dependence of people. As a result, the man loses his domination over objects, and thus he loses his worth, whereas humans are used to measuring their worth by the degree of their influence over the objective world. Feeling himself only a tiny part of the universe, the man starts despising himself, thus injuring his self and coming to ever greater discord. Whereas â€Å"the object, severed from the subject, is dead†, the only kind of love he can experience towards Lord and the universe is the love to the dead objects. The living union between the man and the world is not possible, while love towards the dead object is unrequited. The individual finds himself opposed to the external world, entirely independent of it. The man loses the sense of life and does not see the essence of his existence. These passages, in fact, describe the state of many modern people. We spend our lives attempting to overcome our loneliness and seeking help outside, we are not able to bear responsibility for our acts. Feeling detached from the external world we doom ourselves for a constant struggle with the opposed world, which often seems to be hostile to us. Not realizing that we are the part of the universe, just as our arms and legs are parts of our body, we are not able to hear the voice of God in us and understand his intentions. We lose ourselves following the wrong teachings and ideals, and only love has the power to make us whole, able to understand the divine plans and feel the way the universe moves. Hegel explains that it is so difficult for the man to bear this nullity, while our necessity is always relative, â€Å"the one exists only for the other† (p.304).

Fords Western and Leones Western Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Fords Western and Leones Western - Movie Review Example This paper looks into two films individually: The Searcher, directed by John Ford (1956), and Once upon a time in the west, directed by Sergio Leone (1968). It describes their mise-en scene and beyond, introduced first by their corresponding synopsis. A comparison is made at the end. Synopsis. Although filmed on Navajo land in northern Arizona, The Searchers, begins in 1868 Texas. Ethan Edwards (played by John Wayne), a soldier, returns to his brother's farm after the end of the Civil War where he fought for the Confederacy. It has taken Ethan three years to come home, after fighting on the losing side of the Civil War. Ethan is in love with his brother's wife, Martha, but unlike his brother, he is not the man to settle down and raise a family. In this film, Ethan Edwards is seeking the two nieces who were abducted during a Comanche raid, in which his brother's family is murdered. Finding the mutilated bodies of his family, Ethan is guilt-ridden, feeling he was not there when he was needed. He thus becomes obsessed with recovering his two nieces and seeking revenge on the Comanche. This fanatic search provides the only rationale for Ethan's life, and he is determined to succeed. "We'll fin'em just as sure as the turning of the earth," he says. Ethan is a bitter and lo... Ethan becomes more concerned with executing vengeance than with finding her. During the search, when Ethan is asked, "You wanna quit" he angrily replies, "That'll be the day!" and he repeats this phrase many times in the course of the film. Theme. Based on a screenplay by Frank S. Nugent from the novel by Alan Le May, "The Searchers" deals with the winning of the West, the struggles between the invading White Man and the Native Americans, the Western Code of Honor, and old-fashioned determination vs. selfish, vengeful spite (Puccio, 2006). Ethan embodies the most important attributes of the Westerner: individualism, self-sufficiency, strength, non-conformity, and loneliness. In this movie, Ethan's solitariness is stressed visually. The film opens with a magnificent inside framing shot of a cabin door, opening up to high desert red sandstone formations and turquoise sky. Ethan appears out of nowhere, from the desert, and, at the end, after his mission is accomplished, Ethan returns to the desert. In the film's last shot, Wayne stands alone, silhouetted in the door's frame, while other people pass around, ignoring his presence. A shot similar at the beginning bookends the film. In this film, Ford illustrates the outcomes of racism and Indian hating, a seeming eloquent statement in support of the Civil Rights movement (Puccio, 2006). Consider the following conversation - Brad (to Ethan, as they follow the Comanche): They gotta stop sometime; if they're human men at all, they've gotta stop. Ethan: A human rides a horse until it dies, and then goes on afoot. Comanch' comes along, gets that horse up, rides him twenty more miles ... then eats him. Techniques. In the story, drawn away

Importance of Professional development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Importance of Professional development - Essay Example Striving for professional development in field of Beverages: Field of beverages production and manufacturing is solely dependent on the supply chain effective; through effective supply chain can the professional development be achieved. It further demands a thorough insight into the various sectors of the beverages industry where improvements and margins are possible. Considering the modern day challenges and changes that have taken place in the management field with regard to the professional development, a total revamping of the beverages industry is sought which scrutinizes the personnel , the tools and techniques, used along with the processes conducted based on those tools. Highlighting of areas that have direct impact on the improvement and deterioration of the supply chain and the beverage industry is the first step towards obtaining professional development. In modern times, the supply chain operations are conducted through state of the art technology and various other tools that have made things very fast, easy yet demanding. Like any other organization and industry, the beverages industry supply chain requires input from every individual involved. With the operational staff in the front line of actions and delivery performance, the top management have equal responsibility for ensuring the smooth operations and providing of relief and benefits to the middle management and lower staff who perform these supply chain operations. Fragility of Supply Chain: The supply chain department is the most fragile component of any organization that is associated with outside world. Achieving professional development would seek mastering this segment of the organization since it involves both the internal sources, and the external sources. The... The researcher states that in the modern management world, the rules and metrics for achieving excellence have become tough, with more number of players in the market and the supply chains entailing the international players, it is a double difficult job today achieving professional development. However, it is only through the professional approach that the modern day challenges can be faced and mitigated in the discipline of supply chain operations. While organizational behavior has is an effective body that influences human resources, strategic decision management is valued too. It is equally applicable to the field of supply chain. The aim of this essay is to find the management tips and procedures which would guide to the professional development in the field of Supply Chain. Having defined rest of the important factors which contribute towards the professional development, the study, that is presented in this essay would be incomplete without the mention of strategy. It is the p rocess of putting plans into action with consideration of variables attached. Presence of effective strategy is mantioned too, as the back bone towards touching the professional development. The researcher concluds that without it the entire project and its crew would operate in tangents. An important distinction must be made between the goal definition and strategy, goal definition gives an insight into the end product, while the strategy is a step wise process which provides step by step overview to be conducted for the goals achievement.

Logistics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Logistics - Essay Example In the management of erection logistics suitability and adaptability of the carriers are very important. Some of the functions relating to logistics, such as chartering arrangement for barges, supply vessels, helicopters, etc., are outsourced through the external agencies for customized sea freight and air freight services. Other important factors that need to be considered include waste disposal, material handling equipments, inventory management and clearance of goods in airports and seaport. Human resources management involves recruitment of qualified, experienced and certified professionals for employment in various levels of the management structure. Strategic planning and coordination is essential for storage and movement of the materials in cost effective management. Based on the risk parameters established for storage and handling of various types of materials and machineries, special arrangements for movement of materials with care should be made. The procedures for this pur pose should be incorporated into the system for effective management. Planning and Coordination Field logistics vary from project to project, consequently, so does the planning process. Somuyiwa, and Adewoye (2010) stated: IT in supply chain has enabled the gathering, storing and analysis of unprecedented amounts of data. It equally facilitates planning at all levels through data analysis and sharing, which enable planning to occur at the strategic, tactical, and operational levels. Similarly, IT gathers, integrates, and analyzes logistical data to streamline local and global supply chain. (p.43) The distance between the project to the sea and airports and the traffic level are the important factors which govern the planning process. Storage and transshipment of the materials at the port or airport depends upon the frequency in schedules for arrival and departure of the careers. Online location of the careers is important for monitoring status of the shipments in relation to the sch edule of operations. This will enable timely clearance of the goods, making arrangements for storing in offshore supply bases or moving them to the respective offshore platforms. Offshore mooring or establishing floating warehouses near the offshore oilfields should be considered based on the cost factors involved. This should be balanced with the increased efficiency achievable in logistics management in terms of time or deadlines. Cost-benefit analysis will enable the management to firm up the plans in line with the overall strategic logistics management decisions. Advance checking of the documents related to the goods such as pro forma invoice, packing list, inspection certificate, insurance and test certificate is essential to avoid problems in the last minute. Also, the transport documents such as Shipping Order, Bill of Lading and Sea/Air Waybill, other financial documents like letters of credit or insurance documents and the government documents such as licenses and declarati ons should be checked in advance. This will be useful in identifying the inconsistencies. Rectification of the defects on time will avoid delays in clearance. Documentation is very important, especially in the case of port or airport with heavy traffic. Here, officers at various levels may have to be coordinated in case there is any discrepancy in documentation.

The notions of sentence, utterance and proposition Essay

The notions of sentence, utterance and proposition - Essay Example Affirmative sentences, questions, exclamatory comments, etc. are commonly being used. Similarly if we try to understand deliberately about language we will have to learn about various concepts of language. Sentence can be viewed as the basic thing which supports and keeps alive a language. The most popular definition of a sentence is 'the expression of a complete thought'. Any 'thought', can be further specified more precisely. It is reasonable to argue that utterances also always express 'thoughts'. A general theory of utterance means that the speaker first casts a thought, and then expresses it as a clear utterance. This theory includes the theory of sentences. But it is unrealistic. "A sentence represents an eventuality. An eventuality is an action, or an event, or a state of affairs: something that happens or something that is. The sentence represents an eventuality by separating out the type of eventuality from the abstract and or concrete things which are involved in the eventuality. The type of the eventuality is typically represented by the verb, and the abstract or concrete things involved in the eventuality are prototypically represented by noun phrases. ... Subject is the part on which the action of the sentence is being predicated. Subject may also be called as the person who performs the action in the sentence. Now comes the predicate part which includes verb and complements. Subject of a sentence is the part acting upon the object of the verb. 1) Ram ate mango 2) Peter threw the ball are two good examples of sentence: In the first sentence "Ram" is subject, "mango" is object and "ate mango" is predicate. An utterance is a statement true in grammar but not true in meaning. It is widely being used in auditory communication. In other words, a sentence carries truth, an utterance holds no water. Utterance refers to a word, phrase or sentence expressed by a speaker on a particular occasion. It may or may not carry meaning. Examples of utterance 1. India can win the next football Olympics 2. UK will become monarchy soon. A proposition is as proposal advanced. It is a grammatically correct statement. A proposition is what is expressed by a sentence when that sentence is used to make a statement, that is, to say something, true or false. Literally it means to give a proposal or idea about something. Examples of proposition 1. Yoga should be made compulsory for all youngsters. 2. All students should get up before sunrise. One sentence can contain more than one utterance. Again one sentence can have one or more propositions. An utterance can be composed of a number of sentences. And also, one or more propositions can make an utterance. Example: The child utters: "I am hungry". This actually makes two propositions - 1) "I am hungry" and 2) "I must be given milk." The sentence "I am hungry" is thus an utterance and a preposition. According to Chris Potts "One or more proposition makes

How businesses comply with legislations regarding sales over the Essay

How businesses comply with legislations regarding sales over the internet - Essay Example E-Commerce is the new way of doing business in today’s world of the internet. It allows vendors to utilize several convenient channels in order to deliver products and any necessary information directly to the customer. It does this at a lower cost than the conventional methods. The benefit to the consumer is the obtention of numerous choices for purchasing goods and services without restrictions of time and space. This new way of buying and selling has not only had influence on the people’s way of living, but has also made them to adapt to novel behavioural methods in order to use such technology in their day to day life. However, several legal issues have arisen due to the lacuna in many of the existing legislations, which had not been drafted with the considerations of electronic transactions that deal the buying and the selling of intangible products via non-physical border networks (Kwok, Yang and Tam, 2004). Distance selling regulations are those that protect people who make purchases by phone, e – mail, internet or digital television. The protection offered to consumers is first, the right to obtain unambiguous information about available goods and services; secondly, written confirmation of such information; thirdly, provision of a seven working day period within which a consumer can rescind the contract and lastly, protection from credit card fraud (The Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000, 31st August 2000). In addition, E – commerce Regulations make the EC Directive on E – commerce into UK law. This Directive requires Member States to guarantee that contracts can be completed electronically. On the 21st of August 2002 The Electronic Commerce Directive & The Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002, brought into UK law most of the provisions of the Electronic Commerce Directive 2000/31/EC (The

Did Religion Shape Politics in the 1980's Research Paper

Did Religion Shape Politics in the 1980's - Research Paper Example Examples of the churches existing in the 1960’s are Catholic and Protestant ones (Goff 316). By late 1970’s, other groups of faith started emerging, and it was evident that it would be the norm. People started taking their stand regarding leaders and their faith. Some leaders were identified according to their faith. Religion has been known as the social glue that binds the constituent elements of societies together; by doing so, it underwrites the social order (Djupe and Olson 114). When civilization comes in the picture, a person wants to know what makes his or her counterpart civilized. It is very simple when considering religion as a key factor. A civilized person has conviction in something, at least the person feels or thinks there is a reason behind everything happening in his or her life. The civilization of a person in a societal was based on the religion of the person apart from being able to read and write. Religion of a person is quite imperative to the person and to the society. Someone’s faith may be the key to having what he or she thinks is best in a societal setting. One can say religion is the engine of a number of things. Yes Response It is obvious that religion did shape politics in the 1980’s. The impact of religion on politics is what brought about civil religi on in America in early 1967. Civil religion in America was defined as an institutional collection of sacred beliefs about America as a nation. The civil religion also believed that there was a transcendent being called God. The citizens believed that God had laws and rules that governed them, and the fact that God was guiding and protecting the Americans. All the leaders believed in some faith including the Reagans although they never clearly showed their religion, they were known more as protagonists than religious individuals (Wilson and DiIulio 221). Majority of American leaders were identified with the particular faith they believed to be significant. As people became more enlightened about the civil religion in America, it was not referred as the civil religion anymore, it was known as the individual credence of a person. Religion played a noteworthy role in the early 1980’s. How can one explain the fact that every standing candidate wanted to be identified with a partic ular religion? It is so clear for fame or civilization. Religion, as much as it helped unite peoples, became a tool for hypocrites to hide their true colors. Politicians went to religious functions to be seen to support a particular faith. Some of the politicians did not even believe in God or any other superficial being. The politicians worshipped their social status and money (Peterson 121). When someone sees that he or she is sharing a church with a particular politician, it is quite understandable if the person would want to vote for that particular politician. Politicians employed religion to get power, to get people to trust their ideas and visions. Religion has been known to identify people that are civil from those that are not civil. It is normal for a politician to run for a particular seat in the pretence that he or she shares in a particular faith. When people saw politicians in their different churches, they believed they were the right people to lead their nation or st ate. There is no argument to this; it is not erroneous for people to trust such a person. Politicians learned about this fact, and they used it to their advantage on the expense of the unsuspecting

The True Cost of Employment-at-will to American Employers Essay

The True Cost of Employment-at-will to American Employers - Essay Example In legal terms, employment-at-will refers to the employment contract that can be terminated for any reason (except for a few spelt out illegal reasons) and at any time either by the employee or the employer (Sentell and Robbins, 2008). The doctrine of employment-at-will avows that, in cases where the employee does not have an express or written employment contract and the employment term is of indefinite period, the employer can terminate the employee for no cause at all, bad cause, or good cause (ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law, 2011). In the United States, at- will employee can be terminated for no reason at all, or for any reason, and at any time, and the courts cannot intervene to protect such an employee from employer’s alleged unfair treatment. Over the years, there has been raging debate among employers, employees, and policy- makers as to whether the doctrine of employment-at-will is really good for the United States or not. More specifically, employers have be en trying to evaluate the â€Å"goodness† of the doctrine to them, both in short and long run. This paper will evaluate the true cost of employment-at-will to American employers. Among the major industrial powers, the United States is the only bone that still maintains a general rule of employment-at-will. ... Some of the court rulings coupled with the scholarly writing on the scrapping of employment-at-will prompted most employers to think on the cost of the doctrine as well as its effectiveness. For example a law review article by Professor Lawrence Blades called for scrapping of the doctrine as it threatened the freedom of individual workers just like authoritarian government would do. As a result of this review article, courts recognized some kinds of exceptions to the doctrine; the exception of public policy being the most often- used. This exception allowed the judges to consider a dismissal as â€Å"unjust† if it was as a result of an employee exercising or upholding some public policy right (Blades, 1967). Muhl (2001) notes that recent years there has been revolutionary departure from the doctrine of employment-at-will especially based on the exception of the covenant-of-good-faith. This exception emphasizes on fair dealing and good faith as being very important in employmen t relationship. Courts that are using this exception usually rule that dismissal of employees should meet the standard of â€Å"just cause† and that such dismissals can be invalidated if they were done in bad faith or were inspired by malice (Roehling, 2003). In the light of evolution of employment-at-will doctrine, it is important to evaluate its true cost to the American employers in order to determine whether it is good for them or not. Willey (2009) explains that the proponents of the doctrine point to the essence of employer’s discretion in all the employment issues impacting his or her â€Å"business†. On the other hand, the opponents of the doctrine point out to the essence of defending the freedom of individuals and

On Becoming a Leader Essay Example for Free

On Becoming a Leader Essay The book I chose to review is â€Å"On Becoming a Leader† by Warren Bennis. At the crux of this book is a search to understand how leaders are made. Throughout the book, the author tries to prove through polls and observations, that leaders are not born but are made through a combination of nature and nurture. Leaders who excel tend to have similar characteristics which have been developed by a series of experiences in their lives (these include embracing mistakes, taking risks and learning from adversity). Another idea discussed in the book is that of the role of education in making leaders. Bennis notes a number of qualities and abilities that are common amongst the leaders he interacts with. Some of those are relating well to others, trusting others and in turn being trustworthy, the ability to motivate people and to not give up, inspiration and competence in the job. However, he claims that a major problem in business leadership is the â€Å"societal disease of our time† (as said by Norman Lear to him) short term thinking. He highlights throughout the book that this form of thinking is not beneficial to organizations and that a good leader should be able to look further and not give the short term too much importance. At one point he claims that short term thinking is what kills one of the most important attributes a leader must have innovation. The author mentions that leaders are important to an organization since they are of paramount importance to the operational performance, stability and integrity of the organization. To this end, Warren Bennis presents in a systematic manner various attributes that are required of a leader to be able to perform well. The first attribute discussed is the ability to â€Å"Master the context†. In this chapter, the author discusses the fact that a leader must be able to understand the reasons and outcomes of different situations. Only once he has managed this, will he be able to act in the best possible way for his organization. This is in line with what we have learned throughout our course regarding improving one’s self-awareness as well as the 4 perspectives of organizational effectiveness. A leader must be able to understand the context of work and respond by being aware that he needs to look after different perspectives of people and systems related to the organization. The second thing discussed is â€Å"understanding the basics†, which is quite similar to mastering the context. In this, Warren Bennis explains that leaders need to understand the underlying concepts at work before making decisions. He lists a series of attributes that can be found in most leaders including self-knowledge, passion, vision and trust. He argues that most of the leaders are not born with these attributes but life experiences and a desire to lead people enables them to develop a good understanding of this. Their drive to acquire and learn are much higher than on average and they actively pursue these drives while taking risks and placing lesser importance on their drive for safety. In this he also discusses the difference between managing people and leading them. We have gone through various topics related directly to this effect in class. According to me, one of the strongest drives an individual has is the drive to safety. An individual would be much more comfortable if they can trust their leader. The ability to understand the thought process of their leader and their belief/trust in him helps shore up their drive for safety. Across cultures, people tend to avoid uncertainty and if a leader is able to, through knowledge and an understanding, provide people with an image of consistency; it goes a long way in settling people and reducing stress. The third lesson is â€Å"knowing yourself†. Warren Bennis argues that in order to lead others, one must fully understand themselves. To be able to trust your decisions/inner feelings is extremely important for leading people and making correct choices. The author goes on to highlight 4 lessons that enable an individual to understand themselves. They are â€Å"you are your own best teacher†, â€Å"accept responsibility†, â€Å"you can learn anything you want to learn† and â€Å"true understanding comes from reflecting on your own experience†. All these lessons are at the core of organizational behavior as we have learnt. These 4 lessons can apply even to organizations as well as being useful for individuals. Self-concept is an important part of an individual’s make up and to feed that we must be able to reflect on our past experiences to learn from them. Social learning, learning through reinforcement and learning through experience are discussed as important factors of learning in organizations in our course. I believe this same applies to individuals as they are able to develop their social identity and self-concept through these lessons. Next, the author discusses â€Å"Knowing the world†. This takes a similar route to the previous subject of knowing yourself, while developing a greater scope to the understanding. Cultural understanding is an extremely important attribute in a leader. In an increasingly diverse workforce coupled with increasing globalization, a leader must have the ability to and desire to understand various cultures and behaviors. Values and behavior are very different for different cultures, and a lot of organizations have failed due to the incompatible understanding of their leaders. The HP-Compaq merger was a major case where while it was beneficial financially and operationally for the companies to merge, their leaders were not able to fully adapt the two company’s cultures properly, causing the merger to have not performed anywhere near expectations. One point that I found particularly interesting and felt that was very important was the need for a person to find a mentor who can help them enhance and shape their cultural understanding. The social learning aspect discusses similar concepts, where a person learns from someone whom they aspire to be. Being able to find a mentor who has an in depth understanding of cultures, or at least has a desire to learn cultural differences can help an individual become a more complete leader. The next thought discussed by the author is â€Å"Operating on instinct†. This discussion focuses on the fact that a good leader should be able to believe in himself and should be able to take decisions from his gut feeling. More often than not a leader and even individuals will have to make decisions without knowing all the details they would like to know. The presence of incomplete information should not make the leader less likely to make a decision. A good leader will have developed enough self-awareness and through self-evaluation and verification be able to rely on his instinct to make the right choice. This enables the leader to be able to quickly and decisively contemplate and decide issues. The next discussion is based on †Deploying yourself†. In this the author talks about the fact that a successful leader is a person who is willing to take on challenges even though he might have failed in earlier challenges. The drive to learn and acquire are, I feel, major contributors to this topic. A good leader will be able to reflect on his past experiences and learn from them; and this gives them confidence to continually drive for newer challenges and tasks. Another topic discussed is â€Å"Moving through chaos†. In this chapter, Warren Bennis describes the difference between all individuals and leaders. He points out that everyone faces problems and issues in their career, but that leaders analyze these problems and tend to learn from these. Conflict resolution can take many forms through third-party conflict resolution or negotiation. Leaders reflect on their conflicts and develop an understanding of how to overcome those challenges. â€Å"Getting people on your side† is the next topic covered. The main point of this discussion, and a very important learning for me personally, is the ability of the leader to be trustworthy. To be trusted, a leader must display consistency in his actions, congruity meaning what they say, reliable to their followers and have a strong integrity. This once again gravitates towards the drive for safety individuals have. To be lead by someone, an individual must trust them to act on their behalf and be able to predict to a certain extent what their leaders will do for them. The concept of romanticizing leadership is down to this ability of leaders. If a leader is able to bring their employees/followers on their side, the leader’s ability to work through tasks and challenges is increased. Even mistakes made by them will be viewed in a positive light, enabling them to continue taking risks. â€Å"Organizations can help or hinder† is the next topic that is discussed. This focuses on the fact different organizations will have different expectations from their leaders. The culture at an organization will dictate how well a leader will be able to lead the organization. A good leader will be able to understand the context of the organization and will try to devise strategies he can implement to make changes. The author also mentions that the leader should try and develop organizational characteristics that are in line with their culture. This also transposes into the last discussion of â€Å"Forging the future†. The impediments faced by leaders in an organization can be very hard, but a good leader will be able to develop his own culture and characteristics to move the organization forward. One major issue I had with this book was that while the author continually refers to short term thinking as a â€Å"societal disease†; he himself to a certain extent subscribes to that notion. His interaction with the leaders seems comparatively very short term. Throughout the statements made in the book, it felt that the interviews were more about successful past rather than forward looking. I understand that one of the major attributes is to learn from experiences but the I’d prefer if the author also focused equally on the leader’s thoughts about the future. Secondly I felt that there was quite a bit of political commentary in the book. I knew that it was going to have some after reading the reviews while selecting the book, but the political leadership aspect seemed to be a comparatively one sided. I feel that the author could have refrained from making this political and focused instead on the corporate leadership aspect.

Auditing Risk Essay Example for Free

Auditing Risk Essay The auditor chooses what overall level of audit risk they are willing to accept. A higher level of audit risk means that the auditor is willing to accept more audit failures. 1% audit risk means that you are willing to accept that 1 out of 100 issued audit opinions will be incorrect. 5% audit risk means that you are willing to accept that 5 out of 100 issued audit opinions will be incorrect. So, the higher the audit risk you are willing to accept, the less audit work you have to perform. Audit risk and audit work are inversely related. Inherent Risk (IR) is the susceptibility of a particular transaction to be recorded in error. For example, revenue recognition related to software transactions is more inherently risky that revenue recognized at a point of sale transaction at a grocery store. In this example (all else constant), you would assign your software company client revenue accounts higher inherent risk than your grocery store client, due to the inherent difficulty in software revenue recognition. Higher inherent risk, all else constant, leads to more audit work. Inherent risk and audit work are directly related. Stated more specifically, if the inherent riskiness of one set of accounts is higher than another set of accounts, the auditor must increase the amount of testing done to achieve the given level of audit risk. Control risk (CR) is the risk that the company’s internal control system will fail to prevent or detect errors. A well established fortune 500 manufacturing company is likely to have better internal controls than a small biotech startup with one person playing the roles of accountant, chief financial officer and CEO. In this example (again, all else constant) you would assign your manufacturing client a lower control risk than your biotech client (for whom, in all likelihood, you decide not to rely on controls at all, and assign a value of 1 to control risk). Higher control risk, all else constant, leads to more audit work. Control risk and audit work are directly related, stated more specifically, if the risk that controls will not catch accounting errors increases, you must do more testing to achieve a given level of audit risk. Second: Let’s think about the equation, and the relation of each type of risk to each other s the risk that our audit procedures over a specific account or group of accounts will fail to detect a material misstatement. We know that we set the level of M. Shepardson audit risk, we assess the levels of inherent risk and control risk, and from that, we calculate the level of detection risk. Rewriting equation (1), we have the following:

The importance of strategic information

The importance of strategic information Abstract In a global marketplace, information has emerged as an agent and enabler of new competitiveness for todays enterprise. However the paradigm of strategic planning changes sufficiently to support the new role of information and technology. The question is, are changes can support the new role of information and technology and what is the relationship between strategic information system planning with the development database in an organization. Therefore, the development of strategic information system planning is importance in an organization. Strategic information system planning (SISP) is the process of creating a portfolio based on the use of information system in order to achieve organizational goals and objectives. Within SISP, organizational can clearly define their organizational goals, the critical success factor (CSF) and the problem areas within the organization activity. This article is to discuss the importance of SISP and its relationship with organizational database deve lopment and implementation. Keywords Strategic Information System Planning, SISP, DBMS, CSF, EI Introduction A succeed organization will have proper SISP to drive the organization to achieve their business needs and business goals. For that, SISP is developing to make sure that all activities support organizations business plan and at the same time align with its business needs and business goals. SISP is also use to predict the organization future. Within SISP, organization can avoid from barrier that they predict in a long term planning. Rockart (1979) stated that top management firm doesnt not much interest to the relationship between information system function and corporate strategy. He also said information system is treated as some back-room operation in support of day-to-day operation in an organization. As referred to Lederer A. L ( 1996), strategic information system planning is one of the major issues because of it is often face the failure while implement it. Many applications recommended by strategic information system planning studies are often disregarded while many other applications are implemented. Strategic information system planning is important to an organization because it can influence an organization favorably, and is difficult to accomplish, it is a legitimate target for research. Factor affecting strategic information system planning include top management of IS that are IS managers and chief information officer (CIO) emphasize the importance of their relationship with the Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Those closer to the CEO have a better understanding of the CEOs expectations. It is good to have a good relationship between CIO and other business unit for obtaining understanding and support of current and potential clients. Lack of management commitment and the absence of the control mechanism necessary to ensure the success of the plans can impede its implementation. Strategic Information System Planning According to Lederer and Sethi (1988) in 1980s, the concept of strategic information system planning (SISP) evolved. They come with the two concept of SISP. The first one is SISP viewed as the process of identifying a portfolio of computer based applications that will assist an organization in achieving the business plan and at the same time achieve the business organization goals. Meanwhile the second one is SISP involved searching for application with a high impact and with the ability to create an advantage over competitors to gain competitive advantage. Based on the theory of SISP, it can be define that the process of identifying a portfolio of computer-based applications to be implemented aligned with the corporate strategy and has the ability to create an advantage over competitors. Organization goals is analyze by defining what exactly organization hope in order to accomplish the goals. After organization goals have been analyzed, then critical success factor will evaluated so that it will affect the organization goals and objective in long term. Critical success factor is the element that organization should know and must work in order to survive in the business environmental. And lastly, identify the problem areas which are the weaknesses that organization already have. SISP help organization in overall strategic planning process in effectively and efficiently. Rogerson and Fidler (1994), a study on satisfaction using SISP showed that most organization that used SISP in running their operation more satisfied with the planning process and outcome than those who did not implement specific SISP method. SISP participants include top business, functional area, and information system management. In an organization, the success of IS plan can be determined with the involvement and commitment of senior management. Involvement of senior management is very important to determine whether the success or failure of the project. Senior management was the backlog behind the success of the project. Within SISP also can be used to improve the communication between top management and users regarding IT. This actually gain top management commitment. Communication and commitment will also help in increasingly the visibility of IT in organization. The purpose of SISP is to ensure that the IT organization align with the strategic goals of organization. Alignment of IT organization and business goals has been used to control and ensure that business goals will achieve and all the operation included the IT and IS that used in running the organization will keep in track. As referred to Earl (1993) , SISP alignment will also help in identifying strategic applications, identifying new and higher payback applications, and developing an information architecture. Organizations also use the SISP to help in forecasting and allocating IT resources. With SISP, also can avoid loss of control of IS/IT in an organization. SISP is needed for the system to ensure the system that used in the organization integrated with other system or not. Without SISP in an organization, may lead to missed opportunity, duplicate system, incompatible system and wasted resources. Importance of Strategic Information System Planning The importance of SISP in an organization has been well documented within the IS literature. Within SISP, the integration of IS function within organization can be facilitate. Besides, SISP supports the identification of opportunities to use information systems for strategic purpose. SISP also ensures that adequate resources or the use of scarce resources are allocated to critical application and the use of resources in properly manner. With SISP, can ensures that the IS function support the organizational goals and objectives and also the activities at every level. Having a good strategic information system planning in organization, will determine whether the organization will success or failure. The reason why organization needs good strategic information system planning is that it can help organization to avoid misused of scarce resources. By planning, only projects that can generate good returns will get investors from the firm. A good planning is very important to avoid problem such as the misuse and wasted resources in form of system that nobody likes and used the system effectively. When a new system developed, pre-existing system can be used to communicate or interface properly and at the same time avoid the problem of Islands of automation. This can be happen if the organization has proper planning for their organization. Before develop a new system, planning is very important to make sure the smooth of business operation. First of all, the organization should identify their needs. Development of system should be a response to need whether at the transaction processing level or at the more complex information and support system levels. Priorities, objectives and authorization for information system projects need to be formalized first. The system development plan should identify the project resources that needed the procedures, and constraints for each application area. Planning should be flexible to adjust the priorities if necessary. Furthermore, to facilitate understanding of each application the plan must be specific enough. According to King, (King, 1995) in his article has argued that a strategic capability architecture mu st flexible and continuously improving infrastructure of organizational capabilities and at the same time gain companys sustainable competitive advantage. It is important to have SISP to maximize the benefits of changing technology and to take account of the different viewpoints of business professionals and IT professionals. System investments are made to support business objectives and also to gain inadequate infrastructure. SISP is important because it emphasizes the need to bring IT to bear on and sometimes influence strategic direction of the corporation is widely accepted by researchers. This is particularly true in contemporary environments where harnessing the power of technology resources could be critical for competitiveness. Relationship with Organizational Database Development Data are the raw material from which information is produced. Therefore, it is not surprising that in todays information-driven environment, data are a valuable asset that requires careful management. To access datas monetary value, data that stored in company database are data about customers, suppliers, inventory, and operations and so on. Imagine that all the data in the database loss. What will happen if the situation like that happen? Data loss puts any company in a difficult position. The company might be unable to handle daily operation effectively; it might be faced with the loss of customers who require quick and efficient service, and it might lose the opportunity to gain new customers. Data are a valuable resource that can translate into information. If the information is accurate and timely, it is likely to trigger action that enhance the companys competitive position and generate wealth. In effect, an organization is subject to a data information decision cycle; that is the data user applies intelligence to data to produce information that is the basis of knowledge used in decision making by the user. A critical success factor of an organization is efficient asset management. Critical success factor involve the management in an organization to know the current status of the organization in ICT. Based on the analysis of the business environment of the corporation, the critical success factors concerning the firm are identified. Critical success factor is refer to the limited number of area in which result, if satisfactory will ensure successful competitive performance for the organization. There are such area where things must go right for the business to flourish. Thus, the factor that are critical for accomplishing the objectives are identified at this stage. To manage data as a corporate asset, managers must understand the value of information that is processed data. Data are used by different people in different departments for different reasons. Therefore, data management must address the concept of shared data. Whatever the type of organization, the database predominant role is to support managerial decision making at all level in the organization. Thats why, SISP play a big role in organization. SISP is an important management function. It can help an organization use information technology (IT) more competitively, identify new, higher payback IT applications, and better forecast IT resources requirements. An organizations managerial structure might be divided into three levels which are top, middle and operational. Top level management makes strategic decisions; middle management makes tactical decisions and operational management make daily operational decisions. Operational decisions are short terms and affect only daily operations for example deciding to change the price of a product to clear it from inventory. Tactical decision involve a longer time frame and after larger scale operation; for example changing the price of a product in response to competitive pressures. Strategic decisions are those that affect the long term well-being of the company or even its survival; for example changing pricing strategy across product lines to capture market share. This shows that having a good SISP will lead the organization to achieve the goal and objective in short or long term in an organization. Database : Special Consideration The companys database is also known as the corporate or enterprise database. The enterprise database might be defined as the companys data representation that provides support for all present and expected future operations. Most of todays successful organization depends on the enterprise database to provide support for all of their operations from design to implementation to sales and services and from strategic planning to daily decision making. Having a computerized database management system does not guarantee that the data will be properly used to provide the best solution required by managers. A DBMS is just a tool for managing data and must be used effectively to produce the desired result. The introduction of a DBMS represents a big change and challenge. Throughout the organization, the DBMS is likely to have a profound impact, which might be positive or negative depending on how it administered. For example, one key consideration is adapting the DBMS to the organization rather than forcing the organization to adapt to the DBMS. The main issues should be the organizations needs rather than the DBMSs technical capabilities. However, the introduction of a DBMS cannot be accomplished without affecting the organization. The flood of new DBMS generated information has a profound effect on the way the organization functions and, therefore, on its corporate culture. The introduction of a DBMS into an organization requires careful planning to create an appropriate organizational structure to accommodate the person or people responsible for administering the DBMS. The organizational structure must also be subject to well developed monitoring and controlling functions. The administration personnel must have excellent interpersonal and communication skill combined with broad organizational and business understanding. Top management must be committed to the new system and must define and support the data administration functions, goals, and roles within the organization and that also the need of SISP in an organization. In the database development process, there have importance elements in order to develop the database. First, we need to identify the strategic planning factors. The strategic planning factors are in term of the goals of organization that want to achieve, the critical success factor and the problem areas in achieving the goals. In 80s and 90s, there has been a growing realization of the need to make information system of strategic information to an organization. In order to put the planning for strategic information system in perspective the evolution of information systems according to the three era model of John Ward, et al. (1990) is pertinent. According to this model, there are three distinct, albeit overlapping, eras of information system, dating back to the 60s. The relationship over time of the three eras of information system is shown in table 1: Data processing, management information system and strategic information system need to be planned and manage effectively and efficiently. Strategic information system needs to cater to the strategic demand of organization. For example, serving the business goals and creating competitive advantage as well as meeting their data processing and MIS needs. The key point is, as I just said before, organization need to have proper planning not only as tools for cutting cost but as means to adding value. Database Development and Implementation. For a company to succeed, its activities must be committed to its main objectives or mission. Therefore, regardless of a companys size, a critical step for any organization is to ensure that its information system supports is strategic plan for each of its business areas. The database administration strategy must not conflict with the information systems plans. After all, the information system plans are derived from a detailed analysis of the companys goal, its condition or situation and its business needs. Several methodologies are available to ensure the compatibility of data administration and information systems plans and to guide the strategic plan development. The most commonly used methodology is known as information engineering. Information engineering (IE) allows for the translation of the companys strategic goals into the data and application that will help the company achieve those goals. IE focuses on the description of the corporate data instead of the process. The IE rational is simple; business data type tends to remain fairly stable and do not change much during their existence. In contrast, processes change is often and thus require the frequent modification of existing system. By placing the emphasize on data, IE helps decrease the impact on systems when process change. The output of IE process is an Information system architecture (ISA) that serves as the basis for planning, development, and control of the future information system. Conclusion Linking IS to business goals is the heart of IS planning and without this link, the IS function will not have major relevance for the organization. Choosing the right planning methodology depends on the current use and spread of technology within the organization and the importance of the current systems. Resources available such as staff, skill, CASE tools, etc. will also impact this process. It appears that the use of more than one methodology should be recommended. While new technology can be advantageous, it can also pose severe problems if the right skills and expertise are not available to use it properly. The success of the overall information system strategy and therefore of the data administration strategy depends on the several critical success factors. Understanding the critical success factor help the database administration (DBA) develops a successful corporate data administration strategy. However, no matter how comprehensive the list of success factor is, it must be based on the notion that development and implementation of a successful data administration strategy are tightly integrated with the overall information system planning activity of the organization. References Lederer, A. L., Salmela, H. (1996). Towards a Theory of Strategic Information System Planning. Journal of Strategic Information System, 5, 237-253. Retrieved February 15, 2010 from: http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/els/09638687/1996/00000005/00000003/art80005 Doherty, N. F., Marples, C. G., Suhaimi, A. (1999). The Relative Success of Alternative Approaches to Strategic Information System Planning: An Empirical Analysis. Journal of Strategic Information System, 8, 263-283. Retrieved February 15, 2010 from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VG3-3YSXDH0-4_user=10_coverDate=09%2F30%2F1999_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1219085305_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0_userid=10md5=d2d5c8bc4cc3daab2e8918f7a7b8e62a Min, S. K., Suh, E. H., Kim, S. Y. (1999). An Integrated Approach Toward Strategic Information System Planning. Journal of Strategic Information System,8, 373-394. Retrieved February 15, 2010 from: http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/els/09638687/1999/00000008/00000004/art00029 Cerpa, N., Verner, J. M. (1998). Case study: The effect of IS Maturity on Information System Strategic Planning. Information Management, 34, 199-208. Retrieved February 15, 2010 from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VD0-3VKBF56-1_user=10_coverDate=11%2F02%2F1998_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1219124246_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0_userid=10md5=eea5fca85d4848200f104d31c4556a53 Chi, L., Jones, K. G., Lederer, A. L., Li, P., Newkirk, H. E. Sethi, V. (2005). Environmental Assessment in Strategic Information System Planning. Internatioanal Journal of Information Management, 25, 253-269. Retrieved February 15, 2010 from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VB4-4FJTP9R-2_user=10_coverDate=06%2F30%2F2005_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1219134034_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0_userid=10md5=a68c3bd3f6483c65f80d756b65f6f890 Newkirk, H. E., Lederer, A. L. (2006). The Effectiveness of Strategic Information System Planning Under Environmental Uncertainty. Information Management, 43, 481-501. Retrieved February 15, 2010 from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VD0-4J8D91T-2_user=10_coverDate=06%2F30%2F2006_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1219339816_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0_userid=10md5=210513d2a4e3f847ba5201ca6050e807 Grover, V., Segars, A. H. (2005). An Empirical Evaluation of Stages of Strategic Information System Planning: Patterns of Process Design and Effectiveness. Information Management 42, 761-779. Retrieved February 15, 2010 from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL_udi=B6VD0-4DFBX2C-2_user=10_coverDate=07%2F31%2F2005_rdoc=1_fmt=high_orig=search_sort=d_docanchor=view=c_searchStrId=1219352700_rerunOrigin=google_acct=C000050221_version=1_urlVersion=0_userid=10md5=fab4201d9ce3af6fe5493ae377f6dd42 Lederer, A. L., Vijay, S. (1992). Root Causes of Strategic Information System Planning Implementation Problems. Journal of Management Information System. 9 (1), 21-25. Retrieved February 16, 2010 from: http://proquest.umi.com.ezaccess.library.uitm.edu.my/pqdweb?index=15did=1175068SrchMode=1sid=1Fmt=3VInst=PRODVType=PQDRQT=309VName=PQDTS=1266960324clientId=28403 Warr, A. A Study of the Relationship of Strategic IS Planning (SISP) Approaches, Objectives and Context with SISP Success in UK Organizations. Retrieved February 16, 2010 from: http://is2.lse.ac.uk/asp/aspecis/20050059.pdf Pant, S., Hsu, C. (1995). Strategic Information System Planning: A Review. Retrieved February 16, 2010 from: http://viu.eng.rpiscrews.us/publications/strpaper.pdf