Customer Service Careers Essay

What does Customer Service mean to you? Is it simply taking care of your daily customers’ needs? What about the concept that your employees are also your customers? Does that change your outlook on the idea of customer service? This essay will explain the internal customer concepts of human relations. Human relations, in definition, are â€Å"the skill or ability to work effectively through and with other people†. (Lamberton, p.4) As a manager, you need to understand the needs and wants of your employees. You should have an effective training program that is set up with clear guidelines and expectations. Providing feedback during the training and throughout employment is crucial. This allows for open communication between management and employees. Future goals can be discussed and additional training available to aid them on those journeys. Areas of improvement can also be discussed without singling out the negative. Read more:  Customer Service in Leisure and Recreation In human relations it is very important to know the values instilled by the company. It is also important to help the employees â€Å"understand and accept the values of others without compromising their personal integrity†. (Lamberton, p.114) Communication and compromise are vital in any organization. It is not necessary to disregard your values for someone else’s, merely understanding where they are coming from and finding common ground to build on. You’re job in human relations is help bridge those gaps and assist in dealing with those conflicts. â€Å"Something powerful happens when people see themselves as part of healthy, functional community and have a positive experience of that.† (Everett, p.78) Positive attitudes, job satisfaction, high morale, and positive reinforcements are just a few examples of ways to succeed. Involving employees in decisions and setting realistic goals will help to improve  motivation as well. Employees need to feel that they matter as individuals, not just a part of the company. Managers are crucial in developing mutual respect, self-esteem, and solving conflicts. The better your communication skills are the more likely you are to be successful. Also, being able to maintain a positive attitude increases the morale of your internal customers, or employees. References Everett, Melissa (2007) Making a Living While Making a Difference: Conscious Careers for an Era of Interdependence Lamberton, Lowell, Minor, Leslie (2010) Human Relations: Strategies for success

On Monsieur’s Departure Essay

â€Å"On Monsieur’s Departure†, with its highly interpretive nature and use of strong themes and appropriate literary devices, expresses the inner turmoil of its author, Queen Elizabeth, to the reader. The basic concept of this 17th century poem is one of the divided passions of Queen Elizabeth. Elizabeth loved her country with fierce loyalty and control, but also had her own personal needs, and though it is not entirely certain as to whom this poem was referencing to, it is speculated to be about either the 2nd Earl of Essex or the Duc d’Anjou (French duke of Anjou). Essex (Robert Derereaux) was 30 years Elizabeth’s junior and was a charming, opinionated man with whom Elizabeth was completely enamored, but the relationship terminated when Essex and Elizabeth had a terrible fight and Essex directed an unsuccessful revolt against her. The tragedy pierced further when Elizabeth painfully agreed to have him executed. The duke of Anjou, who later became King Henry III, was a prime member of the French royal family, being both the duke of Anjou and Alenà §on. He was an unattractive man, both body and face, but Elizabeth fancied him enough to allow a lengthy courtship by him. This courtship ended when the duke withdrew from the marriage negotiations in 1582, but there is uncertainty as to why. Elizabeth, if gaining nothing more from this arrangement, did secure a defense alliance and French aid against Spain. The country, in Elizabeth’s mind, remained above her own personal longings – she never married and reigned as the proud Virgin Queen. The first stanza of â€Å"On Monsieur’s Departure† contain uses of Petrarchan conceit, paradox, and the theme of disassociation between the queen and her desires. The Petrarchan conceit (common in Elizabethan love poems) is seen for example in line 2, â€Å"I love and yet am forced to seem to hate†. These comparisons of love and hate are extreme, as the conceptions of both love and hate are the most ultimate and divergent emotions in the English language and do demonstrate a distinct parallel. The literary paradox (statement which is contradictory yet sensical) is prominent in this poem, and can be seen in many instances. The main examples of this are Elizabeth’s contradictions shown in line 2 with â€Å"love† and â€Å"hate†, and in line 5, where she states, â€Å"I am and not, I freeze and yet am burned†. In line 5, the  figure of paradox is evident in â€Å"am† and â€Å"not†, as well as â€Å"freeze† and â₠¬Å"burned†. The recurrent disassociative theme is very prominent, suggesting Elizabeth’s frustration between being a ruler, with obligations and expectations, and being a human being, with inner yearnings and the need for expression . This is especially noticeable when Elizabeth states, â€Å"I seem stark mute but inwardly do prate†¦./Since from myself another self I turned† (4 and 6). Elizabeth is saying how she remains silent about her inner turmoil, but is churning inside with thoughts and concerns. Also, Elizabeth is saying how she turned from herself to another. This could be taken as either Elizabeth pushing aside that part of herself to remain a competent and commanding ruler, or as Elizabeth turning to another person (either the Duc d’Anjou or Essex) for personal reasons and her culpability for doing so. This theme continues throughout the poems through use of other literary contrivances and intricate wording. In the second stanza of â€Å"On Monsieur’s Departure†, Elizabeth includes figurative language, alliteration and the subject of an unattainable self to voice her thoughts. The application of figurative language (expression which uses comparison to describe) is present in line 7, where Elizabeth uses a simile (comparison using ‘like’ or ‘as’). It is written, â€Å"My care is like my shadow in the sun†, stating that to Elizabeth, there is a comparison between her care and her shadow when in the sun. This can be interpreted in many ways, but it is because a simile is used that a mental picture develops to compare the two. The use of alliteration (the repetition of like sounds in speech ) is seen in line 8, where the initial ‘f’ consonants are repeated. The line, â€Å"Follows me flying, flies when I pursue it†, with use of alliteration is concise and artful, with a condense accumulation of emotion. The theme of Elizabeth ’s care (of this man) being unattainable for her to grasp is very eminent in this stanza, with two supporting examples. The first comes in lines 7 and 8, where Elizabeth conveys, â€Å"My care is like my shadow in the sun,/Follows me flying, flies when I pursue it†. She is articulating that her own personal feelings are unconstrained to her, without the control she is wishing to enforce. The second instance in line 11, â€Å"No means I find to rid him from my breast,† expresses not that there is a physical person which she feels the need to remove, but instead that  Elizabeth believes that there is no way to eradicate the thoughts and feelings she has for this man from her heart. This continuing theme of separation from oneself and separation from emotional control is echoed throughout the poem, creating a delicate symmetry between each stanza, and allowing them to unite. The third stanza of â€Å"On Monsieur’s Departure† embraces again figurative language, repetition, and a final accumulation of sentiment through deliberative wording. In this stanza, Elizabeth uses a very important metaphor (expression relating one thing to another) to represent herself. She writes, in line 14, that she is â€Å"made of melting snow†, a phrase which captures thoughts and images that may otherwise not have been so evident. Saying that she is â€Å"made of melting snow† tells the reading audience that Elizabeth is weakened by this, or that she is softened but not yet defeated – the interpretations are ceaseless, which makes this an important part of this final stanza and of the whole poem. The repetition Elizabeth uses in this stanza are towards the end, when she writes, â€Å"Let me or float or sin, be high or low./Or let me live with some more sweet content,/Or die and so forget what love ere meant† (16-18). By using this series of choices as her final statement, Elizabeth is implying a sense of urgency and desperation in her search for a solution. Her final statement is left with a final, hopeless alternative – for her to die and forget about love. By reading these alternatives, each worse than the next, the reader is left with a final note of despondency and a climax of emotion which is expressed with phrases like â€Å"be more cruel†(15), â€Å"float or sink†¦ high or low† (16), and â€Å"die and so forget†. These are intense statements that leave the reader silent from their effect. That is the essence of this poem, a pull and tug game of emotions, with no end solution other than to live forward and exist with ever-constant turmoil, to live, to rule, to sacrifice oneself for something greater. Through the use of different literary devices and a powerful backing theme, Queen Elizabeth has left the world with a literary victory. This poem is a saddening one, but as a love poem, it is expressing not only the pain, frustration and despair longing can produce, but also the strength and might  that backs it.

Challenges Facing the Field of Organizational Change Management

In the modern day business world, organizations are facing more changes than it has been witnessed ever before. One of the factors that have brought about the rapid change is globalization that has led to an increase in today’s market’s growth and revenue increase. Organizational change management is a field that gives guidelines for preparation, equipping and supporting individuals to be successful in adopting change with the view of driving organizational success and outcomes. However most of the changes and individuals are unique, research has proven that some actions can be taken to influence affected people in their transitions. It is a discipline that provides a structured approach of how individuals can be supported in their organization to be able to successfully transit from their current status to that if the future  (Dyer, 2017). Most precisely, organizational change management is a framework that is aimed at managing the effect of new business processes ch anges in the structure of an organization or enterprise cultural changes. While there are laid approaches towards change management, there also exist several challenges in the same field  (Buchanan, 2014). The primary aim of this paper is to explore the challenges facing the organizational change management field. The exploration will involve a literature review in the challenges facing the field of organizational change management followed by a critique of the same. Different authors have taken an interest in the subject of organizational change management, probably because it is a critical subject that determines how organizations are likely to adapt to changes in their organizations. According to different schools of thought, various challenges are associated in the field. However different authors take different angles in analyzing the challenges, their arguments seem to have a common focal point. According to one school of thought, organizations either change or remain the same. According to the author, one of the challenges in the field of organizational change management is resistance to change. The author argues that people are status quo biased and that they are willing to get low pay struggling to get into a stable organization  (Gioia, 2016). He further argues that resistance to change usually has political motives and that people tend to resist changes whose origin is political adversaries. He argues that people may resist a change directly either through political influence or indirectly through passive aggressive behavior. According to the author, another challenge is an unknown current state. He says that it would be difficult for an architect to repair a building without first looking at the existing blueprints. He claims that most of the organizations often try to change without having a glimpse at their blueprints, something that fuels the complexity of the building’s architecture. This blind move makes it difficult to transition to a future state  (Lewis, 2017). Another challenge is integration. The author likens managing a large organization to repairing an aircraft while it's still on the flight. He says that change is a moving target and therefore implementing a process will change the business processes it supports. He further argues that changing n organizational structure will lead to employee turnover occurring in parallel. He concludes by saying that long-running changes with many integration points are usually prone to failure. Another challenge according to this author is competitive forces. He says that in most of the times organizational change is influenced by external forces such as competition, technological change, market conditions, external threats and economic forces. Organizations may plan to change to respond to external threats. He argues that however if a competitor releases a product that is many years ahead of your product chances are there that you are driven to an extreme pace of change whose likelihood of failure is too high  (De Massis, 2018). According to the same author, another challenge in the organizational change management field is complexity. He says that when organizations develop more complex systems, processes and product change become very challenging to make and therefore complexity of a change is a big barrier. He argues that complex changes need an effective and efficient project, quality, knowledge, risk and change management. He concludes by giving a change management principle that says that one should never tackle a change which is too complex for his organization to manage. According to another school of thought, one of the challenges facing organizational change management is planning. The author argues that without stepwise planning an organizational change would bring about more problems than the benefits it is anticipated to bring. He argues that you need to precisely need to know which changes are to take place and how they’ll occur. Overall, the author advises prior planning of how the change will be executed. According to the same author, another challenge is lack of consensus  (Ololube, 2017). He argues that failing to involve everyone in the corporate changes will lead to increased barriers to the change execution. He advises that a decision to make corporate changes should originate from the top organizational level. He also says that the associated management level staff should be present to be in a position to deal with the challenges otherwise the staff will dissent. Another challenge according to the same author is failing communication. He argues that failing to communicate to all employees in the organization beforoe the change brings about fear and rumors in the entire organization especially if facing major changes such as downsizing or emergence. Communication failure brings about the uncertainty that makes the employees feel that they are not part of the decision  (Pettigrew, 2016). He advises involvement of employees and updating them regarding the plans and progress towards the implementation of the change. Another challenge is employee resistance. He argues that sometimes employees resist change especially when they had become comfortable with the way their organization runs. It is because they have been used to what is expected of them in the organization. He argues that some major changes disrupt the familiarity of the employees thereby making them upset. In this case, the employees are not willing to relearn their jobs or change th e way they used to undertake their duties. That becomes an enorbigmous challenge. He concludes by advising that provision of training for any new responsibilities as well as supporting then will ease the transition. Now, according to another school of thought, one of these challenges is lack of employee involvement. He argues that that is the main and common barrier to effective change management  (Senge, 2015). He argues that most of the employees have a fear towards change and that there is the likelihood that even the most loyal employees would resist the change if they were not involved. He further argues that failing to involve employees in the change execution process lead to fear of the unknown and the lack of desire to support the change which eventually becomes very challenging  (Grosser, 2015). According to the same author, another challenge is lack of effective communication strategy. He argues that in some organizations when some of the top leaders announce a change and assume that people will automatically adjust to the new change which is not the case  (Meyer, 2015). The author argues that this approach is the silliest way to introduce a change and therefore it usually leads to change resistance. He says that employees need to know how the change will affect them as well as how they will be able to adapt it. Another challenge according to this school of thought is bad culture shift planning. The author argues that sometimes the planning team lacks the idea that the change will affect the people. He claims that in most of the times the team concentrates on planning the administrative structure, job responsibilities and work reporting structure ignoring decisions regarding feelings and intuitions. By so doing, that becomes a challenge to change management  (Kiefer, 2014). Another challenge according to this author is an unknown current state. He says that many organizations tend to introduce and to implement a change without assessing and understanding their current blueprint. He suggests that this can be overcome through a full understanding of the current corporate's blueprint before formulating or implementing any change. Another challenge is organizational complexity. He argues that sometimes organizations start developing complex processes, something that makes the process of planning and implementing a change very challenging  (Stensaker, 2015). He argues that these complexities include complex products, processes, and systems which act as change barriers because they are difficult for the organization members to understand. He suggests a solution that an organization can counter this barrier by making use of a quality, diligent and effective change management approach  (Tushman, 2016). He says that it is wise not to tackle a change that is too complex for an organization. He also advises that it is not wise to implement complex changes if the organization does not have the maturity to handle the complex change. According to the literature review conducted above concerning the challenges facing the organizational change management field, it has been evident that different authors have different approaches to the same subject as well as different thoughts and ideas. However, at some point, their arguments have the same baseline. In considering the first author, his arguments are precisely true, and much evidence has been garnered to support the arguments. As seen in the above literature review, the author has come up with the challenges that are facing organizations in the contemporary world. It seems that the author conducted enough research to know what the modern day organizations are facing  (Kuipers, 2015). The explanations provided by the author are valid and convincing. Taking an example, the author said that one of the challenges facing organizational change management is resistance to change. He began by hinting that people are status quo biased and went ahead to prove the same by showing that they can easily opt to get a lower pay to get into a stable organization rather than getting a higher pay in a changing organization. He goes ahead and provides the reason as to why people may resist change and finally illustrates how they resist the change. That is a sure indication of enough pre-conducted research on the study topic. However the author has strong points, he is too brief. The author is dedicated to tackling key points rather than giving full explanations, and this is one of the drawbacks of his piece. According to his principle on complexity barrier, organizations should not tackle complex changes  (Buck, 2015). This principle, however workable, is a discouragement to organizations as it drives that view that some impossibilities in change management are beyond solution  (Kiel, 2014). That is not true, in the business world, every problem has a solution, and therefore the author should have given a solution to the problem rather than arguing for not giving it a trial. The second author has taken the topic at a different angle. He has looked at the challenges of organizational change management from the employee’s point of view rather than the organizational point of view. He has looked at the factors that may make the employees unwilling to adjust to the change such as poor planning, poor communication as well as lack of consensus. The arguments are true and have enough explanations. The author has in fact taken time to deeply explain his arguments so that they can be easily understood. The challenges given by the author apply to organizations in the modern day business world and thus helpful. While his arguments are true and practical, the author should not have looked at the challenges in the employees’ point of view only  (Cameron, 2015). The author should also have looked at the same in the organization perspective such as competitive forces, an unknown current state among others. That would have been more helpful. The third author has not done any research concerning the subject. His arguments are just a copy cut of the first author’s arguments. As seen from the literature review, the same challenges given by the first author are the same challenges given by the third author. The author lacks originality and distortion of initial message in the zeal of attaining uniqueness is evident. His arguments are weak with the usage of offensive words such as â€Å"the silliest approach.† Overall, the author has not introduced anything new on the subject. Change is indisputably one of the hardest things to adapt. This fact poses a major threat to companies wishing to change their structure, systems or operations with the fear that the affected stakeholders may not be willing to accept the change. Many authors have given several challenges, but the bottom line is that employees will hardly accept and adopt changes. However, there is an opportunity to provide solutions for these challenges by proper planning and involving all the affected members. Therefore, organizations should not be afraid of making major changes especially if they bring positive impacts to the company. Buchanan, D., 2014. No going back: A review of the literature on sustaining organizational change. International Journal of Management Reviews, 4(8), pp.43-69. Buck, T., 2015. Long-term orientation and international joint venture strategies in modern China. International Business Review, 6(89), pp.58-64. Cameron, E., 2015. Making sense of change management. A complete guide to the models, tools, and techniques of organizational change, 5(7), pp.76-90. De Massis, A., 2018. Counterpoint: How heterogeneity among family firms influences organizational change. Journal of Change Management, 4(9), pp.78-98. Dyer, L., 2017. Studying human resource strategy: An approach and an agenda. Industrial Relations. A Journal of Economy and Society, 45(8), pp.55-78. Gioia, D., 2016. Identity, image, and issue interpretation: Sensemaking during a strategic change in academia. Administrative science quarterly, 59(8), pp.65-84. Grosser, T., 2015. Employee Perceptions of Network Change Following an Organizational Change. In Academy of Management Proceedings. Academy of Management Briarcliff Manor, 5(8), pp.63-85. Kiefer, T., 2014. Feeling bad: Antecedents and consequences of negative emotions in ongoing change. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 4(8), pp.68-75. Kiel, L., 2014. Managing chaos and complexity in government. A new paradigm for managing change, innovation, and organizational renewal, 5(7), pp.65-78. Kuipers, B., 2015. The management of change in public organizations: A literature review. Public administration, 5(7), pp.67-87. Lewis, S., 2017. Appreciative inquiry for change management. Using AI to facilitate organizational development, 4(76), pp.56-89. Meyer, J., 2015. Employee commitment and support for an organizational change: Test of the three?component model in two cultures. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 6(8), pp.53-84. Ololube, N., 2017. Organizational Change Management: Perceptions, Attitude, Application, and Change Management Practices in Nigerian Universities. International Journal of Applied Management Sciences and Engineering, 5(8), pp.5-10. Pettigrew, A., 2016. Studying organizational change and development: Challenges for future research. Academy of management journal, 4(7), pp.57-87. Senge, P., 2015. The dance of change. The challenges to sustaining momentum in learning organizations, 8(45), pp.12-22. Stensaker, I., 2015. Change management choices and trajectories in a multidivisional firm. British Journal of Management, 9(6), pp.61-87. Tushman, M., 2016. Ambidextrous organizations: Managing evolutionary and revolutionary change. California management review, 6(8), pp.56-85.

Gandhi Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Gandhi - Essay Example Gandhi was a man who had humbled his adversaries with his simplicity of character and personality and had fought for the rights of the common man. Gandhi was born on 3 October, 1969 in Porbandar, Gujarat in India, when it was under the British rule. After completing his early education in India, he went to England for his law studies and became a barrister. He went to South Africa to practice law and there he realized that black people were not considered at par with the whites and were treated like dirt and considered for menial work only. He was appalled and his sense of justice violated. He took up the cudgel to fight for the equal rights for all human being and became an instant hit with the people with his advocacy for fighting the tyranny of the whites with his non violent movement which led to blacks to gain some rights of human dignity in South Africa. After this, Gandhi, along with wife Kasturba and three sons, returned to his own country and started working for the rights and freedom of his people of India. Gandhi was a man who led by example. When he came back to India, he realized that majority of the Indian people live in villages and who are poor. He also discarded his worldly goods and started living like them in simple clothes and doing all types of work himself. His family also followed suit and it became easier for the common man to identify himself with Gandhi, who then started calling him ‘Bapu’ meaning their father. Other leaders like Nehru, Patel, Gokhale, Kriplani, Jinnah etc. who had formed ‘National Congress Party’ to fight against the British rule, welcomed Gandhi but initially, they too, were not convinced in his principle for non violence. Gandhi’s beliefs in the basic human values that decried violence ultimately persuaded the congress leaders to adopt non violence in their political agenda. Gandhi was a simple but a shrewd politician. His fundamental conviction in non violence and his inherent

Ford vs Detroit Electric Car Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ford vs Detroit Electric Car - Case Study Example While Detroit Electric Company capitalizes on its technological innovations as its core competitive advantage in the market, the development of an electric car by Ford still remains near, yet so far a realization. Since 1966, according to Flint the Forbes magazine editor, Ford has been stressing on the plan to develop a viable electric car in 5 to 10 years. By 2009, Ford believed that this dream could be realized by 2010, but it still remains a plan. The failure to meet these plans has been dampened by the advanced innovations and technology In Detroit Electric, who announced laid down plans to start large sale manufacturing and selling of electric cars in the first quarter of 2010, with these sales expected to hit 270,000 vehicles by 2012. The lithium battery technology is the latest development towards realization of this goal (Brown, 2012). Q1. The organization structure used in Detroit Electric cars is the decentralized organizational structure that leads to differentiation in pr oducts and specialization. Rather than produce their vehicles, Detroit Electronics outsource their vehicles from specialized manufactures; their work being to impart the finished vehicles with finishes that identify the company (LaMonica, 2009). Detroit has therefore assumed the structure of a virtual corporation where engines are manufactured and fitted by Proton in Malaysia, while the company just modifies the cars to distinguish the style and to offer an identity to these vehicles. Outsourcing to specialized manufactures, and settling on finishing and aesthetic work ensures specialization, and the company does not have to meet the cost required in producing these vehicles. Q2. The differing organization structure is to blame for Ford’s inability to produce an electric vehicle, when Detroit Electric has been able to make true its dream of an electric vehicle within four years of its founding. Contract manufacturing in Detroit ensures the company does not have to mind about the required technological facilities to meet this goal, as these costs are passed on to the contractor, Proton in this case (Lamonica, 2009). Instead of concentrating in designing and making the facilities to produce these vehicles, Detroit Electric has to concentrate on enhanced research and development strategies to improve its technological advancement in vehicle manufacturing. This is portrayed by the launching of lithium battery, and the rapid response to produce these electric cars. On the other hand, Ford has to set aside massive budgets to modify and advance their plants before launching any electric car manufacturing program. For example, Ford has set aside $ 450 million in Michigan as part of the company’s aggressive plan in advancing an electric vehicle program (Media Ford, 2011). Ford has been delaying these plans due to economic crisis and stiff competition, which has eaten into the company’s profitability. The company felt stinging effects as in the 2008 global economic meltdown. This has been well observed in the case of the SUV models that marked about 55% of total sales before the crisis. These sales declined sharply resulting to decreased profitability (Richard & Henry, 2003). Specialization has been the strength behind Detroit Electric success. Q. 3 Cooperation of international companies is largely affected by economic dynamics in the market. For example, the Euro crisis may

Industry analysis. Parking services Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Industry analysis. Parking services - Term Paper Example QPark is focused at going international after ensuring that it meets the needs of its customers in the Philadelphia market. In order to ensure that it is ready to meet the diversified needs of global customers, QPark will rely on Porter 5 model that deals with five forces which include bargaining supplier power, competitive rivalry, bargaining power of buyers, threat of new entry and threat of substitution. By analyzing each of the Porters aspects, QPark will have the ability to face off its competitors while at the same time maintaining loyalty and trust among all the stakeholders. On supplier power, for instance QPark will access how easily the suppliers will drive up our prices in the market. Another major aspect covered by Porter is competitive rivalry. In order to be successful in Philadelphia market, we will undertake a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis to determine our position in the market. It is vital to note that there is no high level of riv alry that QPark will face in the Philadelphia market. However, in a scenarios where we face large number of competitors and where they offer similar products most likely we will have less power since buyers and suppliers will have more alternatives.2. Bargaining power of our buyers is another primary aspect that will affect our pricing strategies of our services. Some of the major aspects that will influence the bargaining power of our buyers include information availed to our buyers, the sensitivity of our customers towards our prices and our switching costs as compared to those of our customers. Our buyers will have a bargaining power. In this way they will put vital pressure on our product thus ensuring that they get a quality product that is worth their money. Despite giving our buyers opportunities to exercise their bargaining power, QPark will ensure that the business sales are enough to cover the fixed as well as variable costs incurred by the company. To address the threat o f substitution in our business, we will emulate modern technology and extensive marketing awareness campaign as well quality improvement. In this way, our customer will be more attracted to our services thus putting at bay our key competitors in the Philadelphia market. Being a major aspect by Porter model, threat of new entry will have an implication on our business3. Key threat of the new entrants is stiff competition. Additionally, the ability of other firms entering the car park industry may result to production of similar products thus making it hard for customer to differentiate QPark from its competing brands4. This implies that to create a difference between our services and those of the competitors; we will adopt an effective marketing mix that includes price, promotion, product and place. Business trends refer to those factors that will affect the ability of local and international firms to cope with their customers and to make sustainable profit. Example of business trend includes cost of input that determines whether the business is viable, raw material needed component increasing or decreasing or stable in costs. In the parking industry, business owners have to decide whether to increase the cost of goods or cope with the losses alone. Innovation is one of the key strategies being adopted in the industry. For instance, through self services which are automated in nature, QPark will be in a position to track customer’s vehicle even after default on payment. Environmental trends entail government

War in Iraq Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

War in Iraq - Essay Example In essence, students are forced to wear uniforms that have two or three colors, for all the years they will be attending the school in question. As a result, their minds clog and rotate around the colors of their uniforms (Brunsma 77). School administrators may have the objective of making students look the same in terms of status while in school through wearing uniforms. However, this is ill conceived because students have diverse physiques, uniforms tend to force some students to be other individuals; it makes them take up a personality that they are not comfortable being (Brunsma 108). When students are given the opportunity of wearing whatever uniform they prefer; they experience freedom. Here, the students’ mind roams freely, in that instead of being limited by the two or three colors in the school uniform, they can wear clothes that are of various colors. In essence, school uniforms create mental prisons in students; their minds atrophy because they lack

Critical analysis on Roald Dahl's writing style and his influence on Essay

Critical analysis on Roald Dahl's writing style and his influence on my writing - Essay Example (Propson, David 2007) Oddly enough, Dahl’s children’s stories required heavy rewriting by the editors, but they were naturally brilliant, and so were quite worth the effort. Dahl’s adult fiction was quite dark, and though satisfying, it seldom had any balance from humor. However, his children’s stories, though dark as well, always had a generous dollop of humor and fantasy. Even the characters in his children’s stories seem to balance. In Charlie and the Chocolate Factory we have Charlie, his grandfather, and willie Wonka to represent the good guys and they balance out the three four awful children and their parents. (Amidon, Stephen 2006) He seems to have caught the exactly right tone for kids. He knew how they thought, how things worked in their heads. So, his children’s stories rang true for them, wonderfully parallel to their perceptions of the world. Yet, there was a wonderful quality of humor and fantasy which the illustrators, and later filmmakers, could play against in their work. The latest version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is fantastically done with the digital special effects of Tim Burton’s versi on of 2005. (iMDB 2005) (Mcmorran, Will, 2006) All of the lovely fantasy comes through and does justice to the author. However, it probably only matches the images which appear in the heads of the children who read the books. In fact, when one looks at Dahl’s children’s stories there is a core of frank truth at the center. He makes some strong points on the human condition and human psychology. His characters are extreme examples of all the foibles and character traits of real people. Even the Dahl’s childrens stories, even though he takes things to fantastic heights, his characters always wind up with their just deserts, as suits a story for children. Ambiguity is so0mething reader have to learn to tolerate, generally when we are very close to adulthood. Children require justice to be done. It does not

Assessing Strategies Toward a Goal Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Assessing Strategies Toward a Goal - Coursework Example I aimed at helping my uncle to make certain important decisions in general. I found balance-sheet approach very apt in this regard. â€Å"Balance sheets deal with the acceptability and unacceptability of both benefits and costs.† (Egan, 2010: 373) I focused on utilizing â€Å"empathetic thought patterns† (Egan, 2010: 374) and â€Å"active listening skills† (Egan, 374) to examine my uncle through the critical question answer session. The main problem he was facing about budgeting was fund allocation. I suggested the strategy of long term savings and addressing the long term liabilities to be most important. I asked my uncle, â€Å"What are the benefits of choosing such a strategy for you and the other significant ones?† Also, I asked, â€Å"To what degree are these benefits acceptable?† (Egan, 2010: 373) In answering my questions, my uncle expressed his concern about his children’s higher education. Also, by getting rid from the long term liab ilities like mortgage and debts, my uncle could obtain more financial security for his family. Thus I discovered that he was worried about the financial requirements of his children’s higher education. This was a plus for my uncle. However, he did not have a proper investment policy and was prone to neglect the existing liabilities. This was, of course, a minus point. Finally, I helped my uncle to set two most important goals.

Design Exercise Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Design Exercise - Essay Example This necessities the use of a public address system(PA). The PA system requires special design as they must be tailor made to meet the client's specifications and wants. It is therefore necessary to design the PA systems using an organized procedure such as the Pahl and Beitz method. The process involves the surveying of the customer's needs and wants, generating some demands and wishes from the client, developing of the solution using a function analysis matrix and finally developing the product using the information from the demands and the function analysis. After the development of the product, it is tested for its overall suitability particular in satisfying the customers wants and needs, if the product is found unsuitable or with some limits, it is necessary to redesign and reconfigure the product to ensure that it satisfy the customer needs and promotes usability engineering and ergonomic principles. The power supply: This is the system that supplies the public address unit with electrical power that is used to run the whole PA system. The most common types power supplied include the alternating current (AC) and the direct current (DC). Most PA system use direct current while most of the commercially available power is in form of AC supplied at 240 Volts or 110 volts. Rectifier unit or DC adapter This adapter is used for the conversion of AC power to DC power. Some of the PA systems incorporate this gadget inside the systems while others have the same system incorporated outside as a separate unit The amplifier unit The amplifier unit is used for amplification of the voice signal. The amplifier receives low power electrical signal and amplify the signals to high power and voltage which is fed to the loud speaker systems. Amplifier uses the transistors, MOSFET devices, field effects transistors (FET), CMOS and operational amplifiers circuit to provide gain to the input signal. The microphone unit The microphone unit is used for changing voice sound to an electrical signal that can be amplified by the amplifier. Upon receiving the sound signal, the crystal microphone vibrate generating a small electrical current that is fed to the amplifier The mixer The mixer is used for signal conditioning, this helps is controlling the voice produced by the amplifier unit. The mixer enhances the audibility of the sound

The Application of Study Loans Essay Example for Free

The Application of Study Loans Essay The chart shown that as increasing for study loan among students. The years of applications for study loans is from 2004 until 2008. This chart is too closely related between the applications for study loans and the reason for applying for study loans. The applications for study loans are including male and female students. There are many reasons for students who wants to applying for study loans. Firstly, the comparison year from 2007 till 2008. It is show that were increase. This is because students wants to be independent if they get the loans. They think that they will not pester parents for wanting to be independent in the pursuit of our own future without make life difficult for anyone. The same time, the money they get, can be used with thrifty. Secondly, the year difference between 2004 to 2005. It is show that the number of students were increase. This in turn is caused by students unwilling to work and study. Additionally, reduced application rates because students are not willing to work and study. Such a case because the students do not want to work and at the same time want to learn. For them, its hard to juggle work and study. That is why students need applying for study loans to continue their education. Thirdly, the year 2006, it is show the number of students is remain constant. This caused economic downturn. Parents retrenched and need money for other purposes. Thing like that, too, who had to apply for a loan cause students to continue studying. Such a case, can help students who need the money to continue his studies and purchase the study. In a nutshell, based on the chart show that many reason in application for study loans. Beside that, parents do not have the means and other factors also the reasons for applying for study loans for students who require.

Virtues of People Essay Example for Free

Virtues of People Essay Q2. Mill mentions those who object to utilitarianism on the grounds that it holds humanity to an excessively high moral standard. Why might someone make this argument? How does Mill respond to it? What is your view: Are the requirements of utilitarianism excessively demanding? Why or why not? Utilitarianism does not take into account the flaws of human nature and by doing so, holds them to a standard that can never be attained by an entire society. People grow and develop over time and environmental influences create their views of happiness. In a perfect world, everyone would be working for the happiness of all, but the world is not perfect and until we reach a point of pure harmony among all people, it will remain imperfect. Although some have found it in their hearts to live within the guidelines of utilitarianism, the fact that most of the world is based on a capitalistic free market ultimately overshadows, the â€Å"greater good† mentality. â€Å"It is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied; better to be a Socrates dissatisfied than a fool satisfied. † (Cahn 95) This statement shows a complete misunderstanding of the differences in human perception. Humans do not view the world in exactly the same way and one idea of what is important can never be made universal. Take, for example, a young woman brought up in an abusive home. She has been raped by her father most of her life, forced into drugs, and is poor. As she grows up, she cannot read because she never went to school and cannot get a job because she is an illiterate drug addict. She turns to prostitution just to make money, and contracts AIDS. Her life has been completely dissatisfying and she dreams of being released from everything around her. One day a scientist approaches her and tells her he has developed a way to transfer human consciousness into a bird. He tells her that she will forget everything about being human and can live her life as that bird. What choice do you think she would make? Would she choose to be a dissatisfied human or a satisfied bird? Misery in life can make people view happiness in many different ways and you can never say what choice you would make in the above example until you have lived that life. This simple fact makes it impossible to understand the greater good. We can only assume what the greater good is. Many people living in the same society have a different assumption of the greater good. So how do we determine the best choice? One person should not have to take care of the world; they should only have to take care of their world. â€Å"The agent should aim at maximizing his or her own happiness as well as other people’s happiness. †(Cahn 108) This is a part of the response to the â€Å"No-Rest Objection† (Cahn 107), and it sounds perfectly reasonable. The problem is how to maximize happiness when everyone has a different scale of judgment. â€Å"The utilitarian would remind us, we can surely do a lot more for suffering humanity than we now are doing – especially if we join together and act cooperatively. † (Cahn 108) This statement is again reaching back to the perfect world scenario and shows a lack of understanding to that of which humans are now. Most of the world’s population feels that happiness is attained by having a successful life, not by how much money they have donated to charity. The question is what creates a successful life? Since the majority of the world is based on some type of financial system, and the only way to attain anything legally is to buy it, the greater good must be based on the distribution of money. Money allows a person to have a home, raise a family, and pay for necessities and comforts. The legal way to gain money is to provide a service that produces an income, either by owning a business or by working for someone else. Because there are only a limited amount of jobs and money, competition between people is necessary. This competition for survival is why people put more value on self-preservation than that of that greater population. Survival of the fittest is what creates a natural balance in our world and the failure to respect that could ultimately be the downfall of our planet. Propping up everyone that cannot take care of themselves could eventually lead to overcrowding and a complete lack of resources needed for survival. Teleological ethics says that we need to look at the consequences of our actions, and I believe that by trying to make everyone happy, we are ultimately creating a place that will be unhappy for all in the long-run. Utilitarianism is a generous belief system, but I do not think it looks at the world in the proper light and it does not take into account the ramifications of helping the greater good. I also do not think that the greater good mentality will ever be a norm.. Q3. Do you have to be a virtuous person to perform a virtuous action? If you do, does this present a problem for Aristotles account of how virtue is acquired? If you do not, explain how it is possible for someone who lacks a particular virtue-courage, for example-to do something courageous. Life is not static. People grow, learn, and change constantly. Every person is capable of acts that are virtuous even though they may not have displayed those behaviors in the past. A virtuous person is classified by their continuous actions, but that does not mean they are not capable of doing something that is non-virtuous. The essential trait of humanity that makes us capable of change has caused our species to become dominate. If we are capable of change then we will always be capable of acting in a way that would not be classified as normal for our everyday behavior. â€Å"Neither by nature, then, nor contrary to nature do the virtues arise in use; rather we are adapted by nature to receive them, and are made perfect by habit. †(Cahn 115) Aristotle made the comparison of gravities effect on a rock to the presence of virtue within a human being. (Cahn 115) This comparison makes no sense because a virtuous lifestyle is learned and practiced over time. Although some are born with a natural disposition for virtuous behavior, this does not mean it is an inaccessible trait to all others. To prove that virtue is learned, we can look at a baby. Babies are selfish by nature and over time become more generous in their behavior. Although generosity may be easier to teach to some, it is still teachable to most if the parents do it correctly. Many people have grown to be virtuous; it has been proven time and time again. The fact that virtuous behavior can be seen and observed allows humans to understand the concept without actually carrying out a virtuous act. Therefore, a person may understand what to do to be virtuous but makes a choice to do otherwise. The ability to make a choice is what challenges the thought that a person can only be virtuous if they are born with a natural trait. The truth is that all humans have the natural trait for virtuous behavior because all fully capable and mentally stable humans have the ability to make choices. Although humans have the natural ability to be virtuous, the confusion comes when we try to say that virtue is a constant. A person is classified as virtuous if their lifestyle reflects the constant decision to follow a virtuous path, but a virtuous lifestyle is different from a virtuous decision. Soldiers are the perfect example. In many cases, a soldier may display fear and a lack of courage when faced with an issue in their civilian life, for example running from a fight or not speaking up when they see something wrong. However, when a grenade is thrown into a room full of their fellow soldiers, they would sacrifice their own body without thought. This is an excess and might be viewed as not fitting the definition of virtue, but in order for that soldier to become so caring and devoted to his follow soldiers you would have to understand that life inside the Army is different from life inside the civilian world. They are two separate lifestyles and therefore may lead to two different decision making processes. Most people reflect a varying combination of virtuous and non-virtuous behavior during their life. I think it would be hard to find a person on this planet that has never committed a virtuous act during their lifetime. Understanding this makes it clear that all people are capable of virtuous acts, but they may choose not to follow a virtuous path as a constant. Rules and boundaries in society actually create an environment where virtuous acts may be carried out daily. By law, it is fine to drink in moderation but drinking to the point that a person becomes a disturbance to their society can cause them to be taken to jail. This is just one example of the law forcing a person to recognize that virtuous behavior has a higher reward than lack of control. â€Å"So much, then, is plain, that the intermediate state is in all things to be praised, but that we must incline sometimes towards the excess, sometimes towards the deficiency; for so shall we most easily hit the mean and what is right. †(Cahn 119) This statement reflects and proves that no man can be completely virtuous all the time. This is because unless a man knows what is wrong, then they cannot do what is right. It also proves that every man is capable of committing a virtuous act regardless of his lifestyle. My thoughts and beliefs come from a virtue ethical point of view. I believe that there are few people in this world who, if faced with the right situation, would not make a virtuous choice. The right situation may be different, but our human character will usually shine through. At some point, even the most evil and gluttonous man will make a virtuous choice. Works Cited Cahn, Steven M. Exploring Ethics An Introductory Anthology Second Edition. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc. , 2011.

Assessment of carnival cruise lines competitive position

Assessment of carnival cruise lines competitive position Carnival Cruise Lines is certainly the leader of their industry. They are the industry standard for quality, have massive revenues, and the largest growth. In fact, the company continues to set new passenger number records. The first thing I will do in evaluating the companys competitive position is to do a SWOT analysis. Some of the companys main strengths include: cruise capacity levels, branding, variety of activities, price compared to other vacation options, and their ability to stay frugal and efficient. The main weaknesses I have identified were they were still considered to be an expensive option for vacations, perceptions of lower-quality (despite major quality improvements), perceptions of being geared to certain demographics, and some IT issues. Certain opportunities available to the company include a chance to narrow the gap between quality and perception of quality, direct marketing through new intermediaries, and more growth in their industry. Major threats to the compa ny are the economy, fuel prices, and hurricane seasons. Overall, looking at the SWOT analysis, it is easy to see why CCL is the industry leader. They have many strengths, only a few weaknesses, opportunities to work on their weaknesses, and threats that affect many industries, not just their own. Looking at the five competitive forces model, I believe CCL is in a strong competitive position. The only threat I think is a big deal for the company at this point is the threat of fierce competition. Ten brands control 95% of the market, and despite the bad economy those companies are also showing growth. Not only does CCL compete against other cruise ships, they also compete against other forms of vacation entertainment. Some examples mentioned in the case include the vacation opportunities in the Orlando and Las Vegas markets. To make sure they handle this competition, the company must continue to improve in order to dominate the market. The threat of new entrants is weak because of the major start-up costs in their industry and the importance of brand-recognition in their industry. The bargaining power of the buyers is moderate-to-weak because switching costs for customers are high when considering the value they get with CCL despite possible substitutes. Bargaining power of sup pliers is getting weaker as travel agencies are going away and costs of dealing with the customer are being minimized. It is possible that CCL will have to deal with the threat of substitute products because there are viable options beyond CCL. However, CCL has positioned themselves very well to deal with this competition through giving the customer great value for the price. They mentioned in the case that their goal with each customer is to exceed the customers expectations to the best of their ability. Doing so will add value to firm because it will likely increase the customers willingness to pay. Another way to continue to improve the company will include using a virtual value chain with online intermediaries rather than travel agents in order to lessen the costs of booking customers and to directly market to prospective customers. I believe this can add great value to the firm by decreasing the cost of doing business through intermediaries and increasing customer awareness of vacationing with CCL. If they can take advantages of their opportunities, their competitive position will continue to be strong. Question 2: Should CCL implement a CRM strategy? (Justify your answer). If so, how would you implement it? If not, what other enterprise systems would you recommend instead? (Justify your answer). Perform a security and privacy risk assessment related to your recommendation. For each major risk, what should the company do? There are positives and negatives for CCL implementing a CRM strategy. I will use this chance to make an argument for implementing a CRM strategy, highlight the positive aspects of this strategy and explain how this strategy makes up for the negative aspects. They are the industry leaders in almost every aspect of their business except for lagging information systems. If they improve this aspect of their business, they can possibly increase their strategic advantages for the long-term future. For now, CCL enjoys a strong relationship with travel agents who refer their clients to CCL regularly. This has been a very valuable relationship for CCL over the years. The market is changing in the travel and tourism industry because of the development of intermediaries on the internet who make direct connections from customer to business. This trend is going to be the dominant way of doing business in the short-term and long-term futures of the industry. CCL management argues in the case that they want to balance this relationship with travel agents with this new wave. I argue that travel agents are on their way out of business and it should not be a focus for the company in the long-term. Having a CRM strategy will improve their abilities to reach out to the customer base on the internet and should transform their value chain completely to virtual means. This will cut their costs dramatically and will help the bottom line. This also allows the customer to ask for services directl y from CCL. This can result in greater customer service for CCL. It mentioned in the case that the handoff of information from CCL to travel agent to customer was often slow. Eliminating the need for travel agents and dealing directly with customers will also improve customer service by making it a much faster and more efficient process. To me, it makes a lot of sense for CCL. This CRM strategy will not be an overnight process and neither will the demise of the travel agent business, so the strategy they have for now should serve their needs well until they develop this strategy to an acceptable level. There were quite a few other key points I read in the case that stand out to me in supporting a CRM strategy. Management stressed the importance of fitting their services to customers changing tastes. This is a reasonable goal. If this goal is truly important, developing a successful CRM strategy can help them track these changing tastes in the most effective way. This includes a possible improvement in the check-in process for customers boarding the cruise ship. The current process requires hours for each customer in order to pass through security. If they can update their information systems to hold security information and some biometrics, security can be quicker and possibly of better quality. The case also pointed out that CCL has a wide variety of customers unlike their competitors. This can be a great advantage to the company if CCL can utilize their information systems in a way that provides the company with information about the mix of customers they have for a certain cruis e. Planning for a customer base that is homogenized is much easier than making strategic plans for a customer base that is diverse. It would certainly be an advantage to CCL to have a CRM strategy that helped them with this diverse customer base. They mention in the case that customer loyalty is a great strength of the company and they hope to continue to increase customer loyalty. Having a CRM strategy that can help improve customer service and improve the services offered to customers and can certainly create loyalty. One aspect of their CRM strategy I would not be as concerned with is developing a highly detailed rewards program to go along with it. The company has experimented with this idea and has a simple system they use. I think it would be fine to continue with something simple like this but do not see any reason to create a detailed plan. I believe the degree of customability is low for this industry and the repurchase rate for customers is typically once a year. Therefore, investing in a rewards program would result in a low payoff. Also, competitors in their industry have tried using rewards programs and the results have not been positive for these companies. At this point, I do not see a major need for CCL to develop their rewards program further. So I have argued for a new CRM strategy. How does CCL implement such a strategy? First, it has to be realized that CRM strategies are only strategies, not technology. In order to effectively implement this kind of strategy, it is imperative that there is an information technology infrastructure in place. This means that the databases have to be strong and the information has to be reliable. This is the first step of the process for implementation. According to the case, CCL already has the databases there for use, including Oracle databases called Property Management Systems (PMS) and Point of Sale (POS). The problem right now with their infrastructure is issues they have with data integrity and availability, as pointed out on page 412. Regardless of whether or not CCL implements a CRM strategy, issues with data integrity and availability are major issues that should be dealt with to have good information and security. The second step of implementing the new CRM strategy is to change the database design in a way that can improve customer and transactional data so the company can use the information. Having this data funnel into one data store can help the company get the most out of the relationships they build with the various intermediaries they will have online as well as through their website. Certainly, at this point implementing a CRM strategy will require major considerations for funding and how this information system will be created or bought. For funding initiatives within this new CRM strategy, the steering committee will have to figure out what would add the greatest value to the firm and what they will do to create the information systems that fit this strategy. At this point, I do not think I have enough information in order to have an opinion on how to do this. As I mentioned earlier in the paper, security and privacy risk seems to be a major issue for this company. It was mentioned in the case that information integrity and availability are not at acceptable levels. This has to be addressed immediately in order to have good information, which is imperative for effective information systems. Security and privacy are not just IT issues; they are issues that go the very top of management. Therefore, measures have to be put in place to protect the information that CCL obtains from using this CRM strategy. The information systems created because of this strategy will likely contain very sensitive information such as credit card numbers. In accordance with the importance placed on privacy, the company should look to obtain a trust seal from TRUSTe, WebTrust, or the Better Business Bureau. Also, a privacy statement should be drafted for the site in order to help gain the customers trust. Beyond that, I think the major issue will be preventing hac kers from getting sensitive information from the companys information systems and I think one step that will help is hiring a third party to conduct an information systems audit. This will help the company identify weaknesses that they can improve. Policies and training for employees will also need to be evaluated in order to prevent phishing or social engineering. If they can continually assess their security and privacy needs with the suggestions I have made, their security and privacy should be fine. It will then be up to the company to straighten out the mess they made with their information quality.

Love Story in Terry Kay’s To Dance With the White Dog and in the Movie O :: Comparison Compare Contrast Essays

Love Story in Terry Kay’s To Dance With the White Dog and in the Movie O In the movie â€Å"O†, Desi and Odin, the main characters, share an unstable relationship due to their juvenile romance. The young couple struggle to support and trust one another throughout the movie. They must also deal with the lies and betrayal of their close friend Hugo. Their budding romance can be compared in many ways to the fruitful relationship of Sam and Cora Peek, in Terry Kay’s novel, To Dance With The White Dog. Sam and Cora Peek’s relationship is one that withstands the trial of time. Although both relationships began in the same manner, there are vital differences between the two that drastically separate them from one another. There are many obstacles in the movie â€Å"O† that cause the ultimate failure of Desi and Odin. The young couple has trouble trusting one another because they are inexperienced and just beginning their relationship. There is little stability in Desi and Odin’s relationship partially due to the secretive way in which the couple must see one another. The lies of a close friend quickly make Odin doubt the loyalty of Desi and thus begin to tear apart the young lovers. Throughout the movie doubts and fears are instilled in Odin by his close friend, Hugo. It is these lies that quickly escalate into Odin’s belief of Desi’s betrayal. Ultimately Odin loves Desi so much he can not bear the thought of her with another man, nor can he bear the thought of a life without her. Odin’s irrational thoughts and impulsive nature destroy the love that Desi once harbored for Odin. The love of Odin and Desi is bittersweet in the end. Both of the young lovers die prematurely at the hands of Odin. The love of Odin and Desi is snuffed out due to their inexperienced youth, the pressures of society, and of their peer’s lies. The pressure of Desi’s father and his strong dislike of Odin also helps create doubt in Odin’s mind about Desi. The racial issues play a small role in Odin’s beliefs of Desi. Hugo points out to him that Desi is a white girl and white girls are sly. In To Dance With The White Dog, Sam and Cora Peek share a life long commitment.

Heaneys Mid-Term Break, Clarkes Baby Sitting and Jonsons On My First

Heaney's Mid-Term Break, Clarke's Baby Sitting and Jonson's On My First Sonne all deal with unhappy reflections about human loss, isolation distress and the harsh reality of life. The poems concerned in this essay mirror notions of human importance and bonds. Heaney's 'Mid-Term Break', Clarke's 'Baby Sitting' and Jonson's 'On My First Sonne' all deal with unhappy reflections about human loss, isolation distress and the harsh reality of life. All of these poems are written in first person narrative voice, with honest blunt diction, allowing us to understand their pain by the relation some people have with the issues raised in each of the poems. The main themes of the poems are Parental roles, childhood and relationships. The triplet of poems all deal with unhappy reflections about human loss, isolation and distress and are written in the first person narrative which allows us to make their pain seem very real by a creation of Pathos. Thematically, Heaney and Jonson explore the abrupt and painful loss of a family member. Heaney is forced to grow up and endure th...

Essay --

In 1999, INJAZ was established as a non-profit organization that seeks to inspire and prepare youth to become productive members of their society and accelerate the development of the national economy, helping them realize their full potential. Since its inception, INJAZ has benefited over 850,000 youth throughout its various programs, bridging the path from academia to the job market. Our Programs INJAZ brings 46 programs to public schools, universities, community colleges, and various social institutions. Programs are both curricular and extra-curricular and focus on such themes as financial literacy, work skills, leadership, entrepreneurship, career development, and inspiration. INJAZ’ programs aim to develop students' sense of personal ambition and passion for achievement through a diverse spectrum of courses, inspirational activities, volunteer projects, internships, competitions, and opportunities to gain real work experience and training before leaving the education system. Our Students INJAZ reaches out to Jordanian youth across the kingdom, a...

Nursing-Sensitive Indicators Essay

The structure, processes, and outcome factors of nursing care are reflected in Nursing-Sensitive Indicators (NSIs). There are several things that the nurses in the provided scenario could have done to promote quality patient care. By being aware of restraint use as an NSI the hospital staff would be more likely to increase their focus and attention to its need and any development of complications. This increased focus and attention could have led to the development of educational opportunities for the hospital staff on the identification of pressure ulcer related complications. Had the nurse and nursing supervisor been aware of patient/family/caregiver satisfaction as an NSI they may have reacted differently in the situation. According to the physician in the scenario, there have been multiple complaints by Jewish patients about the disregard for their dietary requests. Having this data and information available can aid in developing and educational session for hospital staff includi ng dietary workers, nurses, and certified nursing assistants about the importance of respecting patient’s cultural requests. It is possible that some of the problems identified in the scenario were a related to the structure of the system and a result of inadequate staffing, educational, or experience levels. Being able to collect data on these NSIs can aid in identifying issues within this organization structure and make appropriate changes to ensure better quality patient care outcomes. For example, some issues may be related to there not being an adequate number of nursing on the unit. Collecting relevant data would help to identify this as an issue, possibly a recurring issue, which would lead to the assigning of more nurses to that particular unit. Quality Patient Care Nursing-sensitive indicators can provide data to help identify needs and diminish risks. Part of the reason why nursing-sensitive indicators are used is to be able to make changes and adjustments to policies and procedures of  a hospital, if necessary. Quality patient care can be advanced in this situation by collecting data on specific nursing-sensitive indicators. Data on the prevalence of restraint use and consequential complications (e.g. pressure ulcers, contractions, anxiety, incontinence, and other complications) can aid in maintaining awareness of risks and allowing the nurse to take proper steps to limit their occurrence. Data on patient/family/caregiver satisfaction can help illustrate whether the quantity and quality of nursing care needs to be improved. Data on nursing satisfaction and staffing can help to assess whether changes need to be made to staffing numbers, whether more experienced nurses are needed, whether more educational opportunities are need for the hospital staff, for example. System Resources, Referrals, or Colleagues There are a few ethical issues that in the provided scenario which need addressing from the nursing shift supervisor. The first occurs when the Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) fails to appropriately address the possibility of a developing pressure ulcer. A wound care team can be consulted about developing an educational program about pressure ulcers for hospital staff. Also, there is the issue of restraints. The ordering physician should be contacted about the necessity of restraint use. Along with the wound care team, data could be collected about the use of restraints and the subsequent development of pressure ulcers. In the scenario, the patient was not served a â€Å"kosher† diet as the order indicated. The physician could be contacted to illicit more information about the several dietary complaints. The hospital administrator can, also, be contacted to inquire about any other dietary complaints before contacting the kitchen supervisor. The hospital ethics committee is a valuable resource when a need for education arises. The daughter was not told of the dietary mistake and was later inadvertently informed by a dietary worker. Members of the Ethics committee may be able to conduct an educational session for hospital workers about being patient advocates.

U.S Economy Cause and Effect

Essay #2 cause and effect essay. (1084) Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Â   Ben Soloviev As America is going through economical disfunction's, Â  it is apparent that many people fear for losing their job because in such a depression it would make it impossible to be well off comfortably due to the demand of money needed for all the basic essentials especially in Orange County. Orange County happens the be one of the more expensive areas in the state and it is crucial to always have a steady income as life here is not cheap but well worth it.Many Americans are in search for work and are struggling to make a living. As the job hunting goes on, many job opportunities are overseen to due to programs such unemployment. The percentage of unemployment has sky rocketed over the past few years leaving it up to us, tax payers with job to pay for such needs. Unemployment is not fair for all, most people would say. There are a percentage of people who trul y have no other choice of surviving unless they depend on this crucial unemployment program.Although unemployment is crucial for some, it is not necessary for a portion of the people due to the simple fact that they are not trying hard enough to seek new job opportunities. Instead they a letting opportunities slide right past them every single day they are not looking for work. Many people depend on unemployment alone, because most people would prefer to get paid for doing nothing while they have the chance too. Many people take advantage of this privilege and only it do they follow.A huge downfall due to unemployment for us people with a steady income and a consistent employment is the fact that we have to pay for the unemployed. Hardworking people work to support themselves also end up paying taxes which a percentage of that goes to the unemployed. By increasing our taxes the government collects money all around. This dramatically decreases the standard of living for us citizens. Although unemployment has it's pros and is a huge opportunity for people in struggles or going through loss of unemployment.It also puts a major dependability on hard working citizens who are forced to pay high taxes which a certain percentage are collected to pay for the unemployed. Many people abuse unemployment for as long as they can and only pretend to seek work but instead just prefer to do nothing but make something which not only is unfair but also not right. Unemployment not only affects certain individuals but it also puts a decrease on the standard of living here in the United states which affects everybody around us.

‘Of Mice & Men’ †Character Analysis Essay

During chapter two of the novel ‘Of Mice and Men,’ we are introduced to another six different characters as George and Lennie begin work on a farm. These characters are the boss, his son, Curley and Curley’s wife, and the other itinerants Candy, Slim and Carlson. The first of these characters that we meet is Candy. Candy Is introduced as an old man with a physical disability. â€Å"Out of the sleeve came a round stick-like wrist, but no hand.† His physical description shows that he cannot work on a farm, and we find out later that he has been demoted to a cleaner. Candy’s behaviour and the way he speaks links to each other. At first he seems a bit hostile towards George and Lennie as he doesn’t really welcome them. He then starts to talk to them properly and tells them about the ranch. Candy doesn’t really have any moral values. When he talks about the way the black stable buck is beaten up by the boss, instead of expressing concern he laughs and jokes about it. This shows that he is very biased. George and Lennie and Candy get on right from the start, but George is very angry after the interview when Candy eavesdrops on a conversation between George and Lennie. Candy is a very lonely man with no family. The only thing of significance to him is his dog, who is very much in parallel to him. The dog is very old and half-blind. Both are disabled and near the end of their working life. We learn a few things about the boss when Candy is telling George and Lennie about him. The first thing that Candy says about the boss is that he was very angry about them being late. â€Å"Where’s the hell them new men?† He always takes all of his anger out on the â€Å"nigger†, showing that he is racist. The stable buck, Crooks, even has a crooked back which he got from being kicked by a horse. Despite all of this anger, Candy goes on say how nice the boss is and about the Christmas where he bought a gallon of whiskey for the workers. â€Å"He’s a pretty nice fellow†, but he also â€Å"Gets pretty mad sometimes.† We then meet the boss who â€Å"stepped into the room†. As expected the boss is already angry about George and Lennie being late, but he is already suspicious. This is because George doesn’t let Lennie speak and the boss assumes that there is something dodgy going on. The boss accuses George of stealing Lennie’ s wages. â€Å"You taking his pay away from him?† The boss is paranoid and doesn’t really believe in friendship. He is very suspicious about them and asks George questions, forcing him to lie, â€Å"He’s my†¦cousin.† The tone of voice that is used throughout the interview is angry and suspicious. He is angry at George and Lennie for being late and suspicious about George’s behaviour. The next character is the boss’s son, Curley. Curley is described as â€Å"A little stocky man.† The clothes that he wears remind us of a typical cowboy. â€Å"†¦blue jean trousers, a flannel shirt, a black, unbuttoned vest and a black coat. His thumbs were stuck in his belt, on each side of a square steel buckle.† This shows us that he is not a labouring man and has a higher status. This is also shown by the fact that he stands confidently and arrogantly. He is broad, short and stocky, but also powerful. When George and Lennie meet Curley for the first time they immediately make an enemy. Right from the beginning Curley gives them a hostile reception when he walks him. â€Å"He glanced coldly at George and then at Lennie.† For some reason he seems to be looking for a fight, â€Å"his hands closed into fists.† Curley seems to have a problem with Lennie. Curley is very small and not like a normal man and is jealous of Lennie – he sees Lennie as a threat. Lennie is huge and muscular, but Curley is small and stocky. Even though he symbolises a higher status he is morally and physically stunted. Curley is very violent for a small man and can be compared to George, as he is a worse version of George (George is tamed my Lennie.† Of all the characters we have met so far most of them are physically or mentally disabled. Curley is very small and unman-like, Crooks has a crooked back, Candy only has one hand and Lennie is mentally disabled. Steinbeck is trying to show that even though America is the land of dreams, these people have been damaged by America. Crooks is also the target of racism. Even George is damaged by America as he has failed in life. Candy is the first person to talk about Curley’s wife, who describes her as â€Å"a tart†. George and Lennie meet her for the first time when she is supposedly looking for Curley in the bunkhouse. We cannot say that this is the real reason because Curley would not be there and she would have seen Curley go home. This shows that she may be a lonely person, or may have gone there to flirt with some of the men. However, her behaviour doesn’t seem flirtatious. â€Å"I’m trying to find Curley, Slim†, shows us that she is not coming on to Slim, but her physical appearance says that she is. The use of â€Å"red† imagery symbolises danger, and Curley’s wife is full of make-up that is red, â€Å"rouged lips and wide-spaced eyes, heavily made-up. Her finger nails were red.† Not only is her make-up red, but so are her clothes, â€Å"†¦red mules†¦little bouquets of red ostrich feathers.† She is a ‘scarlet’ and loose. She likes showing herself off and is not used to farm life, so she dresses quite provocatively. She is a ‘femme fatale’ because Lennie is attracted to red. This links back to the woman in Weed who had a red dress. This woman is a danger to Lennie, and also to George and Lennie’s jobs. â€Å"Lennie watched her, fascinated.† Slim is the most respected man on the farm. He is described as â€Å"a tall man† who was well-built and strong. He is not crippled in any way like some of the other characters. Slim is a â€Å"master-craftsmen† He was well respected and revered by everyone on the farm and everyone would look up to him and follow him, giving him authority over everyone else. Slim is very serious and intelligent and â€Å"the prince of the ranch.† This shows that everyone looks to him for guidance. â€Å"His voice was very gentle.† Slim doesn’t need to shout to get attention and respect, unlike Curley, who needs to fight and threaten. Slim can even hear things before people say something. Slim seems God-like and unrealistic because Steinbeck shows him as too perfect. He is an omnipotent who is idealised and no one is like him. Slim is used as a moral yardstick to measure everyone else. He welcomes George and Lennie to the ranch. He does this in a friendly and gentle way. â€Å"His tone was friendly. It invited confidence without demanding it.† He is not suspicious like the boss and believes in friends travelling together. He doesn’t seem hostile and gives George and Lennie a welcoming atmosphere and understands that George and Lennie look out for each other. George is also given the confidence to open up to George and reveal his true feelings about Lennie. George is able to trust Slim and knows that he will understand and not tell anyone. Carlson seems like a nice person from the start and by the way he welcomes George and Lennie. â€Å"Glad to meet ya.† Like Slim, he Carlson is described as a â€Å"powerful, big-stomached man†. He shows his respect to Slim and lets Slim go first. â€Å"Carlson stepped back to let Slim precede him†. However, we then find out that he is very insensitive. He begins a conversation about Slim’s dog and then talks about wanting to kill Candy’s dog. â€Å"That dog of Candy’s is so God-damn old he can’t hardly walk.† Stinks like hell, too†¦Why’n’t you get Candy to shoot his old dog.† Carlson wants to kill Candy’s dog because he is too old and smells and is a nuisance. This is very insensitive.

Mauritius, Social Housing: Social Movement and Low Income Housing in Mauritius Essay

Social Housing Social Movement and Low Income Housing in Mauritius Abstract: The Republic of Mauritius has been a model success story in both economic and social progress among both the African nations and the whole world. Despite many odds, the country has made tremendous economic progress and has succeeded at the same time to uplift significantly the living standards of the population in general. This paper gives an overview of the matter of the low-income housing in Mauritius. The first part of the paper gives the economical background and the evolution of the social movement in Mauritius. The second part introduces the current housing conditions and the situation of poverty and low-income groups in Mauritius. Finally the strategy of social housing is discussed. The Mauritius social housing strategy is discussed in terms of the changes in the institutional structure, and policies. Then the types of social housing and their financing are introduced. Keywords: Mauritius; Welfare State; Social Housing; Low Income Households AUTAR Bhotish Awtar | | Matric No: 2011280122 | Masters Candidate Tsinghua University | School of Architecture | Department of Urban Planning Please submit any feedback to bhotish@hotmail. om Submitted to: |dengweizyh@mail. tsinghua. edu. cn | Submission date: 17th June 2012 Introduction At independence, Mauritius did not appear predestined for the progress that followed. Challenges included: extreme cultural diversity as well as racial inequality; power concentrated in a small elite (of French & British colonial descendants); high unemployment; and high population growth. The country suffered from an economic crisis throughout the 1970s, was remote from world markets and was commodity dependent. It also exhibited low initial levels of human development. Nobel Laureate for Economics, James Meade even said in 1961, as quoted below: â€Å"It is going to be a great achievement if Mauritius can find productive employment for its population without a serious reduction in the existing standard of living†¦ The outlook for peaceful development is poor† Despite multiple factors stacked against it, Mauritius has achieved stellar progress in economic conditions, and has been unique in its ability to take advantage of privileged access to international markets to develop in a sustained and equitable manner. This has been enabled and complemented by effective poverty reduction and equitable improvements in human development. These achievements have been made by means of: a concerted strategy of nation building; strong and inclusive institutions; high levels of equitable public investment in human development; and a pragmatic development strategy (Vandemoortele, 2010). This success against all odds was coined as the ‘Mauritian Miracle’. In independence year of 1968, the country’s GDP per capita was US$ 2601, and in 2010, the figure rose to around US$ 14,0002 in 2010. Comparatively, in 2010 the average GNI per capita (PPP) for Sub-Saharan Africa stood at 2,1083. During the same period of 1968 to 2010, population rose from 787,000 to 1,281,0004. In 2011, an expectancy of life of 73 years5 at birth and the country had a Human Development Index (HDI) score of 7. 26, compared with an average of 4. 6 in the Sub-Saharan African region. The country was also ranked highest on the Earth Institute’s World Happiness Index among the Sub-Saharan African countries7, leaving behind Botswana and South Africa, other regional economic champions. Socialist movement in Mauritius Mauritius is a welfare state. It has a comprehensive social security system for the whole population and various other social protection schemes. Education is free from primary to university level, with 1 2 Source: IFAD, 2005 For 2010, GDP per capita (PPP) of US$ 14,194, according to IMF, 2011 World Economic Outlook, and GNI per capital (PPP) of 13,960 (units International Dollar) according to World Bank, 2011 3 (units International Dollar) according to World Bank, 2011 4 Figures for population for Republic of Mauritius is from various open source, such as Mauritius CSO, World Bank and other online open data sources. Source: UN Statistics, from WorldBank. org 6 Source: http://hdr. undp. org 7 Mauritius Ranking 64th out of 156 countries with 5. 5 points, on a 0-10 scale, 0 being extremely unhappy and 10 being extremely happy compulsory education up to age of 16. Health care including tertiary care, like heart surgery) is also free. Basic foodstuffs (rice and flour) as well as housing for lower middle-income group are heavily subsidized. Income support is provided to household with low income. The government provides nnual grants to a number of NGOs that cater for the specific needs of handicapped persons and vulnerable groups (Deerpalsingh, 2011). There are also price controls on some other commodities such as cement, petroleum products, bread, onions and edible oils. The state plays a key role in social welfare and security. In fact, expenditure on community and social services attracts the largest share of total government expenditure. The percentage out of total government expenditure spent on health, education, social security and welfare, and housing, over the period 1980 to 1988 averaged 43% and by 1999 was as high as 52%. Preferential access to markets in the European Union and the USA has facilitated this strong welfare state (Bundoo, 2006) The construction of a comprehensive welfare state in Mauritius did not emerge out of a smooth and steady process. Each of the three episodes of welfare reform – the formal introduction of noncontributory old-age pensions in 1950, family allowances in 1962 and social insurance in 1976-1978, were borne out of long-periods of deliberation and procrastination from the colonial officials (Phaahla, 2000). It took riots by unorganized sugar estate workers in the late 1930’s and strong trade unions today, to obtain and maintain a particularly socialist environment in the country, despite, a very open and capitalist market economy in Mauritius, it has been succeeded to preserve a considerable labor protection and benefit to the workers. In the more modern times, the social movement is directly related to the democratic governmental system. Around every five years general elections are held, and the public’s voting of a certain party is very sensitive to the economic and social conditions of the country. In many instances in the history, after independence, the government has been ‘overthrown’ out of office, as sanction voting by the population, due to bad economic and social performances. The most popular example, would perhaps in the 1982, elections when the government in office, with the ‘father of the nation’ as the head of the country, faced the worse possible defeat. This was because the unemployment and other economic and social indicators were all in the red. In terms of social services, Mauritius has been practicing a s ‘five pillar’ model as advocated by the World Bank in a report in 2005. But, it is worth noting that the five-pillar system in Mauritius was completed as far back as 1994. So, Mauritius had already been implementing the social model for 11 years (Deerpalsingh, 2011). Providing decent shelter for low-income groups has been another major social priority of the government. In the face of the rising price of rented accommodation, the government initiated projects for the construction of working-class flats in different parts of the country. The National Housing Development Corporation (NHDC) was set up in order to expedite large-scale construction of low-cost housing. House ownership grew from 66 per cent in 1983 to almost 93 per cent in 20018. Current Housing Conditions To understand the access to housing to the low income household, it is important to understand the general housing condition of the Mauritian. This helps in explaining the ownership policies and housing types that are provided to those who have financial difficulty in possessing a shelter comparable to his fellow countryman. With around $ 14,000 per capita GDP (PPP), Mauritius currently has a relatively high housing quality. In the 2011 Housing survey, it was noted that around 89% of the building stock in the country were residential building (with 85% wholly residential). Of which, 77% were separate housing units, 12% were semi detached or apartment types and 5% are mixed residential-commercial. In Mauritius, traditionally the houses are self-constructed by assigning small contractors to the job, who solely rely on their experience and owners design expectations. For medium and large projects, bigger contractors and construction specialists like architects and engineers are employed. The construction of houses were 92% of concrete walls and roof, 3% concrete walls and iron sheet roofs, and 5% were made out of wood and iron sheets. Although the human settlement patterns in Mauritius is quite dispersed, in terms of basic amenities, almost all (more than 99%) of the houses were connected to nation electricity grid and water systems. 96% of all the housing units had running water in the bathrooms and had modern flush toilets facilities. 8% had their waste collected regularly by municipality or other authorized companies. Almost all the housing units in Mauritius are privately owned, 99% in 2011, among which only 12% were reported to be mortgaged. An astonishing low percentage of 0. 3% of housing units was reported to be public housing in the same year. In terms of the tenure rate of the housing in 2011, 89% of the residents were owner of the hous e they were living in, compared to 8% who were renting or sub-renting. Another 3% were living for free in the housing provided by relatives or employers. It is interesting to note that the average monthly rent in 2000 was Rs 2,300 and increased to Rs 4,400 in 2011, however after adjustment for inflation, the housing rent actually remained the same as 2000. Poverty in Mauritius In 2010, the National Empowerment Fund that was created in 2005 to reduce poverty had enumerated around 70009 households in 225 regions of the country. These represented the families that were most in need of social help. But, the definition of poverty in Mauritius is quite versatile. 8 Bundoo 2006, p175 Exactly 6983 families that lived under national poverty line; According to NEF, Poches de pauvrete, downloaded from http://nef. mu 9 Using the poverty line $1. 25 Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) per person per day, and data from the 2001/02 and 2006/07 Household Budget Surveys, the proportion of poor people in Mauritius is estimated by the Central Statistics Office to be below 1% in both 2001/02 and 2006/07. For developing countries like Mauritius, the $2 a day poverty line is more relevant. Even, using this line, the proportion of poor people is estimated to be less than 1. % in 2001/02 and 2006/07 household income surveys. So, the concept of ‘extreme poverty’ (as internationally defined) is not used in Mauritius. Instead, the concept of ‘relative poverty’ is used. Relative poverty is assessed using data collected at Household Budget Survey (HBS) and a relative poverty line defined on the basis of median household incomes. Household income c omprises income from employment, property, transfer, income from own produced goods and services and imputed rent for non-renting households. Data published by the CSO in the 2001/02 and 2006/07 Household Budget Surveys indicate that the percentage of households having income below the half median increased from 13. 1% in 2001/02 to 14. 3% in 2006/07. Average monthly household income for the poor is estimated at Rs 7,055 against Rs 22,242 for all households. The poverty line was fixed at Rs 3,821, which is the half median monthly income per adult equivalent. So, the official figure for poverty in Mauritius in 2007/07 was 26,400 households, or 7. 9% of the total 335,000 households in Mauritius. This concerned 8. 5% of the national population. From the 2007 Poverty Report, it can be also seen that 55% of the total government expenditure went to ‘Community and Social Services’. Monthly public transfers (social security benefits paid by government) derived by the poorest decile group of households was estimated at Rs 1,367 per household in 2006/07. Public transfers for poorest decile represented 22% of their total household disposable income against 2. 4% for the richest decile. Public transfers were found to be significant on bringing down poverty; it is estimated that if public transfers would have been discontinued, the overall household poverty rate would be 15. % instead of 7. 9%. Characteristics of Low Income Household Understanding the particularities of the poor or low-income households, are very important to know their economic strength and lifestyle. This would help to understand the type and cost of social housing that is offered to them. Again, in 2006/07, the average of ‘low income’ hou seholds in Mauritius was calculated to be around Rs 7,000 (compared to Rs 22,200 for all household), with an average expenditure on Rs 6,500 (compared to Rs 14,300 for all households). 1% of the income came from paid employment, 24% from government support, and the rest from self-employment and odd jobs. In terms of employment, where the national share of employment by sector in 2006/07 was as followed: Primary sector- 9%, Secondary sector- 32% and Tertiary sector- 59%; the structure was a little different for the poor families, as followed: Primary sector- 21%, Secondary sector- 37% and Tertiary sector- 42%. So, it can also be noted that the poorer people were more dominant in agricultural and manufacturing industries, and less present in the service industry. This explains partly, their low income. This phenomenon is also related to their level of education. The study has shown a very clear correlation with the distribution of income and the education level of members aged 20 and above. The higher the incomes, the proportion of the members having passed the primary and secondary education are larger. The share of expenditure on basic items such as food, clothing and housing over total expenditure was 65% for poor households, against 48% for all households. Figure 1 shows the detail expenditure of the poor against all households. It is interesting to note in the report that the average monthly loan repayment10 was Rs 1400 for poor housing, against Rs 4,353 for all indebted households. The highest loan repayment for poor households was on housing11. Figure 1: Expenditure habits of poor households, 2006/0712 As mentioned above, according to the 2010/11 Household survey, 8% who were renting or sub-renting. In 2006/07 the figure was 8. 4% for all households, but for the poor households, 16. 7% were renting their housing. The rest owned their houses or were provided free by relative or employer. The average poor household had a size of 4. 0 members, however the house had on average 3. 7 rooms, compared to average of 3. 7 members with 5. 2 rooms for all households. The amount poor households 10 11 Including, loans or purchase on credits, for housing, furniture, electric appliances, personal loans and other loans. 26% of the poor households had housing loans, which on average was Rs 2,491 12 Source: CSO 2007, Poverty Report 2006/07, p59 with two or less rooms accounted for 19%, against only 5% for all households13. There were more than one person per room in 63% of the households, against only 29% in all households14. This gives an idea of how poor households lived in a denser indoor environment than their other country man. Low Income Housing in Mauritius Strategies & Institutions Since the 1980’s Mauritius was still an economy based on mono crop agriculture. Sugar cane cultivation had been the economic backbone for centuries of colonization, and only in the 80’s the diversification help Mauritius get out of the trap. Saying so, after independence in 1968, all successive governments regularly reiterate their will to gradually dismantle the ‘sugar estates camps’, which were the housing provided by colonial estate owner to workers. It was important to do so, as they remain powerful physical and psychological symbols of the sugar plantations hierarchy of the 19th century. A study in 1990 revealed that there were still 125 such estates in the country, and on the basis of finding long term alternatives for such residences, the government put pressure on the sugar estates, to phase out these camps and develop housing programs for their workers. The options offered were either to resettle the workers on an alternative site, out of the master’s property, or to sell the land and house to the current resident on the estate (UN, 2000). As seen above, the poor are usually less educated and work in agriculture. And since the structuring of the sugar industry 15 in the last decade, more and more of these people are losing their job, and because of age and education level, they cannot find other jobs. So, an early retirement scheme, worked out by all concerned parties and government, and involves giving a lump sum and a plot of residential land to the worker. The land given to the worker, are usually sugar plantations16 that have been converted to residential with basic infrastructure of road, electricity and water supply. This helps in reusing the abandoned agricultural lands and reduced the pressure of cash reward to the estate companies. In 1983, the house ownership in Mauritius was 66%, and then it rose to 76% in 1990, rose again to 87% in 2000, to reach a high 89% in 201117. Although official figures indicate a very high rate of owner-occupiers compared with other countries, these figures hide other quite serious problems of housing which may culminate into a crisis in years to come if some issues are not addressed in time Social housing programs for low income groups which had begun in the 1960s, gave way to a new housing strategy based on cost recovery through the setting up of a public company, The National Housing Development Company Limited (NHDC) in 1991 (UN, 2000). 13 14 Author calculation from CSO 2007, Poverty report 07, table 4. Author calculation from CSO 2007, Poverty report 07, table 4. 7 15 which currently contribute less than 4% of the GDP and less than 8% of employment 16 Since restructuring, large areas of sugar plantation have been abandoned by the sugar estates 17 Various Source, Boodoo 2006 for 1983 & 1990; 2011 Housing Survey for 2000 and 2011 Until 1991 the Central Housing Authority (CHA) was responsible for the task of building and administering of the low income housings estates. Medium rise apartment type buildings were built and let to the low income groups. The system was not successful at different levels. Firstly, most of the units were rented to low income households, instead of been owned. So, rents were sometimes not been paid, and the residents paid little attention to the built environment. This lend to a rapid degradation of the buildings and amenities. Secondly, although targeted for low income earners, the middle income group could somehow buy the apartment units. Thirdly, due to the deplorable design and soft policy, the CHA estates turned into undesirable living places where social problems grew. In 1991, the responsibility of providing low income housing has been passed the newly established National Development Company (NHDC), and the CHA was renamed the Housing Management Unit (MHU), which just left to administer these estates and collect rents. Another important institution was restructured shift to be noted during the same period. Since its creation in 1963, the Mauritius Housing Corporation, was governmental body was responsible to create housing for the middle income class, while the CHA was doing the same for low income class, financed by loans through the Mauritius Agricultural Bank18. In 1989, the Mauritius Housing Corporation (MHC) was incorporated and renamed the Mauritius Housing Company Limited, which then was more like a bank, to cater better to the need of the housing demands. Then the new MHC, no longer deals with the construction and policy of the social housing, it provides soft loans to those below a certain income level, and started the Plan Epargne Logement, PEL (in English, Housing Savings Scheme), that offer exceptional loan rates to anyone, who would deposit money in MHC bank. Nowdays, the MHC has developed into a one-stop shop for all need of housing services. In additional to loans, it deals with the providing of architectural, structural, legal, technical, insurances and project management services, at nominal or free of charges. Prior to 2006, the social housing responsibility lied solely within the hands of the government. But, as the demand was growing and the government could only built around 900 units a years, with a waiting list of 25,000 housing units, the private sector was called to participate through various PPP (publicprivate partnership) projects. The aim was to raise the rate of construction to at least 1500 yearly19. Another interesting fact is that as from 2009, the government established a policy of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) that requires profitable private companies to invest at least 2%20 of their profit, into social help, like donation to NGO, or other social and environmental programs, including housing for the poor. The CSR is the concept whereby companies act to balance their own economic growth with the sustainable social and environmental development of their areas of operation. A company performing highly in CSR is one that goes beyond compliance with the legal framework to actively pursue positive impacts on local communities and its environmental footprint. 18 19 Source: Mauritius Housing Company Ltd, website: http://www. mhc. mu/mhc/; retrieved June 2012 Speech of Minister of Lands and Housing, March 2006 20 Source: NEF, http://www. nef. mu/csr/, retrieved June 2012 Low Income Housing Types and Finance Up to date, there are five main players in the housing sector. They are the Commercial Banks, the Insurance Companies, the Mauritius Housing Company Ltd (MHC), the National Housing Development Company LTD (NHDC) and the Housing Division of the Ministry of Land and Housing (Joseph, 2007). The role of the commercial and insurance companies is to offer housing finance facilities, in addition of their usual core activities. However, the other three players have a very important role in the provision of housing to the general public of Mauritius, but to especially the low and lower middle income group. Even if the government continued to build some apartment types housing, single housing or duplex types were more and more practiced. These types of housing created a better environment for social diversity and were more inclusive in term of equality. It should be noted that in Mauritius, these units are not built in large numbers, but in small numbers between 50 to 100 units spread all over the island. This is due to the availability of land for development and the concentration of poverty in the region. The spread of the social housing and its small numbers help social integration and the balance of the local diversity. Currently, these locations are mostly located in the rural area, as part of the National Plan to increase rural population and develop and reduce the burden on the already dense urban regions. Figure 221 shows an example of a type of social housing units that NHDC are building with the help of the Export-Import Bank of China. Site Bois Mangue St Pierre (Circonstance) Dagotiere Highlands Bambous Montagne Blanche Mon Choisy Cottage La Cure Notre Dame Pointe aux Sables (A & B) Pointe aux Sables (C) Units 108 72 52 84 148 100 98 52 120 60 128 70 21 Source: Ministry of Lands and Housing, retrieved June 2012 Rose Belle Camp Levieux Trou aux Biches Mahebourg Total 76 152 76 78 1474 Figure 2: Example of 1474 housing units scattered into 18 sites around the island. The ‘Firinga Type’ is the one most currently built for the lowest income groups. These are semi-detached units of 40m2 each. It provides for bathroom with toilet and a kitchen table with sink. There are better duplexes types that are constructed for lower middle class. Some houses are spread on two stories and have 2-3 bedrooms with balconies. As the types of housing vary from one income group to another, the financing to these group are not the same. As for the Firinga units the interest rate is fixed at 6. 5% per annum, for other types, the finances vary according to the cost of the housing and household income (that is total income of husband and wife). The current loan scheme from the MHC is as below: For household earning up to 7,500 per month: ? ? ? Long term credit repayment period up to 20 years, depending on the age of the applicants; Subsidized rates of interest of 6. % during the first five years, 8. 0% during the next five years, and 10. 0 % during the remaining years of the repayment period; and A non-refundable Government grant equivalent to 20 % of the gross credit amount subject to a maximum of Rs 30 000. For households earning more than Rs7 500 and up to Rs 10 000: ? ? Long term credit repayment period up to 20 years, depending on the age of the of the applicants; and Subsidized rates of interest of 10 % d uring the first five years, 12 % during the next five years, and 14 % during the remaining years of the repayment period. And finally for those earning more than Rs 10 000: ? ? Long term credit repayment period up to 25 years, depending on the age of the of the applicants; and Rates of interest of 13 % during the first five years, and 14 % during the remaining years of the repayment period. To protect those in the most needs, there are strict eligibility criteria to obtain a NHDC unit like they should not be owner of a housing unit or of a plot of residential land, have made regular contributions o a PEL savings account for a period of at least six months; and priority is given to applicant that reside in the region where the house has been constructed. It should be noted that, in order to relief the burden on the government to provide affordable housing, the MHC provide loans at favorable rates to low and lower middle income applicants who want to construct their own house or want to buy a plot of land. A subsidy for the concrete roof construction, which is considered one of the most expensive parts of the construction, and to prevent the houses have iron sheet roofing. Conclusion: We have seen in this paper that the social movement has been present since before the independence and the movement was stronger after the independence, by the pressure of strong trade unions, and the strong democratic system, where the public opinions and demands could not be undermined. In the welfare state of Mauritius, the government has done greatly in terms of policies and investment to provide decent housing not only for the poor, but also for the less poor. In 2011, the housing ownership approached the 90% and the private sector was also made part into the responsibility to provide housing for all Mauritian, in the way the Mauritians like it. The institutional and financial structure in Mauritius is quite mature after evolving for around 50 years now. It is important to note that Mauritius has a large lower middle and middle class population and that housing benefit are also given to them, in terms of favorable loans rates, and subsidies. References: Websites: Mauritius Housing Company Limited, MHC: www. hc. mu Ministry of Lands and Housing, Housing Division: www. gov. mu/portal/site/housing/ National Empowerment Fund, NEF: www. nef. mu National Housing Development Company Limited, NHDC: www. nhdc-online. com Literature: Bundoo S. K. (2006); Financial and Trade Reforms and Impact on Poverty and Income Inequality: The Case of Mauritius; from Pro-Poor Macroeconomics- Potentials and Limitations, Chapter 8; edited by Cornia G. A. CSO (2009) ; Poverty Report 2006/07 CSO (2011); 2011 Housing Census Main Results Deerpalsingh N. 2011); Access to Social Services for Non-Citizen and the Portability of Social Benefits in Mauritius; From Assess to the Social Services for Non-Citizen and the Portability of Social Benefits within the SADC; Chapter 3, edited by Mpedi L. G. & Smit N. 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