Monday, August 19, 2019

Internet accessibility for people with disabilities :: Essays Papers

Internet accessibility for people with disabilities The Internet has quickly become one of the most beneficial tools in use today. With the click of a button, you can find information on practically anything. In fact, Internet use is so widely used, that it is no longer an eminent skill, but is an ability that is now expected of people. Unfortunately, due to a number of reasons, not everyone can take advantage of this useful tool. With over a half-a-billion disabled people in the world, there should be steps taken to make the Internet more disabled-friendly, which indeed there is. By taking advantage of adaptive technologies, using proper etiquette when sending email, and designing web pages with the disabled in mind, the Internet will soon become useful to more people than would otherwise be the case. One of the major advances in helping the disabled is the use of adaptive technology. Adaptive technology can be described as any hardware or software used to provide alternative methods of input and output. There are two distinct forms of disabled-friendly input devices on a computer, pointing devices and voice recognition. Pointing devices do the same job as a mouse; move the pointer to a certain location on the screen. This equipment comes in different forms, trackballs, oral fixtures, and eye-coordinated input devices are all examples of special pointing devices. The other form of an input device was voice recognition. This form does the job of the keyboard. The user talks into a microphone, and his speech is translated into text by the sound card. Though voice recognition has been around for a couple of years, it is just now getting to the point where a user doesn’t have to pause between words. Companies such as Dragon Systems, IBM, and Lernout & Hauspic, are the leade rs of voice recognition software. However, changing the output of a computer for disabilities is much more common than changing the input. The most common way of changing the output is by screen magnifiers, screen readers, and Braille displays. A screen magnifier is a program that follows the mouse pointer and magnifies that area. This is idea for people with limited or damaged vision. The software used to magnify will do so from about 1.5 to 20 times, depending on which program it is. Products such as MAGic, ZoomText, and InLarge are very popular right now, also Microsoft includes screen magnification in versions of Windows 98 and beyond.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Personnel Evaluation Essay -- Human Resource Management

Personnel Evaluation Personnel evaluation systems can vary from state to state or even between state agencies in the same state. The state of North Carolina has one personnel evaluation policy with some listed exceptions in the North Carolina General Statutes. The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast the personnel evaluation systems for three state agencies, describe four challenges public managers face in the implementation of personnel evaluation systems, analyze, and summarize four factors for executing public personnel evaluation systems. Compare and Contrast Three State Agencies While the North Carolina State Board of Education, UNC Board of Governors, and the North Carolina Department of Administration must comply with North Carolina General Statutes 115 and 126, the statutes allow them discretionary rights as administrators of education, healthcare, and public safety personnel with varying needs, such as certifications and professional development. Additionally, all three agencies have a requirement for supervisors and employees to establish an initial work or action plan with the first month of employment. Additionally, all three agencies require employee notification of appeal rights. Furthermore, each agency requires an initial meeting, a mid-year review, and an annual appraisal. However, for all their similarities they vary in performance assessment components. For example, the North Carolina Department of Administration has a behavioral trait component, require coaching and reinforcement, and handwritten narrative summary. While the North Carolina State Board of Education requires a professional development evaluation, teacher work condition survey, artifact submission, individual growth pl... ... 28(3), 205-221. doi:10.1177/0734371X08319286 Haga, B. I., Richman, R., & Leavitt, W. (2010). System failure: Implementing pay for performance in the department of defense's national security personnel system. Public Personnel Management, 39(3), 211-230. London, M., Mone, E. M., & Scott, J. C. (2004). Performance management and assessment: Methods for improved rater accuracy and employee goal setting. Human Resource Management, 43(4), 319-336. doi:10.1002/hrm.20027 Mothersell, W. M., Moore, M. L., Ford, J. K., & Farrell, J. (2008). Revitalizing human resources management in state government: Moving from transactional to transformational hr professionals in the state of michigan. Public Personnel Management, 37(1), 77-97. Pynes, J. E. (2004). The implementation of workforce and succession planning in the public sector. Public Personnel Management, 33(4), 389-404.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Environmental Analysis: Southwest Airlines Essay

INTRODUCTION Southwest Airlines Co. began its operations in 1971 and has been serving the industry for the past 43 years now (Southwest Airlines, n.d.). It is the major domestic airline, and ranked number one in 2014 by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (United States Department of Transportation, 2014). Back in 1971 the airline began its services in Texas in the cities of Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas. The company has been ranked as the nation’s largest low cost carrier (Mergent, 2012). It offers the lowest fares, and has the lowest cost structure in the industry. Southwest Airlines Co. also acquired AirTran Holdings Inc. in 2011 and now owns AirTran Airways. The company has been ranked 9th among the 50 most admired companies in the world according to a survey by Fortune magazine (Fortune Magazine, 2013). Southwest uses the exchange symbol LUV on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). This paper will summarize an environmental scan of Southwest Airlines to include an analysis of the most important external environmental factors in the remote, industry, and external operating environments, the most important strengths and weaknesses of the organization, an assessment of the company’s competitive position, and analyze the structure of the organization and how this affects organizational performance (University of  Phoenix, 2013). POLITICAL FACTORS The Airline and Aviation industry underwent Governmental Regulations by the passage of the Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938 and the simultaneous creation of the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB). This Act enabled the CAB to control the service fares, the entry of new airlines from the market and the exit of existing airlines from the same, and the assigning of air routes to different airlines. Then the Federal Aviation Act was passed in 1958 and led to the formation of the Federal Aviation Administration in August 1958. The rule making was shifted to the FAA and it had control of the air routes, the airline safety and air traffic controls. The Airline Deregulation Act was passed in 1978 and falls in the category of Federal Law. It eliminated the governmental authority over determination of service fares and control of routes and new airlines entry into/exist from the airline industry. As a result of the act, the CAB was dissolved in 1984. The FAA was not eliminated and it remained in control of airline safety and air traffic control (United States Government Accountability Office, 2006). This Amendment came into force in 1979 and comes within the category of federal law. It manages the air traffic at Dallas Airfield in Texas. Initially, this amendment posed such restrictions on nonstop flights that their routes got limited to Texas and its neighboring states only. However, the restrictions were taken off in 1997 and 2005. The Amendment was revoked in 2006 but some restrictions will expire in 2014. Soon after the passage of the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, Southwest was about to begin interstate flights. But restrictions were imposed by the Congress and the airline was disqualified to ticket/operate flights beyond Texas and the states touching its borders. ECONOMIC FACTORS A number of economic constraints are also there in the environment that have their relative impacts on Southwest’s operations. These include: Higher unemployment rates, which Southwest had been challenging by refusing to lay off employees even during surging unemployment. Increase in operating costs. Instable credit market and capital market. Declining demand for air travel. Economic Recession in the country (Southwest Airlines, et al., 2013). SOCIAL FACTORS Social factors influencing performance include an increase air pollution caused by the airline industry as a whole; gases are emitted in upper atmosphere causing an increase of around three percent of greenhouse emissions globally. Also, fuel efficiency has increased significantly from the past three decades. The airline industry has been divided into labor unions which include several types of unions such as the Flight Attendants’ Unions, the Machinists’ Unions, and the Pilots’ Unions. The majority of the employees are part of such unions which has led to an increase in labor costs for the entire airline industry. TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS Fuel efficiency is increasing. Aircrafts that are more fuel efficient are being developed and the engines are being redesigned to cater to this change. The Air Transportation System has been reformed by the introduction of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). This system is supposed to be implemented in the country by 2025. The system revises air routes and updates it to satellite system management; the promotion of usage of GPS technology for navigation, route length shortening, time reduction, and fuel saving, etc. The JPDO (Joint Planning and Development Office) has been setup to facilitate the development of NextGen. Apart from that, the tracking system has been  updated and routes have been improved significantly. Airline forecasting and algorithms have allowed improvements in prices and costs for airlines in the industry. The average age of an aircraft in the industry is around 13 years. The market is expected to grow and revenues are likely to increase. HOW SOUTHWEST SHOULD CONFRONT THESE THREATS Southwest should take active measures to deal with all the above measured threats. To combat with political threats of regulation, the Shelby agreement does help by providing expansion in a few routes. However, they are still less and the routes and areas served need to be expanded. Some sort of agreement should be made for that. To deal with its economic threats, Southwest is already implementing fuel cost saving strategies. It has already reduced its fares for the passengers, which provides it with a competitive edge. Southwest has adopted a no-layoff policy with reference to its employees, in the face of high unemployment rates. Therefore it should work to control and ultimately minimize its operating costs. To deal with the social issues present in the industry, careful negotiations and dealings with the various kinds of unions should be done. Environmentally safe emissions of gas should be reviewed as well as alternate sources of energy. Technology is increasing in the industry. Southwest needs to be able to afford the latest technology so that it could offer superior quality of service than its competitors. SOUTHWEST’S STRENGTHS Southwest Airlines has a number of strengths. It uses the inner city airports and focuses on point-to-point service, which reduces the connections and facilitates nonstop routing. That resultantly reduces the total flight time. This makes it easier for Southwest to charge low flight fares for its passengers. The airline also serves downtown airports including Houston Hobby, Chicago Midway, Dallas Love Field, Burbank, Oakland, San Jose, Manchester, Baltimore-Washington International, Hollywood, Long Island Islip and Providence airports. This way the airline can make good use of its assets and perform on time and be reliable. That ultimately shows up as an increase in market revenue (MarketLine, 2012). The company has also employed successful advertising methods. It has reduced its  overall operating costs and has been profitable for 36 consecutive years. It is known in the airline industry as being the best low cost carrier. SOUTHWEST’S WEAKNESSES Contractual obligations associated with the purchase of future aircraft, debt payment, and leasing arrangements resulted in a lowering of the companies’ credit rating in 2009. This has affected the company’s ability to secure future financing (Tellex, 2012a). With increased technology, fewer companies are dependent on face-to-face meetings resulting in a lower demand for business travel. Reappearing downturn in the economy have also reduce the amount of those who travel for leisure. The subsequent result in the overall decrease in travel is lower profit margins for the company (Tellex, et al., 2012b). The company continues to rely heavily on revenue generated by passenger travel, earning only one percent of its revenue through the transportation of freight and cargo. Considering that passenger travel is heavily dependent on price, fluctuations in fuel and security costs can expose profits to volatility (Tellex, et al., 2012c). The airline has always maintained a conservative growth strategy. It needs to develop a more aggressive, robust business plan in order to keep up with other industry leaders in the modern economy. The company is currently limited to approximately 68 cities domestically and relies heavily on one aircraft manufacture (Boeing) to produce its fleet (Tellex, et al., 2012d). MAIN COMPETITOR One of the major competitors to Southwest Airlines is Delta Airlines, which is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. It has a few significant weaknesses such as the legal issues it has recently faced (including 2009’s antitrust lawsuits) that have had their impact on the company’s brand image. Also, the company is heavily indebted. In Fiscal Year 2011, the company had a long term debt of $11,233 million, and in FY2010 it was $12,553. The interest expense was also very high. That is why it is more  prone to recession and because of this financial depression it is also unable to acquire additional funds. That has become a threat to its liquidity. The company also faces increasing fuel costs, competitive threats, and extensive governmental regulation (MarketLine, et al., 2012). While it is difficult to combat governmental regulation, Southwest Airlines can build upon Delta Airline’s weaknesses, because it has remained profitable and has also become fuel efficient in the recent past. Also, the company has been successfully able to reduce its overall cost structure and provide high customer service, which is why it is amongst the top ranked airlines in the industry. This automatically creates value for the stakeholders. SOUTHWEST’S COMPETITIVE STRATEGY The company follows a low-cost competitive strategy by offering low fares to its customers which happen because it has been able to reduce its operating costs. It focuses on inner city airports such as the Dallas Love Field. To minimize costs, Southwest doesn’t provide meals in flights. It also uses Boeing 737 aircrafts which are technologically more fuel efficient. This makes its ranking high in customer services as compared to other airlines in the industry. RECOMMENDED MODIFICATIONS TO SOUTHWEST’S STRATEGY Assuming that the United States economy is undergoing a downturn, Southwest Airlines will need to make a few amendments to its strategy. These include improving its cost efficient structure and maintaining its existing customer base as well as begin providing healthy meals on an economical basis without increasing the flight fares too much. It should focus on what it does best and also build upon its competitive edge of excellent customer service. That way it would be able to combat the effects of an economic downturn, partially or completely. IMPACT OF GLOBAL COMPETITION ON SOUTHWEST’S STRATEGY If viewed from a global perspective, the company needs to make several revisions to its competitive strategy. Although Southwest has a competitive edge in the local industry because of its low fares and low cost structure, to be able to face global competition, the company needs to begin serving more routes, as the number of routes it serves currently is making it seem like a competitive disadvantage for the company. Also, the company should utilize its profits for the provision of healthy quality meals. An overall improvement in the operations should also be considered. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND PERFORMANCE Perhaps the most important element of Southwest Airline’s success is the company’s decentralized organization structure. The airline places a limited emphasis on organizational structure allowing employees and management committees to make decisions. The company’s policies are developed by combining employee input and measuring all decisions against its own code of ethics. The company continuously demonstrates its ability to develop relationships through the formation of cross-functional teams that share goals and knowledge and build a mutual respect for one another rather than blaming. â€Å"Focus on relationships is the fundamental driver of leadership, culture, strategy, and coordination at Southwest† (Gittell, 2003, p. 177). Southwest defines leadership as a process that can occur at any level of the organization but is most productive on the front lines. Supervisors assume a position of servitude to their subordinates going beyond the traditional responsibilities of that role. Employees are viewed as internal customers who deserve nurturing and training. The company intentionally distorts the lines between work and personal lives to enhance family and community relationships. The end result of such an organizational structure is improved flight departure performance, faster turnaround times, greater staffing productivity, fewer lost bags, and fewer customer complaints (Gittell, 2003). CONCLUSION Since its inception in 1971, Southwest has continuously distinguished itself from other airlines in the industry. For 41 consecutive years, it is the only airline to sustain a profit. The company’s organizational structure reflects its commitment to customers and employees alike. The benefits of this commitment have established the company as the benchmark for the industry in terms of loyalty and customer/employee satisfaction. Rankings such as number one in air transportation (United States Government Accountability Office, et al., 2006), number nine in _Fortune’s Most Admired Companies_ (Fortune Magazine, et al., 2013), and number 12 on _Forbe’s Best Companies to Work For In 2013_ (Forbes, 2013) also provide testament to the success of the company’s business strategy. In order to sustain this level of success in the long-term and remain competitive within an industry that already has limited flexibility created by an unusually large amount of fixed costs, federal and union regulation, manufacturer dependency, and economy. The company must give consideration to developing a more transformational model. Fortunately for Southwest, the company has no need to reinvent itself. However, this model should include an cost-effective approach to fleet expansion and additional freight and cargo transportation services to generate more revenue while retaining their proven formula for organizational structure and customer service. References Forbes. (2013). _The 25 Best Places to Work in 2013_. Retrieved June 8, 2014, from Forbes: http://www.forbes.com/pictures/efkk45eddil/no-12-southwest/ Fortune Magazine. (2013). _World’s Most Admired Companies_. Retrieved June 8, 2014, from Fortune: http://fortune.com/worlds-most-admired-companies/southwest-airlines-9/ Gittell, J. (2003). _The Southwest Airlines Way: Using Power of Relationships to Achieve High Performance._ New York: McGraw-Hill. Retrieved June 8, 2014 MarketLine. (2012, December 21). _SWOT Analysis_. Retrieved June 8, 2014, from MarketLine: http://advantage.marketline.com/PageForbidden?returnUrl=%2FProduct%3Fpid%3D345D3B5B-CDC8-4F13-AD68-8D79064FB08A%26view%3DSWOTAnalysis Mergent. (2012, Decemeber 14). _Company Detail: Southwest_. Retrieved June 8, 2014, from Mergent Investor Edge: http://www.mergentinvestoredge.com/companyDetail.php?compNumber=7750&companyName=Southwest%20Airlines%20Co&ticker=LUV&cik=0000092380&pagetype=detail&exchange=NYS&country=USA# Southwest Airlines. (2013, December 31). _LUV Investor Relations_. Retrieved June 8, 2014, from 2013 Annual Report: http://southwest.investorroom.com/company-reports Southwest Airlines. (n.d.). _Company Profile_. Retrieved June 8, 2014, from LUV Investor Relations: http://southwest.investorroom.com/ Tellex, T. (2012, March 20). _Southwest Airline SWOT Analysis_. Retrieved June 8, 2014, from Exploring the World of Business: http://www.tamaratellezmba.com/blog/2012/03/20/southwest-airlines-swot-analysis/ United States Department of Transportation. (2014, May 15). _Airline Traffic Data_. Retrieved June 8, 2014, from Bureau of Transportation Statistics: http://www.rita.dot.gov/bts/press_releases/bts024_14 United States Government Accountability Office, (. (2006). _Airline Deregulation._ United States Government Accountability Office. Retrieved June 8, 2014 University of Phoenix. (2013). _STR/581 Week 3 Individual Assignment: External and Internal Environmental Analysis_. Retrieved June 7, 2014, from

Conrad’s ‘Heart of Darkness’ and Golding’s ‘Lord of the Flies’ Essay

In doing this I will explore some of the key points in both novels. For example they both criticise the period of time they are living in. For Golding it is after the Second World War and he is addressing that war could break out again. Proving this is in the first chapter we hear â€Å"we was attacked!† This shows that mankind would attack children in a passenger plane. Whereas Conrad is living in the late Victorian era where Europe has thrust imperialism on Africa and has exploited the natives into slavery. Evidence of this is the â€Å"chain-gangs†. Firstly I am going to look at how both of the novels in some show a sort of journey into the human mind. In Lord of the Flies it is where the children cross from the good side of the island to the bad side. This starts with Jack saying â€Å"Bollocks to the rules!† This instantly showed the breakdown in society. This started possibly not the journey of the children from good to bad, but it is a journey that the island takes from good to bad. It starts with Jack saying that his choir shall be â€Å"hunters.† This begins the journey. The island starts to get darker and the children start to show the darkness of the human heart. With hunters that can have qualities linked with it that turns people into mere animals with only one thing on the mind†¦killing. This is showed by how when Jack, Simon and Ralph find the ‘candle buds’, Jack acts aggressive with them â€Å"Jack slashed one of them open with his knife and its scent spilled over them.† He didn’t just cut them open; he ‘slashed’ them. He again has killing on his mind with â€Å"we can’t eat them.† It is not only Jack that has taken this journey into evil. Jacks ‘tribe’ are heard to be chanting incessantly â€Å"Kill the beast! Cut his throat! Spill his blood!† So Golding’s depiction of a journey into the human mind addresses the obsession of killing. Conrad has a similar approach, but instead of killing he uses madness. Evidence that this is a common thing in the Congo is when Marlow pays a visit to the Doctor. The Doctor was â€Å"then with a certain eagerness asked me whether he could measure my head† Marlow let him, and asked the Doctor whether he measured the peoples heads â€Å"when they come back too?† Now the Doctor says something somewhat strange â€Å"Oh, I never see them†¦the changes take place inside you know† So the Doctor implies that people go mad out there and never come back. The characters in the two novels sort of follow the same lines. I have grouped the main four characters from the two novels and have put them in to two pairs- Marlow and Ralph and Jack and Mr Kurtz. Firstly, with Marlow and Ralph they start off as good people but they both make mistakes. For Ralph it was ultimately letting the group vote on whether there were ghosts or not. He did not need to let the vote go. What was strange was the way in that he asked the question â€Å"Who thinks that there may be ghosts?† That question seems to lead everyone into saying that there are ghosts. He instantly lost power. He should have asked, â€Å"Who thinks that there are no ghosts?† This would have led everyone into voting for this. Marlow made the main mistake in being led into Kurtz’s charisma. He had stated his dislike of the ivory being kept, but when he met Kurtz you hear him say, â€Å"I was fascinated† Jack and Kurtz were similar in that they were evil. I have already examined the way in that Jack is evil, as he instigated the break down in the society on the island. He also had a band of bloodthirsty hunters. Kurtz is evil in the way that he â€Å"brought in more ivory than all the other stations put together† but he never returned it. Looking at the viewpoint of the two novels I find that are in two different ways to address the nature of the novels. ‘Heart of Darkness’ has Marlow’s viewpoint. I believe that this was done so that we could be in line with his thoughts and feelings. This makes us understand more about the darkness of the human heart. Whereas ‘Lord of the Flies’ has a narrator. We don’t get the same inside intelligence as with Marlow, but we get some viewpoints such as â€Å"Ralph wept for the end of innocence† Having a narrator helps us to have focused on Ralph on a curve of learning. Simon is viewed differently as his mind is open to us. For example when he encounters the Lord of the Flies, the words that the Lord of the Flies are saying is merely Simon speaking to himself. Golding is writing about Simon in this way so that he can express who the beast actually is. â€Å"Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt†¦ you knew didn’t you? I’m part of you?† We instantly now start to understand that something as bad as the Beast has been made up by the human heart. The setting that Conrad uses is firstly the Thames and then he compares it with Congo. He uses the fact that the Thames leads into â€Å"the biggest, and the greatest, town on earth.† Then the journey down the Congo is a road to evil and darkness. The things Marlow see such as the chain gangs. â€Å"Black shapes crouched, lay†¦attitudes of pain, abandonment, and despair†¦ They were dying very slowly-it was very clear† In ‘Lord of the Flies’ Ralph is Adam in Garden of Eden as he has an instinctual relationship with his surroundings, but his goodness gradually fades as he is tempted by evil. The apple in the Garden of Eden is the bad side of the island (the fort area). This is proved by the fact that that was where Piggy was killed â€Å"his head opened and stuff came out and turned red.† Both novels address the darkness of the human heart. I believe that they are both very similar. Conrad and Golding both use death as their tool of evil. In ‘Heart of Darkness’ it is the natives of Africa that are exploited and flogged until they die. In ‘Lord of the Flies’ Golding has used the fact that even children would murder each other if they were in charge of society. Both of the texts are fables. The two authors criticise what is happening or what could happen in their period of time. Conrad didn’t like what was happening in Africa in the late nineteenth century. Golding was writing what could happen if another war broke out. They may both go to the extremes to condemn society, but with the violence of the everyday world and the overall greed, anything can happen.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Training Day: Management Analysis

Michael Rounsavall 1/9/08 Management 202 Training Day: Movie Analysis The movie Training Day starring Denzel Washington,proved to show many interesting outlooks of managing activities and skills that I have never even came close to noticing before. Alonzo Harris played by Denzel in the movie expressed many forms of management throughout this movie. He displayed different basic management functions, fundamental management skills, parts of the evolution of management, and also some other key management terms. Jake Hoyt, who Alonzo is supposed to give in an evaluation on, also shows many different forms of management throughout this movie. The first thing I noticed during this movie was the basic management functions that Alonzo was planning throughout the whole movie to achieve a certain goal. At the beginning of the movie I noticed that Alonzo took the drugs from the dealers instead of arresting them. As the movie went on this pattern continued, and it wasn’t until Alonzo sat down with the three police officers that I realized what was actually going on. This meeting was a form of bureaucracy (Griffin, 15), because the top dog police officers, who I thought of as the top managers set a set of guidelines for Alonzo, and allows him to go cash in on Roger’s money stash. At this point I realized throughout the movie I realized Alonzo was displaying basic management functions throughout this entire movie. He obviously had a goal, which was get enough money to save himself from the Russians. He then began planning, and deciding the best way to achieve these goals. (Griffin, 9). This plan consisted of going around and stealing from the drug dealers then selling it for one hundred percent profit or Illegally searching homes for money, when that didn’t work he got permission from the top ranks to steal from his friend Roger. Alonzo then began to organize his plan by getting the people he needed, and determined how each activity and resource would be demonstrated during this robbery. (Griffin,9) This plan was to frame the murder of Roger to look like he had shot a cop, then to steal Roger’s money which would save Alonzo. Alonzo did a spectacular job of leading the group so that it would seem like it was an act of self defense towards Roger. He was barking out orders, and made everyone work together, so that there would be no problem getting away with this (Griffin, 10). After the money was taken by Alonzo he displayed the final step which is controlling. During this stage you must ensure that your firm is going to arrive at its destination at the appointed time. (Griffin, 9) For Alonzo this met he had to get the money to the Russian’s, and he saw Jake as a problem. To ensure that he would reach his final destination Alonzo set Jake up to be murdered, but this didn’t work out because Jake saved the murderers sister. After this Jake realizes that Alonzo is very corrupt, and goes to take back what Alonzo has stolen. This movie not only displayed the basic management functions but also proved to show fundamental skills and other key terms. During this movie I definitely thought of Jake as more of a first line manager who was able to control the streets, but was under the wing of Alonzo and the top executives. Throughout the movie Jake showed just about every one of the fundamental management skills you could show. He definitely possessed the technical skills because he was able to show all the skills necessary with being a cop, especially when he had to fight of f the two rapists (Griffin, 10). He showed most of the other skills at the end of the movie when he was going to take down Alonzo. After Jake escaped from the â€Å"set up†, that Alonzo had planned out for him,he made his own theory about what he was going to do. In management a theory is organizing knowledge, and providing a blueprint for action (Griffin, 12). Jake realized that he gained the respect from Alonzo’s administration in which he controlled, and planned to sneak in Alonzo’s house to take the money back from that he had stolen. As Jake got into Alonzo’s house he showed very good communication skills with Alonzo’s son ensuring his safety, while making sure Alonzo wasn’t able to hear him come in, and conveyed his message effectively so that he could take care of the situation (Griffin, 11). After this Jake was able to take down Alonzo until they were outside, and Alonzo had all of his administration together. Alonzo ran a form of administrative management throughout the projects, where he organized, lead, and controlled what went on, and how the operations were going to take place (Griffin, 15). As Alonzo’s organization realized how corrupt he really was, just like many higher level managers are accused of, they stopped letting Alonzo control them, and allowed Jake to take Alonzo’s stolen money for evidence. Jake definitely was not interested in the human ethics movement whereas that workers respond social context of the workplace(Griffin, 15). Jake did a good job proving that he was very ethical throughout this movie, and proved he was ready to move up to a higher position. Even though Alonzo did a good job displaying management skills, he was very corrupt, and was cheating his way through the system. This movie showed how people could control an administration, but be shut down for doing things the non-ethical way. Jake fought through this corrupt system, and showed great fundamental managementskills throughout this entire film. I never realized how much this film actually showed related to the world of management until I really looked closely at it. I’m sure now that I will be able to look at films such as this one, and be able to understand how they also have to do with managing a company. York, 2006.

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Basic Legal Environment

Regarding the scenario the best way to go in that situation will be a partnership. The reason for that being, it cause he has little financial skills and management skills. From what I know regarding starting a business. If you do not have the skills or do not know much about the process, then you will need help starting and running the business. Everyone has their own way to of doing things so that decision it really you to you. Just make sure that you make the right one for you and your family. Abstract This paper will address the issues of sole proprietorship, partnership, and corporation. This will discuss the advantages and disadvantages for all three. This will also discuss which will be the best way to go when starting a business and why. There some advantages and disadvantages to each type of business. Depending on how much say the owner wants to have in the decision making of the business. If it was I starting a business the best would be corporation or ever better a Limited Liability Corporation (LLC). The reason for that being is that if anything happens to the business the liability does not fall back on you. There will be hard getting help with the start up cost, because with this type of business in the beginning, creditors will use individual for credit situations. Out of the three types of businesses, the best would be Sole Proprietor because the owner has 100% of all decisions and it is easy to start up, even though all debt falls back to the owner personally. This would be to the best way if you are starting up a new business. As you grow you can easily which it over to a partnership or corporation. Conclusion When starting up a business there are many decisions the make and questions to be asked. If you do not make the right one it can come back on you in the long run. I have learned a lot from starting my businesses that I have started in the past. Now I have a successful business that will go a long way.

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Warhorse: World War I

Explain how the combination of two of the following elements was used in one live production that you have seen and assess their contribution to the creation of specific mood(s) and atmosphere(s) at moments: set design, lighting, sound. The live performance I have chosen to write about is ‘Warhorse’ which I saw on the 3rd February at the New London Theatre. In this essay, I am going to explain and analyse how the staging and the lighting together created the different atmospheres and moods such as fear and tension. Throughout the play, numerous themes are illustrated such as the barbarity of war and the cruelty of man. The themes of loyalty and hope are also illustrated and portrayed. Not only did the set and lighting help portray these themes and atmospheres, they also helped making the transitions fluid and the change between the two locations were easily interweaved due to the composite set. The staging used was thrust upon stage with a circular revolve in the centre. The revolve in the centre allowed for separation of the two sections along with the outside edge. The revolve was also used in holding frozen images when other action was taking place along the edge. The use of the no-naturalistic staging in the non-naturalistic theatre form was effective in portraying the different journeys from the likes of Joey. Even the flooring of the stage was a fundamental part of the set. The shades of grey and black gave the look of creased and uneven farmland and also the floor distinctively helped with making the trenches and war land look effective. The different appearances depended a lot on the lighting. At one point, on the back wall, there was a projection of a page torn out from Major Nicholl’s notebook along with projections of dates. This helped the audience follow the events of the war in chronological order. The page torn was also accompanied with different pictures inspired from Paul Nash, the World War One artist. Poppies were also projected to highlight the deaths that were caused by World War One. At the back of the stage, there was a large black area. The depth of this area gave the idea of the vastness of war space and the large scale of war. It also gave the illusion that the actors appeared from nowhere. We saw the transformation and transition of Joey from foal to adult in this black area. This moment was marked by the adult horse jumping over he foal in slow motion. Another big and memorable moment when this black area was used was when the new soldiers first arrived in France and they entered walking through the black space and into the wounded soldiers. This action was accompanied with a harsh white light which made the men look skeletal. The revolve helped in creating different locations and atmospheres and also helped mark key moments. One example of this is the ploughing scene. The struggle of the horse was emphasised by the turning of the revolve as it gave the illusion of a far distance. When Joey got caught on the barbed wire, the revolve was elevated and raised to a higher level to emphasise it. Another example of the use of the revolve was during the enlistment scene. As the announcement of war was made, men were encouraged to sign up along with their horses. The fun and exciting atmosphere at the funfair was highlighted by the revolvement. Flags were put up on the stage and also in the first few rows of audience. This made the audience feel involved and echoed how many people were involved in the war. There was a sense of dramatic irony as we saw the celebration of glory while one of the main themes of the play is barbarity of war. The striking, frozen image was held on the revolve and the image of triumph and glory was hugely contrasted with the action outside as Joey is being enlisted without the knowledge of Albert. We see the father receive money and the uncle giving his son the hand-me-down knife and also we see Albert frantically search for Joey – each of these moments being marked by a spotlight. The non-naturalistic frozen image held on the revolve juxtaposed the naturalistic action and images that were performed outside of the revolve. When Joey gets caught in the barbed wire, I found this moment very moving and it was one of the key moments on the revolve. The revolve emphasises the struggle from the horse. When Joey is ploughing for Albert, the revolve is again used to emphasise his struggle and also it gives the illusion of the long distance Joey had to plough for. The puppeteers who manipulated Joey in these scenes had the tough job of lowering his head and making all of his body parts move as if they were real. When he stumbles backwards, his legs shook and it looked very realistic. At the moment where he is stuck in the barbed wire, there is a projection of barbed wire on the back wall and this really enhanced the illusion that Joey was really stuck. The audience were tense watching this as they really worried about whether he would be able to escape. This was also the moment when the revolve was elevated as it stressed how much pain Joey was in and the fear he would be been feeling. He was lifted higher than the trenches and this showed how much pressure the horses were under and also how much they suffered too; it wasn’t just the soldiers and their families that suffered. Joey was helped freed by the two sides of the war came together. This exemplified the unity of men. By having a composite stage, it was effective as two different scenes were allowed to take place at once. One example of this is when Nicholls dies; men’s bodies and horses bodies were lying dead on the stage as Albert’s mother walked through in Devon; her life had not changed unlike the lives of these men. This moment illustrated how while these men and horses were fighting in the war, the families and people at home were safe at home going about as usual. When these two locations and atmospheres were combined it was really effective. At one point, in no-man’s land, black sticks were lowered from the hatches in the ceiling and they portrayed dead trees as it resembled the amount of deaths that were caused. The trees were representations of the lack of life; this created a reminiscent mood and made the audience reflect on those that died. Paul Nash was also the inspiration behind this. Images of silhouetted men were projected; this also reflected the vast amount of soldiers that died. The lighting used was effective in illustrating the change of location as we moved from Devon to France. It also assisted the set in creating the different moods and atmospheres. The lighting used for Devon was warm and gave homely atmosphere. The audience generally received a warm sense when Devon was visited. In comparison however, when in France, the lighting was dramatically different as it changed from cal, to quiet harsh white lights. The monochrome lighting that was constantly used in France really emphasised the gloomy and startling nature of the war. The bright lights intensified to portray key moments such as Nicholls’ death. Strobe lighting was also used to partner the repetitive gun shots. Nicholls’ death was a major key moment and was marked in numerous ways; he was thrown off Topthorne and a spotlight was focused on him as he and his horse fell in slow motion. A green light was also used to represent the mustard gas attack. As the gas leaked towards the soldiers, the audience felt the climax as we watched it approach them. To show the transportation from Britain to Franc, blue gels were used and also a yellow glow shone on Joey and the others as it demonstrated the life within them. This contrasted hugely with the bright white lights that were used to portray the skeletal look of the men and horses at battle in France. These same bright white lights were used in representing the explosions. Projections were also used alongside the lighting to effectively portray settings. The projection of Joey galloping freely in the open land was juxtaposed with the lack of freedom he got while at war. There was a projection of a tank during the scene where Joey is on stage with a huge tank. This was to done to portray the intimidation Joey must have felt as it was man vs. machine. As I have previously mentioned, the projection of Nicholls’ notebook created a sincere atmosphere for the audience as they reflect on the reason why Albert has gone to war; to find his horse. The only projection that was not in black and white were the poppies; this represented the bloodshed caused and again, the audience were left with a solemn and reminiscent mood. However, the colour also gave the audience the chance to reflect as the red illustrated remembrance. To conclude, I thought that through the set design and lighting of ‘Warhorse’, a variety of moods and atmospheres were successfully created. Tension, hope, remembrance were all enhanced and the audience were often left feeling reminiscent of the horrors of war.