Wednesday, October 30, 2019

THE GLOBALIZATION OF PRODUCTION Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 7000 words

THE GLOBALIZATION OF PRODUCTION - Essay Example In fact globalization, in the sense of participation of the world communities in exchange of culture, thoughts, theory, and trade has been there for several centuries. Yet the concept of globalization has undergone radical changes in the past century. Now it stands for something more than just the diffusion and osmosis of the economic, social, and political theories, practices, and technologies. Now every country is as much part of globalization as globalization has become a part of every country. Globalization is as much a universal phenomenon as it is an internal phenomenon. It is not only the exchange of knowledge or adoption of better technologies. The meaning of globalization is not only limited to the idea of modernization or imitating a certain culture or practice. Globalization in itself has become a culture in its own rights and it has managed to bring the world closer. Now events happening at a distant geography are part of the local affair of the people. The development of technology has paved the way for this massive spread of cultural and economic activity. The amount and nature of interaction has changed fundamentally in the past century due to the rapid technological advancement that the world has seen. There has been an immense development in the world of technologies. Transport and logistics have developed substantially. The modes of communication have become extremely complex yet the diversity and speed that has been achieved was beyond imagination for the past generations. The entire world has come under a single network, which has facilitated social and cultural exchange, political interaction, and economic participation to a large extent (Globalization, n.d.). Free trade as a mode of development has gained wide popularity in the context of globalization and the volume of trade in the world is huge. The global market has become a very important force for the economic development of any country and all the countries is in the world are expose d to a certain extent or the other to the climate of the global market. The global markets have a tremendous influence on the financial status and the economic policies of a country. Therefore the sovereign states have to consider the global scenario during the construction of their economic plans. The emergence of advanced transport and communication system has revolutionized the factor markets. The factors of production are now able to transcend the geographical and political borders of a country at ease. This has made the nations follow the terms of the global markets and the supremacy of the nation states has given way to the domination of a handful of enterprises called the transnational corporations. Globalization has also led to the transformation of the multinational corporations to transnational corporations. These transnational corporations have become one of the major players of the global economy. They control a large chunk of the global markets. However their management and capital are not tied to any country. They are managed internationally, from various parts of the world wherever they have a location advantage. Similarly they can also shift their capital and other factors to places where they can have a factor market advantage. Therefore their production and marketing strategies adopt a global perspective. The transnational corporations therefore cater to the global market by operating globally.

Monday, October 28, 2019

Management Information System Essay Example for Free

Management Information System Essay In this subject, we tackled about the information technology system. Based in our generation today computers is the one of the most important in our country to communicate other, to make process easier and to help the businessman/ investor, to make faster in their work. When using computer, people can know work together as if they were sitting next to each other today the internet is a networks of networks, with a millions of servers or permanent cable link, they can access a huge number from internet servers, to research, participate in electronics discussion, shop, make purchase and make payments. In an economy that produces and consumes so much information managers must know how to use information system and virtually every business activity without information none of these activities or the decision making that underlies management is possible. Practically the only tool to handle is important resource is information technology they also tackled all about the types of information system. There are the transaction processing system, supply change management system, customer relationship management system, business intelligence system, decision support and expert system geographic information system. This types of information system gives supports one or more of this activities to transacts business with other parties , to produce in a product or services because the information that provides supports planning of shipping resources such as personnel, funds, raw materials and vehicles. They also tackled about the telecommunication. Telecommunication is the transmittal data and information from one points to another also the data communication it is transfer of data between computer and another device. In management and information system you can create a new and unique products or services that many organization and individual need gives an organization a great competitive advantage. We also tackled about the difference between effectiveness and efficiency. Effectiveness is the degree to which a goal is achieve while efficiency is determine by the relationship between resources expended and the benefits gain in achieving goal. Example, when you efficiency in your class the teacher is an effectiveness just like in management information system. People require information for many reasons and in varied ways. In business, people and organization seek and use information specifically to make some sound  decision and to solve problems too closely related practice that form the foundations of every successful compa ny. The computer a convenient means to execute the for main operations of information system the input, data processing, output and storage. It in business computers have changed the face of our business and personal lives as few others modern devices we have because computer is an electronic device design to accept input data process data, output information and store data of information for future used. We also tackled the strategies of information system the word strategy originates from Greek word â€Å"strategos† meaning general. A strategy is a plan to gain an advantage over the enemy other discipline especially business have borrowed the term as u know from media coverage, corporate executive often discuss actions in ways that make business competition sound like war. Business people must device decisive courses of action to win just as generals do. In business, a strategy is a plan design to help an organization outperform is competitors. Many strategies do not and cannot involve information system but increasingly, corporations are able to implement certain strategies such as maximizing sales and lowering cost – thanks to the innovation use of information system in other words better information gives corporation a competitive advantage in the market place. The internet has been the most exciting development in the field of information system and telecommunications the combination of advance telecommunication technology and innovative software is revolutionizing the way we communicate shop, make contracts and payments, educate, learn and conduct business. With the introduction of graphical interface on the internet world wide web, numerous companies throughout the world have established a Net presence. The World Wide Web became the killer application of the internet the new application brought multimedia to the internet. If without management information system in our economy many investors and businessman cannot deliver a thing at the right time. The internet was a communications network connecting government agencies, universities, and research institutions and it could transmit only text. Management information system is a beautiful subject even if not easy because in this subject is you can learn about the purpose of information system, the components of information system, the four processing, information system in business function, careers in information system. I know that this subject  is not easy to learn because it is information technology, and how to make use a computer machine. So we are so lucky because in our generation we can use a modern technology. Ma’am you are SMART which means Specific and Contextual, Meaningful measures, Achievable within the resources, Realistic and Time- Targeted.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Oscar Wildes The Picture of Dorian Gray Essay -- Wilde Dorian Gray Pi

Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Picture of Dorian Gray is a novel by Oscar Wilde. The genre of this novel can be classified as a comedy of manners or a gothic novel. The Picture of Dorian Gray was first published in 1890 in Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine. Another version with an additional six chapters was published in 1891. One of the major themes in the novel was the Supremacy of Beauty and Youth. A very attractive man has a portrait painted of himself, and after being warned of the mortality of his youth the man, Dorian, trades his soul to remain young while his portrait bears the markings of his age and evil deeds. Dorian becomes increasingly evil thoughout the novel, while constantly being encouraged by Lord Henry Wotton. Eventually Dorian can no longer bear the person he sees in his portrait so he tries to destroy the painting but ultimately he destroys himself.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In The Picture of Dorian Gray, the characters are predominantly aristocratic males. The main character is Dorian Gray, a wealthy young man who is both a handsome and a very impressionable young man. Basil Hallward is an artist who was obsessed with Dorian, naming him his muse and source of inspiration. Lord Henry Wotton is a friend of Basil Hallward who makes young Dorian his protà ©gà ©, teaching him his philosophy of â€Å"new Hedonism.† Sibyl Vane was a young actress who caught the eye of Dorian during one of her performances, after being spurned by Dorian she is heartbroken and commits suicide. James Vane is the brother of Sibyl Vane. He did not approve of Dorian from the start, so he wanted to murder Dorian to avenge the death of his sister.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The setting of The Picture of Dorian Gray is London, England. The story takes place from the years 1890 to 1908.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the years between 1890 and 1908, Dorian succumbs to the influence of Lord Henry Wotton. Because of this, Dorian disregards morality and follows Wotton’s â€Å"new Hedonistic† philosophy. Dorian became a very loathsome man on the inside while still remaining young and beautiful on the outside.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In The Picture of Dorian Gray, there were quite a few symbols. Three of these symbols were opium dens, James Vane, and the yellow book. The opium dens represent Dorian Gray’s state of mind. He uses the opium to try to forget his actions, just as he tries to rationalize these actions so he can ignore his consci... ...to find, Dorian, an old disfigured man lying dead on the floor with a knife in his heart.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the beginning of the novel Dorian Gray was a bright and charming young man. By the end of the novel, because he was so easily influenced, he became a selfish and cruel person. Various conflicts in the novel cause Dorian to change. In every traumatic event Lord Henry was there leading him into the lifestyle of selfish pleasure. Dorian Gray was physically attractive but that did not matter because he was such a foul creature on the inside.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Picture of Dorian Gray was very well written. Wilde used witty and colorful dialogue to grab the reader’s attention. This is an enjoyable novel that is still somewhat relevant in modern times. Dorian got away with his sins longer because he looked youthful and innocent on the outside so people did not want to believe he had a bad character. This proves that sometimes, appearances can over rule reality. This is an enjoyable novel that is still somewhat relevant in modern times. Works Cited  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   1. Wilde, Oscar. The Picture of Dorian Gray. Ed. Donald Lawler. New York: W. W. Norton, 1988.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Comparison Between E-Business and Traditional Business

INTRODUCTION Electronic Business (E-Business) is a perplexing practice due to the numerous aspects it involves. In today’s rapidly changing environment, organizations adopt E-Business to respond to several business drivers. The progressions of the macro-environments are creating innovative business environments, in which E-Business is considered a normal practice. This paper attempts to model the business environment and evaluate its competitive characteristics by comparing the traditional business with E-Business. Kreplin.K, et al (2000), identified â€Å"Reality† and â€Å"Virtuality† terms; these terms differentiates traditional business from E-Business. According to Kreplin. K, et al (2000), E-Business is based on a virtual (digital) business process with a virtual agent, and virtual product. Traditional Business is a physical business process with respect to the macro-environments. The macro-environment components can influence the way entrepreneurs use the internet to coordinate export businesses. Analysis of the macro-environment comprises of cultural, economic, competition, political and legal factors that affect the way business transactions are made today.CULTURAL CHALLENGES In the cultural dimension, traditional business entrepreneurs will face a major challenge. In this case, infrastructure cost is what worries traditional businesses of today. As opposed to E-businesses, online business transactions incur minimal cost (Robertson. B & Sribar. V, n. d. ). Whereas, traditional businesses will have to incur a significant amount of cost in order to remain competitive in the market. This is due to the fact that there is a paradigm shift towards a more innovative market alongside the consumers.Through the report it is assured that in the long term infrastructure cost will be the key obstacle for traditional entrepreneurs as newer technological innovations take place (Robertson. B & Sribar. V, n. d. ). Opposing to the traditional method of business, E-businesses also have their share of cultural challenges. Firstly, entrepreneurs will experience a change in the nature of workforce (Parreiras. F , n. d. ). According to Heerwagen. J, Kelly. K, Kampschroer. K (2010), the structure of work is now more cognitively complex, team-based, nd time pressured. This movement causes entrepreneurs to be more competitive. Secondly, there is resistance to change when an organization moves towards adopting E-business (Parreiras. F, n. d. ). In a research done by Ahmed. Z and et al. (2006), it was determined that the resistance to change will cripple the organization. Thus, it is important for the entrepreneurs to adapt to rigid cultures. ECONOMIC CHALLENGES In the aspect of economy, the nation’s currency plays a vital role. Thus, it also poses as an obstacle for traditional businesses.In areas of importing and exporting, entrepreneurs need a mutually agreed upon currency (e. g. U. S dollar) due to different payment methods. Furthermore, being sensitive towards exchange rates of currencies is vital as it will affect the buying decisions (Kavas. F, 2011). As compared to E-business transactions, the fluctuation in currency is harder to depict; thus, becoming a challenge for traditional businesses. On the other hand, E-businesses also experiences economic challenges. Firstly, the free entry into the digital market will be a problem for entrepreneurs.As there are minimal barriers to entry, it would mean that E-businesses are operating in a highly competitive market whereby competitive advantage is almost impossible as highlighted by M. Hassan & E. Harris (2007). With this tight competition among entrepreneurs the issue of imitation of products will arise. As described in the related research paper, it was revealed that a massive amount of imitation took place as it was a cost effective method to most entrepreneurs. Therefore, it becomes an obstacle for E-business entrepreneurs. COMPETITIONWhen it comes to t raditional businesses, entrepreneurs will definitely face competition. One major factor that entrepreneurs have to consider while exporting their products is the difference in time zones. An article written by Henricks. M (2006) explains that the time zone differences will cause a lot of difficulty in terms of decision making, planning shipment, organizing logistics and more. As opposed to E-business, E-business have online softwares that enables smooth communication through digital platforms regardless of time zone differences.For E-business entrepreneurs, the first challenge here is the difficulty to obtain capital large enough for any ventures. This includes the research and development needed for the product. In the report â€Å"Managing Worldwide operations & Communications with Information Technology† (2007), it was highlighted that many venture capitalist will incur higher risk with large sums of capital. This is because there is high uncertainty of success for entrepr eneurs to compete in an open market environment. In addition, another factor arises which is also known to be labour market exuberance.This is described as an irrational competition that arose with the increasing need of technical skills (e. g. software programming). Therefore, firms will likely experience a short supply of skilled workers (Wright. P & Lee. D , 2000). POLITICAL & LEGAL CHALLENGES In the area of political and legal, there is a major concern of the country’s policy for traditional businesses. Entrepreneurs need to abide by both the local and the other country’s laws and regulations while selecting to export goods over. This is due to several laws are made according to the country’s culture and beliefs (Kavas.F, 2011). For instance, products that contain pork are restricted in Islamic countries due to their religious beliefs. Apart from that, there is an essential concern of the security and privacy of E-businesses (Parreiras. F, n. d. ). A researc h on â€Å"Security and Trust in E-Business† by Valmurugan,M. S (2009) discussed the unawareness of E-business transactions and the degree of confidentiality of E-business transactions. Without the trust of consumers, entrepreneurs in the E-business line will be facing serious competition to obtain their share of the market.Another major concern is the government regulations. The government needs to play a role to protect the consumers against unfair and deceptive trading especially when it comes to Internet banking (Kay. A, Hafeez. K & Siddiqi. J, n. d. ). Therefore, this would become a small obstacle for E-business entrepreneurs as they need to adhere closely to government policies. CONCLUSION This research paper covered numeral aspects of traditional businesses and E-businesses with respect to the macro-environmental challenges faced by the entrepreneurs.Because we live in a rapid changing environment, businesses will continuously face multiple challenges. The traditional way of business may have been successful in the past, but now is the time for change. E-business enables organizations to reach global markets; thus, crossing borders with less restraint from trade barriers. Evidently illustrated by Fleenor. C & Raven. P (n. d. ), the adoption rate of internet is growing tremendously and that governments of international countries recognises such growth; hence, promoting it as well within their country (e. . E-government). Although there may be areas that E-business is a challenging area to pursue; however, without such obstacles businesses will never revolutionalize. Therefore, it goes to show how businesses have evolved over the decades. Business entrepreneurs need to be more innovative as traditional business will soon be uncompetitive. 1,111 words Reference List Ahmed, Z. et al. (2006)  RESISTANCE TO CHANGE AND ERP IMPLEMENTATION SUCCESS: THE MODERATING ROLE OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT INITIATIVES. [online] Available at: http://web. usm. my/aamj/11. . 2006/AAMJ%2011-2-1. pdf [Accessed: 26/9/2012]. Fleenor,, C. and Raven, P. (n. d. )  Barriers To Effective E-Business In Developing Countries. [online] Available at: http://www. google. com. my/url? sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&ved=0CC0QFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fcluteonline. com%2Fjournals%2Findex. php%2FIBER%2Farticle%2Fdownload%2F3912%2F3957&ei=dTRlULXHAcnlrAeTuICgDg&usg=AFQjCNFo3MqMmHHbqbtHGpyGH9MPiLUQhA&sig2=NnGIv4mCofIkSx211W9PVw [Accessed: 28/9/2012]. Hassan, M. and Harris, E. 2009)  Entrepreneurship and innovation in e-commerce  . [online] Available at: http://www. journalamme. org/papers_vol32_1/32114. pdf [Accessed: 25/9/2012]. Heerwagen, J. et al. (2010)  The Changing Nature of Organizations, Work, and Workplace. [online] Available at: http://www. wbdg. org/resources/chngorgwork. php [Accessed: 26/9/2012]. HENRICKS,M . (2006)  How Time Zones Affect Global Businesses. [online] Available at: http://www. entrepreneur. com/article/160228 [Accessed: 28/9/ 2012]. Kay, A. et al. (n. d. )  AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF THE KEY DRIVERS AND

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Organizational behavior of HK Disneyland Essay

Introduction Hong Kong Disneyland, opened to visitors in 2005, is one of the two largest theme parks in Hong Kong. It successfully brings magical experience of Walt Disney to all the visitors just like other Disneyland around the world. Hong Kong Disneyland has created a culture for their employees with open communication with their managers and subordinates, professional training, and rewards. This philosophy of treating employees well has long been adopted by Walt Disney for many years. The belief of Walt Disney is that you can have joyful guests as long as you have employees who enjoy working for Disneyland and bringing happiness to visitors. With the comprehensive training for each employee, they make all visitors  experience a memorable magical moment. No matter the cast of Disney characters, or the people working in Disneyland’s restaurants or hotels, all of them receive comprehensive training. This training can ensure that every Disney employee can work together as a team, and provide excellent customer services to cater for their customers’ needs. In this report, we will illustrate how Disneyland incorporates organizational behavior concepts to create a culture for their employees where they feel satisfactory for their work environment and feel that they are important to the team. Motivation and learning are two main focuses in our research. We will also provide suggestions on how Disneyland can further improve in terms of organizational culture. Motivation Hong Kong Disneyland has many ways to motivate its employees to work. Our team is going to apply Theory X and Theory Y, Herzberg’s two-factor theory, and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need these three theories to analyze the employee motivation methods of Hong Kong Disneyland Theory X and Theory Y Here is a brief introduction on the Theory X before the application on Disneyland. Theory X based on pessimistic assumptions. It is impediment to employee morale and productivity. For example, it assumed that labors are inherently lazy and avoid to work, only interested in money and in need of close supervision. Also, they would have little ambition without incentive programs, avoid responsibility and need to be driven through control systems. So, once the manager adopting this theory, they will end everything in blame without evaluating the situation, structure the work, energize the employees and also in authoritarian style based on the threat of punishment. Here comes to the application on theory X. According to the spokesperson of Disneyland, Angela Bliss, Disney employees have to adhere to strict guidelines and rules for their behavior and appearance. Once hired, they have to maintain the â€Å"Disney Look, and the Disney look is a fresh, clean and  approachable look, ensuring that every guest feels comfortable with our entire cast. Therefore, â€Å"Cast members,† Disney’s way of referring to their employees, receive a â€Å"Disney look book† that details all of the requirements, emphasizing a natural look with natural hair color and makeup. The purpose in doing this is to keep the focus on the ‘show’ and not on the individual cast member. Besides, a cast member with purple hair may not appear approachable to all of their guests. According to Disney rules, anytime a cast member confronts a guest who appears lost or frazzled, the employee must offer their help and point them in the right direction. Pointing must always be done with either two fingers or the full hand. So, the above showed that the workers in Disney are suffered serious and high intensive instructions and rules by the theory X style managers. What’s more, with reference to the article by Jason Garcia, Orlando Sentinel on November 16, 2010, The Walt Disney Co. has issued a new policy banning employees from texting while driving on the job. The ban applies to all of the Burbank, Calif.-based entertainment giant’s worldwide employees — including its roughly 60,000 workers at Walt Disney World. The policy, which recently took effect, also prohibits employees from making or receiving phone calls while driving on the job unless they use a single earpiece. It applies to workers who are either driving company vehicles or using their own vehicles while on the job. Disney punishments for workers caught violating the driving policy will be decided on case-by-case basis. The policy does not apply to employees during their drives to or from work. In short, the evidences above status that the management of theory X style, use to set up regulations and punishments to motivate their ‘‘actors’’. On the other hand, here comes to the theory Y. On the contrary, it based on positive assumptions, and also more positive view of workers and the possibilities that create. For instance, they assumed that employees are ambitious, self-motivated and anxious to accept greater responsibility. Employees exercise self-control, self-direction, autonomy and empowerment,  also exercise creativity and become forward looking. So, once the managers are adopted this theory, they believes that people want to do well at work, have a pool of unused creativity and that the satisfaction of doing a job is in itself motivating. Here comes to the application on theory Y. The Walt Disney Co focuses on creating a culture in which employees can flourish and find meaning in their work. Together with more than 10,000 online reference materials and resources, instructor-led classes, performance support systems, and education reimbursement for job-related degree programs, The Walt Disney Company offers an array of tools. From the website of The Walt Disney Co., they claimed that ‘It takes a special kind of person to work at The Walt Disney Company. Our employees and cast members contribute to the success of our many brands in a way no other company can match. That is why our employees and cast members are the most valuable part of our organization. But we know your life isn’t just about work. You have additional things going on – family, friends, personal interests, education and more. The Walt Disney Company offers a comprehensive total rewards package that helps you live your best life, grow p ersonally and professionally, and get rewarded for the results you deliver. The programs, benefits and perks you receive as an employee or cast member may vary based on where you live and work. But when you add it all up, the total package provides the same results: your total rewards support you throughout all stages of your life and career.’ Herzberg’s two-factor theory The two-factor theory states that there are certain factors in the workplace that cause job satisfaction, while a separate set of factors cause dissatisfaction. The theory suggests that to improve job attitudes and productivity, administrators must recognize and attend to both sets of characteristics and not assume that an increase in satisfaction leads to decrease in not pleasurable dissatisfaction. Two-factor theory distinguishes between motivators and hygiene factors based on the notion that the presence of one set of job characteristics or incentives leads to worker satisfaction at work, while another and separate  set of job characteristics leads to dissatisfaction at work. Therefore, satisfaction and dissatisfaction are not on a continuum with one increasing as the other diminishes, but are independent phenomena. Motivators such as challenging work, achievements, recognition, responsibility, or anything else that given positive satisfaction, arising from intrinsic conditions of the job itself, which is based on the long lasting working environment but not short-lasting achievement. The Walt Disney Company offers a comprehensive total rewards package that helps employee live better life, grow personally and professionally, and get rewarded for the results they deliver, for example, there are incentive and special recognition programs which includes quality of work, length of service, community volunteerism and employee of the month recognition. Reward will be varied by company, job status, location and/or the terms of any applicable collective bargaining agreement. The company have a diverse workforce is critical to the business. Variety of opinions, ideas and perspectives to ensure staff and their managers continue to top the performance and represent the company’s global marketplace. When employee reflects the communities, it can enhance the way for them connect to guests, audiences and consumers. Employee can feel that they work toward an inclusive environment that fosters creativity, innovation and camaraderie across all of the Disney companies. The c ulture can also inspire the workers. For instance, they are committed to a tradition of innovation and technology. Employee can be easily given job satisfaction from setting a high standard of excellence and maintain high-quality standards across all product categories. Apart from that, working in The Walt Disney Company can always enjoy in the joyful atmosphere as the entertainment is about hope, aspiration and positive outcomes, they can create positive and inclusive ideas about families and provide entertainment experiences for all generations to share. The rewarding, inclusive and supportive work environment is committed by the company. Thus, the staffs are able to gain satisfaction from working in Disney. Hygiene factors, for example, status, job security, salary, work conditions,  the benefits for employee, that do not give positive satisfaction, though dissatisfaction results from their absence. The Walt Disney Company provides employee base salaries with the total compensation opportunity and health and wellness benefits which includes medical, Disney Health Pursuits Wellness resources, Employee Assistance Program (EAP), behavioral health, prescription drug coverage, dental, healthcare and dependent day care flexible spending accounts, accident and disability Insurance, long-term care insurance. Besides, the employee can have enough time off working in Disney. They can have 11 paid holidays per year, vacation, sick pay and short-term disability, leaves of absence, bereavement and jury duty, personal life resources, group legal plan, adoption assistance program and onsite childcare centers. Moreover, they can also enjoy the retirement and financial benefits. 401(k) savings plan wi th company match, retirement savings plan for salaried employees and employee stock purchase program would be included. Also, they can enjoy special extras which are complimentary theme park admissions, employee discounts, merchandise discounts at Disney-owned stores, company-sponsored events and services, Disney employee matching gifts, commuter assistance program and many other unique advantages. Last but not least, some world-class training programs are customizable for employee to join such as professional development, management and leadership development, computer skills, business immersion programs and individual career development as the company encourages staff to learn and reach their goals. To sum up, the Herzberg’s two-factor theory can be applied into The Walt Disney Company as motivators and hygiene factors can be found in the policy of the company and working environment. It can satisfy both motivators and hygiene factors of employee and that is the reason staffs enjoy to work there. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need Maslow’s theory relates motivation to a hierarchy of needs. At the bottom are essential physiological needs such as air, food, shelter and clothing. As individuals satisfy one level of need, their motivations change as they aspire to reach the higher order needs. Therefore, to motivate an individual Maslow suggests that it is necessary to know where within the hierarchy each  employee is placed so that these factors can be taken into account. Physiological needs – Hong Kong Disneyland offers competitive salaries. This gives employees the means to acquire the basic needs for living. Also, provide benefits programme to employees which suit them. These benefits and competitive salaries help workers’ pay go further and so motivate them to be loyal to the company. In Hong Kong Disneyland, empolyees can earn more than just a pay-check and will receive a total rewards package that consists of different types of compensation and benefits, such as: Cast exclusive MTR discount scheme Comprehensive group medical insurance, including outpatient, hospitalisation, specialist, Chinese herbalist and dental services Group life and group personal accident insurance Discretionary gratuity Paid annual leave, maternity leave, marriage leave and examination leave Overtime payment for frontline overtime eligible positions Overnight shift premium Laundry services for uniforms and costume Safety needs – Hong Kong Disneyland values the safety of all employees. It is committed to providing a safe and healthy work environment to prevent accidents. Hong Kong Disneyland provides a clear rule and regulation to employees. For example, how to access the control of the machines; therefore employees are accountable to create a safe working environment too – that means they have to take responsibility for observing the health and safety rules and practices. Hong Kong Disnetland also offers employees a range of working patterns. For example, it provide a flexible working schedule, some employees may want to work as a part-time, they can choose among the schedule. This helps employees to choose the best option for a healthy work-life balance. Social needs – These are associated with a feeling of belonging. These provide informal opportunities for employees to get along with each other. This helps strengthen teams and enhances workers’ sense of belonging. Having an open approach to communication keeps everybody focused on the Hong Kong Disneyland’s aims helps individuals contribute to the company. In Hong Kong Disneyland, there is a RACE Club which provides a variety of interest programs, instructor-led courses and outdoor recreational activities for cast members and their family and friends. The RACE Club strives to promote diversity and work-life balance for cast members. It is also a platform for passionate and talented cast members to unleash their potential by being program instructors. Esteem – All employees in Hong Kong Disneyland have a need to be respected and to respect themselves. Esteem is the normal employees desire to be accepted and valued by others. Employees need to engage themselves in activities, to gain recognition and a sense of contribution. Esteem needs can intersect with motivation in the Hong Kong Disneyland too. For example, employees’ voice will be heard at the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort. Cast members are welcome to share any feedback employees may have with the Cast Advisory Council (CAC). The CAC meets regularly to listen to cast member feedback and make suggestions to improve the working environment. Self-actualisation – Hong Kong Disneyland provides employees with the opportunity to take on challenging and stimulating responsibilities. This enables them to develop and improve. Hong Kong Disneyland offers more than 100 instructor-led programs to all cast members, including the Operations and Professional Teams. As a full time cast member, Employees can receive an average of 35 training hours per year to help them excel in their career. Typical instructor-led training courses include: Classes for All Cast Members: Disney Traditions Training Communicating Effectively in the Workplace Giving and Receiving Feedback in Disney Style Influencing Team Members as a Role Model Good Show Begins with Me Classes for All Managers: Coaching for Win-Win Outcome Problem Solving & Decision Making Skills Time Management Seminars and conferences hosted by Guest Speakers Learning Organizational Learning in Disneyland Learning in Disneyland take parts in three aspects, it includes Disney University, DU Learningland and Emerging Leader Program. 1. Disney University The Disney University (DU) offers more than 100 instructor-led programs to all cast members, including the Operations and Professional Teams. As a full time cast member, people can receive an average of 35 training hours per year to help them excel in their career. This also acts as a guide to providing world-class service to our guests. Typical instructor-led training courses include: Classes for All Cast Members: -Disney Traditions Training -Communicating Effectively in the Workplace -Giving and Receiving Feedback in Disney Style -Influencing Team Members as a Role Model Classes for All Managers: -Coaching for Win-Win Outcome -Problem Solving & Decision Making Skills -Time Management -Seminars and conferences hosted by Guest Speakers 2. DU Learningland The DU Learningland provides a wide variety of self-learning materials to study at workers own pace. There are about 1,000 collections including Disney feature films and books on career development as well as personal growth. 3. Emerging Leaders Program Hong Kong Disneyland Emerging Leaders Program can help workers develop for future leadership roles at the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort. The six-month program focuses on developing your core leadership competencies. During the training, workers and other cast members work on group projects, attend classroom training and do on-the-job shadowing with a Guest Service Manager. Current situation of learning aspects in Hong Kong Disneyland 1. Explicit knowledge Explicit knowledge is Knowledge that is articulated through language, such as documents. Hong Kong Disneyland provides training to its workers. With the aim to progress along a steep learning curve, Disneyland offers learning opportunities for the trainees, including classroom training that give workers guidelines of the way workers should behave. 2. Tacit knowledge Tacit knowledge refers to knowledge acquired through observation and direct experience. From the recruitment post of Hong Kong Disneyland, it suggests that previous work experience at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort (e.g. Part Time Host / Internship) or any other Disney theme parks will be considered as an added advantage. This proves the workers are likely to have some experience of welcoming guest before they enter the firm. Moreover, abundant mentorship and mentoring workshops are offered to colleagues so that that new workers can have deeper understanding about Hong Kong Disneyland more easily. 3. Skills Most of the job offered in Hong Kong Disneyland requires that applicants should have excellent command of English and Chinese, including spoken Cantonese and Mandarin. Despite the language requirement, Hong Kong Disneyland further requires candidates have the ability to demonstrate strong computer proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, including Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, familiarity with Apple presentation products, and willingness to learn new software programs Generally, Language skills and computer skills are the two fundamental skills that Hong Kong Disneyland is looking for. 4. Attitude Hong Kong Disneyland demands that workers should demonstrate outgoing personality with good communication skill. Moreover, applicants should be those that are energetic, strong team-players and passionate about Disney. That is to say, Hong Kong Disneyland tries to let co-workers to imagine working for an organization that brings smiles to millions every year, or working with people whose passion for what they do is simply indescribable. Problems of Disney Learning Style From the above description, we find that Disneyland provide extensive training program to their employees. These training programs have equipped their employees with basic knowledge on facilitating daily operation of Disneyland; however, these training programs do not equip employees with creativity on how to make their service better. In other word, the training programs of Disneyland do not give enough reinforcement to their employees. Reinforcement is classified into two categories: positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement. Positive reinforcement occurs when positive consequence is presented to a desired behavior while negative reinforcement refers to the presentation of negative consequence to undesired behavior. Both operant conditioning and classical conditioning state that extinction of particular behavior will occurs if reinforcement is no longer presented upon the completion of behavior which is previously reinforced. Moreover, social learning theory also suggested that human will learn though observing because of self-reinforcement. In other words, reinforcement has played a very important role in every types of learning. Without reinforcement of desirable behavior and severe punishment of misbehavior, employees may not have any incentive to perform better. Some of them may even lose their incentive to maintain their expected performance and withdraw from Disneyland. This may lead to severe consequences Disneyland in a few aspects. First, with employee losing their work incentives, there will be a reduction of average customer service quality. As Disneyland aims to bring the greatest experience to its customer, their reputation as the world most famous theme park may be harmed. Moreover, if employees resign from Disneyland frequently, the turnover rate of staff is high. In this case, not  only the cost of training newly join staff will increase, the time of training new staff will also be boost as every Disneyland staff needs to receive sufficient training before they become available to work. With the total c ost increase in a great proportion, this will lead to a loss of comparative advantage of Disneyland. To solve the problems mentioned above, Disneyland may need to provide enough external reinforcement and self-reinforcement to their employees. Suggestions 1) Since Disneyland is a service industry, their staffs are required to provide high-quality customer services. And this kind of customer service is not only an explicit knowledge, but also a tacit knowledge. That is, knowledge acquired through observation and direct experience, it cannot be obtained directly through knowledge, such as document. Explicit knowledge is provided by Disney University, while tacit knowledge can be learnt from on-job training, new worker are asked to observe their mentor and learn. At the same time, employees are required to deal with different scenarios to obtain customer satisfaction, and they can only learn through real-time experience since there are many unexpected situations happened in reality. So, extensive training can just provide the existing and past experience to their employees and after they obtained the explicit knowledge from Disney University, they can apply it to customers and make a change to satisfy customers with different needs. And this implies practice makes perfect, only through dealing with actual cases with continuing improvement to obtain a high-quality customer service and that is a tacit knowledge. 2) Positive reinforcement can be used since it occurs when a positive outcome follows a desired behavior. In this case, desired behavior will be the high quality service provided by employees, positive outcome can be bonus and commissions. It is the common way for manager to create learning among their employees, and it becomes the motivator for employees to provide a better service in order to achieve the target set by Disneyland. Before the positive outcome launched, employees will less be motivated since they think there is no problem to work as usual. But after having this positive  outcome, it will motivate employees to provide a better customer service as they want to get the bonus based on the checkpoint set by Disneyland which is related to themselves, the monetary benefit. So, it can create a win-win outcome that Disneyland can continue to have a positive reputation and a continuing improvement on customer relationship through the effort provided by employees, at the same time employees can receive bonus as rewards to affirm their effort directly. Employees can learn from social learning theory. First, behavioral modeling and learning behavior consequences are observing and modeling behavior of others and its consequences afterwards; Since one department have lots of employees who have their own method to deal with customer matters, like the ways to deliver customer service when dealing with customers with different tempers, so everyone can be a role model towards the others. For example, for a host at Chef Mickey (Food and Beverage), there are many staff to serve customers, such as ordering, serving, and cleaning up. They can first observe how the other staffs perform their job responsibilities to get customers’ satisfaction, and then the consequence is they can improve themselves to provide a smoother customer service after observation and modeling. For self-reinforcement, it is a conclusion that employees should reinforce their behavior with consequences within their control after the learning from observation. Disneyland can carry out the performance management through defining the criteria: define what is high-quality customer service by the management department, items may include customer preferences, establishing rapport, dealing with complaints, promoting and up-selling; measuring and appraising employees’ performance: how often to carry out quality assessment and when will have appraisals based on the needs with the current situation, like the peak season for Christmas or The Lunar New Year; providing them either positive or negative feedback: using face-to-face approach in order to deliver their feedback directly: self-reinforcement will occur if the feedback is positive, employees can accumulate a higher marks for the overall performance in order to get the bonus and rewards from achieving the checkpoint set by Disneyland. And their performance can be  improved through providing a better service to achieve the bonus and rewards, learning from colleagues, personal development, such as the goals and schedule set by an individual to provide a better customer service. 3) Using a reward allocation decisions can shape ones behavior in Disneyland. Which people to reward: who meet the requirement of providing high-quality customer service, how to reward them: whether using monetary or non-monetary term. When to reward them, depending when will the appraisals be released. Since Disneyland is a service industry, using team reward systems will be more appropriate as employees should have a good interpersonal and communication quality, and this reward approach can emphasize cooperation and joint efforts, also employees can share their experience to others in order to achieve a better performance and gain a higher reward through cooperation. At the same time, competency-based reward should be used as a financial reward practice as it is the fundamental part of employment relationship. The pay has multiple meanings, such as symbol of success which provides high-quality customer service performance, reinforcement and motivator, reducing anxiety that the worries about how is their own customer service providing performance. Competency-based reward is a pay increases with competencies acquired and demonstrated. It is a skill-based pay which means how well is the customer service provided, pay will be increased with skill modules learned. The advantages is having flexibility on the workload with a better quality, since different employees will provide different customer service, they can learn from dealing with real-time cases in order to adjust how can the customer service be delivered better. Not only is this reward focusing on individual rewards: commissions, but also team rewards: gain sharing and the most important part – organizational rewards: profit sharing, stock options, balanced scorecard. 4) It is suitable to use the job rotation in Disneyland. The existing one is  called the Internal Transfer Process, which is eligible to regular full time cast members who have been employed at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort and held their current position for at least six months. And the purpose is to provide Cast Members with cross-functional transfer opportunities and equip them to be multi-functional and multi-tasked. Cast members can first have six-months experience in their department, after being familiar with its job responsibilities and they feel it is time for them to experience the different challenges, they can submit the application for internal transfer without getting a supervisor’s approval. They can transfer within a Single Team, across different teams or between Operations Team and Professional Team with the same career path. And they can have job rotation after their demonstrated performance, education background, as well as work experience being assessed. Undoubtedly, it has a slightly difference with the job rotation approach since cast members need to submit their application and be assessed. However, the goal is actually similar that offers their employees a chance to have internal transfer. It can minimize repetitive strain injury and reduce the job boredom after staying as the same position for a long time; it is good for employees to experience different customers’ needs through working in different department and it is the only way for them to obtain a real experience through working by their own but not on books or documents. At the same time, there will be some drawbacks that cannot be ignored, such as the extra resources on training as some employees may only work for six months and have internal transfer, that means they need another training which lead to an extra cost on training, the extra training cost will be much higher for employees transferring between Operations Team and Professional Team because the trainin g criteria are totally different; also employees may not be an expert in all fields, this problem may occur frequently also in the case of transferring between Operations Team and Professional Team, since the job requirement will be totally different and they need more theoretical knowledge to manage employees or work out for a win-win outcome and also have decision making which will have a significant influence of Disneyland’s market share or status. Conclusion Hong Kong Disneyland has demonstrated how a world class theme park creates a working atmosphere for its employees. As motivation and learning are always two most important aspects of employee management, so our team has taken these two factors for study. In motivation aspect, we have introduced Herzberg’s two-factor theory and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need to explain the motivation of employees. The two factor theory and the hygiene factors can be applied in the ways that how Hong Kong Disneyland motivates its employees. The Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need explains how Hong Kong Disneyland motivates its employees according to the five stages of needs, that is, physiological needs, safety needs, social needs, esteem, and self-actualization. In learning aspect, currently, Hong Kong Disneyland provides Disneyland University and mentoring sections for its employees to acquire both explicit and tacit knowledge. Its problem is that is does not give enough reinforcement to the employees on bettering the services, resulting in lower incentives and even job resignation. Therefore, we have suggested Hong Kong Disneyland to provide positive reinforcement such as bonus and team reward to boost their motivation and arrange job rotati on to keep the employees’ passion about the company as well as their job. In a nutshell, Hong Kong Disneyland is an international level organization hiring thousands of employees for operation. Its employee management method is a great model for studying but there are still rooms for improvement.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Free Essays on Critique of Quantitative Research Article

A COMPARISON OF VALUES ESPOUSED BY QUALITY AND OTHER MANAGERS Entrekin, L.V. & Pearson, C.A.L. 1995, ‘A comparison of values espoused by quality and other managers’, Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, vol. 33, no. 3, pp. 130-139. BACKGROUND TO RESEARCH The article by Entrekin and Pearson (1995) reports on research conducted in Australia in 1995. The research compared the personal value sets of Quality Managers against the personal value sets of general managers. This research article was directed at HR managers as could be seen from the journal in which it was published, as well as by the assertion (on page 8 of the report) that the results of this research has implications for Human Resource Management. TYPE OF RESEARCH AND PERSPECTIVE The type of research could be classified as Positivist as it is testing two hypothesis. These hypothesis were: (Entrekin, L.V. & Pearson, C.A.L. 1995, pge 4) 1. Quality managers have significantly different personal value systems to those held by general managers. 2. The personal value orientations of managers in organisations employing TQM/QA practices will be commensurate with the key principles of TQM. It is an example of quantitative research in that uses correlational research methods in an attempt to show that Quality Managers are more customer focused than general managers RESEARCH PROBLEM The decline in competitiveness of Australian industry has prompted industrial reforms. These reforms included the introduction of various quality schemes, such as Total Quality Control (TQC), Total Quality Management (TQM) and Quality Assurance (QA). But the introduction of these schemes alone is not the cure for the ills of industry; the problem is in recognising that a shift in values of management is required. The Authors of the report cite Hall (1996) in giving a definition of values which are â€Å"the chosen priorities that energize individuals†¦Ã¢â‚¬  These personal values are a means in wh... Free Essays on Critique of Quantitative Research Article Free Essays on Critique of Quantitative Research Article A COMPARISON OF VALUES ESPOUSED BY QUALITY AND OTHER MANAGERS Entrekin, L.V. & Pearson, C.A.L. 1995, ‘A comparison of values espoused by quality and other managers’, Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, vol. 33, no. 3, pp. 130-139. BACKGROUND TO RESEARCH The article by Entrekin and Pearson (1995) reports on research conducted in Australia in 1995. The research compared the personal value sets of Quality Managers against the personal value sets of general managers. This research article was directed at HR managers as could be seen from the journal in which it was published, as well as by the assertion (on page 8 of the report) that the results of this research has implications for Human Resource Management. TYPE OF RESEARCH AND PERSPECTIVE The type of research could be classified as Positivist as it is testing two hypothesis. These hypothesis were: (Entrekin, L.V. & Pearson, C.A.L. 1995, pge 4) 1. Quality managers have significantly different personal value systems to those held by general managers. 2. The personal value orientations of managers in organisations employing TQM/QA practices will be commensurate with the key principles of TQM. It is an example of quantitative research in that uses correlational research methods in an attempt to show that Quality Managers are more customer focused than general managers RESEARCH PROBLEM The decline in competitiveness of Australian industry has prompted industrial reforms. These reforms included the introduction of various quality schemes, such as Total Quality Control (TQC), Total Quality Management (TQM) and Quality Assurance (QA). But the introduction of these schemes alone is not the cure for the ills of industry; the problem is in recognising that a shift in values of management is required. The Authors of the report cite Hall (1996) in giving a definition of values which are â€Å"the chosen priorities that energize individuals†¦Ã¢â‚¬  These personal values are a means in wh...

Monday, October 21, 2019

Hsbc Bank Analysis Essays

Hsbc Bank Analysis Essays Hsbc Bank Analysis Essay Hsbc Bank Analysis Essay HSBC (The Hong Kong Shanghai Banking Corporation): INTRODUCTION: HSBC is the world’s second-largest banking and financial services group. The origins of the bank lie in Hong Kong and Shanghai, where its branches were first open in 1865. Number of location is around 7,500 offices in 87 countries and territories; Only in united states it has more than 460 bank branches, 210. 000 shareholders, 300,000 staff, and approximately 128 million customers worldwide. Throughout the world among the multinational banking giants HSBC is one of the leading largest banking groups. A A Flock hart, Chairman since 1 January 2011 and a Director since July 2010. An executive Director of HSBC Holdings plc and Chairman, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Commercial Banking, Joined HSBC in 1974. BACKGROUND: HSBC Private Bank is the marketing name for the private banking business, HSBC group has a significant presence in each of the world’s financial markets, with the America, Asia Pacific and Europe each representing one third of the business, with around 8,000 offices 87 countries and territories, 210,000 shareholders, 300,000 staff and 128 million customers worldwide, HSBC arguably has the most valuable place in multinational banking giants. As HSBC announces so many facilities to their customer, Retail Banking and Wealth Management were previously referred to as Personal Financial Services. This rename was announced during HSBCs 2011 Investor Day. Commercial bank also provides financial services to small, medium-sized and middle-market enterprises; the bank said it would be hiring at least 2,000 extra people in mainland China and Singapore over the next five years, as it seeks to tap the fast growing Asia Pacific market. HSBC was founded in Hong Kong and Shanghai in 1865 and the bank regards Asia as its most important region†. FINANCIAL SERVICES: * Customer’s Personal financial services. * Current and savings accounts. * Mortgage. * Car financing. * Insurance. * Credit cards. * Loans. * Pensions. * Investments. SPONSORSHIP: HSBC sponsors the Great Canadian Geography Challenge, which has had around 2 million participants in the past 12 years. Since 2001, HSBC has sponsored the Celebration of Light, an annual musical fireworks competition in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. In 2007 HSBC announced it would be a sponsor of the National Hockey Leagues Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames. HSBC has also sponsored a professional gaming team that was disbanded late 2007. HSBC sponsored the 2009 British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa. GLOBAL SERVICE CENTER: HSBC develops global technology centre in Pacific Asia for HSBC group, the main theme is to lower cost economies in order to reduce the cost of providing services in developed and well economical countries. UK Retail Banking: The UK Personal Financial Services business continues, To build its position as a leading provider of financial Services to mass affluent customers in the UK through, The Premier and Advance propositions. The UK Commercial Banking strategy is to be: the ‘Leading International Business’ bank, using HSBC’s extensive geographical network together With product expertise in payments, trade, Receivables finance and foreign exchange to actively support customers who are trading and investing across borders; and the best bank for small and medium-sized Enterprises (‘SMEs’) in target markets, building global scale and creating efficiencies by sharing systems and best practice, including customer experience, training and product offerings, and selectively applying a direct banking model. DEPTH OF ANALYSIS: Consolidated income statement for the year ended 31 December 2010 20102009 ?m ? m Interest income . 11,110 12,643 Interest expense (3,416) (4,552) Net interest income ,694 8,091 Fee income 5,310 5,560 Fee expense (1,271) (1,483) Net fee income . 4,040 4,077 Trading income excluding net interest income . ,210 970 Net interest income on trading activities.. 901 1,656 Net trading income.. 2,117 2,626 Net income from financial instruments designated at fair value.. 276 543 Gains less loss from financial investments.. 537 (73) Dividend income 8 29 Net earned insurance premiums .. 42,635 2,716 Other operating income 782 1,093 Total operating income 18,090 19,102 Net insurance claims incurred and movement in liabilities to policyholders (3,023) (3,540) Net operating income before loan impairment charges and other credit risk Provisions 15,076 15,562 Loan impairment charges and other credit risk provisions (1,951) (3,364) Net operating income . 13,125 12,198 Employee compensation and benefits. (4,961) (4,452) General and administrative expenses 3,536) (3,114) Depreciation and impairment of property, plant and equipment.. (460) (482) Amortization and impairment of intangible assets. (162) (150) Total operating expenses.. (9,119) (8,198) Operating profit . ,006 4,000 Share of profit in associates and joint ventures . 5 14 Profit before tax . 4,011 4,014 Tax expense (996) (856) Profit for the year ,015 3,158 Profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company 2, 654 3,092 Profit attributable to non-controlling interests 56 66 2010 compared with 2009: Overview: Global Banking and Markets reported a pre-tax profit of ? 1,876 million in the period compared with ? 2,511 million in 2009, a decrease of 25 per cent. The 2010 results, however, remained strong by historical standards and were second only to the exceptional performance of 2009. On an underlying basis, adjusting for the Global Banking and Markets’ element of the disposal of the Insurance Brokers’ business in April 2010 and the disposal of Eversholt Rail Group in December 2010, profit before tax was ? 1,699 million, 32 per cent lower than 2009. Revenues slowed in 2010, due to less favorable market conditions caused by the impact of the European sovereign debt crisis and the anticipated lower revenues in Balance Sheet Management. Operating expenses included a ? 207 million charge from the one-off UK and French bonus and payroll taxes applied on certain 2009 bonus payments. DATA GATHERING: Financial Statements: HSBC Bank plc cash flow statement for the year ended 31 December 2010 2010 2009 ? m ? m Cash flows from operating activities Profit before tax . 3,396 2,967 Adjustments for: – Non-cash items included in profit before tax . 7 2,215 3,126 – Change in operating assets 37 (5,523) 14,404 – Change in operating liabilities.. 37 28,734 – Elimination of exchange differences1 1,189) 377 (2, 6564) – Net gain from investing activities (329) (535) – Contributions paid to defined benefit plans.. (1,933) (236) – Tax paid. (674) (461) Net cash (used in)/generated from operating activities.. 24,697 (6,900) Cash flows from investing activities Purchase of financial investments. 27,066) (31,309) Proceeds from the sale of financial investments .. 14,849 50,482 Purchase of property, plant and equipment. (316) (312) Proceeds from the sale of property, plant and equipment.. 5 791 Purchase of goodwill and intangible assets (163) (133) Net cash outflow from acquisition of and increase in stake of associates – (16) Proceeds from disposal of associates . 188 Net cash generated from/(used in) investing activities (12,689) 19,691 Cash flows from financing activities Issue of ordinary share capital.. – 2,776 Net cash outflow from acquisition of and increase in stake of subsidiaries.. (442) – Subordinated loan capital issued 633 – Dividends paid.. (1,868) (1,067) Net cash generated from financing activities (1,677) 1,709

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Learn About the Verb Essere (To Be) in Italian

Learn About the Verb Essere (To Be) in Italian Essere is an irregular verb (un verbo irregolare); it does not follow a predictable pattern of conjugation. Note that the form sono is used with both  io and loro. Grammatical Notes Essere is used with di name of a city to indicate city of origin (the city someone is from). To indicate country of origin, an adjective of nationality is generally used: He is from France He is French È francese. Io sono di Chicago: tu di dove sei? (Im from Chicago; where are you from?) Essere di proper name is used to indicate possession. No apostrophe s is used in Italian to indicate possession: It is Annas It is of Anna È di Anna. Questa chitarra à ¨ di Beppino; non à ¨ di Vittoria.  (This guitar is Beppinos; its not Vittorias.) To find out who the owner of something is, ask Di chi à ¨ singular or Di chi sono plural. Di chi à ¨ questo cane? Di chi sono questi cani? (Whose dog is this? Whose dogs are these?) Essere as an Auxiliary Verb Essere is also used as an auxiliary verb in the following cases: Reflexive verbs: those verbs whose action reverts to the subject, as in the following examples: I wash myself. They enjoy themselves.Impersonal form: as in the English equivalents one, you, we, they, or people verb. Si mangia bene in Italia - People (They) eat well in Italy.Passive voice: in a passive construction the subject of the verb receives the action instead of doing it, as in the sentence: Caesar was killed by Brutus. The present tense (il presente) of essere is as follows: Conjugating the Italian Verb Essere in the Present Tense SINGOLARE PLURALE (io) sono I am (noi) siamo we are (tu) sei you are (fam.) (voi) siete you are (fam.) (Lei) you are (form.) (Loro) sono you are (form.) (lui) he is (loro) sono they are (fam.) To Be, or Not To Be?: Compound Tenses The compound tenses are verb tenses, such as the  passato prossimo, that consist of two words. The appropriate tense of  avere  or  essere  (called the  auxiliary or helping verbs) and the past participle of the target verb forms the verb phrase. When using  essere, the past participle always agrees in gender and number with the subject of the verb. It can therefore have four endings:  -o, -a, -i, -e. In many cases intransitive verbs (those that cannot take a direct object), especially those expressing motion, are conjugated with the auxiliary verb  essere. The verb  essere  is also conjugated with itself as the auxiliary verb. Some of the most common verbs that form compound tenses with  essere  include: andare (to go)arrivare (to arrive)cadere (to fall, to drop)costare (to cost)crescere (to grow)diventare (to become)per durare, continuare (to last, to continue)per entrare (to enter)morire (to die)nascere (to be born)lasciare, partire (to leave, to depart)stare, rimanere (to stay, to remain)ritornare (to return)uscire (to exit)venire (to come)

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Film or Play Review Movie Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Film or Play - Movie Review Example In order to avoid Antonia and Alonzo, he proceeds to create his own kingdom in a remote island in Greek with Miranda, Aretha, his mistress, and Kalibanos, a goat herder and the only inhabitant on the island before Philip arrives. On this magical island with surreally beautiful scenery, the obsession of Philip unfolds. His exercise of power affects the agency of characters who are already marginalized by their race, gender, and social status. In addition, Philip’s character also serves as a critique of an upper-middle class male who occupies a high social status but is oppressed by people who possess even more wealth and social capital that him. Unlike Shakespeare’s Prospero, the protagonist of the film Philip, performed by John Cassavetes is portrayed as a miserable middle-aged man who is tired of his career and social life. On the other hand, his employer Alonzo is extremely upbeat and ambitious, even though he appears to be much older than Philip. Instead of having an Antonio figure in the film to rebel against the protagonist, Mazursky chooses to transform that character into Antonia. This is an interesting move that will affect the audience’s feeling towards Philip as Antonia is a loyal but frustrated wife instead of an antagonistic character, the audience is less likely to be sympathetic towards Philip. Antonia’s hair style and clothing highlights her confidence and femininity, which seems to intimidate Philip. Another interesting female character in the film is Aretha, the Ariel figure in Shakespeare’s original play. She dons an airy white and half transparent gown throughout the whole mov ie, complementing the serenity of the island. Here Mazursky once again plays on the idea of masculinity and femininity. Philip explicitly refuses to have sex with Aretha without explaining the reason. It seems that Philip remains insecure about his power as a man after being oppressed and cheated respectively by Alonzo

Social Contract Theory Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Social Contract Theory - Research Paper Example The social contract theory examines the notion of political legitimacy, which states that human beings have no ultimate right to exercise power over each other until the parties involved have mutual consent in an agreement (Rawls 223). According to the social contract theory, a natural basis for morality can be provided by the need for social order. The interaction between people forms the basis for certain incentives within the social system, which determine the peaceful coexistence between people in society. Social contract theory calls for the formation of certain agreements and follows some fundamental rules while at the same time treating each other with a lot of respect. Based on the social contract theory, humans find it beneficial to enter into some form of social contracts that will guide their moral judgments. Without such a contract, people would not exist peacefully as their interaction with one another would be disorderly (Rawls 225). The social contract theory also holds the view that the political, social, and moral obligations of a person largely borrow from the agreements they have made in their society. The modern political and moral theory is related to the social contract theory. In a nutshell, the social contract theory mainly focuses on the consensus that should emanate from explicit consent between several players in an agreement. The consent should be between people who reason properly and no one should be coerced to enter into an agreement. Social contract theorists, such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, strived to explain consensus with his explanation of the â€Å"general will.† For Rousseau, the social contract theory involves entering into a contract based on the collective interest of the entire group rather than focusing on the interests of a few individuals. The will of an individual should be appropriated with the interests of the entire group so as to

Friday, October 18, 2019

The Shays Rebellion and the Origins of Sound Governance in the US Essay

The Shays Rebellion and the Origins of Sound Governance in the US - Essay Example With the cash flow literally gagged, the continental war veterans who had earlier received land as part of their compensation in order to quell their growing discontent with the national government found their only source of livelihoods threatened. Their usual receipt of continental notes, which would have provided them with a reprieve, had lost substantial value that even the government of the day no longer accepted them in form of taxes. The compensation woes notwithstanding, the immediate sealing off of the British agricultural markets right after the war made the situation, even more, worse; large stock inventories piled up, prompting a merchants’ dilemma of the repayment of the hitherto advanced agricultural debts. Unable to settle the outstanding debt with the English creditors, merchants turned on small debtors seizing properties [including land] to service loans. The state’s and the Confederation’s immediate economic remedy of raising taxes to fund the wa r debts stretched the already worse state of affairs even further. With the economy largely reduced into the traditional barter system, farmers and rural artisans essentially owed creditors and the tax man cash that was literally nonexistent. Their [farmers] attempts to petition the Massachusetts legislature to revise the state’s constitution to enable fair taxation, equal representation, issue paper money and/or pass tender laws that would permit debtors to service their loans in goods and services alongside the hard currency bore no fruits.5 A legislature dominated by commercial interests, the proposed reforms never featured beyond the petition. Rather than being sympathetic enough to the protesters’ genuine public concern, assemblymen responded with contempt charging that: â€Å"They, the people, are luxurious in their diet, idle and profligate in their manners, encouragers of foreign manufacturers.†6 As the economy increasingly worsened, they [debtors/farmers] found themselves hauled up in losing court battles with quite a number of defaulters ending up in state prisons; an ultimate fate that was probably imminent for Daniel Shays,

Health Care IT Systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Health Care IT Systems - Essay Example 1. The healthcare organization should improve in their billing system by implementing IT. It will aid them to minimize the errors during a transaction between hospitals and patients. Even, the staffs of the healthcare organization can easily maintain the records of their patient. It will minimize the data redundancy. 2. The medical records should be in electronic form, so the patients and physicians can monitors the records over the internet and can consult with other physicians and medical staffs. It will aid them to track the medical records of their patient. Even, electronic medical records save the time of both parties. The patient can easily consult with their desire doctor with help of electronic medical records and the doctor can easily track down the past medical records of the patient.IT in healthcare center will save a lot of time for the physicians and staffs. This will reduce the miscommunication among the doctors and medical staffs. It will enhance the workflow of health care center and reduces the extra workforces, like a mediator between a doctor and a patient regarding billing process or medical records. Information Technology will create a better quality of work and reduce the wastages of money. It will save a lot of time to maintaining and creating medical records and billing system. The loss of medical records of any patient is very critical and unwanted situation in the health care center. A loss of medical records, the physicians, and medical staffs have to bear a lot of troubles.

Thursday, October 17, 2019

Overviews Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Overviews - Essay Example According to NHS (2012), it requires the working together of various practitioners so that they can provide the best patient centered care. This involves the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and management of these cases. Typically, the management entails designing, evaluating and implementing the needed interventions to handle both acute and chronic mental health conditions. The national Quality Protects objectives are normally adapted to improve care management and service delivery for adults with mental health problems. In the diagnosis, evaluation, treatment and management of such conditions, it is normally imperative where required to ensure that the patients are attached to the carers who have the capability of providing them with not only safe but also effective care for the duration of the service. As such every aspect of the management should always be designed in a way that ensures the patient always gets services from practitioners who are capable of giving effective servi ces. This at times requires the formation of a multi-disciplinary team to help out in giving the best possible care. Before initial visit it is important to investigate if service user needs help with communication. It is important to keep service user informed about any relevant literature related to service user’s situation. Also to identify service user’s strengths and support network this include inviting other relevant parties to the meeting to identify social and individual strengths. First check information held for accuracy. If the service user satisfies the FACS criteria, then next stage is to explain available to service user and/or carer in order to agree a care plan strategy. It is important to evaluate the of the agreed care plan before implementing to prevent lack of providing needs or identifying risk. Due to the high prevalence of the mental illnesses and disorders, it is normally imperative to carry out an

None Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 27

None - Essay Example Specializing in a single field is thus very important. This will enable someone to become skilled and therefore will find ways to attract the majority of customers. Having a variety of product may make the buyer feel that they are of less quality compared to that one person with a specific product. Therefore, it is important for an individual to focus on one product (Wiid, 96). Specializing in a specific product is very important. This is because people that are familiar with your kind of work will always think of you when they find someone a specific type of service since they know that you so good at. This position is identifiable within a subculture where the people involved are so passionate about a specific act, an example is Dave Company. This is not just but a regular bar and a restaurant, but rather it is also a place with video game meant for the adults (Hague, 89). They have found a position where adults comfortable do take beer, play games without having to deal with cases of people running around with quarters or screaming children’s that they are competing with. It is important to identify a suitable geographical place to place a business. Later one is to identify what the people within the location really want. This will help one package their product and services so that they benefit the people. This will enable the business to receive the maximum profit within a short span of time. Creating effective communication among the buyers and the sellers is also important. This will help provide more insight to what the majority of people expect. One will also identify the major gaps within the business and sell them (Wiid, 100). Identifying the problems people within a geographical location do face is also important. This helps identify products that are most needed in the geographical area. Through consideration of such factors, one will be able to identify a suitable market. Brainstorming on how the problems

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Overviews Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Overviews - Essay Example According to NHS (2012), it requires the working together of various practitioners so that they can provide the best patient centered care. This involves the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and management of these cases. Typically, the management entails designing, evaluating and implementing the needed interventions to handle both acute and chronic mental health conditions. The national Quality Protects objectives are normally adapted to improve care management and service delivery for adults with mental health problems. In the diagnosis, evaluation, treatment and management of such conditions, it is normally imperative where required to ensure that the patients are attached to the carers who have the capability of providing them with not only safe but also effective care for the duration of the service. As such every aspect of the management should always be designed in a way that ensures the patient always gets services from practitioners who are capable of giving effective servi ces. This at times requires the formation of a multi-disciplinary team to help out in giving the best possible care. Before initial visit it is important to investigate if service user needs help with communication. It is important to keep service user informed about any relevant literature related to service user’s situation. Also to identify service user’s strengths and support network this include inviting other relevant parties to the meeting to identify social and individual strengths. First check information held for accuracy. If the service user satisfies the FACS criteria, then next stage is to explain available to service user and/or carer in order to agree a care plan strategy. It is important to evaluate the of the agreed care plan before implementing to prevent lack of providing needs or identifying risk. Due to the high prevalence of the mental illnesses and disorders, it is normally imperative to carry out an

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Singer on Animal Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Singer on Animal Rights - Essay Example Several human activists have advocated the making and imposition of animal rights. This struggle on behalf of their loyal friends is not new and lasts over the last numerous decades. One of the most prominent human rights activists is Peter Singer who has an Australian origin. A renowned Philosopher and the professor of Bioethics at Princeton University, the sixty four (64) year old humanist has voiced his thoughts in favor of human rights for about four decades now. Peter Singer’s work â€Å"All Animals are Equal†, that came into print in the later part of the 1980s, highlights his decades old philosophy of safeguarding animal rights by voicing and maintaining the stance of respect of animals. This text is an attempt to voice Singer’s thoughts that he has advocated in the said work. The main theme of this article of Peter Singer is that animals, may they be ‘humans’ or ‘non humans’ deserve respect. He is quoted in this article as: †Å"I am urging that we extend to other species the basic principle of equality that most of us recognize should be extended to all members of our own species.† Singer does not emphasize that animals should have rights like humans but emphasizes that their rights should be recognized. He does not mean to say that animals are just like humans or should be treated just like humans. All he wants to say is that the discriminating factor between them should not be that one is an animal and the other is a human. Regardless of the species of a living being, rights should be associated with every individual thus attaching importance to their interests. The author compares the ambitions of human beings to those of an animal. Man has each and every step of his life planned. Every minute that passes brings him closer to his next planned task and then moreover to the next one. Animals however do not follow any such scheduled activity. Singer emphasizes that this fantasizing of humans does n ot give them any edge over animals with respect to rights. â€Å"If a being suffers,† he says, â€Å"there can be no moral justification for refusing to take that suffering into consideration.† The famous activist proposes a situation where a building might accidentally be on fire. A human and a dog would be distressfully caught into the fire in exactly the same manner. They’re both hurt to the same extent and have become immobile. In such a situation, the author emphasizes that, both the human being and the animal have equal rights of being picked up as the first option of rescue. He shuns the thought that since a man has his whole planned life to live he should be the first choice of being picked up by rescue personnel. Singer emphasizes that there potentially is no difference in the suffering of the distressing animal and the human being. ‘The Human Pain’ he says has the same intensity as the animal’s pain. He strictly shuns that merely th e thought that human suffering is more than animal suffering should not make the picking up of the human being as the first choice. On the contrary, if the person suffering may be your loved one then you may ask the rescue team to pick him up first, but not otherwise. Singer states that of all the things that may exist, human beings have only and only a single edge over other species and that is the fact that they belong to the â€Å"Human Species† or â€Å"Homo Sapiens†. Singer emphasizes by saying, â€Å"Like it or not, we must face the fact that humans come in different shapes and sizes; they

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Essay --

INTRO: state the q; motivate it; history facts A number of EU members have implemented environmental tax reforms (ETRs) which are defined as a reform of the national tax system that shift the tax burden from taxation of labor to taxation of carbon-energy, and the reforms were first introduced in Scandinavian countries since 1990 and then applied in other European countries, such as, Germany and Britain (PTAK, 2010; COMETR, 2007). This project summarizes an assessment of the German ETR and its effect on technological innovation by trying to answer the research question: Did the German ETR increase technological innovation? The question is motivated by general environmental considerations, for instance, slowing down the global warming by reducing energy consumptions and carbon emissions. My paper’s aim is to assess the effect of the German ERTs on technology innovation level specifically, and this is motivated by the following relevant facts. The German ETR was launched in April 1999, and it has been adopted in Germany for m ore than ten years; thus, there are plenty of available data for us to assess the impacts of this ETR regarding to German government’s motivations. This ETR was proposed because the German government wanted to increase technology innovation, to create additional jobs, and to decrease energy consumption (Agnolucci, 2009; Beuermann and Santarius, 2006). Moreover, it is important for us to assess the impacts of ETRs from different angles, for example, the level of technology innovation, rather than assessing the impacts on the level of energy consumption and employment that abundant papers have discussed. The rest of the paper is organized as follows. Section 2 presents a literature review of the related literature ... ...atively; hence, it can be concluded that the ETR in Germany had a positive impact on reducing energy consumption, and the effect on employment is overall small and can be positive (Agnolucci, 2009)†¦..however†¦. Moreover, Agnolucci applied an econometric approach to assess the effect of the environmental tax reforms introduced in Germany and the UK, especially their effects on energy consumptions and employment level†¦. In this paper, the author modelled his data by sorting them into the following various economics subsectors: Textiles and leather (TXT); Pulp, paper and printing (PPP); Rubber and plastics (RP); Non-metallic minerals (NMM); Machinery (MAC); Electrical and optical equipment (ELE); Wholesale and retail trade (TRA) which covered almost the whole spectrum of manufacturing activity. Therefore, I am able to use these subsectors later in my solving process.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

The Need for New Management Models in Human Resources Essays -- Human

Thesis Statement: Advances in technology along with shifts in the nations’ social structure heavily impact the workplace environment, creating a need for new management models in Human Resources. I. The Changing Workplace A. An Historical Perspective of Jobs in America B. Jobs in the 21st Century II. Identifying Corporate Needs A. The Emergence of Human Resource Management as a Component of General Management. B. Corporate Expectations III. Developing Human Resource Policy A. What HRM Professionals Have to Say IV. Identifying Worker Needs A. Family VS Work B. The Working Environment C. Benefits and Compensation V. Where to From Here? - HRM Models for Innovation A. Motivation Theory B. Alternate Work Systems - a Comparrison Table This paper is written from the perspective that Human Resource Management (HRM) practices are continually evolving to meet the changes of dynamic work environments. New technologies, increasingly rapid exchanges of information, social paradigm shifts and the restructuring of family systems contribute heavily to the need to find and apply methods of HRM that meet the needs of industry, workers and consumers. To do so effectively, vision and creativity are required in addition to on-going awareness of the bottom line. The Changing Workplace At the opening of the 20th century, the majority of jobs in America were held in two areas, agriculture and industry. Population distribution tables for that time demonstrate that most of the nation inhabited rural areas rather than urban areas. This continued to be the trend up until WWII, when men left the country to fight and women left rural America to fill factory jobs as their contribution to the war effort. This movement was the beginning of nationwide workplace and societal changes that have accelerated during the last half of the 20th century. The move from rural to suburban environments changed the way we did business as a nation. Where extended families resided in and supported each other in culturally defined rural settings, nuclear families found themselves alone in homogenous neighborhoods. (1) This created a demand for goods and services that were formerly provided by extended family and community members, opening up new markets and creating jobs. It ... ...ss, 1997) 299 Biblography Primary Sources Collected Documents Nybor, Jan. Navy Times, 14 Sept. 1994 Pritchard, DeLao, Von Bergen, "A Feild Test of Expectancy - Valence Incentive Motivation Techniques," Organizational Behavior and Human Performance vol.15 Herzberg, Fredrick, "One More Time: How Do You Motivate Your Employees?" Harvard Business Review vol. 47 Electronic References US Bureau of Statistics Data Base Books Glenn, H. Stephen, Developing Capable People, Rockland CA: Prima Press 1989 Isenberg, Martin "A Short History of Human Resource Management," Strategic Human Resource Management Readings, (January 1994) University of Massachusetts Press Drucker, Peter F., Management Challenges for the 21st Century, New York: Harper-Collins, 1999 Dessler, Gary , Personnel Management, 4th Edition, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1988 Kalleberg, R.P. Social Perspectives on Labor Markets, New York: Academic Press, 1991 Vroom, Victor H. Work and Motivation, New York: Wiley, 1964 Tushman & O'Rielly, Winning Through Innovation, Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1997

Friday, October 11, 2019

Benito Juarez

Juarez was born in the village of San Pablo Guelatao, Oaxaca on March 21, 1807, located in the mountain range now known as the â€Å"Sierra Juarez†. His parents, Marcelino Juarez and Brigida Garcia, were peasants who both died when he was three years old. Shortly after, his grandparents died as well, in which his uncle then raised him. [2][3] He described his parents as â€Å"indios de la raza primitiva del pais,† that is, â€Å"Indians of the original race of the country. â€Å"[3] He worked in the corn fields and as a shepherd until the age of 12, when he walked to the city of Oaxaca to attend school. 1] At the time, he was illiterate and could not speak Spanish, only Zapotec. In the city, where his sister worked as a cook, he took a job as a domestic servant for Antonio Maza. [1] A lay Franciscan, Antonio Salanueva, was impressed with young Benito's intelligence and thirst for learning, and arranged for his placement at the city's seminary. He studied there but dec ided to pursue law rather than the priesthood. He graduated from the seminary in 1827 and went on to gain a degree in law. In 1843 Benito married Margarita Maza.Benito Juarez with his sister Nela (left) and his wife Margarita (right), 1843 [edit]Political career Juarez became a lawyer in 1834 and a judge in 1841. [4] He was governor of the state of Oaxaca from 1847 to 1852; in 1853, he went into exile because of his objections to the corrupt military dictatorship of Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. [5] He spent his exile in New Orleans, Louisiana, working in a cigar factory. [6] In 1854 he helped draft the Plan of Ayutla as the basis for a liberal revolution in Mexico. [5] Faced with growing opposition, Santa Anna resigned in 1855 and Juarez returned to Mexico.The winning party, the liberales (liberals) formed a provisional government under General Juan Alvarez, inaugurating the period known as La Reforma. The Reform laws sponsored by the puro (pure) wing of the Liberal Party curtailed the power of the Catholic Church and the military, while trying to create a modern civil society and capitalist economy based on the U. S. model. The Ley Juarez (Juarez's Law) of 1855, for example, abolished special clerical and military privileges, and declared all citizens equal before the law. All the efforts ended on the promulgation of the new federalist constitution.Juarez became Chief Justice, under moderado (moderate) president Ignacio Comonfort. The conservatives led by General Felix Zuloaga, with the backing of the military and the clergy, launched a revolt under the Plan of Tacubaya on December 17, 1857. Comonfort did not want to start a bloody civil war, so made an auto-coup d'etat, dissolved the congress and appointed a new cabinet, in which the conservative party would have some influence, assuming in real terms the Tacubaya plan. Juarez, Ignacio Olvera, and many other deputies and ministers were arrested.The rebels wanted the constitution revoked completely and anothe r all-conservative government formed, so they launched another revolt on January 11, 1858, proclaiming Zuloaga as president. Comonfort re-established the congress, freeing all the prisoners and resigned as president. Under the new constitution, the chief justice immediately became interim president until proper elections could be made. Juarez took office in late January 1858. Juarez then led the liberal side in the Mexican War of the Reform, first from Queretaro and later from Veracruz.In 1859, Juarez took the radical step of declaring the confiscation of church properties. In spite of the conservatives' initial military advantage, the liberals drew on support of regionalist forces. They had U. S. help under some terms of the controversial and never approved McLane-Ocampo treaty. This turned the tide in 1860; the liberals recaptured Mexico City in January 1861. Juarez was finally properly elected president in March for another four-year term, under the Constitution of 1857. Bust of Benito Juarez in Guanajuato, Mexico.Faced with bankruptcy and a war-savaged economy, Juarez declared a moratorium on foreign debt payments. Spain, Great Britain, and France reacted with a joint seizure of the Veracruz customs house in December 1861. Spain and Britain soon withdrew after realizing that the French Emperor Napoleon III used the episode as a pretext to launch the French intervention in Mexico in 1862, with plans to establish a conservative regime. The Mexicans won an initial victory over the French at Puebla in 1862, celebrated annually as Cinco de Mayo (May 5).The French advanced again in 1863, forcing Juarez and his elected government to retreat to the north, first to San Luis Potosi, then to the arid northern city of El Paso del Norte, present day Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, and finally to the capital of the state, Chihuahua City, where he set up his cabinet and government-in-exile. There he would remain for the next two and one-half years. Meanwhile Maximilian von Hab sburg, a younger brother of the Emperor of Austria, was proclaimed Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico on April 10, 1864 with the backing of Napoleon III and a group of Mexican conservatives.Before Juarez fled, Congress granted him an emergency extension of his presidency, which would go into effect in 1865, when his term expired, and last until 1867 when the last of Maximilian's forces were defeated. In response to the French intervention and the elevation of Maximilian, Juarez sent General Placido Vega y Daza to the U. S. State of California to gather Mexican American sympathy for Mexico's plight. Maximilian, who personally harbored liberal and Mexican nationalist sympathies, offered Juarez amnesty, and later the post of prime minister, but Juarez refused to accept either a government â€Å"imposed by foreigners†, or a monarchy.A legitimate Mexican throne had existed long before him, founded by Emperor Augustine I after independence had been achieved in 1821, but was abolished o nly a year later, during a domestic crisis. With its own civil war over, President Andrew Johnson invoked the Monroe Doctrine to give diplomatic recognition to Juarez' government and supply weapons and funding to the Republican forces. When he could get no support in Congress, he supposedly had the Army â€Å"lose† some supplies (including rifles) â€Å"near† (across) the border with Mexico.He would not even meet with representatives of Maximilian. Gen. Philip Sheridan wrote in his journal about how he â€Å"misplaced† 30,000 muskets close to Mexico. [7] Faced with this and a growing threat from Prussia, the French troops began pulling out of Mexico in late 1866. Mexican conservatism was a spent force and was less than pleased with the liberal Maximilian. In 1867 the last of the Emperor's forces were defeated and Maximilian was sentenced to death by a military court.Despite national and international pleas for amnesty, Juarez refused to commute the sentence, and Maximilian was executed by firing squad on June 19, 1867 at Cerro de las Campanas in Queretaro. His body was returned to Europe for burial. His last words had been, ‘? Viva Mexico! ‘ Juarez was controversially re-elected President in 1867 and 1871, using the office of the presidency to ensure electoral success and suppressing revolts by opponents such as Porfirio Diaz. Benito Juarez died of a heart attack in 1872 while working at his desk in the National Palace in Mexico City. He was succeeded by Sebastian Lerdo de Tejada, his foreign minister.