Foreign Policy Toward Iraqi Refugees Essay

In 2003, the US war in Iraq finally toppled Saddam Hussein’s dictatorial regime and freed the Iraqi people from the bondage of tyranny. However, the re-establishment of democratic processes and the road to achieving peace have led to perdition, as Islamist fundamentalism prevailed during the cultural-religious bestowal even at the time prior to Saddam’s reign of power. The victory of democracy in the installation of a new Iraqi government instilled the shadow of political unrest and extreme economic recession, in which the fall of Baghdad may have been buried in a deep grave. At present, the violence in Iraq is showing no sign of slowing down and majority of the Iraqi people continue to suffer tremendously as documented on this account : the UN estimates that 2. 6 million Iraqis have fled since 2003 ranging from 40,000 to 50,000 Iraqis leaves their homes every month; two million flees to nearby countries and about 1. 8 million of the civilian populace seek refuge in safer areas within Iraq, in which Syria and Jordan are among the countries directly helping the refugees for the past three years, and some have fled to Egypt, Lebanon, Yemen, Iran and Turkey. Meanwhile, almost daily the media reports on the desolation of Iraqi. The Refugee International has accounted for series and continuing street crimes, the prevalence of business closures, human trafficking, and kidnap-for-ransom cases. In addition, the media said that the documentation of casualties and victims of similar crimes has to be reconciled with at large proportion due inability to locate substantial witnesses and the family of the victims. Goal Positioning The goal of this paper generally seeks to discuss and examine the continuing struggle for survival in Iraq. The product of examination shall be presented through a course of study pertaining to foreign policy toward Iraqi refugees. In particular, a holistic approach will be undertaken, to: (1) identify the extent and magnitude of mass evacuation of refugees, and (2) examine the availability of foreign policies that concern Iraqi refugees. In addition, the objective of the study is to address the long debatable issue on host country refugee adoption and to answer the question â€Å"why and how Iraqi refugees could be hosted by countries like the United States of America but neither by other European countries or in Asia? † This question plainly posits the feasible means of a foreign policy that could be adopted [if there once that exists,] in which this compendium could ventilate the avenues of legislation and to the meanest effort of influencing the public interest for policy initiatives. Background of Study The background of the study focuses on the sub-human conditions of the Iraqi people and their desire to flee from their homeland in exile as refugees. The background [based on the plight of the Iraqi refugees] will also discuss derivatives of study on foreign policies that evolve the goals of this paper. The additional consideration on the need for enabling a foreign policy for Iraqi refugees could indicate and can be comparatively analyzed with the proportion of violence that links the overall unaccounted number of Iraqi casualties. Thus, the initial indicator is based on the documented report that follows: (1) US military killed in Iraq is estimated at 3,973; (2) number of US troops wounded in combat since the war began is 29,203; (3) Iraqi Security Force deaths is 7,924; (4) Iraqi civilians killed is estimated at a range from 81,632 to 1,120,000; (5) internally displaced refugees in Iraq is estimated at 3. 4 million. On the other hand, as part of the documented report , the cost of war has accounted to; $526 billion to date, with a cost per day of $275 million and being estimated at a long- term bill of $3 trillion. In addition, Iraqi unemployment has grown from 25 to 40 percent. Literature Review A brief review of similar literatures will be discussed in this section in order to: (1) present the collection of initiatives and collaboration of international entities and governments for refugees, and (2) link the relevance to the process of this paper. Canada was tasked to assume the role of â€Å"gavel-holder† of the newly established Refugee Working Group (RWG) in January of 1992 as part of the design of the general Middle East peace process (MEPP) that created the Expert and Advisory Services Fund (EASF) as a Canadian involvement to the Middle East Multilateral Peace Process . The EASF is administered by Canadian International Development Research Centre (IDRC) with funding from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) in partnership with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT). The implementation of EASF for the period of March 2002-2008 works within key policy issues on refugees, in which EASF (Phase 3 IDRC) programs embark on the â€Å"compensation to Palestinian refugees as part of a comprehensive solution, challenges of repatriation and absorption, and gauging and engaging public opinion† . In a related finding, the Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service through its Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS) located in Qatar and the Institute for the Study of International Migration (ISIM) in Washington jointly conducted a study in 2007 regarding this for . The study showed that Iraqis in Jordan and Syria are beneficiaries of two opposing foreign policies, one is the tradition of Arab brotherhood which comprises a political and moral responsibility in providing refuge while the other is an option of Jordan and Syria not to integrate the Iraqis’ permanency . However, the United Nations’ High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) considers the Iraqis as â€Å"prima facie refugees† (being registered refugees) who were issued with â€Å"asylum seeker cards† in Jordan and refugee cards in Syria. The UN agencies and NGOs have provided immediate support to lessen the misery. Furthermore, the study team stated that â€Å"the war in Iraq is not limited to Iraq since it has intensely affected the Middle East region . However, according to a statement of a UK-based NGO, many refugees are denied asylum status, being degraded and are even called as â€Å"welfare scroungers† or â€Å"fake refugees† when they come to the UK . It is obvious that the US and UK’s â€Å"War on Terror† is marginalizing refugees still further as numerous legitimate political movements are labeled â€Å"terrorist† . In addition, based on the statement, the UK has curved entire migrant communities as terrorist suspects [in which the anti-terrorism laws have widened the classification of terrorism] encompassed with political activities even on those who are against oppressive regimes overseas . Moreover, the US government has recently released a press statement disclosing that about 12,000 Iraqi refugees will be admitted to US before the end of 2008. According to State Department’s Senior Adviser James Foley, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs’ Tony Edison and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Senior Adviser on Iraqi Refugee Issues’ Lori Scialabba, Iraqis were identified as potential candidates for emigration to the United States. After a year of redoubled efforts, all of the organizations involved in the process are working together to build a more effective refugee screening program . The three US officials further stated that the US has poured in $171 million in humanitarian assistance to displaced Iraqis both in and outside the country in 2007. However, the UN has appealed for $123 million in 2007 to $261 million for 2008 . Scope and Limitation The scope of work will be composed of a 2-prong method which are: (1) on-field and out- field research; within the scope of finding available and adequate materials as derivatives in the conduct of evaluation and the actual field validation of data and (2) study review in areas of fitting in the study parameters in view of legislative policy agenda for refugees in order to re-examine the gaps and further conduct of study. Considerably, the aspect of out-filed research may be limited only to accessing the available data sources, such as on-site interviews to various individuals or personalities and gathering of other data materials that are readily available. Perspectives It has been a glaring and presently debatable issue that Iraqi refugees pose a challenge to global governments and communities of progressive people. The parameters of the study believe that Iraq has not yet overcome the war. While it is true that Iraq was once a captive of political and religious dogmas, the country must still be retained to its sovereign people. The Iraqi refugees is a shame to the least part of developed and even underdeveloped world from Africa to Asian continents because in that part of Middle East lies a bleeding country characterized by the plagues of war. It is in this regard, the study envisions a perspective that would create and supplant the bondage and stigma of war from the life of the Iraqi people. The study also aims to map out the road to recovery, and through that, a foreign policy for Iraqi refugees may guide the ascendancy of moral values and responsibility in order to achieve peace in Middle East and the rest of the world. Conclusion It is clear the Iraqi people continue to walk on the road to perdition due to their long struggle of tyranny. It could be described that the misery after the fall of Baghdad has a continuum in despicable plight. The global partnership in restoring and retaining the democratic processes in Iraq may be a long process and difficult due to the intensely adverse cultural-religious entanglement. Nevertheless, it is necessary to first restore the people’s lives, specifically women, and children. Once this is achieved, it will be no longer hard to once again see the flourishing city of Baghdad where people co-exist in abundant life amidst the barren lands. Bibliography America. Gov, â€Å"United States to Welcome 12,000 More Iraqi Refugees in 2008† (February 06, 2008) [http://www. america. gov/st/peacesec- english/2008/February/20080206160027idybeekcm0. 824032. html] Erik Leaver and Jenny Shin, â€Å"The Iraq Quagmire†, Foreign Policy in Focus, Institute of Foreign Policy, Washington DC 20036. (March 4, 2008). [http://www. fpif. org/fpiftxt/5036] International Development Research Centre (IDRC), â€Å"Middle East Expert and Advisory Services Fund†, Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada (2008). [ http://www. idrc. ca/uploads/user-S/12060300201Microsoft_Word_- _EASF_Program_Profile__3__final. pdf] Kristele Younes, â€Å"The Iraqi Refugee Crisis†, Foreign Policy in Focus, Institute of Foreign Policy, Washington DC 20036 (March 14, 07). [http://www. fpif. org/fpiftxt/4059] Patricia Weiss Fagen, Iraqi Refugees: â€Å"Seeking Stability in Syria and Jordan†, Georgetown University Institute for the Study of International Migration (2007). [http://www12. georgetown. edu/sfs/isim/Publications/PatPubs/Iraqi%20Refugees. pdf] The Refugee Project, 44 Ainger Road, London, NW3 3AT (2008). [http://www. therefugeeproject. org/]

Characteristics of a Leader

‘Leaders should lead by example’ so the saying goes. There are certain characteristic found in some people. It is just that, they put them in a position where people looked up to as a leader. People often say ‘ He or she is a born leader’. Whether in fact a person is born a leader or develop skills and abilities to become a good leader is open for debate. There are some clear characteristics that are found in good leaders. These qualities can be developed and naturally is the part of their personality. Firstly, a good leader must have a positive attitude.This quality is a required not just for a leader but everybody. However, this is specially necessary for a leader. A leader needs to be positive and motivate his team, in times that are hard and times that are brutal. When times are tough and his team is absolutely down, when times are really frustrating, a leader is the who carries his team and his organization forward and that is what a leader needs to do look at the bright side of each and everything. Besides a good leader must be a good listener. This is because a good leader needs to listen to her followers.She needs to get feedback on a regular basis, open her eyes and ears and keep listening. Now a word of caution. Listening does not mean to blindly follow and accept everything that is said and shown. What goes hand in hand is listening. This also helps her followers to express theirs feeling or even to speak their rights. The quality which a leader should possess is intelligence and alertness. A leader has to use his brain every time and also has to remain  Ã‚   alert with   eyes and ears open otherwise he could easily be carried by any fraud or enemy.Many a times we see such situations around us, where a person in trouble or problem doesn’t hesitate in blaming and embarrassing even his closest friend to save himself, and also does not bother about his friends at all because the person has to get rid of his problems anyhow. So, he just thinks about himself and his life,   the life of other does not matter to him much. Some people have a misconception that only those people who are physically strong can become good leaders, but this is not the fact.A leader may not be physically strong but he needs to be mentally strong and firm in decisions. For example, Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation was the greatest leader but he was active and had a firm desire to serve the Nation. He had the power of organizing and uniting people and attracting people towards him by his speeches. This is the best quality of a leader which he had in him. We can also say that, a person who can satisfy the basic psychological needs of his followers can also be an effective leader. A leader must have average character .There are no perfect people, but for a leader to be considered good, they must have a character that is unquestioned within the organization. Leadership always draws criticism from someone, so a leade r may not be able to get everyone to believe in him or her, but the people who know the leader best should trust the leader’s character. In a nutshell, a good leader must be faithful to his group members and activities. This in turn, will result in an atmosphere of assurance among the followers. Having faith in self abilities and the world around him , the leader gains inspiration and also inspires others in the process.

In the News: Pricing of Milk

This year so far milk sales have decreased and dairy farmers are stuck with large amounts of inventory that they can't do anything with. This called for them to lower the price of the milk to under three dollars a gallon in hopes that people would buy more milk. The content of this article is relevant to the class because it covers supply and demand. In addition to this it also covers business strategy. Ultimately dairy farmers were making a lot more money in 2014 because there was a very high demand for milk.When milk ales decreased the dairy farmers were left with inventory that they could not do anything with. At this point they had to make a decision to try to save some of the inventory they had left over. In regards to food products It's a little different compared to items that do not have a sell by date. Milk expires after a certain day and it can no longer be sold. For this reason the dairy farmers and retailers were forced to cut costs to try and get more people to but more milk. This could ultimately fix their overstock problem.By lowering he cost they were hoping that people would buy more milk. If people purchase more milk it can potentially help them get rid of left over inventory. This can also be bad for dairy producers because it they are losing money on every gallon of milk they sell. If they purchased more heavy machinery and hired more workers they may have to lay people off due to plummeting costs.

Hospitality Company analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Hospitality Company analysis - Essay Example The company believes in personal dedication for the employees to achieve anything the employees dream of in the attainment of success. Stinking Rose has many branches in United States that use multi hotel reservation system. The company is known as the largest hotel with lodging and providing garlic stuffs. Stinking Rose has more than 4000 hotels and operates in more than 90 countries operating under Stinking Rose. The company operates under names like Beverly Hills. For example Beverly is located at California which offers famous garlicky signature dishes. If one spends a night at Beverly he or she will only pay $ 139 per night. Another example is Dracula Grotto which is known as the best for a medieval hideaway in this restaurant one will not feed in garlic, and the last Piazza & cafes which is known as the heart of stinking room and one is put under Italy, great people watching and a place for conversation. One of the strategic future directions of Stinking Rose Restaurant is to expand for example in Caribbean and other parts. Another future direction is to remain in the market as the largest hospitality company that provides wide range of brands that are unique and satisfy the customers in all corners of the world. The company was graded as high classic restaurant in San Francisco and was awarded a certificate of excellence in 2013 in terms of food, services, value and atmosphere. The restaurant price range is approximately $23 to $32 when one spends a night in the restaurant being served with garlic stuffs. The company aim is to make sure that it expands world wide and be the best with high quality services at affordable prices to meet all market segments. The board of directors in Stinking Rose Restaurant has the power to hire all qualified and ready to work employees and managers to supervise the company. This means the company will have the best result by attracting a lot of customers due to management. Stinking Rose

World of work silver-organisational awareness Essay - 1

World of work silver-organisational awareness - Essay Example From the feedback, I have learnt that it is easier to use culture and factors as the key guiding principles for the external analysis of the organization. Thus, using a SWOT analysis facilitates in determining the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and the threats that an organization has towards the social based factors. Further, having a well-developed topic for research will assist to make it easy to achieve success in the research process. This occurs because the answering of the topic comprises of the details essential for the achievement of success. I will use the experience to create a chance for identification and evaluation of the organization that I need to work in the future. Such is because entering into an organization without knowing the functions and activities of such organization may prove challenging to me. Hence, having awareness on the organization activities will create an effective opportunity of understanding the nature of the organization and the need for ensuring that it is easy to achieve organization success. It also ensures that I am able to identify the right organization based on personal dream and

Management Change Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Management Change - Case Study Example In considering the movement of an organization from one country to another, the impact of the international environment has to be considered primarily as the organizational structure is highly influenced by the international marketing environment. In this discussion we focus on the nature of the organizational structure and the impact of the international environment on the company that is analysed here and would also discuss the cultural and non cultural factors that seem to affect an organization that shifts base from one country to another (Axinn and Matthissens, 2006). We examine the organizational structure, also the international environment and business environment on international marketing strategies. The implementation of the marketing mix is also considered along with the effects of internationalization and movements of a company from one country to another (Axinn and Matthissens, 2006; Balmer, 2006). ... The focus is on understanding the dynamics and relationship between the origin and destination markets. The four elements of marketing mix consist of the marketing tactics and deals with price, place, product and promotion. These four Ps are the basic elements of marketing but recent theories on 7Ps have added people, process and physical evidence in the marketing mix (Balmer 2006, Gronroos 1993). These elements are important as what customers and buyers get will depend on the combination of the suitability of the price, the quality or acceptability of the product in the market, promotional services done to sell the product and the place in which the product is being sold. Thus some major issues in marketing success relate to the place in which a product is launched or promoted and if the environment is suitable for the product then it would be considered as successful in terms of place, as the place is in accordance with the expectations of the company if the product sold and the ma rketing techniques used are commensurate with the needs of the environment or social conditions. As place defines the social environment, it is an important ingredient in the success of any marketing program and is a part of the marketing tool as the place will show the marketing environment to be considered as also issues such as how far the local environment is suitable for launch or marketing of the product (Gronroos, 1993; Balmer, 2006). The place involves the cultural as well as social values, the lifestyle of the people, the preferences of the surrounding locals and residents, and the geographical or environmental factors that can affect the sale of a product

Writer's choice Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Writer's choice - Coursework Example ons, she also advocates for teamwork that is the reason she makes sure that I go with her to the meeting and more so she acts to the interest of the company. In our meeting, Curt becomes too rigid to listen to our suggestions, he only want us to consider his suggestions. Such rigidity makes the two come into a clear misunderstanding and makes them seem like they do not like each other. Therefore, the meeting later turns to be very competitive as Felicia also on the other side stops to listen to Curt and instead tries to have the last word on every topic. Such an incidence makes me worry losing the best and very important client of our company. Therefore, I recommend that in the near future during such meetings with Midcontinent Midstream, the company should appoint another person to represent us in place of Felicia since she does not come to a common understanding with Curt. Curt also should be more considerate of

The Impact of IFRS for SMEs on UK companies Essay

The Impact of IFRS for SMEs on UK companies - Essay Example All of these entities have the option to adopt corresponding accounting tiered reporting framework under a certain purpose (Baker and Wallage, 2000). For instance in the United Kingdom (UK), publicly accountable entities are required to adopt full international financial reporting standard (IFRS) while those non-publicly accountable entities are required to use IFRS for SMEs. On the other hand, small companies are required to adopt financial reporting standard for smaller entities (FRSSE). However, these different entities have the option to adopt whatever reporting framework they need or most suited to their individual system (Jermakowicz et al., 2006). For instance, in the UK, small companies may have the opportunity to either apply full IFRS or IFRS for SMEs. Small company is defined as having less 250 employees and there are 571 listed of them in the UK in 2010 (Andrews, 2010). Financial reporting standards such as IFRS are designed especially in advanced economies (Tyrrall et al ., 2007). In line with this, there is a strong link between economic system and financial reporting standards. In the UK, it is without question that organisations may eventually adopt it due to complexity of their business operations. However, in the midst of this assurance, it is still important to individually understand how each organisation responds to existing financial reporting standards considering the system they have with them. In line with this, the European Union for instance is trying to call the attention of stakeholders in order to participate in the implementation process (Larson and Herz, 2011). However, in the midst of this strong effort, there is still a need to consider how exactly this will create an impact on the individual stakeholders with specific systems they are adopting. Furthermore, there is certainly an ongoing issue about the effectiveness of using regular IFRS and IFRS for SMEs. Thus, organizations are faced with various considerations on what report ing framework to use in the first place to effectively contribute maximum benefits into their business. For instance, one of the important issues is concerning about cost and successful efforts in adapting to international accounting reporting standards (Cortese and Irvine, 2010). In accounting, an organisation is always faced with issue concerning cost and success of implementing activities. The entire activity does not only employ the idea, but the corresponding compatibility. Companies have ideas on the good thing about creating their own standard about financial and tax accounting reporting and their strong link so as to ensure flexibility in the application process (Street and Larson, 2004). On the other hand, in adopting specific financial reporting framework companies especially in Europe are not only concerned with the costs it may incur. They are also looking forward to the other benefits it may contribute to their organisation (Jermakowicz and Tomaszewski, 2006). The benef its however may vary on what financial reporting standard they employ. Little is known about the impact of IFRS for SMEs on the UK companies. Mostly, the regular or full IFRS have been used and widely evaluated in its performance though. Objective of the study The proponent will assess top ten best small companies in 2010 in the UK

Rock n Roll and Social Change in the USA and Britain Essay

Rock n Roll and Social Change in the USA and Britain - Essay Example Rock n roll developed in a period where after a century of racial tensions in the United States after the Civil War, the segregation system was essentially falling apart. This is reflected in the origins of the music itself where despite its mainly African American origins; it ended up being increasingly popular among largely white youths. The call for racial harmony seen in this music can be considered to have been a reflection of the way that society had essentially come to be weary of racism and segregation and was seeking a new path through the initiative of the youth within it. The coming together of black music and a largely white youth audiences can be considered to have been a reflection of changes that were taking place concerning the perception of race in society as individuals sought to freely interact with members of other races without the restrictions that were being place on them by traditions and laws (Lipzitz, 1989, p.267). It was a fight for the rights of minority r aces in the United States where they had been kept under the dominance of white people for centuries. The rise of rock n roll got the attention of white supremacists and racists who reacted strongly towards it by claiming that it broke down the barriers that had been put in place to ensure that there was a permanent separation of the races . Moreover, rock n roll can be considered to have been a challenge to the status quo in society where youth from all races worked together to ensure that the barriers that separated them were removed . The exportation of this genre of music to Britain was also highly influential because it allowed for a display of the war weariness that had taken grip of the country after the Second World War.

India Change over Time Essay Example for Free

India Change over Time Essay India is a country with a rich culture and many age-old traditions. Although some of these aspects of indian culture can still be seen today, India has changed greatly over the year. A major contributing factor to this change was British colonization of India in the early and mid-1700s; colonization had both short-term and long-term impacts on India. Prior to British colonization most of India lived in small villages and maintained a predominantly agricultural economy. In most regions of India there is a strong sense of family and community. There are many festivals and occasions for celebration, especially weddings. As each region of India has elements of unique culture, occasions and celebrations can vary widely. Before colonization, people lived in extended families. A son would not leave his parents home when he married. Instead, his new wife would live with her husbands family and work for and serve his household. Women had very few choices or rights. They were expected to obey their father until they married, then they would obey their husband. If their husband died, they would be expected to obey their father-in-law. Houses were built of wood, reeds, mud bricks and straw. People slept, ate and sat on the floor, and furniture in houses was not common prior to colonization. Jainism, Hinduism and Buddhism are the three religions that are believed to have shaped Indian thought; religions that are practices world-wide. Many motivations pushed Europeans towards colonizing foreign lands. Primarily, nations established colonies to gain economic profits. In addition to a desire for economic profit, nationalism also served as a reason for colonization. Europeans used the ideas of the White Mans Burden to help justify their colonization of foreign lands. The White Mans Burden was the idea that as supreme beings, it was the job of the white people to spread their superior ways of living to the inferior people of other places. Britain discovered the Indian sub-continent when it was looking to expand its vast empire. In the mid eighteenth century, India became one of Great Britains most important colonies. Great Britain relied heavily on India as a source of raw materials. Britain profited from Indias vast supply of tea and cotton. Beginning in 1757, the East India Company, which was overseen by the British government, ruled India. Britain did benefit from the situation; however, notwithstanding the obvious injustices associated with colonization, India also experienced positive impacts. While Great Britain felt that they were being very generous to the Indian people in colonizing and modernizing the nation, the Indians did not always agree with this. Under British rule, many new roads, railways, and harbors were built, and a telegraph system was created. While the Indians were forced to do much labor in the construction of these things, they were often kept from enjoying and benefiting from the finished products. In fact, the Indian people were treated as second class citizens in their own nation. They were banned from many government positions, and had little rights. They often received lower wages than Europeans working in the same job, and their educations did little for them. The Indians eventually came together to fight against the way that they were treated influenced by the same sense of nationalism that had prompted the British to colonize India more than a century before. After much hard work, India finally gained independence from Great Britain in August 1947; however, although India gained independence all ties with the British nation were not cut. One of the first impacts that colonization had in India was the development of unity. When Britain first acquired India as a colony the country was divided. The British imposed system impacted India by bringing more equality to the country as the caste system which outlined social hierarchy was adapted. It is also significant that Britain accepted all of the religions of India which also allowed unity to prosper. India has also experienced positive impacts from the institution established and then left behind by the colonizers. The institutions established by the British Raj and then inherited by India helped lead to democracy in modern day India. The assistance of these institutions assisted India in becoming the world’s largest democracy today. It is also of note that Britain first introduced India to early capitalism through colonization. Britain transformed India into an agricultural based capitalist economy and established forms of private ownership. These actions led India into creating free trade and competitive business. Today India is the largest provider of services in the world in large part due to colonization; however, it is uncertain if without colonization this would be possible. The Indian population is able to compete in the service sector due to the positive impact of the English language being left behind post British rule. When colonization was occurring in India schools were established which taught and offered instruction in English. It is also of note that the East India Company had a positive impact by establishing some services such as rail throughout the country. The culture of India was also greatly impacted. As the English language spread, indigenous languages were diminished, and the culture, as a whole, began to take on a more European style. Under colonial rule India often depended on Great Britian for such things as technological advances and manufactured goods. Once it became independent, India slowly fell behind the rest of the world, as it had to learn to depend less on other nations and more on itself. India, even today, is considered a third-world country. The nations that were once under colonial rule, such as India, are for the most part the nations that are currently undergoing industrial revolutions. In addition to colonization changing the culture of India, it also affected that of the mother country, Great Britain. Colonization led to an increased diversity of culture in Great Britain. This was because many people from India began to move to Great Britain. Today, Great Britain is still home to many Indian people. The impacts of British colonization were huge and the changes made to India as a nation were great. However, not all of that rich culture was lost. Many of those original religions such as Jainism, Hinduism and Buddhism are still practiced world-wide. Also, even though English is common in education and business, the official language of India today is Hindi. Indians continue to be proud of their culture and traditional Indian buildings, attire, and customs can still be seen throughout the country.

The Origin Of Salsa Music Film Studies Essay

The Origin Of Salsa Music Film Studies Essay The Caribbean region was the first American area to be populated by the immigrants from Africa. Those people with features and traits that differed greatly from the population of two American continents could nor but had a strong influence upon all the spheres of life of the Caribbean region. Their impact embraced the most various spheres: arts, literature, speech, religion, and, of course, music and dance. Their impact was great. Nevertheless all the following waves of immigrants brought to Americas their culture too, the influence of the African people was the greatest: everybody adopted their culture. The vital energy of African people let them took the Caribbean culture, transform it and create a new one, unique and unusual. That phenomenon got the name of creolization the adoption of new African black culture and its quick and effective spread across two continents. Since then Latin American music could avoid the influence of strong African rhythms. The rhythmic loud energetic black music had imprinted the African homeland of the Caribbean inhabitants forever. That is why many genres of the worlds most favorite music originate from Latin America. They come from such countries as Cuba, Puerto Rico, Chile, Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica and many others. One of the most popular and famous genres of music is salsa. It comes from Puerto Rico. Salsa got a very strong influence of vibrating and energetic black music from the African continent. Salsa resembles mambo to a certain extent. It actually originated from mambo having become the independent musical genre. Nowadays the name of the genre denotes a rhythm, but originally it was a genre derived from Cuban rhythms such as Chachacha, Son and Mambo. The present salsa corresponds to a music style. This modern genre plays Cuban rhythms, such a Son, Guaracha, Son Montuno and Guaguanco. In this respect Johnny Pacheco a man who is considered to have shown salsa to New York claims that salsa has always had Cuban origin and has always been its native music. The word salsa itself is of Spanish origin. It means a sauce. It can be associated with Spanish cuisine: the music may be as saucy as meals that is a possible connotation implied on the name of the genre of music. This music style was created approximately in 1960-1970s. Actually salsa is a mixture of African and Spanish music that embraces the most peculiar features of two cultures. It is filled with the history of Puerto Rica and Cuba. Salsa usually begins with a simple melody that is usually improvised. Latin jazz adapted it. Trombone adds it additional aggressiveness and makes it more alike Cuban music. Besides trombones usually add to the general rhythm of a melody; they are usually accompanied by congas, bongos and timbales. Sometimes piano and horn are also present in salsa music. The bands that play salsa music usually diversify their repertoire with songs that differ greatly from each other. They are bombas and plenas, merengue and vallenato. Practically all of them are variations of the famous Cuban son. All of them begin in the same way: with a melodic song; then a montuno break follows; then jazzy solos and instrumental breaks take their turn. The USA have slightly changed salsa music: they made a mix of different genres: meringue, salsa, cumbia, chachacha, bachata. But that actually depends on a DJ that performs music for young people. Percussion is a distinctive feature of salsa music. It can be performed by many different instruments, such as cowbells, claves, conga and timbales. The other instruments that are used during the performance of salsa music are trombones, trumpets, and bass guitar. These are the principal instruments that are necessary and actually obligatory for salsa, but some artists can add many other instruments too. That does not violate the style, but gives additional individuality to a performer of music. In other words these are manifestations of a performers individuality and own style. Recently salsa music was performed by the tres guitars. The band that performed it was called a conjunto. But actually these groups are extinct now, and the tres has become a rarity. There are often twelve people in a band. One of them is a leader that rules the whole band. There are usually from two to four players that are responsible for horns. Other members of a band usually play different instruments: co nga, bongo, piano, timbales and bass guitar. Some instruments may also be used by a singer -a vocalist: such as claves, maracas or guiro. Sometimes a vocalist also uses a bell to accompany the melody. Salsa music is considered to be more appropriate for dances. That is why many songs do not abound in lyrics. If there are some lyrics in the song, they do not usually carry a difficult content; they are easy to understand, as the main idea of salsa music does not consist in words but in music itself and the feelings it arises. Modern salsa music is often very romantic, even sentimental and besides very touching. Its lyrics very often carry a sexual and emotional implication. The music and therefore lyrics do not necessary have to be strictly and before-planned. Improvisation is very welcome during the performance. It gives the additional confidential feeling and creates a very emotional atmosphere and relations between a performer and a listener of the salsa music. Besides practically all the lyrics refer to the Afro-Catholic religion. That does not depend on a person who performs a song, but is implied in the general idea of the salsa songs. As it has already been said salsa originated from the Cuban son. It became the result of mixture of two cultures: African and European (particularly Spanish). Though the intensive development of salsa began after the 1960s, in 1930s salsa music was already rather popular in Cuba. It began to spread across the USA very quickly. American people liked the lively rhythms very much. The most popular performers of salsa music were Felix Chappotin and Arsenio Rodrà ­guez that period. Those days salsa was very close to mambo. The centers of these music genres were in New York City and New Mexico. This situation can be justified by the fact that many bands that performed Latin music were attracted by the developing Hollywood. Most of the members of salsa and mambo bands were of Cuban and Puerto Rico origin. They were Perez Prado, Machito, Tito Rodrà ­guez and Tito Puente. New York really likes that music of African immigrants. Mambo and therefore jazz were in a great degree influenced by jazz music. However jazz tradition was greatly developed in the era of bebop. The 1950s also liked the Latin music. The main popular genres were rumba, mambo and chachacha. They were already widespread across the USA and Europe. Unfortunately the Cuban Revolution of 1959 cut the relations between New York and Cuba and salsa motives declined a little bit. The Latin music leaders of the 1960s were Johnny Pacheco, Ray Barretto and Eddie Palmieri. Nevertheless the crisis in the relations between Cuba and New York Latin music developed gradually as the Afro-American culture had a very strong influence. However the modern salsa is said to have got the strongest push in 1960s in New York. By this time Latin music did not have that strong influence as it did. It gave way to other music genres and directions: doo wop, rock and roll and RB. Still people could hear Latin mambo, salsa and other Latin genres in different parts of New York but they have lost their leading part in musical world of that period of time. They ceased to be the most famous American music. Among the popular performers of salsa of those times were and the Lebron Brothers and Joe Bataan. In the late 1960s the political situation in America became rather unstable. A lot of groups and political organizations were formed by the young population of Afro-American part of the country. These organizations were of rather radical character, such as Black Panthers for example. The Latin part of the population could not stand apart from these active actions of young generation of Americans and also took part in these movements. It could not but reflected on Latin music. It became more mixed, more energetic and more aggressive. It was also based on Cuban son, because it had been the most favorite music of many people for a long time. Besides, it was favored both in New York and in Puerto Rico. By the 1970s the salsa centre moved to the Cheetah and Manhattan. In Manhattan a recording company Fania Records was organized. This company paid much attention to the rising stars of salsa music. Actually it is the credit of this company that the world saw many great performers of salsa music. Fania Records studio was founded by a flautist from the Dominican Republic Johnny Pacheco and Jerry Masucci, an impresario. But the peak of Fania Records career coinsided with the work of Hà ©ctor Lavoes El Malo and Willie Colà ³n in 1967. They introduced some new melodies: plena tunes and son montuno. These motives became the gound for the modern salsa genre. Several years later after the hard work of many people salsa music was actually reborn: the year 1971 saw the performance in Cheetah nightclub. More than one thousand people gathered in order to hear the fascinating tunes of salsa music; that became a new push in the salsa development. It spread rather quickly outside the New York City and reached Miami, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Colombia and many other places. Cali (the city in Colombia) became one of the worlds centers of salsa music. Salsa also was very honored in many places, such as Caracas, Guayaquil and Panama City. That became a very good ground for the further development of salsa music. It spread across Colombia, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Cuba, Venezuela, Puerto Rico and some other countries of Latin America. This new style of music became something more than just a musical genre. Many Latinos associated it with their native music, the music of their culture and their people. The number of salsa bands increased greatly. In New York some radio stations appeared that translated salsa music only. Thus, the Sunday Salsa Show, for instance, became one of the most popular programs in New York. The audience of this show comprised more than one million people who put all their affairs aside every Sunday when the show began. The most popular performers of salsa music that period were Celia Cruz and Eddie Palmieri. They brought some modern innovations to salsa music and made it popular for the next twenty years 1970s and 1980s. The album of salsa music Siembra that saw the world that period became t he best-selling album of Latin music in the whole history. The innovations made by Celia Cruz and Eddie Palmieri did not stop. They were made by many other people after them. Salsa musicians loved this music very much and from the very depths of their hearts brought something new in it. Willie Colà ³n, the leader of a salsa band, introduced the cuatro that was a string Puerto Rican musical instrument. This instrument became popular not only in salsa music, but also in rock, jazz and many other directions including Brazilian and Panamanian music. A man from Fania Records whose name was Larry Harlow made another great innovation in salsa music. He introduced electric piano into it. Thereby salsa genre acquired new features, became a little bit different and therefore fresh and interesting for the new generations. Despite this some of the Latin listeners turned to hip hop, disco, techno or other styles of popular modern music of that period. The 1980s saw another rebirth of salsa music. This time it was made by salsa music band La Verdad and their leader Joe Arroyo. They added the new breath in salsa genre. It has already been said above that modern salsa has romantic and sweet character. Exactly the 1980s gave it this sweetness. During these years salsa music acquired its sweet melodies and romantic character. It became more perceptional, more sensory, and sexual. It became evident after the album Noches Calientes by Josà © Alberto with Louie Ramirez as a producer was released. That provoked a wave of romantic singers and romantic songs. This genre became less popular among energetic Latin people, but it found the new admirers in America among young generation. In the 1980s salsa became very diverse and spread across Mexica, Argentina, Peru, European countries and even Japan. During this period musicians experimented with various genres. They tried to combine different elements of other musical directions and find something new. They succeeded in their intentions as salsa was combined with hip hop and many other popular genres. Some people as Sergio George, for example tried to revive salsas commercial success of the previous years. This man worked with Japanese musicians and made everything possible to bring something new in salsas genre. The most prominent performers of that period were Celia Cruz, Tito Nieves, La India, Josà © Alberto, Luis Enrique and Tito Puente. The years 1990s saw salsa revival. It already had its own genre which was called timba. Such bands as NG La Banda and Los Van Van made a lot to develop it. It still remained Colombian music. Some singers created their own style of performing salsa music. Carlos Vives was among them. He made a lot to popularize it. And he succeeded much as his work resulted in the rising of such stars of salsa music as Gloria Estefan. Nowadays a steady growth in the genre of salsa music is observed. There a lot of performers of it (La India, Brenda K. Starr, Marc Anthony, Son By Four and Và ­ctor Manuelle) and every one of them introduces new elements into this peculiar music that has already proved its independence from the other musical genres. It is popular not only in the Latin America, but in many other countries of the world. This genre of music proved itself to be resistant to social changes and to the changes of time. That is why it does not seem to stop its developing and it surely promises the admirers of it to introduce new elements and to give the world new stars. The innovations of the last time are Latin house, salsa-merengue, merenhouse, salsaton. Since 1990s the African population seems to revive the interest to salsa music. They gave the world such musicians as Bambino Diabate, Bambino Diabate, Ricardo Lemvo. And the world will definitely see new and new salsa stars.

Managing changes in the British Airways organization

Managing changes in the British Airways organization This report is the part of assessment of the managing changes in organisation and on-going research and opportunities available for the different changes in the strategies. For this assessment I have chosen the British Airways as my organisation for the foreseen of the management of the organisational changes and how they can be effectively implemented in an organisation. This report covers all the key aspects for the implementation of the changes within as organisation and also suggests some implications for their successful running. Good organisation structure does not by itself produce good performance. But a poor organisation structure makes good performance impossible, no matter how good the individual managers may be. (Drucker in Mullins (2005) p597) Task 1: Explore the background to change affecting the current organisation Discuss the background to change that exists in todays economy that motivated your organisation to consider Change. INTRODUCTION In todays era we are lining in the organisational world and this world is tending to be change continuously. Organisations in the society are the most important part as they serve many vital and necessary needs and demands of the society and even individuals. NEED FOR ORGANISATIONAL CHANGE Changes are mostly taken as the fears and uneasiness of the unknown. The changes of organisation within a firm or company are subjected to activate by the need and necessity to respond over the fresh opportunities, innovative type of challenges and the responses to the government laws and regulations. There are the external forces that bring the changes are effected by the various factors like innovative technologies, policies, structure of taxes, legislation policies and coming opportunities with different market forces. Organisational changes for the sectors of private area are vital as there is pressure from the different environments over them. There are some kinds of pressures that are due to the changes in the patterns of the work and referred to the place of work or workforce, customers needs and their conflicts regarding the services and products provided to them. So, here in this competitive environment only those organisations can be successful that are adapted to the changes and accept the changes. They must be able to change themselves according to the environment otherwise they would be unsuccessful in future. They then have the risk to takeover and become stagnant. In order to change or adapt they must be clear to define the following in accordance to the changing environment. The nature of any kind of change proposed The origin for the need of changes. According to the Decent Home Standards set by the Government in July 2000 ensure that all social housing meets set standards of decency by 2010, by reducing the number of households in social housing that does not meet these standards by a third between 2001 and 2004, with most of the improvement taking place in the most deprived local authority areas http://www.bankofgoodpractice.org/contentmanagement/documents/pdfhtmlfiles/FD7DF6AA-20ED-3428-8A3B720FC2698940.htm Introduction to the company British airways and reason for the implementation of changes British airways BA is well known and UKs biggest airline at international level. This airway used to carry a huge number of passengers from the various countries and at the international level. This company is not only recognised in UK as well as in the world as the biggest airline. The destinations covered by this airline to the worldwide routes are 550 around across the world globe. British Airways is the worlds biggest international airline, carrying a vast number of passengers from various countries to another. Also the company is one of most recognised airlines in the world. British Airways worldwide route network covers around 550 destinations across the globe. This company has mainly two bases in the London one it Heathrow airport terminals and the other one is Gatwick airport terminal. No doubt that BA is recognised as the largest international services in airlines though it has to face the high competition with its rival US as they tend to pick and drop the more passengers at the domestic level flights. Some time it has to be struggling to keep ahead in the competition. Following entitled some of the problems which have to be faced by the BA. Problems faced by BA: British Airways have faced threats and due to the long standing arguments with its unions, as well as a possible expensive strike ahead, as the organisation has cut thousands of jobs as a part of its restructuring programme. British Airways are currently struggling with staff shortages as the level of absenteeism for the companys employees are high above the average and unacceptable figures for the industry. Employees are said to be unmotivated and morale is low, as increase in pay is low and the restructuring of the company have led to 13000 job losses, the reason being the decline of the economy i.e. some ticket prices lowered to attract consumers, thus decreasing staff bonuses, salaries, redundancies etc., or some prices increased due to maintenance, travelling cost. Failures with BAs  £4.3 billion Terminal 5 (Heathrow) at launching stage, BA blamed the glitches on problems with staff familiarisation, which had a knock-on effect on bags and flights. Technical difficulties also meant major delays in reclaiming luggage, flight cancellations, and suspension of check in service. Anti-airport expansion groups holding protests. This is because these groups are concerned with the level of pollution and harm already caused to the environment. Factors responsible for change in BA: The problems that are outline above are basically due to the internal influences. However, here it is very necessary to remember that there are different environmental factors that have their influence over the strategies of the British airways and even their image, structure and means of operating. As the high-quality process for delineation of the political, social, cultural economical and technical factors usually affect the changes in the organisations in the form of pest analysis for the British airways and illustrate these factors and how they intend to change in the environment. Political factors Upsurges in the prices of the fuel that will drive up expenditures of flying an airplane. Firmer EU rules and regulations related to the noise pollution have affect over the airlines. As there is involvement of Britain in the difficulties in the areas of Eastern nations and Iraq results in the unwilling to go with the organisation. Preferences of Britain regarding not to introduce the Euro has resulted in the decline in the percentage of the travellers to UK. Economic factors Due to increase in the rates of interest there is great impact over the customers and they intend to save their money. They dont want to spend their money and this brings the reduction in the demand of holiday flights. Also there is increase in the taxes of and the flights become expensive. Socio-cultural factors At the instant it is very popular to travel out of the country, nevertheless attitude and taste of the customers changes very quickly. Threats of terrorist attack may reduce peoples desire to fly i.e. 9/11 New York, USA Due to the insecurity and increase in the number of airline crashes there is decrease in the percentage of the passengers travel through the airlines. Most of the British airways flights are non-smoking and stop the smoking passengers to choose these airlines. Technological factors Technology is proceeding in culture so quickly that in the coming future travelling by aeroplane may not necessary or flat outdate. British Airways clienteles are gradually discontinuing the usage of phones to reserve their travel documents or tickets. Having looked at the PEST analysis, it is clear that there is a large threat of the luxury airlines to the British Airways. For this there must be go with the opting the strategic management changes and marketing sources available and to follow up the promotional activities for the BA. Theoretically evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of bureaucratic organizations SWOT ANALYSIS OF BRITISH AIRWAYS SWOT analysis is very useful tool for analysing the changes and the position of the company. It makes the company to be aware of the powers and weakness of the company with the opportunities and threats for the market. It is an assessment procedure for the company to find its strengths, and weaknesses and compared these with the opportunities and threats that can be faced in the competitive market (Fry et al, 2004). The strength of the organisation as well the weakness is related to the past and present, and is taken as the internally controlled factors within an organisation. On the contrary the threats and opportunities are related to point out the present and future of the organisation and for the taking of more outward looking for the developments (Brassington and Pettitt, 2003). STRENGTHS The skills, resources and other kind of advantages of a company are defined as the strength of an organisation relative to its competitors in the market (Griffin, 2002). Accordingly the strengths of organisation British Airways (www.britishairways.co.uk) can be as follow: it continues to dominate Londons major airports it contains the latest check-in technology its communication between managers and staff is very good It is still being perceived as the national airline. WEAKNESSES Weakness as the name implies are the deficiencies or drawbacks or we can say that shortcoming of the resources, skills and other kind of factors that create hindrance to get the competitive advantage form the market (Griffin, 2002). Accordingly the drawbacks and weaknesses of the British Airways (www.britishairways.co.uk) are as follow:- It contains of great labour numbers, particularly in the United Kingdom; It has a dragging back aptitude. 4.1.3 OPPORTUNITIES The opportunities obtain data about economic, financial, political, legal, social and competitive changes in various markets the firm serves or might want to serve (Griffin, 2002). The opportunities of British Airways (www.britishairways.co.uk) could be that:- Expedition in the economic segment of the organization. Perception of the airlines as the national airlines. THREATS The threats of an organisation are defined as the shrinking markets, increased competition, and the potential for new government regulations, political instability in key markets and the development of new technologies that could make the firm product lines obsolete (Griffin, 2002). Accordingly the threats for the organisation British Airways are as follow (www.britishairways.co.uk) It has ferocious opposition from low fare airlines e.g. Easy Jet Its economy is on downturn; Its companies are investing largely in order to improve their services; Its technology offers a short-term advantage Task 2: Develop systems for understanding and involving others in the process of change Identify the key Stakeholders in your organisation and Develop systems to involve those stakeholders in the introduction of change. Stakeholders Every organisation needs the change so that they can satisfy their customers, because the view of altogether of the stakeholders is the important to define the success of the organisation. British Airways wants to comprehend its stakeholders (customers, opinion leaders and employees) for the better to inform the various decisions to be taken. Consequently, detailed and systematic dimension of measurement and research are basically placed to give the important information. Following are the main stakeholders in the organisation to bring the changes and influence the process of the organisation. Customers Shareholders Government Employees Community The brief explanation of these stakeholders is as follow for the better understanding of their role: Customers: The customers are the key factor for the organisation and there must be changes according to the needs and desires of the customers. Customer satisfaction is very important as the satisfied customers become loyal and retained for the long time with the organisation by keep in mind the need and expectations of the customers there must be implementation of the changes within an organisation. This is mandatory for the organisation to be ahead in the completion. Here it is also found that it is easy to keep the existing customer while trying to attract the new customers even these loyal customers attend to bring more customer as they go through the word to mouth procedure and if they are happy and satisfied they will promote the culture of organisation and that will be result in the more customers, so there must be strategies and change by having the customers in mind first. The monitoring of the feedback on the key stages of flights is usually followed each month. They monitor customers feedback on key stages of their flights each month, using a sample of passengers seated in particular positions throughout the aircraft. Shareholders: The shareholders are also very crucial for the organisation as they are the investors and sources of finance for the organisation. The change must happen in the organisation have greater influences over them as they have their investment in the company.so the changes are usually subjected to the shareholders. Employees: Employees are very important for an organisation. As they provide the interface between the services and the customers. The position of the organisation has affect over the employees if they would not happy how they can provide the good services to customers and Community: the community within an organisation includes the working environment with the managers from other countries, employees and to the relevant community and also refer to the organisation that are non-government that enable to manage the processes at the local level and fro bringing up the changes for the substantial advantages for the concerned communities, British Airways is devoted to actuality a good fellow, apprehensive for the community and surroundings. They repeatedly endeavour to develop the social and environmentally friendly presentation, by the objective of guaranteeing that the actions add to the supportable development of the communities in which company perform their function. The government: Her Majestys Prison Service (the Service) is part of the wider Home Office. Since 1993, the Service has been an Executive Agency of the Home Office and that remains the case. Since June 2004, the Service has also been part of the National Offender Management Service (NOMS). NOMS is a huge enterprise spanning several organizations and around 70,000 staff. Analyse and evaluate these systems which you had used to involve the key stakeholder in change process. Change process There is a substantial arguments related to the most suitable process of change for the organisation being having a wide range of literature present in the writings regarding management of change and even there are many tools and instruments for the implication of the changes into the management. But subsequently change is a domineering for all the organisations in order to sustain in this competitive environment organisation to sustain in a competitive environment, the organisation follow up the planned approach for the changes management in the organisational environment. At first Kurt Lewin has coined this term for the distinguishing the changes that was consciously boarded upon and scheduled by an organisation. (Burnes 2000, p.264) The planned approach to change is most closely associated with the practice of Organisation Development (OD) and indeed lies at its core. There are some apparent values that emerged as given as follow (Hurley et al 1992) Empowering employees to act Creating openness in communications Facilitating ownership of the change process and its outcomes The promotion of a culture of collaboration The promotion of continuous learning(Burnes 2000, p.265) These are those values that are incorporated in the British Airways and needs to incorporate into the cultural change for the successful implementation of the foster of the new culture in the organisation. Task 3: Plan to implement models for ensuring on going change Identify number of appropriate models for change that suites your organisation. Models for the changes in British Airways At present the BA is following that enable changes for the long term advantages in the organisation. These models are followed in the three steps as follow: Lewins 3 Step-Model: 1. Unfreezing: This generally entails reducing those current practices and cultural norms that maintain the organisations behaviour. It is likely to taken as the shake-up stage for subdivisions related in the management of the organisational changes. The processes of BA consist of the following: Decrease in quantity of stages in the organisational order. Economizing of workforce of the British Airways. Start of improved programs for the training for the staff, so that they become able to avoid such type of situations in order to avoid such situations, so that the employees do not have to face the problems with the new technologies i.e. Terminal 5 incident. Modifications in the structures and systems of the British Airways. Amendment in the budgeting process. 2. Moving to a new level This contains the actions taken by the British Airways regarding the results of the above step. In this process first there is analyse of the situation and then possible measures are taken to solve that particular problem and to implement the changes by choosing the most appropriate way and path for the action to be taken. After that there is selection of necessary move taken regarding the changes to implement. This step helps to make sure that the new ways are not done for just a short period, and staffs are not reverting back to the old ways, subsequently the following tasks are carried out by BA: 3. Refreezing This is the last step of the model and this relates to stabilising the changes in the organisation. From this step it comes to make sure about the appropriateness of new methods that working safely and in an effective way. This phase does by completely supportive and strengthening the new ways of effort, like system of rewards induction and recruitment and even the strengthening of the culture for the British Airways. Furthermore other big changes that BA has implemented in its organisation are its high-level of Information Technology (I.T). This is becuase information systems and managemenet plays a key role in the airline industry. I.T supports almost every task in BA which most imporatntly underpins the delivery of quality service. Also BA have chosen to intergate better technolgy i.e. self check-in service, and more recently an underground lost baggage collection department, which is around a mile long and directly underneath the airport itself. This is is another path for success in uncertain times. By effectively applicating technology it will definately deliver BAs objectives and goals. Additionally Information Management objectives regarding I.T in BA includes: Supporting the development of the BAs workforce, I.T and associates relations, so that it can deliver genuinely faultless customer service across their own route network and their associates. Improve efficiency of operations and decrease costs as a result of standardised and simplified I.T. Utilize BAs capability and knowledge of the airlines industry processes, in order to deliver the strategic systems, customer service, thus gaining recognition that will help the airline in the future. There are other requirements that are needed for the changes in the British airways are to have outsourcing in the form of subcontracting, like production of the designs and work with another party. This has been used by the British Airways for their business at most for the core aspects of the business. The outsourcing is used to reduce the cost of the expenditures of the organisation. In addition to this there is use of strong strategic alliances by the BA. This alliance includes the joining of American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, Lan Airlines, Malà ©v, Qantas and Royal Jordanian. By following this there is a range of opportunities for the cooperative solutions that are designed in order to provide a world that is seamless. Furthermore BA also involved in the implementing to spent the funds for the advertising of the organisation as it is going to support and sponsor the sports event that are going to be held in London i.e. London Olympic 2012 under cultural and charitable activities (BACC scheme) around the world i.e. 2012 Olympics is proudly sponsored by BA. There are some other aims and objectives that have been set by the organisation in order to meet in the coming future are as follow: Encourage 10% of customers to offset their carbon on ba.com by 2012 Audit 100% of our strategic suppliers for ethical practices by 2012 75% of corporate customers use corporate responsibility as a decision criteria by 2010 In adding there are some key issues of the environmental preservation to which the organisation is committed. These objectives are as follow: Zero waste to landfill in the UK by 2010 Reduce the average noise per flight by 15% by 2015 50% reduction in our net CO2 emissions by 2050 How would you go ahead in implementing one or more model(s) in your chosen organisation and what improvements do you expect to achieve by implementing your chosen model(s). Implementing Change Models Planned Change Change that involves actions based on a carefully thought-out process that anticipates future difficulties, threats and opportunities Reactive Change Change that occurs when one takes action in response to perceived problems, threats and opportunities (Management, Bartol Martin, 1994, Page 208) The management of the changes within an organisation in an effective way is taken as the core issue of the development of the organisation. In this there is involvement of the Lewins three phase model as discussed above. Unfreezing recognition of the need for change and reducing the forces that maintain the current form Movement development of new attitudes or behaviour and implementation of change (new policies etc.) Refreezing stabilising change (are training, structures, new policies and procedures working?). Check, review and re-examine how changes are being implemented. Additional model implementation Mobilising Change: Change is the drumbeat in any organisation. It is unavoidable and thats why it is very crucial for the achievement of the success for an organisation. Demystify lack of clarity can create a fog around your organisations purpose, position and philosophy. Think outside in check the alignment to external environment and scrutinise capability to meet the demands of all stakeholders. Map the system study the leadership team to highlight interdependencies between teams and reveal where development may be required. Communicate and engage explain any change that is taking place. Do this in a way that engages stakeholders and is emotionally compelling, to provoke thoughts and action from your audience (Inside Housing, Paul Oliver, Director, Conduco Consulting, Page 32, 9th December 2005). Conclusion Overall conclusion from the above report, we have looked into the various aspects of the British Airways management of changes, structure and performances and also discussed the processes in which these changes are transferred into the organisation. Whats additional through observing into the several conceivable methods to management change, I must remained able to summary change strategies that require and can be applied by the British Airways, for the effective implementations. However it has to consider here that if all plans for the implementation of changes running in a smooth way. In addition to all it is mandatory for the British Airways to effectively transfer their changes to the organisation so that there must be significant results. There are suggested some key areas in which there is need of investment for the BA are as follow: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Development in the incentives and appraisal schemes etc. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ For managers and employees there should be provision of training. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Different franchising actions. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Outsourcing of the peripheral activities References

Essay --

First Name: Francisca Last Name: Morel Subject: English 100 The Unbelievable Truth behind Video Games â€Å"Children began playing video games for increasing amount of times, and the games themselves became more graphically violent over time. Parents, educators, physicians, and researchers began to question what the impact of these changes might be† (qtd in The Effect of Video Games: What Parents Need to Know). Thus, for the past decades, video games have become the subject of many controversial debates and they have been â€Å"frequently criticized by parents, politicians, and sociologists.† However, their arguments against video games have overshadowed the importance of playing video games. In reality, playing video games can greatly contribute to the welfare of the American society. Video games are educationally beneficial for children. In the article â€Å"Effect of Video Games: What Parents Need to Know†, Dr. Douglas clearly stated that â€Å"video games are natural teachers. Children find them highly motivating; by virtue of their interactive nature, children are actively engaged with them; they provide repeated practice; and they include rewards for skillful play. †¦video games have been shown to teach children healthy skills and have been successful at imparting the attitudes, and behaviors that they were designed to teach.† For example, â€Å"playing a golf video game improved students' actual control of force when putting, even though the video game gave no bodily feedback on actual putting movement or force.† â€Å"Traditional games teach kids basic everyday skills, according to Ian... ...Although many politicians, parents, and sociologists have fought against video games, it can be concluded that playing video games can contribute to the welfare of our society. â€Æ' Work Cited Douglas, Gentile. "The Effects of Video Games on Children: What Parents Need to Know ." Pediatrics for Parents. Pediatrics for Parents, n.d. Web. 6 Oct 2013. . Steinbeirg, Scott. "The Benefits of Video Games." ABC News. ABC News, 26 Dec 2011. Web. 6 Oct 2013. . Gallagher, Danny. "7 Health Benefits of Playing Video Games." The Week. The Week , 10 March 2013. Web. 6 Oct 2013. .

Northouses Leadership, Theory and Practice :: assigned leaders vs emergent leaders

1. Read Chapter 1 in Northouse. What does leadership mean? Justify your response. Explain the following components of leadership: process, influence, group context, and goal attainment. Northouse described a number of leadership approaches and theories. He began by pointing out there are as many definitions of leadership as there are people to define leadership. As a result, he developed his definition by first outlining the components of leadership. The features listed by Northouse were that leadership is seen as a process, involves influencing other people, takes place in the context of a group, and is based on the attainment of a mutual goal. He then defined leadership as â€Å"a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal†. On another note, leadership is simply defined as the influencing process of leaders and followers to achieve organizational objectives through change (Lussier & Achua, 2010). Process: The leadership process is the ongoing relationship between leaders and followers to accomplish company goals. Leadership is basically the influence of a leader in achieving shared goals through followers. The process of leaders and followers working together is different for each business. Some companies value and incorporate leadership development or management trainee programs into their company culture. Leadership process is not a linear but an interactive event. Influence: is the process of leader communicating ideas, gaining acceptance of them, and motivating followers to support and implement the ideas through change (Lussier & Achua, 2010). This element is all about the relationship between leader and followers. Moreover influencing includes power, politics, and negotiation. Leaders gain the commitment of followers who are willing to adapt and get influenced. Group context: Leadership occurs in a group context. It takes place in groups and involves the process of influencing individuals in the group who have a common purpose. Goal attainment: Leadership involves goal attainment. It includes attention to goals and directs a group of individuals towards accomplishing a defined task or goal. 2. Distinguish between assigned and emergent leaders. Give an example of an instance in which you â€Å"emerged† as a leader. Explain how your communication might have facilitated your emergence as a leader. Include information from one outside source, in addition to the textbook, and include all appropriate APA documentation. Assigned leadership is primarily by appointment of people to formal leadership positions of authority within an organization. Assigned leaderships could be managers of sports teams, presidents and vice presidents of the universities, plant managers, the CEOs of hospitals, the executive directors of nonprofit organizations.

Compare and contrast Goffmans and Foucaults explanations of how social order is made and remade

Social order is the way individuals fit together with others and things around them (E. Silva, 2009, page 311), it’s what keeps society running smoothly. Order is the implicit (unwritten and unspoken) and explicit (laws, written and spoken) rules that control society’s behaviour and make individuals courteous and respectful to one another. These rules usually go unnoticed and it is only when something happens that is against the norm (earthquake, car accident, and mugging, among other examples) that people begin to question the rules that keep them in order. Both Goffman and Foucault made attempts to explain how order is made and remade. Goffman used a micro approach to explaining order; that is, he concentrated on the individual and patterns of everyday interactions while Foucault used a macro approach, looking at wider society, genealogy and power to explain order. There are many similarities and differences between their approaches. Goffman’s work on interactional order argued that individuals are performers, who act, adopt a mask or follow the norm in their everyday lives (S. Taylor, 2009, page 172). He argued that order is made and remade through every day interactions and that the order is created by repetition and improvisation. He believes that social change comes about due to actions being built and rebuilt (E. Silva, 2009, page 317). Goffman examined rituals and interactions in everyday lives and saw how tact and trust were shown through the use of actions, gestures and language between strangers. Strangers exchange a number of codes of civil indifference through implicit contracts which both allow acknowledgement and protection. However, order breaks down when these codes are misinterpreted or misread and on some occasions punishment follows. First impressions are important and Goffman believes that individuals ‘put on a show’ to try and manage the impression they are giving which helps us to read the situation and categorise people to make a sense of order. Foucault however, looked at discourse (a set of shared ideas used to view the functions of society) and how order is controlled by knowledge and power. Foucault looked at how the knowledge of order comes about (E. Silva, 2009, page 319). He argued that the authority to intervene is allocated to certain individuals (or institutions) and is instigated through practices of law, punishment and education and that different institutions (school, family, workplace for example) have different powers of intervention to regulate behaviour and order. Discourses help shape society towards popular attitudes and allow people to know if they are ‘normal’ by behaving in a certain way. Foucault disputes Goffman’s idea that the individual is self-aware, coherent and in control, he believes that individuals have very little control and that we behave according to knowledge gained through socialisation that we ‘pick up’ as we age. Foucault sees individuals as docile and passive who cooperate in subordination. Foucault believes in a disciplinary society dominated by professionals (experts) who use discourse based on knowledge and power to make and remake social order. Foucault believes there are three different types of power involved in making social order. Sovereign power (power of society’s ruling authority; monarchy, state or political authority) exercises power through the ability to visibly punish wrong-doers. The second form of power is surveillance, where information is gathered and held to keep people in line, to control their behaviour and make them conform to social order. People understand they are under constant surveillance and begin to adjust their behaviour to regulate conduct to be ‘normal’. The third for of power is self-directing and active. This is when individuals believe they are unique and as a result of internalised discipline they order themselves (E. Silva, 2009, pages 321-322). A good example of social order in process is road traffic and road design. The Buchanan Report (Ministry of Transport, 1963) was commissioned to produce a new design for space and roads in the towns around the UK. It was produced in response to the rising number of traffic in towns and residential areas and was about the needs of individuals to live with motor vehicles (E. Silva, 2009, page 327). Buchanan used the argument of scientific rationality (the universally accepted standards that are understood by knowledge), claiming that ‘†¦ Guesswork and intuition can be largely eliminated; given the necessary information†¦ ’ (Buchanan cited in E. Silva, 2009, page 329). Buchanan concluded that traffic and pedestrians need to be segregated and bound by rules through visible displays (such as signs, speed humps and so on). Buchanan’s report is an example of the modernist approach, where space is controlled by rules, prohibitions and orders requiring motorists to adapt to known systems of motoring. Buchanan uses scientific rationality to explain how road users know the rules of the road. He believes that through visible signs and knowledge people learn how to use the road orderly and safely. Foucault claims that people learn order through the knowledge of discourse. He believes that individuals are docile and subordinate and follow rules that have been taught through power by ‘experts’. The Buchanan report shows individual intuition has been eliminated; Foucault also believes that individuals are not in control of their own destinies (E. Silva, 2009, page 321). In contrast to the Buchanan report and Foucault’s order of things approach, Monderman’s thesis allows for individual thought and awareness. Monderman, after years of segregation between vehicles and pedestrians suggested a theory of ‘shared-space’ for road and path users. Starting in the Netherlands in the early 80s, Monderman carried out experiments on road design to show that by creating areas where pedestrians, vehicles and cyclists share the same space to move around, road safety can be improved and awareness of motorists can be increased. Monderman believed people moved round in ‘zombie-like’ states while driving on traditional road designs (segregation of motorists and pedestrians) and are taught to blindly follow instructions and not to think for themselves. He believes this is when accidents occur (order is disrupted) (Monderman cited in E. Silva, 2009, 334-335). In his experiment in the town of Oudeshaske, Netherlands, he removed all road signs, barriers, etc and created an even surface with no road or path markings. He replaced these with trees, flowers and in some areas even fountains to help control behaviour on the roads by psychologically calming traffic by reducing speed and making motorists and pedestrians alike more aware of others around them. Both motorists and pedestrians have to make eye contact before moving/crossing thus making them responsible and aware of their own behaviour. Monderman’s flexible approach of the shared-space scheme, allow for individuals to act of their own accord and to make their own decisions on social order. This is similar to Goffman’s interactional order, where he believes everyday interactions are responsible for making social order. Monderman believes there is a redistribution of expertise, with individuals becoming experts in road safety and their abilities to negotiate shared space (e. Silva, 2009, page 341) and Goffman also believes that individual performers are responsible for creating social change to produce order. In his work, Goffman used participant observation and ethnography to support his theory. By using these methods he studied current issues to find invisible social order to capture the understanding and manifestation of how society is ordered. Foucault however, studied historical documents to question familiarities in the present and found that through processes of social development, social order was created (E. Silva, 2009, page 323). Their methods of investigation differ and this can also have an effect on outcomes. Participant observation can be biased. However, searching historical evidence can only be as reliable as the record keepers at the time. Overall, both Goffman and Foucault have produced theories on how social order is created and maintained, they both agree that society is and integration of fragments being ordered differently, for Goffman these are individual interactions and Foucault believes they are discourses organised by knowledge and power (E. Silva, 2009, page 323). By looking at the present and the individual, Goffman fails to allow for historical influences to factor in to how order is made, Foucault however, allows for historical influences, but fails to allow for the impact of individual personality in the creation of social order. Foucault’s macro theory looks at wider society to explain how social order is formed, this can be beneficial because he looks at historical evidence to see how present social order is formed. Goffman’s micro theory looks at smaller everyday actions and interactions and shows how individuals are responsible (to some extent) for creating social order.

Case Review: Linear Technology Essay

Linear Technology was based out of Silicon Valley and founded in 1981. The company specialized in design, manufacture and marketing of analog integrated circuits. Linear enjoyed a diversified customer base, with 33% of its business coming from the communications sector, 27% from computers, 6% from automotive, and 34% from various other applications. With their focus on the analog segment of the IC sector, which was characterized by custom designed products, it was imperative that Linear hires and retains talented people who were accustomed to out-of-the-box thinking and who could readily develop innovative techniques and products that would keep them competitive. Going IPO in 1986, Linear operated with a modest CAPEX. Additionally they enjoyed low obsolescence of equipment and techniques. This combined with their low R&D expenses led to margins that exceeded that of competing digital IC products. This is supported by Linear’s 7th seat positioning on the Philadelphia Stock Exchange Semiconductor Index (SOX). Linear’s net income was at its highest in 2001, when global technology spending was at its highest, and its lowest sales the following year. They still maintained positive cash flows and strong margins; this was accomplished through various mechanisms such as cost cutting aided by their variable cost structure. As of 2003 Q3, Linear was emerging out of the recession with strong financials. However, top line sales and net income remained lower than their high point in 2001. Due to political unrest throughout the World, the future of the tech industry remained unclear. Year over year growth in 2003 when compared to 2002 was good, but the company didn’t see a clear path to reaching 2001 levels. At the same time, they didn’t want to sacrifice margins in new markets like Asia. By 1992 Linear’s management was comfortable in their ability to sustain future cash flows, having been cash flow positive since IPO, and began issuing dividends of $.00625 per share (payout ratio: 15%). In 2002 LLTC  continued issuing dividends, despite the higher payout ratio (27.24%), as they didn’t want to lose favor with investors. It is likely that Linear viewed dividends as a way to stay in the portfolio of mutual funds and EU investors who strongly favored dividend-paying stocks. Simultaneously, Linear also began to buy back shares when interest rates were low or/and when market valuation of Linear stock was low. They were skeptical about paying out all or more of their cash in dividends as this could signal lack of growth potential. It is notable that many institutional investors held Linear stock, largest among which was Janus Capital. Linear wanted to be sure to send positive signals to their investors. With a large cash balance ($1.5 billion) and no debt, Linear was at a crossroads – they needed to know what to do with their cash. Their options were: 1) Invest in new projects, 2) Payout via dividends and/or repurchases, and 3) Save it for future investments in innovation and diversification. In this p per, we will analyze three different approaches in deciding Linear’s payout for Q3. Approach – 1 Cent Dividend Increase The analysis below assumes the decision to repurchase 165.7 million in stock will not be adjusted. The decision to be made is to either raise our dividend by one cent per share, or leave the third quarter dividend of .05 per share intact. Payout Decision Historically Linear has not increased dividends in Q3, so a conservative approach for the board would be to approve the continuation of the dividend policy from Q2. Continuing the status quo of .05 per share, the payout ratio would adjust to 27.48 percent of Net Income. Increasing dividend by one cent per share would increase the YTD payout ratio to approximately 29.31 percent for the three quarters (Exhibit 1), a modest increase. At $0.06 dividend per share, the total Q3 dividend payout will be $18.7 million, which will still be considered small by our institutional investors, given our large cash position. The adoption of the 1-cent increase will provide a full offering of 215.70 million dollars back to our investors in the form of dividends and stock repurchases as shown below: Paying the additional 1-cent would still be consistent with our long-term dividend strategy, but the total package will not be aligned with the requests of some of our largest investors. Available Cash to Distribute At this point it is important to note that the firm will be paying out more to the shareholders via share buybacks and dividends, than the firm has available to the equity holders through its operations. This overpayment holds true if the firm holds the dividend at .05, or increases it to .06. The firm has generated a total of 207.5 million FCFE dollars, but would be choosing to payout a total of 215.7 million given the decision to increase the dividend by one cent. Staying committed to the .05 dividend reduces this figure by only three million. Cash Needs and Agency issues Surplus cash to address any unforeseen needs will readily be available by adopting the conservative one-cent increase plan. Increasing the dividend to .06 includes holding on to almost 100 percent of a very large cash position, and therefore provides little pressure to identify such future cash needs. Signaling Linear’s sales are trending upward since the 2002 decline, but the immediate future is still not clear. The adoption of this conservative plan would continue their strategy of consistently signaling a message of safety and consistency of cash flows to their investors, yet provide options for our turbulent times. Other uses for this cash such as improved employee incentives, training, and workplace improvements should also be considered. Other Considerations The drawback for adopting the conservative plan without addressing the concerns of Janus and other like-minded investors could signal that they are not quite ready to suggest that their recent troubles are behind them. If we do choose this plan, a carefully crafted message to address investor concerns should be communicated to investors as quickly as possible. Additionally, other approaches such as one-time share buybacks and special dividends should be considered to address the concerns of Janus and other firms that share their view on Linear’s current cash position. We address these in Approach 2, 3 outlined in the sections that follow. Approach – 2 Payout all of Linear Technology’s Cash 1 In this section, we consider an alternate payout strategy in which Linear returns all of its 1.5 billion to its shareholders, by either (a) Paying a special dividend of $5.01 per share, or (b) Repurchasing about 50 million shares. (a) Special Dividend of $5.01 per share One goal of the special dividend will be to show investors that Linear is in a good position and to buy shares from Linear Technology is not comparable with the risk normally associated with the purchase of shares from technology companies. Additionally it signals to the market that Linear is serious about sharing its wealth with its shareholders. With these higher overall payouts, Linear Technology can reach investors that have specific income goals. Share price In case of a dividend announcement, demand for shares will rise. If investors know that a certain dividend amount will be paid, the share price increases by that amount (Law of One price). In this case, the current share price is $30.87 and dividend announced will be $5.01; hence the share price cum dividend can be expected to increase to $35.88. 1 Exhibit 4 shows calculations for numbers presented in this section Firm value Depending on the time until the dividend is paid, not the whole amount of dividend is added to the share price. If there is still a certain period of time until the dividend is paid, only the net present value of the dividend will be added to the share price. It also can be said that the closer the payment of the dividend gets, the more the amount of the total dividend payment is added to the normal share price. That also means that consequently the market value of equity also will rise. At the day ex-dividend day the share price will drop below the level of the pre-announcement day because the dividend as driver of the rising demand had been paid. The additional value of $5.01 that was is not part of the share value any more. The dividend, as part of the equity, is paid to the shareholder. Therefore, the dividend policy as a whole will not be a decisive factor in the firm’s value. Payout ratio However, in this scenario the payout ratio becomes a ridiculously high 945% (Exhibit-4), which is very high compared to peers. (Exhibit 2) Signaling By deploying capital through an increased dividend versus a share repurchase, management is signaling that Linear’s stock is fairly valued in the market. However, If Linear increases its dividend too much say by giving out all the cash as dividends, management could signal to the market that it believes the company’s growth is slowing and there are no new positive NPV projects for the company to invest in. However, this may help send a positive signal that the company is confident about generating positive cash flows for its operational and investment needs. Since profits of Linear Technology this quarter was far lower than that last year, a huge special dividend may help the investors regain faith in the company. Agency problems Increasing dividend is also a good way to reduce agency costs. With large amount of cash balance in hand, managers’ control over the capital becomes larger. Paying dividend to the investors is an efficient way to get additional monitoring of the capital, and thus make it less attractive to managers to invest the money in projects that will reduce the benefits of the shareholders. Tax Clientele With this very high dividend, the company may attract more European and/or mutual fund investors, but it may generally upset Institutional investors who do not have tax exemptions. Also, the announcement of a dividend may prompt older and poorer investors to buy more of Linear’s stock. (b) Share repurchase Share price and Shares outstanding Linear can repurchase 50.7 (16.23% of common shares) million common shares by spending all of its cash. When they do that, the number of outstanding shares will be 261.7 million. Historically, the stock price of companies has risen following a share  repurchase announcement as it can boost EPS. In this case EPS increases to $0.65. (Exhibit-4) Signaling By deploying all of its capital towards share repurchases, management can signal the market that its stock very undervalued. Linear has had a positive cash flow over the years and they have an opportunity with a net cash of $1.5 billion to bridge the supposed valuation disconnect by accelerating share repurchases. In summary, if the company goes out with a big stock buyback or special dividend, it will send a signal to investors that the company, is no longer a growth company, and stock value may decrease Approach – 3 Payout 50% of Linear Technology’s Cash2 Considering that management does not have a good line of sight into the future at this point, paying out all of Linear’s cash may be a risky move. Hence, in this section we look at a less aggressive approach that lies between preserving their cash balance (Approach 1) and paying out all of their cash (Approach 2). In evaluating this approach, we have assumed that Linear will need to keep up its quarterly dividend at $0.05, and the remainder of the cash after accounting for this quarterly dividend is available for either a special dividend or a share repurchase. The following section analysis the effect of paying out 50% of the remaining cash reserves either in the form of a special dividend of $2.51 or by repurchasing 25.35 million shares. EPS and Share Price If we were to repurchase shares using 50% of the cash, the EPS will increase from 0.55 to 0.59 close to the 2002 numbers of 0.62. Using a price/earnings ratio of 56.53 in 2003 (Exhibit-3), we can estimate the share price to increase to 33.65 with this increased EPS, cum dividend. If we were to pay out a special dividend of $2.51 per share instead, the share price cum dividend could be estimated to be a closely comparable $33.38 (Exhibit-5). EPS will be 0.55, very close to Q2 levels (0.54). Payout Ratio The dividend payout ratio in the case of the special dividend will be close to 486.3% (Exhibit-4) which is once again much higher than all of Linear’s peers (Exhibit-2). In contrast, with a share repurchase, the payout ratio remains at level consistent with previous quarters at 27.5%. 2 Exhibit 4 shows the calculations for numbers presented in this section Firm value and Shareholder wealth Repurchases will help alleviate some of the dilution of the EPS arising out of options awarded to employees and managers, considering that Linear’s incentives for all employees include stock options. On the other hand, dividends will help distribute the wealth more evenly among all investors, while repurchases cause an uneven distribution as the shareholders who do not sell will see a drop in book value of the shares, from $5.01 to $3.23 (rough approximation based solely on cash assets – Exhibit 5. Tax Clientele With the new rules that stipulate equal taxation rate of 15% for Capital gains and OIC, there are no quantifiable advantages one way or the other with respect to the decision to payout either in the form of a special dividend or repurchases. There may however, be some psychological impacts to be considered depending on preferences of the shareholders. For example, if the vast majority of shareholders belong to the older demographic, they may prefer it if the stock paid dividends. Signaling Linear’s investors are used to getting a dividend, and seeing periodic repurchases. Additional payouts of cash help increase ROE and reduce shareholders’ risk premium. At current low interest rates on cash (as of 2003), paying out at least some of the cash balance appears to be in the best interests of the shareholders. Though high payouts may signal that the company is lacking growth potential, it helps send a positive message that the company is keen on sharing its wealth. This message of being a â€Å"cash-cow† is better compared to the image of a company that is hoarding its wealth. Peers A quick look at Maxim’s financials indicates that they have started sharing their cash with their shareholders – in 2002 their cash returned was over 200% of their FCFE (Exhibit-2), and their cash reserves reduced by 455 million. They appear to have used that cash in repurchases in an effort to concentrate their wealth among a smaller number of shareholders, at the same  time they managed to increase their top line numbers significantly, even compared to 2000. By sharing half their cash with their shareholders, Linear will be able to put itself on par with this close competitor. Agency issues and other considerations One time special dividends don’t need to be kept up, so are essentially similar to repurchases in that respect. However, repurchases help boost EPS and prevent dilution, both of which have longer-lasting effects. In this respect a repurchase may be better than a dividend. As far as agency issues go, retaining 50% of the cash position may not provide as much incentive to work harder on identifying positive NPV projects, as expending 100% of the cash, but will work much better than retaining almost all of the cash as in Approach 1. Our Recommendation for Linear Our recommendation to Linear is to maintain status quo with respect to dividends – pay the quarterly dividend of $0.05 per share, and to buy back 25.35 million shares using half the cash balance. Dividends consistent with previous quarters of 2003, are recommended to avoid any adverse market reactions, while the company works on figuring out their strategy to increase top line sales and earnings to the 2000-2001 levels or better. Cancelling the dividend altogether or paying less than last quarter is not an option, as this would be perceived very negatively by the market. Historically, Linear has never increased dividends in the Q3 compared to Q2; hence it is safe to maintain a dividend of 5 cents per share as in Q3. Additionally, as shown in Exhibit-2, Linear already pays more dividends compared to peers, including their close competitor Maxim. Paying out all of the cash may deprive the company of the required levels of liquidity. Given that the analog semiconductor industry requires constant innovation and considering opportunities for new ventures such as entering the Asian market, it is safe to assume that the company should keep some cash reserves to account for unknowns. Linear is well aware that they need to expand their business and find ways to increase top line numbers, so keeping some cash, and supplementing it with capital from debt or/and equity markets is worth looking into. This forms the basis of our reasoning for recommending the use of only 50% of the cash balance to repurchase shares. Additionally, by repurchasing shares, Linear will be able to still sufficiently signal to the market that the stock is undervalued. At the same time, by maintaining some of the cash balance, they additionally signal the existence of profitable positive NPV projects for Linear to pursue. Considering the industry characteristics, and the stagnation reached in top line revenues, Linear will need to look at innovation and new markets, both of which could bring dramatic increases in growth. In light of this, we are convinced that the EPS boosting effect of a share repurchase is more valuable to Linear at this point, than the effects of an equitable distribution of shareholder wealth via special dividends.