Effectiveness of Brand Extension in Personal Care Product: A Case Study on Dove of Unilever

Brand is perceived to be in important intangible asset for company which gives company a cutting edge in product market through positioning in consumer mind. To leverage on success of brand, companies go for brand extension which is offering different new product in the same brand name.Such brand strategy is intended to be pursued to save cost of launching new brand, to minimize risk of brand failure and to leverage on success of existing brand. Organization who are in personal care product business often go for such brand extension treating brand as their assists where they try to leverage on their brand equity by launching new products under already established brand names (Vanitha et al, 2001). There are many factors that define the effectiveness and success of brand extension in personal care products.Perceived Quality of Parent Brand, the relative importance of fit of brand with consumer characteristics and mission of brand are important variable which determine brand success (P ark, et al, 1991). Beyond those factors, in case of personal care brand extension, media planning, brand development and brand management and public relation to communicate the brand are considered to be influential in evaluating the success of brand extension.This research work is perused to evaluate the effectiveness of brand extension strategy in personal care products in general and brand extension strategy of Dove brand of Unilever. The report will elaborate whether brand extension strategy of Dove was successful one considering the variable mentioned above.The report is prepared based on customers’ responses collected through survey and observations of branding expert to assess such effectiveness. The turnover from products launched under brand extension strategy will be dependent variable that will be evaluated against Brand Campaign, Media Planning, Brand Development and Brand Management, and Public Relation Strategy of brand. The study will be based on Dove brand of Unilever which will outline how company changes branding strategy with evolution of Dove brand.1.1 Background of the OrganizationUnilever’s journey as business organization started at 1872 as margarine business. In 1890, the company was named as Lever Brothers Limited. In 1930 Margarine Unie (Netherland) and Lever Brothers Limited (UK) merged and renamed as Unilever Limited. Serving 2 billion customers worldwide, the company is achieving annual turnover of â‚ ¬51 billion in 2012 (Unilever, 2013). The company sells its products across 190 countries where emerging market now counts for 55% of the business. The company have portfolio of 14 cash cow brand that are generating â‚ ¬ 1 billion sales worldwide. The company employs around 173,000 people around the globe (Unilever PLC. 2013a).The portfolio of categories shows that around 35% of revenue comes from Suvoury, Dressing and spread, followed by Personal Care which is about 28%, Home Care which is 18% and food and beverag e segment covers 19%. Unilever has a portfolio of 400 brands among which some are world largest in terms of generating ideas. With an asset base of â‚ ¬46.16 billion, the company has operating profit of about â‚ ¬7 billion (Unilever PLC. 2013b).Dove is a billion brand of Unilever which is generating annual revenue of â‚ ¬2.5 billion a year in 80 countries. Dove Brand was launched in 1957 as alternative to soap to care of dry skin. Since 1980 many product is launched under Dove brand ranging from body-wash, deodorants, body lotions, facial cleansers, to shampoos and conditioners through brand extension (Unilever PLC, 2013). Unilever terms Dove as a brand with a purpose.1.2 Rational of the StudyBrand is perceived to be very important factor to position product in consumers’ mind. A brand image has become a salient resource and critical success factors of competition which gives firm competitive advantage in product market. To leverage on such competitive edge firms at times takes strategy of brand extension to leverage the success of existing brand to optimize and rationalized investment in brand. But such brand extension produced mixed result in terms of effectiveness or return on brand extension due to brand fit with product launched, functionality of brand and consumer attitude to accept new product (Kim and Deborah, 2008).To change consumer perception on the ground of functional benefit of brand, organization has to  reshuffle its branding communication to reposition brand in consumer mind which communicate a broader view of brand rather than functional benefits. The effectiveness of such brand extension depends on how firm develop brand, build brand and plan media to communicate the brand and maintain public relation to engage stakeholders (Bottomley and Stephen, 2001). Innovation of Branding campaign is another important parameter in this regard. The study will evaluate the brand extension strategy of Dove through examining through differ ent factors mentioned just above to justify brand extension strategy in Personal care product category.1.3 Business Research QuestionsThe following research question will be designed to conduct the study. what is the brand extension strategy of FMCG company in personal care products What are the factors that affect brand extension strategy of an established brand in case of personal care products How brand campaign, media planning, customer attitude, brand development and management, public relation reshuffle brand extension strategy in case of Dove brand of Unilever What is the statistical observations of effect of components of brand extension in positioning product in consumer brand1.4 Research objectiveEvery research is conducted with fulfillment of some objectives in mind. Those objectives persuade the researcher to pursue research in this field of study to enrich the researcher intellectual observation. The following are the research objective of the study which motivates the researcher to pursue this research. To review brand extension strategy in personal care productTo trace out the reasons that plays key role in developing brand extensions strategy in personal care products To explore the critically success factors that determines the effectiveness of brand extension strategy in personal care products To extract out how brand campaign, media planning, customer attitude, brand development and management, public relation played role in affecting success of brand extension of Dove brand of Unilever To evaluate the outcome of the study through statistical test to validate the findings of the study on rand extension strategy of Dove To suggest appropriate and specific recommendations and to provide conclusion along with mentioning the scope of future scope of study.2.0 Literature ReviewLiterature review is very important part of any credible research and it provides the research an opportunity to review similar and related previous research to take knowle dgeable insight to design his or her study. The second chapter of the research will cover the literature review related to title of the research. The following sections will be covered by this chapter.2.1 BrandBrand can be defined as name, tern, sign, symbol or design, or a combination of them intended to identify the goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of other sellers (AMA, 2011).2.2 Brand Extension and Types of Brand ExtensionBrand extension is strategy of launching and selling new product under an established brand name of other existing products to persuade customer’s perception with success of existing products (Monga and Deborah, 2007). Extension can be described as strategy to sell new products without establishing a new brand of the company (Chen and Liu, 2004).There are two types of brand extension mostly used in branding strategy. The following graph is elucidating such types of brand extension.2.3 The Reasons o f Brand ExtensionThere are logics why organization goes with brand extension instead of launching new brand for every new product. The most influential arguments are reducing risk and cost of launching new products, increasing sales and profit of the company and being able to ask a premium price (Alokparna and Zeynep, 2012). The other reason includes increase brand awareness and perceived brand value of the company (Smith and Park, 1992).2.4 Brand Extension in Personal Care productsBrand extension in personal care product is more prevalent than other types  of product due to homogeneity in product nature and communication of common perception to the consumers. From Unilever to P&G everyone does follow brand extension strategy more or less in their personal product portfolio (Xie, 2008).2.5 Factors that Determines the success of Brand Extension strategyVarious factors brand extension strategy of personal care products. The given case outlined the following factors that were conside red influential in affecting brand extension strategy to Dove from soap to other personal care products2.5.1 Branding CampaignBranding campaign is very important parameter to change customer perception from a narrower point of view to broader point of view. Earlier Dove is considered a cleansing cream or moisturizing cream (Tom et al, 2012). Whenever Unilever intended to communicate Dove as Masterbrand, it reshuffles its campaigning strategy to communicate Dove brand campaign as â€Å"Campaign for Real Beauty† (Deighton, 2008). The case produced the following discussion.2.5.2 Branding to Change Customer AttitudeSuccessful brand extension strategy change customer attitude to the favor of new product launched under established product category. In Dove case, the branding campaign redefines the notion of beauty to the women of the world by saying that every woman possesses real beauty, which is merely not defined by size, skin or age.The brand defines beauty as function of self- esteem, feeling superiority about oneself. Such bold step to change women attitude toward beauty invites discussion and debate, which ultimately gave the familiarity of new product under Dove brand (Deighton, 2008a). The following comments are from Marketing Director of Dove.2.5.3 Media PlanningMedia planning is very important to communicate brand extension to new launched products. The effectiveness of media planning largely defines how effectively and efficiently message can be communicated to the target customers (Jack and Roger, 2002).Uniqueness and cost consideration are most influential ingredients in media planning where company favors to choose unusual media to attract easily customers’ attention and least cost media to save marketing cost of the organization (Clarke, 1997). Dove posted a filming featuring dove in YouTube for which Unilever did not spend a penny literally.2.5.4 Brand Development and Brand ManagementBrand development is successful predictor of brand fu ture. If an innovative and compelling brand is developed, it is mostly assured that brand will emerge as successful. Whenever a brand is successfully positioned in one product category, it is very easy to extend it to new product (Kumar, 2005). Successful brand development requires innovative brand development team, alignment of branding communication with characteristic of products so that they best fits each other (Monga and Deborah, 2007). In case of Dove Brand, extension brand development was separated from brand management in specific market.2.5.5 Public Relation and Brand ExtensionPublic relation or PR is emerging as very effective tool in communicating messages of new brand or brand extension to customers. The recent observation is that impact of advertisement is falling and that of PR is rising. PR is more effective when it comes to matter of communicating credibility of brand, saving of cost and clutter (Và ¶lckner and Henrik, 2006).Moreover, Brand friendliness with PR can formulate a compelling communication strategy of brand extension with low cost (Tom et al, 2012a). Public relation of Dove was compelling covering both positive and criticism comments from leading press and marketing commentators which gave the firm great publicity (Deighton, 2008). New York Times mentioned about PR success of Dove as below3.0 Research MethodologyResearch methodology will be third chapter of the research, which is mainly a roadmap of the research to the outcome, which will be employed with different type of methodology to extract out the insight from the incumbent research (Hunter and Leahey, 2008). The research methodology section will employ the following techniques.3.1 Design of ResearchThe most important element in research methodology is research design which will be cornerstone for further research steps to extract out relevant information from collected data. The research design consist of planning of  research, dissecting and collecting raw data and obser vations from the key stakeholders to build a harmonious research that will fulfill social objectives (Brymanand and Bell, 2003). The research design is launched with research philosophy.3.2 Philosophy of ResearchThe research philosophy is very important ingredient of research design where philosophy concentrates on reasoning of rationality and scientific approaches, law of generalization to develop and establish knowledge. This research is based on positivism philosophy where transparency of research will be ensured through usage of true sense to make reproduction of information (Hussey and Hussey, 2007).This philosophy of research mainly employs scientific tools and techniques to reason knowledge of imagination extracted from observed behavior (Saunders et al, 2009). The research philosophy that stands against this research philosophy is anti-positivism philosophy which prefers people judgment on research issues. Positivism philosophy uses statistical tools which is not used by ant i-positivism philosophy (Remeniyi et al, 2008).3.2.1 Justification of Positivism PhilosophyThe justification for selecting positivism philosophy is that in this philosophy research is carried out on through objective manner to explore the cause effect relationship between exogenous and indigenous variables (Irving, 2006).3.3 Research ApproachThere are mainly two broad type of research is used by the researcher for conducting research. These approaches are induction and deduction approach. This research will be based on deduction approach, which is a top down research approach concentrating to relate research outcome with reasoning rather than a subjective general statement. This approach is very much relevant to bring a concrete conclusion. Deductive approach depends on earlier conceptual and theoretical structure, which is supported by quantitative data (Steinar, 2007).3.3.1 Justification of Deduction ApproachThe strongest argument of using deduction approach is that this approach is based on scientific principles, which leads to highly structured and organized ground for the development of research hypothesis. This approach is also relevant for collection of research data to elucidate the relation and dependency among the variables to prove the hypothesis (Kumar, 2008).3.4 Methods of ResearchQuantitative and qualitative two research methods will be used in this research through application of different qualitative and quantitative research technique.3.4.1 Quantitative MethodsThis method will be used for collecting primary data collection. Different statistical parameters will be used under this method. The graphical presentation will be employed as instrument of quantitative method along with charts to display information more visibly (Churchill and Iacobucci, 2005).3.4.2 Qualitative ResearchIn case of subjective measurement qualitative technique will be employed. Brand extension and product categories have many dimensions that are qualitative in nature whic h need subjective evaluation. This method will be used mostly in case of data which are nonnumeric in nature and more concerned with behavioral aspect of the respondents.This research has applied a mixed approach of research by incorporating qualitative and quantitative variable. Quantitative one has been applied to find the Effectiveness of Brand extension in case of Personal care products. On the other hand, to measure impact of public relation, media planning and brand management qualitative approach will be used.3.5 Data SourcesData will be collected from mainly two types of sources, primary sources and secondary sources. For primary data, population will be female customers of Unilever in London. Beyond customers, brand manager of Dove at Unilever UK will be asked for an interview, which is also another source of primary data. Total 100 customers will be surveyed and three managers will be interviewed.The primary data will be concerned with collection of data through a question naire that will ask about demographic profile of customers and research topic related questions where respondent will be asked on predetermined questions (Agresti and Finlay, 2009). The questionnaire will provide some statements and give respondent to put score based on their  opinion. The secondary source of data will be relevant articles, books, website and annual report of Unilever. Appropriate referencing will be provided to authenticate the sources of secondary data.3.5.1 Sampling, Design and Size3.5.2.1 Target PopulationThe target population of the research is all the potential respondents relevant to research study within some specific parameters (Churchill and Iacobucci, 2005). For the purpose of this study, the population included female users of Dove brand of Unilever UK in London. The demography of the respondent is developed in such a way that customers from different age, ethnicity and income level is selected.3.5.2.2 SamplingSampling is a technique to filter responde nt from population to conduct the study as deal with whole population is literally impossible. the influential sampling method is probability sampling where equal chance of each candidate from population might be selected. There are other sampling technique that could be employed in this research study which are random sampling, systematic sampling, stratified random sampling etc (Foss, 2007). Having considered time and resource constraint, convenience sampling technique is best suited with this study3.5.2.3 Design of SampleDesign of sample refers to the process of selection of sample units. A self-administered survey will be conducted among the targeted sample and the in person with female users of Dove brand in London.3.5.2.4 Sample sizeA sample size of 100 is expected to be collected for this study. Beyond them 3 managers will be asked for interview. Enough time will be given to each participant to reduce the error. The questionnaire is designed in simple English to reduce risk o f ambiguity. RespondentsNumber Female users of Dove brand 100 Executives managing Dove Brand 3 Total 1033.6 Data Analysis Tools and TechniquesGraph, table and different diagram will be used to display data that will be collected through questionnaire. These will be done in primary data analysis. The core part of the questionnaire will be based on 5-point Likeart Scale. The questionnaire provided to female users of Dove will consist of close-ended questions and interview questionnaire provided to the managers of Unilever will be open-ended questions. To assess the responses C-alpha test will be employed. The following techniques will also be used in this study.3.6.1 Usage of Statistical Tools for AnalysisTo examine, filter and transform the collected data with research objective statistical tools will be used for reaching conclusion and approving decision making (Panneerselvam, 2004). Data will be analyzed through application of most up to date statistical tools used in business rese arch.Two distinct questionnaires were used in this research to analyze effectiveness of brand extension strategy of Dove brand. The following statistical tools have been used in this research. Graphical Technique: the graph will be produced in spreadsheet software of Microsoft Office Excel. In addition to generation of graphs, excel will be used in most quantitative analysis of the study.Pearson Correlation Matrix: Correlation matrix is in fact a technique to develop relation between dependent and independent variables. It mainly observed how variables are dependent of each other. Scaling Technique: Scaling technique will be used in this study in case of subjective evaluation of respondents. In this procedure, weight is assigned according to rank (Cooper and Schindler, 2008).Result will be presented as percentage through rank percentage analysis. Regression Analysis: Regression analysis is used in research arena mainly to calculate the dependency of dependent variable with independe nt variables. It incorporates different statistical test such as P value, t-test to assess the influence of the relation in terms of statistical consideration. The regression equation of this study will be as belowWhere, Y= Dependent variable (Dove Brand Turnover) ÃŽ ± = Constant ÃŽ ²1= Coefficients of brand campaign X1= Brand campaign ÃŽ ²2= Coefficients of customer perception toward brand X2= Customer perception toward brand Î’3= Coefficients of Brand Development and Management X3= Brand Development and Management Î’4= Coefficient of Media Planning X4= Media Planning Î’5= Coefficient of Public Relation X5= Public Relation e= Error term3.7 Ethical ConsiderationTo complete research with appropriate research guidelines research ethics is very important. Considering ethical aspect of research enough time is given to the respondent of the study so that they can depict their true view on research questions. Primary and secondary data will be used in this study. Consent from the respondents will be taken and appropriate permission will also be ensured for usage of their given data.Confidentiality of the responses will be maintained strictly to ensure privacy of their data. The disclosure of respondent identity will be based on their permission where if they are not willing to disclose identity, their identity will not be exhibited. Beyond that fact, usage of any secondary data from any source will be acknowledged with appropriate reference. Hence, the ethical aspect of research will be followed very strictly in this research.3.8 Possible Research OutcomeThe research is pursued to find out whether brand extension strategy of personal care product is effective through analyzing the case of Dove brand of Unilever. The incumbent researcher is very must interested to explore the association of brand extension through different factors in making success of newly launched products. The research will produce how brand campaign, customer perception towards brand, b rand development and management, and brand, media planning and public relation associates in making brand extension effective in case of Dove brand of Unilever.3.9 LimitationThe main limitation of the research is the period allocated for conducting the study. Another important limitation is the inability to remove the biasness of the responses due to subjective nature of the data. Another limitation is the dimension factors related in brand extension in addition to mentioned factors, which might produce incomplete conclusion.4.0 Time Scale of ResearchThe dissertation will be produced by maintaining the following time scale Task to be Executed Week 1 Week 2-4 Week 5-8 Week 9-11 Week 12 Questionnaire Development and Outline of the ThesisSurvey ConductData mining and FilteringIntroductionLiterature ReviewResearch MethodologyData AnalysisSubmitting First DraftSubmitting Second DraftProof Reading and Error CheckingFinal Submission5.0 ConclusionIt is observed that brand extension strategy in personal care products is more prevalent and effective than any other products. This research study is intended to explore the effectiveness of brand extension strategy of Dove brand of Unilever. The researcher believes that the study will produce valuable insight in such evaluation that will be useful for both the executives and academicians. It will also create opportunity for further research in this field of the study.

Feels Like Home

Feel like Home The first few weeks I arrived in Leeds, I felt quite lonely since I arrived late and I missed out the chance to meet new friends during the fresher programs. One day I received an email from the university telling that there will be a party to welcome new and returning Muslims faith students in Leeds Grand Mosque. I knew this will be my opportunity to meet and socialize with other students that have same faith as me. Without hesitation, I highlighted the date in my diary.On the day itself, when I reached the venue, I was surprised to see the crowd that gathered in the place. It was really beyond my expectation. For one second, I hesitated to join the party because I came alone and afraid that I will be isolated from the crowd. Suddenly a friendly young lady, whom I assumed to be one of the society members, greeted me warmly at the door and invited me to come in. I saw groups of young students around my age, busy chatting and mingling around in the hall.I walked to the girls to greet them and introduce myself. They were so friendly and welcomed me to join their group. We started to talk about ourselves, random topics and made jokes. Within that short acquaintance, I slowly felt so comfortable with them and no longer felt awkward at all. All of us came from different countries, ethnicities and some of them are locals too. It was good to know that you are not the only one who is thousand miles from your home. The event started with welcome speech from the society’s representative.Then, we were being informed briefly about the upcoming events that will be held by the society throughout the year. After the short opening, we were divided into two groups to have ice breaking session. We had so much fun during the session. All of us were then later being invited to have some refreshments that had been prepared by the society. Before the event ended, we promised to meet up again for the Eid celebration a week from now. As promised, on the 26th Octo ber 2012, we gathered again in the same place for the Eid Adha celebration.This time was not only for ‘us’ but the whole Muslims faith community in Leeds. It was great to meet even more new people on that day; some of them came with their families and small children too. We had prayer together in the morning. Then, all of us had photo session before heading to the feast in our friend’s house. It was such a great experience and glad to know that we are like a ‘big family’ here in Leeds. Most of all, this kind of gathering makes you will feel like home. I am absolutely looking forward to joining more social events like this in the future.

A Year in the South 1865: The True Story of Four Ordinary People

A Year in the South 1865, written by Stephen V. Ash, was published by First Perennial Press in 2004. It runs to 304 pages and deals with a year in the American south during the final year of the bloody United States Civil War.This war cost more American lives than any other conflict in the nation’s history and turned families against each other as sides were drawn. Stephen V. Ash, appropriately enough, teaches history at the University of Tennessee and has authored other books on the Civil War, including When the Yankees Came: Conflict and Chaos in the Occupied South.A Year in the South 1865 covers the twelve month span between January and December of 1865 as the war was winding toward its rather foregone conclusion. Ash has chosen to revisit this story of the fall of Dixie in a personal way, using four citizens of the bellicose Confederate States of America that stood in armed rebellion against the federal government of the United States as narrators.The year 1865 was chaotic in the United States, seeing the assassination of a great American leader, the end of the armed conflict, the beginning of the period termed Reconstruction and the emancipation of slaves in American States.Each narrator has a unique vantage from which he views the occurrences related in this work. One of the figures is a former Confederate soldier, one is a slave, wanting his freedom more than anything else, one is a widow, hungry and hopeless and the fourth is a planter and Christian minister whose faith is sorely tried.By 1865 the handwriting was on the wall. Early in the year North Carolina’s effectiveness as a haven for blockade-runners was broken.   William T. Sherman’s sweep through Georgia, creating a swath of scorched earth as he marched, was repeated in South Carolina, virtually destroying the state. It was blitzkrieg without the air support. It was lightening on the ground and it was devastating in its intensity and frightening in its brutality.Sherman lef t nothing behind. Against this backdrop the forces of the Army of the United States Federal Government came closer and closer to Richmond, and all but the deaf and blind understood the fall of Old Dominion was a fait accompli.Lee evacuated the capital in early April and the end was imminent. Jefferson Davis had made peace overtures to Lincoln early in the year, with demands that the independence of the south be recognized. Lincoln knew the war was all but over and dismissed the peace feeler out of hand.The Old South is dead and the four protagonists of the Stephen Ash work bear witness to the birth of the New. Ash captivates the reader with vivid tales of triumph and tragedy as the protagonists try to cope in a society whose very fabric is rent and bloodied in the ashes of disheartening defeat. Each of the individuals presented in this book are writers and keep journals of their times.This is a fascinating look into the lives of four ordinary people who are witness to a microcosmic view of the death throes of an age now long dead and of the nova that produced the New South, which is much the same today as when it first began in that painful birthing period in the year 1865. The subtitle of this book calls 1865 the most tumultuous 12 months in American history. It is not merely hype.John Robertson was a Confederate soldier, doing his duty as he saw it, though this duty caused him to stand in rebellion against his nation’s government and take arms against that institution. It must be understood today that the American civil war is more than just a difference of ideologies that lead to an armed confrontation.It is a renunciation of vows and oaths of loyalty to one’s own. It is to turn traitor to the homeland. â€Å"If such there breathe, go, mark him well; for him no minstrel raptures swell;†¦and, doubly dying, [he] shall go down to the vile dust from whence he sprung, unwept, unhonored, and unsung,† wrote Sir Walter Scott in The Lay of the Last Minstrel.Robertson is the target of vigilantes during the year of 1865, pursued by those with different ideologies. In the course of the year he is to flee over a thousand miles to escape the wrath of those bent on taking revenge on him for his perceived part in the bloody conflict.The cities of the South are occupied by what amounts to an alien army, while the frontiers of the relatively young republic are less civilized, and the citizens of the wilderness territories are subject to more than a modicum of frontier justice as well as to the dockets of more than a few kangaroo courts.The politics of this period are such that the victorious north is determined, by hook or crook, to impose its will upon the defeated insurgents in general, and those it can identify as ex-soldiers in particular. Ideally it will achieve its aims at the polling place, but if it can not, it is not adverse to a bit of armed confrontation of its own.Robertson finds himself the subject of reprisals as union loyalists seek their revenge on those who are available to them and he is forced to flee for his life.At one point he finds it expedient to move into the north, and comes to rest in a community in Iowa, where he feels like a fish out of water, unable to cope with cultural differences and what he perceives as a cold and calculating veneer spread over the peoples.Yankee and German immigrant merchants are not as warm as his fellow Southerners. The lack of Southern charm and hospitality is more than he can bear and he ultimately realizes that he cannot stay in such a place.This same hospitable citizen of a once genteel South hates Negroes with a blind passion and is willing to give his life to see that a form of government that holds some human beings to be chattel will survive and prosper. Ash quotes him as describing some blacks as, â€Å" ‘the greasiest bunch of nig[g]ers I ever saw.’ Just being around them made him sick,† (56).   When the shoe is on the other foot there is a great lack of understanding as to why man must be so callous in regard to his fellow man. Robertson is shocked to learn that bigotry can be directed toward him. Isn’t he white? Isn’t he a Southerner? Did he not fight to preserve his heritage? He feels forced to flee from is home in Knoxville.He feels that the Negro is rising above his station and the world, it must seem, has turned upside down. It is ironic that Robertson’s saga, his tale of misery in the aftermath of a war which he violently abetted, is found in the same tome as is found the tale of a former slave whom he considered below him and fit only for servitude. Robertson would not have liked to share the stage with a Negro in all likelihood.He is stunned that he becomes the second-class citizen in his travels and he has difficulty believing the incredible lack of manners exhibited by northerners. He finds it unacceptable that they do not offer the simple hospitality of a hot meal to visitors and he feels that they are looking down on him. Robertson eventually becomes a preacher, accepting the call to spread the gospel of Christ to his fellow man.Louis Hughes begins his narrative as a slave who has risen to what is stereotypically considered to be a plum assignment for a man in his position, that of house-slave.He becomes the family butler eventually. Having a good job as a slave seems similar to the old adage of enjoying a comfortable seat in hell. His is witness to the death of his twin children as his wife is too over-worked to see to their needs and they die of neglect.He tries to escape, and is recaptured by a military patrol. When he is returned to his rightful owner he is beaten by the kindly old white master, who puts him in stocks to administer the requisite justice, pausing when he tires, to rest and read the newspaper (120).It is the disparity of view and juxtaposition of these two narrators that adds so much flavor to this history. Hughes seems to be the more sympathetic of the two, and is the more altruistic.He is called upon to demonstrate his intestinal fortitude and acquits himself well. He manages to save members of his family and proves his ability to learn and expand. He comes to Milwaukee, where he becomes a nurse, doing much good for those in need. Both men travel far and see much. Their sojourns give added dimension to their tales and prevent them from narrating with a frog’s eye concept of life in the post-bellum American South.Cornelia McDonald is the widow of a Confederate officer. She lives in Lexington, Virginia. Her story is the only one told from a woman’s perspective and it fills in many of the gaps left by the tales related by the male narrators in that she deals more with the domestic issues of her day. She is also witness to the abject hunger and devastating poverty which settled over the south like an all intrusive fog, penetrating to the core of the land, pervasive and all encompassing.He r bitter struggle to simply find enough food to subsist is a telling point in this work. All too often a history will deal only with the nuts and bolts of the events, relating the politics and mechanizations that occurred in the reconstruction of a defeated and fallen society, overlooking the seemingly insignificant issue of bread.McDonald’s tale covers this aspect of the bitter year when a once proud and even arrogant people lost everything, falling lower than they believed it possible to fall.McDonald is left with seven hungry children and struggles daily just to find them enough food to survive. She relates a tale of how she unwove a mattress to recycle the threads into a suit of clothing for one of her sons (36). It is a story reminiscent of the classic scene described by Margaret Mitchell of how Scarlett O’Hara took the velvet drapes from the windows of her once glorious Tara and had the material tailored into a ball gown.Planter cum preacher, Sam Agnew is the fou rth member of this group of narrators of the year 1865 in this southern history. He bears further witness to the hunger and utter destitution left in the wake of the merciless marauding Union army.He comes bearing tales of the land and people in a way unique to a farmer who has witnessed a period when even heaven seemed to conspire against the south, withholding rain and desiccating the crops, bringing famine and disease (150).McDonald is perhaps a metaphor for the land, relating how she survived that year of infamy, prospering eventually, and becoming a friend of the revered icon of all that is Southern, General Robert Edward Lee.She relates rather poignantly how Lee remains the courtly Southern aristocrat in defeat and urges his fellow Southerners to forgive and forget and move on with their lives. She does not mention how this courtly aristocrat, a graduate of West Point, reneged on his solemn oath to the United States and took up arms against it.She fails to mention that what he and the other Southern officers, who had once been Union officers, had done was treason and could have resulted in their execution.It seems the least bit fatuous for an historian like Ash to glorify the mien of Southern gentry who were largely responsible, if not for causing the war, then at least for extending it by years with the military expertise they had been taught in a United States military academy. Had they all refused to gainsay their sacred oaths the war might not have been prosecuted for lack of leadership.Works CitedAsh, S.V.   A Year in the South 1865: The True Story of Four Ordinary People Who Lived Through the Most Tumultuous Twelve Months in American   History   New York: First Perennial Edition 2004   

Individual Report - Fast Food Case Context Essay

Individual Report - Fast Food Case Context - Essay Example The company has planned to expand its business operations, as well as initiated plans in entering the business market of China. Therefore, the company is concerned with minimising its exposure to different sorts of risks, such as political, as well as economic risks among others, that are associated with the expansion of business activities in international market. (citation) This discussion will stress on the analysing of certain significant aspects that would be conducted by the company in order to ascertain, as well as to acquire valuable information. This information are required to be evaluated with the objective of determining valuable decisions that are required to be initiated for performing business operations of the fast food company in an appropriate manner. Moreover, the company is required to utilise varied strategic tools which include SWOT analysis, Porters five forces model as well as Hofstede five dimensional models among others for determining the suitability of the decisions for entering into the business market of China. ... It also enabled effective flow of investments in the international market due to enhanced deregulation as well as communication among dissimilar countries (European Commission, 2004). The fast food company in the UK is required to adopt globalisation procedure with the motive of expanding its business operations as well as sustain enhanced growth in the international business market. The company needs to perform business operations as a fast food company in the business market of China by providing quality products as well as complying with the requirements or the preferences of the customers particularly of China. All these major initiatives would certainly assist the company in acquiring better customer as well as brand loyalty especially in the market segment of China. For instance, McDonald’s has adopted the globalisation process in order to expand its business operations worldwide (Mujtaba & Patel, 2007). The different strategic tools that will assist the fast food compan y in determining the market conditions of China as well as in formulating helpful strategies for performing effectively in the business market of China have been framed hereunder. (citation) SWOT Analysis The company is required to perform a SWOT analysis before entering into the business market of China in order to determine its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities as well as threats (Ferrell & Hartine, 2010). Strengths One of the major strengths of the company is that it possesses several fast-food restaurants in the UK as well as in other nations that ultimately raises its profitability at large. The other strength of the company is that the management team of the company is quite expert as well as skilful that

Documentary Video Analysis review Movie Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Documentary Video Analysis - Movie Review Example The time was one of increased curiosity about China in the wider world, and this documentary was no doubt conceived as a way of informing western audiences about the background to the unfolding protests in China. The main message of the film appears to be a to give a linear narrative starting with the end of the old feudal system and the beginning of a new struggle for control in China in the year 1911. The neck and neck battle between Nationalists and Communists is shown, with some quite graphic old black and white moving pictures of what life, and in some cases death, was like for many people. Very early on there is an indication of the ultimate goal of the documentary, which seems to be to explain to the viewer how China â€Å"became the largest communist state on earth.† The dramatic way this is sad, and the deep, male American narrative voice, make this sound like something dramatic, and at the same time somewhat frightening. In fact this pro-American tone is carried on t hroughout the whole documentary and constitutes something of a bias. All of the English language voices which are used to translate the passages in Chinese are very American, and it is an interesting choice on the part of the director to use this kind of speaker and not seek out speakers with more international or Asian sounding voices. The film is very effective at conveying the struggle between Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Tse Dong for the heart of the Chinese people. The trouble for the Western viewer is, however, that there does not seem to be much difference between the nationalist and the communist camps. Both go about their business with quite extreme brutality, making this quite a harrowing film to watch in places. Executions, piles of corpses in the streets, and tales of vicious torture bring home the atrocities carried out by both sides, and the human cost to the ordinary people who made up both the armies and the victims of pillaging across a landscape that is already dreadful ly poor. The film would have benefited from pause from visual narrative, in order to explain some of the ideological differences between the two. Mao is shown writing out some of his greatest works, for example, but there is no indication what it was he was writing about. The analysis of events was not at all sophisticated, and in fact some of the graphics were beyond basic. For a production in the late 1980s, it shows remarkably little sophistication in the maps and visual effects that it uses. Arrows and flags denote troop movements and foreign country involvement, but it is all done on a scale that makes china look like a tiny marginal state. There is no impression of the vastness of the territory, or the great differences in terrain and culture that existed across this whole nation. The best features of the film were a) its use of authentic old silent films, and b) its interviews with eye-witnesses who knew some of the leading figures in China in this period. The son of Chiang K ai-shek is interviewed, for example, presenting a disconcertingly western appearance in his shirt and tie, along with many soldiers and a few women who were involved in the Long March or in some of the Communist or Nationalist youth movements. Several of these interviewees give remarkable testimony to the dangers that they themselves faced, and several pronounce

The Indain And The Horse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Indain And The Horse - Essay Example The arrival of Europeans greatly impacted the native societies and cultures and brought about a sea change in their lifestyles. Along with slavery, cultural intolerance, fatal diseases and inhuman practices, the Europeans and Spaniards introduced the horse to these Native Americans. Mexico was the primary source of horses' for North America as were the populations of southeastern USA. Although the modern variety of horses had originally evolved in America three million years ago, they had been wiped out during the Ice Age along with many other species when there had been a drastic change in North American habitat. Hunting by paleo-Indians also contributed to their extinction. Colonial Spanish Horses (as they came to be called), were brought to America by Spanish Conquistadors and hold immense significance in the history of the New World and the cultural revolution that took place following European colonization. "The horse returned to North America when explorers Cortes and DeSoto came mounted on magnificent Barbs from Morocco, Sorraia from Portugal and Andalusians from Spain" (History 1492-1620 The Spanish Colonial Period).To start with, these horses were a source of strength for the Spaniards and facilitated conquer of many a native civilization (D. Phillip Sponenberg). The natives were not accustomed to such large animals and were initially terrified; moreover, the Spanish government policy forbade native Indians to own or use horses. Many natives had their first encounter with these animals as slaves and workers on Spanish ranchos where they eventually got acquainted and learnt how to train, use and control them (History 1620-1800 The Indian Horse Pe riod). Many North American Indians acquired and learnt horse riding and handling from Indians from the southwest through trade relations. In the late seventeenth century, the Pueblo Rebellion caused the Spanish to flee New Mexico and leaving many of their horses behind which turned out to be very advantageous for the Pueblo Indians (History 1620-1800 The Indian Horse Period). The Ute Indians the Comanche were inter-related and the later probably supplied the former with their horses. By the beginning of the eighteenth century, the Comanche had earned a notorious reputation among the Spanish in New Mexico because of their horse stealing raids on Spanish rancheros. The Comanche allowed the Spanish stay in Texas to help them raise horses (Eddins, Ned). "The Comanche became the epitome of the Plains Indian Horse Culture. There was a saying in Texas that "The white man will ride the Mustang until he is played out - the Mexican will take him and ride him another day until he thinks he is tired - the Comanche will get on him and ride him to where he is going" (Frank Dobie). Within a few decades after acquiring horses, many military leaders considered the Comanche as the finest light cavalry in the world" (Eddins, Ned). Comanche warriors mediated the horse trade between Indian tribes and French settlements east of the Mississippi in a major way. In this way, horse trade eventually spread out of the southwest towards north to the Shoshone and from them to the Nez Perce, Flatheads, and the Crow; north and east to the Kiowa and Pawnee and then to the cousins of the Pawnee, the Arikara (Eddins, Ned). Indians not only acquired horses from the Spanish, the warriors emulated the Spanish in terms of handling, riding, and use of equipment. From the Arikara, the

Comparison of Neoliberalism and Structural Realism Essay

Comparison of Neoliberalism and Structural Realism - Essay Example Besides the role of sharing information, neoliberalism and structural realism have their similarity in belief in anarchy and differences on perceptions of international cooperation and the driving forces behind it. Both think that anarchy influences how states behave toward each other. They are different because neoliberalists believe that international cooperation is possible because states value economic interests too, not only military power, while structural realists think that this is difficult to achieve. Mearsheimer explained that realists believe that the state is the principal actor in international politics and states are concerned of balance of power. State activities are connected to their position in the balance of power, specifically use of military power (University of California Television, 2008). Structural realists do not think it is possible to have successful international cooperation in this context of desire for hegemony through military power. Neoliberalism dis agrees because international regimes can make this attainable, especially when economic interests through international cooperation are also essential for states. Neoliberalism assumes that states want to attain international cooperation primarily because of economic interests, while structural realism disagrees because world governmental authority cannot effectively enforce agreements among states. Neoliberalism believes that states want to share quality information through international organizations.

An investigation into operations management issues within the Essay

An investigation into operations management issues within the hospitality industry - Essay Example With improved productivity and operations, the cost decreases and quality is improved. Since the above mentioned activities are integrated with each other closely in a operations chain, it I important for any company to control and manage these activities to boost its performance and profits. This article will concentrate upon the productivity improvement concerns for a restaurant  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ Good Foods Restaurant. Aim The various productivity concerns that the company faces in its daily operations and how these operations can be optimized to increase the production efficiency will the topic of study of this paper. Methodology    The preferred methodology in this case was to study a number of case studies in the hospitality sector that implement any kind of production improvement techniques and then study their previous conditions and the results after the recommendations were executed. Also other forms of literature available from books, online were studied. Company Introduction T he company is involved in the restaurant business to its customers across 17 outlets. Good Foods has been known in the market for its consistent quality of the food being served and a strong focus upon the business. With several dishes being served to its customers, and also catered in some cases, on a regular basis, the company has received the constant positive reviews from its clients. The hotel company was formed in the year 1975 and has built a strong tradition of hard work and faith. The hotel specializes mainly in the sauces, soups and flavor bases that are also marketed under a number of brand names by the hotel company. With more than 3 production units in the region, Good Foods Ltd. is trying hard to make higher margin profits for itself. In the food sector and hospitality service industry, it  is important that in order to remain competitive, Good Foods maintain efficient operations in production and marketing. At present the company own three plants which are not being operated in a desired optimized manner. Therefore, to achieve targets, the company decided to implement some operations management techniques to improve productivity and its hospitality services.    Current Production Phases  Ã‚      The operational methods that are being used by Good Foods to manufacture products that are marketed by the company are quite complex in nature and comprise of a number of multifaceted operations that are spread across the 3 production units. The initial phases that are a part of this operational chain at Good Food are the detailed  scheduling which is done by the management to decrease the down time for each of the three production units. The production scheduling is done manually by the company managers. The production scheduling phase is followed by the resource planning and procurement phase in which the managers decide the quality, quantity of resources that are to be allocated to each line and at what time. The quantity, quality and time o f resource procurement are very important at this point in order to maintain a steady flow of production and product quality. At many instances, the managers noticed that since the resources need to be often shared at many points and levels in the production chain, there existed some sharing concerns. There were variability and waste concerns that were pointed out by the managers. The last step of the production line consisted of cleaning and preparing the line for a new batch of production. It is to be noted here that due to the

Crime and Poverty Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Crime and Poverty - Research Paper Example The genesis of the crime Before reviewing some sources related to poverty and crime, it is important to determine the evolution and genesis of the crime. As mentioned above, poverty is a social phenomenon. This means that it is socially constructed. According to Obeidallah & Brooks-Gunn, the cases of crime have been rising drastically since the advent of agrarian revolution (1475). Crime is an activity that occurs when a person uses unaccepted means to solicit resources, money or to benefit him or herself. Poverty limits one from getting basic needs hence encouraging crime Inability to meet the basic needs is one of the major factors fuelling crime. A person who does not have means of making life comfortable or sustaining life would opt into engaging him or herself in activities that would enable him or her to acquire the basic needs. However, these activities are usually not socially accepted. They are classified as crime. Poverty is the main factor that limits people from using the legal means to acquire their daily bread. It does this by limiting the access to resources such as money that can be used to pay fees, access good schools and finish education. According to Hannon & DeFina, education is a means through which a person can get money and other resources necessary in offsetting the daily expenses that relate to life matters (53). However, because of poverty, some people would find it difficult to pursue their education to the expected level. The chances of such people getting employed become limited. Consequently, such people would have to opt into those activities that are not socially and legally accepted, crime. In a study conducted in Dubuque to find out the trends and perceptions of crime in conjunction with poverty, it was found... The intention of this study is crime as an unaccepted social activity that entails doing things or activities that are against the expectation of society. A number of studies related to crime and poverty have been conducted but most of them normally focus on these social phenomenons individually. Few researches have tried to find out the link between the two. However, none of the researches is comprehensive and intensive enough to explain the relationship between crime and poverty. From the foregoing discussion, it is clear that poverty play an important role in creating an environment that fuels crime activities. However, the discussion implies that there is no direct relationship between poverty and crime. This means that poverty fuel crime by limiting man from accessing resources that are necessary in development of an ideal life. One interesting idea that should be noted as far as poverty and crime is that crime is a short cut of meeting ones basic needs. It is closely related to lazy and poor people who cannot work hard through the normal legal and socially accepted process. This implies that the best way of mitigating the crime rate is by helping people navigate through their education so that they can acquire better ways of dealing with life challenges as well as better means of earning their livelihood. The discussion also implies that criminal justice system should not be handled independently because it does not provide long term solution to the crime rates. Conversely, combining the criminal justice system and the welfare system would bring a relatively long term solution to the rising crime rates

Corp.Gov Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Corp.Gov - Essay Example Corporate governance refers to the structure which ensures that the right questions are asked and checks and balances are in place to make sure that the answers to these questions reflect what is in the best interest of the organization for long-term sustainability of value (Minow & Monks, 2008). According to Davis (2006) corporate governance can be viewed as a system for optimizing the contributions of a number of stakeholders to a purpose they are persuaded to share. These stakeholders involve shareholders; the board of directors, customers, employees, suppliers, community and the government. Effective corporate governance has a profound effect on how well a business performs. Organizations which have found effective means of governing their businesses are prosperous and remain prosperous. The board’s inability to establish a sound governance model gives rise to the probability of failure of the enterprise (Colley et. al, 2004). The purpose of corporate governance is to ensure the survival and success of the organization (Davis, 2006). Good corporate governance requires a complex system of strict checks and balances. The three key actors in corporate governance are the management, directors and the shareholders. (Minow & Monks, 2008) Appropriate implementation of the business concept with goals and directions set by the board, resource planning and effective execution of plans carried out by CEO and the alignment of board and management objectives with those of shareholders. The board undertakes a huge fiduciary responsibility when it assumes the obligation to represent interests of owners, who do not represent themselves. In the course of this representation they are required to demonstrate integrity as well as the competence to make sound decisions (Colley et. al, 2004). Although the essence of corporate governance has been

Health Promotion Plan on Substance Abuse Assignment

Health Promotion Plan on Substance Abuse - Assignment Example The selected population stratum for this teaching program is teenage school students within the age limit of 13-14 years. This segment is particularly selected because researches have shown that substance abuse usually begins in early teenage life due to various factors and not only affects the quality of present life by causing physical and mental distress but also leads to alcoholism and drug addiction later. Literature Review Alcoholism and drug addiction is an increasing problem in adolescents these days. Various researches conducted have shown an increasing trend in the consumption of sentence abuse. Where there are various factors identified for this increased pattern of consumption, one of them was found to be unsupervised teenage life in which substance abuse leads to addiction in later part of life. According to researches conducted by Changalwa et al. (2012), Bahr and Hoffman (2012) and, Peckham and Morgan-Lopez (2007), there is a direct link between parenting styles and su bstance abuse in teenagers and adolescents. Teenagers with unhealthy or strained bonding with their parents and guardians tend to develop inclination towards substance abuse during their teenage life which leads to addiction in future. ... ces of them drinking excessively later in life.† Hence, children with their parents having authoritative parenting style tend to develop healthy personalities since this parenting style is a combination of love, independence and supervision allowing children to make decisions (shunning rebellion resulting substance abuse) but with necessary guidance (which allows teenagers to be aware of what is harmful for them and do not give them over-independence). Therefore, child’s desires are well-respected but with necessary controls imposed. According to American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (2011), â€Å"The most commonly used illegal drugs are marijuana (pot), stimulants (cocaine, crack, and speed), LSD, PCP, opiates, heroin, and designer drugs (Ecstasy).   The use of illegal drugs is increasing, especially among young teens.   The average age of first marijuana use is 14, and alcohol use can start before age 12.   The use of marijuana and alcohol in high school has become common†. It is important to note that drugs and alcohol are not easily accessible commodities. Therefore, for teenagers to have access to them means getting involved in criminal activities or being present in an environment which is harmful for their cognitive growth. According to researches of Baumrind (1991) and Njenga (2005), environment and inheritance are the two decisive factors which instigate substance abuse in teenagers. For an environment, current family setup, daily settings including academic setup and playgrounds, cultural forces and peer pressure are the basic elements which have direct impact on the teenagers and adolescents. On the other hand, hereditary traits also play a vital role in inducing substance abuse even if the environment is healthy enough. Various researches

Religious teaching Essay Example for Free

Religious teaching Essay Religious teachings offer the only sound basis for moral reasoning. Critically examine arguments for and against this opinion. Morality is the knowledge and practice of what is moral, which may, according to your personal view be instinctive, be associated with religion and culture, or be acquired by reasoning. Most, if not all religions have a human moral code, which follows Gods will. Religious people will consult their religious text, whether it is the Bible, Quran or Torah ect, when making a moral decision. Very often these religious texts will lay out a set of rules or guide lines. In Christianity it is the 10 Commandments, in Buddhism it is the 8 Fold Path. Although these rules do provide a good moral base, if taken to their logical conclusion they are objective and absolute, leaving no room for the flexibility needed in todays society. This is taking a Deontological approach; this is when a person has a set of rules that they consider to be absolutely right. They abide by these rules, as they are more important than the effect or outcome. We can use the example of abortion and the 10 Commandments. These religious laws state that Thou shalt not kill. If taken absolutely this means that abortion is wrong no matter what the circumstances are, even if the child will be born severely disabled or will be born into extreme poverty. For many people moral values are relative to a specific society, time and circumstances, and their moral view can change through changed circumstances, needs, beliefs and knowledge. This flexibility is known as relativism and is the opposite of absolute. This is also known as taking a Consequential approach, when a person looks to the outcome, and decides how to act to achieve that result. They have in mind the aim and believe that actions can be deemed moral if they achieve that aim the end justifies the means. Because of this many individuals often experience conflict in making moral decisions because they have no absolute code of what is right or wrong. There are several different methods subjective morality: Utilitarianism is the view that you decide whether an action is right or wrong by looking at the consequences, and you should choose they action that will produce the most happiness/least-suffering to the greatest number of people. If we consider whether abortion is right or wrong using the utilitarianism view we would have to say that it depends on the individual situation, and whether the baby would be born healthily or not, and whether the baby would be loved, and the number of people affected by the pregnancy, amongst other things. Natural Law states that morality should use the natural form of behaviour, and that humans and society should follow this natural law. Therefore anything that is deemed as un-natural is wrong. This means that in the case of abortion it is always wrong, as pregnancy is a natural occurrence and it should not be ended un-naturally. Social contract theory claims that laws and morals are a human invention upon which we agree to make life better for ourselves. When making a moral decision a person would have to consider the impact upon society and peoples freedom, amongst other things. Once again considering the case of abortion, a person using social contract theory, would consider the effect having a baby would have on their lives, the lives of people around them, and how the life of the bay would be once it is born. I conclude by saying that I think that religious teachings do not offer the only sound basis for moral reasoning. I feel that the individual situation also needs to be considered when making a moral decision as every case has different circumstances. I also feel that although the religious laws do give a good, sound basis for morality the objective and absolute rules stated by religion do not leave room for the flexibility needed in todays society.

Hewlett Packard: Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM)

Hewlett Packard: Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) Consider an organization you are familiar with and with reference to associated theory and practice critically asses the approach that is taken to strategic HRM. Evaluate the extent to which the approach has contributed to the organizational effectiveness. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY (ABSTRACT) The report focuses on critically evaluating how Hewlett Packard has been using the variables of Human resource management such as training and development, performance management in order to bring all the employees from a diverse cultural background, with different personality traits to work efficiently and effectively towards achievement of the organisational objectives HP, a giant in IT industry catering to the hardware as well as software needs of the individual customers and businesses, was started in the year 1939 by Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard and currently employs over 300,000 people The report delineates how HP has been supporting equal opportunities for people from different ethnic backgrounds by recruiting people without any bias towards any particular ethnic group. The report also states the role of performance management within HP i.e. activities which ensure that the organizational goals are met on time and with minimizing resource usage. The report even talks about the resource facilities and working environment provided to the employees, i.e. employee relations at HP. Further the role of training and development in polishing the skills of the individual employees and making them become a part of the HP team is stated along with how the employees are trained to inculcate the necessary skills required for the job. TERMS OF REFERENCE/ STATEMENT OF PURPOSE The following assignment is compiled so as to become familiar with the main theories in the field of strategic human resource management. During preparation it intended to gain knowledge of the evolving role of strategic human resource management in the current world scenario, performance appraisal and its function in performance management system, administration and formulation of compensation and benefit programs, significance of development of human resource (development and training) at every level for employees and opportunity for management provided by employee diversity. The study undertaken requires expertise in research of the subject but due to limitations of the words for the assignment covering all the HR policies is next to impossible; my objectives were to study the key processes and policies for which the company provides vital information. INTRODUCTION Storey (1989) defined HRM as Set of interrelated policies with an ideological and philosophical underpinning. Storey (1995) defines HRM as a distinctive approach to employment management which seeks to achieve competitive advantage through the strategic deployment of a highly committed and capable workforce, using an array of cultural, structural and personnel techniques. HP was started in 1939 by Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard. In 2010, fortune 500 ranking hp was placed at number 10. Its headquarters are located in Palo Alto California. HP has 304,000 employees. The company makes use of participative decision making management system in their company giving them an edge in the industry (HP website). The results of this investment can be seen in the two awards received by HP from the American society for Training and Development for inventiveness of its leadership development programs. Furthermore, Hay group recognized HP as one of the best company in the world for leadership development. (reference) To emerge as a complete technology company which offers an inclusive set of solutions all through the value chain, HP is practicing an inorganic strategy (Data monitor 2010). They cater to almost everyone ranging from individual customers, medium sized business and large corporations which include health, education and government sector. The company deals in a wide range of products, from portable devices to supercomputers, from computing to home printing. It has also sought a level of inorganic growth too, through its merger with Compaq in 2002 with an aim of providing excellent IT solutions. Consequently, HP today caters to over a billion customers in 170 countries (Data monitor 2010). CORE POLICIES AT HP DIVERSITY AT HP Smart organizations identify the need for swift action and are prepared and eager to disperse resources for management of diversity in the workplace. Workforce diversity can be defined as the differences between individuals in a company. Diversity includes gender, race age, education, background etc Diversity takes into account how individuals perceive others and how they perceive themselves. Their interactions are affected by these perceptions. Organizations diversity agenda is expected to increase in the future as we are moving into a more and more globalized setup. (reference) In The Future of Diversity and the Work Ahead of Us, Harris Sussman says, Diversity is about our relatedness, our connectedness, our interactions, where the lines cross. Diversity is many things a bridge between organizational life and the reality of peoples lives, building corporate capability, the framework for interrelationships between people, a learning exchange, a strategic lens on the world. The benefits of diversity include greater competitiveness through higher adaptability, poising it for success. Organizations embracing diversity are able to offer a wider variety of solutions to different issues. Services to customers are easily provided by organizations employing a diverse collection of experience and skills (e.g. culture, language etc), offering the wealth of varying points of view. A large number of experiences and ideas can be accumulated by employing a diverse workforce which comfortably communicates viewpoints. The organization can use these to form strategies and cater to customers effectively. Some of the challenges of workforce diversity are the organizations ability to successfully implement diversity agenda, which requires openness, transparent communication and sensitization of the existing staff. (reference) A diversity of age, culture, potential, ethnicity amongst the labor force encourages innovation and creativeness. It is believed at HP diversity is the solution to understand the principles and demographics of the consumers and is fundamental in drawing and holding on to the finest employees. (reference) HP supports diversity in the following ways: Hiring of different collection of people and crafting them as leaders. Constructing a comprehensive work atmosphere. Supporting employees in navigation of their work and private commitments while complying with the business requirements of HP. Policies A comprehensive work atmosphere is encouraged by HP diversity policies. Respect, courtesy and dignity is required by every employee while treating others. Discrimination founded on attributes such as age, race, ethnicity, sex or disability is not accepted under any circumstances. Employees are persuaded to speak up and it is possible for them all over the world to report harassment or bias through the 24 hour anonymous helpline. HP approach Efforts by HP include expansion of its labour force by hiring best in class varied talent and implanting diversity in all major diversity in all major development processes and supporting main growth programs for career development and professional escalation. Gender diversity is calculated and kept in check by HP globally and ethnic diversity in its united nations labour force. For details over the previous 5 years see table: Executive diversity Minorities comprised 17.3% in contrast with 12.9 % in 2008. In the year 2009 17% of HPs topmost executives in U.S. were women in contrast to 17.2% in 2008. HPs activities in the year 2009 were: Partnership with diversity associations: HP supplied grant and products for cause of cause of underrepresentation of minorities in business positions which is addressed by management leadership for tomorrow. Drawing a extensive range of human resource: 3000 women from extensive range of professions and businesses are brought together by the annual conference that is held in Boston. Employee resource groups: workers with familiar interests and backgrounds are brought together by HPs ERGs. Opportunities for internal development: celebrations of womens international day in India. For talented omen, a series of virtual leadership was conducted in EMEA. PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS There is nothing new about the idea that company and employee performance should be improved by appraisals. Today managers are way more serious about the process- of training workers, rewarding and appraising them and forming goals. The whole incorporated process is called PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT. Performance management may be defined as a process that unites goal setting, performance appraisal and development into a single, common system whose aim is to ensure that the employees performance is supporting the companys strategic aims (dessler and varkkey 2010). Setting of standards, training of workers, feedback and appraisals related to performance and contribution to achievement of organizational goals is explicitly measured by performance management. Performance management therefore never just means meeting with a subordinate once or twice a year to review his/her performance it means setting goals that make sense in terms of the companys strategic aims. It means regular interaction to make sure there is continous growth in workers performance. It also takes into account and makes sure that the worker has the correct training to perform the job (hrm book pg 338). (reference) According to Goel 2008 manpower management is the most crucial job because managing people is the heart and essence of being a manager. Personnel management is concerned with any activity relating to the human element or relations in the organisation. Work life programs offered by HP Employees at HP have the benefit of various work life choices offered to them. HP offers: Flex time: altering the commencement and end of work, but working normal 8 hour a day. Part time: temporarily or continuously working for less hours, part time employees account about 2%. The requirements of aging workforce are met with the help of this program. Tele work: 28% of employee t HP work full time from home. Flex work: mainly working in hp offices but occasionally from home. Whilst improving employee productivity the cost of HPs real estate has been reduced with the help of these arrangements. Employee engagement Open, honest exchange of ideas and continuous communication is what HPs culture is based upon. This helps HPs workers understand their contribution to companys overall success and also gives the company chance to consider their input for various decisions. Recognition programs At HP employees are kept motivated and engaged by recognizing them for their contribution. Recognition @HP was conducted in 2009 to identify workers at HP for their qualities. Day to day non monetary recognition is stressed by the program. Retiree engagement HP has about 79000 retirees who are ambassadors of HP and the company keeps them connected and up to date. Retirees at HP connect through various social media. The retirees can also join HP alumni association which has worldwide members registered which account 17000 in numbers. The Employment Relationship A prerequisite for success in the organization is the maintenance of good employee relations. For high productivity and satisfaction, strong employee relations are needed. Employee relations are concerned with evading and resolving problems amongst individuals which occur due to the work situation. Safe and healthy work environment, incentives for motivation, useful communication and commitment of employees determines good employee relations. It is believed by many people that employee relations are about considering the larger picture and assisting the organization to take required action. (reference) HP considers its employees vital to its success. Innovation of products, management of supply chain and the connection with the customers and partners at HP is driven by the talent expertise and skills of the employees. According to HP its competitive advantage lies in retaining and hiring the finest people. For employees to grow, HP attempts to create a helpful and inspiring work environment. HPs policies are applicable globally and show companys commitment to just treatment of workers. (reference) HP complies with local laws but companys own policies demand much more: Best work environment: policy describes the principles of personal conduct that are expected by the workers to add to an optimistic, dynamic work experience. Open door policy: Portrays HPs promise to open communication and a place of work where everyone is heard. Human rights and labour policy: commends HP to just treatment of all workers. Management and compliance Upholding environmental health and safety is a key goal of HPs. Safety of products and services is the main aim and it is also made sure that the workers can perform without injury at the premises. HPs minimum obligation for EHS is legal compliance. The processes needed to abide by are made sure by HPs EHS management system. Any allegation is thoroughly investigated and proper action is taken to avoid any recurrence. All operations related to manufacturing at HP are certified to ISO 14001. EHS systems are introduced to recently acquired companies to make sure that EHS objectives carry on to be fulfilled as the company grows. (reference) Employee feedback The employees are asked for feedback by voice of the workforce conducted annually and also though pulse surveys on explicit issues. There were various surveys conducted during 2009 including: Onboard and monthly transition experience surveys. Enterprise business quarterly pulse survey. Hr manager communication survey EDS integration survey Voice of the workforce survey Around 90,000 workers in 2009 participated in voice of the workers survey. Privacy of the respondents is strictly protected and the survey was available over the internet in 25 languages. (reference) TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT at HP Training The process through which people acquire abilities to accomplish organizational objectives is known as training. It includes planned activities for specific learning to develop workers performance at work. (reference) Development According to Drucker (1977), the one contribution a manager is uniquely expected to make is to give others vision and ability to perform. A basic operation in the work of the manager is to develop people and to direct, motivate and train subordinates. Stern argues that staff training and development have become matters of vital strategic importance. Importance of training and development (reference) There are various reasons for an organization to conduct training and development programs. Some of them are: Helps to avoid managerial obsolescence Manage change due to acquisitions and mergers. Also helps in coping up with technological and diversity changes in the organization Higher employee morale and increase in job satisfaction. Elevated motivation among employees Financial gain through higher efficiency in process and innovation in products and strategies is increased. Developing leadership at HP Since HP recognizes excellence as a key driver of its business success, HP significantly invests in leadership development. Dedicated to this mission, global talent consists of 3 firmly integrated organizations. (reference) Employee relations at HP The evaluation of data and insights to spot high potential leaders in the company and underlining of areas where additional learning resources may be needed are provided by the dedicated talent management team at HP. Designing of HPs major corporate wide leadership is crafted by executive and leadership organization. Learning by doing is emphasized by almost all of HPs leadership development programs. E.g.: Projects providing major business impact are frequently powered by HP. Learning experiences offered by these projects are not like the classroom experience. HPs leadership programs are offered training and development support by more than 500 executives in a classic year. To get used to dynamic business conditions the curriculum of leadership is frequently revised. Leadership programs at HP are divided into 3 categories: Choosing those at a particular level or creating career transitions through foundational programs is emphasized. Leadership standards of HP and definition of expectations by HP leaders is carried out by skill based programs at HP. For employees with elevated potential for development there ate select talent development programs. With leadership development central portal, HP offers leadership knowledge. This is offered by podcasts, internet courses and quick tips. Green advocates training program Participation in this program is encouraged by HP in Canada. This program provides knowledge and allows workers to develop into ambassadors of HPs environment projects. (reference) Eco solutions advocate program Through this program HP teaches its workers about environmental issues and companys dedication to sustainability of the environment. It also offers workers the resources they require to communicate with consumers about HPs solutions. (reference) People Development HPs approach is based on interior and exterior benchmarking, HP uses an incorporated development framework for its employees. The structure employs range of tools to help workers plan the next step in their career. HPs developmental plans are divided in a 70/20/10 breakup. 70% of the plans are of the main concern. They include job rotations, special reports and cross functional team experiences. With hands on experience the workers are encouraged to develop their capabilities. Focus of about 20% of the programs is relationship based education. This is done through coaching and mentoring. Rest of the 10% of HPs programs are provided through formal learning, interactive online resources etc. (reference) HPs learning programs take the benefit of technology. About 83% of HPs training lessons are conveyed through video conference or the web. Wherever there is a geographic focus of members HP uses face to face training. It has been acknowledged by hp that technology- based training provides major benefits: wider reach and saving huge amounts of money on travel whilst reducing related greenhouse gas release. It also allows employee access at the correct times and place, and also improves knowledge and retention. Training at HP is complimented as employees are also encouraged in following external educational prospects. (reference) Summary The human element of business and partners with every business is driven by human resource at HP to make sure that employee planning strategy is associated to convey the business objectives. The leadership team at HP works together with groups of business to make sure the company has the correct people, with accurate skills, in the correct job etc. The company is escalating its ability to develop by explaining strategic employee plans, support of acquisitions and mergers, providing cost efficient infrastructure in growing markets. To stay in front of the competitive pressure, HP optimizes every element of its operating strategy- to increase revenue, be efficient, making smart investments. Even though the recent financial downturn of 2008 has had sever impacts in the IT industry, HPs earnings per share has risen continuously from 2008 till 2010 Good business results are indicative of great human resource which has driven performance On account of increasing globalisation, HP considers diversity as a major driver of innovation, invention and creativity. A diverse workforce differentiates the company and it is also vital for the company to relate and serve customers worldwide. At HP it is believed that people are motivated to do their best with a culture that respects differences. The company crafts an attitude in its employees, allowing them to think intentionally about diversity and its insertion in the companys activities. It does so by knitting diversity into the fabric of the company. As a MNC, HP has had to prioritize this so that they are more efficient across different markets, understand local needs. As far as performance management is concerned HP has a goal directed approach and has formulated a process to evaluate the manpower resource and their enhancement in terms of careers and work life balance is commendable. HP has a relationship oriented view to managing performance rather than a hierarchical top down approach. This approach has proved to be very concrete in terms of setting targets/achieving outcomes. The most striking feature of HP is its emphasis on leadership development. It is held as a company that has some of the best leaders in the business which is only because they invest time, effort and resources into making this possible. As the company becomes more global, it is important that they keep this emphasis. To broaden its reach to its employees all over the world, it provides training through video based sessions, which also ends up having a positive cost saving and reducing environmental impact by eliminating the need to travel (hence reducing greenhouse gases). Therefore it seems that training and development at HP pays attention upon interrelation of the companys goals and objectives with that of workers. HP maintains employee relations wherever it has its operations without showing any disparity or bias with respect to ethnicity or cultural background in true terms it is a global company. The company monitors compliance with its policies principally through employee engagement surveys. This enquires questions on prejudice and diversity. It also assesses employees understanding of companys approach to these issues. HP does not tolerate discrimination. It deals with this issue through stout polices that are accessible to all employees. HP has worked towards ensuring excellent work-life balance through various options provided to its employees. These programs have helped in improving employee productivity and therefore higher efficiency towards achieving organisational goals With regard to workplace safety since HP is an IT company therefore is requirement to work in potentially dangerous settings (assembling products, hardware etc), hence HP has been committed to fostering the best health and safety norms and always keeping themselves up to date with changes in health safety standards. Since the employees are assured of their safety the employees productivity to work has gone up leading to higher and more efficient production. RECOMMENDATIONS At HP the same performance appraisal standard is used overseas which they use in their headquarters. The external aspects that may affect performance in the international scenario were not considered while designing the performance appraisal criteria and has hence led to a number of problems. Therefore HP needs to formulate a new standard for evaluation according to the situation. To prepare workers to work on an international platform HP can provide linguistic training. This training requires not only learning of the language of the country in perspective, but it also requires learning of how customers think and react. Inclusion of higher level of responsibilities by expanding the job and access to important meetings should be facilitated to improve employee relations. Furthermore HP can assign employees to lead teams and projects and increase time spending between the employee and the boss. Focusing on service training can help workers expand knowledge of managing customers. Disagreement and conflicts can be prevented through transparent appraisals systems. Educating employees and improved training for rating Performance in the subsidiaries of the company is affected at times due to insufficient training and education of various related factors like interaction, culture, business and social information. By alerting managers about errors in judgment, it can be made possible to spot them before hand and prevent them. Clear cut performance in dimensions will help in reducing errors related to rating. Confusion and uncertainty circling the process can be avoided if the companys purpose for appraisals is clearly stated. CONCLUSION HP is committed to developing a high performance culture where the employees can grow. To enhance its value proposition for its employees, HP has been formulating plans to support development of people with a lot of firmness and discipline. Talent management was driven deeper into the company and creation of strategic employee planning was done by a total redesign of companys leadership programs. HP has effectively and efficiently: Excelled in transformation of business and planning of workforce. Motivated people and developed leadership. Maximized employee engagement and built a high performance culture. Promoted areas such as development of career, performance management, development of management of leadership. In both theory and practice HP has some of the best human resource management policies. The company has won awards for its diverse and innovative human resource systems. It is assessed that even though HP followed some of the best human resource policies, the recession had a major impact on the organizations employees. Dissatisfaction was caused among the employees due to the layoff and caused fear among employees for the loss of their job. It is therefore implicit that even some of the best human resource policies may not turn out to be satisfactory. It is hence implied that even though the organization includes some of the finest human resource practices the psychological aspect of humans are still erratic to rejection and acceptance hence making human resource practices should be made subjective to change. BIBLIOGRAPHY http://www.cipd.co.uk/subjects/empreltns/general/emprelsovr.htm http://www.managementstudyguide.com/employee-relations.htm http://www.cipd.co.uk/NR/rdonlyres/B39AFC72-25BD-4C10-B1BA-3564CAC3BBB3/0/whatemprels1105.pdf http://www.diversityworking.com/employerZone/diversityManagement/?id=9 http://www.zeromillion.com/econ/workplace-diversity.html http://www.blurtit.com/q804656.html http://managementhelp.org/trng_dev/basics/reasons.htm http://www.allbusiness.com/human-resources/employee-development/339712-1.html

Comparison Of Nuclear Power And Fossil Fuels Environmental Sciences Essay

Comparison Of Nuclear Power And Fossil Fuels Environmental Sciences Essay In todays world there are various ways of producing energy. In the past most of the energy came from fossil fuels; fossil fuels were always used to produce energy because they were cheap and available in vast amounts. Nowadays, because of the limited amount of fossil fuels around the world and the high prices people have started to utilize other ways of producing energy. Nuclear power is one of the many resources now being used in order to keep the use of fossil fuels down. In this paper I will discuss fossil fuels, nuclear power and the advantages and disadvantages of both. What are fossil fuels? Coal, gas, and oil are the three main fossil fuels. They have been formed from the organic remains of prehistoric plants and animals more than 300 million years ago. According to Energy and the Environment, fuel refers to anything that can be burned as a source of energy; therefore, fossil fuels are the remains of animals and plants that have formed into materials that can be burned. The type of fossil fuel created depends on the kind of plants or animals and the amount of heat and pressure. The energy stored in fossil fuels originally came from the sun. When we burn fossil fuels, we release that stored energy. All the across world fossil fuels are the most widely used type of energy; fossil fuels have been used to generate power for almost everything that one uses. Among all of the fossil fuels, natural gas and oil are more commonly used because they are rather easy to transport, they have low emissions, and are easy to handle. It has been said that, except fo r coal, the supply of the other fossil fuels are sure to be depleted in a few decades. As of right now, according to Wikipedia- Fossil fuels supply close to 86% of the worlds energy. This is a large percentage of energy to be supplied by just fossil fuels. As I have already stated, we are currently in an energy crisis and fossil fuels are the lifeblood of our society and for many others around the world. Our supply is slowly coming to an end, which is why we have become more than willing to go to war for it and make friends with those whom we really hate. Lately the former Soviet Union and many of the countries in the Middle East are in our good favor strictly because of the oil reserves that they have. Our foreign aid has a legitimate purpose. Even though we have befriended our enemies, fossil fuels will run out and the use of them will soon take the lives of many people. These are important reasons to find other means of getting the energy we need to continue our society as we know it. So what options do we have? Alternative forms of energy are currently under development even though most of them are only in their initial stages. With more help from the government and public support, we may be able to speed up the development of these technologies and help free ourselves from the mast amount of usage of fossil fuels. http://www.myclimatechange.net/UserImage/3/Definition/WorldEnergyConcemption19652005-1.jpg This is definitely a serious problem, and as inhabitants of the world we must all come together and try to resolve the problem at hand. Even though some scientist put a time span on how much longer they think that fossil fuels are going to last, no one really knows. It will all depend on how well we manage our energy demands along with how well we can develop and use renewable energy sources. Nuclear power is energy which is produced with the use of a controlled nuclear reaction. Many nations use nuclear power plants to generate electricity for both civilian and military use, and some nations also utilize nuclear power to run parts of their naval fleets, especially submarines. Some people favor an expansion of nuclear power plants because this form of energy is considered cleaner than fossil fuels such as coal. Nuclear power does indeed come with a number of proble.ms that must be addressed, most importantly being the safe disposal of radioactive waste products. According to Energy and the Environment, The entire physical world is made of atoms; the word atom is derived from the Greek word atomos which means invisible. Atoms, the smallest component of any element, contains enormous energy. When it is split a process called fission, this energy is released in the forms of tremendous heat and light. It is this energy that was released on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, by two separate atom bombs in 1945 that led to the conclusion of World War II. This horrific scene created by those two bombs led the international community to condemn any further use of atomic weapons. Still, engineers, governments and scientists realized that if the atoms energy could be controlled and harnessed, it would revolutionize the worlds energy markets and provide significant electricity reserves to help meet the worlds energy demands. It was even envisioned that it could one day replace the need for fossil fuels. As a result, the first usable electricity from nuclear fission was produced at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory in 1951. Nuclear energy requires sources of radioactive elements found naturally in our environment and manmade with which to create the nuclear fission process that splits the atoms. Uranium is the most common and most used of these elements. The only other available sources that are used for nuclear energy is Plutonium and Thorium. Plutonium is not naturally occurring. Thus, the Plutonium used in nuclear reactors is man-made, coming from a nuclear reactor. According to the Ecology Global Network, Thorium, though not yet a mainstream nuclear energy supply source, is being heavily studied and applied as a safer, cleaner alternative to Uranium. Still, Uranium is king as the premiere provider of nuclear energy. Perhaps the greatest challenge facing nuclear energy production after any potential for nuclear disasters similar to the 1986 Chernobyl event is the disposal of the highly radioactive wastes. Because it can take up to 10,000 years for these materials to fully break down into harmless elements the challenge is to store them safely for at least that length of time. Even though it is possible, where and how are still major issues. Exploitable Uranium supplies still pose some short-term challenges. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the worlds economically exploitable Uranium reserves are likely to last between 35 and 63 years, depending on whether demand is such as to justify the higher cost of mining less easily exploitable reserves. Still, in consideration of the power that can be generated by Uranium and the burgeoning global energy demands, many governments are placing more emphasis on nuclear energy. The largest user of nuclear energy is the United States, followed by France, Japan, Germany and the Russian Federation. In the US alone, the nations 103 nuclear power plants each generate an average of around 20 tons of radioactive spent fuel a year. Spent fuel now sits in cooling pools and temporary storage areas waiting for somebody to figure out what to do with it. When you begin to compare fossil fuels to nuclear energy you are able to see that there are many advantages and disadvantages of both. Just because we have used fossil fuels for most of the worlds energy doesnt mean that we should continue to use what supply of it we have left. Even though nuclear energy is not yet as popular as the use of fossil fuels there definitely has been and will continue to be, a rise in its use. Advantage of Fossil Fuels Disadvantages of Fossil Fuels Easily distributed Probable contributor to global warming Inexpensive production Cause of acid rain Capacity to generate huge amounts of electricity in just a single location Questionable availability of some fuels Simple combustion process can directly heat or generate electricity Major increase in prices Compared to: Advantages of Nuclear power Disadvantages of Nuclear Power No Greenhouse Gases High initial cost because plant requires containment safeguards No Criteria Pollutants Waste products can be used to manufacture weapons Lowest impacts on the environment Possibility of nuclear meltdown from uncontrolled reaction Lowest cost producer of base load electricity Nuclear reactors only last for about forty to fifty years. After we look at and analyze both fossil fuels, and nuclear energy we notice that both types of energies have their pros and cons. There is no way that anyone could say that there is a major difference in the two that would lead one to believe that one is better than the other. As I have already stated, fossil fuels are definitely a great energy producer. When large amounts of fossil fuels such as coal, gas, and oil are available production can be easily done at a low cost with little or no problems. But as we know, because the availability of fossil fuels is now lessening, we have no other choice than to find alternative energy sources, thus being the case nuclear energy is a very good choice. According to the Nuclear Energy Institute Clean Air Energy, Nuclear energy is Americas largest source of clean-air, carbon-free electricity, producing no greenhouse gases or air pollutants, nuclear power plants aid compliance with the Clean Air Act of 1970, which set standards to improve the nations air quality. This statement says a lot about Nuclear Energy and is really able to show readers just how effective using nuclear energy can be. In conclusion, even though I believe that fossil fuels have served us greatly while they have been around in a plentiful supply; I think we now need to come out from the state we are in, one that relies fully on fossil fuels alone. We need to venture out and try new means of energy production; new means such as nuclear power. I believe that even though nuclear power may have some high initial costs it is well worth it. As Ross Garnaut said, A revolution in humanitys use of fossil fuel-based energy would be necessary sooner or later to sustain and to extend modern standards of living. It will be required sooner if we are to hold the risks of climate change to acceptable levels. The costs that we bear in making an early adjustment will bring forward, and reduce for future times, the costs of the inevitable eventual adjustment away from fossil fuels. Reference Page Cohen, Bernard L. The Nuclear Energy Option. Plenum, 1990. The Ecology Global Network | Ecology News and Information for Residents of Planet Earth. Web. 16 Nov. 2009. . Nuclear Energy Institute Clean-Air Energy. Web. 16 Nov. 2009. . Toossi, Reza. Energy and the Environment-Sources, technologies, and impacts. 2nd ed. Los Angeles, CA: VerVe Inc., 2008 Wikipedia. Web. 16 Nov. 2009. .