Equal Education in US

How many times has the United Negro College Fund aired the commercial including the phrase: â€Å"A mind is a terrible thing to waste? † The world would be rich to equate the repetitions with dollar bills. This famous slogan was a means to promote higher education. Unfortunately, there are many people who do not fit the description of a college student due to poverty. An uneducated parent feels powerless in this society. A young teenage mother may feel that there is no feasible schedule possible to fulfill her dreams. An elementary student looks to his parents and teachers for answers to the question marks surrounding his environment of lack. The people that are in these types of situations are held down by poverty. Children who have financial hardship comprise a sizeable portion of Texas public schools. According to an article published in Family Circle magazine, teenage births increased by more than sixty-five percent during the 1980†³s. There have been studies that prove persons receiving government assistance i. e. welfare have high illiteracy rates. What is the solution for the people suffering from these impoverished circumstances? It is of utmost importance that we prioritize and organize to set forth change . Our immediate attention as a nation will only make our economy stronger by putting a halt to the cycle. Poverty has the power to stagnate achievement. However, knowledge is power no matter where one may live. In order to break the power of poverty we need to educate our parents, offer vocational training for young single mothers, and encourage pursuit of higher education through the community. â€Å"Children of poor and poorly-educated parents are often caught in a vicious circle of educational failures. † (Block 72) Their rate of success is much lower than the rate of their middle-class peers. This is largely contributed to the level of education one receives and is able to pass on to his children. Many under privileged people are unarmed with the necessary knowledge to steer their child towards educational improvement. There are also many people are unaware of scholarship programs and what it takes to apply for one. If the information were readily available many would still be unable to adhere to a specific goal plan due to the absence of strategic planning and the high illiteracy rate of adults. These ideals must be instilled at an early age by the parent. Failure to do so results in an immediate disadvantage to the child. According to a 1993 federal report: Only about forty-five percent of high-poverty homes receive a newspaper, nearly half the rate of higher-income homes. About fifteen percent lack dictionaries compared to three percent for more affluent families. Poor parents spend more time doing chores with their children, while other parents take their children on educational outings. Poor parents are less likely to have finished high school. ( Bazeley 727) These facts come with great consequence for the child and are great examples of what happens in the average low income home. The time is overdue for parents of poor homes to become more active in their child†s education from early childhood. There are open Senate meetings and hearings that the common citizen can sit in on and react to but it takes someone who is willing to obtain drive to react for the sake of their future in America. It should become natural instinct for a parent to become actively involved in the pursuit of education for their child to excel. It is important for parents to get strong and learn in order to insure that their child will not experience life the same way they did. When people use the literary skills they are learning in their work , they not only improve their literacy and productivity levels but also increase their language use with their children and in their communities. † (Lewis 186) This supports the need for vocational training for mothers on welfare who are usually teenagers. Offering education to single parents and teenage mothers would also give them a better foundation in which to build their family upon. The real key to helping the young mothers is early prevention. There is a high mortality rate among teenagers who experience early pregnancy. It is a signal for an automatic start on the road to government dependency such as subsidized housing and welfare. Usually the children are born with drug and/or alcohol dependencies which automatically puts them in a negative position when it comes to their education. This escalates the need to reach the teen mothers when they are about to reach their sexual peak. The main focus is to guide the teenager into practicing abstinence delaying sexual activity. This job ties into the need for the parent to be more involved with the education process and progress. However once a child is born into that situation the young mother is placed in the position to be responsible. Vocational training would provide the foundation and confidence that the mother on welfare needs. This will allow her to boost her self esteem and will automatically affect the child in a positive way. The most important of all things is to offer encouragement while the child is young. It is very rare that a child will possess the drive to overcome adversity while he is young. It is the parents† responsibility to offer the goal of a higher education. Through the attainment of higher education the walls of poverty will start to come down one at a time. Parents play a critical role in offering cushion for school performance â€Å"†Time and time again studies show that being ready to learn before school starts is the best predictor of educational success,† says Dan Keating, director of the Human Development Program at the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research. † (Dwyer 70) Teachers and counselors also play a critical role. Linda Garcia is a neighbor and a single parent of three teenagers. Her oldest daughter is already a mother of two, on welfare and has a boyfriend who is a drug dealer. The other two are in high school. After discussing her children†s educational goals with school counselors, Linda became aware of the lack of concern that seemed prevalent. It appeared that counselors mostly encourage students who are naturally bright to excel past high school. Many counselors set up career plans with students who are high achievers and fail to respond to the students who are â€Å"just making it. † Inadvertently, these particular counselors are helping to suppress the desire that the below-average student may have to advance to college or beyond. Linda is a high school drop out and encourages her children but without additional forms of reinforcement her children may never excel past high school. We need to increase community and school participation in low-income families. Failure to recognize this problem denotes refusal to accept the economic changes that occur due to lack of education. Once we face this problem we will be able to grow more economically as a nation. Poverty is a very difficult position to be in. Many times there is not enough food to feed the family. So many other times our children turn to gangs and violence instead of better education. Not only does poverty effect education but it affects health as well. Many people in poverty are unable to visit doctors. Children lose focus in school from lack of sleep due to the surrounding environment. These factors magnify the need to put a halt to poverty. More people have to be able to identify this major concern of our nation for the good of America. Without the help of society as a whole it may become impossible to put an end to poverty in the United States. Not all stories have horrible endings so there remains a faint hope. For example, consider a young woman who grew up in low-income housing and on welfare. She had to deal with lack of transportation, adequate clothing, and many time no food in the pantry. Her environment consisted of firing guns, fighting, drugs, and constant visits from the police. Her greatest responsibility was taking care of her little brothers and sometimes missing school because her mother had no sitter. As a young child she had drive and ambition. Her inability to actively participate in school functions intensified her drive to overcome her surroundings. Her biggest dream was to help others to overcome. Where is this woman now? She has begun her long awaited dream and is finally in college full time. What does she desire to attain from a higher education? The answer is simple†¦.. she wants to be a teacher. She wants to leave a legacy and provide encouragement to others who may have experienced the same misfortune as a small child. No longer struck down by poverty she pursuing a degree in mathematics. Now her potential accomplishments are endless. Had she ever received encouragement from her mother? No. Just imagine how much closer her dreams would have been if her parents had given encouragement. â€Å"Education remains the key to both economic and political empowerment. † Barbara Jordan, 1991.

Abstract on Marketing Intelligence System for a Media Company

Marketing Intelligence Database Management at Manipal Media Network Limited A project by * Abhishek Gupta * Aishwarya Shetty * Nikhil Modi * Nikita Patel * Pritish Prabhu * Rahul Dara * Reshma R * Rishi Gupta * Sudip Ray * Vaibhav Goswami OVERVIEW OF MMNL Manipal Media Network Limited is a subsidiary of Manipal Group which specializes in printing and publications. Udayavani, the flagship publication of the MMNL is a leading daily Kannada newspaper. Its subscriptions reach most cities of Karnataka including Mangalore, Bangalore and Gulbarga.Its first issue was in 1971 and it continues to grow daily reaching more than 300,000 houses. BUSINESS STRATEGY MMNL has always tried to maintain the values of its shareholders and customers against its competition. MMNL strives to be a Multi-media Corporation, making its presence felt across several platforms including print, e-papers among others delivering local news and entertainment solutions. IT STRATEGY The strategy of the IT team of MMNL is consistently aligned with the overall strategy of the company.This is done by the higher management who believe that IT plays an integral part in proving a competitive advantage. The IT team has provided MMNL with various solutions ahead of its time such as iTunes’ first Kannada Application, the first Kannada News Android App and has entered into partnerships with media leaders such as Yahoo and Newshunt. The IT team has also ensured that MMNL is a leader in delivering news on online platforms such as Android, IOS and Web. Along with this, it has developed internal MIS systems and also worked hand in hand with companies like 4CPlus for successful ERP implementations in numerous areas.By implementing Market Intelligence Database System which will help us in storing the data in a structured format and providing management with quality information which will give them a better insight for efficient decision making. Strategic Alignment Model * Alignment of business and IT strate gy: * The overall business strategy of MMNL is to be a multi media corporation with presence across platforms delivering hyper local news and entertainment solutions. The IT team works in alignment with this overall strategy and strives to provide cutting edge technology solutions that are ahead in time, however keeping the cost aspect in perspective. Some of the results of their effort is – ITunes first Kannada App, First Kannada News App on Android, Partnership with global leaders like Yahoo and Newshunt. Since many readers today have access to internet and spend a lot of time on it, the industry feels that there might be a shift from traditional newspaper to online platforms. * However, this should take a decade's time or so. MMNL being a leader in coastal in Karnataka sees this as an opportunity to be leader on online platforms as well like Android, IOS, Web. Alignment of business and IT capabilities: * In order to align the business capabilities with IT capabilities, we have provided a suggestion to use IT capabilities in order to improve business processes and using IT tools to promote customer loyalty. The marketing intelligence system proposed by us is a step towards accomplishing this objective. * Alignment of business strategy and business capabilities: * In order to align the business strategy with business capabilities, social architecture tools can be formulated.The existing resources and capabilities should be fully utilized in order to implement the business strategy. * Training and motivating the workforce and incentivizing the workforce on successful completion of strategic objectives and goals are the means towards achieving it. * Alignment of IT strategy and IT capabilities: * When it comes to internal strategy, the IT team has developed internal MIS system and also engaged with an external agency for ERP implementation which has been done successfully in many areas.This proves that the current IT capabilities are quite robust and can be further utilized to drive business growth. * Alignment of IT strategy and capabilities can be achieved by having a cross-functional team of managers with expertise is IT knowledge and business knowledge so as to leverage the full potential of its IT capabilities. COMPETITION The major competitors to Udayavani are Prajavani, Vijay Karnataka, Kannada Prabha, Sanjevani among others. This leads to major emphasis being placed on gathering and use of market intelligence as the competition is cut throat.MARKET INTELLIGENCE Marketing Intelligence includes everyday information relevant to a company, collate and analyze the obtained information for subsequent decision making in determining market opportunities, risks and strategies. The system is to be designed for usage by the management of the company and can be viewed by all the employees of the company. This specifically enables the management to see current key performance factors in real time and analyze trends, rather than wait for analysts to deliver periodic reports.Market Intelligence is a subset of Business Intelligence which is a set of methodologies, processes, architectures, and technologies that transform raw data into meaningful and useful information. INFORMATION GATHERING Market related data reaches the company through various sources. The lower level of the organisation consists of executives and trainees who visit distributors on a daily basis. The sources of information could be by a company employees or special agents and the mode of information is mainly through phone calls, SMS, email or through other market sources.The bulk of the information is however gathered by these lower level executives from the distributors and hawkers usually during the early hours of the morning. The information consists of competitors strategies with respect to: * Advertising space, * Insertions of pamphlets, * Change of content in existing publications (page design) * Emergence of new newspapers (VRL publication) * Distributors margins * Expansion by competitors in new territories * Subscription rateManipal Institute of Communication conducts yearly market research on behalf of MMNL which gives them insight into the new trends and expectations from customers and distributors. STORAGE OF DATA MMNL presently maintains individual excel sheets for each of its competitors. The assistant managers are tasked with collating and compiling the data given to them by the executives. This data is maintained according to: * Date and division * Edition * Geographic area and edition * Source of information and context * Findings * Employee entering data and * Employee validating the dataThe data is validated through multiple sources in different regions and also through cross verification. Example: Data collected in Mangalore will be cross checked with similar repeating data from Udupi and Manipal. Due to such disparate sources, data comes in various formats, due to which collation of data is very difficul t. Also, it is difficult to comprehend this data and bringing it into a common platform may distort it. Since information is not properly structured, it may get distorted while sharing between various departments and its interpretation could be different by different people.PROBLEM The problem faced by MMNL is on three levels. 1. Lack of structure- Data reaching the company is unstructured and in fragmented form. It makes the data difficult to comprehend. Since data is of strategic importance, it could have high impact on company’s future strategy or decision. 2. Transfer of data – The data leakage during the transfer of data is the biggest problem faced by MMNL. The executives at the lower level who pass the data to the managerial level use their discretion and pass the data what they feel is important instead of all the data gathered.This leads to loss of data which may turn out to be important. 3. Accessibility – MMNL has data of the past 8-9 years which is s tored using excel sheets. A separate excel sheet is maintained for every company. Whenever the company has to check some data it has to go through all the files which is a cumbersome process. 4. Acceptance – When a new system is implemented people may not be ready to accept it. They may be anxious about what the change may lead to. RECOMMENDATIONS Few options that are present to address the issue of data leakage faced by MMNL are: 1.Toll-free number – The company can acquire a toll free number on which the executives will call and/or SMS the data which will be recorded through an automated system. If this is implemented the executives will not have to take extra efforts to pass on the data to their managers which in turn it will minimize any data leakage. The costs associated are: * BSNL – Cost is Rs. 1. 60/minute. * Initial Cost: Rs. 13000 (Rs. 10000 refundable) * Fixed monthly cost: Rs. 1000 * Tata – Cost is Rs. 2. 39/minute * Initial Cost: Rs. 30000 (R s. 25000 refundable) Fixed monthly cost: Rs. 3000 * Reliance – Cost is Rs. 2. 20/minute * Initial Cost: Rs 13000 (Rs. 10000 refundable) * Fixed monthly cost: Depends on usage 2. Incentives – Keeping the existing system of personally reporting the data to managers in place, incentives can be provided periodically based on quantity and quality of data. This will ensure that executives are encouraged to pass on every piece of available information. If the toll-free system is implemented by MMNL then it can provide incentives to executives who report the data.The problem of unreliable data will not arise as the data will be validated from sources in different regions. 3. Training and development – MMNL can perform training and development programs which are imperative to mould the staff in accordance with the company’s strategy. A company’s sales force is very crucial for the intelligence gathering activity as they can provide excellent data about the current trends in the market. They are also a very credible source for acquiring confidential data about competitors, consumers, suppliers etc.For sales force outside Manipal and Udupi, a trainer can be made to tour different parts of the country. 4. Network Externally – In order to keep a tab on its competitors, measures should be taken to track how competitors are performing. For this, purchasing the competitor's products, checking their advertising campaigns, the press media coverage, reading their published reports, etc can be done. This process is called Competitive intelligence which is the broader discipline of researching, analyzing and formulating data and information from the entire competitive environment of any organization. . Collect Competitive Intelligence through customer feedback – Customer feedback is an important aspect for any company as it is the customer who purchases the product. Online platforms like chat rooms, blogs, discussion forums, custome r review boards etc can be used to generate customer feedback. This enables the company to understand its customer’s view about the product. For this, a structured system can be applied by the company to obtain the relevant data. Manipal Institute of Communications does yearly surveys to find out changing customer perceptions regarding MMNL. . For the issue of accessibility MMNL can implement a database. * The centralised database will be in the following format: * The basic cost for a database system is around Rs. 1. 5 lakhs but depending on the different features needed by MMNL the cost can vary. * The database form can be opened at any time by the employees. A static link will be provided. * Our centralized database system will be decided into 2 main categories: * Internal Data * External Data * Internal Data * The employees can enter the intelligence acquired on internal matters in this section. The data entered here will be like delivery problems, supply chain problems e tc. * There will be a form asking them what are the issues and the department it relates to. * External Data * This section will again be divided into 2 parts: * Competitor data * Advertising Data * Competitor Data * In this form the employee will have to enter intelligence pertaining to: * Name of the company * News Acquired * Source of News * Advertising Data * In this form the employee will have to enter intelligence pertaining to: * Name of the company * News Acquired Source of News * The database will also have a verification code. * Every employee will be given a unique code which he has to enter before submitting the intelligence data. * This will secure the database and will also eliminate the possibility of anyone entering data wrongly under the name of any other person. * The problem of acceptance can be addressed in the following manner: a) Involvement of employees (i) Executives: Involving them in regards to the various incentives on offer will help reduce the anxiety to change; this will also help in building loyalty. ii) Employees: The employees can be involved through inputs about the functions needed by them in the database system. b) Workshops – MMNL can conduct workshops in the initial months after the implementation of the database system and the toll free number. * Representation through GRIDS QUICK WIN SUSTAINABILITY RISK IMPLEMENTATION RISK DUMB IDEA NEW SYSTEM at MMNL SIZE OF OPPORTUNITY ABILITY TO EXECUTE (PG. NO. 34, CHAPTER 1,CORPORATE INFORMATION & STRATEGY MANAGEMENT) MMNL has a very good track record in implementation of new technological systems.Whenever the company has implemented a new technology system the implementation took place glitch free. The company has implemented Kannada news app on android and also it has tie-ups with Yahoo and Newshunt. The company is also in the process of implementing an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. The implementation of this is going smoothly. This leads us to believe that abi lity to execute a new system will be high at MMNL and thus the new system will fall in sustainability risk. But, whenever a new IT system is implemented there is always an implementation risk ecause there might be social and technological problems. Social problems which can arise are that employees may be anxious about the new system. They may be anxious about the fact whether they will be able to use that system properly or not and if not then will they be fired from their jobs. Technological problems that may arise are compatibility problems with the legacy systems and maintenance problems. Thus, we say that the new system will be in the implementation risk of the strategic grid. PROBABLE IMPACT ON STRATEGY PROBABLE IMPACT ON BUSINESS OPERATIONSCurrent position Position after implementation (pg. no. 37,chapter 1,Corporate Information & Strategy Management) The marketing intelligence gathered from various sources is currently passed around in the office informally through Word of M outh and excel sheets. This leads to the data being fragmented, lost and getting distorted. As a result of this it is not accessible to everyone and does not provide the correct point of view. Due to this lack of accessibility, management is not able to take any timely strategic decisions.This also does not help the company much in its business operations. We can say that current system of MMNL is in the SUPPORT quadrant of the McFarlan’s Grid. This is because the system does not impact the business operations as well as its strategic decisions. After the Marketing Intelligence database system is implemented, the data will be stored in one centralized location. This will help in easy accessibility of the data. The company officials can then access this data at anytime and use it to take strategic decisions.Since the data is about competitors and the market which will help in taking important strategic decisions. The implementation of the system will not lead to any change in the business operations of the company. Thus, the system, once implemented should move from the current support position to the TURNAROUND quadrant of the McFarlan’s Grid. * BENEFITS FROM DATABASE Implementation of Market Intelligence Database System at MMNL will not lead to any tangible benefits as the decisions taken by management on the market intelligence acquired cannot be known at the moment.The implementation of the system at MMNL will only lead to intangible benefits. The benefits that arise will be: 1. The data will all be present in one place which will help the management to take better decisions. 2. The company employees will save a lot of time if the data is present in one place with options of search. 3. It will give company a competitive advantage as very few media networks have such a system present at the moment. 4. The storage of data will help the company in making a wide database which can be used for analytics in the future.

Admissions essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Admissions - Essay Example Moving in and out of state and having to go to different towns and strange places because we could not seem to attain permanence in keeping a ruined family, I eventually dropped out of high school and got my GED yet managed to obtain a hairstylist license after attending a beauty college. These were the times it occurred to me how real and excruciating the world could get at receiving various criticisms and discriminations from several people that it almost led me to bitter mistrust and disillusionment. In the process, however, I also learned to be flexible in dealing with different types of people and defend a good cause whichever side it is. My self-confidence even increased when I worked as a flight attendant for fourteen year, spending fifteen years in total in the airline industry which had taught me beyond the value of customer service. Sincerity of personalized service and letting people in general know how much you care specifically at instances when injustice is prevalent, is such a rewarding experience. My first marriage at the age of eighteen lasted a brief span of a year and a half while my present marriage has fortunately struggled forward with a partner who is fourteen years my senior. Relationships have by far enabled me to stretch my patience and find significant worth in listening and understanding an individual prior to raising any unnecessary arguments. I realize that besides holding good set of reasons to drive myself in asserting the most justifiable points, there is actually more to seeking to first heed the other person’s concern and settle the issue with both sides accounted for. Despite pregnancies and difficult times of getting on and off with school since 2005, the desire to pursue law studies does not cease and I particularly prefer specializing in family law and work on the area associated with juveniles. Knowing how tough and delicate this is in

High School Student Obesity and Fitnessgram Assessments Essay

High School Student Obesity and Fitnessgram Assessments - Essay Example 6). At present, one in six children in America between 6 and 17 years of age are obese because of lack of sufficient amount of physical exercise (American Psychological Association, 2011). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2011), 33.8 percent of the American population is obese while the number of obese children between 2 to 19 years old is 12.5 million which shows that 17 percent of the total population of children in United States is obese. According to Miller (2004), childhood obesity is a very serious medical disease that decreases the life of its victims by 5 to 20 years. It is due to this reason that childhood obesity has become a serious issue for almost every country just like the issues of sustainable economic development and global warming. A decrease of 5 to 20 years in the life of a person is something that should be taken seriously. â€Å"In older adults, obesity exacerbates declines in physical performance, leads to frailty, impaired quality of life, and increases the nursing home admissions† (Villareal as cited in Dryden, 2011, para. 4). An important fact to consider is that childhood obesity also affects emotions of children along with physical health (Marcus & Baron, n.d.). For example, overweight children are often made fun of by their peers. Overweight children remain behind in competitions because they do not feel comfortable facing their peers who make fun of them. Moreover, they also get comparatively poor grades in exams because of less interaction with peers and teachers. Some children even become socially excluded. These negative marks on the psychology of a child become more alarming as time passes, and the child becomes completely unable to interact properly with the society as a responsible adult. Lack of physical exercises significantly contributes to obesity in children. Obesity is a problem that occurs because of excessive amount of fat stored in the body.

Steve Jobs Role in Improving the Apple Company Research Paper

Steve Jobs Role in Improving the Apple Company - Research Paper Example This research will begin with the statement that Steve Jobs was among the most successful inventors and innovators in the business world. Jobs most fashionable and expensive inventions include the iPhone, Ipad and the iMac. Most of Steve Jobs' products have great influence on the lives of people. Steve Jobs was an inventor and a marketer whose life is a good example of innovation, ambition, and determination. Born in San Francisco, Steve Jobs was abandoned by his parents and later adopted by Paul and Clara Jobs. Steve Jobs studied at a nearby school, Homestead high school where he met future co-inventor, Steve Wozniak. After high school, Jobs later enrolled at Reed College, which, he later dropped out by not attending creative classes. In 1974, Steve Jobs became video designer before visiting India for a short period of spiritual enlightenment. In 1976, Steve Jobs and he friend, Steve Wozniak started the Apple computer. Steve Jobs helped revolutionize technology by making computers t hat were smaller, cheaper and easily accessible to consumers. Due to Steve Jobs inventory and creative mind, Apple Computer became a huge multinational and publicly traded company in 1980 owning a market value of $1.2 billion. He left the company only to return later, in 1996 as CEO. It was under Steve Jobs guidance that the Apple Company revolutionized the world of technologies by inventing the technologies such as the iPhone and iPad. These Apple products are some of the technologies that are dictating the evolution of modern world and technology. Despite his death in 2011, Steve Jobs creativity, inventions and entrepreneur nature made Apple company a powerhouse in the computer and technologies sector. According to Young and Simon, Jobs has a way to use technology and creativity to show the greatness of his abilities as evident from his improvements at Apple. The success of Steve Jobs and the Apple Company may be attributed to Jobs genius thinking and creative mind. Steve Jobs was an intelligent inventor who was able to develop unique technologies that stood out in the market. His creativity was evident in the way he designed and developed products at Apple. In addition to his creative designs and products, Steve Jobs helped the Apple Company rise to the top of the technology world through his efficient branding and marketing Campaigns.

Free Economic Zones in Transition Economies and Its Impact of Economic Essay

Free Economic Zones in Transition Economies and Its Impact of Economic Development of a Country - Essay Example e areas of a certain national economy where the government has put up a special system of opportunities and benefits that are not available to other areas of the country.3 These zones are also referred to as â€Å"islands† or â€Å"windows† wherein foreign investments and technologies are presented to a country. They are an example of an â€Å"open door† policy.4 Another definition of FEZ presents it as a part of a country’s territory wherein goods are being looked at as something that does not fit the limits of national customs territory; thus, they are not under common customs control and taxation, according to the Kyoto Convention. Hence, products being entered through the FEZs are not subjected to any trade barriers. The Ministry of Finance and Economy of Korea also gave their own definition, stating that FEZs are self-sufficient areas that provide wide-ranging services.5 Consequently, the Free Economic Zone Law defined FEZ with Article 23 as â€Å"th e zone, which is developed with the aim of improving the business environment for foreign-invested enterprises and the living conditions for foreigners†. Thus, an FEZ is a special area where exceptional measures are practiced. Moreover, it is a specific area which offers an optimal business and living environment to foreign investors and enterprises in order to draw high-end foreign industries and global services.6 FEZs are similarly known as free zone (FZ), free port (FP), customs free zone (CFZ), EPZ, foreign trade zone, free production zone (FPZ), FTZ, industrial free zone, tax free zone, customs free airport and foreign access zone.7 FEZs are also areas characterized as a part of a national economic area rather than a geographic territory where preferential economic conditions are being imposed with respect to entrepreneurs.8 Thus, others regard FEZs as a means of selective reduction of the state’s power to interrupt with economic processes. FEZs are referred to as devices that are capable of

Airbus and its activities whithin the civil aircraft manufacturing Essay

Airbus and its activities whithin the civil aircraft manufacturing industry - Essay Example The paper examines the extent to which Airbus has recognized and succeeded in meeting the critical success factors defined by the industry as well as industry analysts prior to 2005. In addition, Porter’s generic strategies model will be used to assess the choices that the Airbus management team and Board made, and whether these choices succeeded in giving Airbus a competitive advantage. This analysis compares the performance of Airbus over the past five years to its major industry competitors, Boeing and Embraer. The paper concludes with a discussion of the feasibility and sustainability of the company’s strategic direction over the next five years. As early as the mid1990s, industry analysts such as R.W. Mann and Company identified several factors that were seen as critical for companies hoping to succeed in the aircraft manufacturing industry (www.rwmann.com). In their strategic planning documents and in annual reports to shareholders, the companies also recognized that rapidly changing market factors would require that they adapt their business strategies to address these emerging challenges. Birnbaum (2004) defines a critical success factor as a strategic area where successful performance must be achieved to accomplish the business goal. The phrase â€Å"must be achieved† is highlighted because as the analysis will show, Airbus either misread the critical success factors that were identified at the time, or they simply were unable to implement strategies to achieve their strategic goals. My review of the industry analysts’ predictions as well as my review of the company websites for Airbus, Boeing and Embraer, have identified the following five common critical success factors for the aircraft manufacturing industry back in 2005: 1. Companies must expand into international markets. The number of new airlines is projected to grow through 2010 to meet increased demand for passenger travel. This growth was projected to take place

Federal Express Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Federal Express - Case Study Example The firm has often come up with performance standard programs, which help the staff meet certain performance targets and retain its position in the field. "As a multi-national, ensuring consistent performance standards and corporate values throughout its employees in every country of operation is fundamental to maintaining and growing its global status." (Case Study) Over the decades, FedEx has faced fluctuating employee turnover rate. This has been due to the very demanding nature of work at FedEx and turnover rate is highest among courier, customer representatives and line managers. (Case Study) This explains who are assigned the toughest responsibilities. FedEx appreciates the efforts made by each person and rewards them appropriately but its performance setting programs have come under attack. We need to understand that delivering packages and documents on time is not an easy task. There are several unseen contingencies that can emerge such as weather conditions, road accidents, traffic jams and flight delays. In order to make sure that each and every packet is delivered on time, FedEx has to recruit people who are self-motivated, active, and young. But this age factor has caused trouble for FedEx. The firm that enjoys an important place in the corporate world cannot help discriminating on age since the nature of th

Nike store Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Nike store - Research Paper Example Nike is involved in sponsoring famous athletes and high profile sports figures all over the world. These include baseball players such as Michael Jordan and Steve Nash, tennis players such as Jim Courier, James Blake, Serena Williams, world’s top golf players such as Tiger Woods among others. It has also sponsored world leading football clubs such as Brazil, France and Portugal and other minor events such as high school ball games. Nike has created a number of print and television advertisements in order to establish the credibility of its name. Advertisements may not only serve as a sales tool but may also serve a rhetorical purpose of credibility, persuasion and logic. The most famous advertisement campaign was the â€Å"Just do it† campaign. This advertisement consists of a logo of a swoosh sign and a slogan with a tag line titled â€Å"Just do it†. The slogan is strategically positioned next to the logo. The logo and the tag line are used to represent Nike’s goals and achievement of victory. They serve as icons that represent action and excellence, terms in which any human society can use to relate to.. According to the readings of Arnheim, Barthes and McCloud, the logo and slogan do not represent some kind of image, but rather, give a description of the functions fulfilled by the images. The swoosh logo and the tag line stand for a particular content without visually reflecting its features (Arnheim). The slogan â€Å"Just do it† sounds simple but definitely has a deeper meaning meant to evoke reaction in a human being. In a broader sense, it can be seen to mean don’t think, talk or ask about it just do it. The visual display of the swoosh logo next to it complements this motto (Barthes). These two iconic features can be used to encourage sports figures who may face pressure from their teams. It encourages them to

Role of Communication Essay Example for Free

Role of Communication Essay The development of Information Systems has forever changed the way people communicate hence managing multiple levels of communication is a complex enterprise. Todays technology is the cornerstone to maintain links and correspondence with many different Discussions and information through equipment plays a main role in the global communitys growth in areas of human interaction. Communicating through technology is such an integral part of family, national and world communities, everything continues to move forward at a rapid pace. Increasingly, every aspect of the planets effort to communicate effectively and in a timely manner depends on Information Systems. In the last two decades our world has been changed gradually form one condition to another. The revolution of new ideas always comes up to the minds of every person, especially the idea to improve technology which people need to make the living better. As the result, modern technology has been bringing people certain advantages such as ways for fast communication. Nowadays, people can get latest news from any parts of the world very quickly, pay their bills, by using E-mail and Internet. lso, the internet can be seen in aiding the spread of culture, because all of the communication made possible by the internet. Moreover, telephone-local or/and oversea is playing a key role for people to communicate to with each other. Information Systems is the back bone of todays communication. The massive data and increasing volumes of data needs organized storing and fast and effective processing for variety of purposes fro m decision making to risk management, from transaction processing to stat e-the art products. The large-scale businesses are globally distributed across the world which needs stable and reliable infrastructure and network administration and the applications which can run and handle simultaneous, real time and fast processing. The availability of technology has enabled the businesses to offer variety of services which has made Information Technology as part of the businesses today. What seems to be a simple online banking transaction for instance, involves web-based programs which run on a one platform and access the data in another platform like mainframe and tho make there should e network communication and systems which can communicate to each other, available 24 by 7. The more businesses grow the more dependent they become of Information Systems Some make a clear distinction between information systems, ICT, and business processes. Information systems are distinct from information technology in that an information system is typically seen as having an ICT component. Inform ation systems are also different from business processes. Information systems help to control the performance of business processes [3].

Analysis of Herzbergs Two-factor Theory

Analysis of Herzbergs Two-factor Theory Guided by the question what employees in the information society of the twenty-first century perceive as relevant for their personal motivation in comparison to Herzberg’s two-factor theory this dissertation presents a qualitative study conducted with a group of German knowledge workers. The participants reject Herzberg’s two factor theory as an adequate motivational theory for their workplace motivation. According to the participants view a cultural bias can be found in Herzberg’s theory. Furthermore the underlying assumption of Herzberg’s theory that job satisfaction and dissatisfaction depend on different factors is doubted. Instead it is suggested by the participants the difference needs to be made between motivation and job satisfaction. The theory does not reflect the German cultural tendency towards a team-based approach and the importance of safety needs for motivation. The motivator factors proposed by Herzberg only partially meet the perception o f the group of participants. A mentally challenging work, visionary leadership and psychological safety are the key motivators in the researched organisation. Differences in the nature of the job and the cultural environment are suggested as reasons why earlier studies on Herzberg’s theory resulted in ambivalent findings concerning the validity of Herzberg’s theory. Implications of a possible misunderstanding of Herzberg concerning the relationship between job satisfaction, job dissatisfaction and motivation on the two-factor theory and other relevant motivational theories get discussed. Revaluating Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory A 45th Anniversary Honour where honour is due: in order to last for 45years without being disproved and maintain a place under the most influential of its kind an academic theory has to be a truly outstanding specimen. This is the case for Frederick Herzberg’s two-factor theory of workplace motivation, published in â€Å"The Motivation to Work† (Herzberg, Mausner and Snyderman) in 1959. In its essence the theory relates motivation and job satisfaction with a set of work-related factors and job dissatisfaction with a set of factors in the organisational environment. Since its introduction in 1959 it can be said that the two-factor theory has had considerable influence on the body of science on workplace motivation. Despite existing criticism it can be stated that the two-factory theory fulfils all four criteria of a valuable academic theory (Whitsett and Winslow 1967), it has resolving and explanatory power, has generated a vast amount of further research (Herzberg 1993) and is a useful base for prediction on the topic of workplace motivation. In addition Herzberg (Herzberg, Mausner and Snyderman 1959) introduced a new research method to generate his findings, the so-called â€Å"critical incident technique† that caused great sensation and dispute in academic circles at that point in time. In this way Herzberg’s theory has lost nothing of its attractiveness to and influence on academics and manager’s alike over the past decades. In contrary it can still be found on the â€Å"manager’s motivational toolbag† for â€Å"managing into the new millennium† (Buhler 2003:20) and in modern academic textbooks (Mullins 2002, Rollinson and Broadfield 2002). The same holds true for Herzberg’s original research design, which is still used by current researchers all around the world to conduct studies on workplace motivation (Ruthankoon and Ogunlana 2003, Tamosaitis and Schwenker’s 2002, Timmreck 2001). What makes Herzberg’s theory such an outstanding specimen amongst the various motivational theories are its underlying thoughts on organisational behaviour in general that draw largely on A.H. Maslow’s (1943) famous hierarchy of needs theory on human behaviour. His findings in the field of motivation led Herzberg to become one of the trailblazers of the job enrichment movement during the late 1960s and 1970s that is now highly connected to his name and contributed much to Herzberg’s later fame (Clark, Chandler and Barry 1994, Hackman 1975, Reif, Ferrazzi and Evans 1974). With his ideas on job enrichment Herzberg introduced a change that still can be found in our modern job design. Nevertheless paradigms have changed during the last 45 years. The new millennium has seen the coming of the information society and the knowledge era (Van Beveren 2002). Thus forcing change on the social and organisational environment (Mullins 2002). Writers such as Senge (1990) and Edmonson (1999) stress the importance of organisational learning and new team based approaches to keep pace with changes forced onto organisations by the growing degree of globalisation and the rapidly increasing body of knowledge. Table 0.1 highlights the changes in management during the last centuries. Table 0.1 Comparing the paradigms 19th century 20th century 21st century Theory of personhood Interchangeable muscle and energy A subordinate with a hierarchy of needs Autonomous and reflexive individual Information and Knowledge The province of management alone Management-dominated and shared on a limited basis Widely diffused The purpose of work Survival Accumulation of wealth and social status Part of strategic life plan Identification With the firm and/or with the working class Identify with a social group and/or the firm The disenfranchised self Conflict Disruptive and to be avoided Disruptive but tolerated and can be settled through collective bargaining A normal part of life Division of labour Managers decide, employees execute Managers decide, employees execute thoughtfully Employees and managers decide and execute Power Concentrated on the top Limited, functional sharing/ empowerment Diffused and shared Source: Mullins, Laurie J. (2002) The radical changes in the organisational environment also made it necessary to develop new methods of analysis. Under the impression of the growing complexity of influences on organisations business research balanced its traditional static methods of quantitative research with the more flexible and dynamic research tools of qualitative research (Bryman and Bell 2003). Thus providing new ways of conducting research and revaluating the results of already existing findings. This papers presents the results of a qualitative study conducted in a branch of a German software company in order to explore the perception of modern knowledge workers on their own workplace motivation and to compare these perceptions to Herzberg’s two-factor theory. Chapter one summarises Herzberg’s work on motivation and job enrichment as well as Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory as an important predecessor to Herzberg’s work. Chapter two summarises the criticism on both Herzberg’s and Maslow’s work, provides a brief survey of Hofstede’s cultural framework and presents further literature relevant to the research. Chapter three introduces the company where the research was conducted and the participants. It also contains the methodology and method sections. Chapter four presents the findings of the research, while chapter five contains the discussion. Chapter six finally closes the paper with the conclusions, the limitations of the research and issues for further research. Chapter 1: Herzberg, Maslow and Human Needs This chapter highlights Herzberg’s two-factor theory of workplace motivation and his consecutive work on job enrichment as well as A.H. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory of motivation. The relations between the two theories are discussed. 1.1 Herzberg’s two-factor theory It was in fact Herzberg’s psychological background that lead to the insights, which became the basis of his first research published in 1959 his well-known book â€Å"The Motivation to Work† (Herzberg 1993, Herzberg, Mausner and Snyderman 1959). During his time working at a public health school Herzberg came to the conclusion that â€Å"mental health is not the opposite of mental illness† (Herzberg 1993:xii). The idea that things usually believed to be each others opposite do not need to be diametrically opposed if they are determined by different factors became the foundation of Herzberg’s theory on workplace motivation. Herzberg argued that if job satisfaction was determined by different factors than dissatisfaction with the job, job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction were not precisely each others opposite and had to be treated as different aspects of work (Herzberg, Mausner and Snyderman 1959). In order to prove this hypothesis Herzberg made use of t he â€Å"critical incident method†.. Herzberg conducted his initial research with a sample of 203 engineers and accountants asking them to describe one situation (critical incident) where they felt good in their job and another situation where they felt bad at work (Herzberg 1993, Rollinson, Broadfield and Edwards 1998). The analysis of the interviews was conducted by a team of researches that had been trained to understand and categorise similar statements by the participants in the same way, so that the experiences described could be grouped under a set of generic terms (Herzberg, Mausner, Boch Snyderman 1959). After this coding procedure the results became quantified, simply by counting how often each generic term had been named in connection to job satisfaction or in connection to job dissatisfaction (Herzberg, Mausner, Boch Snyderman 1959). By this means Herzberg and his team were able to extract two sets of factors from the interviews, one that was repeatedly mentioned in connection to job satisfaction or a good feeling about the job and one that was linked to job dissatisfaction or a bad feeling about the job. Job satisfaction, according to Herzberg, is mainly a result of the actual work conducted and a series of issues that contributed to the positive perception of the work, such as recognition, achievement, the possibility of growth, advancement and responsibility (Herzberg, Mausner, Boch Snyderman 1959, Tietjen and Myers 1998). Herzberg concluded that these factors not only cause job satisfaction, but to have a positive and lasting influence on motivation, if they are present. Therefore these factors became known as â€Å"motivators†. Dissatisfaction on the other hand was caused by factors in the job environment that did not directly contribute to the work itself (Herzberg, Mausner, Boch Snyderman 1959, Mullins 2002). The positive handling of these factors, according to Herzberg, could have only a short-term effect on motivation, while these factors caused severe dissatisfaction with the job, if they were handled badly. Herzberg referred to this factors as â€Å"hygiene†. Herzberg regarded his findings as prove for his initial hypothesis that job satisfaction and dissatisfaction were unrelated matters (Herzberg, Mausner, Boch Snyderman 1959). Hence he regarded the opposite of job satisfaction to be no satisfaction and the opposite of job dissatisfaction to be no satisfaction. Thus the presence of motivator factors would cause satisfaction and motivation and their absence only no satisfaction. The hygiene factors on the other hand would mainly lead to dissatisfaction and would in a positive case only cause a zero state of motivation or satisfaction (Mullins 2002). Motivator and Hygiene factors are contrasted in table 1.1. Table 1.1 Motivators and Hygiene Factors Motivators Hygiene Factors Achievement Company policy and administration Recognition Technical supervision Work itself Salary Responsibility Interpersonal relations – supervision Advancement Working conditions Possibility of growth Status Interpersonal relations – subordinate Interpersonal relations – peers Private Life Job security Source: Tietjen and Myers 1998 Herzberg (1968, 2003) further elaborated his perception of workplace motivation in his famous article â€Å"One More Time: How Do You Motivate Employees† that has become the most reprinted article of the Harvard Business Review of all times (Herzberg 1993). By comparing the two terms motivation and movement, Herzberg rejects the classical carrot and stick approach of management. Herzberg rather follows the notion that financial incentives, a pleasant social environment or the offering of status symbols as well as punishment and disciplining by management may move or drive employees towards the fulfilment of a certain task, but will not make the task itself more interesting or motivating (Herzberg 1968). In his later work Herzberg compared hygiene to heroine, stating that more and more hygiene improvements are necessary to achieve less and less motivation (Dowling 1971). According to Herzberg (1968) only well-designed jobs, challenging tasks and the acknowledging awareness of m anagement and colleagues will fill employees with enthusiasm for their jobs and intrinsically motivate them to carry out their tasks. Management is requested not to push employees towards organisational goals, but to provide sensible and challenging tasks that allow their subordinates to grow while working towards the organisational goals. Goal fulfilment needs to be recognised by management in an appropriate manor. Despite Herzberg’s emphasise on the fact that motivation can only be achieved by the motivators, he stresses that a proper management of the hygiene factors is equally important in order to make work not only a motivating but pleasant experience (Herzberg, Mausner and Snyderman 1959, Mullins 2002). 1.2 Herzberg’s Contribution to Job Enrichment Herzberg did not restrict his 1968 article to be a mere summary of his earlier work on motivation. Instead he additionally presented a list of what he called â€Å"principles of vertical job loading† (Table 1.2) that indicated how jobs needed to be modified in order to show off the motivators of his two-factor theory to their advantage (Herzberg 2003:93). Table 1.2 Principles of vertical job loading Principle Motivators involved A. Removing some controls while retaining accountability Responsibility and personal achievement B. Increasing the accountability of individuals for own work Responsibility and recognition C. Giving a person a complete natural unit of work (module, division, area, and so on) Responsibility, achievement, and recognition D. Granting additional authority to employees in their activity, job freedom Responsibility, achievement, and recognition E. Making periodic reports directly available to the workers themselves rather than to supervisors Internal recognition F. Introducing new and more difficult tasks not previously handled Growth and learning G. Assigning individuals specific or specialised tasks, enabling them to become experts Responsibility, growth, and advancement Source: Herzberg 2003 Herzberg’s approach to create more a more fulfilling job experience by giving jobs more motivating contents and hence more meaning became known as the job enrichment movement (Hackman 1975, Reif, Ferazzi and Evans 1974). The job enrichment idea was taken up by several other writers, who partially developed rivalling concepts to the one of Herzberg, such as sociotechnical systems, participative management and industrial democracy (Herzberg 1974). Although the theories on job enrichment overlap in certain aspects, it will be sufficient for the purpose of this paper on Herzberg’s motivational theory to focus on Herzberg’s own approach that became known as â€Å"orthodox job enrichment†, as this concept is most strongly linked to Herzberg’s motivator-hygiene theory (Herzberg 1974). In his paper â€Å"The wise old Turk† Herzberg (1974) presents are more complete approach to job enrichment compared to his principles on vertical job loading mentione d above. Job enrichment, he argues, is based on the relationships between ability, opportunity and performance reinforcement. The more ability an employee possesses to do his or her work, Herzberg points out, the easier this employee can be motivated to do a good job. This principle is of significance for the organisation’s policies on recruitment and selection as well training and development, as a person who is lacking the necessary competence is far more difficult to motivate. Ability on the other hand is of no use, if the job does not offer the opportunity to make full use of one’s own abilities, or as Herzberg (1974:71) puts it â€Å"managers cannot motivate a person to do a good job, unless there is a good job to do†. Finally the employee’s readiness to grow with his work needs to be reinforced. Appraisal systems do not only need to appreciate the employee’s growth, they need to reward growth with the potential for further growth and advancem ent, as â€Å"there is no sense in providing training without opportunity, no sense in offering opportunity without training, and no sense in offering both training and opportunity if the reinforcement is solely by hygiene procedures† (Herzberg 1974:71). Herzberg (1974) continues by presenting eight features a â€Å"good† job should include, direct feedback, a client relationship, a learning function, the opportunity for each person to schedule his own work, unique expertise, control over resources, direct communications and personal accountability. Direct feedback can consist of the immediate response of the supervisor to the results of the subordinate or even better the opportunity for the subordinate to independently verify his or her efforts him or herself. The relationship to a specific client gives the employee the opportunity to better understand the needs and problems of his or her customer and participate in their solution. Herzberg (1974) recommends to organise internal supplier-client relationships for back office employees in order to increase their interest in the overall work processes. New learning refers to possibilities for the employee to grow psychologically in order to keep his or her job meaning or purpose ful. It further allows the employee to constantly update his or her knowledge in order to maintain the necessary competence in a fast changing economical environment. Scheduling is supposed to grant the employee the freedom of how to structure his or her tasks. While the deadlines are still set by management the employee becomes free to set his or her own pace to keep them. Unique expertise aims at giving each employee a more or less individual field of competence in order to increase his or her identification with the task. Control over resources is meant to allocate the means for a project to the lowest possible level of hierarchy in order to increase the responsibility of the lower ranks. Direct communications authority allows employees to address their colleagues in other parts of the organisation in formal matters directly without having to involve the hierarchy. Thus saving time and improving the social relations within the organisation. Personal accountability finally frees t he employee from doing single in itself meaningless tasks and provides responsibility for a coherent set of tasks with which the employee can identify. Although these factors are closer to reality than the principles of vertical job loading in table 1.2 it is still fairly obvious how their implementation can contribute to including the motivators of Herzberg’s two-factor theory mentioned in table 1.1 into the employees’ daily work. In 1979 Herzberg published an even more refined view on job enrichment, based on a model that highlighted the central importance of the client relationship for orthodox job enrichment. The relationship to a client, according to Herzberg, would improve an employees opportunity to constantly update his knowledge of the customer’s needs and requirements thus enabling to stay in touch with the latest developments, increasing his knowledge and contributing to the employee’s unique expertise. Herzberg’s model of job enrichment is depicted in figure 1.1. Figure 1.1 Herzberg’s Model of Job Enrichment Control Over Resources Direct Feedback New learning Client Relationship Unique Expertise Self- Scheduling Direct Communications Authority Personal Accountability Source: Herzberg 1979 1.3 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory Published in 1943 A.H. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory is in fact not only a predecessor of Herzberg’s two-factor theory, but its basis as it will be pointed out later (Mullins 2002, Rollinson and Broadfield 2002). Maslow (1943) suggests that motivation is a result of five different sets of human needs and desires, namely physiological, safety, love, esteem and self-actualisation needs (Mullins 2002, Rollinson and Broadfield 2002, Clark, Chandler and Barry 1998). Physiological needs refer to the most essential issues of human survival such as food and drink, air to breath, sleep, reproduction and so on. Safety needs include physical safety, but also the human desire for predictability and orderliness. Love needs consist of all sorts of social affiliation and their advantages. Esteem needs include self-esteem and the confidence in one’s own abilities as well as the recognition and admiration by others. Self-actualisation needs finally refer to the ultimate expe rience of self-fulfilment and the idea of becoming the person one always wanted to be. Although Maslow (1943) only wrote about a hierarchy, his levels of needs usually are pictured as a pyramid (Figure 1.2). Figure 1.2 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Self- Actualisation Esteem Lovee Safety Physiological Source: Mullins 2002 People, according to Maslow (1943), process through these levels of needs in a hierarchical order, as one level of needs gets satisfied it loses its motivating effect making the individual long for the satisfaction of the next set of needs. Without at least a certain degree of satisfaction in one level of needs, however, people will not be interested in the satisfaction of the higher levels and hence no motivation will be triggered by those higher needs. Maslow (1943) gives the example of the starving person that cannot be motivated by any other means than food. If this person had enough to eat, food will cease to be a motivator and given the fact that physiological needs in general are perceived satisfying the person’s motivation will turn to the realisation of the next higher set of needs. Maslow (1943) himself pointed out the hierarchical order in which he arranged the needs was not a strict one. Instead several issues can have an influence on this order. First of all a set of needs does not need to be entirely satisfied in order to allow the individual to proceed to the next level, already a certain degree of satisfaction can be enough for the individual to aim for another set of needs. In this case, however, the unsatisfied parts of the earlier level will remain motivators. Additionally the structure of the hierarchy may vary according to personalities. Some people may have a stronger interest in esteem than in love and therefore want to satisfy the esteem needs earlier. Psychotic persons may have no interest in specific satisfaction of certain levels of needs such as love at all, while highly idealistic persons may sacrifice everything in pursuit of just one single need. Another group of persons may be satisfied with settling in one level of the hierarchy without b eing interested in satisfying any higher levels. Furthermore it has to be kept in mind that definitely most actions taken by individuals serve more than just one set of needs. A dinner with friends in a luxurious restaurant for example will not only satisfy physiological needs but may also satisfy aspects of love and esteem. Although Maslow’s theory initially was not meant to be applied to the work context it soon became influential in the analysis of workplace motivation as well (Mullins 2002, Rollinson and Broadfield 2002). Steers and Porter for example elaborated real-life incentives within the work environment that could be used to serve all of the employees’ needs as shown in table 1.3. Alderfer further extended Maslow’s thoughts in his ERG theory (Mullins 2002, Rollinson and Broadfield 2002). Table 1.3 Application of Maslow’s Theory to the Work Context Needs levels General rewards Organisational factors 1. Physiological Food, water, sex, sleep a Pay b Pleasant working conditions c Cafeteria 2. Safety Safety, security, stability, protection a Safe working conditions b Company benefits c Job security 3. Social Love, affection, belongingness a Cohesive work group b Friendly supervision c Pro