Briefly describe the elements of the Drake equation. Are they Essay

Briefly describe the elements of the Drake equation. Are they reasonable Why, or why not - make a list of each of the different variables in the Drake equations - Essay Example Apparently, though the seven key elements aforementioned are each less certain in estimating the existence of ET intelligence through the formation of stars, they serve as quite reasonable factors of determining at least the possibility that there exist potential regions in the galaxy from which transmitted signals, of logical frequencies, indicate signs of communication. Drake equation may be claimed as reasonable in its setup since the factors that depict the key elements are multiplied with each other so as to present the flexibility of considering the number of developing civilizations within the expanse of the Milky Way. In application of a ‘best estimate’ possible, assuming R* = 7 suns/yr, fp = 0.1, ne = 1.025, fℓ = 0.5, fi = 0.01, fc = 0.3, and L = 10,000, the number of advanced extraterrestrial civilizations in our galaxy is approximately

Public international law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Public international law - Essay Example Whether it is the war that used to be fought between the kings during the ancient ages with traditional weapons or the current warfare involving modern armaments, peace is nothing more than a maxim or a dictum. In the modern age, war has surpassed the strain of physical battle and political issues and conflicts are constantly revealed by different nations across the world. To take care of such conflicting situations, various national, international and regional organisations have been set up by various nations across the world. One of the most prominent organisations in this arena is the United Nations Security Council. Overview of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) The UNSC or United Nations Security Council is a body of the United Nations, which is responsible for restoration of peace across the globe and set up about 65 years ago amidst violence and extreme human suffering (UN Security Council – Profile, 2013). A world that was already shattered and badly ravaged by the World War II and recovering from its impact strongly aspired for global peace, found it as the greatest opportunity to eliminate the bane of armed conflict with the formation of UNSC. The Security Council comprises of five member states including China, France, Russia, United Kingdom and the United States that represents the Council permanently. Alongside, these member states, the existence of non-member states intends to establish stability across different regions of globe. Accordingly, there are two non-members from Africa and Asia, two Latin African members, one and two members from East and West Europe respectively. These non-members are elected by the General Assembly for a period of two years (Edward C. Luck, 2006, P. 3-5) The  United Nations Security Council  is one of the six key organs of the  United Nations  and is responsible for the maintenance of global peace and security. It has the power to issue mandatory resolutions to member states regarding the launc h of  peacekeeping  operations, the establishment of  international permissions and the authorization of  military action  through  its resolutions. After World War II,  the Security Council  was founded  to address the shortcomings of the League of Nations in preserving world peace. In its early years, activities of the UNSC were largely constrained by the  Cold War between the US and USSR. With the breakdown of the Soviet Union, the peacekeeping work by UN increased vividly, and the Security Council approved major military and peacekeeping missions in  Kuwait,  Namibia,  Cambodia,  Bosnia,  Rwanda,  Somalia,  Sudan, and  Congo  with wavering amounts of success. (Shaw, 2008) Composition of the UNSC The Security Council presently consists of fifteen members, of which five are permanent and ten are non-permanent. The  great powers  that were the  winners of World War II, namely China, France, Russia, the UK and the US, function as the five permanent members of the UNSC. These permanent members can  exercise veto  power regarding any basic Security Council resolutions, comprising those on the admission of new member states or nomination of candidates for  the position of Secretary-General. The Council also has ten non-permanent members, chosen on a regional basis to work for a term of two years. The resolutions passed by the Security Coun

Conagra Foods Essay Example for Free

Conagra Foods Essay ConAgra Foods Inc. is one of the largest food companies in the United States operating in such segments as Consumer Foods (66%) and Commercial Foods (34%) which are divided into three significant business operations segments – agricultural products, packaged foods and refrigerated foods (Table 1). Table 1. Net sales (in millions USD) 20102009%increase/decrease Consumer Foods 8,002 7,979-%. Commercial Foods 4,077 4,447(8)% Total12,07912,426(3)% Source: Annual Report 2010 Consumer Foods The Consumer Foods segment includes branded, private label and customized food products, which are sold in various retail and foodservice channels. The products include a variety of categories, such as meals, entrees, condiments, sides, snacks, and desserts across frozen, refrigerated and shelf-stable temperature classes. The Company’s major brands include Alexia, ACT II, Banquet, Blue Bonnet, Chef Boyardee, DAVID, Egg Beaters, Healthy Choice, Hebrew National, Hunt’s, Marie Callender’s, Orville Redenbacher’s, PAM, Peter Pan, Reddi-wip, Slim Jim, Snack Pack, Swiss Miss, Van Camp’s and Wesson. As of July 22, 2010, it had 39 domestic manufacturing facilities in Arkansas, California, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Wisconsin. As of July 22, 2010, it also had four international manufacturing facilities in Canada and Mexico (one 50% owned) and one in Arroyo Dulce, Argentina. Commercial Foods The Commercial Foods segment supplies frozen potato, sweet potato and other vegetable, spice and grain products to a variety of restaurants, foodservice operators and commercial customers. The products are sold under brands, such as ConAgra Mills, Lamb Weston, and Spicetec Flavors Seasoning. As of July 22, 2010, it had 41 domestic production facilities in Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah and Washington; one international production facility in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico and Qingdao, China; one manufacturing facility in Taber, Canada; one 50% owned manufacturing facility in each of Colorado, Minnesota, Washington and the United Kingdom; one 67% owned manufacturing facility in Puerto Rico, and three 50% owned manufacturing facilities in the Netherlands. Company is mainly engaged in operations in the United States which count for more than 90% of total income (Table 2). ConAgra Foods Inc. owns approximately 50 brands (Table 3). Table 2. Pre-tax income from continuing operations (in millions USD) 201020092008 United States1,040. 3872. 1631. 9 Foreign 66. 6 64. 3 69. 6 Total1,106. 9936. 4701. 5 Source: Annual Report 2010 Vision and mission The vision of the company set by current CEO Gary Rodkin is: â€Å"One company. One goal. Making the food you love. † It reflects the overall company’s strategy to make â€Å"food people want in their lives every day†. The mission is reflected in company’s profile: â€Å"Preparing great food, being a strong partner to our customers and thinking about all of the people who enjoy our food and the difference it makes in their lives fuels our passion: making the food you love. † Goals Like every public-held company listed on NYSE (ConAgra Foods Inc. has ticker CAG) ConAgra Foods Inc. aims to increase earnings per share. The goal of the company is to achieve long-term growth through supply chain productivity, operational efficiency, innovation, selling, marketing and sustainability of great brands . Increase in supply chain productivity and operational efficiency lets the company to reduce its manufacturing, finance, administrative, transportation costs. Innovation and marketing orientation enhances the business processes and expands profit margins. Figure 1. Formula for growth Source: Annual Report 2010 ConAgra Foods Inc.operates under three principles while achieving its strategic goal: simplicity, collaboration and accountability. Using their resources rationally, nourishing employees and creating positive image within the community are the objectives which lead the company to be â€Å"good for you, good for the community, good for the people† . Strategic priorities The company focuses on the following business product groups. In each strategic group ConAgra Foods Inc. possesses significant manufacturing and innovation capabilities. Figure 2. Strategic priorities. Source: Annual Report 2010 Strategy â€Å"ConAgra Foods is focused on growing sales, expanding profit margins, and improving returns on capital over time. To that end, the company has significantly changed its portfolio of businesses over a number of years, focusing on branded, value-added opportunities, while divesting commodity-based and lower-margin businesses. † Acquisitions Company was founded in 1919 as Nebraska Consolidated Mills and in 2000 changed its name to ConAgra Foods Inc. Acquisitions are the major part of ConAgra’s strategy. The company implemented horizontal and vertical integration strategy after sustaining solid background in flour-milling operations and feed and poultry segment. The time and the trends in the food industry were crucial to the strategic acquisitions of the company. In 1970-1980s when home and industrial refrigerators became available for the consumers and packing techniques developed , which meant that now meat and vegetables will not spoil, ConAgra entered the frozen foods market with the acquisition of Banquet Foods in 1980 and other companies in the meat and poultry segment (Armour Foods, Beatrice Foods, Hebrew National Foods, etc.). In 1980-1990s when the welfare of American citizens began to improve and people began to value time the food that was easy to cook (which means basically just heat and serve) was highly demanded and ConAgra’s strategic move was highly appreciated by the investors in the stock market. The stock price of CAG tripled from 10$ in 1990 to 30$ in 1998. The total amount of acquired brands approximated 30 by the year 2000 (Hunt’s, La Choy, Wesson, ACT II, Chef Boyardee, etc. ) and company changed its name to ConAgra Foods Inc.to reflect its growing role as a food products manufacturer rather than just the food ingredients supplier. In the beginning of the twenty first century and nowadays when the society became more concerned about their health ConAgra Foods Inc. implemented several strategic acquisitions of such companies as Alexia Foods Inc. (natural and organic foods company) in 2007, Elan Nutrition in 2010 and others. The purchases that company makes â€Å"†¦reflect [our] acquisition strategy—find businesses that are great fits and enable [us] to grow by filling a need within [our] portfolio or giving [us] an adjacent category expansion†¦. † Figure 3. The acquisitions strategy helped ConAgra Foods Inc. to: ConAgra Foods Inc. divests the businesses which are either too complex to integrate with the core businesses or did not achieve a profit margin greater than the benchmark margin rate. In 2009 the company sold Pemmican (beef jerky business), in 2008 it sold â€Å"Knott’s Berry Farm† operations and others. Mostly, the divestitures are low-margin (commodity-based) businesses. Marketing and distribution Almost every American household has a number of ConAgra Foods brand-named products in their refrigerators. The ability to acquire well-known and customer-loved brands had secured for ConAgra beneficial position. Some of the acquired brands such as Peter Pan and Chef Boyardee had longer history than ConAgra and were so much identifiable in the consumer market that it makes no sense to advance the brand of ConAgra. Even though the company has so many brands in their â€Å"arsenal† many people don’t know what ConAgra does. And many consumers don’t identify ConAgra as the owner of the brand-named products that they buy. ConAgra is aimed to the better understanding needs of their customers. The health-conscious consumers (whose number is growing) chose nutritious and low-fat food. For increasing nutrition in its products company launched the program on sodium reduction and positions itself as a â€Å"safe food manufacturer† . In 2008 the company launched the program online startmakingchoices. com for people who are concerned with the healthy way of life. The website has several tests and tips on how to keep your life healthier. Also company designs packaging with the full information to help consumers improve their diet. â€Å"Taste, health, nutrition, convenience, sustainability and, of course, value are just some of the issues American shoppers are now faced with every time they go to a supermarket and theyre demanding to know more. † For the purpose of better serving its customers and help consumers with their choice ConAgra Foods Inc. launched â€Å"Food News Today† with Phil Lempert, a â€Å"leading consumer trend analyst and Supermarket Guru†. ConAgra Foods Inc. aimed to develop and improve their private labeling strategy. One of the most successful brands that company has, Healthy Choice, has retail sales of about 1 billion dollars. This label is licensed to other companies for use on their products. Company announced the Gold Store initiative in 2006, which focuses on driving growth by optimizing in-store conditions in three fundamental areas: distribution, shelving, and placement next to the companion products. As part of a plan ConAgras sales efforts are shifting from a strategy that relied heavily on short-term price discounts and couponing in order to push out sales volume to consumers to a strategy that relies more on ways to draw in consumers. The new strategy hopes to provide a more balanced mix of trade spending, consumer advertising, and product innovation than the company had in the past. Even though ConAgra Foods Inc. owns distribution and transportation businesses like J. M. Swank, most of company’s transportation equipment, distribution centers and storage facilities are being run by third parties. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. and its affiliates, accounted for approximately 18% of consolidated net sales for fiscal 2010 . ConAgra combines hard data from retailers with its own qualitative research. â€Å"Gary Rodkin is on a quest to find what he calls the big, singular insight that will drive behavior change. †¦. He is using theories about buying habitsbacked by $399 million a year in advertising, marketing and in-store promotionsto convince grocery stores to provide ample shelves for its 45 consumer brands†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬  Leadership. Charles M. Harper The â€Å"wizard† Charles M. Harper who led the company from 1974 to 1993 is well-known for launching acquisitions strategy and founding Healthy Choice brand. During his tenure at ConAgra, the company expanded its business operations from flour-milling business to frozen foods, poultry, prepared seafood, fertilizers and the sales rose from $636 million in 1974 to $9 billion in 1987. The main reason for making decisions on acquisitions strategy were cyclical profits that company faced in agricultural segment. Mike Harper decided to diversify the company from basic products to packaged goods. His main priority was to acquire companies while they were in their down cycle and he restructured the companies and refocused their marketing strategies. He reintroduced the brands which were highly recognizable by consumers and refocused the product lines. In 1988 Harper boasted that ConAgra was probably the only food products company to participate across the entire food chain. In the early 1990s ConAgra expanded at a rate of about 3-5 acquisitions and joint ventures a year, becoming the leader in the frozen goods industry . During his tenure the P/E ratio of the company was at all times high which means: the price of stock was rising faster than the earnings per share or in other words, the investors were overoptimistic about the future of the company. (Figure 4) Figure 4. P/E ratio of ConAgra Foods Inc. Bruce Rhode In 1998 Bruce Rhode was named a CEO of ConAgra and his first steps were to reduce costs by large amount. He instituted Operation Overdrive restructuring program, closing several production plants and storage facilities and cutting the workforce by seven thousand employees. The estimated savings from Operation Overdrive were approximately $600 million a year . The other problem that Bruce Rhode faced was strong decentralization of the company. Some of the food-processing and meat-packing companies, which operated under one brand name of ConAgra, purchased the products from the competitors rather than other ConAgra’s branches. The same uncoordinated actions were in marketing when â€Å"representatives from several ConAgra divisions, all selling similar products, visited the same restaurants and groceries†. Bruce Rhode emphasized team-approach to solve these problems. At the beginning of 2000s many retail grocery stores would like to promote their own brands in foods processing and packaging segment and that was another problem for Bruce Rhode to solve. He concentrated on product development and marketing, working closely with grocery stores to create displays of ConAgra products. Bruce Rhode continued acquisitions strategy of his predecessors acquiring more brand names in packaged food segment (International Home Foods in 2000) to increase gross sales of the company and he divided company into ten principal operating units: ConAgra Foodservice Company; ConAgra Grocery Products Companies; ConAgra Frozen Prepared Foods; ConAgra Dairy Case Companies; ConAgra Refrigerated Prepared Foods; ConAgra Meat Companies; ConAgra Poultry Company; ConAgra Food Ingredients; United Agri Products Companies; ConAgra Trade Group. The early years of his tenure coincided with the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997-1998 when the investors were cautious about the US domestic markets and the stock price fell significantly (Figure 4). Figure 4. Daily stock prices for ConAgra Foods, Inc. (CAG) since 1978 to 2010. Source: google. com/finance Gary Rodkin Gary Rodkin, the former CEO of PepsiCo Beverages and Foods of North America division, replaced Bruce Rhode as CEO of ConAgra Foods Inc. in 2005 and began reorganization trying to create one centralized consolidated company that consists of more than 500 subdivisions. As a result of refocusing its portfolio of businesses ConAgra Foods Inc. divested Butterball, Armour, Eckrich and others. Gary Rodkin, while continuing acquisitions strategy, transformed the company into a â€Å"more unified operating company† . With the changes of the new CEO many analysts were concerned that he would try to create ConAgra brand instead of coordinating many different brands. However, during his interview to SmartMoney (Wall Street Journal) in 2010 he said: â€Å"†¦. There is no product named ConAgra. So instead, we say, consumers make the brands relevant. We do need investors to better understand this company. But on the consumer side, we really don’t think the juice is worth the squeeze. † Performance Internal organization ConAgra Foods Inc. operates in a low-margin industry thus effectively managing its costs is the priority in achieving strategic competitiveness (Figure 6). Focusing on cost reduction the company could save 1. 1 billion USD through supply chain rationalization initiatives, the relocation of a divisional headquarters from Irvine, California to Naperville, Illinois, the centralization of shared services, salaried headcount reductions and other cost-reduction initiatives . Figure 6. Heres how the $4. 19 you pay for a frozen dinner like one from Healthy Choice breaks down. ConAgra makes 55 cents. Source: Forbes. com . Shopping Cart Psychology by Helen Coster. 08. 19. 09 For the fiscal 2010 year ConAgra Foods Inc. announced net sales of 12,079 million USD with the operating profit of 1,652 USD (Table 4). Table 4. Financial Highlights for the fiscal 2010 year Source: Annual Report 2010 â€Å"†¦.. Heightened competition, weak demand and inflation hampered food processor ConAgras fiscal first quarter, leading it to cut its outlook, though the maker of Healthy Choice and Orville Redenbachers brand foods increased its dividend†¦.. † . The company also decreased its earnings per share outlook from 8-10% growth to 5-7%. External environment ConAgra Foods Inc. is focused on value-added brand companies and private labeling in the food industry where it competes with such giants as Kraft Foods, Heinz, Nestle, etc. â€Å"†¦.. We experience intense competition for sales of our principal products in our major markets. Our products compete with widely advertised, well-known, branded products, as well as private label and customized products. Some of our competitors are larger and have greater resources than we have. We compete primarily on the basis of quality, value, customer service, brand recognition, and brand loyalty†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. † From the next figure it can be inferred that even though ConAgra Foods, Inc. operates better than overall US industries, it still underperforms the leading companies in food sector. Figure 5. 10-year comparison of ConAgra Foods Inc. , SP 500, SP 500 Packaged Foods Index. Source: Annual Report 2010 In the Processed and Packaged Goods industry companies operate under very narrow margins (Figure 6) and for that reason severe price competition after the financial crisis influences heavily the profits of ConAgra Foods Inc. Also, the retailers implement backward integration strategy and take away profits from famous brand companies since the consumers are losing interest in the brand-named products. Even though the there are some good news about the industry that the consumers are very conscious about the money and they eat-out less than before the crisis the competition in the industry makes it difficult for analysts to predict bright future for the food companies. In the Figure we can see that the general projections for the industry are either â€Å"buy† or â€Å"hold† rather than â€Å"strong buy†. Figure 7. Analysts recommendation about the industry and ConAgra Foods Inc. Source: wikinvest. com Zacks Investment Research, November 24, 2010. Bibliographies 1. Amanda Quick, â€Å"Company profiles for students†, (Thomson Gale, 1999) 2. bigcharts. com 3. ConAgra Foods Inc. Annual Report 2010 4. ConAgra Foods Inc. Corporate Responsibility Report 2010 5. conagrafoods. com 6. forbes. com 7. google. com/finance 8. http://www. hbs. edu 9. referenceforbusiness. com 10. wikinvest. com 11. wsj. com.

The HR policies in multinational companies

The HR policies in multinational companies A critical issue faced by host-country nationals with respect to HR management is the degree to which Multinational Companies (MNCs) include parent HR policies as part of global HR policies (Lawler, 1999). This greatly depends on the company structure, market structure, and its global presence. However, HR policies are affected by various factors that these MNCs need to incorporate once they start operating in host countries. A major factor because of which MNCs incorporate these factors in their HR policies is due to culture; many of the HR policies of MNCs take into account the culture of the host country of which gender is an important factor (Lawler, 1999). If gender discrimination is not appreciated in the host country, companies will need to formulate HR policies accordingly, whereas in countries that discriminate on the basis of gender and is culturally and socially acceptable, then MNCs may or may not formulate policies based on it as then it would be the parent companies discretion as to how they would want to approach the matter keeping in mind the company values and objectives. One way to study the culture of countries and understand how important the issue of gender discrimination is is by examining factors using Hofstedes cultural dimensions. These dimensions are power distance, individualism/collectivism, masculinity/femininity, and uncertainty avoidance (Hofstede, 1991). To study the extent to which gender issues affect the HR policies of MNCs, it is more appropriate to look at individualism/collectivism rather than masculinity/femininity; gender issues in the context of HR is more about the degree to which women liberalisation is prevalent in the country rather than how masculine or feminine the culture of the country is. Individualistic cultures focus more on personal accomplishments hence those cultures are more likely to influence MNCs to formulate gender bias-free HR policies when operating in that particular country; the study reveals that in individualistic countries, HR policies of MNCs do not discriminate people on the basis of gender (Lawler, 1999). Globalization The world today has become highly dynamic and competitive; globalisation has become the catchphrase in the business world where policies and strategies are developed as per global competitiveness (Joynt and Morton, 2005). Due to this factor which affects revenue generation and profits of organisations greatly, multinationals try and formulate bias-free policies when it comes to gender. A research was conducted to compare the HR practices in insurance companies of Indian and multinational companies; results showed that Indian companies discriminated salaries and job positions on gender basis; however, in multinationals, this practice was not evident (Kundu and Malhan, 2009). Today, what companies are looking for is a competent skilled employee who is the right person for the job; jobs are not restricted to males or females, rather they are about the right person. Hence, it can be concluded that in multinational companies gender does not affect HR policies if organisations are revolvin g their strategies and corporate objectives around globalisation and are trying to gain corporate and competitive advantage on a global level. European Cases The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (2005) studied a number of European corporate cases that included the HR practices of companies operating in Europe. All these examples focus on how important gender has been in being a part of HR policies and finally in achieving corporate objectives. Grupo Texto Editores is a Portuguese company that realised the importance of gender equality and made it a part of its HR policies as the management felt that gender balance was extremely important in order to make the company competitive; this HR policy of the company has won it the Gender Equality and Quality Award by CITE in 2000 (European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, 2005). According to Mr. Luis Pedro Nunes, Head of Global Human Resources Operations of the group, the companys success is largely due to the gender policy of the group; the HR policies have been built on the principle of hiring the right people and hence it automatically maintains a gender balance in the organisation. Another case that the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (2005) has studied with respect to gender and HR policies is that of Nestle. Nestle France has faced major challenges with respect to gender imbalances in the company which has affected its reputation globally. The multinationals HR policies in recruitment and other areas such as training are seen to be highly discriminatory by the union; women are not promoted to senior positions, they are not sent on training, and much of their demands are not addressed by the senior management. This resulted in unbalanced salary structures between men and women, limited training opportunities for women, and very few promotions for women to senior levels. French legislation has passed considerable bills that force firms not to discriminate on the basis of gender; companies with a workforce of over 200 are required to even have equality commissions. Nestle France however falls short in displaying gender quality and hence falls behind other global competitors such as Danone. The management did get concern about the discriminatory practices in the company and hence conducted a survey which showed drastic discrimination against women. Nestle France consequently made changes in its HR policies to tackle this problem and by 2003 the company had female managers in high positions and a female member on its board. Nestle has also put certain mechanisms to ensure gender equality as part of its global HR policy. Nestle France clearly illustrates an example whereby how gender-biased HR policies can affect the reputation of companies. If companies do not address these issues, they fail to gain competitive advantage over other firms, just like Nestle France has lost it to Danone. The Case of Norway Gender greatly affects the reputation of countries because of which they continue including it in HR policy formation. Norway has been given the status of forerunners regarding gender equality in Europe; it is also among the top countries that promote female participation in the workforce. However, the government of Norway, even after these statuses regarding gender equality, realised that the companies operating in Norway did not have much representation of women in leadership positions. To counter this issue, the government encouraged companies to formulate HR policies that give more opportunities to women and increase their role in leadership positions. Another reason they formulated such policies was because the country realised that they are wasting the 50% female population of the country and were not utilising these resources when females could contribute to the society in similar ways as men could. The Ministerial Intervention at the EU Informal Ministerial Meeting on Gender Equality (2008) discussed gender bias-free HR policies as a precondition for building competitive organisations in the global corporate world. The MNCs also saw women as the future and a sign of modernity for them which encouraged them to formulate gender-friendly HR policies. Due to these reasons, the gender balance requirement was set in Norway which was at 40% in all companies. This has proven successful across Norway; hence, it can be concluded that gender does affect HR policies in multinational companies and other companies, especially when countries, as a whole, realise the strategic importance of gender bias-free policies. Gender Pay Inequalities One of the major reasons for gender-based discrimination in MNCs is pay (Blau and Kahn, 2007). Many labor force statistics reveal the existence of gender pay gaps. In the USA, an average woman had to work until April 2008 at the present gap rate in order to earn what an average man earned towards the end of 2007 (The National Womens Law Center, 2008). Likewise, in the European Union, there are a number of MNCs being biased in their HR policies where the matter is related to pay structures. An average full time working woman in the UK would miss approximately  £369,000 in her working life (BBC News, 14.11.2008). At times, women do not even realise that they are being discriminated against on the basis of pay structures; in some cases, women may be aware of the discrimination as per company HR policies; however, they might not consider pay disparities as important when compared to other dimensions of work (Khoreva, 2009). The Global Gender Gap Index Gender, being a discriminatory factor in global HR policies, has become so important in todays globalised world that a need for a Global Gender Gap Index has arisen. Gender greatly affects the HR policies of MNCs, consequently creating gender gaps. The Global Gender Gap Index scrutinises the gap between women and men in four basic yet extremely important areas: economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, political empowerment and health and survival (The Global Gender Gap, 2008). It can be concluded form the report that the gap has been widening globally as the number of countries with widening gaps in 2006-2007 was 24, where as in 2007-2008 the number was 41 (The Global Gender Gap, 2008). Although countries with narrowing gaps are more than countries with widening gaps, the percentage of improvement is decreasing over the years; from 91% in 2006-2007, the rate has gone down to 87% in 2007-2008 (The Global Gender Gap, 2008). Hence, it is evident that MNCs globally are not addressing gender discriminatory issues in their HR policies as the Global Gender Gap Index is continuously increasing. Conclusion The discussion throughout this paper focused on different factors and reasons that affect HR policy formation; policy formation is not only based on corporate philosophies that promote gender equality or favor women, however there are multiple ways by which gender affects HR policy formation in multinational companies. Gender equality greatly affects HR policies in multinational companies primarily because of the global village the world has shrunk into. The need of the hour is the integration of the entire world where gender plays an extremely important and crucial role. Gender equality has become a prerequisite in developing multinational companies into highly competitive organisations. The world has become so competitive that in order to survive, companies will not just have to include women in its workforce but also invest in their training and development in order to help them reach leadership positions in top management. If companies favour either of the two genders, they will never be able to achieve success levels that organisations having gender bias-free HR policies might have achieved or will achieve in the future. Incorporating gender as a major factor in formulating HR policies especially in multinational companies motivates the local population of the host country. It helps bring the youth of the country, both men and women, together in contributing to society and more by being part of these companies. Finally, equal opportunity policies should be formulated as HR policies of multinational companies so that these companies are able to develop trust between the people of host countries they are operating in and the MNCs as that will facilitate the entire process of global communication and make the world a better place to live and work in.

Reasons to support thesis Essay -- essays papers

Reasons to support thesis First of all, we will consider the very word motivation. Motivation can be defined as an incentive. When we discuss students having the motivation to learn, we may consider them having the incentive to learn. Do students today have the incentive to learn? Many people claim that they do not and that the lack of motivation is increasingly becoming worse and worse in today’s society. The belief that society has unknowingly created for today’s students is that there is a separation between education that is taught in schools and that which is learned outside of schools. Children view these things as two different worlds. There is the school world, and the real world. Many children tend to believe that the things they learn in the school world will not affect them in the real world and are therefore have no motivation to learn in school. â€Å"When kids are not engaged, not only do they fail to learn, they also tend to become bored and restless† (Wolk, R.). This boredom and restlessness has serious potential for many kids to lead to a lack of motivation. Obviously, it is very important for a student to remain focused in order to maintain motivation; yet, not all of the responsibility relies on the child. Teachers have a huge responsibility in making sure that every student in their class is working to their individual potential and that each child is engaged in the material and is benefiting from this learning experience. Educators sometimes find it difficult to develop such a strong teacher-student relationship with each child but studies have shown that the more the teacher is involved, the more motivated students will become. There are many different elements involved in making a child feel a... ... from Academic Search Premier. Johnson, Ronnie, Lamb, Dean. (1994). Motivating students to learn. Vocational Education Journal. Vol. 69. Issue 2. Morganett, Lee. (1991). Good teacher-student relationships: A key element in classroom motivation and management. EBSCOhost Education. Vol. 112. Issue 2. pg. 265. 5p. Retrieved on 4/22/04 from Academic Search Premier. Schroeder, K. (1992). Motivating students. Education Digest. Vol. 58. Issue 3. Atherely, M. (1992). Motivating students to learn. PageWise, Inc. Retrieved on 4/24/04 from http://de.essortment.com/motivatingstude_rbsm.htm Gershaw, D. (1989). A line on life: Motivating students to learn. Teaching of Psychology. Pg. 86-88. Davis. B. (1993). Motivating students. Tools for Teaching. Josey-Bass Publishers. Retrieved on 4/22/04 from http://teaching.berkeley.edu/bgd/motivate.html

Essay --

Segregation, the separation of individuals by their race, was something that many African American experienced in their life after their freedom from slavery until the end of segregation around the mid-1900s. Southerners were less accepting of African Americans than their Northern counterparts. Southerners were often extremely cruel to African Americans, referring to them with demeaning names and physically hurting them, sometimes to the point of critical injury or death. During this time, James Meredith, a civil rights leader was born. James Howard Meredith was born as one of ten children on a farm in Kosciusko, Mississippi on June 25, 1933. He was not exposed to racism until a train ride from Chicago, where he had to give up his seat for a white man. This train ride was his catalyst for fighting for civil rights. He spent nine years in the Army Air Force following high school. After his service, he enrolled in the all-black school, Jackson State College in Mississippi. The beginning of his work started in the year 1961, when he applied for University of Mississippi, which back then was an all-white school that had been segregated and should have been integrated with the Brown v. Board of Education ruling. The Brown v. the Board of Education, taking place in 1952, was a case that overruled the Plessy v. Ferguson ruling that legalized segregation. This case brought about after an African American man from Topeka filed a lawsuit saying that black and white schools were not legal. This parent was Oliver Brown. This case was taken care of by Thurgood Marshall and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The court ruled in favor of Brown and segregation became considered illegal and in violation of ... ...aces, however, when they look at the same classroom about sixty years ago they will find it less diversified. Now, people can see African American children play with the children of white people. There are children who are of mixed race, when back then these children would be shunned by both sides. The children are able to play, become friends, and be happy. They are able to have a life where they do not have to worry about getting off the street just because a white person is passing by. They do not have to worry about moving to the back just because a white person has arrived. This would not have been the case sixty years ago. This place where children of all races are able to enjoy each other’s company was the result of many years of effort and blood, not only by one person but by many courageous individuals who wanted to create a better future for their people. Essay -- Segregation, the separation of individuals by their race, was something that many African American experienced in their life after their freedom from slavery until the end of segregation around the mid-1900s. Southerners were less accepting of African Americans than their Northern counterparts. Southerners were often extremely cruel to African Americans, referring to them with demeaning names and physically hurting them, sometimes to the point of critical injury or death. During this time, James Meredith, a civil rights leader was born. James Howard Meredith was born as one of ten children on a farm in Kosciusko, Mississippi on June 25, 1933. He was not exposed to racism until a train ride from Chicago, where he had to give up his seat for a white man. This train ride was his catalyst for fighting for civil rights. He spent nine years in the Army Air Force following high school. After his service, he enrolled in the all-black school, Jackson State College in Mississippi. The beginning of his work started in the year 1961, when he applied for University of Mississippi, which back then was an all-white school that had been segregated and should have been integrated with the Brown v. Board of Education ruling. The Brown v. the Board of Education, taking place in 1952, was a case that overruled the Plessy v. Ferguson ruling that legalized segregation. This case brought about after an African American man from Topeka filed a lawsuit saying that black and white schools were not legal. This parent was Oliver Brown. This case was taken care of by Thurgood Marshall and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The court ruled in favor of Brown and segregation became considered illegal and in violation of ... ...aces, however, when they look at the same classroom about sixty years ago they will find it less diversified. Now, people can see African American children play with the children of white people. There are children who are of mixed race, when back then these children would be shunned by both sides. The children are able to play, become friends, and be happy. They are able to have a life where they do not have to worry about getting off the street just because a white person is passing by. They do not have to worry about moving to the back just because a white person has arrived. This would not have been the case sixty years ago. This place where children of all races are able to enjoy each other’s company was the result of many years of effort and blood, not only by one person but by many courageous individuals who wanted to create a better future for their people.

Informative Essay About Cancer

Cancer is a word that no one wants to hear or think about, however there are many people that are faced with this ugly word every day. The denotative definition of cancer is a malignant and invasive growth or tumor, especially one originating in epithelium, tending to recur after excision and to metastasize to other sites. To many Americans cancer is so much more than this definition, it is estimated that 1,638,910 men and women will be diagnosed with cancer in 2012 according to the national cancer institute.When someone is diagnosed with cancer it affects many aspects in their life such as physical health, mental health, and emotional health. Cancer affects a person’s physical health tremulously. Depending on if a person does any type of treatment or not will directly affect how much a person physical health is affected. People who have survived this horrid disease have long term physical disabilities. Men and women may become infertile; this means they are unable to have chi ldren of their own.A person who has or is a survivor of cancer is very fatigue. The tiredness comes from the exhaustion of going through the processes of medical treatment, in and out of doctor’s offices and the body being weak due to the disease. Cancer causes other diseases such as heart disease or lung disease, lymph edema, osteoporosis, depression, and second cancers(Lance Armstrong foundation p5). A person’s body can only take so much before it just shuts down and stops fighting for life.Cancer takes a huge toll on a person physically; sometimes the body cannot handle it and stops working. Mental health is very important to maintain especially when diagnosed with a ghastly disease such as cancer. Cancer affects a person’s mental health a great deal. A person suffering from cancer may also suffer from depression. The depression that they are encountering may not have anything to do with their cancer. It could be that they are depressed for outside reasons su ch as loss of a loved one (WFMH. p2).Their depression could very much so be related to their cancer, no one is thrilled to hear they have a disease that takes people’s lives every day. The fact that a person has cancer could very well put them in a depressed state. Another mental hazard that is directly caused by having cancer is anxiety. Cancer is a word that gets people very anxious; anxious to know what’s going to happen how did this happen what to do ect†¦ mental health is necessary to have when dealing with a life changing disease, most people cannot keep their head level enough to stay in a sane mind set.Cancer has the most affect on the emotional health. Cancer not only affects the patient directly but also friends and family. From an emotional stand point cancer is the worst thing that could happen to a person. It is a disease that is packed with emotions and feeling. Those who are diagnosed with this disease are mostly flabbergasted with pain of the heart and disbelief. The patients often think what will happen to them and how are they going to get through this horrible disease.Family and friends are affected because they have to watch their loved one go through this hardship. When I interviewed Kelly Mitchell about her Aunt Deena dying from cancer she said â€Å"The hardest part for me was to watch my aunt go from such a strong women in every way to a brittle little lady who had lost all hope of getting better, I really believe that if she had maintained good emotional health she would have lived a lot longer or maybe even beat it. Emotionally no one is ready to die or hear that they have a life threatening disease. Most people’s natural reaction would not be to keep a positive mind set. Cancer is such a negative word and creates a lot of emotions. How can one disease affect so many in so many ways? A person who is diagnosed with cancer needs to maintain a positive attitude because it is going to drain them of their mental physical and emotional health.