Argumentative text about education at home Essay Example for Free

Argumentative text about education at home Essay Education means school, classrooms and annoying teachers- for me. But it does not mean this any more. There is an increasing number of parents now who teaches their children at home. Education at home has advantages and disadvantages. One advantage is that children can study flexible. Their parents can give them a different timetable every day to make studying more interesting. Secondly the children wont be affected by criminal classmates and wouldnt learn bad things. But there are disadvantages too. First of all, children could finally feel lonely if they study at home every day. At school, they would study together and have fun in the break with other students. Thats an easy way for children to find friends. However, studying at home with their parents, children may hard find a friend. see more:paragraph writing on my school Secondly, children might find it difficult to work with others, because theyre used to study or work alone. But sometimes you have to work with colleagues as a group in your job. But if you have problems with team members, you could lose your job. Finally, children could be worse in their study, comparing with children who have classes at school. Their parents can not give a guarantee, the quality of education of their children. Sure, there are many people who graduated from university but that does not mean that they are good teachers. In addition, parents also have to focus on their work, which means they cant spend all day with the education of their children. In conclusion, children can learn more and have a lot of friends when they go to school. Furthermore, children can also easily deal with a team work. Therefor parents shouldnt assume a huge responsibility to teach their children at home.

The Showtime Sound Lighting System Information Technology Essay

The Showtime Sound Lighting System Information Technology Essay The Showtime Sound Lighting System undertaken as a project is based on relevant technologies. The main aim of this project is to develop software for sound lighting System. This project has been developed to carry out the processes easily and quickly, which is not possible with the manuals systems, which are overcome by this software. Hence it provides the complete solution to provide customer services and time management. The software provides good services and remove the repetitions in order to nurture the needs of the customer by providing various ways tasks. Also, to improve time management to handle large volume of business. Current Problems faced by the system Currently, the traditional manual system holds the information on clipboards until it is entered on the computer system. The current system is the one that evolved as the company grew from a part-time, one-man business to a full-time operation with permanent employees. The system does not ensure that the services can be provided to the customers needs. They are using computers to store the information or customer data i.e. Proposals, orders and invoices, in MS-WORD documents and thus redundancy of data is created which leads to inefficient programming and also decrease in the productivity. System Requirements Showtime Sound Lighting System is intended to help the user keep account of his customers in an efficient way. Thus provide good services and increase the productivity. It helps to handle the large volume of business, to provide good services to the customers, to remove the redundancy by providing various technicalities. The system is required to run in a more efficient way thus save time. If it is not feasible for customer to get the proper services then he has got no option left. The main aim of project will be to minimize these limitations and provide customer with better functionalities and services. Requirements Specification Requirement analysis is the first technical step in the software engineering process. It is at this point that a general statement of software scope is redefined into concrete a specification that forms the foundation for all software engineering activities that follow. There is no doubt that the presentation of specification has much to do with quality of the solution. Developers working with incomplete, inconsistent, or misleading specifications have to ultimately deal with confusion and frustration. The quality, timeliness and completeness of the software suffer as a consequence. Software Requirement Specification is developed as a consequence of analysis and market surveys. Review is essential to ensure that the developers and customers have the same perception of the problem. Unfortunately, even with the best of the methods, the problem is that the requirements keep on changing conditions. So it is necessary that during the requirement specification, user should know competence of the software. Requirements are prone to issues of ambiguity, incompleteness, and inconsistency. Techniques such as rigorous inspection have been shown to help deal with these issues. Ambiguities, incompleteness, and inconsistencies that can be resolved in the requirements phase typically cost orders of magnitude less to correct than when these same issues are found in later stages of product development. Requirements analysis strives to address these issues. Take a long time to produce Begin to limit the implementation option available Are costly to produce Requirements for both the system and the software are documented and reviewed with the customer. Scope of Project Today, the information technology has become the very advance and so the convenient means of handling the lots of information. The Showtime Lighting System is an application for maintaining a customers account in a company. The system provides the access to the customer to create a request, validate provide services to customers. Project Objectives And Deliverables: The objective is to design a tool which consists of all basic functionalities of an organization that holds all information of the customer using this application, value added services provided by the company that can be accessed by the users (customer and administration) through a user-friendly interface. There can be a possibility of online business. Target Customer Base: This system is made in such a way that this will be able to meet the basic requirements of advanced user as well as for the user those who are new to the system. Having a user friendly GUI, this application is a good option to used by a large section Feasibility Analysis Feasibility studies aim to objectively and rationally uncover the strengths and weaknesses of the existing business or proposed venture, opportunities and threats as presented by the environment, the resources required to carry through, and ultimately the prospects for success. In its simplest term, the two criteria to judge feasibility are cost required and value to be attained. As such, a well-designed feasibility study should provide a historical background of the business or project, description of the product or service, accounting statements, details of the operations and management, marketing research and policies, financial data, legal requirements and tax obligations. Generally, feasibility studies precede technical development and project implementation. Technical Feasibility Technical Feasibility centers on the existing manual system and to what extent it can support the proposed system. According to the feasibility analysis procedure, the technical feasibility of the proposed system is analyzed and the technical requirements such as software facilities, hardware facilities, procedures, inputs and outputs are identified. It is one of the important phases of the system development. In technical feasibility the following issues are taken into consideration. Whether the required technology is available or not Whether the required resources are available Manpower- programmers, testers debuggers Software and hardware Once the technical feasibility is established, it is important to consider the monetary factors also. Since it might happen that developing a particular system may be technically possible but it may require huge investments and benefits may be less. For evaluating this, economic feasibility of the proposed system is carried out. Showtime Sound Lighting System requires only the software to be installed on the system and the information can be accessed by authorized user in the organization. Economic Feasibility An economic feasibility test focuses on returns and costs of a proposed plan in both the short and long-term. An economic feasibility study (EFS) should consider investment and operating costs, the time value of money, risk and uncertainty, quality of available data, and the sensitivity of assumptions. An economic feasibility study should demonstrate the net benefit of the proposed course of action in the context of direct and indirect benefits and costs to the organization and to the general public as a whole. An EFS makes a business case, prepares analytical worksheets and other necessary supporting documentation. An EFS should be required for both pilot and long-term activities, plans and projects. For any system if the expected benefits equal or exceed the expected costs, the system can be judged to be economically feasible. In economic feasibility, cost benefit analysis is done in which expected costs and benefits are evaluated. Economic analysis is used for evaluating the effectiveness of the proposed system. In economic feasibility, the most important is cost-benefit analysis. As the name suggests, it is an analysis of the costs to be incurred in the system and benefits derivable out of the system. Showtime Sound Lighting System requires the software to be economically feasible. It should be according to the cost benefit analysis of the company. Organizational Feasibility The success of investment projects depend to a large extent on the capability of those responsible for managing them. The feasibility analysis should investigate the legal status of the organization, the level of staffing and the capability of the management and staff. Organizational Feasibility is conducted to determine whether a proposed business has sufficient management expertise, organizational competence, and resources to successfully launch its business. This also involves questions as whether it brings an excessive amount of change, and whether the organization is changing too rapidly to absorb it. It involves the questions as: Is the current organisational structure able to provide the necessary support during the implementation phase? How can a managing scheme for the project be crafted out of this structure and effectively interface with it? Will the systems introduction create new needs that cannot be accommodated by the current organisational structure? Is it possible to plan and implement all needed organisational changes in time, so as not to delay the systems implementation and operation? Showtime Sound Lighting System requires the software to be designed according to the needs of the organization Schedule Feasibility The schedule feasibility shows the estimated time to complete the project. This includes the schedules of each process in a project and the total project time. This can change if unexpected challenges occur. A project will fail if it takes too long to be completed before it is useful. Typically this means estimating how long the system will take to develop, and if it can be completed in a given time period using some methods like payback period. Schedule feasibility is a measure of how reasonable the project timetable is. Given our technical expertise, are the project deadlines reasonable? Some projects are initiated with specific deadlines. You need to determine whether the deadlines are mandatory or desirable. Showtime Sound Lighting System requires the software to be built within the stipulated time in an efficient way. Resource feasibility This involves questions such as how much time is available to build the new system, when it can be built, whether it interferes with normal business operations, type and amount of resources required, dependencies, do you have enough resources, what resources will be required, what facilities will be required for the project, etc. Showtime Sound Lighting System requires the software to be built by skilled and expert resources. Not only should the software be handled further by expert resources. Current Systems Specification UML Case Diagram This diagram displays the brief description of the current existing system. In this SSL System receive request from customers, then the request is validated, it will check for the equipment availability, after the equipments available then generate proposal, after that generate order and then the bill is provided to the customer. Major Description This diagram describes all the scenarios in detail with all possibilities of the current prevailing system SSL System gathers information from customers, put it on the clipboard, then validate customer request, then enter into the computer system maintaining the customer information. If existing customer then update the information otherwise create a new customer. After that, check for the mode of request. Whether it rental or information is for purchase or operators support. Accordingly the equipments availability is checked by the user. If the equipment is available and the associated employee is also available, the order is generated. Then the services are provided to the customer. Structural Model (Class Diagram) The below diagram displays all the classes and their relationship of the existing current system. In this diagram, different classes have been generated with attributes and methods. First is customer class with attributes and methods getcustomerdetails(), addnewcustomer() and updatecustomer(). Then the class event is created with methods addnewevent(), updateebent(). There is 1 to many relationship between customer and event. Employee class is created with methods getemployee(). One customer can deal with only one employee at a time depends upon the availability of employee. Then order class is generated with methods generateorder(), generatebill(). One employee can generate many orders at a time. . Activity Diagram This diagram shows all the activities of the prevailing system. In this diagram, first get the request from customer, check for the equipment availability, then process the request mode i.e. whether it is rental request, or request for purchase or request for the operators support. After taking the decision the information is first written on the clipboard, and then stored in the computer. After checking the time requirement and employee availability, the proposal is generated. Once the proposal is confirmed, the order is generated and the services are provided to the customer. Structured Design Models A Context Analysis Diagram A Context Diagram confines project scope to an agreed limit by obtaining agreement from the customer on the data flows that are included in the scope of a project. The Context Diagram focuses on relationships with external entities and identifies the information that is exchanged between these external entities and the business system under review. The external entities themselves are outside the scope of the project but the data flows between the entities and the business system are within the project scope. Customer SSL SYSTEM Customer Provide services Generate Proposal Equipment Availability Information request Equipment details validate request Generate Order Request Type request details validate proposal A LEVEL 0 DFD On Level 0, a DFD shows all the data flows from the system to the external entities, with the whole system being represented as one large process. A Level 0 diagram is sometimes created to show the interaction of the system with external entities, some of which may also be systems. Process Request CUSTOMER CUSTOMER Information Services A LEVEL 1 DFD Customer request information Collect information on clipboard Process Request Provide Services Update Information Generate Order details check for equipment Generate proposal Process Equipment availability validate information equipment available Employee availability Schedule Timing Mode of request rental,purchase,operator support A LEVEL 2 DFD 1.2 Check for equipment availability 1.1 Process Request Customer send request details 1.3 Process Request Type provide services equipment details 1.4 Generate order order details A Level 1 DFD A Level 1 DFD normally shows very few (8 10) processes, and is intended to explain the basic functioning of the system. A Level 1 diagram should show all the processes of the system and the external entities that the system actively interacts with (and in some rare cases exchange of data between those external entities, when absolutely necessary). A Level 2 DFD This level is a decomposition of a process shown in a level-1 diagram, as such there should be a level-2 diagram for each and every process shown in a level-1 diagram. In this example, processes 1.1, 1.2 1.3 are all vital of process 1. Together they wholly and completely describe process 1, and combined must perform the full capacity of this parent process. Proposed System Specificaion UML Model Detailed Use Case Model Problem Situation Showtime Sound Lighting (SSL) Inc is an organization deals with the equipments related with sound and lighting systems. SSL deals with wide range of customers. Many local organizations, churches, and entertainment businesses have contracts for support of sound, projection, and lighting in their facilities. SSL provides different types of services such as provide equipments on rent, for purchase; they also provide operators support to the customers. To produce a large amount of business, they frequently upgrade the cost of equipment but this leads to their loss. They also occasionally upgrade damaged or obsolete equipment. Currently SSL system is divided into four major business activities in providing services and products to its customers. Collect and process customer information and requests. A customer provides a request to SSL. If the request is from an existing customer, it is compared to previous requests. This process requires information from the customer file. The information of the customer is then updated. If the customer is new, a customer file is created that records the newly obtained customer information. Match customer requirements with equipment availability. The customers order information is collected, specifically listing the customers needs. Customer requirements can range from a simple set of items to purchase to a request for consulting services resulting in recommended alternative system solutions to a request for a full set of equipment complete with operators. After availability of equipment, the order can be generated. After that match the details with customer time requirements as well with the availability of employee. There are two types of employees working in the organization i.e. Permanent employees and contractors which are again full time part time. If the employee schedules match with the customer requirements, then the proposal will be raised. Customers want SSL to bid. To prepare the bid SSL must compare needs with equipment and personnel availability. Equipment and personnel requirements must be planned for and reserved in the event that the proposal is accepted. This is often the case for organizations that must obtain approval from finance committees. When the organization accepts the proposal, the order is then created, and the equipment and personnel are scheduled to support the event. After that the service provides to the customer. In current environment or system there is no proper database being maintained. All the information gathered from the customer is stored on the clipboard and then written on MS-WORD to convert and store data electronically. In this way, the data can be repeated. It means the same order, information of the customers, etc. can be repeated which is not an efficient way of programming. Moreover, redundancy leads to the confusion in the system. There can be the confusion that which equipment is available, or which of the equipments has been given to which customer etc. Then Provide services and products. The process entails the actual support of the event. SSL management prepares a list of all support needed for the event so that the technician delivers everything SSL has agreed to provide. This list is essential because the support needed for a large gathering must be on hand and functional at the time of the event. All order information is provided to the technician. This allows the tech nician to load all necessary equipment and to ensure that the proper contract workers, if required, are available for the event. At the conclusion of the event, the technician must report that the order was successfully completed. If any overtime was required, the technician must report this as well so that the contract workers are properly paid. The technician also evaluates the performance of the contract workers; this information helps SSL decide which workers to hire for future events. Finally, the technician notes any equipment problems that may require immediate attention or routine maintenance. Comparison and Analysis SSL provides different types of services such as provide equipments on rent, for purchase; they also provide operators support to the customers. To produce a large amount of business, they frequently upgrade the cost of equipment but this leads to their loss. A manual system stores the information on clipboards and later on enters the information in computer system. In this way an efficient data and accurate data cannot be stored for later use.. Moreover there can be redundancy of data that leads to confusion. The system currently does not ensure that customer information is readily available to support daily operations, nor does it provide information needed for decision making by management. As a result, much of the information in the set of customer files is repetitious. The business currently does not have a system for assigning customer numbers or cross-referencing documents. Locating information about a specific order, previous customer service provided, and other business acti vities are time-consuming and difficult. This deficiency in turn has a negative impact on servicing customer. All order information is provided to the technician. On the contrary, the Proposed Showtime Sound Lighting System is a system based on relevant technologies. The main aim of this project is to develop software for sound lighting System. The software provides good services and remove the repetitions in order to nurture the needs of the customer by providing various ways tasks. Also to improve time management to handle large volume of business. The traditional manual is being overcome by the information stord in proper databases in the proposed system.Currently, the traditional manual system hold the information on clipboards until it is entered on the computer system but in the proposed system , the data will be stored in the databases for all the functions and activities take place in the organization. There should be more permanent employees which are of full time to increase the productivity.Collect and process customer information and requests. For this a separate customer database should be created with the relevant fields. Cust_id should be the key field. That it stores only unique records, not more than one same record can be stored. A customer provides a request to SSL. Check for the existing customer in customer database and update the information.. If the customer is new, add his information in the database through addnewcustomer() method. Match customer requirements with equipment availability. The details of the equipments should be stored in another database called item .If the equipment is available then (check for the availability from the database) then validate request. In validation, check for the genuine order being placed by the customer. After this check which type of request is being made, i.e the order is for rental, purchase or the operators support is needed. Again this information is also stored in separate database. If all the information is stored in separate database, then there would be no chances of redundancy and smooth functioning of the system. As far relationship is concerned, relation can be with the cust_id. Many customers can place the orders at the time and all the details should be stored in their respective databases. Only one equipment should be provided to one customer. For the availability of the equipments, check the database and update the database side by side. Match the requirement with the employee availability and also with the time required. Update the database of the employee for the same to validate the request. The customers order information is collected, specifically listing the customers needs. Order should be generated and the details should be stored in order database along with its type and the shipping details of the customer To increase the productivity and goodwill , the company should appoint more and more full time skilled employees. In this way they can provide good services to the customers.

Corporate Social Responsibility A Strategy For Inclusive Development Business Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility A Strategy For Inclusive Development Business Essay Events around the world over the last few decades have emphasized the need for corporate entities, their stakeholders, governments and international organizations to take the issue of Corporate Social Responsibility seriously. Incidents such as the explosion at the Union Carbide Bhopal, India in 1984, the oil spillage at Prince William Sound, Alaska USA in 1989, a few corporate scandals; for example the Mirror Group UK 1991, the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) 1991, UK, Polly Peck 1992, UK, Enron USA 2001, World Com USA 2002, Parmal at Italy 2003 remain fresh and indelible in our minds. Issues such as rampant poverty, climate change and global warming, human rights abuses, terrorism and the globalization of the world economy also affect how corporate entities conduct their operational practices. These operational practices consequently impinge on how corporate entities perceive their responsibilities to societies; and in turn societies expectations from corporate ent ities have increased. Societies give license to businesses to operate and consequently businesses have to serve society not only by creating wealth, but also by contributing to social needs and social expectations towards society. The current state of world affairs, calls for development that is inclusive. This paper delves upon issues such as the need for inclusiveness in development, the role of business in the contemporary society and its association with inclusive development, the Governments contribution towards CSR facilitation and the promotion of CSR by the corporate sector as a strategy for Inclusive Development. Inclusive Development Many people end up being excluded from the mainstream society; the reasons may be varied like gender, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation disability or the deprivation of basic human rights. This exclusion has resulted in making poverty and inequality a global challenge today, affecting nearly all countries of the world. The World Bank estimates for the year 2008 indicate that approximately 3 billion people or 45% of the global population is living below the international poverty line ($1-2 a day). If inflation is taken into account global poverty is on the rise. Poverty is a vicious cycle and the poor or unfortunate are in a way trapped in this cycle.   They lack access to good nutrition, health care and decent living conditions face barriers to education, employment and public services and are thus denied a dignified human existence.    Economic growth is an important factor in reducing poverty and generating the resources necessary for human development and environmental protection. The past fifty years have seen unprecedented global economic growth. This growth evidently has failed to bring about an overall development to societies across the world. The challenges discussed so far underscore the need for Inclusive development, an  emerging concept that recognizes diversity as fundamental to sustainable socio-economic and human development, based upon the notion that every human being can and should contribute to the development process where isolated policies be replaced by integrated strategy benefiting individuals and societies as a whole.   It is only right then that economic growth and development today is revisited by all actors in the society instrumental in generating this development. In order to structure such a strategy, all projects related to  education, health promotion, environmental and social protection need to consider those trapped in the vicious cycle of poverty. Development that is Inclusive reduces poverty where all groups of people contribute to creating opportunities, share the benefits of development and participate in decision-making. United Nations Development Programs human development approach complements Inclusive development as it integrates the standards and principles of human rights: participation, non-discrimination and accountability for all social and environmental concerns. Sustainability and Inclusive Development Sustainable practices encourage conserving, mitigating waste and enhancing our resource bases by gradually changing the ways in which we use natural resources available to us for industrial and personal consumption and the technologies we choose and the way we apply them. Nations strive to meet the basic requirements of their people for employment, food, energy, water and sanitation. To achieve this sustainably, there is need to balance economic, environmental and social goals so that prosperity is ensured not only for the current but future generations as well. Poverty eradication is an integral part of the goal of an environmental strategy for the world. The concepts of a shared planet, global citizenship, spaceship earth cannot be restricted to environmental issues alone. They apply equally to the shared and inter-linked responsibilities of environmental protection and human development. Restoring natural systems and improving natural resource management practices at the grassroots level are central to a strategy to eliminate poverty. It can be inferred that sustainable development is a precondition to achieving inclusive development. Role Of Business Corporate Houses have become powerful institutions on the planet in the last 50 years. Businesses have emerged stronger and more powerful when compared with Nation states. Willis Harman notes that the dominant institution in any society needs to take responsibility for the whole as the church did in the days of the Holy Roman Empire. The expectations from Business are indicating reflections of a demand for change. Business has been asked to be Inclusive and not just merit based; maximal and not just legal; to be ahead of law and not just run with it; to be consultative rather than just procedural; to meet global standards and not just local ones. In short, a large part of social responsibility is expected to be taken by corporate houses and therefore the concept Corporate Social Responsibility has emerged over time. Inclusive Development is to be shaped by various factors, such as; the functional definition of inclusive development, interventions that enhance governance and promote effective institutions, sound economic policies, and cultural and socio-economic considerations in policymaking and implementation. Inclusive development is an effective tool for overcoming social exclusion, combating poverty and ensuring social and economic sustainability, i.e. all sections of the society benefit out of such initiatives. Governance, trade, technology and financing practices determine social justice and protection of the rights of the underprivileged. It involves all actors in the society the government, businesses, public and private sector institutions, civil society or communities themselves. CSR as a strategic tool by companies with collaborative support of the above mentioned actors can and has become one of the important drivers to promote overall human development ensuring environmental protection. Such development is sustainable and leads to Inclusive Growth. CSR Models Today we have innumerable examples of Companies where Inclusive Development has been the guiding principle for Business in the long run. A few International names include Coca Cola, Starbucks, Johnson Johnson and Microsoft. In the Indian scenario we can begin with the legendry Tatas followed by Infosys, ITC, Bharti, Mahindra Mahindra, Wipro and many others. Initiatives of a few companies are covered underneath. The Tata Group Pioneers in the area of CSR in India, the TATA group has always played an active role in nation building and socio-economic development. Over the years, the Tata philosophy to Give back what you get has been followed by all their enterprises across India. Be it relief measures, rural development, health care, education, art and culture, they have been very forthcoming. As a result every year, the Tata Groups contribution to society has been phenomenal. Tatas spent Rupees 1 billion on 8 community development and social services projects during the fiscal 2001-02-the highest by any corporate house in India. ITC ITC partnered the Indian farmer for almost a century. They are now engaged in elevating this partnership to a new paradigm by leveraging information technology through its trail blazing e-Choupal initiative. Figure 1 : An ITC E- Chaupal In June 2000, ITCs Agri-Business Division conceived E-Choupal ( Figure 1) as a more efficient supply chain aimed at delivering value to its customers around the world on a sustainable basis. The model has been specifically designed to tackle the challenges posed by the unique features of Indian agriculture, characterized by fragmented farms, weak infrastructure and the involvement of numerous intermediaries, among others. E-Choupal also unshackles the potential of Indian farmer who has been trapped in a vicious cycle of low risk taking ability > low investment > low productivity > weak market orientation > low value addition > low margin > low risk taking ability. It makes the farmer and the Indian agri-business sector globally uncompetitive, despite rich abundant natural resources. Such a market-led business model can enhance the competitiveness of Indian agriculture and trigger a virtuous cycle of higher productivity, higher incomes, enlarged capacity for farmer risk management, larger investments and higher quality and productivity. Infosys Infosys, Mr. Narayan Murthy has been at the forefront to champion the role of good corporation He said we should look for public good and private good will automatically come. In March 1996 the Infosys Foundation was created in the state of Karnataka operating in the areas of health care, social rehabilitation and rural uplift, education, arts and culture. Since then, this foundation has spread to the Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerela, Orrisa and Punjab. The foundation receives 1.5 % of the company after tax profits. In line with its stakeholder driven approach the allocation of funds is based on a participatory process. Since 2004, Infosys has embarked on a series of initiatives to consolidate and formalize its academic relationships worldwide under the umbrella of a program called the AcE ie Academic Entente. Through case study writing, participation in academic conferences and university events, research collaborations, hosting study trips to Infosys development centres and running the instep Global Internship program, the company communicates with important stakeholders in the academia promoting meaningful development. Starbucks Starbucks, a leading example of Environmental Sustainability has outlined a bold global environmental strategy that will help achieve a meaningful reduction in the companys environmental footprint. Starbucks has identified climate change as a key priority for the company and is in the third year of implementing its climate change strategy. The company has committed to significant renewable energy purchases for its stores and has also focused on ways to improve energy efficiency through store design. Starbucks also believes it has a role to play in consumer education and awareness, and is beginning to engage its supply chain partners on climate related issues such as renewable energy. In 2005, The Starbucks Emerging Issues Council, (a group 18 senior Starbucks executives) prioritized climate change as a key issue for the company in response to the environmental threats facing coffee growing communities. The council is also involved in determining what further measures are needed for the company to proactively and responsibly address the issue of climate change in a leadership capacity. The Starbucks three year climate change mitigation strategy includes the following steps to reduce the companys emissions: Purchasing renewable energy Focusing on energy conservation measures Educating and advocating the need for collaborative action Figure 2: A Starbucks Plantation The Starbucks three year climate change mitigation strategy includes the following steps to reduce the companys emissions: Purchasing renewable energy Focusing on energy conservation measures Educating and advocating the need for collaborative action As a responsible company, Starbucks is open and honest about the successes and challenges they face. Their Global Responsibility Reports give a clear picture of the progress theyve made in the areas of ethical sourcing, environmental stewardship and community involvement. Coca Cola Established in 1886, The CocaCola Company operates in more than 200 countries and markets nearly 500 brands. They are a global business that operates on a local scale in every community where they do business. The CocaCola system operates in the context of a broader value cycle: They work with others to source ingredients, create packaging, sell products, recover and reuse packaging materials and replenish the water used. Managing sustainability through a complex business cycle can be challenging, however collaborating closely with our business partners, communities and consumers, they seek to ensure environmental and social responsibility and are working to encourage consumers to recycle the packaging materials associated with their products. Global Sustainability select goals and targets for Coca Cola include: Active Healthy living, Energy management, Climate protection, Community, Sustainable packaging and Water stewardship. It is evident that a new paradigm for innovation is emerging: a partnership between private enterprise and public interest that produces profitable and sustainable change. Companies are moving beyond corporate social responsibility to corporate social innovation. Traditionally companies viewed the social sector as a dumping ground for spare cash, obsolete equipment and tired executives. This mindset could not create lasting change. Community needs are now viewed as opportunities to develop ideas and business technologies leading to both business and community payoffs. Government as a CSR facilitator Inclusive development requires that planning and interventions are state-led, with indispensable but ancillary engagement by the private sector and other stakeholders. CSR has not evolved separately from the public policy. Many governments have actively participated in encouraging corporations to voluntarily assume greater responsibility of the social/environmental aspects of their business policies by way of seeking to harness various market mechanisms to promote CSR. They have been promoted by various National governments, the European Union and several Inter-Governmental Organizations most notably the United Nations and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). It is interesting to note the shift in the motivations of governments for encouraging CSR. For almost three decades now it has been associated with addressing corporate governance deficits but more recently improving corporate policies with respect to issues like social cohesion, national competitiveness and environmental stability have been emphasized. The interest of the Governments is not only to encourage CSR initiatives but also to build CSR capacity. Shift is also being witnessed from endorsing and facilitating CSR by corporate to including partnering and mandating CSR through soft legislation. In advanced capitalist countries governments are playing extensive roles in a variety of initiatives to encourage CSR. The last decade has seen developments of newer roles and relationships between Governments and corporations. The UK Government has created a ministerial portfolio of CSR; corporations have created forms of self reporting and self regulation for instance The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) ; NGOs such as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Amnesty International, to name but just two have entered partnerships with corporations to help them improve environmental and social practices. There is evidence of substantial growth in the number of ethical or social mutual funds as well. In India, The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has issued CSR Voluntary Guidelines in 2009 for the Private Sector, to help encourage business entities formulate a CSR policy, guide its strategic planning and provide a roadmap for its CSR initiatives which are an integral part of the overall business policy and aligned with its business goals. The policy is expected to be framed with the participation of various level executives and approved by the Board. The Ministry of Corporate affairs has urged all companies to create a separate fund for their CSR activities in the interest of greater transparency. The recommendation is a part of Voluntary guidelines for companies especially those listed on the stock market. Core Elements of the Policy Guidelines include: Care for all Stakeholders: The companies should respect the interests of, and be responsive towards all stakeholders, shareholders, employees, customers, suppliers, project affected people, society at large etc. and create value for all of them. Ethical functioning: Their governance systems should be underpinned by Ethics, Transparency and Accountability. They should not engage in business practices that are abusive, unfair, corrupt or anti-competitive. Respect for Workers Rights and Welfare: Companies should provide a workplace environment that is safe, hygienic and humane and which upholds the dignity of employees. They should provide all employees with access to training and development of necessary skills for career advancement, on an equal and non-discriminatory basis. Respect for Human Rights: Companies should respect human rights for all and avoid complicity with human rights abuses by them or by third party. Respect for Environment: Companies should take measures to check and prevent pollution; recycle, manage and reduce waste, should manage natural resources in a sustainable manner. Activities for Social and Inclusive Development: Depending upon their core competency and business interest, companies are expected to undertake activities for economic and social development of communities and geographical areas, particularly in the vicinity of their operations for disadvantaged population. The CSR policy of the business entity is also expected to provide for an Implementation strategy that includes identification of projects/activities, setting measurable physical targets with timeframe, organizational mechanism and responsibilities, time schedules and monitoring. The Implementation Guidelines: *Companies may partner with local authorities, business associations and civil society/non-government organizations. *Companies should allocate specific amount in their budgets for CSR activities. *To share experiences and network with other organizations the company should engage with well established and recognized program/platforms which encourage responsible business practices and CSR activities. *The companies should disseminate information on CSR policy, activities and progress in a structured manner to all their stakeholders and the public at large through their website, annual reports, and other communication media. In addition to the Voluntary Guidelines another Government initiative if materialized, would lead to a situation where Corporate Social Responsibility for a state-owned firm may no more be just a photo opportunity for its chairman but would involve people-centric projects to be funded by 2-5 per cent of the companys net profits. The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) is in the final stage of preparing guidelines for the Central Public Sector enterprises (CPSE s) to take up important CSR projects. The proposal, cleared by the Committee of Secretaries is awaiting approval by Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Ministry. It proposes a contribution of 3-5 % for enterprises with net profits of up to Rs 100 crore. Those earning net profit of more than Rs 100 crore may be asked to contribute up to two per cent of the amount. The Government has taken a very firm step and its regularization may see tangible impact on CSR initiatives undertaken by the companies. The CSR would inherit dimensions apart from traditional welfare related CSR practices like organizing blood donation camps charity events and the like. The CPSEs would be obliged to take up specific projects to help people affected directly or indirectly by their businesses. It would be the Companys primary obligation, to recycle part of their profits in order to help the society. While several CPSEs provide funds for CSR projects, it is not obligatory in nature so far. The guidelines would provide for measurement of the CSR. These obligations would be set in the Memorandum of Understanding, which sets targets for an individual CPSE. The performance evaluation of the companies would also have CSR performance as one of the parameters of overall performance of the company. The CSR Credits system that was proposed recently by the Corporate Affairs Minister Shri Salman Khurshid is a way forward where soft legislation will gradually facilitate CSR integration into the very core of corporate strategy. Mr. Khurshid believes that charity is rewarded in tax exemptions and other benefits however CSR remains unrewarded. Reiterating the idea of making CSR quantifiable he has urged corporate to debate the possibility of establishing a CSR exchange to deal in CSR Credits. Through the CSR exchange mechanism, companies would be able to trade in CSR credits, akin to trading in carbon credits. This is to be done through certification for their CSR activities by a government body. The credits could then be traded in a CSR credit exchange. The system translates into a situation where a company yet to engage in CSR may be able to compensate it through purchasing CSR credits from company that has already earned them. This would be quite similar to carbon credits where a polluting entity has to buy carbon credits from companies that have earned them through environment-friendly activities. In addition to this another issue under consideration is the conflict of interest where a company produces consumer products that are deemed harmful to consumption and health. Shri Khurshid said If there is a business that is inherently destructive and unwholesome, a way has to be found to offset the negativity of that business. The Governments are using CSR to complement Government policies in order to promote Inclusive Development. This system reflects new forms of Governance in which Governments employ a much richer and subtler array of mechanisms to affect business behavior rather than employing enforcement. The use of policies that endorse, facilitate and partner with firms is further characteristic of a new governance paradigm which emphasizes norms, networks, incentives and volunteerism. Government participation in promoting CSR may be an anathema to the business world as it may conjure up visions of control and constraints to operate competitively in a global world but positive though incipient signs of change are visible as we trace the evolution. CSR-Business Society Interface The phrase Corporate Social Responsibility originates with H. Bowen, who wrote Social Responsibility of Businessmen in 1953. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is used to describe businesses integration of social and environmental issues into decisions, goals, and operations. Other terms used in the CSR context are: Corporate Responsibility, Sustainability, Corporate Citizenship, Ethical Business Practices, Social/Environmental Responsibility, Triple Bottom Line and Environmental and Social Stewardship. The basic questions at the heart of CSR are as old as business itself, such as what is business for? What contribution does it make to society? Its rise to prominence however has not been a smooth one, as the concept has been frequently discredited, written off, marginalized or simply overlooked in favor of new or supposedly better ways of conceptualizing the business and society interface. Archie Carroll has provided an interesting overview of some of the prominent CSR Definitions. Milton Friedman (1970) contends that social responsibility of the firm is to increase its profit, Keith Davis (1973) supported the view that CSR requires consideration of issues beyond the narrow economic, technical, and legal requirements of the firm. Definition concepts in the Oxford Handbook range from CSR as an obligation to respond to the externalities created by market action to CSR as a discretionary spending in furtherance of an explicit measurable social objective consistent with relevant social norms and laws and CSR as an additional political responsibility to contribute to the development and proper working of global governance. Defining CSR is therefore not just a technical exercise but also a normative one in setting out what corporates should be responsible in society or an ideological one describing how the political economy of society should be organized to restrain corporate power. CSR is still a developing field of research as also Lockett et al concluded from a decade long study of CSR literature that CSR knowledge could best be described as in a continuing state of emergence. To sum up Corporate social responsibility (CSR) can most comprehensibly be called an approach through which companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis. The relative ambiguities regarding the definition and clear identity of CSR as an area of academic enquiry is also reflected in the institutional infrastructure of CSR, most notably in the Journals where CSR research is published, the societies and conferences which facilitate scholarly debate, and institutionalization of CSR as a field of academic teaching. The table below lists the Journals in the field of CSR. It can be noted that none of the CSR Journals have CSR as a title. Table 1: CSR Journals Journal Name Formation Date Editor Base Business Society (Sage) 1960 USA Business Society Review(Blackwell) 1972 USA Journal of Business Ethics ( Springer) 1982 Canada Business Ethics Quarterly(Society of Business Ethics) 1991 USA Business Ethics: A European Review ( Blackwell) 1991 UK Corporate Governance:International Journal of Business in Society(Emerald 2001 UK Journal of Corporate Citizenship (Greenleaf) 2001 UK Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management 2002 China CSR Evolution: The concept of CSR has long and wide ranging history, it is mostly the product of the 20th century especially since the 1950s. It was referred more as social responsibility (SR) than CSR for many years. Patrick Murphy in the University of Michigan Business Review, 1978 states that the period before 1950s was the philanthropic era in which companies donated to charities. Between 1953 and 67 was the awareness era during which there was more recognition of the overall responsibility of business and its involvement in community affairs. The period between 1968 -73 was termed the issue era in which companies began to focus on specific issues such as urban decay, racial discrimination and pollution problems. Finally the responsiveness era 1974-2008 and continuing beyond, companies began taking serious management and organizational actions to address CSR related issues. CSR Theories: Various CSR Theories have taken shape over time the most comprehensive are compiled by Garriga and Mele (2004) mentioning precisely four theories about the responsibilities of Business in Society: Corporate Social Performance Theory, Shareholder Value Theory, Stakeholder Theory, Corporate Citizenship Theory. Corporate Social Performance Theory has its roots in Sociology. It has evolved from several previous notions and approaches. It is a configuration in the business organization of principles of social responsibility, processes of response to social requirements and policies, programs and tangible results that reflect the companys relations with society, (Wood 1991). Archie Carroll (1979) was the first to introduce the concept of Corporate Social Performance. He made a synthesis of the basic principle of social responsibility. Carroll suggested that the entire range of obligations that business has to society must embody economic, legal, ethical and discretionary (philanthropic) categories. In 1991, Carroll first included them in a Pyramid of Corporate Social Responsibility, as shown in Figure3. Figure 3: CSR Pyramid The four classes reflect that the history of business suggests an early emphasis on the economic and then legal aspects and a later concern for the ethical and discretionary aspects. It was suggested that, although the components are not mutually exclusive, it helps the manager to see that the different types of obligations are in a constant tension with one another. More recently, Schwartz Carroll have proposed an alternative approach on three core domains (economic, legal and ethical) and a Venn model frame work. The Venn framework yields seven categories resulting from the overlap of three core domains. Wartick Cochran extended the Carroll approach suggesting that corporate social involvement rests on principles of social responsibility, process of social responsiveness, and the policy of issues management. In recent times more and more corporations are being proactive in publishing reports on economic social and environmental performance. The Global reporting initiative has become more and more popular as have certifications or reports, such as the UN Global Compact, AA1000, SA 80000 and others . All of this introduces more complexity into the corporate social performance models but in essence, the conceptual foundations remain unalterable. Shareholder Value Theory is based on Economic Theory. It is also referred as Fiduciary Capitalism and holds that the only social responsibility of business is making profits and as a supreme goal, increasing the economic value of the company for its stakeholders. In the 1960s and 70s there was a debate between Friedman and others who defended the business enterprise as being responsible only for making as much profit as possible, in contrast scholars including David and others argued that corporations had power and power entails responsibility, therefore corporations had responsibilities beyond economic and legal. Friedmans position was clearly against that of the concept of social responsibility. Theodor Levitt, (once the editor of HBR) wrote about the dangers of corporate social responsibility. In his words Corporate welfare makes good sense if it makes good economic sense, and not infrequently it does. But if something does not make economic sense, sentiment or idealism ought not to let it in the door Since then some economists have argued that the market, instead of managers, should have control over allocation of resources

Skinner’s Use of Metaphor in Explaining the Behaviorism of Walden Two E

Skinner’s Use of Metaphor in Explaining the Behaviorism of Walden Two B. F. Skinner revolutionized the field of psychology through his numerous writings on behaviorism. However, he began his collegiate life as an English major, and his education in literary techniques and devices clearly shows through in the manipulation of metaphor in his famous novel Walden Two. Although Skinner rarely diverges from the incessant description of behavioral engineering through his mouthpiece in the novel, Frazier, he occasionally digresses from the theory and application of scientific experimentation to the literary elements that are essential to any novel. One of these elements, the metaphor of the sheep that appears at the beginning and end of the book, clearly embodies three principles of Skinner’s behaviorist rationale: the superiority of positive reinforcement over negative reinforcement, the necessity for humans to accept their roles, and the function of the Walden Code to the members of Walden Two. The novel begins in the disillusioned atmosphere of post-World War Two America. Burris, a psychology professor and the main character of the novel, views his academic life with indifference, sharing this attitude toward teaching with his philosophy professor colleague, Castle. A former pupil of Burris, Rodge, and a fellow soldier, Steve, return from the war, and dissatisfied with what they are expected to do with their lives, approach Burris with a proposition. A former classmate of Burris’, Frazier, has started a utopian community by the name of Walden Two, and the two friends invite Burris and Castle to accompany them on a visit. When they arrive, the enthusiastic, egotistical Frazier leads th... ...erimental nature of the Code. Frazier says how it is encouraged â€Å"to view every habit and custom with an eye to possible improvement. A constant experimental attitude toward everything† (25). This applies to the Code as well, which changes whenever the members feel that it is necessary. Even though Skinner made a name for himself through his scientific endeavors, his novel Walden Two displays his literary training and knowledge. By using the metaphor of the sheep to further explain the lives of Walden Two members in an enriching and scholarly way, Skinner manages to weave science and art together. His ability to enforce the ideas of positive reinforcement, acceptance of roles, and the politics of the Walden Code through the simplicity of a flock of sheep shows his literary merit. Skinner proves that he is not only a scientist, but a writer as well. Skinner’s Use of Metaphor in Explaining the Behaviorism of Walden Two E Skinner’s Use of Metaphor in Explaining the Behaviorism of Walden Two B. F. Skinner revolutionized the field of psychology through his numerous writings on behaviorism. However, he began his collegiate life as an English major, and his education in literary techniques and devices clearly shows through in the manipulation of metaphor in his famous novel Walden Two. Although Skinner rarely diverges from the incessant description of behavioral engineering through his mouthpiece in the novel, Frazier, he occasionally digresses from the theory and application of scientific experimentation to the literary elements that are essential to any novel. One of these elements, the metaphor of the sheep that appears at the beginning and end of the book, clearly embodies three principles of Skinner’s behaviorist rationale: the superiority of positive reinforcement over negative reinforcement, the necessity for humans to accept their roles, and the function of the Walden Code to the members of Walden Two. The novel begins in the disillusioned atmosphere of post-World War Two America. Burris, a psychology professor and the main character of the novel, views his academic life with indifference, sharing this attitude toward teaching with his philosophy professor colleague, Castle. A former pupil of Burris, Rodge, and a fellow soldier, Steve, return from the war, and dissatisfied with what they are expected to do with their lives, approach Burris with a proposition. A former classmate of Burris’, Frazier, has started a utopian community by the name of Walden Two, and the two friends invite Burris and Castle to accompany them on a visit. When they arrive, the enthusiastic, egotistical Frazier leads th... ...erimental nature of the Code. Frazier says how it is encouraged â€Å"to view every habit and custom with an eye to possible improvement. A constant experimental attitude toward everything† (25). This applies to the Code as well, which changes whenever the members feel that it is necessary. Even though Skinner made a name for himself through his scientific endeavors, his novel Walden Two displays his literary training and knowledge. By using the metaphor of the sheep to further explain the lives of Walden Two members in an enriching and scholarly way, Skinner manages to weave science and art together. His ability to enforce the ideas of positive reinforcement, acceptance of roles, and the politics of the Walden Code through the simplicity of a flock of sheep shows his literary merit. Skinner proves that he is not only a scientist, but a writer as well.

Eleanor Roosevelt :: essays research papers

Eleanor Roosevelt   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Although shy and awkward as a child, Eleanor Roosevelt grew into a woman with great sensitivity to the underprivileged of all creeds, races, and nations. Born on October 11, 1884 to Anna Hall and Elliott Roosevelt, Eleanor suffered great loss early in life with t he death of both parents. After being raised by her grandmother, she met a distant cousin, falling in love and married Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1905. She bore 6 children, with one son dying during infancy due to influenza.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mrs. Roosevelt served many types of council and learned the ropes of politics very quickly. With her husband and uncle, Theodore â€Å"Teddy† Roosevelt, both very much involved in politics, she took an interest in civil rights. Eleanor has been voted most admired woman in America because of her compassion and many acts of good deeds. Some of her many accomplishments, including defying segregation laws by sitting between the whites and blacks at a Southern Conference for Human Welfare in Birmingham, truly showed America that she was passionate for her thoughts and beliefs, never being afraid to stand up and let people hear her voice. Eleanor also influenced the Army Nurse Corps to open its membership to black women and then joined the NAACP board of directors.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The content of Eleanor’s speech is to reach out and get books for rural areas across the United States. You can tell in her speech that she has a passion for education and wanted to help the people of poor communities get access to education through libraries and books. She stressed the importance of making books more accessible for those that had a true desire to read and wanted to show people how much they could learn by opening a book during their leisure time.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Culture always plays a big role in the receiving of any speech. You can not connect with your audience if there’s no interest in the topic.

Defensive Driving

Defensive Driving Defensive driving is a method of driving I utilise which helps me to anticipate the actions of others in order to maintain safety for myself and vehicle plus my passengers in any road and weather conditions. I pay extra attention to my speed, judging gaps and distances, pulling off and braking, reversing and manoeuvring and tiredness/fatigue. By constantly looking and anticipating as far ahead as I can see, I can be prepared for potential hazards and associated risks before I get there. Observing what vehicles on either side or oncoming are doing and making constant use of my rear view mirrors further assists me in being a safe driver. Being aware of my vehicles’ characteristics, instruments and safety features are important factors. Knowing any blind spots on my vehicle and its dimensions are especially useful when reversing and manoeuvring. I am constantly aware of all that is happening around me, for example, when reversing I check for any potential hazards around and behind the vehicle before I move. Other vital factors are early and timely use of indicators, hazard warning lights, vehicle lights, hand signals and correct use of the horn in an emergency, as is regular maintenance and servicing. Smooth, careful acceleration and braking is important for safety and also good for the environment too. Examples of this are reduced fuel consumption, creating less pollution and prolonging the efficient working life of my vehicle. Stress and fatigue levels are also greatly reduced and, as adopting this driving policy inevitably reduces the chances of having an accident, my insurance premiums are keenly priced. Utilising all these methods and instruments correctly ensures a much higher degree of safety for me, my vehicle, my passengers, other road users, pedestrians and animals. In my opinion, I am a safe driver M. G. Spivey 17th May 2010

Power of Women Essay

Behind every great man is an even greater woman. This certainly hold true in many cases. Woman can be the driving force in any successful man. However, a woman can also use her strong influence in a negative way. Woman do have power, lots of it. But I’m not just talking about the power within the family, or power in the workplace or even power in higher political office. I’ m talking about a more basic kind of power: Power over Men. If a woman recognizes her power over men, she can own a man. I dont care who the man is but if she wants him and hes at all attracted to her, she chan own him. Feminine charm is one of the element of this power. It can stops a man on his tracks even when theres no overwhelming physical attraction. Theres also a spiritual power that women have, especially with men who instinctively repect or idolize women. Men acknowledge a womans power. They may welcome it at times. But always remember that men always want to feeel like a man. So women should be really careful. This power needs to use wisely. In the absence of man, can woman really be like a man? I think yes. There are woman who is capable in finance, even being a capable single parent and bread winner. In this respect, a woman will have to be like a man. Of course she cannot match the physical strength of him. This just only mean that nowadays, a woman can do what man can do. Things back before, they were very strict for women. They had no rights; no rights to vote, no freedom of speech, they did not work, they stay at home and took care of their household and wifely duties. Thankfully that the legal status of them changed since the 18th century. Things have changed due to eomen actively becoming contributors as a breadwinner of their household. Some of the factors of this are, they work in full time jobs and some of them occupy the best position. Some also dont want to get married and have a traditional family. Others are changing to openly raise a family with another woman where the societys critism is becoming less harsh everyday. Maybe because they already now their characteristics and find it more compatible thats why they chose to have a relationship with the same gender. Compassion is one of the characteristics within women that tends to be greater than men. They give a better undstanding of a person and feel what they feel. This allows people to trust and have a good relationship. Because woman have good communication skills, they can use it by showing their feeling which  encourage openness in relationships. Men as we all know are not very vocal when it comes to showing their feelings thats why woman are there. They are the ne whos in charge in teaching their children, managing the expenses and more. Wives, mothers, daughters, sisters, and grandmothers are important people in everyones lives. People should know how to respect them especially men. In todays world, theyre not below level of anyone but considered as great women with great responsibilities aside from bearing a child. Ill end this talk by saying a quote which is â€Å"The beauty of a woman must be seen in her eyes because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.