Zen masters Essay Example for Free

Zen masters Essay Same as Buddhism, Zen became accommodated for those, who practice it. So, it obtained new characteristics in the West. This process of accommodation was repeated in each country where Zen appeared. Nowadays masters, who learn Zen in Vietnam, China, Korea or Japan, established their own schools in the Western countries. All these established schools have unchangeable elements, but at the same time they contain a lot of elements, which differ for each country. It is hard to image all challenges non-theistic, oriental teaching can meet while assimilating in the West. Zen becomes transformed by Western society but the society itself also gets transformed by Zen. There are several basic challenges Zen practitioners meet in the West. North Americans and Europeans have implemented new traditions to Zen Buddhism. Annual meeting of representatives of different Zen Buddhism schools if one of such innovations. Such practice is not accepted in Asian counties, where Zen masters did not communicate much with each other. In the annual meetings, organized in the west practitioners and masters from different Zen schools, come together to share their experience and discuss important issues. â€Å" As Bodhin Kholhede, an abbot of Rochester Zen Center, states, â€Å"Within individual Sanghas, too, we have seen a general horizontalization of authority since the first generation of (mostly Asian) Zen teachers founded their centers† (Kholhede, 340). There are major changes inside the monasteries and Zen centers, as well. They also get influenced by secular tendency and the balance between spiritual and secular is often moved to the side of secular. Zen originates from China, the country where Confucian traditions have influenced all social, religious and political processes. Propriety, filial piety and obedience to authority are the main principles of Confucianism, which had great influence on all religious movements and Zen is not an exception. Special relations between masters and disciples became one of the distinctive features of Zen Buddhism. Master had almost unlimited power on his students and there were even cases when masters killed their disciples. It is evident that these principles could not have been accepting by the Western society and North American one. Confucian principles could not be used for Western tradition of Zen. First Western Zen centers based on these principles could not attract many followers and had to adapt to Western ideology. Zen had to undergo serious transformation in the question concerning an attitude to women. In Asian countries women were not usually allowed to participate in Zen practices, especially they were not allowed to become masters. As Bodhin Kholhede notices, â€Å"The largely invisible role of women in Asian Buddhism is no secret. Official teacher lineages, or â€Å"patriarchal lines,† are by definition composed exclusively of men† (Kholhede). It is not that women were not seeking for awakening and did not want to commit their life to spiritual quest. Such a role of women in Zen and Buddhism was conditioned by the role of women in Asian society. Women were not considered to have same spiritual and religious abilities as men did. It is evident that such ideas could not have been accepted by Western Zen practitioners. Western women took active part in Zen practice and this finally caused the change in behavior, and attitude towards women. Introduction of women to Zen practice had another important meaning. Nowadays Western Zen centers try to replace hard and exhausting practices with more moderate ones in order to make them suitable for both, male and female practitioners. The change of female role also influences Zen vocabulary. Some phrases which could have been addressrd to male practitioners only now become gender neutral. For example, the very term â€Å"patriarchal line†, which means the line of masters who succeed each other, is some monasteries is now replace to â€Å"ancestral line† in order to underline that women also can be Zen masters. Western Individualism has become a serious obstacle for Zen in the West. All Western culture is distinguished by striving to individualism and self-autonomy. While these notions are not widely developed in Asian countries, they have become central in the West. Individualism is peculiar to all Western countries, â€Å"but it is qualitatively different from the traditional Asian conception of self, in which a person is defined within a nexus of social relations, and dependent on a contextual web consisting of other persons as well as place, time, and history. This definition resonates strongly with Buddhist doctrine, in which the self is so thoroughly interdependent that it has no essential reality† (Kholhede, 342).

Changes in International Financial Markets

Changes in International Financial Markets What forces have brought a rapid change in the field of IFM? Today’s financial reality is that fiat money knows no national boundary. We do live in a global village era. Development in one country or region can spill over across borders. One branch of study that consider the financial landscape is Financial Management (FM) which is mainly concerned with optimal financial decisions, such as those pertaining to corporate finance with a view to maximize shareholders’ wealth. In case of International Finance the objective becomes more complex and importance of Management is inevitable because it is intricate to determine exchange rate fluctuations and to forecast the cash flow. So, International Finance Management (IFM) is thus, essential for financial managers to fully understand vital international dimensions in the light of maximizing stakeholders’ wealth. Rapid Changes In International Financial Markets Brought About By: The Internationalization Phase On the forefront, the greed to go international stems from the quest of being market seekers, raw material seekers and cost minimizers. Internationalization refers to the increasing importance of international trade, international relations, treaties, alliances and so forth. For these reasons, FM has expanded its global footprint. Included in this wave were the efforts to introduce a dramatic new commercial reality—the global market for standardized consumer products on a previously unimagined scale. Subsequently, IFM provides the required tools and expertise to deal with the international complexities encountered on the way. The Invisible Hand According to neo-classical economics, the market, left of its own devices, will efficiently allocate goods, resources, and services. Promising to benefit the entire globe via unfettered trade and growth, Adam Smith, the father of â€Å"invisible hand†, argued that the basic forces of supply and demand will help allocate resources efficiently. Consequently, the notion of the free market has expanded and today it is practiced on a global scale thus, further fuels the practice of IFM. Advances In Technology IFM gained momentum in the wake of a technological world. Technology has long been a crucial behind-the-scenes financial collaborator. On one side of the coin, online transactions allow for very fast movements of capital between countries, facilitating information dissemination, and clearance and settlement payments without the need of a physical marketplace – often in a matter of seconds. It reduces the cost of doing business internationally. On the flip side, these advances threaten to eclipse the international infrastructure. The importance of IFM is critically questioned when hackers have access to sensitive information with a few clicks of a computer mouse. Liberalization IFM came into being when various countries started opening their doors to each other. This phenomenon is well known as â€Å"liberalization† whereby entrepreneurshad the freedom to capitalizethe opportunity to step their foot in different parts of the world. The spark of liberalization was further aired by swift development in telecommunications and transportation technologies. The resultant of liberalization is today’s dynamic IFM. Globalisation Companies today operate on a global stage and can ignore this fact only at their peril. The term globalization is no longer a buzzword; it already transpired. For Khoo (2003), globalization is understood as the trans-boundary movements of capital, people, goods, information and culture, burst into intellectual awareness in the late 1980s and the 1990s. Globalization allows firms to view the world as one marketplace for all goods and services. The impetus for globalized financial markets came from the governments that had begun to deregulate their foreign exchange and capital markets. For instance, in 1980 Japan deregulated its foreign exchange market. Perhaps the most celebrated deregulation occurred in London on October 27, 1986, and is known as the â€Å"Big Bang.† On that date, the London Stock Exchange eliminated fixed brokerage commissions. These changes were designed to give London the most open and competitive capital markets in the world. It has worked, and today the competition in London is especially fierce among the worlds major financial centers. Deregulated financial markets and heightened competition in financial services provided a natural environment for financial innovations that resulted in the introduction of various complex and sophisticated derivatives products, in particular in over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives markets with interest rates and equities as underlying securities. While the lever aged nature of derivative instruments poses risks to individual investors, IFM provides scope for a more efficient allocation of risks. Integration After the Second World War, the outstanding ingredient influencing trends in IFM is integration. The boundaries between national markets rapidly became blurred leading to the emergence of a global unified financial market. Banks in major industrialized countries increased their presence in each others countries considerably. Non-resident borrowers on an extensive scale are tapping major national market such as the US, Japan, Germany. Today both the potential borrower and the potential investor have a wide range of choice of markets. There are various challenges from the environment and accordingly the scope and relevance of IFM has increased in recent past. Capital Mobility The international mobility of capital has benefited firms by giving them more financial options which has made international finance more dynamic and complex. Capital moves around the world in huge amount; corporations are free to access different markets for raising finance. The enormous opportunities of investments, savings, consumption and market accessibility have given rise to IFM. It is important to note that in IFM, stakeholders are spread all over the world. This development allows investors to diversify their investment portfolios internationally. In the words of a recent Wall Street Journal article, â€Å"Over the past decade, US investors have poured buckets of money into overseas markets, in the form of international mutual funds. At the same time, Japanese investors are investing heavily in US and other foreign financial markets in efforts to recycle their enormous trade surpluses. Privatization The economic integration and globalization that began in the eighties was picking up speed in the 1990s via privatization. Privatization is the process by which a country divests itself of the ownership and operation of a business venture by turning it over to the free market system. Additionally, privatization is often seen as a cure for bureaucratic inefficiency and waste; some economists estimate that privatization improves efficiency and reduces operating costs by as much as 20 per cent. Free- Trade Agreements And Rise of Regional Economic Blocs The doctrine of comparative advantagestates that everyone gains if each nation specializes in the production of those goods that it produces relatively most efficiently and imports those goods that other countries produces most relatively efficiently. In this vein, during the post-war years, theGeneral Agreement on Trade and Tariffs (GATT, founded in 1947)was established in order to improve trade. It has played a key role in dismantling barriers (tariffs, subsidies, quotas) over the years, as a result of which international trade grew manifold. The financial participation of the traders exporters and importers and the international transactions flowed significantly. It also created a permanent World Trade Organization (WTO), which has more power to enforce the rules. Also, The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has give promoted international trade and given it a shape. These advancements put into the idea of FM both domestically and globally. On the regional level, formal arrangements among countries have been instituted to promote economic integration. The European Union (EU) is a prime example. The EU includes 28 member states that have eliminated barriers to the free flow of goods, capital, and people. The EU is one of the most advanced forms of economic integration, a free trade area (like the NAFTA) is the most basic. Recently, however, the euro’s emergence as a global currency was dealt a serious setback in the midst of the debt crisis. It started in December 2009 when Greece revealed its budget deficit, surprising financial markets. The panic spread to other weak European countries, making borrowing and refinancing extremely costly and threatening the nascent recovery of the world economy from the global financial crisis of 2008. This debt crisis revealed a profound weakness of the euro as the common currency: the participating countries have achieved monetary integration, but without fiscal integration. Mea ning that taxation, spending, and borrowing remain under control of national governments. Therefore, a lack of fiscal discipline in one country can become a Europe wide crisis. So, what has been the role of IFM? Even the effective use of IFM could not prevent the disaster. The Rise of MNCs All because of liberalization and those international agreements, we have a buzz word called â€Å"MNC† i.e. Multinational Corporations. In the post WTO regime (after 1999 onwards), it has became pertinent to note that MNCs enjoy an edge over other normal companies because of its international setting and best opportunities with their world-wide. IFM has become an important wing for all big MNCs. Without the expertise in IFM it can be difficult to sustain in the market because international financial markets have a total different shape and analytics compared to the domestic financial markets. A sound management of international finances can help an organization achieve same efficiency and effectiveness in all markets. So far, so good! Foreign exchange risk As discussed above that globalization opened new horizons, but it also brings companies to a variety of risks that they can face while operating in an international arena and in this regard IFM is the only solution to mitigate these risks. One such risk is foreign exchange risk Seventeen years ago, The Bretton Woods System gasped its final breath whereby the present International Monetary System set up is characterised by a mix of floating and managed exchange rate policies adopted by each nation keeping in view its interests. The foreign exchange risks states the variation in the prices of currency will have a tendency to convert a profitable deal to a loss making one. If the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail. The wisdom of this old adage is just as applicable in risk management. IFM provides a variety of hedging techniques to control foreign exchange exposure since it jeopardizes profitability of all firms. They consider any use of risk management tools, such as forwards, futures and options that previously were virtually unknown. Financial innovation has played a role in promoting this unexpectedly good economic performance. At the same time, IFM has helped to raise global growth and to have made the economy more flexible and more resilient. Conclusion The foremost rapid changes in IFM have been the accelerating globalisation and integration. These developments have been fostered by the liberalisation of markets, rapid technological progress and major advances in telecommunications. Further the scope of IFM has widened its horizon with mechanism supported by multilateral trade agencies like WTO- and regional blocks like ASEAN, NAFTA, EU etc and the emergence of innovative financial instruments. In view of globalization and its impact on the economy of the world, it is pertinent to note that the theory and practice of IFM is in consonance with the tax environment, legal obligations, foreign exchange rates, interest rate fluctuation, capital market movements, inflationary trends, political risk and country risk, micro and macroeconomic environment changes, ethical constraints etc. These problems can be managed through proper adaptation of IFM methodologies. IFM is crucial to the success of every multinational business because the increase in complication and challenges for managers. The current scenario and outlook for evolution of the IFM registered sharp deterioration over the last years. To a great extent, the unfavorable environment is a result of cutbacks in net inflows of private capital. Among the factors responsible one could list the slow pace of world economic recovery, particularly in the United States in the wake of the 2007 recession; Ponzi scheme frauds; forecasts of lower business profits; reductions in consumer confidence; and accentuated growth in risk aversion on the part of investors. References Online EBook: Eun−Resnick: International Financial Management, Third Edition I. Foundations of International Financial Management.  © The McGraw−Hill Companies, 2004

Ignorance, Greed, and the American Media Essay -- essays research pape

Ignorance, Greed, and the American Media â€Å"God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables... slaves with white collars. Advertising has its taste in cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need. We're the middle children of history, no purpose or place. We have no Great War. No great depression. Our Great War is a spiritual war†¦ Our great depression is our lives. We've all been raised on television to believe that one day we'd be millionaires, movie gods, and rock stars. But we won't. We're slowly learning that fact. And we're very, VERY PISSED OFF.† This is a quote from the character of Tyler Durden in the 1999 movie Fight Club. This quote is an intricate summary of the current generation of twenty/thirty-something-year-olds. It highlights the fact that this generation was â€Å"raised on television† and one the film’s main themes is how the misuse of media has corrupted the minds of those it influenced beyond repair. And the worst part? It’s all true†¦ The media world today is a strange one. Why are there so few political or current affairs themed programmes on our television screens? Why are the so many American comedies on our screens? Why is it so hard to find a balanced, unbiased news report on the â€Å"war† in Iraq? When John Reith founded the BBC in 1922, as director general, he developed strong ideas about educational and cultural public service responsibilities of a national radio service. He based his ideas on Plato’s philosophy that if you allow the human soul to come into contact with the Good, the True and the Beautiful, the soul will respond. His three aims were to inform, to educate and to entertain. What became of his admirable ideology? Why is it that the main use of media now is seemingly entertainment? Could it be argued that the current misuse of media power is the result of private media ownership? If a businessperson owned a large media empire, would they have any moral concern if their media had a negative effect on society, as long as they were making money? Surely, a government would have a far greater concern for how the generation of tomorrow was affected by the media. If the government were to control the media, couldn’t they mould the current youth into fine and upstanding citizens of the future? But what if the media businessperson somehow gained more influence than the government? What if ... ...Michael (2003) â€Å"Dude, Where’s My Country?† Britain: Penguin Books Gorman, L. & McLean, D. (2003) â€Å"Media and society in the twentieth century: a historical introduction† Britain: Blackwell Publications Films David Fincher (1999) â€Å"Fight Club† US: 20th Century Fox Moore, Michael (2004) â€Å"Fahrenheit 9/11† US: Optimum Releasing Ltd. Websites Stille, Alexander (1999) â€Å"Emperor of the Air† http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml%3Fi=19991129&s=stille The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright  © 2004, Columbia University Press â€Å"Ted Turner† http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/people/A0849757.html Shawcross,William (1999) â€Å"Rupert Murdoch† http://www.time.com/time/magazine/intl/article/0,9171,1107991025-33716,00.html Patsuris, Penelope (2001) â€Å"Forbes Face: Rupert Murdoch† http://www.forbes.com/2001/01/02/0102faces.html Gildea, Josh (2004) â€Å"Media coverage of issues not at all fair or balanced† http://www.dailycardinal.com Sterling, C.H. (1993) â€Å"REITH, JOHN C.W.† http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/index.html Bryan, J. & Zillion, D â€Å"Media Effect: The Psychology of Television† http://www.lucidexperience.com/HypnoPapers/529.html NOTE: All websites were accessed on 2/12/2006

scarlet letter essay :: essays research papers

What is the cuase for an extreme obsession? Why is it that occasionally, someone will become so obsessed with an object or idea that it corrupts their personality? In the novel The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne illustrates a character by the name of Chillingworth who shares in that same type of obsession. After his wife, hester, has an affair with a minister, Aurther Dimmesdale, he poledges to have vengeance . despite his wife’s unwillingness to rreveal her partner, He Chillingworth’s corruptive obsession is also the cause for the change in his physical appearance. Throughout the novel Chillingworth’s physical appearance fluctuates dramatically. At the beginning of the novel he is portrayed as a loving man and the reader often felt sympathy for him due to his wife’s affair. As time progresses, Hawthorne shows a remarkable change in his appearance due to the overwhelming time and energy in conducting the ultimate devise to bring evil upon Dimmesdale. At this point, Chillingworth’s obsession has surpassed the norm. His constant thoughts of revenge deepen the evil into his heart to a point where it consumes and alters his personality. He is no longer the man who was very religious and innocent. He now is corrupt and has nothing else on his mind other that to spread evil. His face grows uglier by the day as his fixation engulfs him, â€Å"†¦how much uglier they were,-how his dark complexion seemed to have grown duskier , and his figure more misshapen.† (Hawthorne77). Chillingworth’s face has changed due to the evil that has now grown inside him. He has held these feelings too long and it is now beginning to alter his appearance. He blames Dimmesdale for what he has now become because the once handsome and loving man he once was is now corrupted by the power or evil that fills his head. Chillingworth’s change in appearance was from the source of wickedness that had buried itself into his soul. When his life hangs only by this obsession, his fate is suspended by the man whom he feels it towards.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Chillingworth’s ultimate plans for revenge are ruined when Dimmesdale finally confesses the sin which he kept secret for so many years. Chilligworth wants nothing less than for Dimmesdale to suffer with his secret until he dies. The only way that Dimmesdale could have escaped out of the unbreakable grip of Chillingworth’s claws was through the scaffold.

Where does the order Lie :: essays research papers

Where does the Order Lie? The social and political orders of William Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure and Merchant of Venice vary, but still exhibit firm criticisms of the role of government within society. The conclusions of both of these plays return to their original order and the characters are resolved in their own ways. Measure for Measure gives the most demanding criticism of the role of political order out of most of Shakespeare’s plays. Through the actions of the Duke and Angelo, Shakespeare reveals the two distinct sides to patriarchal political order, punishment and forgiveness. Merchant of Venice shows the social order by the conflict that occurs between Shylock and Antonio. Through their conflict and eventual resolve, Shakespeare once again reveals his own personal criticisms of the justice system and a skewed image of the middle-class social order. Both of these plays represent different orders within society and also exhibit changes within them as the play progresses. The transfo rmation and the eventual restoration of political and social order in these two Shakespeare plays provide certain similar criticisms about the role that order plays within the confines of society.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The political order in Measure for Measure is a strong, yet unstable patriarchy led by the Duke. The Duke orders Antonio to take his place and carry out Vienna’s â€Å"strict statutes and most biting laws† (1.1.19). These â€Å"strict statutes† and â€Å"laws† were obviously not carried out in the time of the Duke’s patriarchal reign over the city of Vienna. The Duke’s city is falling apart and is filled with sin and lechery. He gives his powers to Angelo, and according to the Duke, â€Å"Lent him our terror, dressed him with our love,† (1.1.20), signifying that there is only two ways to restore order, through passive forgiveness, or harsh punishment. These two very important aspects of the play are the essence of a patriarchal society in which Shakespeare criticizes throughout the play. Angelo represents the patriarchal order, and when he needed to he passed his power down to his deputy, which signifies a change in the political order in the play. By the conclusion of the play, the patriarch returns and everything returns back to the way it was at the beginning.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The original order in the beginning of Merchant of Venice lies within the conflict of the two characters, Shylock and Antonio. These two represent the social order that Shakespeare is criticizing throughout the play.

Restructuring & Downsizing Essay

Human resource management has evolved from a largely administrative and operational role to one that plays an important part in strategic planning. This shift is more evident in its role towards downsizing. The decision to downsize is a decision that requires careful planning and consideration. It is critical to consider the long-term effects that short-term cost cutting measures can bring. Downsizing creates disruptions in the organization’s relationships with customers, suppliers and employees, organization’s structure, culture and climate. As Wayne F. Cascio says â€Å"if you must downsize, do it right, that no class of employee can be disproportionately affected. † Finding the best way to downsize is crucial, because the success of organisations that have downsized in the past has not been particularly laudable. Downsize Decision The downsizing decision is the most demoralizing and stressful aspect of the emerging Human resource managerial role. Downsizing is viewed as having a profound effect on the organization and the personnel including those who are terminated and those who survive. Yet it is the integral part of any workforce management decision. It involves understanding the tangible pitfalls of a reduction in workforce and analyzing the emotional and practical ramifications. Downsizing may occur intentionally as a strategic, proactive response designed to improve organizational effectiveness, increase productivity and cost cutting strategy. This response may involve mergers, acquisitions, sell-offs, or restructuring to better enable the organization to meet its mission or fill an environmental niche. It may involve reduction in personnel through transfers, outplacement, retirement incentives, buyout packages, layoffs, attrition, and so on or may occur in which new products added, new sources of revenue are opened up, etc. It affects work processes. Fewer employees may be left to do the same amount of work and the quality may suffer. Downsizing activities may include discounting functions, abolishing hierarchical levels, merging units, or redesigning tasks. Downsizing can impact financial well-being, health, personal attitudes, and family relationships. Before downsizing HR need to explore possible alternatives such as reducing hours across the board, introducing forced vacation, asking for layoff volunteers, compressed workweek, hiring freeze, and early retirement or implementing other cost-cutting measures. Human resource managers should weigh in on several factors that influence downsizing decisions. They need to identify the specific problems downsizing is expected to solve, consider overall financial health of the company, fiscal operating policies, and industry benchmarks before proceeding, and review all legal implications. Managing Process One key to a successful downsizing plan lies in management’s ability to clearly convey to employees the purpose behind the cost-cutting efforts. Secondly, consider any oral or implied contracts of employment, review employee files, plan for the contingencies, know the stakeholders, clearly define criteria for selection factors on which downsizing decisions will be made. Downsizing may have variety of adverse effects on layoff individuals, survivors and organizations such as loss of morale, distrust, anxiety, feelings of job insecurity, anger, job stress, physical ailments, poor mental health, decreased loyalty, lowered motivation and productivity, increased resistance to change, crisis mentality, politicised special interest groups, occupational violence, lack of teamwork, perception of unfairness, lack of leadership and overall commitment to the organization. Downsizing decision has to be a prudent one because it deals with lives of people. The managers will be faced with a work force at least partly staffed with survivors of downsizing. Providing information regarding the type of severance packages or outplacement benefits will be given to those displaced will alleviate some fears and let those who remain will know that their colleagues are being taken care of. The personnel attribute of downsizing usually involves reductions in personnel. However, downsizing is not limited entirely to personnel reductions. In some downsizing situations new products are added, new sources of revenue opened up, and/or additional work acquired. Even though some people may be added, the overall process results in fewer numbers of workers employed per unit of output as compared to some previous level of employment. Human resources must also position the company to be able to respond quickly and effectively when the economy recovers. The approach taken by the organization to the downsizing process can have an ongoing impact on the company’s reputation with clients and potential future recruits. An inability to recruit critical talent later can mean an inability to rebound, so human resources must provide information openly and promptly to manage perceptions and rumors — both internal and external — about the fairness of any reductions and the need for additional downsizing in the future. Job placement services, employee assistance programs and financial counseling are all services that human resources should consider offering to affected employees. In the aftermath of a mass downsizing, employee morale will undoubtedly be affected. Employers should strive to be as open as possible during the process. Information should not come as a surprise to employees. If the company repeatedly assured workers everything was fine before announcing an unexpected layoff, it will be difficult to regain the trust of the workers who remain. Similarly, if the company focus has always been on meeting the needs of employees and taking active steps to motivate and encourage staff, a forced layoff may actually be more detrimental because it is so contrary to employees’ expectations of the organization. Management and human resources should meet regularly with employees to keep them informed, answer questions and respond to concerns. Any downsizing of the workforce is likely to result in the loss of key knowledge and critical skills. In the case of a voluntary separation program or early retirement initiative, Because turnover increases in the wake of a layoff, human resources must connect with key workers to outline their importance to the organization and provide information about how the company plans to recover. HR should also detail future career opportunities that can be realized by remaining with the business. Clear documentation, particularly regarding the layoff process itself, is important. Therefore it is vital that HR management weigh the relative costs and benefits against the negative impact downsizing has on employees and identify hazards, undertake risk assessment, consult with employee representatives, pursue compliance with legislative duties and take appropriate steps to manage any significant hazards that are identified, including psychosocial hazards. Downsizing refers to activities undertaken by management to improve the efficiency, productivity, and competitiveness of the organization by reducing the workforce size. Implications of Organisational Restructuring to HR Planning Restructuring: A Perspective Organizations and businesses today are faced with increased demands to become leaner due to global competition and rapid technology change. Many organizations have responded by corporate restructuring and downsizing or streamlining their operations and often outsourcing many functions originally assigned to permanent employees. Restructuring can lead to changes of ownership, radical changes in the internal management structure, mergers, acquisitions and significant downsizing or hiring trends. Internal factors can also include the addition or removal of a major product or service, addition or loss of a major client or the restructuring of departments. Restructuring is not a quick fix. Before restructuring we need to spell out the expectations and objectives and effectively communicate with the all the stakeholders to improve organization’s ability to move through change effectively. Restructuring is a formal system of re-aligning tasks and reporting relationships that controls, coordinates, communicates, decides and motivates employees so that they cooperate to achieve an organization’s goals. Restructuring may be carried out to expand and create new departments to serve growing markets or to downsize or eliminate departments to conserve overhead. Depending on the size of the organisation and type of business one may adopt a flat or tall structure and model it according to functional, divisional (product, market or geographic) or adaptive lines. Implications of Organisational Restructuring to HR Planning In the event of restructuring HR planning becomes critical because HR is typically responsible for handling all aspects of an organization’s restructuring. HR departments provide or support announcements to employees regarding restructuring. HR is typically present when employees are informed of layoffs or permanent downsizing related to restructuring. Changes in employment policies, organizational structure, workforce, and location and job descriptions are announced to employees by human resources and management. HR also calculates changes in compensation and benefits resulting from reorganization. Organizations rely on human resources to provide a smooth transition during restructuring while retaining desired employees and integrating new employees into the new organizational plan. Restructuring leads to a new organization chart and HR need to reassess and alter their existing roles and responsibilities to better reflect the dynamics of the shifting workplace environment. HR departments also fulfil staffing recruitment needs including preparing job descriptions, posting and publishing available jobs, screening and interviewing candidates for employment and integrating new staff members into their assigned work areas. HR will often be called on to act in an advisory capacity salary ranges and often making changes to benefits, profit-sharing and other corporate perks. HR also institute training and educational programs and seminars and assist employees with transitions in and out of positions and in and out of the company. It may provide information, updates and job seeking resources for employees displaced from their jobs due to restructuring. HR departments are responsible for researching, recommending and implanting employee retention strategies during restructuring. Restructuring brings in changes to corporate cultures, which directly affects employees and may result in loss of identity, shrinkage in compensation, distrust, stress and conflict. HR has to ensure the internal processes accommodate the changes and the communication base is prepared to sensitize the various stakeholders.

Marshmallow Lab

Sabrina Gournaris Period 3 March 27, 2012 Marshmallow: The Snack That Acts Like A Gas Objective: Record and observe marshmallow and compare it to Boyle’s law. Materials: -2 mini marshmallows -1 syringe -A pen Experimental Procedure: 1. Take out marshmallow. 2. Draw face on marshmallow. 3. Open stopcock. 4. Pull plunger out. 5. Put marhmallow in syringe. 6. Put plunger back into syringe. 7. Push plunger so it’s barely touching the marshmallow. 8.Pull plunger back and record observations. 9. Remove marshmallow and replace it with the second marshmallow. 10. Close stopcock and push plunger so it’s barely touching the marshmallow again. 11. Record observations. Data Table: Trial| Open| Closed| 1 (without marshmallow)| Nothing, Easy to push. | Nothing happened. | 2| Nothing, Easy to push. | Marshmallow got bigger. | 3| Nothing, Easy to push. | Marshmallow got bigger. | 4| Nothing, Easy to push. | Marshmallow got bigger. | 5| Nothing, Easy to push. | Marshmallow got b igger. | Observations:Every time you push with the marshmallow in the tube, the air inside the marshmallow is released. The marshmallow decreases in size. Conclusion: Boyle’s law states that for a fixed amount a gas at a fixed temperature volume is opposite to its pressure. The air in the marshmallow is what follows Boyle’s law. The marshmallow is similar to a gas because when the pressure in the syringe is decreased the pressure in the marshmallow is increased. The volume increases in the marshmallow. So basically when the plunger is pulled out the pressure in the syringe decreases and the volume of the marshmallow increases.