Customer Relationship Management and Support Related Cost

1. Discuss briefly the factors that drove Harrah’s customer relationship strategy. 2. Discuss briefly the integration between Harrah's patron database and the marketing workbench. 3. Discuss briefly whether Harrah’s business and IT strategies were aligned, and what factors contributed to or detracted from achieving alignment. 4. Does Harrah's have a sustainable competitive advantage? Can other companies duplicate what Harrah's has done? 5. What are the lessons you learn from the experiences at Harrah’s that can benefit other companies embarking on a customer relationship management initiative?In Old costing system , material realted overhead cost was divided into 3 categories1)Material related 2)Production related 3)Support relatedThe support related cost were allocated based on sum of direct material , direct labor costs , material overhead and production overhead. Compared to old costing system, in PROKASTA 2 additional cost pools (Order processing and special components related cost) to allocated support related costs. This strategy was in line with management belief that support cost was more driven by number of orders of motors and number of special components required to process the order instead of machine hours and labor hours required to process the orderWith PROKASTA , the cost of base motor and cost of custom component using old costing system but support related cost pool (pre-PROKASTA) unit cost . Then PROKASTA cost elements were then added. It allowed the firm to relate cost and product mix strategy With new costing system , firm was able to determine proper cost of each order and the profitability of the order it received. Based on the PROKASTA the manager were able to identify which orders were profitable and which were not . It also allowed to determine price at which motors were transferred from EMW toto the sales Division3.Do you agree with Siemens’s decision to set up both sales and EMW as profit Centre? What are the cost and benefits?Siemens was a decentralised organisation with 7 major groups and 5 corporate divisions. The firm is required to identify the profitability of each and every division to evaluate peromonce and make proper divsions. So in this regards it makes sense to set up both sales and EMW as profit centreBenefits : 1)Decisions are better and more timely because of the manager’s proximity to local conditions 2)Managers will have more control over resultsCosts: 1)Insufficient information available to top management; increased costs of obtaining detailed information. 2)Lack of coordination among managers in different parts of the organization.4.Do transfer pricing system make sense? Why do you think so? Yes , I think transfer pricing makes sense. †¢Transfer pricing will help Generate separate profit figures for each division and thereby evaluate the performance of each division separately. †¢Transfer prices make managers aware of the value that goods and servi ces have for other segments of the firm and will help in determining sales and pricing decisions †¢It will also affect the allocation of an organization’s resources

Growth Rate Flattens Essay

The reality of software development in a huge company like Microsoft – it employs more than 48,000 people – in that a substantial portion of your work involves days of boredom punctuated by hours of tedium. You basically spend your time in an isolated office, writing code and sitting in meetings during which you participated in looking for and evaluating hundreds of bugs and potential bugs. Yet Microsoft has no problem in finding and retaining software programmers. Their programmers work horrendously long hours and obsess on the goal of shipping product. From the day new employees begin work at Microsoft; they know they’re special and that their employer is special. New hires all have one thing in common- they’re smart. The company prides itself on putting all recruits through a grueling â€Å"interview loop,† during which they confront a barrage of brain-teasers by future colleagues to see how well they think. Only the best and the brightest surviv e to become employees. The company does this because Microsofties truly believe that their company is special. For instance, it has a high tolerance for nonconformity. Would you believe that one software tester comes to work every day dressed in extravagant Victorian outfits? But the underlying theme that unites Microsofties is the belief that the firm has a manifest destiny to change the world. The least consequential decision by a programmer can have an outsized importance when it can affect a new release that might be used by 50 million people. Microsoft employees are famous for putting in long hours. One program manager said, â€Å"In my first five years, I was the Microsoft stereotype. I lived on caffeine and vending machine hamburger and 20 hour workdays. †¦. I had no life. I considered everything outside the building as a necessary evil.† More recently, things have changed. There are still a number of people, who put in 80 hours weeks, but 60 and 70 hours weeks are more typical and some even are doing their jobs in only 40 hours. No discussion of employee life at Microsoft would be complete without mentioning the company’s lucrative stock option program. Microsoft created more millionaire employees, faster, than any company in American history- more than 10,000 by the late 1990s. While the company is certainly more than a place to get rich, executives still realize that money matters. One former manager claims that the human resources’ department actually kept a running chart of employee satisfaction versus the company’s stocks prices. â€Å"When the stock was up, human resources could turn off the ventilation and everybody would say they were happy. When the stock was down, we could give people massages and they would tell us that the massages were too hard.† In the go-go 1990s, when Microsoft stock was doubling every few months and yearly stock splits were predictable, employees not only got to participate in Microsoft’s manifest destiny, they could get rich in the process. By the spring of 2002, with the world in a recession, stock prices down and the growth for Microsoft products slowing, it wasn’t so clear what was driving its employees to continue the company’s dominance of software industry.

The American Journalist Robert Kaplan stated that anyone who Essay

The American Journalist Robert Kaplan stated that anyone who disbelieves Hobbes' state of nature argument has never visited Co - Essay Example One of the most famous journalists from America, Robert Kaplan has attributed such a term to the society of Cote da’Ivoire, also called in English has the Ivory Coast. To make a statement of such magnitude, there must be some sense going behind it. And indeed, when one sees the current crisis in the Ivory Coast on both the social and political fronts, one is ought to come to the conclusion that Hobbes description of ‘state of nature’ is still prevalent. (Volkov 2011) The troubled lands of West Africa saw an unusual development in political and societal fronts through the land of Ivory Coast. After its independence from the French in 1960, there was a line of hope within the minds of people of this country to stand tall amongst other nations. But, it all came down when the first political crisis rose in Abidjan in 2002. Irrespective of the presence of the French troupes in the country, deployed primarily to seize any such rebellions against the government, the poli tical scenario was split into two with the rebels occupying the entire northern half of the country. When the United Nations came into picture, a deal was struck wherein the rebels, the Ivorians and the ruling government would combine together to form a united governance.

The performance management system of Colbran Medical Institute Essay

The performance management system of Colbran Medical Institute - Essay Example They tend to contribute towards their organization staunchly and scrupulously only when they are motivated, and their contributions are valued and appreciated by their organization. Valuing ones contribution and supporting their initiatives is possible only when an organization realizes its employees’ contribution in a way it should be realized. This is possible with proper implementation of an objective performance management system. Using objective measures of performance evaluation makes employees clear that organization follows procedural justice and rewards them according to their contribution. The end result of objective performance evaluation is motivation, commitment, encouragement, job satisfaction, and greater employee retention that contribute towards organization’s profitability in the long run. Moreover, with objective performance appraisal followed by good reward administration makes employees loyal and more committed towards their respective organizations . Thus, we can say that objective performance evaluation followed by performance appraisal accompanied with proper reward administration makes employees motivated and committed towards the organization. ... When organizations communicate their employees the performance standards and key performance indicators clearly, that helps businesses in achieving competitive advantage because employees with a clear goal of what is expected of them, in terms of their performance, become more devoted and committed towards the organization. They tend to direct their behaviors in a direction that lead towards successful completion of their tasks. In addition to this, with management by objectives (MBO) and clear performance standards, employees get a clear track and set their individual goals in chase of achieving organizational objectives. According to Armstrong (2000), performance management is a shared process between employees and managers. In huge organizations, managers set clear objectives and performance standards, and communicate them to the employees so that they can direct their behaviors towards the accomplishment of organizational goals. However, the basic purpose of performance managemen t as outlined by Armstrong (2000) is the establishment and identification of the means of getting better output or results at individual, team, and organizational level by communicating the performance standards and objectives clearly to each of the entity whose contribution towards the organization is considered as worthy and important. According to Philpott and Sheppard (1992), the fundamental goal of the implementation and establishment of performance management system is to develop an organizational culture that nurtures employees for continuous improvement of business processes and their own skills, knowledge, and abilities. Providence of a guideline and development of a working ladder is

Economic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Economic - Essay Example These factors go on to achieve economic objectives, promote economic growth, and shape fiscal policies. The term ‘money’ includes paper money, coins and checking accounts. The demand and supply of such assets determine the interest rate in an economy. The equilibrium interest rate is determined by the point where real money supply equates the real money demand. The money supply is controlled by the central bank. Real money demand is influenced by the interest rate and is positively correlated with real GDP. Influencing and changing the interest rate from the equilibrium rate results in conversions from (to) interest bearing deposits to (from) money. This allows the government to influence money holdings by the public. Interest rates are also positively related to the price level in a country. Keeping all other factors constant, a rise (fall) in the real interest rates brings about a rise (fall) in the real GDP. Hence economic growth could be promoted through interest rat es and therefore economic objectives could be achieved. The money market shows the equilibrium interest rates while the foreign exchange market shows the exchange rate. Combining the two markets yields a money forex diagram.

Human Resource Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 16

Human Resource Management - Essay Example Given the significant changes in the demand of a company’s goods and services, the number of required employees also changes. Human resource management plays a crucial role over the success of implementing organizational downsizing. In the absence of human resource management, it would be difficult on the part of the human resource managers to effectively handle employees when organization change becomes inevitable. As part of the study of human resource management, human resource managers are encouraged to have competitive leadership and communication skills. Aside from providing the readers a list of recommended solutions on how to minimize and prevent the lost of business opportunities associated with the negative consequences of implementing organizational downsizing strategy, this study will discuss the importance of using transformational and authentic leadership style which are suitable when implementing organizational downsizing. As an end result of globalization, many businesses today are restructuring their organizational and business approach in order to keep the local firms competitive in the local and global market. (Business Week, 1997) One of the most common restructuring strategies that aim to increase the efficiency of a company is organizational downsizing. Although many firms have enjoyed the benefits from organizational downsizing in terms of increasing the profitability of the company by reducing its operational cost and making its operational process more efficient, it remains inevitable that most encounter internal problems related to its existing employees. Each organizational downsizing event could result to predictable outcomes in terms of having similar issues related to the feelings of betrayal, loss of trust in the management of the company, and experiencing internal conflicts between the corporate management and employees in line with retaining and losing their job. (Strom, 2008) As a result, the lack

Characteristics of Business Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Characteristics of Business Leadership - Essay Example He conquered the world technology arena with his compact visions and innovations and thus emerged as the idol of innovations in the computer coliseum. As Mclnerney (2011) reflects, Jobs is regarded as the ‘father of digital revolution’ and the ‘master of innovations.’ Steve Jobs is well known as the co-founder, CEO and chairman of Apple Computer Inc. It was his vicissitudes and visions that made apple the most sought out IT brand in the world. He is considered as the strenuous daredevil of the personal computer revolution. Jobs started Apple with one of the most successful personal computer series Apple II series. He utilized the vast potential of the graphical user interface which used mouse for operations and brought in a number of new ideas into computer technology which later became a bible for the technology world. Though he left Apple in 1985 as an aftermath of a power struggle with the board of directors, Apple had to appoint him as the CEO again in t he late-90s when they were nearing bankruptcy. Thereafter, the world witnessed Apple perplex growth as the world’s #1 computer brand under his leadership. It took him just a year to lift up Apple from bankruptcy to profit. IT giants like Microsoft; IBM etc. posed benumbed challenge on Apple in the hardware and software areas. That was the greatest challenge in front of Jobs. It can be mentioned that it was the exclusive thoughts of Steve Jobs that kept Apple alive in the competition with other corporate. Apple had to use the product called NeXTSTEP which Jobs developed when he was outside Apple to make the Mac OS-X which was Apple’s most prestigious operating system ever. Thereafter Apple never had a bad time in the industry. As Halliday (2011) points out, Apple outraged all other electronic and IT brands through their range of products which are commonly referred by the name ‘i’- iMac, iTunes, iPod, iPhone and the latest iPad. Steve Jobs was not the kind of the business leaders that the world had witnessed before. And he will be counted unique for the future also. He is often termed as a futuristic leader. He was a leader who mingled with his staff as a co-worker and demanded the delivery of complete potential from the staff. He was a frank criticiser. Steve Jobs created gadgets which were going to be the gadgets of future in the present. That is something which made him stand up among other leaders. He showered energy to his staff and motivated them. He encouraged them to think crazy like him and that is why we see such products are coming only from Apple while other companies are merely copying them. Jobs wanted to stand first always and he effectively has done that. He had a strong mind and his mindsets were always clear. He made strong decisions whenever there were criticalities within the enterprise and he was never double minded in making any decision. He told his employees: â€Å"The cure for Apple is not cost cutting. The c ure for Apple is to innovate its way out of its current predicament† (cited in Maddalone, 2012). He was not reluctant to speak out frankly to the world about his bold decisions in carrying on Apple. This describes his methodology of leading the company. He knew how to draw the full productivity from the workers, and that is why Apple still sustains its reputation. Jobs brought behemoth waves in the field of music with his iPod. He

HCG Diet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

HCG Diet - Essay Example It has been said that the diet actually helps people to understand the consumption of food and why it is important to only consume proportion sizes. HCG is what women produce in the placenta during pregnancy" HCG - Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) is a glycoprotein hormone produced during pregnancy by the developing embryo soon after conception and later by the syncytiotrophoblast (part of the placenta). HCG synthesis is the indicator of the conception of pregnancy. But with the innovation in the field of medical science this hormone is now being exploited as a diet substitute for promoting weight loss (The HCG Diet). The primary role of HCG hormone is to prevent the dissolution of the corpus luteum of the ovary and by this means it maintains progesterone production that is critical for a pregnancy in humans. Biochemical analysis depicts that HCG also show added functions; it affects the immune tolerance of the pregnancy. Apart from being an indicator to ensure the pregnancy during the early stages of conception, HCG is also produced by some kinds of tumor. This makes it an important tumor marker (The HCG Diet). The basic function of HCG is to keep the blood stream filled with nutrients which the fetus can consume throughout the gestation. This function is exploited to make HCG Diet. Individuals (both men and women) who are injecting HCG are also allowing the blood stream to be filled with nutrients taken from the reserved fat. It is for this reason HCG diet is recommended to obese individuals. It effectively drops the personal calorie s to around 500 calories (The HCG Diet). Thus, as soon as HCG is injected the body derives its nutrient requirements not from the nutritional diet but from the already existing fat reservoir. This reserved fat burns out to provide ATP molecules and hence the energy. It is therefore manifested that the HCG diet allows dieters to drop 1-2 lbs per day. These injections aid in weight reduction by reducing hunger, and affecting mood (The HCG Diet). How does it work HCG Low-dose human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) present in both men and women with the highest level of HCG in pregnant woman. Under normal conditions, HCG is given to female requiring help in ovulating and to men who require an increase in sperm count. Synthetically available or extracts of HCG are made available by extracting the hormone from the urine of a pregnant women. Supporters of HCG Diet are of firm belief that by adhering to the diet plan and taking daily injections of HCG, required or targeted reduced weight can be achieved. This is followed by eating plan with 500 calories (How does it work). Along with HCG Diet, the diet encompasses not more than 500 calories, more water, vegetables and fiber in the daily meal plan. This is known to make the reduction in weight at a faster pace and that too without any exercise. The Diet also has restrictions on consumption of tea and coffee apart from only 100 gm of diet intake in lunch and also in dinner. The diet encompass, lean meat or sea food, paired with one vegetable, asparagus, beet greens, cabbage, celery, chard, chicory, cucumbers, fennel, green salad, onions, red radishes, spinach and tomatoes.(). HCG injections with the prescribed diet ensure weight loss (How does it

A ustralian Company Accounting Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

A ustralian Company Accounting - Coursework Example Income tax Liability (Statement of Financial Position) $ 4,650 Requirement 3: Treatment: Doubtful Debts Expense: Doubtful debts represent that balance of amount which will not be recoverable out of the total trade receivables of the company. This is considered to be a trade expense thus is accounted for in the income statement of the company. Rent Revenue: Rent revenue is defined as an income generated by the company through renting out any of its assets. It can include machinery, equipment or property. All kinds of income generated by the company are included in the profit and loss account of the company. But for tax purposes it is taxable under savings income heading so it will be deducted from the profit of the company and taxable separately as the savings income has a different tax rate. Entertainment Expense: Entertainment expense comprises of the expense incurred during the process of entertaining the clientele of the company. As the entertainment expenses incurred on the emplo yees is not an allowable expense for tax purposes, it is assumed that this expense relates to the one incurred on the clientele unless otherwise stated. Thus it will also be included in the profit and loss account of the company for tax purposes as a deductible. Requirement 4: Calculation of Deferred Tax Asset and Liability: Calculation of tax base values of assets: MOTOR VEHICLE: Book Value ($) Tax Base ($) Motor Vehicle (Cost) 18,000 18,000 Motor Vehicle (Acc. Depreciation) (15.750) (18,000) ------------------- ---------------- 2,250 Nil Thus Deferred Tax Liability = 2,250 * 30% = $675 EQUIPMENT: Book Value ($) Tax Base ($) Equipment (Cost) 100,000 100,000 Equipment (Accumulated Depreciation) (60,000) (45,000) ------------------- ----------------- 40,000 55,000 Deferred Tax Asset = ($55,000-$40,000) * 30% = $ 4,500 RECEIVABLES: Tax Base = $12,000 Thus deferred tax liability = 12,000 * 30%= $3,600 RENT RECEIVBALE: Tax Base = $2,800 Thus deferred tax liability = 2,800 * 30% = $840 T otal Deferred Tax Liability = $675+$3,600+$840 = $ 5,115 Thus the new deferred tax asset and liability becomes $4,500 and $5,115 respectively. Requirement 4: Journal Entries: Deferred Tax Asset: Dr. Tax Expense (Statement of financial performance) $ 1,950 Cr. Deferred Tax Asset (Balance sheet) $ 1,950 Deferred Tax Liability: Dr. Tax Expense (Statement of financial performance) $ 2,370 Cr. Deferred Tax Liability (Balance sheet) $ 2,370 Question 2: REPORT Executive Summary This report is designed for the purpose of reflecting on the new accounting policy change that is being implemented by the company which requires the company to disclose its advertisement expense as an asset as opposed to be treated as an expense as it incurs. In this report it was observed and suggested that the criteria for the policy change implemented by the company met the recognition criteria of an asset as set by the AASB (Australian Accounting Standard Board), and was of material balance to be disclosed in t he financial statements of the company. Introduction: The purpose of this report is to determine if the new policy of the company to record its advertisement expenses as an asset is true and fair according to Australian

Psychologists & prejudice Essay Example for Free

Psychologists prejudice Essay According to Dollards et al (1939) frustration-aggression hypothesis aggression that cannot be expressed directly at the source of frustration can be displaced unto a ‘representation’ of the source (scapegoat), leading to bias and prejudice. Unlike the previous cases which have their origins in social learning or social identity this form of prejudice is borne out of the frictional component of social interaction. A ‘solution’ is therefore to reduce this friction as much as possible. The apartheid era in South Africa did recognise the problem of ‘cultural friction’ and sought to address it by separating black from white. However, the separation was not fair favouring white (supremacy) over black. This in effect only amounted to replacing one source of friction and frustration with another. Typically, social frustrations are linked to exogenous economic conditions where the contrast between the rich and poor is clearly sharpened. The challenge for any government to implement a solution to such frustrations may be simply be too difficult, or not at all practical. Germany in the late 1930’s and early forties provides a good example of national frustration followed by an explosion of national prejudice and aggression. The application of the ‘solution’ shaped the history of the 20th century. By understanding the origin and causes of prejudice, psychologists are able to propose methods and conditions that can lead to a reduction of prejudice. However, economic factors, social learning, and identity beliefs based on religion or culture may mean that any attempt to remove prejudice from ‘free’ society will be met with limited success.

Joint Venture in the Construction Industry in Spain

Joint Venture in the Construction Industry in Spain An estimated 20,000 joint ventures have been formed worlwide over the past two years. Such strategic alliances can provide business owners with long-term security, new revenue channels, and , often, the anchor needed to maintain stability in otherwise turbulent waters. A successful joint venture can open the door to a wold of future partnership opportunities (Robert L.Wallace 2004) Factors now at play in our economy make it more feasible and more critical than ever for small business owners to leverage the power of joint venturing. These factors include: The emergence of the customer economy Advances in technology that have neutralized time and space contraints Change brougt on by shifting demographics More entrepreneur- and more oportunities- as a result of downsizing In the midst of these world-changing trends, what is often missing from a succesffull business strategy are the critical alliances and strategic partnerships that will help leverage the strenghts and minimise weaknesses. Forging joint ventures and strategic alliances will allow business to win millions contracts as the partner with large companies to offer with, breadth, and depth demanded in the marketplace. Done well, joint ventures provide both participating businesses with a chance to learn and benefit from each other, and to achieve results neither could achive alone. In this dissertation will be explained- how to enter into joint ventures well so a company can prosper in ways it never could by doing it alone CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i ABSTRACT ii CONTENTS iii LIST OF TABLES v LIST OF FIGURES vi INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Introduction 2 1.2 Objectives of Dissertation 2 Contents 3 JOINT VENTURE EXPLAINED 2.1 Joint Ventures Explained 2.2 The Rationale of Joint Venture Formation 2.3 Joint Venture Formation 2.4 Management and Implementation LITERATURE REVIEW 3.1 Forms of Joint Venture 3.2 Motives of forming a Joint Venture 3.3 Selection of Partners 3.4 Preliminary Agreement and Negotiation Research Methodology 4.1 Research Approach 40 4.2 Research Ethics 41 4.3 Interviews 42 4.4 Survey 46 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 5.1 Basic Conflicting Interests 5.2 Loss of Autonomy and Control 5.3 Findings CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS LIST OF TABLES LIST OF FIGURES Chapter One Introduction and Objectives of Dissertation Introduction Business once grew by one of two ways: grass roots up, or by acquisition. Today business grow through alliances- all kinds of dangerous alliance, joint ventures, and customer partnerign, which by the way, very few people understandà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Peter F.Drucker 2007) Experiences of joint venture management in the construction industry traced back to the early 60 ´s. It appears that characteristics of this industry favor the proposition of joint ventures formation. Although statistics are not available, this is obviously true in relation to the infrastructure development of Spain at the present moment The determination of the . 1.1 Objectives of Dissertation This paper attempts to review the existing literatures on management of joint ventures its merits and problems, particular issues arisen and suggested management techniques to cope with such obstacles in operating a joint venture. Interviews were conducted with two senior staffs of one of the partners of a joint venture formed by four construction firms. The joint venture is currently undertaking one of the Train Station Core Projects to be completed before July 2011. It is hoped that hand-on experiences of these senior staffs, at the level of Management Committee of the joint venture, as well as the operational level of the joint venture, would provide us valuable insight and opinion on the art of joint venture management, as a reflection and complement to the general review of the literatures. The key objectives are: To critically appraise the existing literature to Corporative alliances issues and the role of International Strategy in applying these issues. To establish the importance Strategic alliances with competitors in the international market. To evaluate the purposes of strategic alliances as well as to what extent might be successful a company. To determine other factors that influences companies in seeking Joint Ventures. To assess the sources of value creation. To study possible pitfalls in doing a Strategic Alliance. To draw conclusions upon a joint venture in a case study. 1.2 Contents In Chapter 2, the organization of interest is described in detail along with an explanation of its forms. In Chapter 3 the literature in relation to joint venture and strategic alliances in general and its application within the company is critically reviewed. Chapter 4 describes and justifies the research methods employed and includes a section on the ethical considerations of the project. In Chapter 5 the findings of the one-to-one interviews, In Chapter 6 the findings are analyzed and evaluated in relation to the published research literature. In Chapter 7 a joint venture framework for the SMART Services is presented along with a plan for its implementation. Finally, in Chapter 8 conclusions are drawn and recommendations are made for future work. A list of references is provided and the appendices contain pertinent information, documents (including, the survey questionnaire) and collated data. Chapter Two Joint Venture Explained 2. Joint Venture Explained A joint venture is the coming together of two (or more) independent business for the sole purpose of achieving a specific outcome that would not have been achievable by one of the firms alone. (Source: Wallace 2004) 2.1 The Rationale of Joint Venture Formation The form of joint venture provides benefits and a skeleton, based on which the management philosophy of the joint venture builds up. . (See Figure 1) Figure 1: Joint Venture. Business Benefit Source: Trendsetter Barometer, PWC In respect of share of management, there are dominant parent ventures, share management ventures and independent ventures. Degree of involvement of parents in these types of joint ventures differs, and in turn these joint ventures face different types of nature and management problems. At operational level, there are approaches of integrated structure and non-integrated structure. The nature of the business and the share of responsibilities in various aspects of the business will be the determination factors of choice Generally speaking, the choice of form of joint venture should be made in accordance to what contributions are required of the parents in order to achieve the purpose of forming the joint venture. Companies forming joint ventures basically intend to develop markets and products. Common reasons are: to suit government policies, pooling resources, risk sharing, building business relation and to reduce competition. The first step to form a joint venture, after realizing that such tactics is desirable, is to select a partner. Consideration on selection of partners concentrates on three major themes: shared objectives, mutual trust and co-operation, and abilities of the potential partners. Appropriate partners should be compatible in their objectives of forming the joint venture and their expertise/Knowledge on the business. Right partners also should possess similar management styles normally. Lastly it is important that potential partnerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s real intention is realizes, to avoid future major disagreements. 2.2 Joint Venture Formation When the partners have reached initial agreement to form a joint venture, often a preliminary agreement is signed. It forms a basis for the drafting of the detailed agreement, and provide framework for the partners to work together and proceed to more detailed planning works. But subsequent negotiations following for the preliminary agreement often provide good chances for the partners to understand more thoroughly the expectation of potential partners. It is not uncommon that a final agreement cannot be reached because major conflicts are revealed in the process of subsequent negotiations after preliminary agreement. It is always intended to write agreements to cover all contingencies. But some managers consider that it is not so practically possible in view of the rapidly changing environments nowadays. Instead, emphasis should be placed on building up mutual trust and thus it is important to incorporate a sense of fairness into the joint venture agreement. Generally defined, well understood mutually, and respectful to each other ´s rights in return to their contributions committed. It is suggested that the best solutions should be an agreement covering all possible contingencies, together with the design of a flexible mechanism allowing changes to be agreed between efficiently while promoting cooperation and mutual trust. A very important aspect in drafting the joint venture agreement is the design of reward system for the partners. Pay-off in the form of product flow between the parents and the joint venture is often the source of major management problems and conflicts. Such product flow diverts attention of the parents from the joint venture ´s benefits. Again, fairness and willingness to co-operate are the keys to resolving such problems. If at all possible, market comparison is a useful guide to fix the transfer price in a fair sense. The primary concern of a partner in forming a joint venture is probably the degree of control over the business. In respect of split of ownership, majority-minority shares are sometimes preferred, as the majority of partner can act as leader for the joint venture and thus gives direction in a less ambiguous manner for the operation of the joint venture. On the other hand, come companies prefer equal shares to ensure willingness of all partners to contribute efforts as required and they may also feel more comfortable that all partners have equal statusà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? in the joint venture. Ownership distribution is less important than how operation control is actually apportioned. There is no rule on thumb on allocating operation control. General guidelines are that each parent should be motivated to make necessary commitments continuously in accordance to their abilities, and that each parent should be protected in its interests. To enhance long term co-operation, exploitation of other partner ´s interests must not be attempted. It must be emphasized that full equality in operating control requires much more efforts from all partner, and the joint venture would have to be operated in day-to-day on-going negotiations and compromise among the partners. 2.3 Management and Implementation Standard joint venture organization consist of two components the management board and operation organization. The management board is the highest authority of the joint venture. The composition of the board and jurisdiction of the board determine largely the share of power among the partners. To build an effective board, board members should be delegated enough and necessary authority by their own companies in making decisions and vote in the board. They should endeavor to maintain mutual trusts among the partners, to sustain the common goal and objectives of the partners and to the exercise effective control over the joint venture. This is better to clearly separate the operation organization independently from the management board, to avoid biases or perceived biases towards one particular partner. As mentioned earlier, staffing is a possible and often effective way of controlling the joint venture operations. But overact may generate resentment from other partners. It will be extremely difficult to build up cohesiveness of the operation organization from all the partners. The organization will possibly segregate into groups of their own companies. Theoretically, secondly is desirable only if considered necessary for the needs of the joint venture. Otherwise recruitment from outside can more easily maintain the independence of the operation organization. The joint venture manager is an important role, as the leader for the operation organization, the bridge between the child and the parents, and sometimes as the mediatorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? for the parents if disputes arose among them. He has to possess negotiation skills, people skills, and selling skills to bring together mutual co-operation form all parties concerned. He is often found to be involved in ambiguous relationship, with his sub-ordinates and supervisors, and wit the parent companies. In order to achieve his task of pleasing everybody and avoiding conflicts and tension between the parties concerned, he has to be highly tolerant and ambiguity. The joint venture manager should be loyal only to the joint venture, not to any of the parents. He has to be perceived as neutral, otherwise his opinions will never be convincing to other people. Biased loyalty of the joint venture manager will arouse other parents taking harmful measure against smooth operations of the joint venture. Being neutral is an important qualification of the joint venture manager in order to gain autonomy and trust, which in turn makes the joint venture more likely to succeed. The joint venture agreement implied an independent operation organization separated from the parents to be fully responsible for daily management of the business and that the operation organization enjoyed a high degree of autonomy. In practice, the independence and autonomy were granted to the operation organization, only if all parents, in particular the joint venture manager, will act truly neutral. Without such belief, parents were able to exercise disruptive negative measures to hinder the normal implementation of management for the joint venture operations. The case also supported that the quality if the joint venture manager in negotiation skills and human relations, and its relationship with the parents was a paramount importance of the success of the joint venture. A strong leader might be harmful for a joint venture, but a practical and flexible manager surely is very useful. Chapter Three Literature Review 3.1 Forms of Joint Venture 3.3.1 Share of management The fundamental question in management of joint ventures is the degree of involvement of partners in decision making processes on major policies as well as day-to-day operations of the joint ventures. In this respect, joint ventures are often categorized into three types: (Stephen I. Glover and Craig M. Wasserman 2003) Dominant parent ventures: in which management decisions are dominated by one parent, either formally by majority voting rights in all major aspects or informally by management settings to control key decisions makings without significant involvement from the other party. Shared management ventures: in which management of joint venture operations are shared between the parents, either shared by each providing resources in certain functional areas or shared by pooling resources at most levels of the joint venture operations. Characteristics of this type of joint venture are the necessity of frequent negotiation and agreement between the partners at most all levels and aspects of the business management. Independent ventures: in which parent ´s involvements in the management of the joint venture is very little, as it is left almost entirely to an independent group of personnel employed under the joint venture. The roles of parents are not too much different from shareholders, except that they may be providing other distinct types of resources as well as capital and there are only a few shareholders. Dominant parent ventures and independent ventures are thought to be more trouble free, as they require less interaction and thus less potential conflicts between the parents. However, there are no concrete evidence to suggest that these two types of ventures will be more likely to succeed than shared management ventures. Obviously the choice of joint ventures types is dependent on the situation and nature of the business and the parentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s  ´characteristics. Circumstances often call for shared management but no other choices, simply because joint efforts are required to achieve what is intended. Pooling of resources, and thus a mixed input of management efforts from both parents, may be the fundamental desire of forming the joint venture. In such cases, dominance of one parent certainly cannot fulfil the purpose of the strategic alliance and the question is to overcome the difficulties of shared management on joint ventures operations. Legal Form In terms of the legal form of the joint venture, there can be three choices: (Dennis Campbell and Antonida Netzer 2009) Consortium: it refers to a grouping, formed on a one-off basis, which is governed by a contractual agreement. The contractual agreement is made to define clearly the position of each of the parents, including a specification of the authority, responsibility, liability and power of each party. Parnership: it can take a form of formal partnership. The parties are then effectively recognised in law as partners. The joint venture is considered as a business entity on its own, in legal terms, separated from the individual parties. As partners, each of the parties is legally liable for any debt or default committed by other partners on behalf of the joint venture, which may not be the case if formed as a consortium depending on details of the contractual agreement of constituting the consortium. Incorpotation: joint ventures which are intended to be a permanent business are usually constituted as an incorporate entity. This would enable the parties being insulated from the risks of the business of the joint venture, as a limited company. The major disadvantage is that the profit and loss sustained by the joint venture as incorporation cannot be set off against that of the parent companies for tax purpose. 3.1.3 Operational Structure The two extreme categories of operational structure of a joint venture are integrated joint venture and non integrated joint venture (Dennis Campbell and Antonida Netzer 2009) Integrated Structure: the parties agree on a certain proportion of capital and resources investment and a prescribed profit or loss sharing formula, and they both participate on every level of execution of the joint venture business. Non-integrated Structure: in such case, the joint venture usually provides for general management machinery, which looks after overall administrative and coordinative roles for the joint venture business. The whole business is then divided into packages or portions which are assigned to the parents to execute and operate such packages or portions as designated in the joint venture agreement (Appendix A) In practice joint ventures are usually a mixture of these two approaches. The question is the degree of integration to be adopted for the given set of circumstances faced by the joint venture. For that joint venture business that can be divided into clear cut portions and such divided portions will suit the capability and resources of different partners, non-integrated approach will usually be adopted. While the joint venture business is complex and it requires a centralised management of all aspects of the business, the management will be integrated. Integrated approach is more difficult to manage. Conflicting interests and ideas between the partners can arise more often than non-integrated approach. But it is often unavoidable as the nature of the joint venture business mar not is possible to be divided neatly into portions. On the other hand, for non-integrated approach, complicated contractual argument can arise between partners. In case of joint venture agreement in a basis of joint and several responsibilities, it is not uncommon that the partners lodge contractual claims against each other on non-performance or default of the other parties in executing their portion of the joint venture business resulting loss to the whole joint venture from third party claims. The Case Study The parents attempted to adopt a mixture of shared and independent management for the joint venture under study, as implied in the conditions of the joint venture agreement. The management committee of the joint venture, which was the highest level of decision making and policy setting, were composed of one representative each partner. In respect of operational structure, a mixture of integrated and non-integrated approach was adopted. While a separate joint venture organization supposedly independent from the partners managed and operated the whole joint venture business integrally, the project was divided into portions and packages which were then subcontracted back to the partners under the joint venture 3.2 Motives of forming a Joint Venture Companies forming joint ventures basically intended to develop markets and products i.e. to strength the firmsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ existing business, to take the firms existing products to new market, to obtain new products that can be sold in the firm ´s existing markets, and to diversify into new businesses (Mark de Rond 2003) These objectives can be achieved through various ways, as shown in figure 1.1 But why choose a joint venture to try to achieve these objectives? Common reasons are: (Das y Teng 2000) Government Policies: because of licensing requirements of the government for undertaking a certain type of business in a country, e.g. for construction works in Spain many foreign companies may wish to form joint ventures with local companies who have the required licenses at hand in order to enter the market first, while they at the same time apply for the necessary licenses which may take months or even years in some cases. Many governments, who attempt to protect the development of certain industry of their countries, establish regulations that prohibit foreign companies to set up wholly owned subsidiaries. If foreign companies wish to explore the market of those countries, they have no choice to form joint ventures with local companies. Risk Sharing: in very large and risky projects that companies feel uncomfortable to bear but unwilling to give up the business opportunity, several companies share the risk by undertaking the project jointly. These risk may be commercial risks (finance, source of materials, technical uncertainties, etc) or political risks (change un government policies, unstable political status of the country, etc) Figure 1: Motives for joint venture formation New Markets Existing Makets To Take Existing Products To Foreign Markets Open Markets Closed Markets To Diversify into New Business Learning from your partner Learning with your partner To Strengthen the Existing Business Achieving economies of scale Acquiring technology Reducing financial risk To Bring Foreign Products To Local Markets Marketing and distribution Screwdriver assembly Developing local technology Technology flow back to parent Existing Products New Products Source: (Das y Teng 2000) Pooling of resources: companies often join to develop business that requires a combination of different resources (finance, technology, market access, local experience, etc) that none of these companies possess all of them, e.g. a combination of market access by one company and technical knowledge of a product by another, combination of different technical skills that are necessary to develop a product, or a combination of several companies à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"resources to achieve economies of scale. Building business relation: some companies form joint ventures with in order to build up wide business relations among the industry. They believe that this will enable them to widen their networks of business and that it may be helpful for their further business developments in long term. Reduce competition: joining with your competitor automatically reduce the degree of competition. This is particularly useful if there are only a few potential competitors only. It is not uncommon to find in certain industry that formations of joint ventures effectively create monopolistic or oligopolistic conditions. The Case Study In the construction industry inherent risks involved in the projects are the major concern of a company ´s business strategy. Sharing of commercial risks (financial burdens on the company, source of raw materials, technical uncertainty involved with the works) for large scaled projects is the major reason of forming joint ventures. Because of the huge amount of resources involved and the multi-disciplinary nature of the projects, pooling if resources from several companies is necessary to gain sufficient competence in order to tender for the works. Not a single company may have all the necessary skills and sufficient amount of resources that are required for those Train Station Core Projects. Formations of joint ventures become the most common tactics for the construction firms to undertake those projects. Political risk is also a major concern especially for foreign firms who are not familiar with the policies. Most foreign firms conceive that formation of joint ventures is an effective way of securing the safety of the business, particularly when undertaking infrastructure development projects of payment terms. Large construction firms (both local and international firms that were interested and had potential to undertake these large projects) gradually formed into groups of consortium to tender for these jobs. As a result, the industry transformed into competing allied groups, instead of competing among individual firms. Although such transformation might be unintentional at the time these companies first formed joint ventures, they now became aware of such advantage and might use this again as one of the useful tools in future when considering the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s strategy competitions in the industry. 3.3 Selection of Partners 3.3.1The Criteria of Choosing a Partner Considerations on selection of partners concentrate on three majors themes: (Lynn Krieger 1991) Shared objectives Mutual trust and willingness to co-operate and Having necessary skills/resources The task is to find a compatible partner in respect of these three major themes. The right pair or group of partners often implies an asymmetry of partners, i.e. the right partners often have different quality and characteristics so that they will complement with each others on the need of the business. Basic consideration is whether the potential partner can provide what you need and the confidence of the potential partner ´s willingness to co-operate. They may not have the same objective but their co-operation should fulfill each other ´s objectives. They may not have the expertise on the same area, and they should possess different knowledge so that when combined together their competence will be strengthened. In fact two partners having expertise on the same area often is the source of conflicts as both will consider their own approach is superior without due respect on the other partner ´s expertise on the field. But right partners should desirably have similar management styles and outlooks so that their overall business strategy would go along the same direction. Otherwise, conflict on major business policy that is originated from the incompatibility of the partners expectation on what the joint venture should achieve eventually arise someday Lyn Krieger put forward two prepositions: The more similar the culture of firms forming a shared management joint venture, the easier the venture will be to manage. The more similar in size are the parents of a shared management venture, the easier the venture will be to manage. A significant size mismatch between a venture ´s parents can create a lot of problems for the venture. Culture here refers to both corporate culture and the culture of the country from which the firms are based. These propositions are based on the principle that managers, to be effectively working together, need to be able to evaluate each other ´s judgment and the way of working before they can build up a cohesive team. The second proposition is an extension of the first one as size of the company can contribute to difference in corporate culture. One should also be alert on any hidden agenda of your potential partner (Kathryn Rudie 2003). Confidence on the observation of your potential partner ´s real intention and objective to form the joint venture is a pre-requisite condition before a decision can be made on the choice of partners. The classic tragic case of Beijing Jeep is a good example of hidden agenda. Both partners did not spell out clearly their real intention of what was to be achieved, and both partners did not understand thoroughly the other partner ´s real intention before signing the joint venture agreement. Unreasonable conflicts arose not long after formation of the joint venture, when both parties realized that they were expecting something beyond the wishes of the other party. The tragedy ought to be avoidable if both parties made clear of their expectations before signing on the joint venture agreement. 3.3.2 The Process Selection It is suggested that a step-by-step approach should be adopted to develop relationship with potential partners (Kathryn Rudie 2003): Prepare a checklist desirable quality of the partner Searching out for potential partners based on the checklist Prepare proposals and issues to study and negotiate with the potential partner If possible, try out a joint venture of small scale before committing long term and large scaled joint venture business Theatrically, this process enables the partners to develop faith and mutual trust and allows better mutual understanding before placing large financial stakes on joint ventures with unfamiliar partners. Obviously, this takes a long time and in practice the ever changing business environment often does not wait for such long process of partner selection. Business opportunities simply slip away before the good partner relationship can evolve in this way. In real life, it is often founded that good joint venture partner relationship is assumed at the time of signing the joint venture agreement, and the assumption is often based on personal relationship between the CEOs of the companies. The Case Study Major consideration in selection of partners was what resources the partner could bring in to supplement his shortages and strengthen the competence of the company to successfully tender for the job. Reputation and track record in the international construction industry was the first item to check on, particularly as the potential partner was new-comers to Spain. It was admitted that the other partnerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s intention of choosing the company was not fully known at the time of forming the joint venture. At that time, it was only understood that the company was chosen by other partners because of its local experiences in Spain and the feeling of political security that the firm could provide as a whole owned company. It was now gradually revealed that

Distortion in Samuel Becketts Waiting for Godot Essay -- Waiting for

Distortion in Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot Distortion presents exaggerated and absurd portraits of the human condition.   Distortion also equips an author with a plane of existence that provides an avenue for posing questions concerning the nature of thought, behavior, and existence.   Samuel Beckett distorts reality in his play Waiting For Godot; this literary effect enables him to question human life and a possible afterlife. Surfacely, the recurrent setting is absurd: Vladimir and Estragon remain in the same non-specified place and wait for Godot, who never shows, day after day.   They partake in this activity, this waiting, during both Act I and Act II, and we are led to infer that if Samuel Beckett had composed an Act III, Vladimir and Estragon would still be waiting on the country road beside the tree.   Of course, no humans would do such things.   The characters' actions in relation to setting are unreal-distorted, absurd.   However, it is through this distortion and only through this distortion that we can guess at the importance and the details of the evasive figure...

Comparing John Constables Painting The Cornfield and William Wordswort

Representations of Time: Wordsworth and Constable I do not know how without being culpably particular I can give my Reader a more exact notion of the style in which I wished these poems to be written, than by informing him that I have at all times endeavored to look steadily at my subject; consequently, I hope that there is in these Poems little falsehood of description, and my ideas are expressed in language fitted to their respective importance. Something I must have gained by this practice, as it is friendly to one property of all good poetry, namely, good sense; but it has necessarily cut me off from a large portion of phrases and figures of speech which from father to son have long been regarded as the common inheritance of Poets. -- William Wordsworth, from the Preface to Lyrical Ballads (1800, 1802) It appears to me that pictures have been over-valued; held up by a blind admiration as ideal things, and almost as standards by which nature is to be judged rather than the reverse; and this false estimate has been sanctioned by the extravagant epithets that have been applied to painters, and "the divine," "the inspired," and so forth. Yet in reality, what are the most sublime productions of the pencil but selections of some of the forms of nature, and copies of a few of her evanescent effects, and this is the result, not of inspiration, but of long and patient study, under the instruction of much good sense†¦ †¦Painting is a science, and should be pursued as an inquiry into the laws of nature. Why, then, may not landscape be considered as a branch of natural philosophy, of which pictures are but experiments? -- John Constable, from a lecture at the Royal Institution (June 16, 1836) The styles of John... ...licity and consequently may be more accurately contemplated and more forcibly communicated." Bibliography Goldwater, Robert and Marco Treves (eds.). Artists on Art: from the XIV to the XX Century. New York: Pantheon Books, 1945. Heffernan, James A. W. The Re-Creation of Landscape: A Study of Wordsworth, Coleridge, Constable, and Turner. Hanover: UP of New England, 1985. Helsinger, Elizabeth K. Rural Scenes and National Representation: Britain, 1815-1850. Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 1997. Kroeber, Karl. Romantic Landscape Vision: Constable and Wordsworth. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1975. Paulson, Ronald. Literary Landscape: Turner and Constable. New Haven: Yale UP, 1982. Wolfson, Susan and Peter Manning (eds.). The Longman Anthology of British Literature: The Romantics and Their Contemporaries. Volume 2A. New York: Longman, 1999.

Strategy Implementation Essay -- Business, Organizational Design

This report provides an analysis and evaluation of strategy implementation used by California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) and discusses the effectiveness of their strategy through organization design, control systems, people and culture. My research concluded that CPK relies on control systems to undertake a majority of the company’s operational activities and that human resources and organizational culture must support the strategy implemented, which it does in in the case of CPK. Introduction Strategic implementation is a critical factor when making decisions regarding issues that affect the vision, mission, or objectives of an organization. Strategies are often implemented in accordance to the culture of the organization, the nature of control systems, the stakeholders, and the nature of the organizational design. In order to achieve success in the implementation of strategies, the structure of these factors must work in coordination with one another. For instance, the strategic vision of CPK lies in the creation of a globally recognized brand name and therefore, all of the goals and objectives of CPK must be directed in realizing that the company achieves this objective (California Pizza Kitchen 2011). Furthermore, the vision statement is inclusive in itself in that it communicates the message in a directional, flexible, and focused manner. Strategic implementation entails the application of deliberate management processes to achieve the desired results. Predominantly, the process is achieved through the selection of implementation approaches that are related to an organization’s structure, management of human resources, developing, decision-making and information processes, allocating resources, determining desirable ... ...ementation of strategies within the company. Lastly, symbols do play important roles at CPK and this includes the iconic leadership of the founders, Rick Rosenfield and Larry Flax. Conclusion Strategy implementation is an important feature at CPK and the type of strategies implemented depend on organizational design, structure, human resources (people), organizational culture, and the use of control systems (Bradford and Duncan, 2000). Even though the mission statements are not openly stated anywhere, they are very essential in influencing the types of strategies implemented by the company and must be executed in such a way that influences the performance of the company. Human resources and organizational culture must support the strategy implemented. Lastly, CPK depends on control systems to undertake majority of the company’s operational activities.

About role of the United Nations in the changing World Essay

Accordingly, our respective Governments, through representatives assembled in the city of San Francisco, who have exhibited their full powers found to be in good and due form, have agreed to the present Charter of the United Nations and do hereby establish an international organization to be known as the United Nations†. Those are words from Preamble of Charter of the United Nations. The Charter of the United Nations was signed on 26 June 1945, in San Francisco, at the conclusion of the United Nations Conference on International Organization, and came into existence on 24 October 1945. The Statute of the International Court of Justice is an integral part of the Charter. The day is now celebrated each year around the world as United Nations Day. The purpose of the United Nations is to bring all nations of the world together to work for peace and development, based on the principles of justice, human dignity and the well-being of all people. It affords the opportunity for countries to balance global interdependence and national interests when addressing international problems. There are currently 191 Members of the United Nations. See more: Satirical essay about drugs They meet in the General Assembly, which is the closest thing to a world parliament. Each country, large or small, rich or poor, has a single vote; however, none of the decisions taken by the Assembly are binding. Nevertheless, the Assembly’s decisions become resolutions that carry the weight of world government opinion. The United Nations Headquarters is in New York City but the land and buildings are international territory. The United Nations has its own flag, its own post office and its own postage stamps. Six official languages are used at the United Nations – Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish. The UN European Headquarters is in the Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland. It has offices in Vienna, Austria and Economic Commissions in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia, Amman in Jordan, Bangkok in Thailand and Santiago in Chile. The senior officer of the United Nations Secretariat is the Secretary-General. The Aims of the United Nations: *To keep peace throughout the world. *To develop friendly relations between nations. *To work together to help people live better lives. * to eliminate poverty, disease and illiteracy in the world. * to stop environmental destruction. * to encourage respect for each other’s rights and freedoms. *To be a centre for helping nations achieve these aims. The Principles of the United Nations: *All Member States have sovereign equality. *All Member States must obey the Charter. *Countries must try to settle their differences by peaceful means. *Countries must avoid using force or threatening to use force. *The UN may not interfere in the domestic affairs of any country. All countries should try to assist the United Nations. Now some information about the UN system: The basic structure of the United Nations is outlined in an organizational chart. What the structure does not show is that decision-making within the UN system is not as easy as in many other organizations. The UN is not an independent, homogeneous organization; it is made up of states, so actions by the UN depend on the will of Member States, to accept, fund or carry them out. Especially in matters of peace-keeping and international politics, it requires a complex, often slow, process of consensus-building that must take into account national sovereignty as well as global needs. The Specialized Agencies, while part of the UN system, are separate, autonomous intergovernmental organizations which work with the UN and with each other. The agencies carry out work relating to specific fields such as trade, communications, air and maritime transport, agriculture and development. Although they have more autonomy, their work within a country or between countries is always carried out in partnership with those countries. They also depend on funds from Member States to achieve their goals. Recently, international conferences organized by the UN have gained significance. UN conferences have been held since the 1960s, but with the Conference on Environment and Development, known as the Earth Summit, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992, they turned into real fora for deciding on national and international policy regarding issues that affect everyone such as the environment, human rights and economic development. Since the Earth Summit, UN conferences have turned into forums in which non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can voice their concerns alongside those of governments. Such conferences focus world attention on these issues and place them squarely on the global agenda. Yet, once the international agreements produced by these conferences are signed, it is still up to each individual country to carry them out. With the moral weight of international conferences and the pressures of media and NGOs, Member States are more likely to endorse the agreements and put them into effect. I also would like to ad some basic information about structure and budget, to make brief of UN more visible. The six principal organs of the United Nations are the: General Assembly, Security Council, Economic and Social Council, Trusteeship Council, International Court of Justice and Secretariat. The United Nations family, however, is much larger, encompassing 15 agencies and several programmes and bodies. When it comes to a budget, the budget for the two years 2000-2001 was $2,535 million. The main source of funds is the contributions of Member States, which are assessed on a scale approved by the General Assembly. The fundamental criterion on which the scale of assessments is based is the capacity of  countries to pay. This is determined by considering their relative shares of total gross national product, adjusted to take into account a number of factors, including their per capita incomes. In addition, countries are assessed for the costs of peacekeeping operations. What is the role of the UN nations in the changing World? I already gave some simply answers at the beginning of this assignment. I will try to answer this question in depth in the following part of my work. The UN has been effective, even indispensable, in post-conflict development in Mozambique, Guatemala, Afghanistan, the Balkans and elsewhere. It also has guided and monitored political change (democracy and governance) in Bosnia, Kosovo, East Timor and Georgia. The UN has been involved in the conflict in Abkhazia since Georgian forces stormed the Abkhaz parliament in Sukhumi in August 1992, triggering a war that remains unresolved today. In 1993, the UN and the CSCE (Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe) agreed that the international lead on the conflict in Abkhazia should be taken by the UN. In the same year the UN, faced with urgent requests from the government of Georgia to deploy a peacekeeping force to Abkhazia, decided to establish an observer mission for Georgia (UNOMIG) to monitor implementation of the July ceasefire agreement between the two sides which had been mediated and guaranteed by the Russian Federation. The decision to send an observer force rather than a fully fledged peacekeeping force reflected the desire of the Russian Federation to take the lead in the management of conflict in the ‘former Soviet space’, and the unwillingness of the other permanent members of the Security Council to challenge Russian prerogatives. There was also a general concern that the peacekeeping apparatus of the UN was overloaded, and disagreement among the parties as to what the mandate of a more substantial force would be. The UN Secretary-General also designated Swiss diplomat Eduard Brunner as Special Envoy for the conflict. He served until 1997 when Liviu Bota, a Romanian diplomat, was appointed Special Representative (SRSG) for the Abkhaz conflict. Both were responsible for the mediation of a process of negotiation leading to a political settlement of  the conflict. Bota has had a more or less permanent presence in the conflict zone, whereas Brunner was only delegated to visit intermittently. Russia’s special status in this process was recognized in its designation as ‘facilitator’ of the talks. In the early years of negotiation matters were not helped by the passive attitude taken by the Special Envoy to mediation of the conflict. The UN’s failure to take a more engaged approach was one factor among several contributing to the obvious lack of movement towards a political settlement in 1994-96. The fact that the more proactive approach adopted by Liviu Bota has also not produced a settlement would suggest, however, that the extent of UN activism is not the determining factor in conflict resolution. While the first personnel of UNOMIG were being deployed, the ceasefire collapsed and hostilities resumed. The UN Security Council condemned the renewal of conflict and associated displacement of population and demanded that the parties cease fighting. They also decided to extend the mandate of UNOMIG pending clarification of the situation. Traditionally, the UN has had a similar approach to its work since its conception in 1947. Gradually it became more and more involved; adding different organelles, agencies, and addressing more issues that weren’t necessarily new as it grew in size and scope. The International Court of Justice, the Economic and Social Council, and agencies like the International Maritime Organization were created to solve problems in these areas. It grew out of the General Assembly and the Security Council; to an organization with thousands of employees worldwide doing hundreds of completely different things. To put it simply, and to generalize, it has gotten bigger, and more involved. The Secretary General NOW has the ability to change the way a leader runs his country, make two warring countries sign a peace treaty, and even route money through areas in the world that would have never gotten any before. The Secretary has assumed power or the power of influence, he or she does not have any written or given power, Still however, this clearly shows how much more the UN has gotten involved and grown, even more like the feared â€Å"world government† that it vows to never become. It is a little misleading to speak of the role of the UN. The UN is nearly  powerless as an abstract entity or even as a representative of the world’s nations. It can act, instead, only insofar as it is given authorization by the great powers, which means primarily the United States. The UN has no standing peacekeeping force and thus is dependent on finding countries willing to contribute troops for any particular mission. The organization suffers as well from an extreme shortage of funds because of the continual U.S. refusal to pay its dues. Any peacekeepers sent to East Timor will probably not be a UN force because the U.S. Congress has required that there be a 15-day delay before the U.S. government can approve any UN peacekeeping operation and has forbidden Washington from paying its authorized share of the costs of any such operation. U.S. influence is greatest in the Security Council, but some organs of the UN, such as the General Assembly or bodies dealing with economic and social issues have had a Third World majority ever since the era of decolonization. Accordingly, U.S. policy has been to undermine and marginalize the UN. The United Nations should have an important role in world affairs, but U.S. policy and the policies of other leading states, severely limit the international organization. From the point of view of U.S. policymakers, however, there is one crucial role played by the UN: it serves as a convenient scapegoat when something goes wrong. For example, the current catastrophe in East Timor is directly attributable to the refusal of the United States and other Western powers to deter the atrocities there over a period of a quarter century, yet the UN will probably take the blame. So as we can see, we can look for the subject of my assignment from the different point of view. Another UN’s role: The Asian crisis, has become a global crisis, was by no means a purely financial matter. It had disastrous consequences for millions of people in their everyday lives. Moreover, it was the poor who are hardest hit. In Indonesia, almost 15,000 workers lost their jobs in 1998. And poverty came with its usual sorry retinue: hunger, social unrest, violence, abuse of human rights. The least developed countries, the ones least able to influence world priorities and policies, were penalized. So the human dimension was at the heart of the response (including debt relief)to this  first major crisis of globalization. Of course, the role of the seven major industrial powers, and of the world’s finance ministers and central bankers, remained crucial. But they could not undertake this task alone. All parts of the international system came together. President Clinton has suggested wide-ranging discussions on the new world â€Å"financial architecture.† Some would say that this was none of the U.N.’s business. There are other international bodies, more specialized and perhaps more competent to deal with economic problems: the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the World Trade Organization, the Bank for International Settlements. But the U.N. is the one truly global institution we all belong to. It must have a seat at the table. Economic and financial strategies will succeed only if they are applied within a clear political framework. That framework will command much wider support if, through the U.N., all affected countries have played a part in working it out. Over the long term, globalization will be positive. It draws us closer together and enables us to produce more efficiently, to control our environment, to improve our quality of life. But such benefits are not felt equally by all. For many people, â€Å"long term† is too far off to be meaningful. Millions on this planet still live in isolation, on the margins of the world economy. Millions more are experiencing globalization not as a great new opportunity but as a profoundly disruptive force that attacks both their material living standards and their culture. Some of those who had benefited most from open markets and capital flows were feeling the greatest pain. The temptation to retreat into nationalism or populism is strong. But, fortunately, in most developing countries, those false solutions are being rejected. Each country’s crisis has its own local features and causes. Each country has to address its own specific problems and shortcomings. But many countries need help, for these are not just financial or macro-economic problems. They have grave social and political consequences, and some of their causes are to be found in political and social systems. The U.N. has a responsibility, as the universal institution, to insist on the need for worldwide solutions based on rules that are fair to all. It is the UN job to ensure that nations do not react to crisis by turning their backs on universal values. In such crises, the UN must come together to find solutions based on the founding  principles which all their member states have in common: those of the U.N. Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In particular, the UN has a special responsibility to speak up for the victims or potential victims. The UN cannot forget the countries in Africa and elsewhere whose debt burdens the crisis has made even more unsustainable. Debt relief is often resisted on grounds of â€Å"moral hazard,† that it rewards the reckless and penalizes the prudent. But were not the lenders often just as reckless and irresponsible as the borrowers? Can it really be moral for them to insist on full interest and full repayment if the result is that children not yet born when the debts were contracted are denied even a subsistence diet or an elementary education? Many nations feel their interests are ignored or neglected in specialized economic bodies, where the strongest voices, for quite understandable reasons, tend to be those of countries which have already achieved economic success. But the U.N. provides a forum for informed debate among all those affected by the crisis. It has to represent all stakeholders in the global economy. The U.N. must play its part in the search for solutions that preserve the benefits of globalization while protecting those who have suffered or who have been left out. UN has kept women’s issues and interests on the agenda of change when they risked being set aside for a â€Å"later† that would never come in Afghanistan, Kosovo and East Timor. It has protected children in conflict and in post-conflict stress. The UN is bringing justice post-conflict to the repressed through ICTY (International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia), ICTR (International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda), and the nascent Sierra Leone court. In each case, the role and the centrality of the UN have been different. The United Nations is an organization that has always been based on respect for nation’s sovereignties, peace, and judicial cooperation regarding topics which are salient to the current time period. As the entire world moves further into the â€Å"technological age†, and with the turn of the century coming (which is really only symbolic of a new era), new issues are bound to develop. The world will gradually change, and the UN ne eds to address these needs by evaluating its current state along with what it can do to change for the better. The increasingly global economy, the European Community, and the development of the sagging Asian market (with  the rest of the world in a recession also) show action needs to be taken economically. Hostility remains in the Middle East, human rights are being violated every day around the globe, and people everywhere are disgruntled with their current governmental situation. How will the UN curb nuclear terrorism, help the homeless and uneducated, and still maintain and outside role in political matters? Or should they maintain an outside role? These are merely a few of the hundreds of issues addressing the world today, and the UN must prepare for the coming decade with open minded foresight. As Secretary General Kofi A. Annan said, every conflict is different, every post-conflict is different, and each model of intervention by the international community is different. In Iraq, we have an immediate post-conflict humanitarian and reconstruction challenge in front of us. It is in eve ryone’s interests, especially in the Iraqi people’s interest, to ensure that Iraq becomes an economically functional, politically stable and self-governing state that is respectful of the rule of law, of democratic principles and of international norms. The coalition nations currently controlling Iraqi territory have distinct responsibilities as occupying powers to maintain public order and safety, to protect civilians and to provide essential services. The wider international community, especially the United Nations, also have indispensable roles to play. While systems are in place for humanitarian assistance, a framework is needed to facilitate greater engagement and support in the stabilization and reconstruction of Iraq. The United Nations has extensive expertise that can and should be brought to bear. The UN and its agencies have been heavily involved in Iraq since the first Gulf War, and have an in-depth understanding of the circumstances, and the challenges. The UN is fully engaged through its agencies and has resources on the ground in Iraq, providing much-needed assistance to the Iraqi people. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), The United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the WFP (World Food Programme)- they all know Iraq. Countries need to build on the strength of the engagement of these and other UN agencies in Iraq, and determine how best they can make further use of this experience and expertise. In Iraq, as in all post-conflict situations, common over-arching goals must be to meet the needs of the people, and to support them in their course towards stability, recovery and reconstruction. After Kosovo, many thought NATO would become let say â€Å"Globocop† that the G-8 would supplant the Security Council, that the UN would be sidelined. But, in fact, the UN picked up the pieces in Kosovo, mandated the intervention in East Timor and has helped Afghanistan put itself back together. What about issues that should to be addressed in a Resolution? As for what should be addressed, there almost are more topics than one is able to think about. Should there be more staff running relief efforts in Zaire? Is the International Court of Justice really necessary, or is it wasting money and time that could be spent on other things. Analyzing this, you could say that since nations only sue each other, and no real action is taken, and the courts have no real power to enforce anything, what is the use? Possibly the funding used for this could go towards building schools in Africa. This may seem fairly ludicrous, but one needs to have the foresight to see these things, and there i s only a certain amount of money around for things like this. Possibly the UN relief troops should be allowed to use loaded weapons and fire at hostile parties, for their own safety and to help curb violence more. Maybe the Secretary General should be stripped of all his power, and put all diplomacy matters in the hands of the General Assembly or Security Council. The Secretary could have increased power that would force nations to comply with his decisions. A UN that is much like a world government could possibly work as long as there was representatives from every nation. Because the world is more complex, if the UN was simplified it might make things smoother. Instead of having an agency for every little issue, such as the ACC Sub-Committee on Nutrition, or the UN office for Outer Space affairs. Are these REALLY necessary? They may be, but it is the decision of the delegates. The UN’s image with â€Å"Security Council† and a Court System might look bad to some conservative minded citizens of a nation. Economically, are the proper funds being allocated to areas and agencies in need? Should a worldwide mandatory educational requirement be put into effect? What exactly is the most pressing area right now that needs the fiscal help the UN can offer? Again, in the past 50 years help has been going to the same places, while the Secretariat grew larger and larger, and the entire UN gradually began becoming a complex political bureaucracy, and began to focus less on its original mission as stated in the charter, to  promote peaceful relations between the nations of the world. This doesn’t seem to be working anymore, possibly because the current UN is obsolete. In summation, United Nations reform is a daunting task. As a member of UN, Poland should remember to use foresight, think of what kind of world we will live in next century, what new things will happen, and how the UN should evolve to meet these needs with vigor. The UN is still only an organization, not a government, and it is based itself on precedent. That is, actions of the past determine future decisions. If precedent is broken, we should remember what has been built for all of us for the past 51 years. Bibliography: www.alertnet.org www.globalpolicy.org www.undp.org www.globalissues.com/Geopolitics/EastTimor www.un.org/ www1.umn.edu/humanrts/instree/chapter1.html United Nations: 50 Years of Peace and War, University of California Press, John Taylor, Phd. 1998 United Nations Published Charter The History of The United Nations, Paladin Press, Jonathon Kingsley. 1994

Business Ethics and Starbucks Essay

1. Starbucks demonstrates a new focus on business ethics and social responsibility by providing health care benefits to their employees, giving to the welfare of the needy, and also by packaging their goods in recycling materials along with any other practices that are beneficial to the company. Starbucks has also demonstrated by improving their dealings with their customers as well as their suppliers. Although this may not bring in additional revenues, the ethical businesses are better recognized and there durability is greater.As long as Starbucks can continue to gain trust in the customers, it will allow them to have a strong bond with them also. 2. I feel that Starbucks has been concerned with social responsibility in its overall corporate strategy because for one reason it is a popular business and it helps the image of the company to care about the community and the environment. Other reasons Starbucks were so concerned was because of the negative impact on the company. Starbucks has always been engaged in responsible business practice since they first started their operation and they have always spent a lot of time defending their image as well. Several small coffee shops were put out of business due to the clustering strategy. Starbucks decided to refocus their strategy after the 2009-2009 recession. Several locations were closed because of the lack of performance due to the economic depression. Because of Starbucks dedication to their employees and suppliers, they were able to earn their loyalty. However Starbucks were also concerned with social responsibility because it affected all parties involved. The company did achieve social responsibility by taking steps to follow certain guidelines and being involved in the community, which is very important to the company since ethical companies tend to do better in the long run. 3. I think Starbucks has both grown rapidly and mainly because it does provide products and an environment that customers want. Most people don’t know anything about the ethical and social responsibility that Starbucks engage in unless they research their websites. I feel that Starbucks success was due to its strong brand image that had been built over the years. Consumers purchased these products from Starbucks because of the good taste. However people were concerned about being ethical and social responsible when running a business, especially when consumers wanted to enjoy what they were consuming without having to worry about how the products are labored. This company also grew large due to several charity campaigns; such as the partnership between Starbucks and the project Red to raise money for different events. By being a large buyer of Fair Trade certified coffee, in spite of the high cost, they continued to grow as the purpose of fair trades that promotes a better working condition and greater incentives for the mmanufacturers. Starbucks does not only offer quality coffee to its customers, they also have a great atmosphere of the coffee shop. They have given back to the community and earned their trust as well as respect from their customers.

An Analysis Of ‘Hills Like White Elephants’ By Ernest Hemingway Essay

‘Hills like White Elephants’ is a very clever story written by a journalist, turned ambulance driver, turned military, turned prose and fiction writer.   Ernest Hemingway was popular for his novels and short stories, but before he entertained his passion for the art of storytelling, he worked for the Kansas City Star as a reporter; he was also an ambulance driver during World War I and enlisted in the Italian infantry. He took every opportunity to wield the pen, in fact, after the war; he worked for the Toronto Star.   Hemingway was more in love with the pen than with the musket as during the Spanish Civil War and the Second World War, he even worked as a news correspondent.   This brilliant writer produced exceptional pieces of literature that are cherished for their quality to this day such as ‘Death in the Afternoon’, ‘The Green Hills of Africa’, ‘A Farewell to Arms’, ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’, and ‘The Old Man and the Sea’. Hemingway drew from his experiences in the motifs of his pieces which usually had masculine motifs like hunting, war, and other activities associated with the masculine gender.   For some strange reason, however, Hemingway committed suicide in 1961.   His works of short fiction were far better than his novels; however it is with his novels that he built a reputation for himself.   ‘Hills like White Elephants’ is one of his short stories that quite reflects the skill of Hemingway as a fictionist. ‘Hills like white Elephants’ is a piece of literature that demonstrates what is known to literaturists as literary control in tackling the main theme which is abortion.   It is a story that addresses a very sensitive issue with the use of allegory and a philosophical approach to fiction known as existentialism. The story ‘Hills like White Elephants’ is a relatively ‘short’ short story that is ridden with symbolism; for all its worth, it might have as well been a piece of poetry, if not for its obvious narrative style.   It is about two individuals, an unnamed American and Jig who have a discussion over some drinks at a train station in Spain. The matter of their discussion is vague at first, and becomes clear to be abortion later on.   The piece is a ‘silent’ commentary about the difference of views between males and females in general as well as the poignant reaction of both genders to news that may or may not change ones way of life.   In this particular story, Hemingway used the third person perspective to give the audience a sense of distance when reading the story.   By this, it means that the audience, instead of closely associating themselves with the characters in the story, would instead, identify themselves on a different level, thus, giving even the subject matter of the story a metaphorical feel, despite its being a tangible and quite material issue. This distinct level of identification in the story because of the narrative is a technique used by most writers to create a more general feel to the story; so that the audience, in reading the story, does not have to attach themselves to a particular detail and identify with that detail.   Noticeably so, this same quality of the story is also achieved by Hemingway’s use of direct, relatively short sentences for the conversation of the two characters.   This technique, again, gives the story a distinct indifferent feel. It allows the reader to explore the story on various levels instead of just zooming into one particular aspect of the story.   It also prevents the audience from succumbing to the temptation of making specific conclusions about the story early on; from the temptation of simply disregarding other details in the story and focusing on the main subject matter, which is abortion.   Even this particular issue is never mentioned in the piece, except in the form of symbols and indirect statements from the characters. This particular style of writing, where the writer skimps on words, and instead, attaches multi-level meanings to the text is known as literary control.   The main theme of abortion is addressed in this particular style, to begin with the title itself, â€Å"Hills like White Elephants†. (Hemingway, 1950)   The title, which is illustrated more in the first paragraph of the story which describes the setting, acquires a new level of interpretation from the passage, â€Å"The hills across the valley of the Ebro were long and white.† (Hemingway, 1950); and the girl continues to describe the barren landscape, â€Å"They look like white elephants†. (Hemingway, 1950) What this does in particular is it foreshadows the main theme of the story by presenting something decrepit or useless.   ‘White elephants’ are accepted to be symbols of huge structures that are not functional, and in the way this particular phrase is used to describe the hills in the story, it takes on a different meaning – that the hills, barren and dry, supposedly representations of abundance and fertility, are apparently ‘white’ or ineffectual on a superficial level. This particular style combines two opposing images, that of fertility in the hills, and emptiness, in the perception of Jig.   What this does is it confirms Jig’s pregnancy, but alludes to this pregnancy being empty, in the sense that she feels that her pregnancy is meaningless, if not to her, to her lover.   The tension in the conversation is given another push with the man’s remark about Jig’s description of the hills, â€Å"I’ve never seen one (white elephant)†. (Hemingway, 1950) Then Jig responds, â€Å"No, you wouldn’t have.† (Hemingway, 1950)   On   the level that has been discussed, this particular exchange in their conversation basically presents the man as being indifferent not only to the feelings of Jig but to the concept of emptiness and aloneness; that other than not being able to sense how Jig is feeling at the moment, he also is naturally and habitually indifferent, selfish, even. This early in the story, there is also an indication as to the personality of Jig being very dependent and attached to the man because of her requiring his approval first before she does anything; in having a drink, she asks, â€Å"What should we drink†¦Could we try it (Anis del Toro)?† (Hemingway, 1950); and when she is asked if she would take the drink with water, she asks (addressing the man), â€Å"I don’t know†¦Is it good with water?† (Hemingway, 1950) These statements from the girl show how valuable the man’s approval of her decisions is.   These show the weightiness of the man’s decisions even with matters concerning Jig.   This particular exchange also gives the audience an idea of how the tone will be when the main issue of abortion comes into play.   At this point, the girl also senses the indifference of the man and indicates this with the line, â€Å"Everything tastes like licorice.   Especially the things you’ve waited so long for, like absinthe.† (Hemingway, 1950) The girl here makes an indirect reference to their lifestyle – that nothing is new with them – and suddenly, when something new happens – she gets pregnant – the man refuses to accept the change.   In particular, this also gives a slight indication that the girl wants to continue the pregnancy when she implied that it is a change that she ‘waited so long for’ (Hemingway 1950)   This interpretation is further strengthened when the girl remarks, â€Å"That’s all we do, isn’t it – look at things and try new drinks?† (Hemingway, 1950) Another indication as to the lifestyle of this couple comes later in the story, with the author’s description of the bags at the station, â€Å"He did not say anything but looked at the bags against the wall of the station. There were labels on them from all the hotels where they had spent nights.† (Hemingway, 1950)   This description of the bags creates the imagery of the owners of the bags being people who are on a pleasure trip from one place to another.   Bags are also used here to represent the emotional or mental baggage that the man is carrying as a consequence of the pregnancy of Jig. When the man finally reveals in the story that he wants Jig to have an abortion, in the passage, â€Å"†It’s really an awfully simple operation, Jig, †¦ It’s not really an operation at all.† (Hemingway, 1950), the tension begins to rise, and more symbols emerge.   Of course, with this remark from the man, the girl becomes silent and does not react. However, her first line after this revelation is â€Å"Then what will we do afterward?† (Hemingway, 1950)   Basically, what this does is it amplifies the emptiness of the woman in relation to the abortion – her asking ‘what to do afterwards’ (Hemingway, 1950) shows that she does not see anything after the abortion; that everything after the abortion is covered in haze.   The man further refers to the pregnancy as something that has made them both unhappy (Hemingway, 1950), in response, the girl takes hold of two strings of beads from the bead curtain and says, â€Å"†And you think then we’ll be all right and be happy.†. (Hemingway, 1950) However, note that although the girl almost validates the statement of the man regarding the pregnancy, notice the action of holding the beads – while this can easily be passed off as an unconscious musing, it could also be symbolic for ‘prayer’.   Beads are derived from the old Middle English word ‘bede’ which means prayer.   The string of beads as described very much look like the ones in rosaries; hence, it could be interpreted that although the girl seems to agree with the man, she is praying or hoping against all hope that abortion was not the solution to their problem. The girl is at a loss for words at this point and refers back to the ‘white elephants’ in her earlier exchange with the man specifically pointing out his earlier reaction to this remark, â€Å"But if I do it, then it will be nice again if I say things are like white elephants, and you’ll like it?† (Hemingway, 1950)   Now, if the previous interpretation of ‘white elephants’ being emptiness is applied to this statement, it becomes quite sarcastic as opposed to the tone at which it is said – the girl here is submitting to the man and implying that she will be empty with the abortion, but will the man like her in this state, anyway?    The man responds, â€Å"I’ll love it. I love it now but I just can’t think about it.† (Hemingway, 1950)   Slowly, from their exchanges, a brute nature emerges from the man, insensitive, and indifferent.   Their conversation then continues on to indicate that the girl will be having the abortion but not because she wants it, but because this would make her man happy, also implying that her own happiness is not a matter of concern, because she has put the man’s happiness before her own; this she conveyed with the lines, â€Å"Then I’ll do it. Because I don’t care about me.† (Hemingway, 1950)   Here we can see that a resolution is not met between the two characters, only a submission, which, by the way, is against the will of the lady. The author alludes to the lady’s desire of having the child when he put in a description of the scenery at the other side of the station – which, in this story, represents a ‘crux’ or a point of decision.   The station here is symbolic of a turning point in both of the lives of the characters, and so, the author, earlier, describes that the hills are dry and barren, while at the other side of the station, â€Å"were fields of grain and trees along the banks of the Ebro. Far away, beyond the river, were mountains.†Ã‚   (Hemingway, 1950) All these images represent fertility, life, and renewal, and at this point also, when the lady sees this particular scenery, she experiences a change of heart and realizes that she should at least take another chance at convincing the man that the abortion will leave her empty, which should be the main issue between the two of them, if the man was sensitive enough.   This realization is clear in their rapid exchange of lines, â€Å"†I said we could have everything./We can have everything./No, we can’t./We can have the whole world./No, we can’t./We can go everywhere./No, we can’t. It isn’t ours any more./It’s ours./No, it isn’t. And once they take it away, you never get it back.† (Hemingway, 1950) In this exchange, it is evident how totally unrelated the man’s arguments are in relation to the girl’s.   Here, they don’t really ‘meet’ each other in terms of what they are talking about.   This ‘not meeting of minds’ has another indirect symbol in the ‘railroad tracks’ which are parallel and never meet.   Notice the last statement of the girl in the above exchange; in this particular line, she is referring to the child in her womb, while earlier on in the conversation, the man is actually referring to the material and carnal pleasures that they had both been enjoying. The man says that they can have all these, but the lady disagrees.   In the end, there is no closure in their argument and Hemingway leaves the audience hanging as to whether the girl decides to have the abortion or not.   What is known, however, is that in the end, the girl indicates that she is all right (Hemingway, 1950); considering her previous arguments, then it can be assumed that she will not be going for the abortion. While the story is fairly simple in its presentation, it tackles a very deep philosophy known as existentialism, appropriately so because the writer lived in an era when this philosophy was in force.   Despite the girl’s seeming submission to the man’s will in this story, she actually exercises her individual existence and choice; two very basic concepts of existentialism. From the text, it is evident how the lady struggles to assert her own individual set of beliefs, and how she, although in a very subtle way, dismisses the man’s arguments in favor of her own set of beliefs and her freedom to choose.   So, while we can easily say that for a superficial reader, the story is just an exchange of conversation between two people regarding an abortion, the symbols and the clever use of language comes into play to coax the reader to digest the story and interpret it a different level; at which level, the references to existentialism become clear. In closing, the story is indeed a hotbed of symbolism and a classic example of literary control.   It does not spoon-feed the audience nor takes all the thinking away from the reader.   It very discreetly, but very accurately infers various meanings into the text by way of   allegory, and profoundly presents the idea of existentialism simply by playing around with the conversation of two people, the introduction of a sensitive matter, and finally, the unspoken assertion of the lady of her individual nature and her own freedom. References Hemingway, E. (1950). Hills like White Elephants. Retrieved March 25, 2009, from http://www.gummyprint.com/blog/archives/hills-like-white-elephants-complete-story/