Pop Music Essay Example

Pop Music Essay Pop music (a term that originally derives from an abbreviation of popular) is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented towards a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple love songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes. Pop music has absorbed influences from most other forms of popular music, but as a genre is particularly associated with the rock and roll and later rock style. [citation needed] Contents [hide] 1 Definitions 2 Origin of the term Influences and development 4 Characteristics 5 See also 6 Notes 7 Bibliography 8 External links [edit] Definitions Hatch and Millward define pop music as a body of music which is distinguishable from popular, jazz and folk musics. [1] Although pop music is often seen as oriented towards the singles charts it is not the sum of all chart music, which has always contained songs from a variety of sources, including classical, jazz, rock, and novelty songs, while pop music as a genre is usually seen as existing and developing separately. 2] Thus pop music may be used to describe a distinct genre, aimed at a youth market, often characterized as a softer alternative to rock and roll. [3] [edit] Origin of the term The term pop song, is first recorded as being used in 1926 in the sense of a piece of music having popular appeal. [4] Hatch and Millward indicate that many events in the history of recording in the 1920s can be seen as the birth of the modern pop music industry, including in country, blues and hillbilly music. [5] We will write a custom essay sample on Pop Music specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Pop Music specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Pop Music specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer According to Grove Music Online, the term pop music originated in Britain in the mid-1950s as a description for Rock and roll and the new youth music styles that it influenced . [6] The Oxford Dictionary of Music states that while pops earlier meaning meant concerts appealing to a wide audience [,] since the late 1950s, however, pop has had the special meaning of non-classical mus[ic], usually in the form of songs, performed by such artists as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, ABBA, etc. [7] Grove Music Online also states that n the early 1960s [the term] ‘pop music’ competed terminologically with Beat music [in England], while in the USA its coverage overlapped (as it still does) with that of ‘rock and roll’. [6] Chambers Dictionary mentions the contemporary usage of the term pop art;[8] Grove Music Online states that the term pop music seems to have been a spin-off from the terms pop art and pop culture, coined slightly earlier, and referring to a whole range of new, often American, media-culture products. [6] From about 1967 the term was increasingly used in opposition to the term rock music, a division that gave generic significance to both terms. [9] Whereas rock aspired to authenticity and an expansion of the possibilities of popular music,[9] pop was more commercial, ephemeral and accessible. [10] According to Simon Frith pop music is produced as a matter of enterprise not art, is designed to appeal to everyone and doesnt come from any particular place or mark off any particular taste. It is not driven by any significant ambition except profit and commercial reward and, in musical terms, it is essentially conservative. It is, provided from on high (by record companies, radio programmers and concert promoters) rather than being made from below Pop is not a do-it-yourself music but is professionally produced and packaged. [11] [edit] Influences and development Technological developments played an important role in the dissemination of pop music, particularly the 7-inch 45 rpm record (right) and the Compact Disc (above). The 12-inch 33 rpm record (left) was more associated with rock albums than with pop music. [citation needed]Throughout its development, pop music has absorbed influences from most other genres of popular music. Early pop music drew on the sentimental ballad for its form, gained its use of vocal harmonies from gospel and soul music, instrumentation from jazz, country, and rock music, orchestration from classical music, tempo from dance music, backing from electronic music, rhythmic elements from hip-hop music, and has recently appropriated spoken passages from rap. [3] It has also made use of technological innovation. In the 1940s improved microphone design allowed a more intimate singing style[12] and ten or twenty years later inexpensive and more durable 45 r. p. m. ecords for singles revolutionized the manner in which pop has been disseminated and helped to move pop music to ‘a record/radio/film star system’. [12] Another technological change was the widespread availability of television in the 1950s; with televised performances, pop stars had to have a visual presence. [12] In the 1960s, the introduction of inexpensive, portable transistor radios meant that teenagers could l isten to music outside of the home. [12] Multi-track recording (from the 1960s); and digital sampling (from the 1980s) have also been utilized as methods for the creation and elaboration of pop music. 3] By the early 1980s, the promotion of pop music had been greatly affected by the rise of Music Television channels like MTV, which favoured those artists such as Michael Jackson, Madonna, and Prince who had a strong visual appeal. [12] Pop music has been dominated by the American and (from the mid-1960s) British music industries, whose influence has made pop music something of an international monoculture, but most regions and countries have their own form of pop music, sometimes producing local versions of wider trends, and lending them local characteristics. 13] Some of these trends (for example Europop) have had a significant impact of the development of the genre. [3] According to Grove Music Online, Western-derived pop styles, whether coexisting with or marginalizing distinctively local genres, have spread throughout th e world and have come to constitute stylistic common denominators in global commercial music cultures. 14] Some non-Western countries, such as Japan, have developed a thriving pop music industry, most of which is devoted to Western-style pop, has for several years has produced a greater quantity of music of everywhere except the USA. [14] The spread of Western-style pop music has been interpreted variously as representing processes of Americanization, homogenization, modernization, creative appropriation, cultural imperialism, and/or a more general process of globalization. [14] [edit] Characteristics Musicologists often identify the following characteristics as typical of the pop music genre: n aim of appealing to a general audience, rather than to a particular sub-culture or ideology[3] an emphasis on craftsmanship rather than formal artistic qualities[3] an emphasis on recording, production, and technology, over live performance[10] a tendency to reflect existing trends rather than progressive developments[10] much pop music is intended to encourage dancing, or it uses dance-oriented beats or rhythms[10] The main medium of pop music is the song, often between two and a half and three and a half minutes in length, generally marked by a consistent and noticeable rhythmic element, a mainstream style and a simple tradi tional structure. [15] Common variants include the verse-chorus form and the thirty-two-bar form, with a focus on melodies and catchy hooks, and a chorus that contrasts melodically, rhythmically and harmonically with the verse. [16] The beat and the melodies tend to be simple, with limited harmonic accompaniment. [17] The lyrics of modern pop songs typically focus on simple themes – often love and romantic relationships – although there are notable exceptions. [3] Harmony in pop music is often that of classical European tonality, only more simple-minded. [18] Cliches include the barbershop harmony (i. e. moving from a secondary dominant harmony to a dominant harmony, and then to the tonic) and blues scale-influenced harmony. [19] The influence of the circle-of-fifths paradigm has declined since the mid-1950s. The harmonic languages of rock and soul have moved away from the all-encompassing influence of the dominant function. There are other tendencies (perhaps also traceable to the use of a guitar as a composing instrument) – pedal-point harmonies, root motion by diatonic step, modal harmonic and melodic organization – that point away from functional

Juxtapositions for Creative and Critical Thinking Essays

Juxtapositions for Creative and Critical Thinking Essays Juxtapositions for Creative and Critical Thinking Essay Juxtapositions for Creative and Critical Thinking Essay Essay Topic: Critical Thinking Juxtapositions for Creative and Critical Thinking On September 20, 2012 I attended the Core Convocation held at St. Catherine University in the O’ Shaughnessy Theater. The topic of the Core Convocation was entitled Juxtapositions and Mental Gymnastics, instructed by Geri Chavis. Chavis is an English Professor at the University of St. Catherine. She has been teaching at the university for some thirty five years or so. She is involved in therapeutic use of poetry for healing. She exclaimed her love for literature of the Romantic period and her fascination of multidisciplinary or integrated education. Chavis refers to her approach to education as â€Å"horizontal interactions†. This Idea of â€Å"horizontal interactions† basically describes what she calls the juxtaposition, where two or more completely opposite ideas, subjects, media, excreta can be linked somehow. In education this linking becomes important. I think it helps the students actually learn verses just memorizing material in order to pass a test. When subjects are presented in a manor so that they can be linked it creates not only repetition but also a new light in which to view things, like that â€Å"ah ha moment† in which one truly understands something for the first time. Last semester I attended the University of Minnesota Rochester. There, they pride their college courses on being integrated. All my classes from Calculus, to Biology, to The History of Terrorism could be linked in one way or another. I found this concept that Chavis also described as â€Å"linking knowledge across fields† to be extremely useful based on my own experiences. I am very good at memorizing material. I typically get good grades in school, but I feel that in the past I have actually â€Å"learned† very little. If I had to retake some of the tests I aced then I would fail miserably. I found that I actually â€Å"learned† more last semester; I was able to make that linkage and apply it to my studies to which I actually understood the material. I found that I have carried that ability to link my courses into my first semester at St. Catherine’s and it has greatly improved my ability to understand subject material, to be able to produce well educated opinions and to allow my thinking to be both creative and critical. Chavis discusses how spontaneity or creative thinking and ogic or critical thinking goes hand and hand. She used a visual of overlapping circles to show how the subjects can be linked and promote creativity with language. Chavis challenges the viewers to write about their shoes. I had fun describing the color, texture, design and comfort of my shoes. She then adds more criteria, telling us to talk about where our shoes have taken us. I loved this writing. I usually h ave difficult time thinking about what to write but I found that literally describing my shoe led to giving it personality. Once my shoe had personality my writing turned into a story of a journey through the perspective of my shoes. Everyone knows shoes don’t think or have feelings, but they do all have a story and it was fun to dive into what that story might be. Chavis then read a poem called Poison Tree by William Blake. The poem describes anger as though it was a tree. The author water his tree with more built up anger until it grows with in him until it becomes self-destructive. She then played a song that was inspired by the poem she had just read bringing new light onto the meaning of the poem. I found it interesting how I was able to connect with the meaning of the poem more through the musical version verses the poem. I think many people can relate to this poem. We are often more likely to express our emotions with those we love. Getting issues off our chest, so to speak, allows us to move on. But deep rooted anger that is not released only grows until it becomes self-destructive or explosive into something far darker than the issue itself. I enjoyed the Core Convocation. I don’t think I realized the â€Å"links† between the topic and my life until I put my thoughts into this reflection paper. I would have liked to have driven deeper into some of the topics Chavis was discussing. I felt we only scratched the surface of many ideas. Once one is able to make connections between multiple ideas it was kind of fun to try and find more. Although, I still find expressing my thoughts through writing Chavis’s exercises helped me to allow creativity to flow, especially the shoe exercise. I wish I had someone there to help me do that all the time. Writing would be much more fun and less of a chore for me.

GPA, SAT, and ACT Admissions Data for the Ivy League

GPA, SAT, and ACT Admissions Data for the Ivy League The eight Ivy League schools are among the most selective colleges in the country. This doesnt mean that you need a 4.0 GPA and 1600 on the SAT to get in (although it doesnt hurt). All the Ivy League schools have holistic admissions, so they are looking for students who will contribute more than good grades and test scores to the campus community. A winning Ivy League application needs to present a strong academic record, meaningful extracurricular activities, glowing letters of recommendation, and a compelling application essay. Your college interview and demonstrated interest may also help, and legacy status can give you an advantage. When it comes to the empirical part of your application, you will need good grades and standardized test scores to get accepted to an Ivy League school. All of the Ivies accept both the ACT and SAT, so choose the exam that works best for you. But how high do your grades and test scores need to be? Follow the links below to learn more about each Ivy League school, and to see admissions data for accepted, rejected, and waitlisted applicants: Brown University Located in Providence, Rhode Island, Brown is the second smallest of the Ivies, and the school has more of an undergraduate focus than universities such as Harvard and Yale. Their acceptance rate is only 9 percent. The great majority of students who get into Brown University have a nearly perfect 4.0 GPA, an ACT composite score above 25, and a combined SAT score (RWM) of above 1200. Columbia University Located in Upper Manhattan, Columbia University can be an excellent choice for students looking for an urban college experience. Columbia is also one of the largest of the Ivies, and it has a close relationship with neighboring Barnard College. It has a very low acceptance rate of around 7 percent. Students accepted at Columbia have GPAs in the A range, SAT scores (RWM) above 1200, and ACT composite scores above 25. Cornell University Cornells hillside location in Ithaca, New York, gives it stunning views of Cayuga Lake. The university has one of the top engineering and top hotel management programs in the country. It also has the largest undergraduate populations of all the Ivy League schools. It has an acceptance rate of about 15 percent. Most students accepted at Cornell have a GPA in the A range,  Ã‚  SAT scores (RWM) above 1200 and ACT composite scores above 25. Dartmouth College If you want a quintessential college town with its central green, nice restaurants, cafà ©s, and bookstores, Dartmouths home of Hanover, New Hampshire, should be appealing. Dartmouth is the smallest of the Ivies, but dont be fooled by its name: it is a comprehensive university, not a college. Dartmouth has a low acceptance rate of 11 percent. To be accepted, students tend to have A averages, an ACT composite score above 25, and a combined SAT score (RWM) of above 1250.   Harvard University Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with dozens of other colleges and universities nearby, Harvard University is the most selective of the Ivy League Schools as well as the most selective university in the country. Its acceptance rate is just 5 percent. For the best chance of acceptance, you should have an A average, SAT scores (RWM) over 1300, and ACT composite scores above 28. Princeton University Princetons campus in New Jersey makes both New York City and Philadelphia an easy day trip. Like Dartmouth, Princeton is on the smaller side and has more of an undergraduate focus than many of the Ivies. Princeton accepts only 7 percent of applicants. To be accepted, you should have a GPA of 4.0, SAT scores (RWM) above 1250, and ACT composite scores above 25. University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania is one of the larger Ivy League schools, and it has a roughly equal population of undergraduate and graduate students. Its campus in West Philadelphia is just a short walk to Center City. Penns Wharton School is one of the top business schools in the country. They accept about 10 percent of applicants. To be accepted, you should have a GPA of 3.7 or higher,  a combined SAT score (RWM) of over 1200, and an ACT composite of 24 or higher. Yale University Yale is close to Harvard and Stanford with its painfully low acceptance rate. Located in New Haven, Connecticut, Yale also has an even larger endowment than Harvard when measured in relation to enrollment numbers. Yales acceptance rate is just 7 percent. For the best chance of acceptance, you need a 4.0 GPA, SAT score (RWM) above 1250, and an ACT composite score above 25. A Final Word All of the Ivies are highly selective, and you should always consider them to be reach schools as you come up with your short list of schools to which you will apply. Thousands of extremely well-qualified applicants are rejected by the Ivies every year.

The Odyssey, by Homer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Odyssey, by Homer - Essay Example This is certainly something Telemachus would do later on in the story when he would help Odysseus not only defeat the suitors but also show himself to be a good son. The irony in the passage comes across quite clearly when we realize that Achilles was indeed the mightiest of warriors and essentially had god like qualities of strength and bravery. However, in death he is little more than a weak spirit who is helpless to assist his father or even to know how his son is doing. The finality of death and of losing your abilities which you had once is an allusion to how mortality is perhaps is the ultimate answer to hubris as all living humans, regardless of their strength, abilities or heroics, must die. The external connections of this passage are varied and many since they not only describe the parentage of Achilles, they also discuss his progeny. Achilles is noted by Odysseus to have been quite a hero who was revered as much as the gods themselves. The passage also reminds us that Odysseus has not yet reached home which is the seemingly never-ending quest he is engaged in. Rugged Ithaca eludes him as much as the news about the son of Achilles eludes Achilles. Thus the passage certainly refers to earlier parts of the same tale while pushing the idea that Achilles is an important character in some other story. That story of course is the Iliad which is a part of the greater tale of the Battle of Troy itself. It also shows the great respect that Odysseus had for Achilles since even after his death Odysseus considers Achilles to be a prince amongst the dead. The most moving element of the entire passage is that even though Achilles is dead, he does not want to be so since he has lost all that he had and the realm of the dead has nothing to offer him. Moreover, his lack of information about his lordly son and even his dear father certainly troubles him since he does not know if his father has managed to keep a hold of the empire he had or if he has lost it

How Should I Judge the Goodness of My Actions Essay

How Should I Judge the Goodness of My Actions - Essay Example Mills contends that individuals who have experienced the two pleasures have a higher preference to how they exist, using higher faculties. He implies that people with more awareness to the world need more for them to be happy. Those who are knowledgeable, while subject to ignorance in enjoying base pleasures, maintain withstanding lower grades of pleasure. Finally, as people, we act in specific ways in order to meet out desires and the decisions made are governed, somewhat, by sanctions. Two types of sanctions exist, i.e. internal and external. External sanctions are outside of the person and are inclusive of such means as the influence from other people; for example, the approval, and disapproval of other people to our actions (Kahn, 2010). It can also be from ideas like the fear of God and punishment from God for acting contrary to his word. Internal sanctions, on the other hand, are equivalent to one’s conscience. These are the inner thoughts resonating in one’s mind with regards to actions or ideas. Internal sanctions have a greater influence since the mind has a consistent presence in one’s lifetime. ... Those who help others in order to be happy do so out of an effort to get personal benefits and not for duty alone. Therefore, firstly, motivation for this type of good will needs to be duty bound and not for the manner in which it makes one feel when showing generosity. Duty’s second characteristic contends that true duty must not be performed with calculated effect (Munzel, 2012). This means that if an individual decides to donate boreholes to a community in Africa he would not desire to get a tax deduction for it. Duty also requires one to act out of respect for morality, where humanity should behave according to duty and its properties, rather than for the self-serving outcome or motivation. Action, therefore, is only taken to be good if its reasoning does not contradict itself and makes sense. Kant is emphatic of this when he discusses lying, questioning whether he would be contented if his lying maxim were a universal law to him and to others (Munzel, 2012). On examining the idea, universal application of lying, would fail with all people practicing and expecting lies. Therefore, reasons governing actions can also be referred to as imperatives. He separates exteriorly motivated duties and pure duty by referring to them as hypothetical and categorical imperatives respectively. Categorical imperatives are concerned with the principle an action follows, unlike hypothetical imperatives. The debate between the two is whether an individual’s sense of duty is compromised by consequential appeal, i.e. where murdering an individual is to the benefit of other many people, is the killing justified? Kant would hold that killing is not permissible in any situation even where the person is a dictator who oppresses and kill

Strategic Objectives of Operations Management Case Study

Strategic Objectives of Operations Management Case Study 1) Evaluate the strategic objectives of operations management within the organisation Effective operations management is directly related to overall organisational objectives, if operations within the organisation are not implemented properly, it will affect the profitability of the organisation in longer terms. Therefore, in order to achieve these objectives the need for operations management arises in order to professional mangers. These managers have the expertise in their related fields such as marketing, finance and human resource etc. Operations Management relates to the production of goods and services within the organisation. It deals with the inputs and outputs that are vital for the effective operational management. Here, input refers to the managements of the recourses such as competence of the employees, machinery and raw material, and output is mainly focused on distribution of goods and services of finished goods to the customers (Gyte, 2009). Apart from input and output, there are other functions that are listed below: Quality management function Management control and Coordinating function Facilities management function Inventory control and management function Research and development function Finance function The better coordination among these function will improve the control within the organisation and ultimately resulting in organisational. In order to prove how these functions can help an organisation to achieve its strategic objectives, the researcher has chosen the Jindal Stainless Ltd (JSL). However, it is to remember that these functions will be similar to any other manufacturing company. JSL is deals in manufacturing of stainless steel products of different ranges. Therefore, the coordination of above mentioned functions becomes vital (JSL, 2009). These functions are discussed in detail in relation to the JSL. In operations management quality management is imperative in every organization. Company like JSL, always concentrates on customers needs, which is directly related to product development. They understand the importance of maintain the standards as for as the quality of the product is concerned, which in turn help them to hold on to their customers. It will also improve the market share and will also be less attractive to new entrants. Continuous efforts to improve the quality of their product are the main reason that JSL is still growing even in current economic crises. Their continuous investment in research and development projects is also seen as the main reason for their success. Other factors such as internal auditing (benchmarking) and reengineering are also key drivers for their leadership in the market. Internal audit function helps the organizations to identify the flaws and weaknesses in different departments and suggests different ways that ultimately increase their custo mer base in the market (JSL, 2009). Management control (MC) is also very important function that has helped the JSL to achieve their strategic objectives. There are broad range of activities involved MC that ensures that organizational objectives are implemented in efficient and effective way. Under this function an organization always tries to figure out if it actually following and implementing the activities that were decided when original objectives were laid out. For example, JSL always implement those strategies that which are focused on customers. They are always concerned how the products will reach to the customers; therefore they have implemented the national level distribution systems in India. This type of strategy has helped the JSL to achieve their organizational objectives (JSL, 2009). For JSL facilities management is also important in order to achieve the overall objectives. In facilities management, companies heavily rely on the better management of the facilities such as building, computer, signage, lighting and plant and machinery. Facilities management is very important to the JSL, which operates at national level in India, as mentioned earlier. This is because company is involved in the large scale production in relation to market demand. If there is high demand of steel products in the market, then it will be equally important that facilities should be provided keeping in mind the level of demand. On the other hand, if there is less demand in the market then facilities needs to be managed otherwise it may result in high cost to the organization, which will ultimately affect the profitability of the company (JSL, 2009). Marketing or advertisement function is also equally important in current technological world. This helps the companies to reach to the customers quickly and make them aware of latest developments in different products, and make them aware of any new ranges that are introduced followed by the customer demand. The similar strategy is adopted by the JSL in order to ensure its product and services (output) are in the reaching out to the customers in each and every single part of the country. This in turn helps them to achieve their overall objectives and maintain the level of profitability (JSL, 2009). In operations management inventory control is also equally important like any other function that contributes to the achievements of the organizational goals. There should always be control over inventory and procurement department plays the key role in this. In manufacturing company like JSL, the presence of procurement department is vital. If there is more production and less demand then it is highly likely that all the steel products produced will be sold. On the other hand, if there is high demand and less production, this will ultimately affect the profitability of JSL in longer terms and company may loose its customers. This will also increase the chances of competitors to gain the market share (JSL, 2009). Another important function can said to be finance, which helps the company to have the control or manage its finance. JSL is involved in manufacturing business, which requires heavy capital investment. It is important to mange these investments in an efficient manner. Over the years it is seen that companies are employing professional managers those who have expertise in the financial sector. Overall, it can ne said that operations management is embedded in each and every part of the organization, hence important for the achievement of the organizational objectives. References Gyte, (2009), Operations management (Online) www.gyte.edu.tr/dersler/546/ISL536/ÃÅ"retim%201.ppt (Accessed on 09/12/2009) JSL, (2009), Company Profile, (Online) http://www.jindalstainless.com/profile.html (Accessed on 09/12/2009) ASKS 2-A ETOLA 10573 Define resources tools and system required to support business process Introduction Due to globalization, the market become more competitive, now a days the range of new tools are available in the market. To achieve a marginal development business need to develop its business process. The business process management help organization to improve productivity and recognize the value chain to gaining competitive parameters. The business needs a solution of all kind of hype. On the other hand, fear of making a selection that may result in a failure to meet strategic goals or achieve adequate return on investment can cause delays in making the decision to adopt a Business Process tool and, by omission, result in the same problems. Define business process The further step to identify the business strategy is to One step is to identifying the business process strategy is to classify the main business processes which support the business value chain. The current business trend required a long term development planning to achieve a good, but it is possible when business have good business strategy and this strategy is Business Process Management, to achieve overall business objectives this process play an important role. Revolutionary changes To remain stable in the market, it is very imperative to make revolutionary changes by maintaining relationship between technology and current business scenario. If we glance over the real business situation over the last decade, there are huge revolutionary changes has occurred. The technology has changed and due to market competition the quality improvement plays an important role. And to fulfil these objectives there should be a overall contribution of all department. Departments in an organization play key role in meeting overall objectives To achieve organizational goals, all departments play important role like; Human Resource, Finance, Marketing, Production and Quality Control, and IT etc. In this globalization era, it is necessary to maintain clear objective and role to meet organizational goal. All above depart are run by the employee and so the employees are the main capital of the organization because the success and failure of the company is depend on the employees because the command of the all department is in the hand of the employee. Tools and System to manage business recourses To mange a better work system it is essential to establish a better technological tools and system. Now a days there are many technical tools are using in the organization to work smoother. Recently the new ERP established in organization, by help of this system you can operate all of your business function easily like., purchase, sales, time keeping HR outsourcing, and security Management. There are different types of tools to run your business as under: Management Information system Integrated information systems Executive information system Corporate information system Enterprise wide system Material resource planning Manufacturing resource planning Money resource planning Conclusion: The growing information needs of an enterprise make it imperative to improve or replace old system, where the globalization has been initiated, full convertibility is coined, Infrastructure Projects are nearing completion, and it is expected that the whole business system will undergo a major shift. Gain the performance improvements offered by a service-oriented architecture. Enhance operations by combining new and existing information assets and making them available to users throughout the enterprise, and for combination with other resources to meet new challenges. References http://www.bpminstitute.org/articles/article/article/define-your-bpm-strategy-before-selecting-a-tool.html http://www.erpfans.com/erpfans/erpca.htm Task-2-b ETOLA-10573 Define and implement quality audit systems/practice to manage and monitor quality to standards specified by the organization and process operated. Introduction: Quality audit is an important part of an organization to examine a product quality. It is a process of systematic examination of a quality to maintain good quality, because it is a key element to get international quality standard. Quality audits are typically performed at predefined time intervals and ensure that the organization has clearly-defined internal quality monitoring procedures linked to effective action. This can help determine if the organization complies with the defined quality system processes and can involve procedural or results-based assessment criteria. Audits can also be used for safety purposes. Quality Audit can save organizations from quality disasters. The goal of this article is to provide brief information regarding quality audit and it is importance in continuous improvement of any quality system. Audit System: In 2008, our audit volume declined by 19 percent compared to 2007. Wal-Marts ethical standards group and third-party audit firms conducted 11,502 audits in more than 7,000 supplier factories. Of the audited factories, approximately 5,000 produced merchandise for our direct import program, and 2,000 produced domestically-sourced merchandise. In 2008, we accepted more than 1,000 audits from the ICTI and ILO. We attribute the decline in overall audits in part to the change in the programs frequency of audits. Additionally, the factory base across many regions has been negatively impacted by the unfavourable global economic conditions, thus leading to factory closures. Quality Audit Standard of Wall-Marts: Advancing our commitments In Wall-Marts they work with their supplier to help them to achieve new goals, they give their review and feedback to their supplier when necessary. Third-party auditors Third-party auditors will undergo thorough, independent assessments of their performance and work product quality. Third parties will be required to obtain and maintain certification to established industry standards. Improving the efficiency of our audit program Wall-marts is a member of the Clearinghouse (FFC) that enables us to share data among a group of global brands and retailers. Company also have developed a plan to accept high quality and fully establish audits from their peer companies. Company have created a program to evaluate and accept the audit conducted third party group. New requirements The company is improving their supply chain transparency by requiring all main manufacturers of direct import, non-branded and private label goods to reveal their factories and subcontractors company. A supplier development team To achieve high standard supplying the company have developed a supply team, this team is specialized to support the suppliers and their factories by activities such as root cause analysis. A special audit team This team member is responsible to validating audit results created by the quality department and third-party audit firm, after this result if any ethical standards issues arise they audit them and make investigation on it. Conclusion: Quality and knowledge management initiatives can be complementary rather than competing strategies. Continuous process improvement systems work well in controlled and ordered environments focusing on the performance of well-defined and repeatable tasks. Knowledge processing is context dependent and complex the activities of thinking and learning. Cause and effect are discovered in retrospective analysis. References http://walmartstores.com/sites/sustainabilityreport/2009/s_rs_auditProgramResults.html http://www.kppub.com/articles/may2009/quality_audit_a_tool_to_review.html Task 2c ETOLA-10573E Embed a quality culture to ensure continuous monitoring and development of the process Introduction The methodological approach to quality was born at the time of the industrial Revolution, with natural resources being transformed into products having comparable features. The concept of quality is at the basis of competition: products offering similar features distinguish themselves on the basis of how well their features were developed and of how much they are appreciated by the public. Speaking about the quality of an intangible product or service implies substantial differences, as well as different organization and monitoring methodologies. The concept of quality, somehow intuitive in itself, is actually something strictly connected to the service received and the relating client satisfaction. Definition Quality culture is a long-term, extended methodological approach involving all the bodies in charge of delivering a service, with the purpose to attain the highest possible customer satisfaction. Hear in this topic we will summaries how does Wal-marts monitoring the process and develop the quality culture. Wal-marts Culture The corporate quality culture of Wal-Mart is one of the biggest contributing factors that make it one of the worlds most admired companies. When Sam Walton founded the company, he instilled in his people and his business a belief system that is still very much in place today. From the three basic beliefs to the sundown rule, we respect our customers, Associates and suppliers and strive to treat them as we ourselves want to be treated. In building and nurturing these relationships, as well as serving the communities where we live, weve helped build a better business-one committed to excellence. Monitoring and development of Quality Culture In Wall-marts they continuously monitoring their internal process of their quality and after monitoring the process, they develop the policy to gain business goal. From the three basic beliefs to the sundown rule, we respect our customers, Associates and suppliers and strive to treat them as we ourselves want to be treated. In building and nurturing these relationships, as well as serving the communities where we live, weve helped build a better business-one committed to excellence. Conclusion As we have reviewed and studied the quality culture, and the challenges and successes at Wal-Mart, However, it is surprising to find that many organizations though acknowledging the pressure that corporate culture exerts on an organizations profit and loss figures do not more than document their quality culture in paper only and lock them away in files that are never read. So, it is very important for any organization to monitoring the quality culture and develops them to achieve the success. References: http://www.careerbuilder.com/Jobs/Company/C7H3TS6Y32JND3GZW88/Wal-Mart-Stores-Inc-Corporate/?cbsid=ca014d79eaf249a7acd25c7eebb99c0d-313812029-J5-5ns_siteid=ns_uk_g_The_corporate_quality_cbRecursionCnt=1 Task-III-Group assignment ETOLA-10573 McDonalds The McDonalds concept was introduced in Southern California by Dick and Mac McDonald of Manchester, New Hampshire in 1940. It was modified and expanded by their business partner, Ray Kroc, who later bought out the business interests of the McDonalds brothers in the concept and went on to found McDonalds Corporation. It has more than 31000 restaurants in more than 119 countries and serves 47 million customers each day. It has more than 1.5 million employees Its headquarter is at Oak Brook, Illinois, USA. Each McDonalds restaurant is operated by a franchisee, an affiliate, or the corporation itself. The corporations revenues come from the rent, royalties and fees paid by the franchisees, as well as sales in company operated restaurants. McDonalds revenues grew 27% over the three years ending in 2007 to $22.8 billion, and 9% growth in operating income to $3.9 billion. PARTICIPATIONS Group viii Question number 3.a and 3.b is completed by: Dhaval B. Kanojiya (Leader) Yogita P. Kapadia Chinmay A. Chauhan Question number 3.c and 3.d is completed by: Sanjay Kumar Paul MD Humayun Rashid Baldev M. Bhetariya Task 19.3.a: Monitor systems, work activities, and identify problems and opportunities for improvement. McDonalds system: To make the profit in the organization McDonalds uses the franchise system. McDonalds gives its franchise to other companies for the expansion of their business. The following diagram is about the introduction of the working environment of the McDonalds. McDonalds working environment: Figure no.3.a.1 McDonalds Working Culture: McDonalds offers different kind of work and position to its each and every employee. The following positions are given to the employers by the McDonalds. 1) Main Manager: The manager has to run the company and it is his responsibility to expand its business in the market and also to make the company more profitable. Manager decides about the increment of the employer, gives permission for leave and also about the strategy of the company. 2)Shift Manager: The Shift manager has to take care about a particular shift which is been given to him. He or She has to look after man force and food .One has to train the new employees as well. 3) Customer assistance: The customer assistance has to deal with customers about taking orders and solving their problems. 4) Crew member: The crew member has to deal with many activities like cleaning, preparing food, set up all the food items to the storage, changing menu daily, etc. Problems: McDonalds provides many facilities to their customers. It provides counter and drive-thru service to the customers. Even after good services to the customers there are some problems that McDonalds or the customers facing. Parking is the main problem for McDonalds. Customers have to wait sometimes if there is any queue in drive-thru. Managers in the McDonalds keep minimum man force. So when it gets busy, People working in it faces lots of workload. Kitchen area in it is very small. They take maximum work in minimum wages and they do not provide extra wages on holidays. So employees feel exploited sometimes. Minimum Chances for promotion. Though there are some problems there are chances for improvement. So in my opinion here are some points which might be useful as sources for improvement. Customer reviews should be analysed on regular basis. They should provide extra space for parking. They should learn lessons from the past. Rewarding system should be improved. They should also consider the complaints of employees and stakeholders and must try to resolve them. Open suggestion meeting or sort of suggestion box should be there and after regular time period they should go through all the suggestions and accept those who are useful. Task 19.3.b: Recommend improvements which align with the organisations objectives and goals and which result in a reduction in the variation between what customers and other stakeholders want and what products, processes and services deliver. Shareholders: Ø Shareholders have invested in McDonalds to increase the value of their investment. So if McDonalds does not give them profit, they could take their money back from company or remove their financial support. They can sell their part of shares or properties held in the company. Customers: Ø Customers can invest in the company by buying the product of that company. So if they are dissatisfied with their product they can ask for refund or can go anywhere else where the same product is present from the next time. Even more than that they could influence their other customers by word of mouth. In my opinion there are some points that I want to discuss that might be acceptable. They should provide good wages to their employees as per level of experience and qualification. For the progress of McDonalds every employee must be keep in mind that they have to work better to get more customers satisfied. Every employee should work in a team so each one contributes into progress of the company. They should also provide some funds to their different franchises as required so they can also give their contribution into reaching companys overall goal. Any appropriate suggestion from any stakeholder should be considered seriously and should be discussed in a meeting. Working environment should be warm and friendly that every employee would feel like a family. It gives more mental support to them. Product development with minimum cost and resources will increase profit for investors and provide good value for money to consumers. Operationally efficient organisations examine and improve processes, always in the context of what they are seeking to achieve for their customers and stakeholders. Company should achieve all its goals within time frame with optimum utilization of resources to attract more shareholders to invest their money. Managers in the company should focus on short term profit than long term growth to avoid risk involved in it. However, as observed by Post, Preston, and Sachs: Organizational wealth can be created (or destroyed) through relationships with stakeholders of all kind resource providers, customers and suppliers, social and political actors. Therefore, effective stakeholder management that is, managing relationships with stakeholders for mutual benefit is a critical requirement for corporate success. Task 19.3.c Evaluate the wider implication of proposed change within the organization. In todays workspace the change has become modus operandi to success. Now the rate of change in business prospectuses is accelerate more than ever. Accepting of Change can be rated easy to difficult. Change can be related with marketing, finance, production. Here are some principles that use to develop business pattern. Challenge yourself: One should try new things if it is possible each day. In short you should start adopting new things as they come. Practice constructive discontent: one should think about himself and the organization that how could I improve? How could my organization improve? Having attitude of thinking different way is always helpful. So for better change one should work integrally. Be adventures: Always challenge the challenge. Try to create new ideas and try to adopt them. Let other try it and also involve them in it. Set high targets and make all your efforts to get it. Always be open to suggestions: one should take suggestions and feedback from the members whose working in the organization as well as from customers. Change always takes time so contributing into the process will decrease the time for improvement. Be patience: Change in any process may take time, so one should learn to wait things to get happened. The change has to be process with its proper way and it needs to be time for work in organizational manner. Ø These are the steps forchanges within the McDonald. McDonald should give their franchise at low price to small countries considering low profit in the mind. McDonald should increase its franchise restaurants to earn more profit. McDonald should provide garden for sitting facility. There should be a specific person who handles the stock at store. There should be an internet facility or Wi-Fi facility and children play station. McDonald should start its free home delivery facility. Open suggestion box should be there so that exchanging idea can make organization better. Space is the major problem for McDonalds. So they should spend some more money on that and by doing this they can increase their asset. But from that work load for employees will be increased. Task 19.3.d Develop the implementation plan and evaluate the results expected after the implementations of your approved solution from third question. Momentous organizational change occurs, for example, when an organization changes its overall policy for success, adds or removes a major section or practice, and/or wants to change the very nature by which it operates. For organizations to develop, they often must undergo significant change at various points in their development. Now in this case from the third question answer we can conclude some following point to develop the implementation plan. In terms of company franchises, they can not give franchises to all small country but they can give by considering some criteria, they have to focus on community and culture, apart form this they can change some verity of product to cover the more customer. Macdonalds have some own policy about their store but they need to change their policy while they give franchises in small countries. If we talk about generating revenue, this is the main goal of every organization but, profit is not only a main aim hear for McDonalds. By increasing franchises they can make more profit but they have to keep quality and expenses in mind. MacDonalds can make more profit not giving more franchises but they can make cost cutting to increase the profit. In MacDonalds they have huge customer rush on week ends and some occasion, at that time customer faces the sitting problem so to cope up with this problem, they can arrange some facilities for waiting customer, moreover, they have to keep for extra berth facilities so they can arrange more sitting when required. The garden facilities can be very expensive to hire that much space in city area so this concept can be worst. Stoke taking is the important function of organization to know the real trading of the business. In MacDonalds to taking their stoke they can use some software like., SAP,ERP all these software have wide features which can take automatic stoke taking and order processing, they can also link their shop with main delivery shop to order the product by auto reminder facilities. Apart from this send all stoke data to head office from one country to another country any time and any day. Implement plans: after making proper changes, it is very important to do implementation. Management have to make proper planning about how to implement the system properly. In McDonalds while implementing the change, everyone should know their role and also they should know what is going on in the organization. Managing the work force and reaction of people is also part of the plan. Following are the advantages and disadvantages of McDonalds operation Management. Advantages: At least 21.5% of all franchises sales and profit goes to the company which are with McDonalds. 12% for rent of the restaurant and brand name, 5% for use of the McDonalds system (consultants, workers inside the corporation) and 4.5 % for the national marketing spend. So profit will increase. Gardens will be used by customers if there is a long queue or waiting for the food. Children can play in the children play area without disturbing the other customers. Stoke manager will keep eye on stock so no food would be wasted. Everyone could access the internet facility by Wi-Fi in the restaurant. Medium class people can also afford their food on daily basis. People can order the food at home. Disadvantages: Shortage of staff for home delivery They have to spend extra money for space for garden and its maintenance. Area of restaurant should increase for child area. References: Information about McDonalds www.aboutmcdonald.com www.mcdonald.co.uk www.bized.com/company Ø information for improvement can be found in Bradach, J. (1998), Franchise Organizations, Harvard Business Press, Boston, MA Ø Information on stakeholders can be found on Jones, G. R. (2007). Organizational Theory, Design, and Change (5th ed.), Lesson Plan of Chapter 2 New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc. Ø Info on implementation of change can be found on www.authenticityconsulting.com , Authenticity Consulting, LLC Ø Information about successful organizational change can be found on http://www.knowhownonprofit.org/leadership/change/fivesteps

Cosmic Creations Myths Across Culture Essay

Many Christians have a very vague idea about the collection of the Old- Testament. The Old-Testament books are stories of the most famous myths. The Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) is a book of Hebrew text, assemble by Jewish scholars of the seventh to tenth centuries A. D. It also contains two stories of creation. In addition, the book of Genesis is known as the book of creation of humankind. The book is also believes to be written during the reign of King Solomon and known as possessing two authors. The first story of creation states that, â€Å"In the beginning God creates the heaven and the earth. Genesis 1:1 – 2:4, is the story of creation in six days and resting on the seventh. The emphasis of this story is the creation of order out of chaos. The second author speaks of the creator of humankind, â€Å"Yaweh. † This story focuses more on human temptation and punishment. The creator, Yahweh made the heavens and the earth. It is said that Yahweh took dust from the moist land and shapes it into the shape of man. He breathes the breath of life into man and he comes to life. Yahweh is the creator of all things from the Garden of Eden, to the rivers that flow from the four corners of the world. He is also the creator of the Garden of Eden, the tree of life, and the tree knowledge of good/evil. One day after watching man, he decides that man should have a help-mate. He causes man to fall into a deep sleep and remove one of his ribs, creating woman. The man was Adam (earth or clay) and the woman name was Eve (life). The myth goes on to state how Adam and Eve eats the apple from the tree of knowledge after the serpent deceives them. In addition, eating the apple opens their eyes to the knowledge of good and evil. They are then ban from the Garden of Eden. Yahweh curses the serpent, Adam, and Eve. He places a half-human, half-lion creature with wings at the gates to keep them out. The emphasis of this story, generally agrees to be the older story of the two, is on the development of the problem of evil and what its origins are. Another recognizes the division of the two accounts; the first gives details accountable for the whole creation whereas the second one is focuses on the creation of man. The world consists of many myths like the universal flood. The universal flood, from the book Genesis: Chapter six-eight, is a world- wide historical myth. The Book of Genesis, believe to be written by Moses, is an interesting myth. The Old-Testament states that the earths receives rain for 40 days and 40 night to exterminate all of mankind. Liberal Christians believe the legendary Noah’s flood is just a spiritual myth. However, the Conservative Christians, believe the book of Genesis was written by Moses under the inspiration of God. Interpretations of the ark, plays an important role in early Christian doctrine. They believe the worldwide flood happens just as Moses records it. That God gives Noah instructions for building the ark: it is to be of gopher wood with the inside and out with pitch. There were three decks, one door (in the side) and a window 18 inches high probably running around the top of the vessel under the roof. It was about 450-feet, long by 75-feet in beam, and 45- high. The creation of the ark is to protect those who would reproduce the earth. The supernatural myth is that all humans and animals will be extent, except for those who made it to safety on the ark: two or seven animals of each â€Å"kind,† and Noah, his wife, and family. The universal flood was the largest genocide in history, involving the extermination of all almost every man, woman, youth, child, infant, and newborn. Christians believe God intentionally triggers the physical processes that would lead to the extermination of all of the land animals and all but eight humans in the flood because of humanity’s sinful behavior. Typically liberal Christians of the Old-Testament, Noachian, Babylonian, and hundreds of other believe a myth. There are many links in some ways of the Old-Testament and the Babylonians historic flood. There is no source of sufficient water to produce a worldwide flood that covered the highest mountains. Even if it did happen, there is no place to which the flood waters could subside. Genesis was written over an interval of many centuries by at least five author/editors. The universal flood story was derives from an earlier Babylonian myth by two of these authors. The Genesis flood myth is obviously base on an earlier Babylonian myth; there are many correspondences between the two legends. The Babylonian myth appears as an earlier legend that in turn, bases memories of the Black Sea catastrophe. The â€Å"Epic of Creation,† of the Babylonian, also known as Enuma Elish, dates to the second millennium B. C. Before anything had a name there was Aspu (sweet water) and Tiamet (salt –water). With the creation between the two they begot Lahmu and Lahamu. With the joining of the gods create Ansha, Kishar, and Anu. As the creation proceeds through generations, there is creation of Ea and his brothers. Ea and his brothers cause disruptions and Aspu becomes furious. He plots with gods of the first generation to slew Ea and his brothers. However, Ea hears of the plot and kills Aspu first. Tiamet hearing of her husband death sends out an army of creatures she creates. She creates the Kingu, a leader for the creatures, to avenge Aspu death. Ea, however; has a plan of his own. The myth states that Ea and Damkina create Marduk (Assur) to defend divine beings from the attack of Tiamet, the ocean goddess. Marduk propositions the gods and ensures their safety only if he becomes their supreme leader and forever. The gods agree that he would be their leader even after the treats pass. After agreeing to the terms Marduk slew Tiamet by ripping her body into two halves. These two halves became the earth and the sky. After the death of Tiamet the gods and Marduk in agreement and the creation of Babylon begin. Marduk creates the planets, stars, coordinate the moon, sun, and the -whether. In addition, Marduk becomes the sun. He decides to relieve the gods of external labor by creating mankind. It is said he creates bones (from the monsters he slew), cover them with flesh and breaths the breath of life forever freeing gods work. In conclusion, many parallels with the Genesis, accounts for that some historians concluding that Genesis account was simply a rewriting of the Babylonian story. As a reaction, many who wants to maintain the uniqueness of the Bible, argues either that there is no real parallels between the two accounts or that the Genesis narratives are written first and the Babylonian myth copies the biblical account.