Compensation and Benefits Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Compensation and Benefits - Essay Example It wanted to be recognized as one of the finest places to work. To actualize that vision and mission, Nike implemented an incentive program in correlation with the mission. In any organizations including Nike, the workers do their duties for personal motivations like money (salary), but their motivation will get a great boost if they receive additional financial rewards, promotions and recognitions. When the reward component is analyzed from the perspective of organization's mission, it does somewhat supports Nike's mission. That is, Nike's mission is "To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world" (Nike Business, n.d.). Even though, this mission is customer centric, to achieve that mission the employees have to work effectively. To make the employee at Nike work effectively, the incentive program plays an important role. The incentive program implemented inside Nike perfectly fits with its resources. That is why, Nike has introduced an incentive program called Performance Sharing Plan, which correlates with the company's performance. "Performance Sharing Plan (PSP) - Nike has an annual bonus plan that rewards employees based on Nik e's performance (to reward team success) and individual performance (to reward your contributions to that success)." (The New York Job Source, 2008). As the program rewards the workers who perform up to the expected level, it meets the expectations of the employees. Importantly, this incentive program is fully attracting and retaining the employees. That is, Nike by rewarding and giving incentives to the deserving and 'success achieved' employees through this program and other programs is making them stick to the organization. This system is very flexible because it changes according to the performance of Nike. That is, if the employees perform optimally and raise organizational productivity and profits, they will be rewarded optimally. As this program is applicable to all types of employees, it cannot be tailor made for specific workers. On the whole, this incentive program functions as one of the main motivating factors for the employees, making them stick to the organization and thereby helped Nike reach the status of the world's number one maker of athletic shoes, equipment and apparel. When organizations fail to reward the employees appropriately, it could wean way the workers from the group decision making process and the resultant work teams. That is, some times or even frequently, the management overriding tried and trusted individuals could give important posts and responsibilities to individuals with negative attributes. If this practice is followed in the organisation, it will create disenchantment among the workers and will destroy team work. This ritual of awarding plum posts, rewards, incentives, etc, to the inappropriate members by the leader or the management team is not a norm in Nike. Nike rewards the employees in an unbiased manner. As mentioned above even this main incentive program of Performance Sharing Plan is applicable to all performing employees. Because of this strategy, workers in Nike are not banding together in a kind of mutual pr otection society with a culture of its own, but unite as work teams and are working in unison for the organizations. Unison of workers into teams with an urge to usher an organization into a successful endeavor will actualize, if the

Country Risk Premium Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Country Risk Premium - Essay Example The risk models that are often utilized for corporate financial valuation, it is essential to undertake the ultimate estimation with regards to the risk and return premiums for the average investments termed as equity or market risk premium. It is hence vital for validating the Capital AssetsPricing Model, since it is currently considered as the most utilized both in the practical and theoretical analysis.The research shows that; investors often have to make some cognitive strategies on the verge of investing in emerging countries. This is due to the fact that undertaking huge investments in emerging countries such as Latin America countries, Asia and South East Europe, among others is considered as being riskier than doing so in developed markets such as that of Japan, Western Europe, and the USA. Certainly, the investments returns are also a little bit lower in the developed markets as compared to that of the emerging markets. The estimates of the much-needed return rates based on the developed markets scenario is mostly done with the Capital Assets Pricing Model. The practical weaknesses of this perspective are greatly recognized although there is a wide acceptance of its theoretical fundamentals. In the case of the emerging markets, it is often deemed as being more challenging to assess the return rates. The country risk should usually be rewarded with the country risk premium based on the required return rate with regards to an equivalent rate of investment in the developed countries.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte - Essay Example he sense of self worth of Jane Eyre is challenged right from the start of the novel, and yet she indeed manages to come out as a person having an intact and solid sense of self esteem and dignity. Being an orphan, Jane Eyre is continually marred by feelings of ostracism and insufficiency, as she is cruelly targeted and emotionally mauled by her aunt Reed and her not so sensitive progeny. At a very nascent stage in her life, Jane Eyre is made to contend with a domestic environment that continually conveys to her that she is deficient and unacceptable. Yet, irrespective of her constrained upbringing, Jane Eyre does manage to grow out of these emotionally impinging influences. During her stay at the stifling environs of Lowood, the endurance of Jane Eyre is tested to the extreme. Yet, she manages to tide over the regular abuse at this place, to garner as much learning and dignity, as comes her way. She simply refuses to give in to the daily abuse and ill will shown by Mr. Brocklehurst. Again while mentoring a restless pupil, like Adele, Jane Eyre shows a marked capacity to maintain self worth in the face of difficult situations. The other amazing thing about the moral makeup of Jane Eyre is that she carries a wisdom that dares to question the established and conventional social and ethical norms. In other words, the moral sense of Jane Eyre soars much above social compliance and a public sense of face. Right from the beginning, Jane Eyre shows a moral capacity to resist the societal and environmental influences that try to stifle the true expression of her conscience. This includes the abusive tendencies of her aunt, cousins and Mr. Brocklehurst. She is possessed with a capacity for reasoning that manages to find her way out through tough times. By deciding to give in to the overtures of Rochester she shows a capacity to challenge and act against the set norms of class and gender. She simply opposes the society’s decision to push her back to an inferior social

Preserve Toothbrushes Essay Example for Free

Preserve Toothbrushes Essay Strategic planning is an important aspect for any business or corporation. Without it, an organization has no way to achieve a stated goal. They have no way to march towards their vision. In the case of Eric Hudson, an entrepreneur with a vision, he successfully created a business with a goal in mind and implemented a strategic plan to make it happen. Every small business startup has to have some edge in order to compete; otherwise they will be forced out by larger, pre-existing competitors. For Preserve, this meant identifying and filling a niche in an industry largely consisting of multinational conglomerates. For Eric Hudson, this meant thinking critically, having a plan, and implementing it in order to carry out his vision. Preserve found its niche in environmentally friendly toothbrushes. Preserve created an environmentally friendly toothbrush manufactured from recycled plastic. Further enhancing the product was a unique 45 degree angled head designed by Hudson’s father, an industrial engineer. At the time, the â€Å"green† movement was largely a niche in itself. While not a first-mover, others were already in the â€Å"green† products industry; Preserve had a modified approach of the second-mover strategy. It did not create the â€Å"green† industry, but it did create a new product. It was often a small market for â€Å"green† products, and the products that existed were often less effective and of poor quality. However, for Eric Hudson, he made it his vision to provide an environmentally friendly product without sacrificing quality or performance. Initially, Preserve’s toothbrush was marketed through grassroots movements and sampling. However, it was at one of the sampling events, that an employee from Stonyfield Yogurt, an organic yogurt company, approached Preserve and relayed the information that they consistently had leftover plastic from producing yogurt containers. With this bit of information, Preserve had a new strategic alliance that provided them with the raw materials to produce its product, and Stonyfield had the ability to promote tself as an environmentally friendly corporation as a result of its efforts. Preserve is a small, niche brand, and like most other small niche brands, their marketing budget pales in comparison to its larger competitors. In Preserve’s case, they focus on generating publicity to promote and advertise their brand. The best advertisement is free advertisement, and Preserve tends to generate a lot of magazine articles and television appearances. This in turn generates word of m outh testimonials, the most effective form of advertising. Businesses in general should continually strive to enhance their business model and update their strategic plan. A SWOT analysis is a useful tool for examining a business and how it is meeting its basic mission. By comparing the firm’s strengths and weaknesses with external opportunities and threats, a SWOT analysis provides managers with a view of the organization’s internal and external environments. In turn, this analysis can be used to determine if the firm is meeting expectations or if it is on track to meet expectations. Preserve’s director of marketing, C. A. Webb, admits that she doesn’t actually perform SWOT analysis’s, but certainly uses that form of thinking consistently when implementing new products, distribution channels, designs, or other decisions. In fact, it was this style of thinking that led to Preserve to focus its effort on packaging its unknown product in order to appeal to a more sophisticated market and consumer. It was crucial to target a specific audience because retailers could not devote large amounts of shelf space to a small brand such as Preserve. So Preserve made it their mission to go up against their large competitors in the only way possible—out marketing them. Business strategy and strategic plans are crucial for any business, small, medium, or large. Preserve certainly provides an excellent example of the necessity of a strategic plan and how following one can lead to success, provided the organization has the necessary strengths and environment as can be determined by a SWOT analysis. Preserve’s success can certainly be attributed to a successful business plan, as well as careful planning. Both are important lessons to be taken away from Preserve’s market presence.

Impact of Stakeholder Management on Construction Industry

Impact of Stakeholder Management on Construction Industry 1.0 Introduction/Background Project management is an evolving discipline which is relatively new in both practice and academics hence knowledge is drawn from other disciplines to further advance both theory and practice in managing projects. Consequently this research will draw from different academic disciplines for its theory and the construction industry for its practice. To this end a project could be described as a strategy used by organisations to achieve its strategic goal, the strategy could be suggested to have a start and an end date (Turner 2009 p.20; Holton 2002 p.10-2). It could also be suggested that the word organisation in the above definition by Turner 2009 could be called the project stakeholder. Olanda and Landin (2005 p.321) defined project stakeholders as a  ¦group of people who have a vested interest in the success of a project and the environment within which the project operates. This research is focused on investigating the impact of stakeholder management and its contribution to project success in the construction industry. It could be suggested that the use of PMs life cycle phases be adopted for the entire project plan as seen in figure 1 below. Figure -Project Lifecycle The project initiation phase of this report will include proposing a project research topic, assigning a project supervisor or project sponsor and proposing a research plan. While the project planning phase will include reviewing of the available project materials and the execution phase will involve writing up the literature review and project methodology. Handover and closeout will involve submitting the final report to supervisor and award of Msc degree in Project Management. Lessons learnt could be suggested to be the feedback and experience gained in during the research. 1.2 Project Context Project Context could be suggested to be the setting in which a project is carried out (ApmBok 2009). In relation to the above description, the aim of this research is in agreement with the above suggestion (Achterkamp and Vis 2008 pg 749). 1.3 Project Rationale 1.3.1 Academic Rationale The academic research into project stakeholders has been attractive and extensive to researchers and professionals. Evidence shows that the construction industry accounts directly for 10% GDP growth in the UK (Cridland and Wates 2009 p.5),this goes to justify the need to investigate the impact of stakeholder management and its contribution to project success in the construction industry and also fulfil the academic requirement of the award of Masters Degree. 1.3.2 Business Rationale The economic implications for any organisation if projects fail will be devastating considering the above report by Wates and Cridland (2009 p5), this report shows that the construction industry account for 10% GDP growth. Project failure of any kind in the current economic climate will cost the organization its finance and jobs e.g. BP deep horizon in the US Gulf Coast where the collapse of a well led to fatalities which in-turn increased BPs financial burden. 1.3.3 Personal Rationale It could be suggested that as a project management professional, embarking on this research will help one better understand the principles of stakeholder management. The knowledge gained from this research will clarify any unanswered questions at the end of this research. 1.4 Aim and Objectives This research is aimed at: Investigating the impact of stakeholder management and its contribution to project success in the construction industry Objectives To explore the principles of stakeholder management and project success. To assess the benefits and challenges of stakeholder management. To correlate a relationship between stakeholder management and project success. To propose a strategy for measuring the impact of stakeholder management thereby assessing its impact on project success. To make recommendations for improved stakeholder management practices. 1.4.2 Project Scope According to Burke (2003 p. 104) project scope identifies when a project has been successfully completed within specified requirement. The scope for this project will involve activities such as writing the literature review, research methodology and drawing on the findings of the above mentioned activities to come up with a conclusion and recommendation. The scope of this research excludes the execution of the primary research. 1.4.3 Project Deliverables Project deliverables for this research is suggested to be the outcome of the report at every stage of the lifecycle (ApmBok 2009 p.135). The deliverables as shown in Table 1 are generalised and subject to being revised at the end of this report. Table Project deliverables Deliverables Description Project Research Plan Introduction/ Background Project Context and Project Rationale Project Definition Project Approach Research Project Schedule Resource Requirements Ethical Considerations Literature Review Research of theory and practice within the construction industry Project Approach or Methodology It involves the description of the process in the collection and evaluation of data that will be used to achieve the overall aim and objectives of this report. Project Proposal This involves outlining a research proposal from the finding and the analysis done in the project approach section. Conclusion and Recommendation This section involves the final summation of all the data used and presenting recommendation(s) where necessary. 1.4.4 Assumption, Constraints and Considerations Assumptions The project will be delivered on time, quality and within budget. The literature / materials needed to complete the project will be readily available. That the project aim and objectives will be met at the end of the project. Constraints The time required by the sponsor to complete the report. Combining three live projects at the same period. i.e. CPD, Group placement and dissertation. Considerations That the report will inspire its readers to proceed towards a primary research. That there will be more research into the impact of project stakeholders and its contribution to project success within the construction industry. 1.5 Initial Literature Review 1.5.1 Stakeholder Management Project stakeholders have been widely discussed in various project management literatures. Fewings (2005 p.34) described project stakeholders as people that their interest could affect the outcome of the project while Olanda and Landin (2005 p.321) agues that although project stakeholders are group of people with different interest in a particular project, they are also interested in a successful outcome no matter the level of interest. Since this research will be focusing on stakeholder management, McElroy and Mills (2007 p.270) suggested that stakeholder management deals with the relationships between stakeholders within projects. This relationship must be developed and structured so as to achieve a successful outcome. McElroy and Mills (2007 p.270) description of stakeholder management is convincing because different bodies of knowledge are yet to agree on a particular description for stakeholder management. Fewings (2005) and Olanda Landin (2005) perspectives on project stakeholders in relation to stakeholder management is valid in that all agreed that stakeholders are made up of more than one individual, so managing this relationship as described by McElroy and Mills (2007 p.270) will determine if a project is a success or a failure . 1.5.2 Project Success Yu et al. (2005) suggested that a: Project  is a success if its created product adds value to the client, considering the cost to the client at the point of acceptance While there is no definite definition to what project success is or what will be the best way to define success, this report would look into critical success criteria used in the construction industry to determine when a project is successful. The ApmBok (2009) defined project success as: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the satisfaction of stakeholder needs measured by the success criteria as identified and agreed at the start of the projectà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ 1.6 Project Research Approach In this section it could be suggested that a proposed research approach be developed, this approach would be aligned with the project aim and objectives. To achieve the above this report has identified two methods or type of research, this are the Primary and Secondary research. A primary research entails the collection of new data or expansion of existing theories in project management body of knowledge. This could be achieved by using the following methods: the use of questionnaires, sampling and survey. Data for this research would be collected though documentary research. This involves analysing various literatures relating to the research; given that this research is a secondary research, a qualitative method will be employed. 1.6.1 Ethical Consideration Sekaran (2000, p17) defined ethics as a code of conduct or expected societal norm of behaviour while conducting a research or project . Below in table 2 are the ethical considerations used to compile this research. Table -Ethical Consideration This research was carefully structured to avoid any misrepresentation or distortion of data collected. All information used for this research was adequately referenced to avoid plagiarism. This report was written with due respect for the subject and authors All information used for this report is in line with universities academic guidelines. Sekaran ( 2000, p.261) 1.7 Project Planning / Report Schedule Burke (2003, p.94) defined project schedule as  ¦a process required to ensure that various elements of the project are properly managed and controlledà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The project schedule will be used to assign expected start date and expected finish date. The schedule is in a Gantt chart, this could be suggested to be in agreement with (Burke 2003) definition. See Appendix 1 for more details. 1.8 Project Resource Requirements and Budget The resources required for a successful completion of this project is listed in Table 2 and the cost estimate that would apply to both primary and secondary research is in Table 3 Figure -Resources Requirement Human Resources Description Hours Researcher Researcher would carry out a secondary research and prepare a primary research plan to be used to further analyse the project aim 600 Academic supervisor The academic supervisor would give guidance, review and monitor project to ascertain if the project is within scope. 60 Project sponsor The project sponsor and management would be need during an actual primary research. 100 Table Project Budget Activity Budget Source Cost for Researcher and supervisor  £3000 RGU and Sponsor Printing of dissertation and buying of CD drives ( hard and soft copies)  £200 Researcher and Sponsor (in the case of a primary Research) Transport is Dependent on the location of the organisation and RGU library Not Determined at present Researcher and Sponsor 1.8.1 Risk Matrix Risk management is a key area in APM and PMI bodies of knowledge; projects are often associated with one form of risk or another (Raz Michael 2000), controlling this risk is an important task for any researcher. To this end, this report will take a proactive role in controlling risks associated to this project by developing a risk plan which can be seen in Table 4

Roddy Doyles Paddy Clark: No More Laughing For Paddy Essay -- essays r

Roddy Doyle's Paddy Clark: No More Laughing for Paddy Yer Name Here Poetry/Fiction Paddy Clarke Roddy Doyle's Paddy Clarke HA HA HA was a beautifully written book. It perfectly captures the mind of a ten year old boy in Ireland during the mid- 1960's. Paddy Clarke, the young boy who Doyle uses to enter the mind of a ten year old, is a boy who most can relate to. The book explores most aspects of life through the eyes of Paddy. Doyle takes us through childhood and childhood's end. Doyle is able to seize the complexities of life, but at the same time simplify them enough for ten year old. Everything is a mystery or an adventure to Paddy and his friends. From taking over construction sites to receiving polio check-ups. However not everything is a game to Paddy. His parents lack of compatibility troubles Paddy and his brother Sinbad greatly. The intensity of his parents arguments accelerate as the book goes on. At times Paddy feels he can stop them, at one point he considers himself a "referee" in the fights. "I didn't know what I'd do. If I was there he wouldn't do it again, that was all."(p.191) He ends up contemplating who he would want to win. He comes to the conclusion that he would want his mom to win because she does so much for him, however his father is his father and he loves him. Sinbad reacts differently to his parents fighting. He doesn't try to intervene ...

Financial Analysis of Agl Limited

GAL has a current ratio of less than 2 and less than PAP in 2012 meaning it does not have a satisfactory amount of current asset to cover its current liabilities. However, when it comes to 2012, both current ratio and quick ratio has a positive improvement showing GAL did not improve its short-term liquidity by stocking high level of inventory but really increased its level of cash and receivables. On the other hand, the operating cash flow ratio of GAL has reduced in 2012 meanings the decrease of ability to generate cash from operation.The increased amount of cash but decrease amount of ability to generate cash reveals that GAL increase its amount of cash by financing activities like issue of shares and borrowing. This activity makes Debt and coverage There are five ratios measuring the debt and coverage of a company. They are three debt ratios, Liabilities to Equity ratio, Debt to Equity Ratio and Capital Structure Leverage, Interest Coverage and Operating Cash Flow Ratio. All debt ratios of GAL have a sudden and great increase in 2012.It indicates that GAL increase its cash mainly by borrowing rather than issue share. This practice calling debt financing can get tax deduction which is more beneficial than equity financing. The company's interest coverage has dropped significantly discloses the decline of ability to pay interest due to the great amount of borrowing. However, when compared to PAP, the debt ratios of GAL still are not as great as that of PAP and GAL has higher interest coverage. This shows GAL is not in a very bad situation in borrowing.Efficiency The efficiency of GAL has decreased compared to last two year showing by the remover ratio such as Account Receivable, Inventory and Fixed Asset turnover. Nevertheless, the turnover rates of GAL are still greater than PAP and that of PAP are at the same time decrease. This may expose the fact that the efficiency of the industry is lower in 2012. Overall, GAL has a very poor performance in 2012. Althou gh this may be due to the low efficiency of the industry, the main reason is the low profitability of GAL together with the huge borrowing. The fact that GAL did not make the best use of the borrowing is brought to light.