No title Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

No title - Essay Example The paper discusses about the technological advancements visualized in the movie â€Å"Minority Report† and critically examines the impact of its certain scenes. Progression of visual aids has been astonishing and better visuals are experienced by the audience in the recent years. Moreover the technological myth which is deflected in the movie indicates that world will be a very different place in the coming years due to rapid technology advancement (Livingston & Plantinga, 2012, p.61). The paper illustrates that what are the impacts of power and surveillance use in the city; how institutional power and private rights must be balanced & where would this technology realm lead us to. The movie Minority Report precisely indicates some of the hazardous circumstances which mankind will be facing in the coming years. A hawk view into the future has been portrayed in the movie. The depiction in the movie portrays that world would be a very difficult place to live in the imminent years. The movie portrays a glimpse of the future and exemplifies that police department power are substantial and considerable. They have established a Pre-crime department which claims to catch criminals before the happening of a crime. The department has installed a gigantic technological setup which has certain formalities. The setup enables Pre-crime police department to have a blueprint about the upcoming crime endeavors, which enables them to catch the convicted at the crime scene and save person from death. There have been no deaths in the past six years since this setup has been installed; but still ambiguity prevails among the Department of Justice that there are some flaws in the system (Minority Report, 2002). The above given picture portrays that pre-crime department does it level best to create peace and harmony in the city hence it invades into the crime scene and stops the crime to occur. The information is gathered before

Statistical Process Control Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Statistical Process Control - Essay Example ld, therefore, ensure that there is use of the most proper management approach, for an effective problem-solving and improvement of the process of production or allowance of service by the company. This ensures that the company runs smoothly without chaos. In this paper, discussion will be made on a U.S based giant company by the name Walmart. This corporation was started in the year 1962, with its first store in Rogers, Arkansas. The corporation started as a small discount retailer but has since expanded internationally. By embracing innovations, the corporation has allowed its customers to shop online. Presently, Walmart operates more than 11,000 retail units in 27 countries and employs 2.2 million associates globally, out of which 1.3 million of the associates come from the U.S alone (Fishman, 2006). Walmart being a large shopping corporation deals in consumer end products ranging from clothing to groceries. Specifically, focus will be given on the entire shopping service that it provides. To increase sales especially in foreign countries, it uses the campaign â€Å"everyday low prices.† This has however not worked in all states. A reference point is what happened in Japan when Walmart bought a share in the Seiyu Company, but the successful strategy of the campaign failed. This is because the shoppers in Japan did not respond like the shoppers in the U.S. The Japanese shoppers associated the low prices with low quality and thus avoiding shopping there. Despite the continued success of Walmart especially in the U.S, there are areas that need to be improved especially in the foreign markets to ensure success globally. The fact that Walmart has failed to replicate its success in some of the foreign markets could be attributed to the lack of the corporation to fine-tune its shopping experience to the local culture. For instance in South Korea, the corporation should have agreed to the needs of the shoppers, who prefer goods in small packages, thereby forcing the

Primate comparison Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Primate comparison - Essay Example The diet of the animal includes sap, fruit, arthropods as well as nectar. The animal unlike other animals such as the Bengal Slow Loris does not in any way show forms of sexual dimorphism with an increase in weight. In fact, the vestigial tail that exists within the animal is often hidden beneath the fur and is reduced to what can be described as a stump. The primate has a toothcomb; this means that it has six teeth that are forward facing on the bottom of the jaw (Wiens, 2002). These teeth are mainly incisors and canine teeth. The structure of these teeth is often used to graze off gum when it comes to the process of foraging. The animal excretes a brawny smelling fluid from the glands used in communication. The Sunda Slow Loris often moves swiftly through trees with its four limbs. Callithrix pygmaea often known as the pygmy marmoset can be described as new world monkey species that is often native to Peru, Brazil, Bolivia and Colombia. Its range often stretches expansively over the Andrean foothills of the Southern Colombia to the Southeastern Peru (Townsend, 2001). The pygmy marmosets often live and thrive in a multistratal river edge forests at different and diverse lower evaluations. The pygmy marmosets are often described as the smallest extant monkeys, this is because they have an average body length of 13 cm. The animal has a coat of buff as well as grey fur that is marked with yellow, green as well as black ticking on the head. Infants initially have grey heads as well as yellow coats that are covered with black ticking and they exhibit the adult pattern with the first month life. Although the pygmy marmosets are not often considered as being sexually dimorphic, the females are often known to be slightly heavier than the males. Longer hair that exists around the face as well as the neck often gives the pygmy pygamae the facade of a lion like mane. The animal has hindlimbs are often

Hofstede Cultural Difference Critiques Essay Example for Free

Hofstede Cultural Difference Critiques Essay Arguably, Hofstede’s work (1980, 1997) represents a pioneering approach of culture as a way of comparing international management frameworks. First of all, prior to offering any evaluations in regards to McSweeney’s criticism (2002a/b), it is crucial to identify the nature of Hostede’s work within the entire sphere of the culture approach itself. In contrast to the guarantors of the emic approach , whose main concepts tend to discard the equalization and standardization of dimensions in national cultures’ comparisons, the pillars of Hofstede’s work, which belong to the etic approach , are based on 5 dimensions whereby national differences are then measured. In other words, from the emic standpoint it is also arguable that the etic research methodology, as aiming to identify equalities among national differences, would risk throwing out the baby with the bath water . On the other hand, from the emic perspective, dividing the culture into a set of defined scopes stands as the only way to actually enable researchers to compare cultures . Having briefly introduced the shortcomings related to both approaches, McSweeney’s critiques can now be narrowed down to a specific scope, which is mainly encompassed with Hofstede’s research methodology. Research Validity  In light of the importance for any researches to provide clear definitions on the specific research concepts and key words, the first part of this essay will evolve on contextualizing the meaning of culture within Hofstede’s work, thus, giving ground to McSweeney’s relevant sources of criticism. Geert (1980) has defined culture as the collective programming of the mind distinguishing the members of one group or category of people from another. McSweeney essentially critiques Hofstede’s adoption of nations as means of cultural comparisons, scorning the territoriality uniqueness of culture in primis. In regards to this issue, Hofstede in a second stage (2002: 1356) acknowledges that nations are not the ideal elements for studying cultures, yet this is the only way researchers could have access to comparable units. Predictably, thousands of other author’s contributions in regards to the definition of culture would make this argument even more complex. For the sake of this analysis, emphasis would be given to the arguments in regards to the research methodology. Research Reliability: Research Sample The first criticism which may arise is likely to involve the representativeness of Hofstede’s research sample. In more details, he argues that 117,000 questionnaires for two surveys, covering 66 countries would be enough to ensure the research reliability. From my point of view, McSweeney’s critiques result founded when analysing the sampling framework in more details. CountryNumber of Respondents for Each Country Belgium, France, Great Britain, Germany, Japan and Sweden (6 countries)More than 1000 Chile, Columbia, Greece, Hong Kong, Iran, Ireland, Israel, New Zealand, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Turkey (15 countries)Less than 200 [Tab. 1] As it can be seen by the table (Tab. ), in 15 countries the sample size is composed by less than 200 respondents, which results to be extremely small compared to other countries with over 1000 respondents. To couple this argument, McSweeney discusses about the narrowness of the population surveyed as respondents were all IBM employees, mainly involved with the marketing and sales departments. Hofstede’s reply ( 2002), stating that this sample’s framework had only been used in order to isolate the national culture differences from both the organizational and occupational culture, seems however to give rise to other arguments. As McSweeney’s (2002a: 95-99) argues, respondents’ cultural framework is made up by three non-interacting and durable levels of culture (Tab. 2). At the first level, the assumptions which would free this model from any shortcomings would be that there is only one IBM culture and that there is also a common worldwide occupational culture for each job (Hofstede 1980a: 181). What are these assumptions based on? According to McSweeney (2002a: 96), these assumptions are â€Å"too crude and implausible to underpin Hofstede’s emphatic empirical claims† . Following the thread of his argument we come across a situation where assuming that an IBM employee, whether in a developed USA head office or a new opened branch office in Pakistan, will possess the same identical organizational and occupational culture does become hard to encompass. In response to this argument, Hofstede acknowledges that considerable differences exist at the â€Å"organizational level† (1991: 93), yet it redefines the entire organizational culture as a mere set of â€Å"shared perceptions of daily practices† (1991: 182-3), therefore distancing from the early-stage value-based definition. According to McSweeney (2002b), this is only a failed attempt to deliver a straightforward concept and definition of organizational culture. Back to Culture Hofstede’s vision of culture is often linked to two different concepts, unique national tendency and central tendency, respectively. In the first case, as pointed out by McSweeney, the national uniformity which Hofstede claims to have found, results to have no valid grounds as it derives from a very specific micro-level (IBM). Secondly, in regards to the claimed average tendency, the heterogeneity of questionnaires’ responses completely contradicts this conceptualization at the first place. As cited from Jacob (2005), â€Å"if exceptions to the rule are as numerous as the rule itself† to what extent could predictions based on that rule be reliable? In many countries, McSweeney argues, the typical IBM employee would at a high extent diverge from the general population. That is to say that an IBM employee in Taiwan would not necessarily reflect Taiwan’s population average individual, especially when we are talking about someone who holds a managerial position in a multinational firm. This concept brings us to another aspect of McSweeney’s criticism (2002a:92), â€Å"culture treated as a mere epiphenomenon, completely casual†, as conceptualized by Hofstede, it would look like something which moves along the history â€Å"enduring†, yet it is not subject to radical changes due to fluctuating social, economic and institutional trends (Tab. 3). Questionnaire and Dimensions Arguably, the questionnaire itself also presents some limitations. Firstly aimed to investigate the employees’ morale at IBM, it also resulted to reflect some values that, for Hofstede, could have been used to unveil the national cultural differences’ myth. Citing one of his research questions, â€Å"How long do you think you will continue working for this company? †(1980 Appendix 1) , it is obviously clear there would be differences in whether this question is being asked in a country, say, the USA, with plentiful employment vacancies, or in a country, say Thailand where at the time of the research the unemployment rate was comparatively high. Under these circumstances, it is extremely hard to assume that the respondents were not influenced by other social, political and institutional factors (See Tab. 3). Therefore, his research’s entire reliability could be easily questioned on this basis. Despite ensuring the confidentiality of respondents’ answers, employees’ foreknowledge of the end objective of the survey might have easily encouraged them to assume a more positive attitude in order to support their divisions’ reputation. Arguably, the responses analysed by Hofstede were situationally restricted (McSweeney, 2002a: 107). In more details, the questions only reflected values related to the workplace, furthermore the surveys were exclusively directed within the workplace and were not tested in non-work place locations for both same respondents and others. In light of the first purpose of the questionnaire, it is spontaneous to raise a question in regards to the validity of the dimensions found by Hofstede. Could it be possible that a specialized study in cultural differences would have delineated different dimensions? In his response, Hofstede acknowledged that, although there may be some other dimensions equally important for the structuring of a comparative cultural analysis, relative questions were simply not asked. McSweeney with reference to Triadis (1994) argues that bi-polar dimensions of national cultures should not be comprised of opposite poles (for example: Individualism – Collectivism), but depending on the situations they could coexist. Under these principles, the work of Schwartz (1992) appears to give a comparatively dynamic dimensions’ disposition. History and Research Validations In the last section of his book, Hofstede (1980: 326- 331) includes some historical and contemporary events which he states would validate his research findings. However, McSweeney (2002b) argues that these stories reveal nothing but justifications, leaving out the basics for an accurate confirmation. According to his analysis, Hosfstede’s assertion, â€Å"the more masculine a culture the more antagonistic are industrial relations, is flawed as the trends for working days lost in industrial disputes , in both Spain and the UK, result to vary enormously over time. In other words, we could argue that these fluctuations are highly influenced by political, economic and institutional changes. In the case of industrial relations’ disputes in Spain, after the death of Spanish dictator Franco in 1975, the level of working days was subject to a huge increase. Hofstede’s findings have also been validated by other studies, reflecting the same national cultural differences . This is one of the reasons why Hofstede’s work has so far been used in many disciplines as pioneer of the cultural approach in the sphere of comparative international management. Under these circumstances, as Hofstede states (2002 p. 1358), it is just not all about faith in his research, but it is the willingness of the society to accept his work as something which could be taken to a step further. In some cases, institutional factors, history, politics and economy do provide better explanations in this field, yet as Hofstede would argue, the cultural perspective does have his validity as it offers a complete different view on values embedded by people which do have an influence on their daily lives. Conclusion Arguably, some of Hofstede research framework’s features, especially the ones related to his research methodology, do present various shortcomings. However, the overall importance of cultural approach for national differences should be seen as undeniable (Koen, 2005). Nevertheless, it is worth pointing out that after all, the main argument merely evolves on Hofstede’s claims to have â€Å"uncover[ed] the secrets of entire national cultures† (1980b: 44). Despite his book title narrowing the scope of its findings down to the work-place, â€Å"Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-Place Values†, Hofstede, in many of his publications, seems to overestimate his findings. It is extremely important to acknowledge and appreciate the enormous contribution that Hofstede has made to the entire society’s understanding of international cultural differences. On the other hand, it is also crucial to stay away from the â€Å"taken for granted† approach when coming across such a complex topic. As mentioned in the preface, etic and emic approach despite having a different vision on how to measure and analyse culture, they could still be seen as two complementarities which could be extensively used for a more thorough research. In addition, although admitting that limitations in research methodology do hamper the objectivity of findings, the etic approach still stands as the unique way to allow researchers to obtain comparable quantitative data. I do also appreciate the contributions made by McSweeney, whose criticisms have enabled me to adopt a more critical line of thought in analysing this interesting topic. At some extent we could assume that Hofstede’s research is still a â€Å"work in progress†, eventually other advocates of the etic approach will take it to a more universal level, as some of other authors in this field have already done. I would like to conclude this essay with a quote from McSweeney (2002a: 90), when he states that Hofstede’s work could be dismissed as a misguided attempt to measure the unmeasurable .

Fordist And Taylorist Production Systems Cultural Studies Essay

Fordist And Taylorist Production Systems Cultural Studies Essay Fordism, named after the Henry Ford from US, who refers to a variety of communal theories about production, assembling and related socio-economic phenomena  [1]  . Although Henry Ford was not the inventor of the automobile but he developed extraordinary methods of production and marketing that allowed the automobile to become reachable to the American working class. Ford always wanted to make cars that his team workers could afford easily. So, the mass production began in Detroit in 1914, when Ford discovered that a moving assembly line using interchangeable parts which could completely reduce the cost of making motor cars. After that he created the Ford Motor Company, which was one of a dozen small automobile manufacturers that emerged in the early 20th century. Mass production was really an unpleasant work, with high turnover because new production system must be oriented towards multi-skilling and rapid re-skilling workers; in order to hold the search for shifting a newly form ing market in a post mass production (cf. Piore, M. and Sabel, C., 1984). Just to retain his unskilled workforce, Ford doubled their wages to $5 per day justified by higher productivity  [2]  . After three years of production, he introduced the Model T, which was simple and light yet sturdy enough to drive on the countrys very elementary road system. He sold 18m Model T Fords, transforming to America into the first car-owning democracy, at a low price that dropped from $600 to $250 over 15 years. Henry Fords success and revolutionary techniques of production were then termed Fordism  [3]  . The scale of mass production is hard to understand. Fords River Rouge plant in Detroit, completed in 1928, he extended for a mile along a tributary of the Detroit River and employed 100,000 men workers. Raw materials like iron ore and rubber were unloaded at one end, and finished cars emerged from the other end, 72 hours later. But Fords system proved less efficient than GM  [4]  , which produced a range of models for different pocketbooks. Labour relations were troubled, sit-down strike, at the big automakers in the 1930s with layoffs and speed-ups, the end of organized capitalism has a tendency to become dis-organized in that the labour-employer relationships are fracturing (cf. Lash, S. and Urry, J. 1987) . GM was the first company forced to recognize the UAW  [5]  union after a sit-down strike closed its plants in Flint, Michigan in 1937. After more battles, the workers won higher wages and benefits, sharing in the American Dream. Unions also negotiated rigid work rules to protect workers from exploitation by foremen. Ford was even more determined to oppose unions than GM, and Henry Ford employed 3,000 service department personnel to prevent them taking hold. In 1937 they beat up key UAW union organizers attempting to hand out leaflets near the River Rouge factory. But in 1941, even Ford was forced to yield to union power, to ensure industrial peace during wartime. But the legacy of bitter industrial relations e ndured. The decline of mass production is due to Post Fordism; small scale batch production in small medium plants not mass production in large plant, only customized not standardized products, using multi-skilled workers with flexible work roles not fixed job descriptions, robots and computerized work teams instead of moving assembly lines (cf. Murray, R. 1989). Car manufacture ceased with the outbreak of World War II, but the auto manufacturers made good profits helping with the war effort, producing everything from jeeps to aircraft engines. The mass production helped the Allies win the war, and led to further consolidation in the industry. The war also brought new social groups, like women and black people, into the auto industry, but also increased social tensions in Detroit. Unemployment disappeared, and the UAWs power grew. The end of the war released an enormous surge of pent-up demand, especially for cars and houses, and Detroit boomed as never before. Car workers wages soared and many became homeowners. The Big three car companies dominated production as never before. In 1955 GM became the first company to make $1bn profit. Big cars predominated, promoted by sexy adverts  [6]  . The first signs that all was not well with Detroit was the 1973 oil crisis, when Middle East producers declared a boycott. Queues formed at petrol stations, and consumers for the first time switched in large numbers to smaller, more economical cars-often made by the Japanese; which they found more reliable. The Detroit-made cars had more defects, and Detroits attempts to build a successful small car failed. The auto industry now is much better prepared to withstand the effects of an oil crisis and meet consumer demand for highly fuel-efficient vehicles than it was during the Middle East oil crisis of the 1970s, Ford Motor Company Chairman Harold A. Poling said  [7]  . Imports of Japanese cars soared in the 1980s as consumers gradually grew to prefer the smaller, more reliable cars. The unions and the US companies reacted to the threat by trying to get the US government to block imports, and by the mid-1980s had succeeded in getting Japan to agree intended export chains (cf. Womack, J., P., Jones, J.T., Roos, D., 1990). But the move backfired as Japanese firms became more profitable and moved up market, launching cars like the Lexus. The US companies determined that they could make more money by selling sports utility vehicles, built on a truck chassis. In the 1990s sales of SUVs  [8]  and minivans soared. Imported SUVs attracted a higher tariff rate, blocking Japanese rivals. They were not very fuel-efficient, but with oil prices at $18 a barrel, no one seemed to mind. As imports flooded in, the car market became increasingly dominated by foreign producers, who imported millions of cars from overseas factories. Companies also increasingly relo cated production to Canada and Mexico after the Nafta free trade agreement. GM, Ford and Chrysler thought that the Japanese had an unfair advantage due to an undervalued (low) currency. They also believed that oil prices would return to lower levels. Lean production, Japanese manufacturers like Toyota and Nissan were also building more factories within the US to escape import controls, threat from Japan,(cf. Womack, J., P., Jones, J.T., Roos, D., 1990) in the response to eliminate waste by introducing this method. These factories were based on a new and more efficient production system, and they also allowed the transplants to develop new models more quickly. They also developed closer relationships with suppliers, using just-in-time methods. Soon they were competing across the whole range of vehicles, from trucks to compact cars. Green cars, in the last year many Americans have accepted the reality of global warming, and the demand for green vehicles has grown. Toyota sells 100,000 Prius hybrids a year and is rolling the hybrid technology out across its entire range. Both Ford and GM exposed electric-powered concept cars at the 2007 Detroit Motor Show, but they may be years away from mass production. Taylorism, a system of production devised by F. W. Taylor (1911), and characterized by the division of factory work into the smallest and simplest jobs while closely co-ordinating the sequence of tasks in order to achieve maximum efficiency, as, for example, on a production line. As a result, skilled managers and technicians oversee semi-skilled or unskilled workers who are engaged in simple, repetitive chores. This system of production has had profound spatial implications, as large firms often allocate skilled and unskilled jobs to different locations, creating a division of labour  [9]  . Taylorism is often mentioned along with Fordism, because it was closely associated with mass production methods in manufacturing factories. Taylors own name for his approach was scientific management  [10]  . Applications of scientific management sometimes fail to account for two inherent difficulties: Individuals are different from each other: the most efficient way of working for one person may be inefficient for another. The economic interests of workers and management are rarely identical, so that both the measurement processes and the retraining required by Taylors methods are frequently resented and sometimes sabotaged by the workforce. Both difficulties were recognized by Taylor, but are generally not fully addressed by managers who only see the potential improvements to efficiency. Taylor believed that scientific management cannot work unless the worker benefits. In his view management should arrange the work in such a way that one is able to produce more and get paid more, by teaching and implementing more efficient procedures for producing a product. Although Taylor did not compare workers with machines, some of his critics use this image to explain how his approach makes work more efficient by removing unnecessary or wasted effort (cf. Parker M. and Slaughter, J., 1988). However, some would say that this approach ignores the complications introduced because workers are necessarily human: personal needs, interpersonal difficulties and the very real difficulties introduced by making jobs so efficient that workers have no time to relax. As a result, workers worked harder, but became dissatisfied with the work environment. Some have argued that this discounting of worker personalities led to the rise of labour unions. It can also be said that the rise in labor unions is leading to a push on the part of industry to accelerate the process of automation, a process that is undergoing a renaissance with the invention of a host of new technologies starting with the computer and the Internet. This shift in production to machines was clearly one of the goals of Taylorism (cf. Berggren, C., 1989), and represents a victory for his theories. It may not be adaptive to changing scenarios; it overemphasizes routine procedures, i.e. strictly following a given set of rules and regulations, work procedures, production centeredness etc. However, tactfully choosing to ignore the still controversial process of automating human work is also politically expedient, so many still say that practical problems caused by Taylorism led to its replacement by the human relations school of management in 1930. Others (cf. Braverman, H., 1974) insisted that human relations did not replace Taylorism but that both approaches are rather opposite: Taylorism determining the actual organization of the work process and human relations helping to adapt the workers to the new procedures. However, Taylors theories were clearly at the roots of a global revival in theories of scientific management in the last two decades of the 20th century, under the moniker of corporate reengineering or business process re-engineering (cf. Milkman, R., 1997). As such, Taylors ideas can be seen as the root of a very influential series of developments in the workplace, with the goal being the eventual elimination of industrys need for unskilled, and later perhaps, even most skilled labor in any form, directly following Taylors recipe for deconstructing a process. This has come to be known as commoditization, and no skilled profession, even medicine, has proven to be immune from the efforts of Taylors followers, the re-engineers, who are often called derogatory names such as bean counters. A complex division of labour  [11]  and the expansion of economic interdependence accompanied the emergence of industrial capitalism. The division of labour reached its logical conclusion in the emergence of Taylorism and its mass production partner, Fordism. These had their weaknesses including high start-up costs and a relatively rigid production process. Such low-trust systems can be contrasted with high-trust systems, where workers operate with greater autonomy and cooperation. A whole series of techniques and initiatives are described by the term post-Fordism including group production and mass customization. These are epitomized by the Quality Circle, a concept alien to Taylorist assumptions that workers need to be stripped of opportunities for creative input. Such systems tend to be marked by high skill levels and rapid turnover of product designs. The decline of manufacturing industry as an employer can be explained both by competition from the Far East and the increasing rate of technological change. Global production systems have also contributed to the movement of industry around the world. These processes have led to a steady decline in trade union membership since the 1970s. The separation of home and work contributed to the marginalization of women from paid employment, a pattern gradually reversed during the twentieth century. Within the economy women remain concentrated in poorly paid routine occupations  [12]  . Either work becomes recreated as womens work, or heartlands of female employment slowly have their status eroded over time. Labour-force participation is higher among childless women, though many more females now return to their full-time jobs after childbirth than they did a decade ago. Women dominate part-time employment, though their reasons for remaining in such jobs remain the source of controversy  [13]  . The most notable change in working life in developed countries has been the expansion of female participation in the paid labour market and resulting erosion of the male breadwinner model within families. Among men, the trend has been away from manual work and currently also away from routine non-manual labour. These trends have levelled off in recent years, with women remaining over-represented in routine white-collar jobs and men over-represented in skilled manual work. Despite womens advances across the economy, the top posts remain the preserve of men. Women in the most recent generation have benefited from the legislation passed in the 1970s, but the pay divide remains substantial over a lifetime. Debates on skills in the workplace have tended to become polarized between those, (cf. Braverman, H., 1974), who see capitalism as continually deskilling the workforce as new machines and technologies replace crafts and creativity; who argue that it is not technology but the way this i s used that is most important  [14]  . Unemployment has a long history and has ebbed and flowed throughout the twentieth century. There are significant effects for individuals, communities and the wider society. These are disproportionately borne by the young and ethnic minorities. A key task for individuals will be to find ways of forging long-term life plans in a society that privileges the short-term. In 1990s the the new industrial relations associated with the introduction of HRM, also seeks to create an atmosphere and a framework for union-management collaboration (cf. Guest, D., 1989, Storey, J., 1992). From the above it is possible to deduce some conclusions. First of all, there are changes in the way by which work is done and controlled. The Fordism model is dictatorial, with rigid discipline, technical and specific personnel training, taking man as a simple addition of the machine and separating the intellectual from the manual work. Classical management control is performed by rigid supervision procedures. The number of problem with general post-Fordist paradigm has implication for the potential embedding (cf. Kelly, J., 1998) The post-Fordist model presents flexible authority and control systems by which conformism and passivity open spaces for dynamism and creativity (according to the management model established earlier). However, when this analysis is centred on the objects and ideology that guide the productive process, one can conclude that no evolution has occurred. Management, yesterday and today, aims toward maximum rationalization of the production system, greater increase in productivity, profitability and competition, maintaining together the older way of production (cf. Sparrow, P. and Marchington, M., 1998). When that concentration is measured in employment terms, aggregate data for the mid-70s to the mid-80s show that larger firms in all three societies have been shedding labour, even though disproportionately. This fact must be analysed also by the quality of employment, the quality of life and the security of economic recovery, and not just from the point of view of job creation in terms of head-counts. The de-centralization of decision-making and flattening of managerial hierarchies in post-Fordist has led to a de-centralization of managerial control, or whether Fordist centralized management control is being maintained, even in spatially decentralized units, through the development of new control technologies (cf. Lane, C., 1995). In fact, there is not, in either model, a proposal that guarantee the autonomy of the worker. In both, Taylor and Ford, task obligations are reached through rigid control and supervision concerning the worker. In the post-Fordism model, task obligations occur by way of a rigid management scheme. Direct supervisory control is inhibited, assuming either the form of auto-control or control by complex technological procedures; nevertheless, it continues to exist. Beyond the work strengthening and capital concentration, the post-Fordism model maintains the division of work, although on more ample bases. If in Taylorism-Fordism the tasks were broken down into simple and routine movements, in post-Fordism the division into fractions of work happens with the attribution of responsibility to the groups that fulfil a set of specific tasks (activities). There is widespread agreement in the literature that due to the need for more flexible and speedier reaction to changing market demands, de-centralization of decision-making and flattening of managerial hierarchies has occurred (cf. Lane, C., 1995). However, there is little systematic evidence as to what form that de-centralization has taken and which hierarchical levels have been affected. To the post-Fordism is like Fordism as well as post-modernism is like modernism. Postmodernism is another version of that historical amnesia characteristic of American culture the tyranny of the new. According to the Green (cf. Green, A., 1997), postmodernism should be seen not as a development beyond modernism but rather as a continuation of a certain idealist current within it. One can make the same statement about Fordism and post-Fordism. Finally, it seems opportune to repeat the words of Ford from back in the 40s (cf. Ford, H., 1991): We are not living in a machine age; we are living in the power age. This power age of ours has great possibilities, depending upon how we use it. Of course it can be mistreated. But, it can also be used greatly to benefit mankind. If this sentence were true during that period of time, today it seems even more adequate. References

Change Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As I stepped on to that British Airways flight to London, England I didn't know this would turn out to be one on the most changing experiences of my life. It started like this after playing a soccer match with some friends at a local school, we began to look forward to what we were going to do tonight. So after we got home and took a bath, we called up a few friends and the plan for the night was chalked out, as we would go to some clubs and other night spots London is often associated with. Then after confirming were we were going to meet up, we got dressed up, and left to where we could catch a bus, which would take us to the train station, to meet the others. After we met up and boarded the train some people from the group started to talk ... Change Essay -- essays research papers   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As I stepped on to that British Airways flight to London, England I didn't know this would turn out to be one on the most changing experiences of my life. It started like this after playing a soccer match with some friends at a local school, we began to look forward to what we were going to do tonight. So after we got home and took a bath, we called up a few friends and the plan for the night was chalked out, as we would go to some clubs and other night spots London is often associated with. Then after confirming were we were going to meet up, we got dressed up, and left to where we could catch a bus, which would take us to the train station, to meet the others. After we met up and boarded the train some people from the group started to talk ...

Its Time to Legalize Drugs Essay -- Drug Legalization

No one can honestly claim that current American drug policies have been a success. To the contrary, the current policy of drug prohibition, aside from being ineffective and costly, has created a set of unwanted consequences including: a high prison population of non-violent offenders, corruption within law enforcement, health issues, and an erosion of civil liberties . Albert Einstein said, â€Å"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.† Yet despite the failures of the current policy in deterring drug use that is just what the government is choosing to do. It’s time to consider a different approach to the drug issue. An approach that will address drug use in an innovative way while solving the problems which drug prohibition has created while also bringing societal, health, and economic benefits but most importantly it will also give back the individual liberties. It’s time to consider the legalization of drugs. Drug prohibition has proven to be a very costly war. Currently the government spends $47.8 billion a year on prohibition enforcement, according to a 2010 Department of Economics, Harvard University report by Jeffrey A. Miron. Yet despite the exorbitant amount of money being spent fighting this â€Å"war on drugs†, drugs are still prevalent on our streets. A 2008 a report found the US leads the world in illegal drug use with a whopping 42.4% of Americans admitting to trying illegal drugs at least once. (Warner) In 2009 a the Federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration found that nearly 21.8 million Americans (equivalent to about 8.7% of the population) used illegal drugs had used drugs within the last year. (Hananel) Furthermore according to the White House Drug... ... York Times. 24 Mar. 2009. Web. 27 Nov. 2010. . Sterling, Eric E. "Foreign Policy In Focus | Drug Policy: Failure at Home." Foreign Policy In Focus | Home. 6 Oct. 2005. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. . United States. General Accounting Office. General Government Division. LAW ENFORCEMENT Information on Drug-Related Police Corruption. May 1998. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. Warner, Jennifer. "U.S. Leads The World In Illegal Drug Use - CBS News." Breaking News Headlines: Business, Entertainment & World News - CBS News. 1 July 2008. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. . Wisotsky, Steven. "A Society of Suspects: The War on Drugs and Civil Liberties." USA Today [Farmingdale] July 1993: 17-21. SIRS Researcher. Web. 23 Nov. 2010.