Challenges faced by Human Resource Management Essay

Today’s society is one of radical and impulsive changes. Because there is no such thing as one right or wrong way to run an organization, many corporations have began to lean toward placing greater emphasis on improving Human Resource Management within their own organizations. All organizations require some form of organizational management. However, the success of an organization is derived from the organizations own individual strengths, limitations and submissions. This is where Human Resources Management comes into place. Human Resource Management can be used as a means to assist workers with productivity and organizational structure. The problem is that because Human Resource Management plays such a major role in an organization, this makes it one of the determining factors as to whether an organization thrives or dies. It has become one of the most demanding and controversial yet, important roles within an organization. This paper will discuss many of the challenges faced by Human Resource Management in the 21st century to include managing workers, strategy and worker productivity. The first challenge in human resource management deals with the managing the working population. Because there are so many different types of workers, an organization will be unsuccessful if it tries to manage every worker or group of workers in the exact same manner. Different people within each workgroup have to be managed differently. Today resource management workers should be able to persuade workers to work toward organizational goals and values while obtaining results. Less emphasis should be placed on managing what people do instead, concentrate on their strengths and how to make their strengths more productive within the organization. The main objective of human resources management should be geared toward getting better performance from its workers/ leaders while obtaining better results for the organization. Therefore, management is the key tool in making an organization produce results, by the use of its workers. Sometimes management may be faced with the challenge of managing workers that  are further knowledgeable about a specific job or assignment than themselves. The main thing to keep in mind is that longer is not always better. Someone who has worked on a specific job for a long period is not always considered to be the most knowledgeable person. One reason may be because of the fact that our society changes so speedily and the person with the longevity may not have changed with society or the roles society plays within an organization. The best solution, when relating longevity to managing workers, is to remember that the actual worker should not be managed. However, the manager may need to accept the fact that their subordinate may know more than they do and accept this as a learning tool to use to obtain better organizational productivity. Each and every organization has its own assumptions of how it defines its type of business, the company intentions, what type of customers it attracts and its definition of successful results. Strategy enables an organization to be deliberately opportunistic by allowing an organization to be successful in an unpredictable environment. Through strategy, an organization has the opportunity to make mistakes, correct the mistakes and start the process again. During the mistake and correction process, the organization is more capable of increasing organizational results by utilizing trial and error. Organizational strategies can be divided into two separate levels of strategy: cost-leadership and differentiation. The cost leadership strategy allows organizations to offer the highest quality products for the lowest cost possible. Their main goal is to generate economic value by offering lower costs than its competitors. A perfect example of this would be Wal-Mart. By offering lower prices Wal-Mart is able to win a majority of its customers. It would be fair to assume that in most instances, cost-leadership strategy would be a great way for an organization to earn more revenue than many of its competitors, especially when they are not faced with competitive pressures from the market. In the second level of strategy, differentiation, the organizations purpose is to offer certain products that the consumers prefer over other products offered by its competitors. In a sense, differentiation organizations could be considered as consumer based because they adhere to the needs of the public desires. It would be more appropriate to use a differentiation strategy in a â€Å"dynamic environment characterized by rapid change, and requires continually finding new products or services† (Mathis 35). Part of strategic planning consists of looking into the future of the organization. For instance, an organization must â€Å"have the right number of human resources, with the right capabilities, at the right times, and in the right places† (Mathis 44). Every organization has some form of strategy in place. In my opinion, a strategy is only as good as its achievement. A good, well planned, strategic plan should bring high-quality results for the organization when trying to obtain company goals. A new information revolution is well in progress. When speaking of new information, I am not just speaking of new computer technology or new up-to-date machinery; I am speaking about information that is readily available to improve business success. Several years ago the computer the thing for every organization to have in order to make operations run more smoothly. Who would have ever imagined that any piece of equipment would have such an impact on an organization and how the business was ran. Because the roles of human resource management are becoming more challenging and demanding, information is always a good way to stay ahead of the game. It is a must that the responsibility of human resource management keeps up with the changes in today’s aggressive markets. By doing so, many organizations must take on a more strategic approach in order to be successful. If an organization in today’s society chooses not to use a more strategic approach, it must be prepared to suffer the consequences and be  prepared to be overtaken by its competitors. Competition among organizations is on the rise. Some time ago, an organizations only concern was the neighboring store. Today however, organizations not only have to worry about their local stores but the global market as well. In order for a business to be successful today, and in the future, they have to become more flexible and customer focused. The human resources manager has to be able to progress to become a strategic partner and mentor within the organization. One must also know the organizations goals, understand those goals and have confidence that those goals are obtainable. After all, management consists of mentors, counselors, leaders, coaches and succession planners that are able to motivate and lead its workers, sometimes by use of persuasion. Another challenge faced by human resource management of the 21st century is workplace diversity. Because workplace diversity consists of such a mixture of talented but varied cultural backgrounds, genders, ages and lifestyles, an organization can react to business opportunities more speedily and resourcefully. More importantly, if the organizational atmosphere within an organization does not support diversity, they stand the chance of losing good talented workers to its competitors. Human resource management is also affected by the government sector. In fact, a study was conducted in the fiscal year 1999 by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). The study concluded that â€Å"many more agencies than expected include HR representatives in the agency planning process and integrate human resources management goals, objectives, and strategies into agency strategic plans. However, most agencies are still struggling in this area† (â€Å"Stratgic Human Resource Managment: Aligning the Mission†).This is evidence that HRM roles are becoming more involved in management and business operational success. In conclusion, the world of human resource management is shifting more quickly than we can ever imagine. Steady ecological and societal changes indicate that human resource managers face constant challenges. They must  react by taking advantage of steady yet reflective changes in the field, present practices, and overall human resource management policies, mission and vision. Human resource management is not a thing of the past; it is a role of the future. This area of expertise within an organization is on the rise. Many organizations success depends on the expertise and capabilities of the HRM department. Basically, HRM is the backbone of the organization and without it, a business will lose some great workers to its competitors. Bibliography Stratgic Human Resource Managment: Aligning the Mission. September 1999. 25 July 2006. MIT Libraries. 14 April 2005. 25 July 2006. Macintosh, Stephen, S. Management Challenges for the 21st Century. 15 October 1999. 25 July 2006. Robert L. Mathis, John H. Jackson. Human Resource Management. Mason: South-Western, 2006.

Chores vs. Allowance

Great dinner, delicious,† I say getting up with my plate. Everybody agreed as my family all got up and put their plates on the counter. My step mom also grabbed the pots and pans and stacked them on top of the plates. The whole counter is eventually covered with all different types of dishes. Alright now try to guess who get to wash, scrub and clean all these dishes all by themselves, me. Every time we eat, I'm responsible for dishes, the toughest Job in the house after we eat. It's Just me, soap, a sponge, and an army of pots and pans for 45 minutes to an hour and 15 minutes.Then Just when I think I'm done the reinforcements come in and they need to washed and scrubbed to the point of spotless. I'm in the zone though washing dish by dish so that the attack force is very low on numbers and that I'm almost done. Now it's time for my reward, a pat on the back, and a ,†Good Job,† from my dad, nothing else, no money. Many kids, like the one above have to do chores aroun d the house and don't get an allowance because their parents think these chores should be mandatory. Having to do chores for no reward does not motivate the child to the work they have to do.If the child was paid a few bucks a week, the child would be more motivated to take on the responsibility of doing chores that he/she will get paid a couple of bucks for. A small cash allowance for doing a certain amount of chores would also teach the child to handle money that there working for. I believe that a weekly allowance would teach kids responsibility, and that they would work for things not expect them to be given to them, the child would also learn how to handle money more maturely. One reason why kids should get a weekly allowance for doing chores is that it teaches kids he responsibility to work for things.If your parents do everything for you, you won't take on any responsibility, which wouldn't help you in the long run when you move out of your parents' house. According to one ar ticle, â€Å"If kids have to work for their money, they also will understand and hopefully appreciate how hard it is to work and earn money,† (www. online. ws]. com). This is saying that getting paid for doing chores teaches the responsibility of working for your own money, and that money doesn't come easy. Also according to another article, â€Å"Chores teach life skills, cooperation, nd responsibility,† (www. parenttoolshop. com).This quote says that chores teach responsibility, and that kids should work for things. Although some parents might say that chores should be mandatory, because the parents take care of you, an allowance would excite kids to help and get them doing chores, rather than being forced to do something the child will argue about. A reward would also teach the child to do a Job well but it would take longer than to do the chore quick but not do it well because there not excited to do it. The reward also helps to motivate the child into doing hores so they can help but they'll still get a couple of bucks.Overall an allowance for doing chores has the potential to teach kids responsibility. Another reason why a weekly allowance for doing chores is a good idea is because kids would learn to handle money more maturely and to not waste it on stupid stutt It the child got money the child would learn to save their money so that when they get older the child won't be shop crazy and spend money at every opportunity. According to one source, â€Å"The goal of an allowance is to reinforce the lesson to kids that all money is imited and that kids will be best if they put thought into how they use it. (www. oprah. com). This says that getting money for chores will teach the child a lot about money and how to use it. If the kid learns this from an early age it will help them when they get older and are faced with tougher decisions on what they should buy. Another source also states that, â€Å"Allowances can teach money management skills; how to earn, budget and priorities purchases,† (www. parenttoolshop. com). This says that having money will teach skills that can only be taught by having money.Although some parents think that the child will waste the allowance money, then ask for more money to get something, the child will be told that since he/she is getting an allowance, he/she can't ask for more money when they run out, which will teach the child how to save and spend his/her own money that they earned. Overall an allowance for doing chores has the chance of teaching kids money management skills that children will need when they get older. Although I believe that an allowance for chores is a very good idea I do understand some of the points against my argument are legitimate reasons.Some parents might say that an allowance for chores will have children doing everything for money, not Just wanting to help out. However the parents should split the chores into two groups. I do agree that the child should be responsible for doing everyday chores, so that those chores will be group 1. The group one chores are mandatory and the child does not get paid for doing them. Group 2 would have chores that are more difficult, but if done properly the child would get a reward. The reward comes at the end of the week only if the child completed a certain amount of chores agreed upon by that family.

Bronchitis in Children Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Bronchitis in Children - Research Paper Example Bronchitis is a medical condition in which the bronchi of the lungs have some inflammation and some irritation. It may be a dangerous condition or not, depending on how it is handled from the start, usually beginning with diagnosis and ending with prescription/treatment. Blockage of the lung airways/air passages may lead to serious breathing difficulties which may be fatal if not dealt with accordingly and timely (Ivker, 2000). Children suffer from bronchitis which in some cases may be diagnosed wrongly as asthma or pneumonia/chest cold due to the similarity in symptoms. For children, there have been quite some challenges because they contract it in some ways that adults don’t. Children may contract bronchitis when they get a contagious bacteria or virus. For this reason and more, the bronchitis in children may be mistaken for some other diseases if proper diagnosis is not carried out, and that leads to wrong prescriptions which may cause death. Just like in the case of adults , children also suffer from the two classes of bronchitis, acute and chronic. It is first of all very important to be aware of the specific indicative signs and symptoms of a possible bronchitis problem in a child. This is necessary because it eliminates cases in which parents and even family doctors use the general signs to conclude that a child is suffering has an ailment other than bronchitis. This ensures that a child suffering from bronchitis is properly diagnosed in time. It is important to note that most preschool children under the age of five are more prone to acute bronchitis than the chronic type. A proper treatment plan helps to prevent cases where acute bronchitis develops into the more dangerous pneumonia. In developing a treatment plan, a physician/clinician needs to check the specific indicative signs, and also study the child’s medical/health history (Tackett & Atkins, 2012). The physician/clinician will need a stethoscope

Knowledge Management and High Performance Organizations Essay

Knowledge Management and High Performance Organizations - Essay Example As the essay stresses human knowledge may be an organization’s most valuable asset, much of this knowledge is never shared. Harnessing critical knowledge and using it to create a common vision and objectives can move a company closer to making an HPO. KM supports the notion of HPO through â€Å"†¦organizational values, culture, processes and tools that stimulate and support the organization's employees, partners and customers to create, capture, organize, access, and properly use the organization’s knowledge that enables people to personally and collectively become more productive, collaborative and innovative†. According to the paper findings the trend toward serious management changes made by large companies on the way toward making high-performance organizations is stressed in numerous theoretical and empirical studies. These changes revolve around one of the four commonly recognized approaches to organizational performance, namely employee involvement, total quality management, re-engineering, and knowledge management. Although neither of these categories can be addressed as simple knowledge management is â€Å"...the least well-defined and articulated of the four organizational improvement concepts†. Knowledge Management (KM) is a very broad discipline that integrates a number of organisational endeavours and practices used by different organisations in a variety of ways in order to identify, create, represent, and distribute knowledge and thus ensure competitive advantage of the company. KM represents one of the most recent developments in the long line of organisational tools a nd techniques such as 'the scientific management', X and Y' theory', 'T-groups', 'total quality management', 'organizational learning' 'systems thinking', 'benchmarking', 'business process re-engineering' and other methods meant to create economic value and competitive advantage. After becoming an independent established discipline in the middle of 1990s, KM is perceived as an essential aspect of HRM and information technology in modern organisations (Davenport & Prusak, 1998). The integrative and rather broad nature of KM contributes to the difficulties associated with defining this paradigm. Generally, KM is viewed as a new form of management which facilitates organizational adaptation, survival and competence in face of increasingly dynamic environmental changes. This broader perspective incorporates the processes of knowledge use, knowledge creation, knowledge sharing, knowledge transfer and knowledge renewal with each of these concepts being defined independently (Malhotra 2000). Therefore, Skyrme (2002) suggests defining KM as "the explicit and systematic management of vital knowledge and its associated processes of creating, gathering, organizing, diffusion, use and exploitation, in pursuit of organizational objectives" (p. 4). However, this definition of KM is far from being unanimous: the views vary substantially by representatives of different theories and approaches. Traditionally, two major views have been presented in the scholarly literature on KM, namely: the informational resources management (or management of explicit knowledge) and management, which creates the environment in which people could easily develop and share the knowledge while the increasingly serious

Concrete Island by J.G. Balllard Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Concrete Island by J.G. Balllard - Essay Example This novel is followed by â€Å"High-Rise† and preceded by â€Å"Crash†. As the name implies, the book is about a Concrete island that is not a natural island but a manmade one formed by the intersection of three speeding motorways. This manmade island is a triangular section of land and is as isolated as a geographical island. The concrete island virtually traps the protagonist, the wealthy architect Maitland and stops every means of escape. The island is compared to a living thing that changes it form like a chameleon. It first gets hold of his car wrecking it up so that his one escape means gets destroyed and later grasps him, claws at him and forbids him to leave it until he himself have an upper hand on the island and thaw all its moves with the help of his intelligence and instinct. Maitland finds himself trapped in this triangular piece of land while life goes on as usual in that metro city. People even see him from their passing cars but mistake him for a bummer and refuses to stop. But, as the protagonist become more and more acquainted with the forgotten piece of landscape, he feels more comfortable living there, until he finds that the island is the mirror image of his self, â€Å"I am the island† (pg. ... He is a rich architect living a fast and furious life who has a wife along with a mistress, a high profile job and all the luxuries that life can give him but no time for himself. He is basically running off from one appointment to the other with little time for a break, speeding up his vehicle, until destiny puts a comma on his life and he gets a chance to evaluate his inner self and take destiny in his own hands by deciding to stay on in the void created by humans even when the chance to escape is presented to him. Thus, it could be fate itself that directed him to the island and urged him to stay on. Nobody to Miss Him Maitland crashes into the concrete island at a crucial time in his life when nobody was expecting him. Hence, this is the time when people would not miss him and his absence would not be questioned. Thus, Maitland has to restore to his resources to be able to stay alive. Maitland is a very impulse individual who rushes into things without waiting to think of their c onsequences. He is afraid of fate and of unknown and does all that he could to escape as fast as he could from the disaster that he finds himself surrounded in. But, however much he runs from the island, he finds himself back in it and worse for trying it out. It is like the island is surrounded by invisible Page 3 walls and he only hurts himself while trying an escape route. Like Robinson Crusoe he has to live on the meager ration of his car. Slowly, Maitland starts acquainting him in this new landscape and in the process discovers that he is not alone in this rough piece of land. He has two more neighbors in the form of Jane, a prostitute and Proctor, an acrobat. Thus, Maitland may decide to stay on for some more time until his appearance becomes necessary and people would start

The primary function of human resource management Essay

The primary function of human resource management - Essay Example t kinds of units within the organization and those that encourage directed learning as well as promoting inter-agency communication across the entire company are being increasingly viewed as having paramount importance. Furthermore, Human Resource department must develop a system of recognition and reward for the staff in regards to their contributions to the agency. To create value and deliver results, HR professionals must begin not by focusing on the work activities or work of HR but by defining the deliverables of that work. HRs roles in building a competitive organization include management of strategic human resources, management of transformation and change, management of firm infrastructure, and management of employee contributions (Ramlall, 2003, p. 51) The role of the Human Resource department has gone through substantial changes over the past century. Human Resources (HR) had its beginnings during the industrial revolution and by the early 1900’s many of the modern components of the HR department were falling into place. With the influx of unions, the Civil Service Commission, the industrial welfare movement and scientific research into management and the birth of industrial psychology, personnel departments became essential components of any well run business, from the 1920’s forward. Then as now, HR departments became the responsible sections for areas such as employment (hiring and firing), employee welfare (housing, medical, educational and financial), wage setting, safety, training, and health as well as employee benefits. (Jamrog, and Overholt, 2004) Then, during the middle part of the Twentieth century the human relations’ movement along with the application of knowledge and research from the disciplin es of the behavioral sciences and systems theory enhanced HR’s responsibilities and overall requirements. However, in spite of the tremendous amount of research showing that happy and well trained employees were more productive

Creative Web design & CMS Development Assignment

Creative Web design & CMS Development - Assignment Example Fries Deli also provides free delivery of packaged food items within the locality only if the requested items cost sum to a certain limit. At the outlet, the customers are handed the menu that contains the items with pricing. This menu is also displayed on top of the counter. But for the customer that request for home delivery the menu is informed to them over the phone from which the customer chooses. The purpose of this report is to review and convey the basic theoretical and implementation knowledge of web development through suggesting two enhancements to the existing setup of Fries Deli. The report presents an online static informational system for the Fries Deli and a dynamic feedback system for publishing user feedback regarding the various Fries Deli food services. It implicitly highlights how the technologies are picked from the available choices in view to the requirements of these two websites. 2. Theoretical Research and Evaluation Websites comprise of information coded i n a form which can easily travel over the internet. The informational needs of a person or company keep varying [1]. In accordance to these ever changing requirements, websites are of different types. Websites could be informational (static pages where content remains the same) [2], data-driven (dynamic pages where the updated data is displayed) [3], interactive (where some type of input is required from the user), closed access (private i.e. accessible only to authorized users), open websites (accessible to public) and website with frequently updated content. In order to handle this wide variety of websites, there are different methods of creating them. In the earlier ages of web development, the developers used to build websites from scratch. With the increase in web complexity [4] and advancement of web technology, web tools and editors [5] were developed that either assisted with the coding process, or made the web designing process entirely visual or both. And finally the conte nt management systems were introduced [6]. Whatever method was chosen, the websites created are required to be usable and accessible [7, 8]. The objective of the website is to share and access information. The website should be designed such that it is easy to use and learn them [9]. They must allow for both the abled and disabled users to be able to retrieve information. In order to access websites, they need to be assigned a domain name and be hosted onto some server wherefrom they can be accessed. The browser is a client application the runs on the user’s computer. It takes the request from user, transmits them onto the network and displays the server’s response to the request. Thus there are two areas where data can be manipulated; the client side and the server side. There are web standards that require to be followed by the websites created [10, 11]. XHTML, HTML is the standardized markup language used for presenting the content of a website i.e. the headings, co ntents, links, images, forms, etc. CSS is the standardized styling language used for defining the visual style of the website interface i.e. the colour of headings, text, links, etc. JavaScript, AJAX, JQuery, Flash are some of the language for programing the client side scripts. Php, Asp, .NET, etc. are some of the l

What is the best free digital content we use today Essay

What is the best free digital content we use today - Essay Example Today, something magical and enchanting has overpowered the PowerPoint and is increasingly being made use of by students and mentors. It is Prezi – the free online software. Prezi is the best free digital content we use today. Prezi enables an individual to develop beautiful multimedia presentations. Instead of limiting the user to slides like the conventional PowerPoint, Prezi provides the user with a 3d canvas which the user can zoom in and zoom out as desired. As this is done, different themes, images and ideas are unveiled. For example, one may begin the discussion with the word â€Å"Apple†, and hide all information regarding it inside the alphabet â€Å"A†. Upon zooming in â€Å"A†, the hidden information can be accessed. Prezi also enables the user to store and save the presentation online. This eliminates the chances of the report getting lost when needed. Despite the multitude of options PowerPoint provides the users with, use of it today seems ou tdated. Carefully chosen color and background combinations in PowerPoint hardly interest the audience anymore. In these circumstances, Prezi comes with new features that are of huge interest not only to the audience, but also to the presenter. Their mutual interest raises attention that is the primary requisite of a good presentation and develops an atmosphere that is conducive for both teaching and learning.

Determination of the California Bearing Ratio CBR of an Engineering Lab Report

Determination of the California Bearing Ratio CBR of an Engineering Soil sample - Lab Report Example This value serves as a recommendation for the usage of the engineering soil in subgrades and base courses in pavements. The CBR value is a Rating or percentage which is calculated by comparing the measured pressure with the standard pressure. Then compared with the recommendation given by different engineering practicing bodies and authorities. The test is carried according to BS 1377: Part 4: 1990. As the procedure is already discussed in detail in the Laboratory Manual and the BSI Standard. Whereas the brief outline is that the first step is to prepare the sample to be tested, then the soil sample is compacted using the standard method. Then the sample is placed in the compression machine and after applying the seating load, the test is initiated and reading is taken for every 0.25 mm interval. Lastly the value of 2.5 mm and 5.0 mm penetration is recorded, and finally, the CBR value is calculated. But the results our test show that the curve for the bottom is above the curve of the standard this is not correct. Hence there is some source of error. These errors can be due to any reason; this could be due to the faulty apparatus, and there might be a permanent error in the dial gauges. There might be some initial reading that could have been considered and not eliminated later. There is a large error seen in the readings of the bottom of the CBR test, the result shows that the CBR value is more than 100% that is not possible. So these reading are not considered and discarded. Therefore the CBR value of 5% is found as an appropriate value. Then there are certain considerations to be taken while the experiment to have accurate readings. Firstly the face of the plunger must be leveled onto the sample face and no kern should be there. Then the surcharge plate must also be placed which will restrict from the heaving of the soil.

Criminology 135 Canadian Low topic Khadr Case Essay

Criminology 135 Canadian Low topic Khadr Case - Essay Example When assessing such questions, the answers appear to require a balance between the safety of nations against the resultant infringement of the rights of individuals. But on which side should the balance fall, and when – if at all – is it tolerable to restrict the rights provided in the Charter? Khadr’s case, like so many others, raise these and many more questions, and bring to light the delicate yet fundamental problems faced by the detainment of suspected terrorist individuals. Canadian citizen Khadr, having been arrested on suspicion of involvement with Al-Qaeda, and murder of an American soldier was detained in Guatanamo from 2002, during which time he was a minor. He was denied access to counsel and family and was interrogated several times by both US and Canadian officials. When interviewed by the Canadian Government, it was alleged that the interviewer did not allow Khadr access to legal counsel and did not inform his of his right to silence. Further, the interviewer was aware that Khadr had been exposed to sleep deprivation prior to the interview – a practice held to be torturous and illegal. The information obtained by the interviewer was then exposed to the US Government; an action that affirmed Canada’s participation in the conduct of the US, held to be a violation of fundamental principles of justice (Prime Minister v Khadr [2010] SCC 3). Khadr claimed that his fundamental rights provided in section 7 of the Charter had been violate d – the right to life, liberty and security of person. Khadr’s rights were held to have been violated, although the Supreme Court of Canada instructed that the Government provide a remedy which was in coordination with the Charter, rather than order his release and return to Canada. Some would imagine that such a remedy would be his release, and many would be surprised to discover that the

Distinktion Between British and American English Essay Example for Free

Distinktion Between British and American English Essay Abstract In this paper, distincion between British English and American English on the phonetic aspect will be discussed. The whole paper is going to be devided into several parts, in the first part various of English accents and the outline of the differences between these two variants of English will be introduced in biref ; In the second part, the representative of British English – Recerved pronunciation will be presented in detail on the aspect of sound system; in the thirt part, the phonetic peculiarities of American English will be discussed; in the last part, the sound system of British English and American English will be compaired in detail, thus the differences will be presented minutely. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BRITHS ENGLISH AND AMERICAN ENGLISH ON THE ASPECT OF SOUND SYSTEM Outline: The fanous American author and humorist Mark Twain had said that :English and American are separate languages,..when I speak my native tongue in its utmost purity an Englishman cant understand me at all. (The stolen White Elephant) It is ture, we have already heard the concept of American English and British English when we started to learn this language, although we didnt know and cannot distinguish their differences at that time, we knew, at least, they are different. As an English majoring student, now I know they have distinctions in several aspects including vocabulary, pronunciation, spelling, intonation, etc. and it is my horner and pleasure to write on this theme: distinction between American English and British English on the phonetic aspect. Various accents: One thing which should be mentioned at the very begining is that, in fact,there are various accents in English, in general, linguistists devide  them into two groups: American varient of English and British variant of English, which can also be subdevided as in following graphic: Each of the above mentioned accents has their owen features thus different from each other, in this paper, not all these acctents are going to be discussed, only two representatives will be researched, they are the representative of American Enlish : General American English (GA), and the representative of British English: Received Pronunciation (RP), In general, one of the most siginificant parcularities of Brithish accent is it is cadenced, almost every sylable is pronounced clearly, long vowels and short vowels are distinguished obviously. However in American accent it is kind of ambiguous and vague, most of the long vowels are cutted short. For instance, the vowel a in class belongs to long vowel, British always pronounce it intactly, whereas Americans often enunciate it as a short one, it sound like a in the word bad. An other example can be the word aunt, almost all American pronouce it as ant with out expception, which makes it confusing whether they are reffering to their aunt or the ant creeping in front of their house. British accent invariably enunciate voiceless consonant in unstressed sylables clearly, yet Americans pronouce voiceless consonants as voiced ones, as a result, the word Battery was enunciated as Baddery by Americans. In most countries the English learning materials of schools use British standard English. The English channel of China Central Telivision as well as the dialogues between the spoke men of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and foreing journalists use British English too. Among foreign meida, the accent used by BBC is considered to be acknowledged model of British English. Within Movie stars, Hugh Grant (acted the leading role in Four Wedding and a Funeral) graduated from Oxford University and speaks in standard upper class British accent.. RP: authentic British accent In China, there are various accents in different origins, among them mandarin is the officially stipulated as standard official language, however, although there are also various accents in different origins in Britain, there is no official stipulation on which is the standard one, but in the history of the development of English language, one accent formed its  importance and acknowledged to be the most stand British English, that is: Received Pronunciation, shorter form of which is RP. Retrospect its history, Received Pronunciation formed from an accent used in South Central England. That region extended toward southeast from Midlands to London, among which includes the two famous University towns Oxford and Cambridge. In the 14th century, Received Pronunciation was widely used among traders, and with the rise of Oxford and Cambridge University, this accent is also used by students of the two universities, thus, Received Pronunciation turned into the accent used by people who hav e received good education. From 19th to 20th century, Received Pronunciation became the education language use in British public schools, it was also used by British Broadcasting, and as a result, it is as well named as Public School English and BBC English. The concept of Received English was previously proposed by the English linguistic Daniel S. Jones in his monograph in 1918. To sum up, Received Pronunciation has the following general features: 1. Received Pronunciation is a kind of standard neutral accent, it is deemed to have no definite regional accent character. Whereas, in the British Isles, Received Pronunciation is only used in England, in addition it does not limit area. 2. Received Pronunciation has specific social demarcation. In Britain, RP is regarded as reflection of having received good education, that is, well educated. Hence, it is always connected with upper class of society, sometimes it is termed as Oxford English and King’s/Queen’s English. A coalmine worker frkm Welsh won’t understand and speak elegant Received Pronunciation. 3. Received Pronunciation is always closely bounded together with some particular professions. The main occupations use RP are: lawyers, politicians, diplomats, bond traders, teachers of universities or public schools, as well as announcers of national Broadcasting and Television studios. Evidently, those professions at the same time reflect ‘elegant’ and ‘distinguished’ social positions. What is worth mentioning is that as Received Pronunciation is standard orthodox British English, it is widely used in foreign language education. Therefore, the English learned by non-English first language countries is Received Pronunciation, the English pronounced by some of the excellent learners among them is even more normative than local British people. The principle character of RP is to protrude the sound ‘r’. When two words are connected together, if the  previous one ends with a non-high vowel while the second one starts with a vowel, the RP enunciation will add a non-existing r. By comparing the following two phrases we can see the peculiarities of RP: Regular enuciating situation (ending with a non-high vowel + starting with a consonant): The idea for it saw him in the room. Adding the non-existing r'(ending with a high vowel + starting with a vowel): The idea(r) of it, saw(r) it in the room. Peculiarities of American accent: 1. Abdominal pronunciation: When we listen to American people speak, it is noticeable that their timber is very abundant, the time of resonation sounds very long, even with strong nasal. In fact this is the first peculiarity of American accent abdominal pronunciation. The so called abdominal pronunciation refers to the habit of producing sound from the abdomen in American accent, which is very different in Chinese where the process of sound production is in the chest. More specifically, when we produce vowels, we need to draw in our bellies, then enunciate with vocal cord vibration, only in this way the produced vowels can sound resonant and full. If you want to practice most standard and pure American accent, you must form the habit of producing voice from the abdomen, pronounce with the back of vocal organs, this is the first thing we need to do. 2. Literally pronunciation: The second peculiarities of American accent is literally pronunciation, in general, they are pronounced just as they are spelled., enunciation is more regulated, which exactly match the peculiarity of English language as a kind of phonogram. For instance, the most significant distinction between American accent and British accent is the disposing of the retroflex consonant r. someone always finds it difficult to decide when should he/she roll his/her tongue and when not. It seems very complicated, in fact it is easy when you get it: in American accent, as long as there is letter r in the spelling, you should retroflex when you enunciate the word, on the contrary, if there is no letter r in the word, avoid rolling your tongue by all means. Therefore, we need to retroflex in words like letter, butter,  whereas in words like idea, China we mustn’t roll our tongue. Moreover, American English sounds different from British English mainly because in AE pronunciation tends to agree with spelling. For example, the word vase, according to the rule of ‘if there is a non-pronunced e at the end of the word, then the vowel of that word pronounce its letter sound’, British people pronounce it as [va:z], however, it is enunciated as [veiz] in American English. 3. The third peculiarity of American English is there is clear distinction between stressed and unstressed syllables. When we speak Kazakh and Chinese, every word can be stressed, so our tone sound constant and forceful, but when we speak AE, we have to get rid of this habit. The rhythm of AE comes from alternation of stressed and unstressed syllables, so if we want to make what we say rhythmist, we have to abbey the role of differentiating between stressed and unstressed syllables, also, we should pay attention to stressed syllables of words, firstly, we cannot shift stresses, then we should weaken the syllables without stresses, hence the word industry, the stress falls on the first syllable, but some people may have the habit of putting stress on the second syllable, this is a wrong habit, we must get rid of it. In order to make clear distinction between stressed and unstressed words or syllables, the most important thing to do is to weaken the unstressed syllables, once we can pronounce the unstressed syllables and words correctly, the stressed can be reflected out. Some general differences between American English and British English: 1. The resonance focus of American accent, i.e. where muscle moves most frequently, is on the back of mouth cavity between tongue and palate. That is the so called ‘pronounce rearwardly ’; in British accent the resonance focus is in front of teeth and between the lips, lips and facial muscles moves more frequently, which is so called ‘pronounced forwardly’. 2. In American accent the pitch changes between the syllables rather than within the syllables. There is no pitch glide within the syllables; however, in British accent, they try to emphasize the logically important words by gliding the pitch (The so called pitch glide is to lengthen the syllable and raise the pitch.). 3. There are 3 main vowels pronounce differently in British accent. /o/ in AE is two-stage-enunciation, while in BE a sound / ÊÅ' / is added before /əʊ/ which makes it a three-stage-enunciation. British /É’/  sound brief and powerful, lips glide fleetly, the degree of lip-rounding become smaller. Whereas when pronounce /É”:/ in BE, lips protract forward far away and bend into a round shape, leaving only a small opening. 4. Some sound in British English is different at times. When the sound /i:/ is at the end of a word (especially when spelled as y or ly ), it is weekend to /i/, for instance, in words like pretty, mostly. In American English, the syllables in the end with sound /sri/, /ori/ are always stressed, however, in British English those sounds are weekend to /É™ri/, and stresses are moved forward. For example in words like necessary, ordinary, category, the sound /à ¦/ in British English may change to /É‘:/ when it is in American English, In general, it would change under the following circumstances: * Before /f/, such as after, laugh, half, calf; * Before /s/, such as fast, last, rascal, repast, pass, glass (except for passenger, passage); * Before /th/, such as bath, path, rath, rather, lather (except for gather) * Before /nc/, /nk/ , such as dance, chancellor, lance, france; * Before /nt/, such as advantage, plant, chant, can’t; * Before /nd/ such as commander, demand, slander (except for and, hand, grand, stand) Irregular situations: the sound a does not change in bat, cat, can, changes in banana, example, sample, ranch, branch. Although the sound /u/ in American English might as well not change, but it is common to change to /ju/, for instance, duke, dual, due, neutral, nuclear, news, Tuesday, tune, tunic, lubricate, ludicrous, lunatic. 4. The letter r will drop when it is after a vowel, only when they are followed by another vowel. 6ï ¼Å½In American English sound t at the end of a word is incomplete plosive, while in British English it is complete plosive. 7. There are also a lot of irregular sound changes, for example: (American English→British English)

Financial Analysis of Northrop Grumman Essay Example for Free

Financial Analysis of Northrop Grumman Essay The fiscal analysis of Northrop Grumman includes the examination of profitability, liquidity, and equity ratios, its 3 year stock price, as well as a general financial overview of the company. This case study exams their fiscal strategy as well as the debt utilization and possible effects of the fiscal crisis on Northrop Grumman. This document compares Northrop Grumman to other companies in the defense sector by comparing their ratios as well profitability. The paper will provide the reader with an understanding of the financial makeup of the company and its current and recent performance as well as estimates of future earnings. Overview of Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman is one of the world’s major defense contractors. Northrop Grumman is an innovative company that has long history of making aircraft and other products that support the defense industry. Northrop Grumman is made up of the former Northrop and Grumman companies and eighteen other companies that have been integrated into one successful corporation. Northrop Grumman has four primary sectors in its business model: aerospace systems, electronic systems, information systems, and technical services. The company has its headquarters in Falls Church, Virginia, and production facilities across the United States, with major facilities in California, Virginia, and Maryland. Northrop Grumman is the third largest defense contractor in the world. Some of Northrop Grumman’s primary competitors are Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, and L-3 Communications Holdings, Inc. Northrop Grumman plans on remaining competitive even with the threat of sequestration looming over the federal government and the threat of an additional $500 Billion in defense cuts above the currently planned $500 billion in defense cuts. They plan on remaining competitive by being able to successfully develop and market their products, to stay ahead of the competition. This is done by reaming innovative, and providing the facilities and people to accomplish these goals of developing and manufacturing new products and support businesses and governments in information technology. History of Northrop Grumman Northrop was founded in 1939 by Jack Northrop in Hawthorne, California. The company produced its first aircraft in 1940, the N-3PB patrol bomber for the Norwegian Air Force. The first production aircraft for the United States Army Air Force was the P-61 Black Widow. They continued developing aircraft for the United States Air Force, competing in the bomber contract in the mid-1940s for the long range heavy bomber contracts using his radical flying wing designs of the XB-35 and XB-49, which were in competition with the B-36 and B-47. This was a highlight of Jack Northrop’s development of technologically advanced aircraft. In 1959, they had the first flight of the F-5 a supersonic low cost fighter that would serve as the basis of the T-38 supersonic jet trainer for the USAF, and later on the F-20 an upgraded version of the F-5. They also designed the US first ICBM the Shark. They continued with development of many programs culminating with the B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber, currently the most advanced and expensive bomber ever built for the US Air Force. In 1994 they acquired the Grumman Corporation and became Northrop Grumman. The Grumman Corporation started out in the 1930 was instrumental in the development of Naval Aircraft. They built the XFF-1, built in 1931, was the first naval aircraft with retractable landing gear. The built the widely successfully naval fighters the Wildcat with the first ever sto-wing and the Hellcat one of the most successfully carrier aircraft of World War Two. Grumman continued to develop aircraft for the United States Navy, developing the F9F Panther, one of the United States Navy’s earliest jet fighters. Grumman continued to develop jet aircraft, including the A-6 Intruder family of aircraft for the Navy, as well as the F-14 Tomcat, made famous by the movie Top Gun. Most notably the Grumman designed and built the Lunar Lander for the Apollo program. Key Products Northrop Grumman is primarily involved in four related by also distinct industries which are also their core competencies. They are involved in aerospace systems, electrical systems, information systems and technology systems. Involvement in these key areas allows them to focus on their customers’ needs for unmanned air systems; command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C4ISR); logistics, and cyber security. The company is currently involved in a many major programs for the Defense Department. They are producing the RQ-4 Global Hawk an unmanned air system (UAS) that is the only UAS that is allowed to fly in US airspace. They are also developing and producing active electronically scanned array radars for the F-35 and F-16 as well as a multitude of electronic warfare systems like the US Navy’s Next Generation Jammer. The Lightning family of advanced targeting pods is also a key program within Northrop Grumman, with the L ightning Generation four reaching its 250th produced unit. Northrop Grumman is also developing the X-47b for the US Navy, which would give them a stealth carrier launched unmanned combat air vehicle, which would be the first for the US Navy. This aircraft also made history, by being the first unmanned combat air vehicle to accomplish a catapult launch, on 29 November 2012 at the Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland (McKinney 2012). Northrop Grumman is also a partner with Lockheed Martin in building major components to the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter Program, specifically the center fuselage and weapons bay. They also participate in the civilian sector with the flat sequencing system for the US Post Office, and information systems for the Department of Homeland Security and public 911 services. Financial Condition Northrop Grumman is a financially secure company that is looking to maintain its current status quo. According to their Value Line Report they were given an A++ rating for financial stability. Value Line is also estimating their 2012 revenues at $25100 million, which represents a decrease of $1312 million. Even though the company’s revenues have decreased since 2010, they have been able to maintain their strength in the defense industry. They are still the third largest defense contractor; even with their recent sell offs of Newport News and Huntington Ingalls Industries, Incorporated. This sell off, the drawdown in the Iraq and Afghanistan, and the decreases defense spending has led to a decrease in revenues however according to Value Time, their revenue in 2013 is estimated to be $2,500 million a decrease of only $100 million. Northrop Grumman also carriers a middle grade bond rating of BBB+, BBB+, and Baa+ from the 3 major bond raters, S P, Finch, and Moody’s. These rating show that Northrop Grumman is stable company with an average stock price for 2012 of $63.13. Northrop Grumman Fiscal Strategy Northrop Grumman’s corporate strategy can be explained in the 2011 Annual Report opening quote from CEO Web Bush, â€Å"2011 was an outstanding year for Northrop Grumman, affirming that our focus on performance, portfolio alignment and effective cash deployment continues to create value for our shareholders, customers and employees and position our company positively for the future.† This quote states the overall direction that CEO Web Bush is taking Northrop Grumman into the future. The key to this strategy is Northrop Grumman focusing on performance. An example of this was an earnings per share increase of 17% on diluted shares to $7.41 (Northrop Grumman 2011). In 2011, with the spinoff of their shipbuilding division, they were able to provide, $1.6 billion in equity to their shareholders (Northrop Grumman, 2012). These actions have all been to provide the most benefit to their shareholders. Northrop Grumman is also focusing in on the new strategies that the Department of Defense is pursuing, with over 90% of their business with the DoD and the US government by focusing in on the growth areas of the DoD. C4ISR, unmanned systems, cyber security, and logistics are leading the way as the new focus of Northrop Grumman as they are the portions of the DoD that will continue to grow with the current budget issues facing the Obama presidency. They are also continuing its focus on their aerospace division which is the most profitable, since Northrop Grumman is a prime contractor on the F-35 and the F/A-18, as well as the builder of the Global Hawk. They are also seeing the US budget problems as an ideal point to start pursue the international market place more, like the recent sale of Global Hawks to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Their continued focus of on stockholder’s value means they need to focus on their key priorities of unmanned air system, C4ISR, logistics, and cyber security. Another part of Northrop Grumman’s strategy is making minor and major acquisitions into other companies allowing them to expand their business, which in turn will help increase stockholders value. They will from time to time create strategic alliances, form joint ventures, and dispose of or spinoff companies when they believe that these actions will aid in creating more value for their stockholders. Northrop Grumman’s strategic plan is to continue to focus on increasing shareholder value as well as to continue to maintain their cutting edge in technology and in the defense industry, and to develop systems that will support the DoD new strategies as US forces leave Afghanistan and begin to focus on the Pacific Region. The current fiscal crisis that is gripping the US, with large cuts to the defense budget, expiration of the George W. Bush tax cuts, increased tax rates, cuts to social programs, and new taxes from the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Ac 2010, will directly affect Northrop Grumman at all levels. However, Northrop Grumman is in a position to succeed with the cuts and tax increases and the possibility of another $500 billion in budget cuts to its largest customer, the Department of Defense in the event of sequestration, because of the companies diversity within the defense market and their mix of being the primary contractor and a subcontractor on many contracts. They plan on continuing their focus on their core industries needs of the DoD. Northrop Grumman also believes that their business is well positioned within the US government, because of the diversity of programs they are working on like the F-35 Lightning II, RQ-4 Global Hawk, Minute Man III upgrades, next generation jammer, and other classified programs. These programs, with their importance to the US DoD will allow Northrop Grumman to remain viable during the fiscal crisis, and remain profitable. They also believe that a deal will be reached averting the crisis, and allowing business to continue. Northrop Grumman’s Weighted Average Cost of Capital Northrop Grumman has a weighted average cost of capital of 8%. This represents the low cost at which Northrop Grumman is able to procure financing. They currently have been buying back shares, which are increasing shareholder’s equity by making each share worth more; as well they have been utilizing debt effectively. They particularly have been using bonds to buy back stock as well as for financing capital programs. They use the weighted average cost of capital as a tool in determining discount rate and terminal value assumptions. The weighted cost of capital takes into consideration the relative weights of the components of their capital structure. This is used to measure the costs of new capital, and with a weighted average cost of capital at 8%, Northrop Grumman seems to balance in its approach to capital which is a sign of a mature and financial stable company. Profitability Northrop Grumman has been a profitable company over the course of its history. In 2002 their profits were $697.0 million and a Value Line estimate of $2,005 million for 2012, which are almost three times the profits of 2002. These recent profits can be attributed to the operations in the Middle East, particularly the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which have increased profits in every major defense contractor. Northrop Grumman plans to remain profitable during the defense cuts from 2011-2021 by continuing their excellence in their product development, manufacture and support. Failure in any of these areas will have a negative effect on their profitability. They also need to ensure that their contracts are completed on time and on budget, to ensure that with some of the current contracts and political environment that either they do not get canceled, or that they do not have continue on with their own funds. Other things that could affect profitability would be a failed rocket launch or failure of a product that cannot be fixed causing a contract to be canceled. Northrop Grumman’s net profit margin has also increase since 2002. In 2002 their net profit margin was 4.1% and has increased gradually to an estimated 8.0% in 2012. However, Value Line estimates that their net profit margin will decrease to 7.3% in 2013 and fall to 6.8% till at least 2015. The gradual increase in profits is attributed to the wars in the Middle East, where there has been an increased demand on their products, but the estimated decrease will be a result of the winding down of operations in the Middle East and the fiscal crisis enveloping the US Government. Even though their profits and net profit margin is planning on decreasing in 2013 and beyond according to Value Line, Northrop Grumman will remain profitable and thereby allowing to focus on their strategy of performing well for their shareholders. This increase in profitability is in line with their strategy of performance particularly with their stock price, which investors take the firm’s profitability into account. This has resulted in an average return on capital of 9.2%. Their return on capital is estimated to continue this increase rate through 2017 at 11.5%. Northrop Grumman’s EBITA Margin for 2011 is 14.26% at $3,304,000 million which has been increasing since 2010 and should continue to steadily increase even with the future budget uncertainty in the US government. Dividend Policy Northrop Grumman is also a stable company because of its dividend policy. Northrop Grumman offers a quarterly dividend and has been paying a dividend since 1943 except for 1949-1950. The dividend payouts for 2012 were $0.50 for the first quarter and $0.55 for each subsequent quarter, totaling $2.15, with earnings per share of $7.40 estimated for 2012 resulting in a 29% dividend payout ratio. When compared to other companies in the defense industry, Northrop Grumman is on par with its main competitors in regards to a dividend payout ratio with Boeing having a 2011 dividend payout ratio of 31% and Lockheed Martin of 41% in 2011 (Tortoriello, 2012). In 2011, Northrop Grumman was able to allocate $2.8 billion to give back to shareholders by repurchasing stock and through dividends. These strong cash flows in 2011 were a result of the spinoff of their shipbuilding industry, and $26,412 million in sales. The company is continuing its share repurchasing in 2012 with $290 million allocated to repurchase 13.6 million shares, with $2.0 billion left in that program (NOC earnings release, 2012). This along with the $2.15 dividend in 2012 represent Northrop Grumman strength as a company and their resolve to focus on their shareholders, by buying back stock, making it worth more and continuing to raise their dividend. Prior to the 2000s Northrop Grumman conducted its dividend policy like a utility with dividends that did not change its payout year to year. This all changed when Ron Sugar became CEO of Northrop Grumman in 2003. He began a program the resulted in stock buyback programs and was able to double the dividend payout during his tenure. CEO Sugar was able to raise the sales per share, however this did not result in an increase in the share price, which a low of $33.80 (Forbes, 2011). Northrop Grumman through their current CEO Wes Bush has increased their emphasis shareholder returns. He was able to the do by increasing dividends by an average of $0.13 per year and an average dividend of $1.78, since 2007. The 2012 dividend will be $2.15 with the fourth quarter paid on Dec 31, 2012. Northrop Grumman’s dividend policy is to continuously provide a dividend to its shareholders and to continuously attempt to increase the dividend as well. Another part of Northrop Grumman’s dividend policy is the stock buyback program. Northrop Grumman has been doing this since 2010, since they have excess cash from the spinoff of Newport News and Huntington Ingalls Industries, Incorporated, the shipbuildin g portion of Northrop Grumman and recent bond issues to buy back stock, in lieu of issuing a higher dividend. Corporate Bond Policy and Debt Usage Northrop Grumman uses corporate bonds like many other companies, for acquisitions, capital expansion projects, and refinancing existing debt. They currently have nine bond issues out with interest payments ranging from 1.85-7.81% with maturity dates from 2014 to 2040. Its current credit rating from SP, Fitch and Moody’s is BBB+, BBB+, and Baa1. These rating mean that Northrop Grumman has a lower medium grade rating, however according to Moody’s their debt metrics are at the high end of their current class of debt. Their current long term debt on 31 December 2012 will be $3,935.0 million (Value Line, 2012). Since 2009 they have paid of $256.0 million towards their long term debt. In 2011, Northrop Grumman paid $2,692 million in interest payments, according to their 2011 Annual report. They are projecting paying $207.0 million in 2012, which is lower than 2011, but that number is likely to rise at least through 2017. In November of 2010, Northrop Grumman issued a tender offer to buy its bonds back for a total of $2.119 Billion of bonds from its subsidiaries. Concurrently, they have a public offering of senior unsecured debt securities for debt repayment, pension funds, acquisitions, share repurchases, and working capital. On 15 February 2011, Northrop Grumman had a bond issue of $750 million at maturity with an interest rate of 7.125%. Moody’s has not down or upgraded Northrop Grumman’s bond rating, due to a large order of RQ-4 Global Hawks to NATO, and because of a $4.0 billion share repurchase plan. That sale could have a positive effect on their bond rating. All in All, Northrop Grumman has had numerous bond issues, and is currently using its latest one for a multitude of purposes. Industry Comparison Northrop Grumman is one of the top five defense companies in the world with defense revenues in 2010 of $31,181 billion (Tortoriello, 2012). Northrop Grumman as the one of the leading defense contractors in the world and is on par with or exceeding its competitors. Comparing the profitability of Northrop Grumman to its peers in the defense industry, we can take a look at figure 1 and compare profitability ratios of Northrop Grumman with the averages in their industry group. The median return on assets (ROA) for the search and navigation equipment is 7.10%, Northrop Grumman currently has a ROA of 7.45% as of 31 Dec 2011, and their current ROA is 5.72% as of 30 September. Using 2011 numbers, Northrop Grumman is slightly more profitable than the other firms in its SIC industrial grouping. Northrop Grumman is also effective in how they finance their activities, by using a mix of bonds, stock options, and other forms of financing. As of 2011 their total debt to equity ratio is 0.38 when compared to the industry average is of 84.40 is significant because it shows little financing Northrop Grumman is using at this time, however, they are still have a decent bond rating of Baa1 from Moody’s and Value Line has their financial strength listed as A++. The industry average for the quick ratio is 2.00. Northrop Grumman’s 2011 quick ratio was 0.97. With a quick ratio below one, this shows that Northrop Grumman is highly effective at creating cash from its investments and work activities. In examining these ratios; it shows that Northrop Grumman is a highly successful and stable company that would present a low risk investment to an investor. However, it is to be seen what the possibilities of sequestration and cuts to the military have on these ratios and the profits and low debt that Northrop Grumman has during the 2000s. Stock Price Analysis Northrop Grumman is a publicly traded firm on the New York Stock Exchange, under the symbol NOC. As of 14 December, 2012 they currently have 254,000,000 shares of common stock outstanding. They currently have zero preferred stock and $3,935 million currently in bonds. According to Northrop Grumman’s last cash flow statement, they paid $543 million in dividends. As of 15 November 2012, the board of directors decided to issue a quarterly dividend of $0.55 per share payable 12 December 2012. Northrop Grumman since 2009 has paid an average dividend of $1.83. They also have repurchased $2,194 million in company stock, and they have been doing this for the past few years as another way to compensate their investors besides dividends. Northrop Grumman over the past thirty-six months has seen its stock rise and fall and continue on that path with an average volatility of 2.0. The low volatility of their stock is representative of a stable company, and stable stock prices, that would attract conservative investors, and give new investors faith that they will receive a decent return on their money. Northrop Grumman during this time has since its stock prices with a high of $71.87 and a low of $49.26. The few really large troughs in the wave that the stock price creates is August of 2011 and fall of 2009. These troughs represent the low times for Northrop Grumman’s stock, but during these times there stock has been steadily climbing specifically after Wes Bush took over as CEO and began to focus on improving the share price as well increase the performance of the company. These dual actions have led to an increase in their share price as well helping the company reduce debt, and increase capital to deal with the impending financial crisis that could possibly lead to another recession. As of 14 Dec 2012, Northrop Grumman is trading at $67.37 (yahoo finance, 2012); they have consistently been trading in the upper $60s since July of 2012, when the stock price was rising from a low of $57.29 in June of 2012. Northrop Grumman stock has been rising because of the good ratings they have received from numerous media outlets, such as Value Line and Yahoo Finance. The rise in stock prices and favorable rating can be attributed to the company renewed focus on its core industries and the spinoff of its ship building subsidiaries. Their performance has increased under the leadership of their current CEO Wes Bush. Their stock prices have also remained stable in recent months, because of the strong cash presence, which is adding investor friendly initiatives such as a raising the dividend and repurchasing stock, as well as lobbying for new contracts, like the $30 million post office contract and the NATO contract to buy RQ-4 Global Hawks. Lastly, Northrop Grumman is one of the more stable companies with an estimated EPS in 2012 of $7.40, down $0.01 from 2011, which is indicative of a stable company that is meeting or exceeding its performance estimates. Currency Risk Northrop Grumman is exposed to foreign currency risk; however they are not at a great risk to fluctuations in foreign currency. They are exposed to the risks of foreign currency from their international operations. They mitigate foreign currency risk by entering into foreign currency forward contracts as to manage portions of receipts from international customers and payments that may be have to made to international partners. As of 31 December 2011 Northrop Grumman had $233 million in foreign currency forward contracts outstanding (Northrop Grumman, 2011). With $26,412 million in sales in 2011, (Northrop Grumman, 2012), $233 million is not very significant, and they believe a 10% change in interest rates of foreign currency exchange rates would not have a significant effect on the financial position or effect their operations. Capital Markets Northrop Grumman will be affected by the volatility and disruption the domestic and international credit markets. Northrop Grumman access these markets from time to time when they need capital to support capital expansion projects, refinancing of existing debt, and for evolving lines of credit. With the current fiscal crisis in the US and Europe, will make it difficult for Northrop Grumman access credit on favorable terms or at all which will have an adverse effect on the fiscal standing. They are at risk, because of counterparty default because they deal with bankers and brokers in the credit market, when they have need for more capital. Their suppliers are also at risk with the volatility and disruptions in the credit markets from the fiscal crisis. If their ability to access credit on favorable terms, or at all could adversely affect Northrop Grumman by forcing them to change suppliers, which could lead to them to be unable to meet their contractual obligations. This could cause delays in programs or force them to find other means to assist their suppliers to support their contracts. Northrop Grumman has also entered into credit agreements amounting to an aggregate principle of $2 billion. This is a revolving door 364 day credit agreement that will help them cover costs over the short in the event of a decrease in cash. This revolving line of credit is based on many rates, including the LIBOR or an alternate rate. Northrop Grumman will be facing issues in the credit market, due to the fiscal crisis in the US, and the instability in the federal budget and the looming threat of sequestration, which will directly affect the credit markets. However, the slow growth rates of the US economy, and economy remaining on the brink of falling back into recession has kept interest rates low, which is an attempt to make credit easier to access. Conclusion Northrop Grumman is a leading defense contractor in the United States that has four main business areas, aerospace systems, electronic systems, information systems, and technical services. They are involved in many products that are used or are in development for the Department of Defense, from the RQ-4 to new electronic warfare systems. Northrop Grumman currently receives 90% of its revenues from the US government, primarily from military contracts. They are also a very stable company that has been increasing their dividends over the past few years, as well as having a steady stock price that has been increasing as well. Their currently a lower medium grade bond rating, rated at Baa+ from Moody’s. They have a strong history of supporting the US military with a multitude of historic aircraft and systems that support these aircraft. Northrop Grumman will continue to excel within the looming threat of sequestration and $1 trillion in budget cuts to the defense budget over the next ten years. All in all, Northrop Grumman is a leader in the defense industry and will continue to be a profitable company during the drawdowns in the Middle East and the defense budget cuts facing the US armed forces. References Defense System Staff (2012) NATO inks $1.7B deal for Block 40 Global Hawks, 1105 Media, Vienna, VA. Retrieved on November 10, 2012 from http://defensesystems.com/articles/2012/05/21/agg-nato-global-hawks-contract.aspx. Dobosz, John (2012) Half A Trillion In Pentagon Budget Cuts Turns Defense Stocks Into Dividend Darlings, Forbes, Inc. Retreived on November 12, 2012 from http://www.forbes.com/sites/johndobosz/2012/05/25/superior-firepower-pays-fat-dividends/ Harrington, Robert L. (2012) Value Line Northrop Grumman. Value Line Publishing. Retrieved on November 20, 2012 from http://www3.valueline.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/secure/vlispdf/stk1700/index.aspx. Mergent (2012) Mergent Online General Company Information, 2012. Retrieved November 15, 2012 from www.mergentonline.com. McKinney, Brooks (2012) Northrop Grumman, U.S. Navy Conduct First Catapult Launch of X-47B Unmanned Aircraft, Globe Newswire. Retrieved on November 29, 2012 from http://www.irconnect.com/noc/press/pages/news_releases.html?d=10014076. Movius, Steve (2012) Northrop Grumman Reports Third Quarter 2012 Financial Results. Falls Church, Va. Northrop Grumman (2012) 2011 Annual Report. Falls Church, Va. Thompson, Loren (2011) How Northrop Grumman Aims To Outperform, Forbes, Inc. Retrieved on November 29, 2012 from http://www.forbes.com/sites/beltway/2011/01/10/how-north rop-grumman-aims-to-outperform/. Thompson, Loren (2012) Northrop Grumman Finds A Formula That Will Work In Hard Times, Forbes, Inc. Retrieved on December 11, 2012 from http://www.forbes.com/sites/lorenthompson/2012/12/11/northrop-grumman-finds-a-formula-that-will-work-in-hard-times/?partner=yahootix. Tortoriello, Richard (2012) Industry Surveys, Aerospace and Defense. S and P Capital IQ Industrial Surveys, New York. Retrieved on November 25, 2012 from http://www.netadvantage.standardandpoors.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/NASApp/NetAdvantage/index.do. (2012) Industry Browser Industrial Goods Aerospace/Defense Major Diversified Company List Yahoo Finance. Retrieved on December 8, 2012 from http://biz.yahoo.com/p/610conameu.html. (2012) Moodys Disclosures on Credit Ratings of Northrop Grumman Corporation , Services, New York. Retrieved on November 3, 2012 from http://www.moodys.com/research/Moodys-Disclosures-on-Credit-Ratings-of-Northrop-Grumman-CorporationPR_243144. (2011) Moo dys says Northrop Grummans $4 billion share repurchase authorization wont impact ratings, Moody’s Investor Services, New York. Retrieved on November 10, 2012 from http://www.moodys.com/research/Moodys-says-Northrop-Grummans-4-billion-share-repurchase-authorization-wontPR_218143. (2012) Northrop Grumman Corp. Ford Equity Research, Retrieved November 30, 2012 from www.fordequity.com. (2012) Northrop Grumman Corp. Mergent Corp. Retrieved on December 12, 2012 from www.mergent online.com. 2012 D B ratios, SIC 3812. Retrieved on December 5, 2012 from http://www.mergentkbr.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/index.php/reports/industry (2010) Northrop Grumman Announces Cash Tender Offers for Debt Securities and Commences Debt Offering. Los Angeles. Retrieved on November 10, 2012 from http://investor.northropgrumman.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=112386p=irol-newsArticleID=1489734highlight=. (2012) Northrop Grumman, Yahoo Finance. Retreived on October 30, 2012 from http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bs?s=NOC+Balance+Sheetannual. (2012) Northrop Grumman Corporation, numerous Moody’s reports. Moody’s Investor Services. New York. Retrieved on November 1, 2012 from http://www.moodys.com/credit-ratings/Northrop-Grumman-Corporation-credit-rating-558850. (2010) Northrop Grumman Announces Cash Tender Offers for Debt Securities and Commences Debt Offering, PR News Wire, Los Angeles. Retrieved on November 27, 2012 from http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/northr op-grumman-announces-cash-tender-offers-for-debt-securities-and-commences-debt-offering-106442983.html. (2012) 3 Defense Companies To Buy Ahead Of A Fiscal Cliff Compromise. Retrieved on December 9, 2012 from http://seekingalpha.com/article/1053621-3-defense-companies-to-buy-ahead-of-a-fiscal-cliff-compromise?source=yahoo.

Three Distinct Types Of Enduring Self Philosophy Essay

Three Distinct Types Of Enduring Self Philosophy Essay 1. It is believed that there are three distinct types of enduring self happened to both Stelios and the claimant, judging by the experience they have had using the teletransporter. In Stelios case, despite the fact that he got transported to the Mars and brought back to earth, he claims that he is still the same person as he is before. That said, this has shown that bodily continuity is what makes him the same now and earlier he was being transported to Mars. According to Diotima, the body is what who we really are. If the body changes, it will be still the same you. Just like a house which is vacant and then occupied again over several times, renovations are made in the owners best interest. No matter how much is being added and removed from the house, the house forever remains the same house, the house is the self whereas the occupants and furniture are physical features in a body that changes continually. So, he is having a hard time believe that the claimant is correct. Because a fter he used the teletransporter, he still looks and feels the same. However, on the claimants side, things are world apart from Stelio, memory constitutes a large role in what he had said. According to Locke, he believed that memories are what we really are. Ironically, he actually remembered the process where he got killed and being substituted by a clone. Consequently, thats what drove him into bringing his murder case to the court knowing the teletransporter had killed him. He can recall every single detail in his memory and able to present it to the court. In addition to memory, the enduring self is a soul stated by Descartes is related to the claimant side of story. Looking from the claimants perspective, the teletransporter might design to transport your body to Mars, but the soul is left behind on Earth. The soul feels inadequate without the body, hence the soul feels dead. When his body is transported back to earth, the soul and body is reunited. Again, he felt complete bec ause his soul was reattached to the body but doubted whether it is the same body he carried before. 2. Both of us had the same perception that memory makes the self endure over time. Nevertheless, there is a slightly different interpretation of memory for each of us. In Jia Yiis point of view, Memories are what we really are. How we react to different kinds of situations, how we judge things from our own aspects, our characters. When we were first born, we had no memory. And as we grow, we acquire sweet and bitter memories. As we grow older, we tend to gain experience from the happenings we faced in our daily lives. And with that, the memories influence us. It builds our character. Lets say you are a very cheerful person. But then, one fine day, your parents went crazy and started torturing you since then. Would your character be affected? Im pretty sure it would because the bitter memories you bear in your mind haunt you almost every day. That would make you see things different from the way you see things before. Lets say if a person is brought up in a very happy and cheerful family. Of course this persons character would be a cheerful person. And lets say if a person is brought up in a family where the parents always threw their tantrums at th eir child, that person would of course being a very pessimistic. These characters were built differently because of their memories and experiences they had during their childhood. In Jessicas point of view, without memory, we are just like a program that is shut down and never able to be retrieved back again. A handful of critics might not concur with this concept and stipulated that if we dont remember part of our past, therefore we are not ourselves. I would like to go one step ahead and elaborate further to what they have said. Memory and brain is intricately linked and highly dependent on each other. However, our brain is not capable of storing every information that is present to us, but those that appears happening, outlandish and appears important to us turns a memory memorable. Shortly put, our brain and memory is similar to a filter. Bits of information is filtered and the residues left on the filter are those unforgettable memories. Those that are channeled out from the filter is conceived to be menial by the brain. Take this for an example, I was strolling down a park one day, along the curbs I saw neatly trimmed grasses, flowers that smell like can dy, a man sitting on a beach reading a book. All of a sudden, a stray dog aimlessly chased after me and I eventually got taken over by the dog. Chances are, ten years later, when you happened to bumped into the same park, the first thing that comes to mind is that you remembered being chased by a dog. The rest of the details you experienced earlier didnt crossed your mind. Notwithstanding, we remained the same person as before. For the most part, the memory of the past evokes us into becoming a better person or the other way round depending on how well we extract the lesson from it. All in all, memory is precursor to how to change the way we live and ultimately, choose to character we desire to be. Part B 1. The passage is stating that we humans are nothing more than just a body who doesnt have purpose and meaning in life because in the end, we died and that is that. All our entire lives were fixed at the notion that we humans are unique because of we are rational, conscious, have purpose in life when in fact that is not the case. These abilities that are supposed to be designated at a particular way might not be it is meant to be. From young, these inheritable abilities run in our veins and to reject these unique abilities sounds implausible. Therefore, everybody living in this earth considered to be living a wrong life due to the fact that their abilities arent supposed to work like everybody else does. Who knows the instinct, senses, motivation that we have been told arent what they really are. They are all reducible to only physical body, and only that. That being said, this concept of human are worth nothing propels the Nazis to build the concentration camps and exterminate the h umans. Why the Nazis themselves werent killed was they perceive themselves as beyond the normal human beings. They are superior than the prisoners and believed to have more developed abilities the humans, and above all, invincible. The idea of mass killing the humans is as if they destined to be getting rid of. This truly shows that the Nazis treat human nature as non-human. Basically, we are nothing but objects and materials to them. Due to their perception of this, many human lives were lost. This whole passage is set on the materialists view that human is just a physical entity with no immaterial mind. Also, Charles Darwins theory stated that human nature has no purpose and not unique could be partly linked to this passage. 2. of blood and soil is that humans are just plain body without purpose in life, therefore are meant to be killed. On the other hand, at the desks and in lecture halls of nihilistic scientists and philosophers means that all this problem of mass killing of humans stems from the fact that the philosopher and scientists believe that humans have no value. It was not started from ministry but from education by nihilistic scientists. Thats why not everyone is being influence. Because its not at order, its just lectures and teachings. This triggers the Nazis to build a world of their own and decide to kill those human beings. Part C Jessicas response: 1. No, I could be in the perfect virtual reality machine and not know it No, I cant be sure Im awake No, I cant be sure Im not in the Matrix No, its a real possibility I believe that there is a reality independent of my experience, and that it is a real possibility that we dont have knowledge of this reality. Nevertheless, I believe that it will be possible to answer the skeptics. We will find a way to know were not living in the matrix. You selected the heroic response 2. This activity really intrigued me because for the very first time, it allows me to see reflect about the real world were living in. This activity, too in a way lets me to set things into new perspective and taught me a lesson of learning to sink in and open up to new possibilities although sometimes they contradicts my belief. However, as I was halfway through the activity, I had a funny feeling that this activity was disturbing and intrusive because it pervades my original concept of this world. Before this activity, I already have a vivid picture of what Im going to do in the future. Everything seemed impeccable until this activity came along. To say Im living in matrix sounds absurd, near impossible. This is all because what Im doing in the past or right now worth nothing. After every experience I have been through, be it good or bad, is not genuine, but rather controlled by a ultra-sophisticated machine that inseminate you the experience. In other words, experience is contrive d. Whats more, the judgment, ideas, arguments every human has come up with is all formed by this machine, to create the machine thinks is a more vibrant and livable world. I am merely just a character selected by the machine playing in this game of life. Whats inside you is just instructions and algorithms that is written by the machine and you just simply adhere it. Even our families and friends arent truly our families and friends, they happened to be the same exactly like me, selected by machine. In this case, essence is prior to existence. The essence itself is skillfully structured out by the machine, they have crafted the future for us. Yes, unless science has proven were not living in a matrix, I am convinced we are living in a virtual reality, plugged into a computer without us even noticing we are being plugged. For one, there are never any 100% absolute truth in a single theory. For instance, some researchers might show that exercise will make you lose weight while some ot hers disagree. This is to exemplify that there is never a consensus among us human. To deny the fact we are living in a real world and no such possible as matrix is to suggest that we refuse to open up to any possibilities. Truth is, we cant be entirely sure of everything, but rather everything is unsure and not fully been tapped into. Jia Yiis Response : No, I could be in the perfect virtual reality machine and not know it Yes, I know I am awake. No, I cant be sure Im not inside the matrix. No, Its a real posibility. 2. I believe that there is a reality independent of my experience, and that it is a real posibility that we dont have knowledge of this reality. Nevertheless, I believe that it will be possible to answer the sceptics. We will find a way to know were not living in the Matrix. You selected the heroic response For my opinion, I think this is activity is basically fun. It made me thinks twice of what I am doing now. Somehow, Im having doubts of it. What I did everything for the 19 years of my life, was it worth doing it I even thought that was it worth living in this world Somehow, it also made me thought that, was there another world exist that is greater than the world we living in right now This activity made me thought something that I had never thought before. I dont think I could be living in a virtual world. If I am really being controlled by computers, why created so many negative happenings in my life Why always repeating the same thing again and again and again Why do we cry, laugh or angry? Why would we have doubts in making a decision or a choice? If we are controlled by computers we shouldnt had emotions and doubts. For example, if you know the game of The Sims, well, its about how we build our virtual characters and build their lives. If its for me, I wouldnt create an unhappy life for my virtual characters. Because its painful. No one controls us but ourselves. We make our own decisions and choices.

Antigone Essay examples -- English Literature Essays

Antigone â€Å"Make these excuses, I will heap/ The earth over my brother’s body† (63). Although no one would help her, Antigone took a stand against injustice and honored her brother by burying him, even though Creon said this act would be punishable by death if anyone committed this act of insubordination. Especially in the age that Antigone lived in, it was considered foolish to simply go against a man’s orders, let alone the Kings. Not to mention that Antigone was related to the King, making the situation even worse. She committed a supremely precarious action, especially for a woman. Not only does she bravely follow her morals, but she does a great job of justifying them in her arguments. Antigone was a civil disobedient by disobeying Creon’s orders and accepting the consequences, but she did a great job of justifying them through her arguments throughout Antigone. One of the reasons that Antigone is able to have the best argument is because of her great use of pathos. In the begging of the play, she starts using pathos with Ismene when she tries to convince her to help bury Polyneices. She says that if she does not bury her brother’s body, the dogs and birds will pick away at his body. Also, she says that she will not dishonor him and that it is actually her â€Å"duty† to bury her brother. Antigone refuses to â€Å"betray† him and will defend his honor by doing what is right and burying his body. Antigone then challenges Ismene by asking her if she is willing to defile the gods by ...

The Misadventures of a Few :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I remember this account of my life, because I was an especially terrible child during this time. It was a brisk, paltry fall in 1988. I was nine years old. A couple of friends, my two brothers, my sister and I were all heading north along a river in Chicago. We weren’t in a boat or anything; we were walking right along the banks. The banks were filled with trees, shrubs and tall grass, and on top of that, the bank was on a slope. It was a bit difficult to navigate ourselves, but we just had to do it. What were we up to? Well we had heard stories that in this particular area of the river, there were Satanic worshippers who sacrificed women to Lucifer, the Devil. As we go north, on this bank along this river, I will be anxious to reveal our exploits along this path, the â€Å"devil’s rock†, and our, almost, disastrous escape.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The morning started just as any other. I would wake to a bowl of cereal and then make a dashing escape out of the house to meet a friend. My friend’s and I all lived on the same block. Anything we had going on involved one of us. We were a very tight pack and never let anyone get in with the group without some sort of initiation. On this particular day, in the late September month, we had decided today that we were going to finally find out whether the stories were really true. The weather was perfect, not a cloud in sight. When all of us finally got together, we began our trip to the river.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Getting to the river was not a very long or hard task. We lived relatively close, to say the least; it was about five blocks from our houses. It was a little strange while we were traveling to the river, because as time went by, the clouds started coming in. By the time we made it to the river, it was no longer a beautiful, bright sunny day, it was now a cool, colorless day. How could the weather change in such a short amount of time? Good question! When you are young and walking with a bunch of friend’s, you tend to talk fast and walk very, very slow. I believe it must have taken us anywhere between twenty minutes to an hour to get to our destination.

Cloning is Ethically and Morally Wrong :: Argumentative Persuasive Topics

Cloning is Ethically and Morally Wrong The question shakes us all to our very souls. For humans to consider the cloning of one another forces them all to question the very concepts of right and wrong. The cloning of any species, whether they be human or non-human, is ethically and morally wrong. Scientists and ethicists alike have debated the implications of human and non-human cloning extensively since 1997 when scientists at the Roslin Institute in Scotland produced Dolly. No direct conclusions have been drawn, but compelling arguments state that cloning of both human and non-human species results in harmful physical and psychological effects on both groups. The following issues dealing with cloning and its ethical and moral implications will be addressed: cloning of human beings would result in severe psychological effects in the cloned child, and that the cloning of non-human species subjects them to unethical or moral treatment for human needs. The possible physical damage that could be done if human cloning became a reality is obvious when one looks at the sheer loss of life that occurred before the birth of Dolly. Less than ten percent of the initial transfers survive to be healthy creatures. There were 277 trial implants of nuclei. Nineteen of those 277 were deemed healthy while the others were discarded. Five of those nineteen survived, but four of them died within ten days of birth of sever abnormalities. Dolly was the only one to survive (Fact: Adler 1996). If those nuclei were human, "the cellular body count would look like sheer carnage" (Logic: Kluger 1997). Even Ian Wilmut, one of the scientists accredited with the cloning phenomenon at the Roslin Institute agrees, "the more you interfere with reproduction, the more danger there is of things going wrong" (Expert Opinion). The psychological effects of cloning are less obvious, but none the less, very plausible. In addition to physical harms, there! are worries abou t the psychological harms on cloned human children. One of those harms is the loss of identity, or sense of uniqueness and individuality. Many argue that cloning crates serious issues of identity and individuality and forces humans to consider the definition of self. Gilbert Meilaender commented on the importance of genetic uniqueness not only to the child but to the parent as well when he appeared before the National Bioethics Advisory Commission on March 13, 1997. He states that "children begin with a kind of genetic independence of [the parent].

Balancing work, school and family life

Balancing career demands, family responsibilities, and college studies has never been an easy feat. Since time as a resource, has been and probably will always be scarce, we have to manage it as efficiently as possible. Seemingly, your time Is already being stretched too thin, with work and family obligations, so taking on the added responsibility of a college education, makes It even more daunting. But looking across the board of any spectrum of middle Income earners, one thing that we find common among them is a college degree. With that being said, many people find it an uphill task to obtain a degree.This is because they already have work and family obligations to contend with. However, with higher education being the way out of poverty for most people, they decide later in life to go to college, to pursue tertiary education. Even though pursuing a college education can be an uphill task, its benefits, outweighs any challenges it may present. In the end, it affords you and your f amily, the chance of getting ahead in life. One of the problems most people in this situation face is how much time they spend at the workplace. Whichever way you look at It, there are only twenty four hours In any given day.So more often than not, you will find yourself out of time, running late, trying to get from one particular engagement to the other, or turning In overdue writing assignments. Most people spend between eight to ten hours on the Job on a dally basis. In spite of the added responsibility of college work, you are still expected to meet productivity levels and even in some cases, exceed them. You have deadlines to meet, meetings to attend, and bosses to answer to. Now that you are a college student, the boss has found a way to give you more responsibilities. Of course this comes with some remuneration or your troubles.Brace yourself. Nobody said it was going to be easy. If it is easy, it probably wouldn't be worth much, anyway. There may be times when you will be so overwhelmed with this ‘balancing act' that, you will begin to second guess your decision. But rest assured, nothing could be further from the truth. Most times, by the time you get home you are completely exhausted. You still have a home to run, kids to take care of and a spouse to attend to. You settle In to cook dinner, to feed the family. Listen to how everybody day went. You Inspect their homework, scold where accessory, and praise where praise is due.At this juncture, you send everybody off to bed. You finally get some ‘me' time to yourself, only to be called upon to attend to some spousal duties. Oh lord when is this going to end? By the time you wiggle your way out of that, it is eleven pm. You need a ‘shut eye' badly, but one more thing. There is a writing assignment over due, so you decide to sacrifice a couple hours to get that paper done. You are awoken by your alarm clock at six in morning, still sitting at the desk in your attempt to complete your ass ignment. Another day is upon you, and the cycle continues.You somehow manage to get yourself up and waking everyone, you begin the process of getting them ready for school. It turned out you were able to complete the assignment, before sleep took over. In an hour or so, breakfast In the bellies, lunch boxes packed and backpacks strapped on, you file out ready to begin yet another day. You say a prayer to yourself. Slowly but surely, you are trekking on. You will get through this. In order to accomplish this task of strategies and prioritize. It is imperative to brainstorm. List all your daily engagements in a chronological order.Determining what tasks will be tackled first, which ones will be dealt with second, what will be third, and so forth, is the objective. The idea is to be able to free up some time in your regular schedule. Since all these tasks are of equal importance, you will have to make sure that none of them is ignored. It is always prudent to ask for help if you need o ne. A good way is to ask family and friends to help you out with the personal and family side of things. Let us face it. No one can study for you, that is, if you want to maintain the integrity of your education. Neither can anyone perform your duties at the office for you.This leaves he third option, family demands. Asking a family member to help out with picking up the kids from school, and help with the supervision of their homework, will go a long way to free up a few hours of your night, which you may then devote to your studies. You will be well advised to teach your kids to do some of the chores at home. Chores like the doing the dishes, the laundry, and the cleaning of the house can be undertaken by children. Asking your spouse to chip in where he or she hasn't previously. He or she can take up the cooking for three days of the week, or accommodate with leftovers in the refrigerator.Every little bit counts. Since things does not always go according to plan, having the abilit y to improvise in your arsenal, will serve you well. The act or art, of balancing a college education, work obligations, and family demands, maybe a very challenging ordeal. With that being said, it is not an impossible task. The pursuit of a college education, and all the problems associated with it, pales in comparison to its benefits. With perseverance, and great resolve, at the end of the day, will be worth the effort. You will be better off. It can be done, and has been done. With the wind, in your sail, Godspeed.