Preparing to Write and Drafting the Paper Essay

When it came to writing all these papers I gave myself time to think about the topics and tried to make sure I understood them before I sat down to write the essays. I have never really been a strong writer when it came to essays in high school it was not an easy task for me. I never had a good strategy when it came to actually writing the papers and putting everything in order. I figured out how to stop worrying so much about getting the assignment turned in on time because that would always stop me from thinking more about the paper then it would turn out bad and I would even up getting a bad grade which would make me feel horrible. I figured out that I should worry more about the paper and then I would be able to focus on the paper so I would be getting it done on time as well. My strategy for writing a paper requires me write a rough draft, take sometime to reread it and then type it making sure everything is spelled correctly. Then making sure all my grammar is correct through out my entire paper also, making sure that I have the correct punctuation everywhere its needed. Then after typing up everything I go through the paper one last time to make sure there isn’t anything I need to add or take out which is usually where I see where I need to change my sentence structure and add certain works or move sentences to different paragraphs. With this class it’s actually been a good experience for me when it came to writing papers and trying to get everything done either early or on time. My writing process has improved with taking this class because I have actually taken time to figure out what I’m going to write about when it comes to the subject and I take care of the assignment in a timely manner. These essays all seem to me that they can be directed to the same audience and can be given with the same enthusiasm because they can be directed to some one in their 20s or 30s because it talks about taking an online courses along with other things along those lines. It would be a speech that I would defiantly be interested in because of how the person would talk to us also with the vocabulary they use because it wouldn’t be a speech that I couldn’t understand. When someone is trying to give a speech or write an essay its difficult when your trying to gauge what type of audience when they are giving a speech or when they are writing a essay trying to figure out if they covered all the important points that need to be covered and that is going to give you the best grade you can get with the course your taking either online or in a classroom. When you first start out with a paper you are a little unsure as to what you are trying to tie together in the very first paper you write but they you figure out what you need for the next couple papers and it gets a little easier for constructing the paper. Trying to get people interested in the subject you are writing or speaking about can be one difficult task because people tend to get bored very easy or they want to learn, about something different not the subject that you are talking about. Papers are what you seem to make them because you can either make them hard or you can make them easy on yourself. If you stress yourself out then you make it more difficult but if you make it easy by trying to take what time your given to make it a good paper. Making sure everything is in the right order that you professor will accept it a very big deal because they look for little mistakes and want you to do the best that you can when it come to the well being of your grade and your class. When you put it all together and present it to either your professor or your audience it can go either one of two ways good or bad. You can always hope it goes good but sometimes you can get some criticism when it comes to what was good and what was bad to your paper or speech. Just making sure everything is in order and how you want everything to be good.

Can You Say What Your Strategy Is

www. hbr. org It’s a dirty little secret: Most executives cannot articulate the objective, scope, and advantage of their business in a simple statement. If they can’t, neither can anyone else. Can You Say What Your Strategy Is? by David J. Collis and Michael G. Rukstad Reprint R0804E It’s a dirty little secret: Most executives cannot articulate the objective, scope, and advantage of their business in a simple statement. If they can’t, neither can anyone else. Can You Say What Your Strategy Is? by David J. Collis and Michael G. Rukstad COPYRIGHT  © 2008 HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL PUBLISHING CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Can you summarize your company’s strategy in 35 words or less? If so, would your colleagues put it the same way? It is our experience that very few executives can honestly answer these simple questions in the af? rmative. And the companies that those executives work for are often the most successful in their industry. One is Edward Jones, a St. Louis–based brokerage ? rm with which one of us has been involved for more than 10 years. The fourth-largest brokerage in the United States, Jones has quadrupled its market share during the past two decades, has consistently outperformed its rivals in terms of ROI through bull and bear markets, and has been a ? xture on Fortune’s list of the top companies to work for. It’s a safe bet that just about every one of its 37,000 employees could express the company’s succinct strategy statement: Jones aims to â€Å"grow to 17,000 ? nancial advisers by 2012 [from about 10,000 today] by offering trusted and convenient face-to-face ? ancial advice to conservative individual investors who delegate their ? nanharvard business review †¢ april 2008 cial decisions, through a national network of one-? nancial-adviser of? ces. † Conversely, companies that don’t have a simple and clear statement of strategy are likely to fall into the sorry category of those that have failed to execute their strategy or, worse, those that never even had one. In an as tonishing number of organizations, executives, frontline employees, and all those in between are frustrated because no clear strategy exists for the company or its lines of business. The kinds of complaints that abound in such ? rms include: †¢ â€Å"I try for months to get an initiative off the ground, and then it is shut down because ‘it doesn’t ? t the strategy. ’ Why didn’t anyone tell me that at the beginning? † †¢ â€Å"I don’t know whether I should be pursuing this market opportunity. I get mixed signals from the powers that be. † †¢ â€Å"Why are we bidding on this customer’s business again? We lost it last year, and I thought we agreed then not to waste our time chasing the contract! † page 1 Can You Say What Your Strategy Is? David J. Collis ([email  protected] du) is an adjunct professor in the strategy unit of Harvard Business School in Boston and the author of several books on corporate strategy. He has studied and consulted to Edward Jones, the brokerage that is the main example in this article, and has taught in the firm’s management-development program. Michael G . Rukstad was a senior research fellow at Harvard Business School, where he taught for many years until his untimely death in 2006. †¢ â€Å"Should I cut the price for this customer? I don’t know if we would be better off winning the deal at a lower price or just losing the business. Leaders of ? rms are mysti? ed when what they thought was a beautifully crafted strategy is never implemented. They assume that the initiatives described in the voluminous documentation that emerges from an annual budget or a strategic-planning process will ensure competitive success. They fail to appreciate the necessity of having a simple, clear, succinct strategy statement that everyone can internalize and use as a guiding light for making dif? cult choices. Think of a major business as a mound of 10,000 iron ? lings, each one representing an employee. If you scoop up that many ? ings and drop them onto a piece of paper, they’ll be pointing in every direction. It will be a big mes s: 10,000 smart people working hard and making what they think are the right decisions for the company—but with the net result of confusion. Engineers in the R&D department are creating a product with â€Å"must have† features for which (as the marketing group could have told them) customers will not pay; the sales force is selling customers on quick turnaround times and customized offerings even though the manufacturing group has just invested in equipment designed for long production runs; and so on. If you pass a magnet over those ? ings, what happens? They line up. Similarly, a well-understood statement of strategy aligns behavior within the business. It allows everyone in the organization to make individual choices that reinforce one another, rendering those 10,000 employees exponentially more effective. What goes into a good statement of strategy? Michael Porter’s seminal article â€Å"What Is Strategy? † (HBR November–December 1996) lays out the characteristics of strategy in a conceptual fashion, conveying the essence of strategic choices and distinguishing them from the relentless but competitively fruitless search for operational ef? iency. However, we have found in our work both with executives and with students that Porter’s article does not answer the more basic question of how to describe a particular ? rm’s strategy. It is a dirty little secret that most executives don’t actually know what all the elements of a strategy statement are, which makes it impossible for them to develop one. With a clear de? nition, though, two things happen: First, formulation becomes in? nitely easier because executives know what they are trying to create. Second, implementation becomes much simpler because the strategy’s essence can be readily communicated and easily internalized by everyone in the organization. Elements of a Strategy Statement The late Mike Rukstad, who contributed enormously to this article, identi? ed three critical components of a good strategy statement— objective, scope, and advantage—and rightly believed that executives should be forced to be crystal clear about them. These elements are a simple yet suf? cient list for any strategy (whether business or military) that addresses competitive interaction over unbounded terrain. Any strategy statement must begin with a de? nition of the ends that the strategy is designed to achieve. â€Å"If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there† is the appropriate maxim here. If a nation has an unclear sense of what it seeks to achieve from a military campaign, how can it have a hope of attaining its goal? The de? nition of the objective should include not only an end point but also a time frame for reaching it. A strategy to get U. S. troops out of Iraq at some distant point in the future would be very different from a strategy to bring them home within two years. Since most ? rms compete in a more or less unbounded landscape, it is also crucial to de? ne the scope, or domain, of the business: the part of the landscape in which the ? rm will operate. What are the boundaries beyond which it will not venture? If you are planning to enter the restaurant business, will you provide sit-down or quick service? A casual or an upscale atmosphere? What type of food will you offer—French or Mexican? What geographic area will you serve—the Midwest or the East Coast? Alone, these two aspects of strategy are insuf? ient. You could go into business tomorrow with the goal of becoming the world’s largest hamburger chain within 10 years. But will anyone invest in your company if you have not explained how you are going to reach your objective? Your competitive advantage is the essence of your strategy: What harvard business review †¢ april 2008 page 2 Can You Say What Your Strategy Is? your business will do differently from or better t han others de? nes the all-important means by which you will achieve your stated objective. That advantage has complementary external and internal components: a value proposition that explains why the targeted customer should buy your product above all the alternatives, and a description of how internal activities must be aligned so that only your ? rm can deliver that value proposition. De? ning the objective, scope, and advantage requires trade-offs, which Porter identi? ed as fundamental to strategy. If a ? rm chooses to pursue growth or size, it must accept that pro? tability will take a back seat. If it chooses to serve institutional clients, it may ignore retail customers. If the value proposition is lower prices, the company will not be able to compete on, for example, fashion or ? t. Finally, if the advantage comes from scale economies, the ? rm will not be able to accommodate idiosyncratic customer needs. Such trade-offs are what distinguish individual companies strategically. De? ning the Objective The ? rst element of a strategy statement is the one that most companies have in some A Hierarchy of Company Statements Organizational direction comes in several forms. The mission statement is your loftiest guiding light—and your least speci? c. As you work your way down the hierarchy, the statements become more concrete, practical, and ultimately unique. No other company will have the same strategy statement, which de? nes your competitive advantage, or balanced scorecard, which tracks how you implement your particular strategy. MISSION Why we exist VALUES What we believe in and how we will behave VISION What we want to be STRATEGY What our competitive game plan will be BALANCED SCORECARD How we will monitor and implement that plan The BASIC ELEMENTS of a Strategy Statement OBJECTIVE = Ends SCOPE = Domain ADVANTAGE = Means form or other. Unfortunately, the form is usually wrong. Companies tend to confuse their statement of values or their mission with their strategic objective. A strategic objective is not, for example, the platitude of â€Å"maximizing shareholder wealth by exceeding customer expectations for _______ [insert product or service here] and providing opportunities for our employees to lead ful? lling lives while respecting the environment and the communities in which we operate. † Rather, it is the single precise objective that will drive the business over the next ? ve years or so. (See the exhibit â€Å"A Hierarchy of Company Statements. ) Many companies do have—and all ? rms should have—statements of their ultimate purpose and the ethical values under which they will operate, but neither of these is the strategic objective. The mission statement spells out the underlying motivation for being in business in the ? rst place—the contribution to society that the ? rm aspires to make. (An insurance company, for example, might de? ne its mission as providing ? nancial security to consumers. ) Such statements, however, are not useful as strategic goals to drive today’s business decisions. Similarly, it is good and proper that ? ms be clear with employees about ethical values. But principles such as respecting individual differences and sustaining the environment are not strategic. They govern how employees should behave (â€Å"doing things right†); they do not guide what the ? rm should do (â€Å"the right thing to do†). Firms in the same business often have the same mission. (Don’t all insurance companies aspire to provide ? nancial security to their customers? ) They may also have the same values. They might even share a vision: an indeterminate future goal such as being the â€Å"recognized leader in the insurance ? eld. However, it is unlikely that even two companies in the same business will have the same strategic objecti ve. Indeed, if your ? rm’s strategy can be applied to any other ? rm, you don’t have a very good one. It is always easy to claim that maximizing shareholder value is the company’s objective. In some sense all strategies are designed to do this. However, the question to ask when creating an actionable strategic statement is, Which objective is most likely to maximize shareholder value over the next several years? harvard business review †¢ april 2008 page 3 Can You Say What Your Strategy Is? Growth? Achieving a certain market share? Becoming the market leader? ) The strategic objective should be speci? c, measurable, and time bound. It should also be a single goal. It is not suf? cient to say, â€Å"We seek to grow pro? tably. † Which matters more—growth or pro? tability? A salesperson needs to know the answer when she’s deciding how aggressive to be on price. There could well be a host of subordinate goals that follow from the strategic objective, and these might serve as metrics on a balanced scorecard that monitors progress for which individuals will be held accountable. Yet the ultimate objective that will drive the operation of the business over the next several years should always be clear. The choice of objective has a profound impact on a ? rm. When Boeing shifted its primary goal from being the largest player in the aircraft industry to being the most profitable, it had to restructure the entire organization, from sales to manufacturing. For example, the company dropped its policy of competing with Airbus to the last cent on every deal and abandoned its commitment to maintain a manufacturing capacity that could deliver more than half a peak year’s demand for planes. Another company, after years of seeking to maximize pro? ts at the expense of growth, issued a corporate mandate to generate at least 10% organic growth per year. The change in strategy forced the ? rm to switch its focus from shrinking to serve only its pro? table core customers and competing on the basis of cost or ef? ciency to differentiating its products, which led to a host of new product features and services that appealed to a wider set of customers. At Edward Jones, discussion among the partners about the ? rm’s objective ignited a passionate exchange. One said, â€Å"Our ultimate objective has to be maximizing pro? t per partner. † Another responded, â€Å"Not all ? nancial advisers are partners—so if we maximize revenue per partner, we are ignoring the other 30,000-plus people who make the business work! † Another added, â€Å"Our ultimate customer is the client. We cannot just worry about partner pro? ts. In fact, we should start by maximizing value for the customer and let the pro? ts ? ow to us from there! † And so on. This intense debate not only drove alignment with the objective of healthy growth in the number of ? ancial advisers but also ensured that every implication of that choice was fully explored. Setting an ambitious growth target at each point in its 85-year history, Edward Jones has continually increased its scale and market presence. Striving to achieve such growth has increased long-term pro? t per adviser and led the ? rm to its unique con? guration: Its only pro? t center is the ind ividual ? nancial adviser. Other activities, even investment banking, serve as support functions and are not held accountable for generating pro? t. De? ning the Scope A ? m’s scope encompasses three dimensions: customer or offering, geographic location, and vertical integration. Clearly de? ned boundaries in those areas should make it obvious to managers which activities they should concentrate on and, more important, which they should not do. The three dimensions may vary in relevance. For Edward Jones, the most important is the customer. The ? rm is con? gured to meet the needs of one very speci? c type of client. Unlike just about every other brokerage in the business, Jones does not de? ne its archetypal customer by net worth or income. Nor does it use demographics, profession, or spending habits. Rather, the de? nition is psychographic: The company’s customers are long-term investors who have a conservative investment philosophy and are uncomfortable making serious ? nancial decisions without the support of a trusted adviser. In the terminology of the business, Jones targets the â€Å"delegator,† not the â€Å"validator† or the â€Å"do-it-yourselfer. † The scope of an enterprise does not prescribe exactly what should be done within the speci? ed bounds. In fact, it encourages experimentation and initiative. But to ensure that the borders are clear to all employees, the scope should specify where the ? rm or business will not go. That will prevent managers from spending long hours on projects that get turned down by higher-ups because they do not ? t the strategy. For example, clarity about who the customer is and who it is not has kept Edward Jones from pursuing day traders. Even at the height of the internet bubble, the company chose not to introduce online trading (it is harvard business review †¢ april 2008 page 4 Can You Say What Your Strategy Is? till not available to Jones customers). Unlike the many brokerages that committed hundreds of millions of dollars and endless executive hours to debates over whether to introduce online trading (and if so, how to price and position it in a way that did not cannibalize or con? ict with traditional offerings), Jones wasted no money or time on that decision because it had set clear boundaries. Similarly, Jones is not vertically integrate d into proprietary mutual funds, so as not to violate the independence of its ? nancial advisers and undermine clients’ trust. Nor will he company offer penny stocks, shares from IPOs, commodities, or options—investment products that it believes are too risky for the conservative clients it chooses to serve. And it does not have metropolitan of? ces in business districts, because they would not allow for the convenient, face-to-face interactions in casual settings that the ? rm seeks to provide. Knowing not to extend its scope in these directions has allowed the ? rm to focus on doing what it does well and reap the bene? ts of simplicity, standardization, and deep experience. De? ning the Advantage Wal-Mart’s Value Proposition Wal-Mart’s value proposition can be summed up as â€Å"everyday low prices for a broad range of goods that are always in stock in convenient geographic locations. † It is those aspects of the customer experience that the company overdelivers relative to competitors. Underperformance on other dimensions, such as ambience and sales help, is a strategic choice that generates cost savings, which fuel the company’s price advantage. If the local mom-and-pop hardware store has survived, it also has a value proposition: convenience, proprietors who have known you for years, free coffee and doughnuts on Saturday mornings, and so on. Sears falls in the middle on many criteria. As a result, customers lack a lot of compelling reasons to shop there, which goes a long way toward explaining why the company is struggling to remain pro? table. Customer purchase criteria* Low prices Selection across categories Rural convenience Reliable prices In-stock merchandise Merchandise quality Suburban convenience Selection within categories Sales help Ambience poor Delivery on criteria * in approximate order of importance to Wal-Mart’s target customer group Source: Jan Rivkin, Harvard Business School Mom & pop stores Sears Wal-Mart excellent Given that a sustainable competitive advantage is the essence of strategy, it should be no surprise that advantage is the most critical aspect of a strategy statement. Clarity about what makes the ? rm distinctive is what most helps employees understand how they can contribute to successful execution of its strategy. As mentioned above, the complete de? nition of a ? rm’s competitive advantage consists of two parts. The ? rst is a statement of the customer value proposition. Any strategy statement that cannot explain why customers should buy your product or service is doomed to failure. A simple graphic that maps your value proposition against those of rivals can be an extremely easy and useful way of identifying what makes yours distinctive. (See the exhibit â€Å"Wal-Mart’s Value Proposition. †) The second part of the statement of advantage captures the unique activities or the complex combination of activities allowing that ? rm alone to deliver the customer value proposition. This is where the strategy statement draws from Porter’s de? nition of strategy as making consistent choices about the con? guration of the ? rm’s activities. It is also where the activity-system map that Porter describes in â€Å"What Is Strategy? comes into play. As the exhibit â€Å"Edward Jones’s ActivitySystem Map† shows, the brokerage’s value proposition is to provide convenient, trusted, personal service and advice. What is most distinctive about Jones is that it has only one ? nancial adviser in an of? ce, which allows it to have mor e of? ces (10,000 nationally) than competitors do. Merrill Lynch has about 15,000 brokers but only 1,000 of? ces. To make it easy for its targeted customers to visit at their convenience—and to provide a relaxed, harvard business review †¢ april 2008 page 5 Can You Say What Your Strategy Is? ersonable, nonthreatening environment— Jones puts its of? ces in strip malls and the retail districts of rural areas and suburbs rather than high-rise buildings in the central business districts of big cities. These choices alone require Jones to differ radically from other brokerages in the con? guration of its activities. With no branch-of? ce management providing direction or support, each ? nancial adviser must be an entrepreneur who delights in running his or her own operation. Since such people are an exception in the industry, Jones has to bring all its own ? ancial advisers in from other industries or backgrounds and train them, at great expense. Until 2007, when it sw itched to an internet-based service, the ? rm had to have its own satellite network to provide its widely dispersed of? ces with real-time quotes and allow them to execute trades. Because the company has 10,000 separate of? ces, its real estate and communication costs are about 50% higher than the industry average. However, all those of? ces allow the ? nancial advisers who run them to deliver convenient, trusted, personal service and advice. Other successful players in this industry also have distinctive value propositions Edward Jones’s Activity-System Map This map illustrates how activities at the brokerage Edward Jones connect to deliver competitive advantage. The ? rm’s customer value proposition appears near the center of the map—in the â€Å"customer relationship† bubble—and the supporting activities hang off it. Only the major connections are shown. TARGET CUSTOMER individual conservative delegates decisions PRODUCT blue chips PRICE one-time commission mutual funds HEADQUARTERS St. Louis home of? e for all activities TECHNOLOGY satellite (historically) LOCATION rural suburban strip mall REGIONAL STRUCTURE no regional management COMPENSATION each ? nancial adviser is a pro? t center ONE FINANCIAL ADVISER PER OFFICE advisers run their own of? ces MARKETING local mailings knocking on doors INVESTMENT PHILOSOPHY long-term buy and hold CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP face-to-face convenient tru sted ? nancial adviser VALUES & CULTURE volunteerism mentoring BRANCH SUPPORT branch-of? ce assistant OWNERSHIP partnership, not public BROKER TYPE entrepreneur member of community HIRE & TRAIN hire from outside industry internally train all ? ancial advisers harvard business review †¢ april 2008 page 6 Can You Say What Your Strategy Is? and unique con? gurations of activities to support them. Merrill Lynch. During the ? ve-year tenure of former CEO Stan O’Neal, who retired in October 2007, Merrill Lynch developed an effective strategy that it called â€Å"Total Merrill. † The company’s value proposition: to provide for all the ? nancial needs of its high-net-worth customers—those with liquid ? nancial assets of more than $250,000—through retirement. While a lot of brokerages cater to people with a high net worth, they focus on asset accumulation before retirement. Merrill’s view is that as baby boomers age and move from the relatively simple phase of accumulating assets to the much more complex, higher-risk phase of drawing cash from their retirement accounts, their needs change. During this stage, they will want to consolidate their ? nancial assets with a single trusted partner that can help them ? gure out how to optimize income over their remaining years by making the best decisions on everything from annuities to payout ratios to long-term-care insurance. Merrill offers coherent ? nancial plans for The Strategic Sweet Spot The strategic sweet spot of a company is where it meets customers’ needs in a way that rivals can’t, given the context in which it competes. CONTEXT (technology, industry demographics, regulation, and so on) COMPETITORS’ offerings CUSTOMERS’ needs SWEET SPOT COMPANY’S capabilities such customers and provides access to a very wide range of sophisticated products based on a Monte Carlo simulation of the probabilities of running out of money according to different annual rates of return on different categories of assets. How does Merrill intend to deliver this value to its chosen customers in a way that’s unique among large ? ms? First, it is pushing brokers—especially new ones—to become certi? ed ? nancial planners and has raised internal training requirements to put them on that road. The certi? ed ? nancial planner license is more dif? cult for brokers to obtain than the standard Series 7 license, because it requires candidates to have a college degree and to master nearly 100 integrated ? nancialplanning topics. Second, Merrill offers all forms of insurance, annuities, covered calls, hedge funds, banking services, and so on (unlike Edward Jones, which offers a much more limited menu of investment products). Since several of these products are technically complex, Merrill needs product specialists to support the client-facing broker. This â€Å"Team Merrill† organization poses very different HR and compensation issues from those posed by Edward Jones’s single-adviser of? ces. Merrill’s compensation system has to share income among the team members and reward referrals. Wells Fargo. This San Francisco bank competes in the brokerage business as part of its tactic to cross-sell services to its retail banking customers in order to boost pro? t per customer. It aims to sell each customer at least eight different products. ) Wells Fargo’s objective for its brokerage arm, clearly stated in a recent annual report, is to triple its share of customers’ ? nancial assets. The brokerage’s means for achieving this goal is the parent company’s database of 23 million customers, many of them brought into the ? rm through one particular aspect of the bankin g relationship: the mortgage. Wells Fargo differs from Edward Jones and Merrill Lynch in its aim to offer personalized, rather than personal, service. For example, the ? m’s IT system allows a bank clerk to know a limited amount of information about a customer (name, birthday, and so on) and appear to be familiar with him or her, which is quite different from the ongoing individual relationships that Jones and Merrill brokers have with their clients. harvard business review †¢ april 2008 page 7 Can You Say What Your Strategy Is? LPL Financial. Different again is LPL Financial, with of? ces in Boston, San Diego, and Charlotte, North Carolina. LPL sees its brokers (all of whom are independent ? nancial advisers af? liated with the ? rm) rather than consumers as its clients and has con? ured all of its activities to provide individualized solutions and the highest payouts to its brokers. This means that the vast majority of the activities performed by the corporate headquar ters staff are services, such as training, that brokers choose and pay for on an a la carte basis. As a result, LPL’s headquarters staff is very small (0. 20 people per broker) compared with that of Edward Jones (1. 45 people per broker). Low overhead allows LPL to offer a higher payout to brokers than Jones and Merrill do, which is its distinctive value proposition to its chosen customer: the broker. By now it should be apparent how a careful description of the unique activities a ? rm performs to generate a distinctive customer value proposition effectively captures its strategy. A relatively simple description in a strategy statement provides an incisive characterization that could not belong to any other ? rm. This is the goal. When that statement has been internalized by all employees, they can easily understand how their daily activities contribute to the overall success of the ? rm and how to correctly make the dif? cult choices they confront in their jobs. Developing a Strategy Statement How, then, should a ? rm go about crafting its strategy statement? Obviously, the ? rst step is to create a great strategy, which requires careful evaluation of the industry landscape. Leaving No Room for Misinterpretation Executives at Edward Jones have developed a detailed understanding of every element of the ? rm’s strategy. Here is an example. †conservativeâ€Å" Our investment philosophy is long-term buy and hold. We do not sell penny stocks, commodities, or other high-risk instruments. As a result we do not serve day traders and see no need to offer online trading. We charge commissions on trades because this is the cheapest way to buy stocks (compared with a wrap fee, which charges annually as a percentage of assets) when the average length of time the investor holds the stock or mutual fund is over 10 years. †individualâ€Å" We do not advise institutions or companies. We do not segment according to wealth, age, or other demographics. The company will serve all customers that ? t its conservative investment philosophy. Brokers will call on any and every potential customer. Stories abound within Jones of millionaires who live in trailers—people all the other brokerages would never think of approaching. investorsâ€Å" Our basic service is investment. We do not seek to offer services such as checking accounts for their own sake, but only as part of the management of a client’s assets. †who delegate their ? nancial decisionsâ€Å" We do not target self-directed do-it-yourselfers, who are comfortable making their own investment decisions. We are also unlikely to serve validators, who are merely looking for reassurance that their decisions are correct. Edward Jones’s Strategy Statement To grow to 17,000 ? nancial advisers by 2012 by offering trusted and convenient face-to-face ? ancial advice to conservative individual investors who delegate their ? nancial decisions, through a national network of one-? nancialadviser of? ces. harvard business review †¢ april 2008 page 8 Can You Say What Your Strategy Is? This includes developing a detailed understanding of customer needs, segmenting customers, and then identifying unique ways of creating value for the ones the ? rm chooses to serve. It also calls for an analysis of competitors’ current strategies and a prediction of how they might change in the future. The process must involve a rigorous, objective assessment of the ? m’s capabilities and resources and those of competitors, as described in â€Å"Competing on Resources: Strategy in the 1990s,† by David J. Collis and Cynthia A. Montgomery (HBR July–August 1995)—not just a feel-good exercise of identifying core competencies. The creative part of developing strategy is ? nding the sweet spot that aligns the ? rm’s capabilities with customer needs in a way that competitors cannot match given the changing external context—factors such as technology, industry demographics, and regulation. (See the exhibit â€Å"The Strategic Sweet Spot. ) We have found that one of the best ways to do this is to develop two or three plausible but very different strategic options. For example, ? eshing out two dramatically different alternatives—becoming a cheap Red Lobster or a ? sh McDonald’s—helped executives at the Long John Silver’s chain of restaurants understand the strategic choices that they had to make. They had been trying to do a bit of everything, and this exercise showed them that their initiativ es—such as offering early-evening table service and expanding drive-through service—were strategically inconsistent. Competing on the basis of table service requires bigger restaurants and more employees, while drive-through service requires high-traf? c locations and smaller footprints. ) As a result, they chose to be a ? sh McDonald’s, building smaller restaurants with drive-through service in hightraf? c locations. The process of developing the strategy and then crafting the statement that captures its essence in a readily communicable manner should involve employees in all parts of the company and at all levels of the hierarchy. The wording of the strategy statement should be worked through in painstaking detail. In fact, that can be the most powerful part of the strategy development process. It is usually in heated discussions over the choice of a single word that a strategy is crystallized and executives truly understand what it will involve. The end result should be a brief statement that re? ects the three elements of an effective strategy. It should be accompanied by detailed annotations that elucidate the strategy’s nuances (to preempt any possible misreading) and spell out its implications. See the exhibit â€Å"Leaving No Room for Misinterpretation. †) When the strategy statement is circulated throughout the company, the value proposition chart and activity-system map should be attached. They serve as simple reminders of the twin aspects of competitive advantage that underpin the strategy. Cascading the statement throughout the organization, so that each level of management will be the teacher for the level below, becomes the starting point for incorporating strategy into everyone’s behavior. The strategy will really have traction only when executives can be con? ent that the actions of empowered frontline employees will be guided by the same principles that they themselves follow. †¢Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ The value of rhetoric should not be underestimated. A 35-word statement can have a substantial impact on a company’s success. Words do lead to action. Spending the time to develop the few words that truly capture your strategy and that will energize and empower your people will raise the long-term ? nancial performance of your organization. Reprint R0804E To order, see the next page or call 800-988-0886 or 617-783-7500 or go to www. br. org harvard business review †¢ april 2008 page 9 Further Reading The Harvard Business Review Paperback Series Here are the landmark ideas—both contemporary and classic—that have established Harvard B usiness Review as required reading for businesspeople around the globe. Each paperback includes eight of the leading articles on a particular business topic. The series includes over thirty titles, including the following best-sellers: Harvard Business Review on Brand Management Product no. 1445 Harvard Business Review on Change Product no. 842 Harvard Business Review on Leadership Product no. 8834 Harvard Business Review on Managing People Product no. 9075 Harvard Business Review on Measuring Corporate Performance Product no. 8826 For a complete list of the Harvard Business Review paperback series, go to www. hbr. org. To Order For Harvard Business Review reprints and subscriptions, call 800-988-0886 or 617-783-7500. Go to www. hbr. org For customized and quantity orders of Harvard Business Review article reprints, call 617-783-7626, or e-mail [email  protected] harvard. edu page 10

Analysis of Strategic Leadership Qualities Needed In Modern Dissertation

Analysis of Strategic Leadership Qualities Needed In Modern Organisations - Dissertation Example So at times, the leader would have a coaching style while at other times there would be a commanding style. Kelly (2000) argues that while leaders are free to adopt styles as per the situation, however, the leader would have one dominant style that would force all interactions. Some even though a leader would shift between visionary styles or pace setting style, the leader would ultimately be following the dominant style. The gap in the literature is that the desired qualities in a leader are not apparent. The subject of strategic leadership in organisations has been discussed in a number of publications (Boal, 2000), (Crossan, 2008), (Daily, 2002). Strategic leadership is about the quality of leadership in providing a direction for a planned and strategic direction for the growth of a firm. The focus is on adopting a growth plan that has a fully reasoned and logically structured growth plan. A strategic leader would be planning the organisation activities. The leadership is predicti ve and this means that the actions taken by the organisation are planned to meet the stimulus from the market forces. The actions are not reactive in the sense that the organisation would not be pulled in all directions by the market forces. A strategic leader would play many roles, that of a friend, mentor, guide, disciple, critic, detractor and well-wisher. Crossan (2008) speaks of five features that strategic leader should demonstrate. It is assumed that a leader who manages these five qualities will have the ability to achieve the business objectives. The five lessons are creating organisation wealth, bringing in a culture of innovation, leveraging the present to focus on the future; leading teams with a vision and inspiration and relying more on personal charisma and... This essay stresses that Strategic leadership is about the quality of leadership in providing a direction for a planned and strategic direction for the growth of a firm. The focus is on adopting a growth plan that has a fully reasoned and logically structured growth plan. A strategic leader would be planning the organisation activities. The leadership is predictive and this means that the actions taken by the organisation are planned to meet the stimulus from the market forces. The actions are not reactive in the sense that the organisation would not be pulled in all directions by the market forces. A strategic leader would play many roles, that of a friend, mentor, guide, disciple, critic, detractor and well-wisher. This paper makes a conclusion that a combination of literature review and primary research will be used. For the primary research, a survey instrument will be designed and administered to top managers of medium and large organisations in UK. These leaders would be approached through the college department and the cooperation of the managers will be requested. Contact will be made by calling up personally and through emails. The replies will be assessed and the results analysed. The difficulties anticipated are that these managers would not be willing or have the time to cooperate. The author of this paper will persist in his efforts to elicit responses. Secondary research will be performed by reviewing peer reviewed Journals and books on strategic leadership.

Total Rewards System Proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Total Rewards System Proposal - Essay Example The success of the organization can strongly be influenced by the introduction of the performance management programs. Envision expects that with the introduction of the TRP system employees of the organization would be able to relate to their target in a better manner. The performance management system can help the process of total reward system (Dixon, Hayes & Stack, 2004). It can aid the establishment of the right standards of performance of the employees. After analysis of the performance of the employees, it would be easier to measure their ability to fulfill targets. Envision can judge the performance of the company and reward the employees in cash or kind.  A reward can be described as an element of compensation and benefit. The term total reward includes aspects of development and learning opportunities for employees, attractive work environment along with pay and benefit packages (Dixon, Hayes & Stack, 2004). It is the strategic approach to reward used by many employers. T he concept of total reward system is adapted by organizations to recruit, motivate and retain the employees and secure the business objectives efficiently. The introduction of the total reward system can help Envision to motivate the employees in a positive way. Measuring the performance of the employees and rewarding them for the same, both monetarily and in the form of benefits can help the organization to reach the business objectives effectively. Besides the monetary rewards, the non-monetary rewards like rent-free accommodation, conveyance allowance, educational allowance and medical facilities can be given by Envision to the employees. This can increase the loyalty and motivation levels of the staffs towards the company. There are a number of objectives which Envision wants to fulfill by carrying out the total reward system programs within the organization. Compensation or total reward system is an important tool for organizational success.  

The Expansion of Multi-National Corporations in the UK Essay

The Expansion of Multi-National Corporations in the UK - Essay Example This paper illustrates that the role of multinational corporations is perhaps the most critical aspect of evaluation regarding the impacts of the functioning of these corporations in the national systems of the host countries. Though different types of multinational companies choose to enter different economies with distinctive intention like market seeking, efficiency seeking, strategic asset seeking and resource seeking intentions, yet the intensity to which these companies influence the functionalities of the host industries and economies cannot be overlooked. Multinational corporations are recognized as the emerging internationally accepted class of business organizations which have the inherent potential to develop their own organizational field and influence the functioning of industries in the foreign country to a noticeable and recognizable extent. This also includes the major effects of the functioning of the multinational enterprises on the way employment practices and poli cies are conducted, modified and developed in the host countries in which these enterprises operate. Capitalism refers to an economic system in which the industries, trade systems and the means of production are entirely or largely controlled by the privately owned enterprises functioning in the economy. The main features of capitalism may include capital accumulation, private property, wage labor and the development of fully competitive sectors. There are different models and varieties of capitalism based on the role of the government in the country, the intensity of competition in the market, the influence of regulations and interventions on the economy and the scope of private and state ownership in the country. The various forms of capitalism may include welfare capitalism, free market capitalism or laissez-faire capitalism, state capitalism, â€Å"third way† social democracy, crony capitalism, and corporatism. All of these models of capitalism have their unique character istics based on the employment of different degrees of dependency of the market economy, constraints in the way of free capitalism practices, public ownership structures and consideration of the state-sanctioned regulatory and social policies.

Do European Works Councils represent a major advance in employee Essay

Do European Works Councils represent a major advance in employee representation - Essay Example countries with central management of large multinational companies to discuss issues as complex as worker rights and any plans the company may be considering that would affect workers. Meetings also allow employees of one country to share information and experiences with colleagues from other nations. â€Å"Employee participation at a European level became a reality with the introduction of the European Works Council Directive† (Fitzgerald, 2004: 1). The purpose of the Councils: to provide workers within large multinational corporations, through their designated representatives, a direct line of communication to top management. With communication as key, various national councils insure that workers in all countries are provided accurate information about plans and policies of the transnational companies who employ them, and ensure worker representatives of established unions and national works councils the opportunity to consult amongst each other and develop a common response before policies and plans are implemented. Beyond these goals, three main views about why works councils primarily exist include benign goals as stated to improve communication and less benign goals of worker control over bargaining and negotiations and input into company policy when market failures occur that may negatively impact their employment. Based purely on description of purpose, the formation of the councils appear a valid and reasonable response to the advent and power of multinational corporations—impersonal behemoths larger than life with little sense of employee conditions or problems experienced at lower management levels. The success of the councils as regards employee representation is, as might be expected, mixed. This paper examines the reality of the success or failure of the councils, and to what degree they have advanced the cause of worker representation. Fitzgerald (2004) points out that the EWC Directive in its final form was viewed as a watered-down version of

Introduction to Child Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Introduction to Child Development - Essay Example This case study will focus on analysing the growth in different areas as exhibited by the child, and relating to the existing theory on child development (Beaver 2001, p.54). One of the aspects that make it evident that Child A has registered positive growth in both personal and social development is her development of self-control (Broadhead 2010, p. 56). From the observations, it emerges that child A has a level of self-control because she is able to express her feelings, opinions, and needs even when situations prove difficult while avoiding causing any harm to others (Brooks-Gunn, Fuligni, & Berlin 2003, p. 34). For example, on day one of the observation, child A was able to express her concerns because child B had taken her kitty (Bukatko & Daehler 2012, p. 123). Instead of grabbing it from child B, she opted to see the help from an adult so that she could get her kitty back (‘Child development’ 2007, p.23). However, despite the positive process exhibited by the child A in gaining self-control, there is evidence that she still needs to develop in other areas concerning self-control (Hoff & Shatz 2009, p. 88). For example, she needs to become more self-aware of her emotions and be able to control them effectively (Hyson 2003, p. 65). Instances when she demonstrates a need for further growth in this sector are several as indicated in the observations (Davies 2010, p. 54). A clear illustration is the fact that she was reluctant to eat after her teacher denied her the permission of having me seat close to her table (Mary & Armstrong 2003, p. 165). This shows that she is unable to handle disappointments effectively. However, her use of play materials purposely also exhibits a measure of self-control (Guhn & Goelman 2011, p. 195). In addition, on the fifth day of observation, the child exhibited self-control after intervention when she was arguing with child X. She was able to accept the proposition of sharing the doll with child X. This indicated that

Hamlet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 16

Hamlet - Essay Example â€Å"The Murder of Gonzago† is a play directed by Hamlet as he learns from the ghost that this was his uncle Claudius who killed Hamlet’s father in order to become a king. It is aimed at replicating the events which, as Hamlet suspects, happened in reality and led to the death of his father. Subsequently, the logic behind showing this play is to reveal the guilt of Claudius by showing him circumstances that are expected to cause a particular reaction from the man: â€Å"To catch the consciousness of the king.† (Act II, Scene II) In this way, the suspense is created. As a result, Hamlet confirms his doubts and realizes that his father was killed by the new king. In this way, the plot gets its logical development and approaches to the climax. Apart from serving as a catalyst for the plot development, inclusion of the play into the play can serve the purpose of reinforcing the theme of pretending and lack of certainty, which is one of the essential themes of the given play. Throughout the play, Hamlet and Claudius are playing their roles (Hamlet acts insane and Claudius – honest and innocent) instead of being what they really are. At the same time, it is not clear whether Gertrude was loyal to her husband and whether she knew about the plans of Claudius. Furthermore, Hamlet is not sure whether the ghost he saw was saying the truth: â€Å"The spirit I have seen may be a devil.† (Act II, Scene II) Similarly, actors in â€Å"The Murder of Gonzago† are playing their roles and highlight the motif of theatricality of the life. The play within the play becomes a reflection of the real life in which people act as actors. The following can also hint on the attempts of Shakespeare to assert the importance of art and power of theatre as a whole. For instance, in Hamlet, the play within the play not only exposes the truth, but gives the prince the power and passion to revenge. In other words, actors on the stage provoke actions and make one reflect on the past and predict

Film This Boy's Life Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Film This Boy's Life - Movie Review Example Thesis This film vividly portrays family problems and troubles, psychological pressure and emotional distress caused by complicated family relation and misunderstanding. The main problem discussed in the film is emotional abuse and misunderstanding which cause psychological and emotional sufferings to Caroline and Toby. This life story is devoted to emotional abuse faced by the author, Tobias Wolff, during his childhood. He vividly depicts hardship and emotional burden experienced by the teenager. This story is very impressive, because it reflects personal past of the author, physiological stress and cruelty of his stepfather and his children. Different parents have different ideas as to the proper way to bring up children, or as to what counts as adequate care for them, but this story unveils hash realities of childhood and family violence faced by some children. Dwight Hansen explains to Caroline that he tries to change rebellious nature of Toby and makes him a better person. But his methods and behavior unveil that he does not love Toby seeing him as the object of abuse. Physical abuse of the child is closely connected with emotional abuse and in volved physical punishment and family violence. Toby describes that his stepfather often finds any excuse to punish him while favoring the other children. Another family trouble is dominant of the father and a husband within the family. Dwight Hansen plays a dominant position in the family exercised through aggression and cruelty. From sociological point of view, this problem is caused by different gender roles and inequality within the institution of marriage. These gender variables shape the values and hence the behavior of the main characters and show that specific gender roles determine the way of living and norms of several generations of people. During the 1950s, gender roles have not undergone metamorphoses. They have followed the economic, social, and political trends of the country's history. Unfortunately, this resulted in distraction and harassment of children, primarily Toby. The film vividly portrays that father's dominance and lack of understanding ruins family happiness and warm relations. Toby describes that there is no doubt that physical injuries tend to be more evident, and their effects more public then emotional s ufferings. Stress and mental disorders can be seen as one of the most important family problems which is difficult to identify, but which have a great impact on the family and family relations. From the sociological point of view, people are faced with stress at work and at home. Stress is a social problem but it arises from an imbalance between the demands made upon individuals and their capacity to cope with such demands, family relations and economic conditions of the family. The mental well-being of family members is more difficult to define or protect. For a long time, Caroline does to recognize problems and grievances faced by her son, Toby. In his Boy's Life', stress arises from personal factors and emotional abuse It is possible to say that rebellion nature of Toby is a form of disobedience against abuse or psychological conflict between parents and children. Generation gap supports this situation and resulted in negative consequences such as rebellion and escape. Another problem described in the film is a secondary role of women and mothers within the instit

Israel and the Palestinians (CASE) Module 4 Essay

Israel and the Palestinians (CASE) Module 4 - Essay Example The situation between Israel and Palestine involves the USA and therefore, the USA risks her acquisition of oil and other resources from the Islam nations (Palestine Facts, 2009). In order to deal with the threat of terror that Israel seem to use as an excuse to intimidate Palestine, the USA should make use of her Foreign Policy to negotiate or intervene the conflict without political or economic bias. It has been reported that the USA’s taxpayers’ money has been funding Israel military operations within the Middle East. Without a clear indication of which nation is instigating or escalating the conflict, the USA has chosen to support Israel in both military and financial resources (Palestine Facts, 2009). The USA has several options on how to approach the conflict between Israel and Palestine conflict. From historical background, the USA has been in record for getting involved in various conflicts between other nations. With regards to these interventions, the USA’s Foreign policy, which is supported by other nations such as the UK, has been a doctrine for maintaining peace among nations. In this case, as a recommendation, the USA should consider the merits of the Foreign Policy before providing support to Israel. The US Foreign Policy is a doctrine supported by the US Constitution and merited by various other bodies such as the UN. Thus, while the USA may not be directly involved in providing military supports to Israel, there are various levels of conflicts that the USA overlooks. Israel has been openly endorsed by the USA in terms of military to carry out anti-terror operations in Gaza Strip and West Bank. As a ally to the USA, Israel has boasted superpower status within th e Middle East due to her military prowess. However, if the humanitarian clause of maintaining peace around the world in the US Foreign Policy holds, then the USA should withdraw support for Israel in order to apply diplomacy in approaching the

The Stone Carvers Essay Example for Free

The Stone Carvers Essay The Stone Carvers is a book of obsessions. Each one of the characters has their own obsessions that at one point they believe to be a natural and helpful to their lives. However each of the characters in The Stone Carvers learns that these obsessions with perfection, love, adventure, or anything end without them being able to be satisfied and on many occasions without achieving what they were obsessing over. The author Jane Urquhart made a compelling story on the nature obsession and the effects of obsession over any matter. The characters of the novel were fixated on a large range of ideas; they were obsessed with ideas from love to architecture and because of the diversity that Jane has shown that obsession of any form will always end without resolve. The conclusion about obsession can be grasped through the various trials that each character of the story is placed under. In The Stone Carvers Urquhart is able to show that obsession can never lead to a successful happiness, through a few powerful ideas; when someone is fixated on an idea the task may not be able to be completed, a person’s obsession can be counterproductive to their cause, and fixating on one thing can cause the person to lose track of the rest of their life. When someone is fixated on one task or idea their obsession may not ever be complete in their eyes. In Klara’s love affair with Eamon, Klara is obsessed with staying with and caring for Eamon. When Klara was not with Eamon she was thinking of him; â€Å"All the rest of the day she was thinking of the moments when Eamon’s arm was on her shoulder or his hands were in her hair.† (pg. 121) This obsession of love seems like a natural and healthy idea to have however Klara’s work begins to be influenced by their love and she begins to be jealous of anyone with a relationship with Eamon. Klara becomes particularly upset at one point she exclaimed â€Å"I saw you laughing, Eamon, with your friends outside the brewery. I think you’d forgotten me altogether, that’s what I think.† (pg. 117) Klara’s obsession with Eamon was never able to be complete because she would never be able to complete her storybook obsession of loving him and him loving her. Her obsession eventually led to an extended period of grieving her lost lover. Sometimes an obsession with something can actually blind the obsessed person into actually being counterproductive to their goals. In a minor case in The Stone Carvers Refuto, who broke down because he held himself responsible for his brother’s death, ran from his family to not bear with the pain of reuniting with them. Refuto’s reasoning for not going back to his family was that: â€Å"I could not put the burden of a killer on their shoulders.† (pg. 211) Refuto was obsessed with keeping his name clean and his family safe. When he ran away from home however his family was left to fend for themselves and live without his support. When he and Tilman had become friends was the only time that he realized he had been hurting his friends with his own obsession. When Refuto did get over his obsession and went home, his wife and he talked at length about the family and how they were able to get along for so long without him. Refuto said that â€Å"I was gone but Tilman told me to come back.† (pg. 215) Since his departure Refuto was able to â€Å"clear my head in four directions at once.† (pg. 215) This fixation on Refuto’s name had kept him away from his family but finally he was able to go back and correct what his obsession did to him. His obsession had blinded him to the harm that his actions had caused to his family. Instead of helping keep his family safe he was only harming it and only once he accepted that he had an unhealthy obsession was he able to return to his life with his family. When someone is fixated on an idea they tend to lose focus on other important aspects of their lives. In The Stone Carvers an example of this would be in Tilman and Klara’s mother, Helga. Helga had recently mourned what she thought was her son’s death and became obsessed, as soon as Tilman came home, with controlling where Tilman went and how he would live. Tilman however â€Å"responded neither to her questions nor her attempts at incarceration and intimidation but looked at her with confusion on his perfect face.† (pg. 63) Helga became so hysterically obsessed with keeping him with her that eventually she chained Tilman to the house however â€Å"Helga would never recover – not from his imprisonment and not from his escape.†(pg. 67) Tilman screamed and refused to eat while he was chained and his mother only then realized that she had made a mistake in obsessing over keeping Tilman caged. She pushed Tilman away with her passions for keeping him with her. The Stone Carvers shows that someone who is obsessed with an idea or task is more prone to making mistakes or causing a problem in a related aspect of their life. Throughout the book Jane was able to show her views on obsessions in persuasive undertones and themes throughout the entire novel. Jane was able to show that no matter how justified a fixation may seem the outcome is always negative. Throughout the novel the theme of obsession can be seen from the minor characters all the way to the major events of the story. Jane makes her case with many examples of the ways obsession can lead to the destruction of a person. She does this through showing that when someone has an obsession they might never be able to complete, a person’s obsession could be counterproductive to their cause, and fixating on one idea can cause the person to lose track of the important parts in their life. The persuasive undertones in the story are able to clearly convey the message of obsession being something that only harms the obsessed person. Walter Allward once said â€Å"I have been eating and sleeping stone for so long it has become an obsession with me. And incidentally, a nightmare.† (pg. VI) The inspiration for such a great novel and theme can be found in this quote because the amount of emotion that went into Walter’s work on the Vimy Ridge Memorial but also the tragic way Walter was unable to be truly happy after his most amazing creation. Works Cited

The Iconoclastic Controversy Essay Example for Free

The Iconoclastic Controversy Essay The paper is devoted to the study of the Iconoclastic Controversy that had a profound effect on the development of church and theology in 8-9th century AD. For the better understanding of the problem, the notion of icons is explained with their seeming simplicity and spiritual meaning. Then, the definition of iconoclasm is given and the substance of the controversy is described. The paper reviews a brief historical development of the issue and examines two iconoclastic periods, of 730-787 and 814-843, with their respective characteristics and results. The study also reviews the major argumentation of both sides of the conflict, the iconoclasts and the iconodules. Having viewed the historical development and the positions of the opponents, the paper analyzes the outcomes of the iconoclastic controversy that are dual: on the one side, the use of icons is restored and theologically justified, and on the other side, the question is not resolved completely and allows further disputes within the Western church.

Social Work With Maori Clients in New Zealand

Social Work With Maori Clients in New Zealand Task 1 : Explain how Te Tiriti O Waitangi applies in the social services, you must include an overall explanation as well as giving at least three(3) specific examples of how Te Tiriti impacts in the area of assisting people to resettle in the community following residential care. One of the important concepts to emerge is that Te Tiriti O Waitangi is a living document this means that it was never meant to freeze iwi and their aspirations at the time of signing, but was intended to continue to protect their interest and status as tangata whenua into the future. Another important concept is that Te Tiriti applies not just to Maori and the crown but to all new Zealanders, guaranteeing us all the right to live here peacefully as actives and develop New Zealand together. The Treaty ensured that Maori, would be given full authority status and prestige with regard to their possessions and interest, the treaty also states that their possessions would be protected, and also the ‘’Mana’’ to control them in accordance with their own customs and having regard to their own cultural preferences. The treaty established a partnership, and the treaty partners are under a duty to act reasonably and in good faith with one another, the needs of both cultures must be respected, and compromises may be needed in some cases. Te Tiriti O Waitangi applies in social services by ensuring that all social services have a bi – cultural perspectives e.g. physical environment, protocols and practises. Partnership applies in social services by respecting Maori traditional spiritual rites, it describes a relationship between two parties, the concept of partnership applies to all Maori, and it describes the way in which Maori can relate to each other. Partnership means enabling the Maori voice to be heard and Maori perspective to influence the type of health services delivered to Maori people and the way in which they are delivered. It also ensures that social services have a bi – cultural perspective. Consultation with Maori leadership and management when organisational policies are being discussed in order to ensure Maori have rangatiratanga rights over taonga,they have equity rights’, to full participation in decision making ,treaty follows that Maori should expect to achieve this outcomes and participate in society . In good faith between two sides (Maori and Crown) social services organisations ensure needs of Maori are pritorised when engaging with Maori or when creating policy that could affect Maori. Protection Is also an other principles which can apply in social services .For Maori, a secure cultural identity depends on access to the cultural social and economic resource of tea o Maori (the Maori world),especially te reo /tikanga the Maori language ,whanau, their lands and natural resources. Protection of Maori identity is likely to be positively correlated with good health, better educational outcomes ,and greater employment we have to ensure that our work practises and environment are culturally appropriate and comfortable for Maori ,and that Maori have opportunities to pursue their employment aspirations and interest, Maoris to have protected rights to make choices that best serve their culture, that line with tika and kawa,their traditions and customary practises, work in environments that feel safe and nurturing. Maori should be allowed to exercise their Tino Rangatiratanga overall of their taonga and benefit from these taonga, social service worker must respect the right of Maori where Maori can enjoy their taonga in social service settings. Participation Maintaining active lines of communication amongst there people family, participating in the karakia, koranga, kai, Whanau-Hui. Embracing the four corner stones of health i.e. Te Taha Wairua (spiritual) Te Taha Hinegaro (Mental) Te Taha Tinana (Physical) Te Taha Whanau (the family). Providing freedom for Maori to speak Te-Reo and to participate in any Maori spiritual or cultural practises. Permission Consultations of all levels with MÄori perspectives, allowing them to speak in their own language Te reo/Tikanga, involve them with kaumatua’s, families support. Let them participate in any MÄori spiritual or cultural practises, also involvement of MÄori models of health i.e. Te Whare Tapa Wha to be applied rather than western models when working with MÄori. Services accessibility for the Maori should be permitted. While engaging with Maori clients we can involve a translator who can translate Te reo with Maori clients, allowing them to practise their own culture. Task 5 Application of social service theory Explain how your actions throughout the process of assisting people to resettle in the community following residential care were guided and supported by valid theory for social service practise. Include examples. As a social worker you have to apply all four principles of Treaty O Waitangi. The four principles are Partnership, participation, protection, and permission A social worker should ensure that the needs of Maori client are taken into account when interacting with Maori or when creating policy that could affect Maori consultation or having Maori representative on the steering committee or their board while creating organisation policies and procedures to ensure that they allow Maori to rangatiratanga over their Taonga. Social workers must consider cultural values, principles or beliefs under the guidance of Te Tiriti O Waitangi for Maori. Working together with whanau Hui, involve families for support, allowing client to do her karakia, mirimiri, and involve the client in Maori culture. A social worker we should always provide safety and confidentiality for the client, respecting clients dignity and integrity, values and beliefs, social worker should build a trust with understanding each other and should have a holistic approach at all times. Te Reo/Tikanga and Development of Iwi and Maori Social workers should provide appropriate cultural supervision ,allowing the client to involve in their maoridom ,events like karakia, mirimiri, Maori community, peer group members, providing clients right to speak their language (Te Reo) involving whanau-hui,engaging the client into marae activities, providing the safety and reassuring the client that he or she is the part of facility. Social worker need to provide appropriate cultural supervision and training so all social workers provide culturally appropriate and safe practise when working with Maori, they should have integrated approach towards Maori wellbeing models and traditional knowledge within the framework of engagement. Social work ethics Social worker should be professional ,always provide clear information’s to the clients and following the ANZASW code of ethics ,promoting the clients wellbeing, involving the whanau, and always maintaining their professional boundaries ,showing respect and all relevant information’s should be kept confidential and provide safety to the client. Maori models of Practise Maori models of practise should have a holistic approach, we as social worker have to develop good relationship, understanding health, and wellness of whakapapa, have to understand the Maori models of health, e.g Te WhareTapa Wha-four corner stones of Maori health. Taha Tinana (physical health) provides safe environment, basic needs and inclusiveness. However for Maori physical well-being is intertwined with spiritual, emotional and family well-being.an example of the connection between Te taha wairua and Te taha Tinana is how for Maori the body and things associated with it are tapu. The concept of tapu (meaning sacred) was the basis of law and order and health in traditional Maori society. Taha Hinegaro-(mental health) provide education ,brochures in Maori language about the sickness, if possible translate, involve Kaumatua,whanau,friends for support. We need to consider the bigger picture retains the essence of the individual while addressing the needs of the whole, Maori think can be described as being holistic, healthy thinking for many Maori is about relationships, communication through emotions is important and more meaningful than the exchange of words and is valued just as much. We need to consider Te Taha hinegaro, be aware of the different cultural values and beliefs around health and the individual and whanau. Being respectful and open to these different beliefs and values will ensure meaningful engagement and connections can occur. In considering chronic care conditions, need to change the focus from individual management to whanau self – management. Taha Wairua(spiritual health)-practising culture, going to marae, performing karakia, mirimiri, healing body and mind, using herbal medicines. Te Taha Wairua is more on spiritual wellbeing. We need to consider the spiritual wellbeing and health of Maori people, breakdown of relationship could be seen in terms of ill health or lack of personal identity. Taha Whanau (family health) consultations at all levels of Maori, they must have equal access to all levels of services provided to Maori’s always have to provide care nurturance, which relates with Maori identity and sense of purpose. Within all whanau there are roles and responsibilities, families contribute to a person’s well-being and most importantly a person’s identity. The challenge for practitioners will be in supporting the change from an individual focus to that of a whanau focus. Referencing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Wait http://www.thefreelibrary.com/THE+TREATY+OF+WAITANGI+AND+SOCIAL+POLICY.-a054024005 http://whakapapa.maori.org.nz/archives/viewthread.php?TOPIC_ID=3532Page= http://www.maori.org.nz/papapanui//archives/viewthread.php?TOPIC_ID=3532 http://moodle.unitec.ac.nz/mod/page/view.php?id=162

When It Rains, It Pours :: Personal Narratives Depression Death Essays

When It Rains, It Pours Have you ever had a time in your life where you felt like everything was just dumped on you? I did, and undoubtedly it happened just as I came to school at State University. That saying, â€Å"When it rains, it pours,† just seemed to fit me perfectly. Within a two week period one of my friends from high school committed suicide, my grandma went in the hospital, and my boyfriend broke up with me. Yet, from these experiences in my life, I grew, more than I have ever grown before. This is why I am writing about it. Although, everyone goes through hard times, there were not many people out there who related to me. That is why it was hard to get help when it was needed. Maybe someone can learn from my experience and be just as strong as I was. I was very excited to make a new step in my life, college. I came with high hopes and aspirations. My hometown is not near Arizona, It is Lake Tahoe, Nevada, so going home for the weekend was simply out of the question. I had a great time for the first month, enjoying freedom. However, I was sitting in my room one night writing a paper with my roommate, and one of my friends from home called me. She said that one of our good friends from high school had just committed suicide earlier that day. I didn’t know how to react to this; I was scared, and confused. Why did he do it? Why didn’t anyone know that he was unhappy? Was he unhappy? I felt regret, thinking I should have been there for him. Once the crying commenced, my mother called me telling me that my last grandma had gone into the hospital. She had collapsed in her apartment and was rushed to the emergency center. I had no idea what to do. I felt like God was just condemning me and attacking me for som e reason. I went into this deep depression and I didn’t want anyone to talk to me, if they did, I would simply start crying. I was alone, and no one knew who I was. I was too far away from home to go to my friend’s ceremony.

Solar Energy: The Ultimate Renewable Energy Resource Essays -- Argumen

The current use of fossil fuels as our main energy source has two drawbacks: their inevitable depletion and the pollution associated with combustion. These two drawbacks in addition to the growing concern of global warming has pushed for the development of more sustainable sources of energy, namely solar energy and its derivatives (i.e. wind power). Solar energy is appealing for its potential to meet all our demands, while proving to be a pollution free resource.(Bohn, 2009) Solar energy originates from the thermonuclear fusion reactions occurring in the sun. Leaving all the byproducts of the reactions behind in the sun, the energy that reaches the Earth is pure radiant energy. This energy represents the entire electromagnetic spectrum, ranging from x-rays to radio waves. Most of the sun’s energy, forty-three percent, is in the form of visible light, which can be harnessed for electrical production. The amount of energy hitting the Earth is incredibly large; by one calculation, a month of sunshine has the equivalent energy of all the planet’s used and unused fossil fuels.(Huang, 2007) However, the nature of solar energy has two disadvantages. The sun does not shine consistently throughout the day due to clouds and other atmospheric factors, which can be problem for constant electricity and heat production. Moreover, solar energy cannot be used for nighttime production. The other shortcoming is that the energy from the sun is a diff use source, that is, it falls over a wide area. In order to utilize this energy, it must be concentrated into a form and amount we can use, such as heat and electricity. These problems are addressed in the three steps used to harness the sun’s energy: collection, conversion, and stor... ... Need for Wind Power." International Journal of Heritage Studies 15.2/3 (2009): Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 14 Mar. 2015. 5 Huang, Y.F., et al. "Mitigating Environmental Pollution and Impacts from Fossil Fuels: The Role of Alternative Fuels." Energy Sources Part A: Recovery, Utilization & Environmental Effects 29.12 (2007): 1069-1080. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 14 Mar. 2015. 6 Kolbert, Elizabeth. â€Å"The Acid Sea.† National Geographic April. 2011: 100-121. Print. 7 Thomas, Chacko, Philip Jennings, and Dilawar Singh. "New Markets for Solar Photovoltaic Power Systems." AIP Conference Proceedings 941.1 (2007): 142-153. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 11 Apr. 2015. 8 Luckerson, Victor. "Glaciers Are Crumbling in Southern Antarctica Faster Than Previously Thought" Time.com May 22, 2015 Web. 25 Mar. 2015. http://time.com/tag/climate-change/

Malcom X/Nation of Islam Essay -- discrimination

The Nation of Islam was founded during the Great Depression in Detroit, Michigan by a silk merchant named Wallace D. Fard. He began preaching to the black community that they didn’t deserve to live in poverty, and that the white people exploited the people so much that Fard believed that this community needed their own state. Fard accumulated more than 8,000 followers who believed that Fard was actually god, in the form of man. Elijah Poole, later known as Elijah Muhammad, took over the Nation of Islam after Fard’s disappearance in 1934. One Nation of Islam follower widely known for his work was Malcolm X. Malcolm X was born on May 19, 1925 under the name Malcolm Little, the fourth child of Rev. Earl and Louise Little. Malcolm’s father was of Baptist faith that preached on Sundays, and supported Universal Negro Improvement Association and Marcus Garvey, a stirring orator who advocated black pride and a black exodus from the United States to Africa. Rev. Little spread Garvey’s message, and this, according to legend, is what got him killed by white supremacists in 1931. (Gale 1997) At age 6, Malcolm’s widowed mother Louise suffered a mental breakdown and was declared insane. Through all this, Malcolm managed to keep his spirits up by getting good grades, debating, playing basketball, and hoping someday to become a lawyer, only to have his dreams crushed at the age of 14, by a critical white teacher. â€Å"That’s no realistic goal for a nigger,† his teacher told him, and that he should aim at doing some sort of work with his hands. (Frost 2001) Malcolm’s dreams were crushed, and at the age of 16 he moved up to New York with his sister. There he worked on the streets of New York dealing drugs and hustling. By the time he was 20 years old, he was the leader of a burglar ring, and was caught with stolen goods. He was sentenced to 8-10 years in prison, which turned out to change Malcolm’s life around.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A man named Bimbi, who Malcolm admired, inspired him to straighten up. Malcolm began hitting the books, sometimes spending half the days in the prison library; it seemed he was searching for something to get him out of the rut he’s been in since he was 14. (Frost 2001)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Malcolm began receiving letters from his brother, Reginald, who told him in his writings about the Nation of Islam, the teachings of an uncle... ... into orthodox Islam. African-Americans' interest in their Islamic roots has flourished since Malcolm’s death. (Haley) The memory and image of Malcolm X has changed as much after his death as his own philosophies changed during his lifetime. Malcolm was first thought to be a violent militant, but now he is understood as an advocate of self-help, self-defense, and education. He succeeded in putting together history, religion, and mythology as a skeleton for his eventual belief in world brotherhood and human justice. In his eyes, Malcolm thought faith was a prelude to action, and that ideas were useless without policy. Malcolm X’s autobiography is read in schools throughout the United States. It has inspired some African-Americans to get involved in their Islamic roots. In 1992, Spike Lee made a movie based on the autobiography that sparked an interest in the meaning of life and death of Malcolm X. X Russ Lahey Bibliography Frost, Bob â€Å"The Complex Journey of Malcolm X.† Biography Feb. 2001, Vol. 5, p64 Gale, Thomas â€Å"Malcolm X (El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz)† The African American Almanac, 1997, 7th ed. Haley, Alex and X, Malcolm The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Oct 1992

Apple †Needs, Wants, Demands, Utility & Value Essay

Needs are the recognition of any difference between a consumer’s actual state and some ideal or desired state. The actual state of the customer is someone without an iPhone, the desired state is someone with an iPhone. Apple, the creators of the iPhone, came to the conclusion that the need for mobility, flexibility and reliability are key to satisfying everyone involved in the marketing process. The customer has to be able to use the iPhone everywhere and always have a connection, it needs to be possible to use it the way you want it to use, and you have to be able to rely on your iPhone to work at all times. There are a couple of types of needs, but the need for an iPhone is a social one. The need to be in touch and to receive belonging and affection in an easy way. As an iPhone is a media product, there are five motivations for consumers to use one. Apple followed a few of these motivations at its best. An iPhone increases your self-confidence, status, and reassurance, you can always be involved in everything that is happening and you will never feel left out. This tells us that personal integrative needs are met. The social integrative needs are fulfilled since there is no easier way than an iPhone to talk to your friends and discuss, for instance, the same show you are watching from a different place. These two points make the key points that Apple wants to fulfil more understandable. The way that Apple fulfils the desires of the iPhone consumers are the wants. Next to mobility, flexibility and reliability, they also stand for integration, innovation, ease of use, and high-quality user interfaces. Starting off with the outside, the iPhone is specially designed to fit comfortably in your hand, it is thin and lightweight, making it easier to use. The iPhone is one big touch screen and has almost no buttons, this makes it faster to use. With every new iPhone generation comes a better camera, letting the consumer make full high definition photo’s. The consumers have numerous ways to entertain themselves: dozens of games, music at one touch away in good quality, and all the videos that YouTube offer can be watched. The consumer can see the latest posts on Facebook or Twitter and you can read the latest news, you will always be up-to-date. You can say that the Apple iPhone integrates almost all types of media, from music to television to games to press to the internet. Demand results when you couple desire with buying power to satisfy a want. It is very hard to talk about demands when it comes to the Apple iPhone. Apple made such a good name for itself, that people will buy every new generation of the iPhone that will come out, without thinking anything through. Two million people pre-ordered the latest iPhone, the iPhone 5. This doubles the pre-orders for the iPhone 4S and it outnumbers (by far) the pre-orders of cell phones from Apple’s competitors. The demand for an iPhone is dramatically high, even if the quality is not that good. The iPhone 4S was seen as a huge disappointment as it differed almost nothing from the iPhone 4, the pre-order price was $199. You would say that Apple would play it more safe with their next generation because people lost their ‘trust’ in the iPhone. Yet, Apple made the pre-order price for the iPhone 5 also $199, and as I said before, it was a huge success. This clearly shows that Apple can actually take the risks that other companies wouldn’t even dare to think off. They are in charge of the market and the demand will always stay high. Even with a fail like the iPhone 4S. Form, place, time, and possession make up the utility marketing model. Form utility is the value a consumer sees in a finished product. The consumer sees, of course, more value in a finishes iPhone than only it’s screen or loose buttons. The form of the product attracts the consumers. You need to produce a tangible good before it grabs the attention of the consumers. Place utility is the value consumers put on where they purchase products. The Apple iPhone is sold in almost every cell phone company, Apple store, or on sites like Ebay. Apple made sure that where ever you live, an iPhone is always around the corner. Consumers don’t have to travel to buy one. If they think that around the corner is still too far, they can always order one online. Ensuring a product is available when the customer wants it adheres to time utility. This is one where Apple has had trouble with. Apple was forced to push back the release date of the iPhone 5, resulting in a lot of negative comments from the consumers who pre-ordered it. The reason behind it was that the demand for the iPhone 5 was bigger than their stock. You need to make sure that you can provide your good when the consumer wants it and counts on it. Possession utility is the value consumers put on purchasing a product. You can by an iPhone with or without a contract. You will pay the same amount of money every month if you have an iPhone with a contract. You can choose between 1 or 2 years, after these years you can’t use your phone anymore. You have to trade it in for another (i)phone, a newer one. If you buy it without a contract, the buying price of the iPhone is extremely high, but the months afterwards will be lower and you will always be able to use your iPhone. The consumer has choices with both pro’s and con’s. It depends on how much they want to keep their old iPhone or just trade it in after a year or two. Value is the benefits a consumer gets from buying the product. As I said before, the Apple iPhone covers almost all media types in one. It meets up with plenty of the needs and wants of the consumers, which makes the good very beneficial. This means that consumers are prepared to pay a lot of money for the product. Although the first iPhone was seen as a huge step in technology, Apple’s competitors were able to keep up and offer the same features and functions on their phones, but in a slightly different way. Still, the iPhone stays number one of the phone sales. Apple offers the highly valuable iPhone for a high price, you would say that this makes the perceived value low. For the iPhone, this is the opposite. This makes it clear that consumers indeed think that the iPhone is valuable enough for the full price. Sources: http://www.apple.com/iphone/business/profiles/world-wide-technology/ http://suite101.com/article/an-introduction-to-apple-computer-inc-a219539 http://www.forbes.com/sites/connieguglielmo/2012/09/17/apple-says-iphone-5-demand-outstrips-supply-as-pre-orders-shatter-previous-record/ http://smallbusiness.chron.com/four-types-utility-marketing-24420.html http://gadgets.ndtv.com/mobiles/news/apple-forced-to-push-back-some-iphone-5-orders-due-to-heavy-demand-267577

“A Child Called It” Reflection

minor called it A peasant Called It Reflection Jessica Budzinski Sociology 2004A Prof. S. Becker kinfolk 14, 2012 When I was presented the assignment to depict the deed over winning novel A nestling called it by David Pelzer I had mixed feelings. I remember last semester a ortho hold outtic braces of my friends were reading the novel for their school, family, and community class. They told me nigh the book they had to read and how it was disturbing and well-nigh sections were unbearable to read. They revealed it was virtually a boy who is abused in the strike fashions, and nobody does anything astir(prediceat) it.Once receiving the book as well as the assignment I began reading it so I could guide my own interpretation about the book. plot of ground reading finished the novel I entangle as it I was righteousness next to David in all the situations he goes through. I felt as if I hated his manipulating m former(a), spineless draw, and emotionless fellows merely a s much as David did. A Child Called It was extremely functionful in understanding more of what a schoolchild may be going through outside of the school environment, that may head instructor to negative behavior and discipline in the classroom.For example when Davids teacher prototypical observed David stealing nutrient from other students lunch boxes, she believed this was because of rebellion and negative behavior. What she didnt know was that his bewilder had been denying him food for such(prenominal) long periods of time that his only desire for survival is to steal food from other students. This makes me signify as a upcoming educator to think doubly in front judging a student intimate of the classroom. In some cases students just dont act out to be funny or rebel, only to mail out a message that they atomic number 18 in need of assistance wrong their kinsperson.I believe that its truly primary(prenominal) to analyze how manipulating Davids amaze was toward s every champion almost her. Davids mother is excellent at making nation bump David as a bad boy so that they agree with her actions of non letting him philander outside or having him sit in the corner as a punishment. Its unimportant to me that that Davids brothers who are his own furrow sight walk into the tail and see him lying in a tubful of ice cold water and non pose a care in the world about him.Most importantly his gravel is an important symbol in the novel. Its intelligible that towards the beginning of Davids neglection that he disagreed with the carriage his wife was tr swallow uping David. For example, when Davids mom was in the hospital giving birth to his brother his father let him interact with her brothers and keep dinner. He helped David put off the dishes later he was stabbed by this mother and squeeze to wash the dishes while in fearsome pain. His father would to a fault attempt to uphold him food and sneak it to the garage.Davids mother becam e aware of these actions and began fighting and arguing with her maintain constantly that he began to rarely gravel home When he did arrive home he was intoxicated and unable to have any contact with David. Davids father was also getting abused barely in a different way, towards the philia of the novel he didnt sine qua non to start an argument with his wife so he would just stay away from David and no extended give him food. Davids mother repeatedly told David and his brothers that David was no longer part of the family.Davids mother was very loving to her other children, but from a puppylike age her actions of abusing David were seen by her other children, In the novel David talks about how his little brother would make up stories and tell their mother so they can watch David get beaten. Davids brothers also physically abused him, by the boot and hitting him. I found it elicit that at the time of this novel the people nearly David other then his family were not suspicio us about the Pelzer family. For example on Christmas David was only allowed to receive one pay because he is no longer part of the family.He received a pair of hair curler skates, purge as a young boy he knew this gift would be used as a punishment. During the winter his mother forced him to skate around the neighborhood for hours, he would be exhausting the same dirty thin uniform he always wore. He writes about passing his neighbors and people in cars, but they didnt even think twice about this action. David tells us that he was esurient for a ten-day period and had no plectron but to go entre to door and ask for food. The people he asked either said no or reach him a sandwich not even wondering why he was knocking on their door for food and not going home.If this were to happen in at presents society people would be suspicious and ask the boy questions. The teachers in the school would wonder why he came to school with the same clothes, missing teeth, downcast bones, and starving. David presented the topic that was rarely discussed in his time. He presented the ugly side of amoral society the one in which nobody cares about the problems of others. Its tall(prenominal) to see the change in the way the States handles child abuse but its also heart wrenching to think of the children who were neglected and abused during the times America was not as active.I found it hard that after being stabbed, burnt, forced to eat his brothers feces, choked, and forced to breath a potpourri of ammonia and bleach that David was still true(a) to his mother. He always completed him chores making sure nothing was under flawlessness he walked on eggshells around the house, and neer told the truth about his abuse. Its distinct that the reasoning of this is because if he disobeyed his mother he would receive a worsened punishment. When he scrimmaged through the garbage can and ate the remains of his familys dinner his mother forced him to vomit and found the fo od he had consumed.He then received a punishment of sitting in the bathroom for hours with a bucket of ammonia and bleach till he almost passed out. Its annihilative to know that this young boy felt so alone that he couldnt tell his friends, neighbors, or teachers outside of his home. I hope that as a teacher if a student in my classroom is being abused they will be open and express their emotions to others or me in my school so that we can help them. The title of the book is truly broody as the survival of the boy essential real courage.The fact that his mother refereed to him by It symbolizes that she was blinded by sadism without realizing or comprehending her actions because of her alcoholic beverage addiction. Dave Pelzers book A Child Called it was not at all a difficult book to read, but the fellowship was quite disturbing and emotional, especially astute that this actually took place in the join States. I would suggest to anyone thats formulation on pursuing a locomo te in education or as a social worker to read this book. This will help develop a better understanding for students and their needs.