ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Abstract Wal-Mart must value the importance of the social contract it has with stakeholders and various interest groups. The benefits strategy fiasco of 2005 was an eye-opener for the company. The errors committed during that period was a sobering reminder that the company cannot force its way into the hearts and minds of its critics. Wal-Mart executives must learn new skills, especially when it comes to understanding the sentiments and aspirations of various stakeholders. Wal-Mart is a game-changer in the retail industry. The founder’s decision to sell commodities with very low prices was a critical step towards success. For several decades since its inception, none can compete with Wal-Mart in terms of the said strategy. Nevertheless, the relentless drive of Wal-Mart executives to drive down prices, combined with hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue attracted critics and detractors from different sectors of society. Aside from criticisms and protests from concerned citizens and various interest groups, Wal-Mart is also experiencing threats from competitors and declining sales. It is important to point out that declining sales can be a reflection of the company’s reputation. It is no longer enough to simply manage the physical aspect of the business. It is also important to look at sociopolitical issues that can negatively affect the perception of investors and customers regarding the company’s long-term growth. Threats and Challenges Wal-Mart’s declining sales are a significant source of threat to the company’s long-term growth (Cullen & Parboteeah, 2013). Another source of threat is Wal-Mart’s inability to dominate the global retailers market. For example, Mal-Wart’s attempt to establish supercenters in China started strong but sputtered a decade later. Wal-Mart currently has 364 stores in China; however, these stores are not the top draw in China, because stiff competition from Carrefour SA, Tesco, Auchan, and the Ruentex Group made it harder for Wal-Mart to get a bigger slice of the market (Rugman & Waters, 2005). When it comes to challenges, Wal-Mart is dealing with multiple lawsuits about gender-based discrimination in the employment arena (Weiss, 2014). The company is also dealing with lawsuits concerning low wages and employment benefits. Wal-Mart has to answer accusations that it failed to provide health insurance for more than 60 percent of its employees (Ferrell & Fraedrich, 2013). One of the more controversial executive decisions of the company was the discovery of a memo sent by Susan Chambers – Wal-Mart’s executive vice-president for benefits (Ferrell & Fraedrich, 2013). In the said memo, Chambers told the board of directors that it is best to hire more part-time workers (Ferrell & Fraedrich, 2013). The bad publicity created by the memo reduced the value of Wal-Mart’s stock by 27 percent (Ferrell & Fraedrich, 2013). The company has to find a way to address these problems. CEO Lee Scott’s Priorities Fa
Culture is the characteristic that defines a group of people in a given place. It includes the observance of knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes. It also defines experiences, religion and relations of people making up a given society. Many organizations do overlook the cultural practices of their clients to advance their productivity. With their unopposed policies, organizations willingly abuse the cultural practices of their clients, for instance, many organizations do consider Saturday as a working day, disregarding the religious practices of their clients. In addition, some of the organizations do advocate for the consumption of tabooed meals. The inclusion of Saturday as a working day by many organizations greatly hampers the spiritual development of some people. Majority of the workers in many organizations end up missing soul meals at the advantage of some organizations that keep them under key and lock away from spiritual centers. On the other hand, some of the people in the various societies do consider Saturday as a day for reunion with relatives for exchange of cultural aspects. In addition, most of the people do consider Saturday as a day of teaching the young and youths in the society the importance of adhering to society aspects. Some of the religious practices are inclined to cultural observance, for instance, the Muslims do consider Friday as their holy day. Denial of granting them access to their spiritual practice surpasses their cultural practice. Looking down upon the set doctrines by the society at the excuse of inclining to policies that have been crafted by organizations contributes to emergence of differences among the strong observers of traditional cultures. Some cultures do ordain people of the same society, practicing the same cultures values not to eat some types of meals. Such people have it rough when working in some organizations; this is because of the overall choice of meals by the organizations without the consideration of the cultural practices of their clients. For instance, eating pork is a taboo to Muslim society, hence having pork in the menu of some days of the week in organization hampers with the lifestyle of a Muslim fellow (Ylimaki, 2011). Due to lack of choice and the occurrence of long distance from alternative meals, some of the people end up abusing their cultural practices. Practice that keeps a person away from the cultural values leaves clients in ever regretting conditions. Some societies through their cultures demarcate roles as per gender. For instance, women unlike men are prohibited by their cultures from performing male roles that includes handling of heavy objects or carrying out a lot of energy-requiring activities. Women are also prohibited by their cultures from making late night movements (Ashman and Hull, 2011). However, many organizations do treat all humans as equal regardless of gender. The involvement of women in activities that extends to the night hampers with the observance of the cultures, hence leading to cropping of differences in families. In addition, many organization policies do require the involvement of women in night shifts, a practice that greatly
Introduction Countries are going into highly unfamiliar territory regarding aging population which is increasing rapidly. Current rise in life expectancy and reduce in fertility rates are bringing about a major change in the world age structure. The population of people who are above the age of 60 is estimated as one billion by 2025 and around 2.5 billion by 2050, symbolizing 25% of the total population of the world (Marchildon, 2004, p. 51). The number of people who are 80 years old and above is estimated to increase from 1% to 5% of the world population between now and 2050 (Marchildon, 2004, p. 51). The projected increase of the aging population in many countries over the next 40 years will have an exceptional effect on the countries’ health care facilities, particularly in line with distribution and needs for health care employees (Horlacher & MacKella, 2003). The distribution of health care human resources can reduce while they grow old and this result in huge population retiring and cutting their usual working hours. All together, aging population use excessively huge amount of country’s health care facilities, hence needs for these services may perhaps rise. Increase of older adults will as well have change on the health care personnel’s skills and services which should be prepared to serve the patients and environment where such services if offered. Effects on Economy Given that various age groups have different requirements, the economy of the country will probably change while aging of population increase, this is caused by needs for particular services like health care, education, and pension. An ordinary strategy for examining these changes are to consider invariable age-specific activities regarding jobs, savings, and consumption, and to examine the impact of changes in these different age brackets for these significant providers to the country’s economy (Holzmann, 2009, p. 8). Different countries have different ways to handle aging population and this may alleviate the pessimistic effects of aging. Since developed countries have rapid aging than developing or underdeveloped countries, the former can fall back on immigrant employment from the latter to make up for the retirement and aging of their own workforce. The huge groups of employed persons in rich countries are probably to be interested in the job opportunities which are produced. Immigration to developed countries from developing countries could thus supposedly sluggish the developed countries to experience huge population of aging population and this process would relive the pressure on both types of economies. Immigration often goes with social issues and conflicts and several rich nations are now struggling with complex balance between the demands for workforce and the significance of controlling social effects of migration. More widely, old people will need raised assistance of different kinds such as better access to medical services and income securities which are considered to be essential to them than the younger population (Vettori, 2010, p. 35). As families ha
The fluctuating market is never the same, making a business environment hard to predict and often, demanding changes in a company so that it stays successful. Ethics, socio-cultural adjustments, and modernization of the world have to be adhered to. Global companies have to make changes, and IBM is one such organization. The general adjustments that took place were a more environment oriented approach that led to lowering costs, increasing the role of stakeholders, and a more customer-oriented work technique. The CEOs have also changed some of the management that would provide a shift from hardware to a software focus — an in-depth knowledge of the culture and social specificities of other countries allowed for better conduction of business. IBM is a worldwide company, and so, it has to deal with many location-specific features. One of the strategic advances that were made is related to changing the consulting practice and connection between locations. The major focus has turned to people and interaction with the public. As customers will often return to the same organization if the products and services are reliable and of high quality, it was wise for IBM to pay special attention to how the business is conducted. The international success has proven that people are expecting great service, and IBM recognized this by increasing the number of employees responsible for customer relations. As there is a lot of competition in the modern world, the changes that IBM made had to be quick. While the adjustment of production has lowered costs and heightened quality, as well as making it more environment-friendly, the changes to the services and workforce greatly added to the company’s success (Gibbs, 2006). Sometimes the company that adjusts to the economy or fluctuating market must let some of its employees go, but IBM chose a strategy that increased the number of workers worldwide, and it positively reflected on the organization. It is a wise strategy to improve both products and services because this means that with a higher quality of merchandise, people will also receive great services. Comparing to other companies, IBM has rooted out all competitors because the size of the organization, the amount of locations and people involved in customer-oriented focus have majorly outnumbered all others. Another improvement that was made is the involvement of IBM in several industries at the same time. This enlarges the scope of the company and makes it more knowledgeable in other spheres of everyday life. It is clear that the management understands what people want and need, and the ability to get everything in one place, with addition to outstanding service, makes it one of the best companies. Even though these changes were made through the demands of the company and the public, there are many other ways that IBM can better its products and services (Gibbs, 2006). An equally important aspect
Introduction Culture is a complex and diverse aspect. It entails the way of life in a particular group of people. It is characterized by different aspects, for instance, beliefs and behaviour. Cultural differences could be seen through looking at different elements that define a certain culture for instance artefacts, myths and stories, rituals, rites, symbols, assumptions, values, norms and ethical codes and attitudes towards different things among others. Different cultural groups have different cultural elements (Sugimoto, 1997). This piece of work gives an in depth evaluation of cultural differences in Japan with much emphasis being given to health care and mental illness in particular. Discussion Generally, the culture of Japan is characterized by collectiveness where individualism is not usually a key concept in various practices in different sectors of the economy such as the education system, health care, and politics. Although collectiveness sounds to be advantageous at the face, it is not always beneficial and in some cases some special groups are left to suffer in the name of collectiveness or placing all aspects at the same level (Hendry, 1995). In regard to Japan’s health care, culture in the country has both positive and negative impacts. In respect to mental health in Japan, collectiveness of the culture does not add value. People suffering from mental illness are looked down upon by the society. Towards the beginning of the 20th century for example, those who suffered from the mental illness in the country did not integrate with the rest of the society but rather they were secluded and restrained to their households. The situation was not any better until the enactment of Mental Health Hygiene Law of 1950, which gave the mentally ill some rights including integrating them into the society. The situation is not however any different and the mentally ill are still looked down upon by the community and are seen to be a source of shame to a family and the society at large. As a result of the high value that is placed by the Japanese culture on the issue of uniformity and collectiveness, there has been some negative effects in the health care sector where many people who suffer from mental illness are at a loss since no special care is given to them as expected but rather they are treated as any other patient. This leads to a poor life standard as compared to the mentally ill in other cultures. The only positive aspect is that mental health care in Japan is being improved day by day and the stigmatization may reduce as days go by (Tajima, 2000). In terms of ethical issues related to the treatment of the mentally ill in Japan, we can clearly see that it is unethical to treat the mentally ill in a bad manner; as a source of shame to the family which causes stigmatization. This is because they do not have any mistake and mental illness is just like any other disease. The mentally ill should therefore be treated with the due respect a human being deserves. Conclu
In life, very form of art comes with a force behind it. People practicing different form of art possess different characteristics. Art is also created in a manner that is able to influence a person’s personality. Through the way art is expressed, people have a way of understand the thoughts of the author as well as understanding the message the author was trying to communicate. There is a deep attachment between in the way people attach themselves to the pessimism of life. Different people will have different opinions but it is important to note that most people will become pessimistic about life which is followed by a renunciation. Nihilism has been cited as a major cause for this attribute. As proposed by Nietzsche, there is a great connection that exists between the general feeling or mood of despair and the discovery that there are no rules and laws governing existence. ( Mistry 99). One of the major characteristics of this mood is the perception of pointlessness of existence. In analyzing Apollo and Dionysus, Nietzsche found out that art emerged as a result of the emergence of tragedy. According to Nietzsche, tragedy inspired the creation and development of art through the aesthetic element in man. It is important to note that art is inspired by tragedy and other occurrences. ( Klein 28) Through the things people undergo, they are able to develop the artistic element found inside them. The two sons of Zeus have attributes that make them rivals and this has been the foundation of art since ancient Greece. According to the analysis conducted by Nietzsche on Apollo and Dionysus, there are two separate bodies that influence the art. Apollo represented a specific element whereas Dionysus represented a separate body. Understanding the Apollonian and Dionysian mythology is important in the analysis of the art concepts contained therein. Generally, the Apollonian and Dionysian is literate concept which is philosophical in nature and contained a number of features attached to the ancient Greek mythology. The Apollonian and Dionysian philosophy has been analyzed by different artists and philosophers. They have sought to establish the connection that this Greek mythology contains with regards to art and philosophy. Most of the western philosophical figures have been known to invoke this mythology in their creative and critical works. To better understand the connection that exists between Apollo and Dionysus, it is important to look at the history of Apollo and Dionysus. The two were sons of Zeus. Apollo is commonly referred to as the god of the sun whereas Dionysus is commonly known as the god of ecstasy, intoxication, and wine. Although the two are considered to be rivals by the ancient Greek philosophers, they are brought together by Parnassus. There have been several legends that have brought Apollo and Dionysus together. The mythical home of all form of art and poetry is one of the major connections that have been set up to bring together Apollo and Dionysus. Accordi
Literature Review Literature review will be conducted for the purposes of providing theoretical knowledge and general insight on the research problem. The general overview from the literature review will help in defining the concept of product development. Additionally, existing arguments on the topic from different authors within existing literature will be considered for the purposes of forming theoretical framework necessary for addressing the identified research problem (Pride and Ferrell, 2003). The foundation of the study will be formed based on new product development processes and related requirements. Interrelationship between the product and other organizational functions together with anticipated shortcomings also form the foundation of the study. According to Jassawala and Sachittal (2000), development of new product follows a systematic process capable of creating and producing highest possible satisfactory results within the targeted market. The whole processes involve lowest possible risks and highest possible benefits to organization (Rainey, 2005). However, most crucial elements within the process include the participants. New product development processes are never the same since some companies do not follow the deliberate step-by-step approach (Lee et al., 2000). The process on product development and implementation follows five successive stages; idea generation, feasibility, definition and design, development and testing then Market entry and review stages (Martins et al., 1996). New ideas are usually obtained from the market field through customers, employees and information from other competitors within the market using same line of technology (Martins et al., 1996). Research and development team together with other departments involved enter into detailed coordination for the purposes of expanding the idea. This is followed by drafting of concept paper by the manager. The paper highlights product description, benefits and target consumers within the market (Rainey, 2005; Swink, 2000). Desk Research The research will utilize secondary sources for the purposes of obtaining relevant up-to-date information. The desk research will be used to obtain required information on other related product trends within the market. Such statistics will provide useful information based on the real market situation. The research proposal will incorporate various stages including scrutinizing of the available sources for the purposes of obtaining required information (Kumar et al., 2002). Problem Statement There has been growing trend on the use soft drinks as means of boosting energy in process performing hard tasks. However, reliable sources have indicated possible dangers surrounding frequency of use of such drinks. This is attribut
Abstract Strategic management, as a practice that assists the managers in executing their work is perceived as fresh idea yet it was established in 1950s and 60s. The idea has been accepted across all the sectors as a gateway to solutions. Changes in work environments can only be incorporated in the long-term plan of the business through strategic management. There are other grand strategies some of which have been adopted by organizations. It includes diversifications, mergers and acquisition, concentrated growths, product development, innovation, turnarounds, integration and strategic alliances. Discussion It is believed that strategic human resource management is a recipe to the success and continuous growth of many organizations. With its utilization by many organizations, there has been development of technologically based products like mobile phone banking and e-banking as well as moving to new markets and developing new banking products (Armstrong, 2000, p. 51). The three options under this Strategic human resource are looking-in, looking-out and looking-ahead. “Looking in” refers to making an important decision internally such as the best way of use of resources. “Looking out” entails ascertaining boundaries to your company in order to come up with desired goals, be acquainted stakeholders and be dynamic to changes. “Looking-ahead” entails connecting the company requirements with the formations and the possessions in order to attain the set objectives. It laso helps in the process of aligning the approach at any time towards the objectives. With globalization and growth in technology, many organizations are made up of systems, and sub-systems that are known as departments and sections. The structure of the organization stems from the number of departments and sections. Human resource as a department and the focus of this essay is considered as the lifeblood of the organization (Mello, 2002, p. 59). The purpose of this essay is fourfold. First, the essay will provide an explanation on the historical development of human resources. Secondly, it will establish the role that strategic human resource managers play in staffing and selection. Moreover, it gives an explanation on how to prepare the job organization structure including job description. Finally, it gives an insight on evaluation of performance management, as well as how to design training for each employee (Gilmore & Williams, 2009, p. 59). Strategic human resource management sets out to ensure that both organizational and individual goals are achieved. It seeks to establish a respectful relationship between employers and employees. Human resource is an umbrella that house functions such as organizing, planning as well as utilizing the work force. As such, staffing and selection is a management process that form the integral part of any organization human resource management. The two functions work hand in hand since the objective of the organiza