The Importance Of Transferable Skills Marketing Essay

The Importance Of Transferable Skills Marketing Essay The transferability of one persons skills can reveal the competencies of this person in performing an especial job which can be utilised in the performance of another job. In nowadays working environment, its a critical task to develop personal transferable skills in order to broaden the career options (McCourt and Eldridge 2003). For example, different people have distinct natural abilities to develop the skills like multiple tasks throughout their lives and thus they are applicable to a variety of working situations. The transferable skills are different from the job-related skills which are only utilised in one particular of work. Most of the employers think that the transferable skills are more important because they would like to expect their staffs to use the skills in more than one job even if the work is irrelevant to their previous educational or working experience (Moorhead 2005). This literature review will focus on the importance, implementations, and outcomes of transferable skills which is analysed in Human Resource aspects. The specific transferable skills differ in different preferences of people. For example, if people like to work with information and data, their specific transferable skills may include budgeting, measuring, analysis, research, or surveying. If people who enjoy working with ideas, their specific transferable skills may include developing, restructuring, painting, planning, or problem solving (Block and Betrus 2003). Definition The transferability of skills is defined as the specific capacities which allow the people to achieve in a spacious range of different jobs and tasks (Assiter 1995). It will become an advantage of competitiveness for the people because the transferable skills essence of marketable and tangible can provide the quality value for many organisations (Brown and Lent 2005). Transferable skills can be measured, such as the language or information skills, as well as self-motivation and initiative attribute which are able to be used in the workplace (Foster 1998). This kind of skills tends to be learned by trying to anticipate potential environments of application so that they can be transferred easily. The process is mostly set up the bridges between knowledge levels and capabilities whereby increases transferability (Hakkarainen et al. 2004). An inventory of transferable skills categorises into forty basic skills, such as the basic skill of communication can be separated into the specific skills of questioning, interviewing, listening, and writing. Most of these skills are developed naturally from all aspects of peoples life, and then they can transfer them to their jobs (Lock 2005). According to those definitions of transferable skills, they are all indicating that it can be implemented as any roles in different industries because the skills come from the life upon the basic skills. This can help the people to identify the different personal skills that they have utilised in their living and working environment. However, the critical issue is that people have to comprehend the transition between the basic skills and transferable skills so that they can improve their personal development through the transferability of various jobs. Reason for Transferability of Skills The importance of transferable skills Being a high extent of competitive society, its a crucial task for people to enhance their own forces and thus they are enabled to handle the challenges in different working situations. Hence, the transferable skills can be one of the most effective competencies to those who are new graduates or returning to the working places (NJIT 2010). Its a critical factor that people have to identify their transferable skills from the experiences of the jobs since the title of job never disclosed all the details of the actual work and the formal job description is often different from the facts. This is the reason that its important to anatomise each previous and current job to observe varied skills used on the jobs. After identify the personal transferable skills, it can help to discover the most suitable position in peoples career depends on demonstrating at the work place. It can be also apply to the interviews to show the skills and talents to the employers. Besides that, the transferable skills can be developed from the basic skills of the daily life, such as the language, writing, communication, organising, and self management skills. These basic skills can not be neglected because they will become the accelerant for transferable skills due to the steady foundation (Aswathappa 2005). Once the employees have improved their basic skills in their daily lives and moved on to the development of transferable skill, it would bring them higher social and economic returns. Demands of organisation Transferable skills are valuable to most of the employers and organisations. They would like to offer the staffs with flexibility in their career planning so that they can obtain the transferable skills from a variety of activities (Gardner et al. 2009). For instance, after involved in a large trade event, the employees might gain or enhanced the abilities of teamwork, leadership, and effective communication. In addition, many employers are using on-the-job tests to evaluate the degree of multi-task skills so that they can be trained properly to develop the transferable abilities (Mathis and Jackson 2008). The transferable skills of the employees can help to meet the organisational requirements, utilise the services properly, and increase the efficiency (Randhawa 2007). It also tends to a wide range of capacity at same level when the company is recruiting new staffs (Marchington and Wilkinson 2005). It can be discovered from the job requirements of the organisations which prefer their staffs to gain the transferable skills in order to increase its productivity and working effectiveness. Implementations The needs of transferable skills The transferable skills have become an important aspect for the organisations to measure and evaluate their staffs. The employers will discover the potential of the employees to perform in other roles at same level. The performance can help the company to decide that the developmental needs of the employees and the next paces within the company (Bohlander and Snell 2008). The skills are totally based on the work performance rather than entirely on accessibility and knowledge due to the flexible qualifications (Brown and Lent 2005). For example, the needs of the skills will include assertiveness, negotiating, persuading and influencing, indentifying key issues, data analysis, organising work individually, etc. This can occur to the employees that they are able to listen effectively to the details of a project meanwhile expressing the idea immediately in the meetings.

Descartes philosophy Essay -- essays research papers

Descartes’ â€Å"evil genius scenario† provides the possibility for the existence of an evil genius that is in control of our world in place on an omnipotent god. By in control, I mean that he would in some magical way compose our lives by his own will, thus making any certain knowledge about material objects impossible. This scenario presents some real questions with Descartes’ argument because it basically completely rules out the possibility of any god.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  We are imagining that Dr. Spiritus has invaded a small rural hospital and has stolen the brains of several babies. He places the brains in a large vat, provides them with the essential nutrients as well as hooking them up to electrodes that feed the false images into their minds. These impulses that the doctor would distribute at his own will would make the babies brains think that they are actually in their bodies living their lives as normal people. The doctor would provide all the necessary experiences such as childhood, school, first love and etc. However since Dr. Spiritus is an evil genius, he feels it necessary to feed these minds the stimuli of pain, suffering, and disaster.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first question that arises is if it is possible to determine if one is not among Dr. Spiritus’ victims. According to Descartes, the answer is yes. Descartes states that God is an infinite, omnipotent, omniscient substance. He also says that humans are not capable of causing this thoug...

Jeffery Dahmer Essay -- essays research papers

The serial killer that I chose to profile is Jeffery Dahmer. Dahmer brings both horrifying, yet amazing qualities to the table in the respect that he terrorized people, not only those that were his victims, but also people that lived both near and those around the country. Section I: Overview - Jeffery Dahmer - Born on May 21, 1960, at Evangelical Hospital in Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Jeffery Dahmer was found beaten by fellow inmates on the morning of November 28, 1994, as was pronounced dead at 9:11 a.m. - Was given life imprisonment on 15 counts of murder committed in Wisconsin and one committed in Ohio, for which he was tried separately. He was sentenced to fifteen consecutive life terms for a total of 957 years in prison. - Jeffery Dahmer was always seen as very shy and isolated at an early age. Dahmer had fantasies about killing men and having sex with the corpses. Despite the early tendencies of his childhood, Dahmer didn’t act on any of these sexual fantasies until after he had graduated from highschool in June of 1978. Dahmer picked up a hitchhiker by the name of Steven Hicks, and eventually Hicks would be the first victim of Dahmer. Dahmer then enrolled at Ohio State University, only to flunk out within one semester. Next, Dahmer joined the army at the end of 1978, but was discharged for alcoholism and went to live in Florida before returning to Ohio. Dahmer was then arrested in October of 1981 for drunken and disorderly conduct, so his father sent him to live with his grandmother in West Allis, Wisconsin. Dahmer had a couple of sexual legal incidents, then kept cool for about four years. In 1987, Dahmer killed his second victim, Steven Toumi, and would go on a ravenous murder spree after that. - Victims were mainly homosexual men, mostly African-American - Dahmer was active from June 1978 to July 22, 1991 Section II: Childhood Dahmer was born on May 21, 1960, to Lionel and Joyce Dahmer. Dahmer was wanted and loved despite Joyce’s problems in pregnancy. Dahmer was a normal, healthy child that showed no signs of mental problems. When Dahmer was four, Lionel was sweeping under the house for small animals that had been killed by civets. As Lionel gathered the bones Dahmer was fascinated with the bones of the dead animals. When Dahmer was six, he suffered from a double hernia and needed surgery to correct the problem. After the surgery, Dahm... ...s of animals to the sexual, as well as violent fantasies, that led to the spree of killings that he committed. I think that Dahmer had a very big problem with the isolation that he faced at an early age in life. Dahmer saw that his parents were never happy, and maybe that’s why he had homosexual tendencies. Dahmer was continuously consumed with necrophilia, which is the fetish with the dead. He not only collected the bodies of dead animals at an early age, but also he had fantasies about killing people and then having sex with the corpses. I think that you have to put Jeffery Dahmer in a class all his own, because of the fascination that he had with the corpses, and the power that they gave him once he had killed them. A lot of serial killers were more worried about what would happen to them, and they would get rid of the bodies of the people that they had just killed. Dahmer used his own body as a temple to take control of the lives of the victims that he had. Dahmer was very remorseful for the crimes that he had committed, and was very cooperative with the authorities and with the families of his victims. This is not usually seen as a common attribute among serial killers today. Jeffery Dahmer Essay -- essays research papers The serial killer that I chose to profile is Jeffery Dahmer. Dahmer brings both horrifying, yet amazing qualities to the table in the respect that he terrorized people, not only those that were his victims, but also people that lived both near and those around the country. Section I: Overview - Jeffery Dahmer - Born on May 21, 1960, at Evangelical Hospital in Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Jeffery Dahmer was found beaten by fellow inmates on the morning of November 28, 1994, as was pronounced dead at 9:11 a.m. - Was given life imprisonment on 15 counts of murder committed in Wisconsin and one committed in Ohio, for which he was tried separately. He was sentenced to fifteen consecutive life terms for a total of 957 years in prison. - Jeffery Dahmer was always seen as very shy and isolated at an early age. Dahmer had fantasies about killing men and having sex with the corpses. Despite the early tendencies of his childhood, Dahmer didn’t act on any of these sexual fantasies until after he had graduated from highschool in June of 1978. Dahmer picked up a hitchhiker by the name of Steven Hicks, and eventually Hicks would be the first victim of Dahmer. Dahmer then enrolled at Ohio State University, only to flunk out within one semester. Next, Dahmer joined the army at the end of 1978, but was discharged for alcoholism and went to live in Florida before returning to Ohio. Dahmer was then arrested in October of 1981 for drunken and disorderly conduct, so his father sent him to live with his grandmother in West Allis, Wisconsin. Dahmer had a couple of sexual legal incidents, then kept cool for about four years. In 1987, Dahmer killed his second victim, Steven Toumi, and would go on a ravenous murder spree after that. - Victims were mainly homosexual men, mostly African-American - Dahmer was active from June 1978 to July 22, 1991 Section II: Childhood Dahmer was born on May 21, 1960, to Lionel and Joyce Dahmer. Dahmer was wanted and loved despite Joyce’s problems in pregnancy. Dahmer was a normal, healthy child that showed no signs of mental problems. When Dahmer was four, Lionel was sweeping under the house for small animals that had been killed by civets. As Lionel gathered the bones Dahmer was fascinated with the bones of the dead animals. When Dahmer was six, he suffered from a double hernia and needed surgery to correct the problem. After the surgery, Dahm... ...s of animals to the sexual, as well as violent fantasies, that led to the spree of killings that he committed. I think that Dahmer had a very big problem with the isolation that he faced at an early age in life. Dahmer saw that his parents were never happy, and maybe that’s why he had homosexual tendencies. Dahmer was continuously consumed with necrophilia, which is the fetish with the dead. He not only collected the bodies of dead animals at an early age, but also he had fantasies about killing people and then having sex with the corpses. I think that you have to put Jeffery Dahmer in a class all his own, because of the fascination that he had with the corpses, and the power that they gave him once he had killed them. A lot of serial killers were more worried about what would happen to them, and they would get rid of the bodies of the people that they had just killed. Dahmer used his own body as a temple to take control of the lives of the victims that he had. Dahmer was very remorseful for the crimes that he had committed, and was very cooperative with the authorities and with the families of his victims. This is not usually seen as a common attribute among serial killers today.

French Revolution Essay -- essays research papers

The French Revolution lasted from 1789 to 1799. Although there were several factors that made the French Revolution possible, such as population growth, the expansion of the middle classes, and the rise of an informed public, there were three immediate causes of the Revolution. One was the diminished authority of the royal government. Another was the revolt by the nobility, who sensed a weakening monarchy. The third cause was the crop failure. The government of France was in a financial crisis. The country was deeply in debt from the financing of the wars of Louis XIV. To deal with the nation’s economic problems, Louis XVI called for a meeting of the Estates General in 1789. The Estates General was made up of representatives from each of the three social classes, or Estates. The First Estate consisted of the clergy, the Second Estate consisted of the nobility, and the Third Estate consisted of the commoners. The Third Estate, which made up 98 percent of the population of France, was underrepresented. Since the Estates General had to vote separately and by order, the Third Estate would almost always be outvoted by the First Estate and the Second Estate who would get to vote first. Because of this, the Third Estate wanted its traditional number of representatives to be doubled so that it matched the other two orders put together. When Louis XVI refused their demand, the Third Estate, led by Abbe Emmanuel Sieyes, changed its name to the Nation...

Notes on the European Union

1) Key theoretical approaches to the European Integration Background – Intellectual context - ­? to understand the theories of European integration, it is important to consider the intellectual context from which the idea of European integration emerged Federalism – Altiero Spinelli - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? Spinelli: leader of the European Union of Federalists: Idea: after the Second World War, the classes most privileged under old national system will seek a new order of nation states, that might appear democratic, but the power will return to the privileged classes eventually a? renewing war between states Proposal: o prevent this development, create a federal European state to subordinate national governments to a federal authority a? strategy of the Federalists, aimed to create a federal constitution for Europe Development: Congress took time to organize, taken place in Hague in 1948. By that time, national political systems were already re- ­? establi shed a? Congress turned into the Council of Europe, not a new federal constitutional order Problem: diversity of Europe, different connotations in different part of Europe Mitrany: born in Romania, lived in UK and US, to build a â€Å"working peace system†, influencing integration heorists Against federalism b/c: o Single world government = threat to individual freedom o Regional federations = reproducing national rivalries on a larger scale Idea: root of the war = nationalism Proposal: create a separate international functional agencies, each with authority over specific area of human life o Scheme: individual tasks taken out of the control of the government, handing them to the functional agencies o Argument: Governments will surrender control because they will not fear the loss of sovereignty over e. g. health care, but rather appreciate the advantages of such tasks performed at the egional/world level o a? the more areas of control surrounded, the less states are capable of independent action a? the harder it is to break from the agencies Jean Monnet: planner of a Schuman Plan Combining ideas of functionalism and federalism, crucial for the neofunctionalist theory of European integration Functionalism – David Mitrany - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? Functional- ­? Federalism – Jean Monnet - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? Idea: European nation state is inadequate as an economic unit Proposal: developing of supranational institutions as the basis for building economic community (coal and steel at the beginning) o Scheme: remove ontrol of the strategically crucial industries (coal and steel) from the governments, handing over to a free- ­? standing agency (High Authority) o Challenge: Western German State o Solution: strategic industries removed from German control; ensuring adequate supplies of coal for the French steel industry a? economies are interconnected Theories Neofuncionalism – Ernst Haas - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? Plur alist theory – state not a single unified actor, neither it is the only actor on the international stage (non- ­? state actors also important) Integration = process, once started, would undermine the sovereignty of states eyond the expectations of governments Activities of states = outcome of pluralistic political process, in which government decisions are influenced by the interest groups and bureaucratic actors European Commission = most important non- ­? state international actor, manipulating domestic and international pressures on national governments to advance to process of European integration Mechanisms of the integration o Spillover  §? Integration in one sector will cause integration in further sectors, in order to fully enjoy the benefits of the integration of the original sector 1. Functional spillover †¢ Economies made up of nterconnected parts a? impossible to isolate one sector from others †¢ If MS integrated one sector of the economies, the in terconnectedness between the sectors will lead to a spillover into other sectors †¢ Integration in one sector will work only if the interconnected sector is also integrated †¢ E. g. : increasing coal production across MS requires brining other forms of energy into the scheme. Otherwise, switch by one MS away from coal towards e. g. oil or nuclear fuel will throw out all the calculations for coal production 2. Political spillover †¢ Building up political pressure in favor of further integration †¢ Once ne sector is integrated, lobbying of interest groups occurs at supranational level (the organization in charge of running that sector) - ­? - ­? Groups will appreciate the benefits as a result of integration, realizing the barriers preventing these benefits from being fully enjoyed (not integrating other sectors) a? advocating further integration and lobbying the governments †¢ E. g. : ECSC makes the representatives it the coal and steel industry switching the lobby activities (partly) from national governments to the new supranational agency (High Authority) o Technocratic automaticity  §? Institutions created will sponsor urther integration as they become more powerful and autonomous than member states Assessment of the theory o 1950s: neofunctionalism = winning theory explaining the transition from the ECSC into EC o 1960s: the end of neofunctionalism – Empty Chair Crisis (1965 – 1966) Gaulle’s veto; national governments showing power they are ready to use to determine the nature and pace of integration Aspects to be considered – theory not always applicable o Pluralist social structures  §? Member states must be democratic o Substantial economic and industrial development  §? A certain level of development – no significant gap among hem o Common ideology among participating units  §? No centrally planned economies †¢ Mistakes of neofunctionalism: o Regional integration is not a self-  ­? contained process, but influence by a wider international context o Governments are uniquely powerful actors as they had formal sovereignty and democratic legitimacy o integration in low politics, not high politics (national security, defense) as states tend to protect their sovereignty (advocated by French in 1950) national government controls the nature and pace of integration in order to protect and promote national interest acknowledges the importance of other ctors than governments: o low politics (e. g. social policy): interest groups did influence, but were no the only ones – also government officials, parties in office rejects the theory of spillover effects: rejects the idea of common security policy, foreign policy or common armed forces power of supranational institutions increased because governments believed it to be their national interest a? integration only as far as the government allows power to the European Council and Council of Europe Intergovernmen talism – Stanley Hoffman - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? Liberal intergovernmentalism – Andrew Moravcsik - ­? - ­? ational interests = part of a domestic political process, within which economic interests are dominant two- ­? level game o demand side  §? political elites, lobbyist, interest groups are acting and forming the demand of the state a? domestic events influence the demands of state interests on the international level o supply side  §? interacting of each state with conflicting interests on the level of intergovernmental sessions – Council of Ministers †¢ 1st stage – reach agreement on the common policy †¢ 2nd stage – reach agreement on institutional arrangements supranational institutions reduce transactional costs – more fficient to co- ­? exist a? institutions = tools, the main emphasis is on member states that can reduce the power of its supranational bodies Theory applied on negotiation of the Treaties of Rome (1955 – 58), Consolidation of the common market and CAP (1958 – 83), negotiation of SEA (1984 – 88), negotiation of the Treaty on EU (1988 – 91) a? conclusions: 1. Decisions = reflection of the preferences of national governments, not preferences of supranational organizations 2. National preferences = reflection of the balance of economic interests 3. delegating the power to the supranational authority means to ensure the ommitments of all parties, not a belief in the inherent efficiency of international organizations - ­? - ­? Extra Supranational governance – Stone Sweet, Sandholtz - ­? - ­? EU not one international regimes, but a series of regimes Increased transactions across national borders would create supranational society that favored the creation of supranational rules (more simple for operation) Multi- ­? level governance – Gary Marks - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? rather an approach – EU as a political system with interconnected institutions existing at multiple levels with unique features national government = important decisional role, upranational institutions = autonomic role multilevel actions by multilevel actors (lobbies, companies, parties, states, interest groups) at international, state and regional level a? no superior actor, they are equal many informal relations existing (European norms), that are respected by different actors theory does not address the issue of transferring sovereignty and loyalty Constructivism - ­? - ­? rather an approach advocate of Europeanization, establishing common norms, habits, culture to bring people together – new social community (ministries with European department to synchronize the policies with the ones of he EU) – recognizes multi- ­? level governance popular in EU 15 - ­? 2) Formation of 3 Communities in the context of economic and political developments in post- ­? WWII Europe ECSC  œ 1952 – Treaty of Paris EEC, EURATOM – 1957 – Treaty of Rome Motives for the formation of the Communities - ­? - ­? - ­? - ­? Reaction to the World Wars: horrifying example (lost lives) a? seeking a peaceful and stable European environment, political and economic cooperation instead of competition Soviet threat: cooperation blocks further Soviet expansion a? Cold war = catalyst for integration of western Europe Political willingness: political ooperation and development replacing economic competition, viewed as a factor in the outbreak of wars o countries seeking cooperation for different reasons  §? Germany, Italy – seeking respectability  §? France – seeking security from Germany Economic development: destroyed Europe needed reconstruction o Marshall plan (US interested in Europe) – financing the reconstruction of Europe, establishing what is now known as OECD o Bretton Woods Conference  §? 1944, 44 nations to talk about pos t- ­? war economic order  §? GATT  §? IMF (to regulate the international monetary and financial order a? stable exchange rate) Schuman:French Foreign Minister; plan in collaboration with Jean Monnet Key points o relations between France and Germany needs to be renewed o linking French and German coal and steel industry by placing under control of a supranational body a? making war unthinkable and materially impossible (coal and steel = needed to produce armaments, thus capability of waging war) UK no involved in negotiations 1950 Schuman plan - ­? - ­? - ­? ECSC – Treaty of Paris (1951/1952) - ­? - ­? - ­? reduce tariffs by imposing levies on coal and steel production failed to create a single market for coal and steel a? further step needed joined by

An Analysis of Developing American Literature Essay

An Analysis of Developing American Literature â€Å"Rip Van Winkle† by Washington Irving and â€Å"The Slaughter of the Pigeons† by James Fennimore Cooper demonstrate several distinct American characteristics. Irving focuses on New York’s Hudson River while discussing the settings of â€Å"Rip Van Winkle. New York is probably the most identifiable state in the U. S. and is recognized by its Statue of Liberty welcoming foreigners into its prideful country. While Irving discusses nature’s beauty in similar ways in the U. S. by giving a page description on a simple frozen lake in Somerville. In â€Å"Rip Van Winkle† and â€Å"The Slaughter of the Pigeons† the three main American characteristics in these short stories are: power of nature, value of the common man, and growing nationalism. Nature can be a powerful concept. In â€Å"Rip Van Winkle† there is a lovely description of the Hudson River which opens the story. â€Å"Whoever has made a voyage up the Hudson must remember the Kaatskill mountains. They are dismembered branch of the great Appalachian family, and are seen away to the west of the river swelling up to a noble height and lording it over the surrounding country. In â€Å"The Slaughter of the Pigeons† there is a similar description. â€Å"Large flocks of wild geese were seen passing over the country, which hovered, for a time, around the hidden sheet of water, apparently searching for a resting-place; and then, on finding themselves excluded by the chill covering, would soar away to the north, filling the air with discordant screams, as if venting their complaints a the tardy operations of Nature. † Nature is very important to Washington Irving and James Cooper. Along with nature, also present is the value of the common man. Values had certainly changed when Rip awoke from his century nap. In a state of confusion, he yells, â€Å"Alas gentlemen,† cried Rip, somewhat dismayed, â€Å"I am a poor quiet man, a native of the place, and a loyal subject of the King- God bless him! † People around Rip thought what he was acting treasonous. Values of America had changed and now included the concept of voting. Along with American values, came values of nature represented in â€Å"The Slaughter f the Pigeons†. â€Å"It‘s better for you, maybe, Billy Kirby,† replied the indignant old hunter, â€Å"and all them that don’t know how to put a ball down a rifle-barrel, or how to bring it up again with a true aim; but it’s wicked to be shooting into flocks in this wasty manner†¦Ã¢â‚¬  We must not waste what we are given in this world, and we must embrace change as well. As long as that change is bettering us as American citizens as shown in â€Å"Rip Van Winkle†. There is also a sense of growing nationalism embodied in both stories. In Irving’s short story there is a sign hung in honor of General Washington representing the good that he‘s done for the country. â€Å"The red coat was changed for one of blue and buff; a sword was held in the hand instead of a scepter; the head was decorated with a cocked hat, and underneath was printed in large characters. † Nationalism by definition is having pride in one’s country. Whether pride be in local government or in nature itself, in â€Å"The Slaughter of the Pigeons,† Leather-Stocking believes that all life is valuable in this country. â€Å"Put an end, Judge, to your clearings. Ain‘t the woods His work as well as the pigeons? Use, but don‘t waste. Wasn‘t the woods made for the beasts and birds to harbor in? †¦Ã¢â‚¬  In â€Å"Rip Van Winkle† and â€Å"The Slaughter of the Pigeons† the three main American characteristics in these short stories are: power of nature, value of the common man, and growing nationalism. They are each represented in distinct ways but clearly show the importance of America and its impact on the Western Civilization that we know today. Whether stressing the importance of government change for the better in â€Å"Rip Van Winkle† or holding true to nature in â€Å"The Slaughter of the Pigeons† we all hold a part in the shaping American society. The real task is holding the past with one hand while reaching for the future with the other and never letting one side pull too hard.

Virgin Atlantic Airlines

Executive Summary The aim of this write up is to provide a brief overview of Virgin Atlantic Airlines, its purpose, mission and vision statement. The key stakeholders of the VAA and the duty of care VAA owes to these stakeholders are analysed. Being a global service provider, Virgin Atlantic & British Airways are affected by various political, socio-economic and technology factors and these are reviewed. The macro economic factors, such as fiscal & monetary policies and how it affects these airlines are studied. Furthermore, the impact of EU on the airlines industry and BA & VAA in particular are detailed. 1A Introduction: In the United Kingdom, the Virgin group is a very popular and preferred brand. Virgin Atlantic is a subsidiary of the Virgin group and is one of the major airlines in the UK led by Sir Richard Branson where the Virgin group owns 51% of the shares and the remaining 49% owned by Delta Airlines, USA. The mission statement of Virgin Atlantic is â€Å"to embrace the human spirit and let it fly†. Virgin Atlantic operates short and long haul flights across 35 different destinations covering the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Far East and Australia. Purpose of VAA (Virgin Atlantic Airlines) In 1984,Sir Richard announced his decision to operate Virgin Atlantic Airlines that would provide world class quality and great value for money. By the end of the 80’s there were more than one million loyal passengers travelling with VAA, one of the first airlines to provide individual TV screens for the passengers. In the 90s, the business developed further given the competitive pricing, the unique service offerings and the introduction of the Premium economy was a great hit with the customers. In 1999, 49% of Virgin Atlantic’s shares were sold to Singapore Airlines. VAA vs Fire Services Virgin group is one of the well-known business establishments and the purpose of VAA is to expand the service line offering of the business in order to earn profits. Unlike the fire services, which is used to cater to the emergency needs of the people of the country and safeguarding them, the primary purpose of VAA is to be able to cater to the travel demands of the public and to be able to run it as a marketable business. Keeping this in mind, the main objectives of VAA is to earn profits and be able to service the customers in an effective way to ensure customer loyalty is maintained. As opposed to the fire services, the VAA faces stiff competition from various other airlines. The key accountability for VAA would be towards its customers and key stakeholders including the board of directors and the shareholders whilst the key accountability for the fire services would be to that of the general public by ensuring that there is transparency and all funds allocated by the government are used in an appropriate manner. The services offered by Virgin Atlantic caters to the luxury and travel needs of the people and the services offered by fire services are basically around protecting the people, responding to emergencies and also improving the safety within local communities. Virgin Atlantic Stakeholders, Strategies and Responsibilities Virgin Atlantic has various key stakeholders and owes a duty of care towards all the key stakeholders. To be able to manage all the stakeholders and to ensure that they are happy, Virgin Atlantic has various policies.The key stakeholders of Virgin Atlantic include:Shareholders; Customers; Employees; Vendors; Government Agencies; NGOs; Community at large. To ensure that the shareholders are satisfied, VAA achieves its primary objective of earning profits and ensuring that all the shareholders receive a good Return on their investments. Customers are given world class treatment and Virgin Atlantic is very well-known for their quality customer services. Customers always come first with Virgin Atlantic and this has been a new concept in the airlines industry. A good in-flight entertainment service, VIP treatment for first class customers including opting for a beauty therapist, check-in by chauffeur to avoid waiting in the queue, flexible meal service options etc, are examples of customer care standards that have been set by the airlines. VAA also takes customers safety seriously. Employees who form the integral part of the VAA community and VAA is committed to serve its employees better. Good work is recognised by the rewards and recognition program and Virgin Atlantic provides world class training to all its employees. Virgin Atlantic has a good diversity policy and is strictly against discrimination. All employees are treated with respect and honesty. Equal opportunity is provided to all employees and potential candidates who aspire to become a part of the Virgin Atlantic team. Vendors play a key role in the Virgin Atlantic community. Virgin Atlantic has strict policies about creating lasting relationships with vendors and aims at sourcing goods responsibly. All suppliers are thoroughly screened to ensure that key international standards such as Human Rights Convention by UN and International Labour Convention laws are met. Environment & Community: As its commitment to the environment, Virgin Atlantic has incorporated ‘Change is in the Air’ (CIITA) strategy which aims at reducing carbon footprint by using novel technologies and fuels to increase efficiency. Virgin Atlantic is keen on becoming energy efficient and sources sustainable energy where possible. It has a strong recycling and reuse policy which reduces waste and ensuring sustainability. 1B: Impact of Fiscal & Monetary Policies on VAA Fiscal policy can be defined as the policy whereby the governments change the levels of tax and its spending in order to have a positive impact on the nation’s economy. It helps redistribution of wealth, decreases in unemployment rates and provides a way to effectively control the economy. Fiscal policies can either be expansionary or reductionary. An expansionary fiscal policy encourages the growth of the economy by means of expanding the supply of money to combat inflation. This can be done either by cutting down taxes or by increasing the spending of the government (Chambenlin 2009). Fiscal policies are effective when it comes to reduction of unemployment in the shorter term. However, in the long-term they cannot bring in much change as the supply curve is vertical and pushing the demand curve would lead to pushing in the prices, which results in inflation (Gillespie, 2008) Monetary policy on the other hand can be defined as the action that is taken by the central bank or other financial regulators to determine the rate of growth of money supply. It also influences the demand and supply of money as it impacts the interest rates (Chambenlin 2009). The recession has had a very bad impact on Virgin Atlantic. The increase in the competition in the transatlantic services and given the rise in the fuel prices, the airline has seen a loss of ?135m. The airline has also frozen salaries of employees for the current period and has cut over 600 jobs which accounts for 7% of its workforce. Virgin Atlantic has not planned clearly and anticipated the costs. If the planning had been done effectively, Virgin Atlantic would not be facing issues due to increase in fuel prices. Oil is one of the key costs that is incurred by Virgin Atlantic and hence it has a serious impact on the Airlines. Also, in the recession of 2008, there has been a decrease in the passengers for long-haul flights which combined with the oil price has led to a loss of ?150m in 2009. Virgin Atlantic can take advantage of the expansionary fiscal policy whereby there is a cut on taxes and the expansionary monetary policy on the reduction in the interest rates as opposed to contractionary monetary policy. Reduced tax rates would help Virgin Atlantic transfer the reduced costs to the customers and expansionary monetary policy would help reduce exchange rates which would therefore help Virgin Atlantic to export oil at reasonable costs. Given the poor demand for travel due to increase in costs, Virgin can make use of the savings that it has achieved by using expansionary monetary and fiscal policies by slashing down the costs of travel, which would promote and encourage more customers to use their services. Though VAA has been hit by recession, making use of these policies should enable Virgin to regain some of its losses. 1F Benefit for Virgin Atlantic through International Trade Being a global brand servicing various destinations has been a key benefit for Virgin Atlantic as well as British Airways. There are various advantages of International Trade for Virgin Atlantic. These include: Increase in profits: International trade and servicing various locations globally has led to increase in profits for Virgin Atlantic and British Airways. More Sales: Having been a success in the UK and the second largest Airlines in the UK, global destinations and international trade were the next logical steps which increased the sales and turnover of Virgin Atlantic. The same holds good for British Airways. Dependence on one market reduced: International trade helps reduce dependence on one local market. If due to various reasons one market segment fails, another segment can be used thus reducing sole reliance on specific market segments. Better competitiveness in local markets: Serving international destinations and becoming a global brand has increased knowledge, services and experiences for Virgin Atlantic which makes it a very tough competitor amongst local airlines. Expansion into the international market also gives British Airways and Virgin Atlantic new ideas to be able to s atisfy all their key stakeholders, good marketing techniques to promote their ideas and better customer services. Market diversification: Diversification into the global markets has helped BA & VAA to be able to leverage better its resources and make use of booming markets in a bad economy. 1G Global Factors Affecting BA/VAA Both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are global brands operating on various international locations. There are various key factors that affect the operations of both BA and VAA which relate to the global factors. Political Factors Airlines industry is highly regulated by governments and there are various laws that determine where the airlines can fly, the services offered, planning, their policy and strategies as well as pricing. For airlines to be in the business it is mandatory for them to adhere to these rules and regulations. Thus, compliance is one factor that affects both British Airways as well as Virgin Atlantic. Since both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic operate both nationally and globally there are pivotal national and international laws and obligations, such as H&S regulations, security legislations, taxes etc. For instance, the VAT that has been increased to 20% would affect the stakeholders of both Virgin Atlantic and British Airways. There are various operating restrictions due to political factors. One way to overcome these restrictions is to have tie ups with national carriers. Thus, political factors have a great influence on the operating environment of the airline industry. Economic Factors Recession, and the cost of fuel, and other economic factors, such as cost of having empty seats play a major role which affects the activities of Virgin Atlantic and BA. Global economic markets, strong/weak home currency influences the costs of travel. In a bad economic situation companies might tend to cut down on their travel costs and discourage employees from taking a flight. An increase in the price of the fuel might force BA & Virgin Atlantic to transfer its costs to the end customers making it more difficult for people to afford. Any fluctuation in the oil price will have a direct impact on the currency which in turn impacts the cost of flying for both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. Social Factors International airlines, such as British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, that serve various nations need to understand the social and cultural values of the destinations served in order to be able to successfully drive the business. Social and cultural values encompasses all aspects of understanding the special needs of the destination, the key holidays and any special arrangements that might have to be taken into account while serving a specific destination. For example, the meal choices have to be restricted to non-pork based foods whilst serving Muslim nations to not only ensure the sentiments are catered to and also to drive business in these locations. Technology Factors Technology provides a competitive advantage to businesses and there is an increasing demand for the use of the latest technology to enable customers to get a better experience. Having a good e-commerce application to provide customers a portal to purchase tickets, fast check-in services online would be useful as it would cater to the more tech-savvy and young customer base. However, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic should make sure that they are not overly reliant on using high-end technologies as this might lead to the isolation of certain groups that are not entirely comfortable using these high end technologies. BA & Virgin Atlantic should therefore find a good balance between these two and should be able to optimise the use of technological advancements and leverage the opportunities appropriately. 1H Impact of EU on BA & VAA The EU has a great impact on both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. The EU has enabled an increase in competition in the market. An increase in the competition and a market promoting a healthy competition would now mean that both BA and VAA have to face a lot of competition from various operators within the EU. Hence, in order to be able to successfully steer the business, it is key that BA & VAA keep their prices at check, increase their value added services, and build on their brand value and their unique selling point to ensure customer loyalty and also to attract more customers. The EU has various positive impacts on BA & VAA. Tourism is the third largest sector in the EU and there is a lot of scope for development. EU has had talks with the aviation industry to promote sustainable and reliable services within the EU and BA & VAA can take advantage of this to provide high quality services to the customers. The EU has relaxed its visa policies for member states and also promotes fair international trade system that improves competitiveness and has opened up its markets by unblocking tariff and non-tariff barriers making. This promotes trades and import and export of goods and services. Indirectly this help travel to and from various European Union nations. This can be used by British Airways and Virgin Atlantic to offer specialised services to businessmen and frequent flyers to and from Europe. Relaxing trade restrictive measures means that there are various political factors that are relaxed and this paves way for better collaboration and negotiation. Opening up the markets would mean that the procurement of goods and services can be accessed and available freely across EU without restrictions. This removes any legal and regulatory obstacles that British Airways and Virgin Atlantic faces and helps promote growth and sales in the industry. Increased competitiveness within the EU would mean access to better services, keeping prices in check and ensuring that the brand value is maintained. Conclusion This paper helped to identify the vision and the mission statement of Virgin Atlantic, how it is different from other services. It identified the key stakeholders of the airlines and the responsibilities of Virgin Atlantic towards its stakeholders were discussed in detail. The fiscal policies and monetary policies were then explained and how these related to Virgin Atlantic were also specified. A PEST (Political, Economic, Social & Technology) factor analysis was done in order to understand various global factors that affected Virgin Atlantic & British Airways. Finally, the impact of the EU on BA & Virgin Atlantic was discussed in terms of competition, trade restrictions and markets. Works Cited Virgin Atlantic. (2014, September 2014). Retrieved on 06/09/14 from http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/us/en.html Investopedia. (2014, September 2014). Retrieved on 06//09/14 from http://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/europeanunion.asp European Monetary Policy. (Septmber 2014). Retrieved on 06/09/14 from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/european+monetary+union Chamberlin, G. (September 2009). Economic Review Sep 2009. Economic and Labour Market Review Gillespie, A. (June 2009). Foundations of Economics. New York; Oxford University Press