Business plan for a restaurant Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Business plan for a restaurant - Assignment Example This group of eight family run restaurants operating in northern California has been undergoing difficulties dealing with human resource issues. The operations manager doubles up as the human resource manager and embarks on a tedious process of physical inspection of the human resource requirements and problems of all the eight restaurants. Not only is this a time consuming and tiring process, the operations manager has also realized that it is costly and very inefficient. Therefore this plan presents a possible solution to the problem in the form of the implementation of an information system which will effectively aid the human resource manager with his operations thus allowing for efficiency and company growth. The restaurant industry is quite competitive with northern California being a haven for great restaurants. It is essential for one to cut a niche in the market and this can only be done if the various organizational resources are effectively managed. The replacement of the current manual system with an automated one will enable the company to manage its employees effectively allowing for good record handling, proper and easy scheduling, and effective communication within the organization. This will see an improvement in business processes which will culminate in the growth of the business reflected as higher profits. Introduction The implementation of an Information system is a vital part of business process transformation. For a business to succeed various steps must be taken to ensure that business process support and improvement is achieved. The use of a Human resource information system is a sure way of attaining this. A human resource information system will ensure that human resource functions are effectively managed by information technology hence creating an environment for profit making and business growth through efficient service provision and management. The human resource department is charged with the responsibility of payroll processing , employee recruitment and employee appraisals. These functions are increasingly becoming complex and thus require sufficient support. Automation of such a department, through the use of information technology, will ensure that the workload is sufficiently reduced and access to information is easy and quick. This business plan examines the effective role of implementing a human resource information system by performing a business analysis that will present the inefficiency of a manual system, and presenting a possible solution in the form of a human resource information system that can be implemented. Company Review The Castle Family Restaurants, a group of eight restaurants in northern California run by the Castle family, is a big employer of both part time and full time employees. It has employed more than 300 employees most of whom are on a part time basis as only 30% of these employees work on a full time basis. The operations manager usually has her hands full as she makes seve ral visits to all the restaurants managed by the group to perform human resource administrative duties such as employee recruitment, appraisals, payroll processing among other functions. This manual process of performing human resource functions is quite costly and very inefficient. Therefore there is a great need for improvement in order to eliminate the

Attribution Theory Essay Example for Free

Attribution Theory Essay Attribution Theory Definition The process by which persons interpret and pinpoint causes for their own personal and other’s behaviour is the theory of attribution. 1 In this motivational theory, a person always finds a way to explain things, he make inferences on why things or events occur. After explaining the events a person then predicts future events through his inferences. He wants to understand the reasons or causes behind behaviour of people and why events happen. It was first proposed by Fritz Heider in 1958 and further developed by Harold Kelly and Bernard Weiner. Theories Internal vs. External Attributions Every person observe and analyze things differently thus having different ways of explaining things. The attribution theory proposes that when people observe and analyze things they try to find out whether it is caused internally or externally. 2 Attribution is a three-stage process: (1) Observation of an individual behaviour, (2) Determination whether the behaviour is intentional and (3) Attribution of the observed behaviour to internal or external factors. Those that are believed that can be personally controlled are called internal attributions while those believed to be caused by outside forces are external attributions. 2Â  Example of internal attributions are ability, personality, mood, efforts, attitudes or disposition while external attributions are task, other people and luck. 4 Following is an example of an application of this theory is when an employee failed to perform in a given task, a manager tries to explain why this thing happened. He may attribute this failure to poor efforts made by his subordinate (internal attribute) or he may consider that the given task maybe be too difficult for his employee (external attribute). Consistency, Distinctiveness and Consensus On the other hand, when making a determination between internal and external causes of behaviour, three factors must be considered: (1) consistency, (2) distinctiveness and (3) consensus. 1 Consistency is how frequent a person behaves similarly when faced with the same situations. Distinctiveness is how different a person behaves when faced with different types of situations. Consensus is when a group of people behaves similarly when faced with the same situation. 2 When a person behaves similarly when faced with same situations, we can say that the consistency is high; if he acts differently every time exposed with the same situation, consistency is low. 3 An example of consistency is the following is when an employee consistently has a low performance when he always assigned in a individual task rather when he is assigned in a group task. The observed behaviour of the employee wherein there is a high consistency can be attributed to an internal factor which is attitude. When a person behaves differently during different types of situations distinctiveness is high; if he behaves similarly during different situations, distinctiveness is low. 3 An example of distinctiveness is when an honor student gets high grades (same behaviour) in all of his subjects during three consecutive grading periods (different situations). The observed behaviour of the student wherein there is a low distinctiveness can be attributed to an internal factor which is ability or effort. When the observed behaviour of a group of people is the same in a given situation, consensus is high; if this group behaves differently given a similar situation, consensus is low. 3 An example of distinctiveness is when all students are late in a first period class (consensus is high), the attribution to this behaviour maybe due to an external factor which is traffic caused by a vehicular accident. Figure 1. Summary of the key elements in attribution theory. 2 Errors and Biases in Attribution The difference on how every person thinks, perceive and judge things may lead to some biases. One may consider the greater attributes of certain occurrences to external factors rather than internal factors or the other way around, well on the actual these considerations may not be correct all the time. Fundamental Attribution Error and Self-serving Bias Fundamental attribution error is when people have the tendency to consider the influence of external factors more than considering the influence of internal or personal factors. 2 An example of this is when we attribute the promotion of an officemate to perfect timing or luck rather than to his own efforts and perseverance. Self-serving bias is overestimating the influence of internal factors or personal traits rather than assigning external or situational factors to certain occurrences. When a person attributes his personal success to his own traits or internal and his misfortunes to bad luck or external factors, he is thus committing a self-serving bias. 1 Self-fulfilling Prophecy Perceiver’s expectations for a person will cause the perceiver to treat the person perceived differently and the person perceived will respond in a way that confirms the initial expectations. 1 Example of this is when a teacher thinks that his student will do well during his exam so he spends more time with this student and coaches him well, in return the student will get a high score in the exam. Summary Attribution theory is important to management because managers’ and employees’ actions and opinion can be influenced by how they perceive or see the reasons that cause human behaviour given a certain situation. 3 Different attributions of a manager to an employee’s attitude and performance can affect the standing of the employee in the organization. If a manager attributes the employee’s poor performance to lack of effort in performing the assigned task, he may fail the employee or give the employee a low rating during performance appraisals. On the other hand, if the manager attributes the poor performance to the high level of difficulty of the job, the manager may review and revise the job specifications to lessen the difficulty level of the job. Attribution also affects employee motivation. If an employee attributes the success to external factors, then they may lose motivation since anything that may occur is beyond their control. If an employee attributes success to internal factors like perseverance, then they are expected to have a high motivation for their job.

Imperialism :: essays research papers

Imperialism is the total domination of the political, economical, or cultural aspects or a nation. Imperial colonization has been occurring sense the beginning of time. An imperialistic nation would increase its importance and power by winning an empire. Some takeovers were forced by political rivalries. One nation might seize a territory to prevent a competitor from expanding into that region. Some nations would expand to boost their economic value, or personal wealth. Imperialism advances a countries politics, society, and economic value into a powerful money making country. The political aspect of imperialism progresses a country from being week into a strong fighting nation. For example, when the French were taking over parts of Africa, the communication of the two countries increased and they started to share the Suez Canal. Also when the British government set up a system of Colonial rule, it controlled over 280 million Indians. Thus encouraging officials to learn new languages. When the Spanish took over Latin America they constructed a Council of the Indies which issued over 400,00 orders to improve the cities. However without society, politics would have gotten no where. The social aspect of imperialism was very important. First of all, by the colonization of countries scientist were able to find causes and treatments to diseases such as malaria and yellow fever. Also Britain built canals, roads, and railways which opened up India’s interior. The Spanish improved the Aztecs cities by making public waterways, paved and lighted streets, and a new invention the printing press. The society increased but when it enhanced the economics boosted also. The economics of imperialism is a major reason why nations would take over other countries. In Africa they introduced better farming techniques like dykes and irrigation canals, which boosted the money growth. The British improved medical care that included doctor education, thus leading into a boom in the population.

Sustaining Employee Performance

In this paper, team D will address the course design objectives of Riordan Manufacturing. First of all, the team will pick two job positions within the company, and discuss the general functions of performance management systems, job evaluation methods, compensation plans, and the importance of employee benefit plans. The two job positions discussed in this paper will be the Director of Administration, and Human Resources/recruiter. These positions were selected due to the extreme amount of importance their roles play in completing Riordan Manufacturing’s Mission. General functions of performance management systems The general function of performance management systems in organizations is for employers to manage employees’ performance and development by providing individual feedback on their performance evaluation to identify and plan measurable areas for personal development to ensure the organization’s strategic goals are being met (DeCenzo and Robbins, 2007). For years, many organizations provided appraisal type performance reviews to their employees that ranked them against other employees. This type of ranking system is problematic, as it is unfair to compare employees from different departments who’s primary goals may be different from one another and can viewed as putting down employees who may be unable to put in as many hours or as much effort as others who have only one set project at a time and can bog down to set higher numbers. If employee development is not properly measured and managed, the organization may find it difficult to meet their strategic goals. This in turn can create complications between mainstream workers and management, as well as the company, and their customers. Riordan Manufacturing uses a behavioral-anchored rating scale for their annual performance evaluations. The employees are rated by their performance in different areas of competencies to determine if they met, exceeded, or if they did not meet the standard expectations of the job. â€Å"Behaviorally anchored rating scales specify definite, observable, and measurable job behavior† (DeCenzo and Robbins, 2007, p. 264). This rating is issued and determined by managers and is a sufficient measure for performance management. Though this rating style eliminates competitive work habits that may assist in high productivity, it is a proven system that works much more consistent (Noe, Gerhart, & Wright, 2012) . Job evaluation methods Job evaluations are important for every organization to use because it ranks each position in the organization and is used to determine the pay structures for positions. Positions are usually broken down by responsibility, skill, effort, and work conditions. It is also helpful to separate the positions into groups such as managerial, professional, sales, and so on. This makes the rankings more valid within the job categories. To evaluate the director of administration a good evaluation method would be the ordering method. The ordering method uses a committee composed of managers and employee reps to arrange jobs in ranking order from highest importance to lower importance. The base of this is to compare two jobs and decide what job is more important or difficult. Then to add another job to the comparison until all of the positions have been compared and ranked. There are two major drawbacks to doing evaluations this way. One is there can be many positions within the organization which can make the processes confusing and long. Two, there are no consistent standards in the ranking evaluations. Another way to evaluate the director of administration position is through the classification method. This method was developed so that a standard was set in the evaluation processes. Classifications are set based off of skills, knowledge, and responsibilities and then by classes such as managerial, sales staff, and so on. Once these are established, then they are put in order by importance based on the criteria they are in. This process can be just as confusing as the ordering method if not done properly. A human resource department can be evaluated with the point method. The point method breaks positions down based on identifiable marks like skill, effort, and responsibility, and assigns points to the criteria’s. This method can be helpful because all positions with the same amount of points are in the same pay grade. Jobs can change over time but the rating scale under the point method stay intact (DeCenzo& Robbins, 2007). Even though the point method is the most reliable it is the most time consuming. Compensation plans Director Administrator and Human Resources/Recruiter are both important functions in a business. They have common commonalities. Between the two, they have distinctive, important functions. The Director of Administrations functions are to meet business goals and organize the personnel in the business. They also operate with financial management and marketing management. Human Resources are responsible to manage, hire, making plans to retain employees, and find the right candidates. Human Resources are an important tool for any organization, industry, and geographic location. The difference between Administration and Human resources is that the administrative function is predominantly to maintain the conditions of employment. On the other hand, Human Resources use the traditional process to manage Riordan Manufacturing’s goals and strategies, which follows with developmental organizational activities. Both positions seek for the compensation plans for the organization by administering to employee bonuses, overtime calculations, and payroll. Riordan Manufacturing focuses on Administration and Human Resources, because it can create investments in the future if the training programs are well elaborated and developed. Both fall into finding the best program functions (technical, finance). The development of employees is very important for Riordan Manufacturing since it helps create satisfaction among employees. The Board of Directors also maintains the executive and auditing committees under the corporate governance plan (Apollo Group, Inc. 2011). Riordan Manufacturing also has to implement a corporate compliance plan to have a safe future for the company. Riordan’s compliance plan will guide the company on how to handle current and future issues. The compliance plan is focused on working with issues, such as technological, logistical, and governance. By performing well in these areas, the company could be prosperous. The company has to maintain high quality in the performance of products and processes. This will help the company to be unsusceptible to product liability issues. Importance of employee benefit plans to employees working in team D’s chosen positions Director of Administration and Human Resources/Recruiter† Employees are offered benefits as a means to provide additional compensation above their regular salary to make their lives a little easier outside of the workplace. Health insurance, vacation and holiday time, social security and retirement plans, are all important benefits to employees and their families. At Riordan Manufacturing, the Human Resources Recruiters receive the same benefits that are of fered to every employee, which is an important factor for employee retention. The Directors at Riordan are offered special perks such as, travel benefits, a company vehicle, expense accounts, and other benefits that are not offered to every employee. Executive level employees receive these special perks to encourage them to work hard for the organization and to promote loyalty in the event of a hostile takeover. Conclusion Ending on a positive note, the team demonstrated in informative content to the reader, an understanding of the concepts of sustaining employee performance in this paper. These concepts are the four important activities of the HRM motivation function, and the connections to stimulating employees are observed. The team identified two job positions within Riordan Manufacturing, which are the Director of Administration, and Human Resources/recruiting. The team described the general functions of performance management systems. The team suggested two job evaluation methods for both of the job positions and answered questions about the advantages and disadvantages of these methods based on the recruiter and Director of Administration and Human Resources job positions. The team compared and contrasted the possible compensation plans for those two job titles. The team explained the importance of providing employee benefit plans to the recruiter/director of HR. An in-depth, comprehensive overview of activities planned in sustaining employee performance in the two positions at Riordan as referenced from week five materials, and the virtual organization site, followed by a logical conclusion. Sustaining Employee Performance In this paper, team D will address the course design objectives of Riordan Manufacturing. First of all, the team will pick two job positions within the company, and discuss the general functions of performance management systems, job evaluation methods, compensation plans, and the importance of employee benefit plans. The two job positions discussed in this paper will be the Director of Administration, and Human Resources/recruiter. These positions were selected due to the extreme amount of importance their roles play in completing Riordan Manufacturing’s Mission. General functions of performance management systems The general function of performance management systems in organizations is for employers to manage employees’ performance and development by providing individual feedback on their performance evaluation to identify and plan measurable areas for personal development to ensure the organization’s strategic goals are being met (DeCenzo and Robbins, 2007). For years, many organizations provided appraisal type performance reviews to their employees that ranked them against other employees. This type of ranking system is problematic, as it is unfair to compare employees from different departments who’s primary goals may be different from one another and can viewed as putting down employees who may be unable to put in as many hours or as much effort as others who have only one set project at a time and can bog down to set higher numbers. If employee development is not properly measured and managed, the organization may find it difficult to meet their strategic goals. This in turn can create complications between mainstream workers and management, as well as the company, and their customers. Riordan Manufacturing uses a behavioral-anchored rating scale for their annual performance evaluations. The employees are rated by their performance in different areas of competencies to determine if they met, exceeded, or if they did not meet the standard expectations of the job. â€Å"Behaviorally anchored rating scales specify definite, observable, and measurable job behavior† (DeCenzo and Robbins, 2007, p. 264). This rating is issued and determined by managers and is a sufficient measure for performance management. Though this rating style eliminates competitive work habits that may assist in high productivity, it is a proven system that works much more consistent (Noe, Gerhart, & Wright, 2012) . Job evaluation methods Job evaluations are important for every organization to use because it ranks each position in the organization and is used to determine the pay structures for positions. Positions are usually broken down by responsibility, skill, effort, and work conditions. It is also helpful to separate the positions into groups such as managerial, professional, sales, and so on. This makes the rankings more valid within the job categories. To evaluate the director of administration a good evaluation method would be the ordering method. The ordering method uses a committee composed of managers and employee reps to arrange jobs in ranking order from highest importance to lower importance. The base of this is to compare two jobs and decide what job is more important or difficult. Then to add another job to the comparison until all of the positions have been compared and ranked. There are two major drawbacks to doing evaluations this way. One is there can be many positions within the organization which can make the processes confusing and long. Two, there are no consistent standards in the ranking evaluations. Another way to evaluate the director of administration position is through the classification method. This method was developed so that a standard was set in the evaluation processes. Classifications are set based off of skills, knowledge, and responsibilities and then by classes such as managerial, sales staff, and so on. Once these are established, then they are put in order by importance based on the criteria they are in. This process can be just as confusing as the ordering method if not done properly. A human resource department can be evaluated with the point method. The point method breaks positions down based on identifiable marks like skill, effort, and responsibility, and assigns points to the criteria’s. This method can be helpful because all positions with the same amount of points are in the same pay grade. Jobs can change over time but the rating scale under the point method stay intact (DeCenzo& Robbins, 2007). Even though the point method is the most reliable it is the most time consuming. Compensation plans Director Administrator and Human Resources/Recruiter are both important functions in a business. They have common commonalities. Between the two, they have distinctive, important functions. The Director of Administrations functions are to meet business goals and organize the personnel in the business. They also operate with financial management and marketing management. Human Resources are responsible to manage, hire, making plans to retain employees, and find the right candidates. Human Resources are an important tool for any organization, industry, and geographic location. The difference between Administration and Human resources is that the administrative function is predominantly to maintain the conditions of employment. On the other hand, Human Resources use the traditional process to manage Riordan Manufacturing’s goals and strategies, which follows with developmental organizational activities. Both positions seek for the compensation plans for the organization by administering to employee bonuses, overtime calculations, and payroll. Riordan Manufacturing focuses on Administration and Human Resources, because it can create investments in the future if the training programs are well elaborated and developed. Both fall into finding the best program functions (technical, finance). The development of employees is very important for Riordan Manufacturing since it helps create satisfaction among employees. The Board of Directors also maintains the executive and auditing committees under the corporate governance plan (Apollo Group, Inc. 2011). Riordan Manufacturing also has to implement a corporate compliance plan to have a safe future for the company. Riordan’s compliance plan will guide the company on how to handle current and future issues. The compliance plan is focused on working with issues, such as technological, logistical, and governance. By performing well in these areas, the company could be prosperous. The company has to maintain high quality in the performance of products and processes. This will help the company to be unsusceptible to product liability issues. Importance of employee benefit plans to employees working in team D’s chosen positions Director of Administration and Human Resources/Recruiter† Employees are offered benefits as a means to provide additional compensation above their regular salary to make their lives a little easier outside of the workplace. Health insurance, vacation and holiday time, social security and retirement plans, are all important benefits to employees and their families. At Riordan Manufacturing, the Human Resources Recruiters receive the same benefits that are of fered to every employee, which is an important factor for employee retention. The Directors at Riordan are offered special perks such as, travel benefits, a company vehicle, expense accounts, and other benefits that are not offered to every employee. Executive level employees receive these special perks to encourage them to work hard for the organization and to promote loyalty in the event of a hostile takeover. Conclusion Ending on a positive note, the team demonstrated in informative content to the reader, an understanding of the concepts of sustaining employee performance in this paper. These concepts are the four important activities of the HRM motivation function, and the connections to stimulating employees are observed. The team identified two job positions within Riordan Manufacturing, which are the Director of Administration, and Human Resources/recruiting. The team described the general functions of performance management systems. The team suggested two job evaluation methods for both of the job positions and answered questions about the advantages and disadvantages of these methods based on the recruiter and Director of Administration and Human Resources job positions. The team compared and contrasted the possible compensation plans for those two job titles. The team explained the importance of providing employee benefit plans to the recruiter/director of HR. An in-depth, comprehensive overview of activities planned in sustaining employee performance in the two positions at Riordan as referenced from week five materials, and the virtual organization site, followed by a logical conclusion.

Ethical Issue of the Contraceptive Mandate Essay

The issue of the contraception mandate may be one of the biggest political stories of the year. It is a law brought forward by the Obama administration that requires all employers to offer contraceptive coverage. This has been a requirement for all company healthcare coverage programs for many years already but religious affiliates have been exempt from following the rules. Obama is looking to change all that by requiring even religion-based employers, who have previously not offered coverage, to participate. Such services required by the contraception mandate will violate some of these religion-based employers’ moral conscience. Rule: From the contraception mandate issue, two opposing ethical rules are rights and justice/fairness. From Velasquez’s Business Ethics: Concepts and Cases, the rights rule is â€Å"an individual’s entitlement to something.† It can address the contraception mandate from both an individual and a corporate issue. The rights rule is being processed more from the religious-based employers point of view. The justice/fairness rule being discussed in this case brief is the egalitarianism view. Egalitarianism is â€Å"every person should be given exactly equal shares of a society’s or a group’s benefits and burdens.† It addresses the contraception mandate from a systemic issue Analysis: 1. Rights: Religious institutions do not want to have to cover birth control in their insurance plans for employees. Such services required by the contraception mandate will violate these religion-based institutions’ moral conscience. Thus, the contraception mandate can be viewed as an obstruction of the constitutional rights presented in the First Amendment. The First Amendment of the United States Constitution reads as following: â€Å"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.† In the First Amendment, all individuals are entitled to freedom of religion. Many of the religion-based institutions claim that the first amendment allows people the freedom to follow their religious convictions and that they cannot be forced to act against them. The government through the contraception mandate is forcing constraints on the religious freedom of the religious affiliated institutions and their employees. 2. Justice/Fairness: The justice/fairness rule of egalitarianism will say the contraception mandate is about women’s health rights. According to an egalitarian, goods should be allocated to people in equal portions. Thus, all women should have access to equal healthcare services, including the contraceptive services. The egalitarianism view argues that supporting a rights rule would limit the whole population based on someone else’s moral ideals and not scientific medical information. Women, along with many men, want to have sex for non-procreative purposes despite â€Å"edicts† passed down by religious texts. Women should have access to contraceptives. Egalitarians also argue everyone is entitled to practice their own religion and refrain from taking birth control, but every employer is prevented from discriminating against their employees on the basis of religious freedom. The reversal of the contraception mandate would be a huge setback for women’s reproductive freedom. It would go back to say women’s bodies are not their own. Conclusion: In my opinion, I believe that the rights rule is the correct approach to the contraception mandate. All companies, excluding religion-based employers, before were required to provide contraceptive coverage. Now under the Health and Human Services contraception mandate, those religious-based employers are required to provide contraceptive coverage. The First Amendment promises the entitlement to religious freedom and the practicing religious convictions. I believe forcing this healthcare service onto religious affiliated institutions is obstructing their right to practice religious convictions, hence their moral convictions. The larger portion of employed women will already be covered prior to this contraception mandate. It is only the addition of employed women at religious affiliated institutions. I am inclined to think the female employees of religious affiliated institutions would share the same religious and moral views of that religious affiliated institution. If a religious affiliated institution believes it is morally accepting for the use of contraceptives, good for them. But for a religious affiliated institution that believes it is against their religious convictions to provide employees with contraceptives, the government should not have any authority to force such a mandate. Following political backlash for the contraception mandate, President Obama has since revised the original mandate. He has added an â€Å"accommodation,† somewhat like a clause, that allows the religion-based employers the opportunity to opt out and not have to directly cover birth control in their healthcare insurance plans. The insurance company hired to cover the religious affiliated institution’s employees cannot opt out. The insurers themselves would be required to make contraceptives available free of charge to women anyway. This is a clear political move to gain more favoritism in hopes of a reelection. I see this move by Obama as an attempted reversal of the mandate after viewing the religious opposition that was evoked by mandate. Also what Obama has failed to think of are the business implications of this new â€Å"accommodation†Ã¢â‚¬â€offering the contraceptives at no cost from the opted out religious affiliated employer and employees. Insurance companies will not offer this benefit at no cost; contraceptive drug companies will not offer the medicine at no cost; and doctors will not provide treatment without payment. The only logical conclusion, at least the short run, will result in higher healthcare insurance premiums. To have avoided religious invasion, political backlash, and increased insurance premiums, I logically propose the Obama Administration should simply give women without access to contraceptive services a federal voucher.

The Worlds First Artificial Satellite

The World's First Artificial Satellite On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union stunned everyone by launching the worlds first artificial satellite,  Sputnik 1.  It was an event that galvanized the world and spurred the fledgling U.S. space effort into high gear. No one who was alive at that time can forget the electricity of the moment when humans first lofted a satellite into orbit. The fact that it was the U.S.S.R. beating the U.S. to orbit was even more shocking, especially to Americans. Sputnik by the Numbers The name Sputnik comes from a Russian word for traveling companion of the world. It was a smallish metal ball that weighed just 83 kg (184 lbs.) and was lofted into space by an R7 rocket. The tiny satellite carried a thermometer and two radio transmitters and was part of the Soviet Unions work during the International Geophysical Year. While its goal was partly scientific, the launch and deployment into orbit had heavy political significance and signaled the countrys ambitions in space.   Sputnik 1 Assembly. Asif A. Siddiq / NASA Sputnik circled Earth once every 96.2 minutes and transmitted atmospheric information by radio for 21 days. Just 57 days after its launch, Sputnik was destroyed while reentering the atmosphere but signaled a whole new era of exploration. Almost immediately, other satellites were built and an era of satellite exploration began at the same time that the U.S. and U.S.S.R. began making plans to send people to space. Setting the Stage for the Space Age To understand why Sputnik 1 was such a surprise, its important to look at what was going on at the time, to take a good look back to the late 1950s. At that time, the world was poised on the brink of space exploration. The development of rocket technology was actually aimed at space but was diverted to wartime use. After World War II, the United States and the  Soviet Union (now Russia) were rivals both militarily and culturally. Scientists on both sides were developing bigger, more powerful rockets to take payloads to space. Both countries wanted to be the first to explore the high frontier. It was just a matter of time before it happened. What the world needed was a scientific and technical push to get there. Space Science Enters the Main Stage Scientifically, the year 1957 was established as the International Geophysical Year (IGY), a time when scientists would use new methods to study Earth, its atmosphere, and magnetic field. It was timed to coincide with the 11-year sunspot cycle. Astronomers were also planning to observe the Sun and its influence on Earth throughout that time, particularly on communications and in the newly emerging discipline of solar physics.   The U.S. National Academy of Sciences created a committee to oversee U.S. IGY projects. These included investigations of what we now call space weather caused by solar activity, such as auroral storms and other aspects of the upper ionosphere. They also wanted to study other phenomena such as airglows, cosmic rays, geomagnetism, glaciology, gravity, make determinations of longitude and latitude and planned to conduct tests in meteorology, oceanography, and seismology. As part of this, the U.S. had a plan to launch the first artificial satellite, and its planners were hoping to be the first ones to send something into space. Such satellites were not a new idea.  In October 1954, scientists called for the first ones to be launched during IGY to map Earths surface. The White House agreed that this might be a good idea, and announced plans to launch an Earth-orbiting satellite to take measurements of the upper atmosphere and the effects of the solar wind. Officials solicited proposals from various government research agencies to undertake the development of such a mission. In September 1955, the Naval Research Laboratorys Vanguard proposal was chosen. Teams began building and testing missiles. However, before the United States could launch its first rockets to space, the Soviet Union beat everyone to the punch. The U.S. Responds The beeping signal from Sputnik not only reminded everyone of Russian superiority, but it also galvanized public opinion in the U.S. The political backlash over the Soviets beating Americans to space led to some interesting and long-reaching results. The U.S. Defense Department immediately began providing funding for another U.S. satellite project. At the same time, Wernher von Braun and his Army Redstone Arsenal team began work on the Explorer project, which was launched to orbit on January 31, 1958. Very quickly, the Moon was announced as a major target, which set in motion planning for a series of missions.   Dr. Wernher von Braun was part of the U.S. space effort at the time of the Sputnik launch, working to build rockets to take U.S. satellites and astronauts such as L. Gordon Cooper (right) to space.   NASA The Sputnik launch also led directly to the creation of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to carry on a civilian space effort (rather than militarizing the activity). In July 1958, Congress passed the National Aeronautics and Space Act (commonly called the Space Act). That act created NASA on October 1, 1958, uniting the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) and other government agencies to form a new agency aimed at putting the U.S. squarely in the space business.   Models of  Sputnik commemorating this daring mission are scattered around the world. One hangs at the United Nations building in New York City, while another is in a place of honor at the Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. The World Museum in Liverpool, England has one, as does the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center in Hutchinson and the California Science Center in L.A.. The Russian Embassy in Madrid, Spain, also has a Sputnik model. They remain gleaming reminders of the earliest days of the Space Age at a time when science and technology were coming together to create a new era of exploration.   Edited and revised by Carolyn Collins Petersen.

Split Brain Research Essays - Nervous System, Neuroscience, Brain

Split Brain Research Essays - Nervous System, Neuroscience, Brain Split Brain Research Chad Stein PS 101 Dr. Rom 1. Gazzaniga, M.S. One Brain or Two? Scientific American. 1967. Rpt. In Forty Studies That Changed Psychology. Ed. Roger R. Hock. Engewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall, 1995. 2-11. 2. This article dealt with experiments that showed the different functions of the right and left hemisphere of the brain. It also described the functions of the left and right hemisphere. Your left brain is better at speaking, writing, mathematical calculations, and reading, and is the primary center for language. Your right hemisphere, posses superior capabilities for recognizing faces, solving problems involving spatial relationships, symbolic reasoning, and artistic activities(9). The experiments were done to find how each hemisphere of the brain process information. To do this the corpus callosum was severed. This made it impossible for the two hemispheres of the brain to communicate with each other. When the corpus callosum is severed it is referred to as the split brain effect. The tests that were performed on the individuals fell into three fields: they were sight, hearing, and touch. All the tests showed that the above is true concerning the functions of each hemisphere of th e brain. The problem that the author was addressing was the fact that the two hemispheres of the brain communicate with each other, and if the communication is destroyed then the functions could be handled by one hemisphere better then the two combined. These experiments proved that there was a dominance in each hemisphere of the brain to perform certain tasks. Even though a connected brain can perform the tasks of both sides. 3. I think that the experiment showed exactly what it set out to do. Show that the separate hemispheres of the brain perform different tasks. It also showed that the brain is capable of performing these tasks even when the corpus callosum has been severed. Although some tasks are performed better when the brain is able to communicate between the hemispheres. 4. The effects on psychology are many. For instance this research helps people understand the different parts of the brain, and how they work. Also when injuries occur to the brain psychologist can determine what the possible effects of the person will be. Finally, psychologist will have a better understanding of how the human brain works.

Workplace Discrimination Prohibited by Title VII Laws

Workplace Discrimination Prohibited by Title VII Laws Title VII is the portion of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which protects an individual from employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Specifically, Title VII prohibits employers from hiring, refusing to hire, firing, or laying off an individual due to those factors. It also makes illegal any attempt to segregate, classify, or limit the opportunities of any employees for reasons related to any of the above. This includes promotion, compensation, job training, or any other aspect of employment. Title VIIs Significance to Working Women With regard to gender, workplace discrimination is illegal. This includes discriminatory practices that are deliberate and intentional, or those that take on a less obvious form such as neutral job policies which disproportionately exclude individuals on the basis of sex and that are not job related. Also illegal are any employment decisions based on stereotypes and assumptions regarding the abilities, traits, or the performance of an individual on the basis of sex. Sexual Harassment and Pregnancy Covered Title VII also offers protection to individuals who encounter sex-based discrimination that takes the form of sexual harassment including direct requests for sexual favors to workplace conditions that create a hostile environment for persons of either gender, including same sex harassment. Pregnancy is also protected. Amended by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, Title VII prohibits discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions. Protection for Working Mothers According to the Georgetown University Law Center: Courts have ruled that Title VII prohibits employer decisions and policies based purely on an employer’s stereotyped impression that motherhood...are incompatible with serious work. Courts have found, for example, that the following conduct violates Title VII: having one policy for hiring men with preschool aged children, and another for hiring women with preschool aged children; failing to promote an employee on the assumption that her childcare duties would keep her from being a reliable manager; providing service credits to employees on disability leave, but not to those on pregnancy-related leave; and requiring men, but not women, to demonstrate disability in order to qualify for childrearing leave. LGBT Individuals Not Covered Although Title VII is wide-ranging and covers many workplace issues faced by women and men, it is important to note that sexual orientation is not covered by Title VII. Thus lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender individuals are not protected by this law if discriminatory practices by an employer occur that are related to perceived sexual preferences. Compliance Requirements Title VII applies to any employer with 15 or more employees in both the public and private sector including federal, state and local governments, employment agencies, labor unions, and training programs.

Supply Chain management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Supply Chain management - Essay Example Switching costs are moderately high for manufacturers and hence lot sizes drive costs. Visibility is lacking in supply chain regarding down stream activities with consequent vague projections on deliveries. Capacity is determined by external factors such as time limited quotas with no information available about delivery by competitors for the same quota. This arduous process takes 6 to 12 months, which is excruciatingly long compared with the value added cycle time of only 6-12 weeks. The brand owners therefore begin their work on the product more than a year before the selling season. The players in the industry have responded to the troubled times with the initiatives such as Quick Response Time, Collaborative efforts among the participants and concurrent engineering necessitating the deployment of contemporary web enabled information technology in the supply chain management. The global apparel industry is typically with a number of complexities. Fluctuating and uncertain demand, short product lifecycle, wide variety not always amenable to the economies of scale and supply chain transcending geographic boundaries, time zones, cultures and languages. To win in this industry, efficient supply chain management is a major base for sustainable competitive advantage. The search for comparative advantage has led many apparel industry players to globalise their operations in the recent times. This is borne out by the penetration of imports. For instance, in UK, the degree of import penetration in this industry is 92% (Jones 2006). The vertically integrated local model gave way to multi-tier globally distributed model. This model hinged on availability of skills, specialised process technology, international trade relations and regulatory milieu present in host countries for outsourcing. The made to order nature of the product and the needed skill intensity in

Os Claim Against VC for Outstanding Freight Coursework

Os Claim Against VC for Outstanding Freight - Coursework Example Secondly, it must be determined, if no breach of contract was found to have occurred, whether or not the contract was completed once the ship sailed from Piraeus. The underlying determining factors in both instances are seaworthiness on the part of the transporting vessel (Costa Lotta) and/or negligence on the part of Costa’s captain and crew. Generally seaworthiness refers to the state of the ship and places upon the ship owner a duty to provide a seaworthy vessel.1 Since O owns the Costa, it can be assumed that the ship itself is seaworthy in terms of structural soundness or â€Å"fit for purpose†2 otherwise the ship would not have chosen for the journey. The crew’s competence is relevant in determining the seaworthiness of the vessel. It was held in Wedderburn v Bell that whether a ship’s construction is sound or not is irrelevant if the ship’s crew is incompetent or lacks the skills necessary for navigating the ship for the duration of the chart ered journey.3 In other words, the seaworthiness of a ship will also depend on the competence of the crew. It was held in Standard Oil v Clan Line that â€Å"a ship may be rendered unseaworthy by the inefficiency of the master who commands her.†4 Based on the facts of the case for discussion however, there is no evidence that the captain or his crew lacked the necessary skills to navigate the ship. There is also no evidence of negligence. The fact is, the Costa came across unusual weather and unanticipated delays which ultimately resulted in the loss of freight. By all accounts the master acted promptly and responsibly. The main question is therefore whether or not the contract for the delivery of the freight was completed once the ship sailed from Piraeus. The leading case on the issue is Bank of Boston Connecticut v European Grain & Shipping Ltd (The Dominique). In The Dominique the ship owner entered into a charterparty with the defendant in which payment for freight was d ue after the signing of the bills of lading. The bills of lading were signed and the ship was subsequently arrested and thus failed to complete the journey. It was held that the ship owner had a right to claim the freight once the bills of lading were signed. Thus the ship onwer’s right accrued prior to the ship’s arrest and the chaterparty’s termination. Therefore not only was the ship owner entitled to claim the freight, the chaterer was not entitled to offset damages arising out of the breach of a charterparty relative to the freight claim.5 The facts of The Dominique are entirely similar to the facts of the case for discussion. Payment for the freight was due once the ship sailed from Piraeus. Therefore O’s claim predates the perils at sea and the subsequent salvage operations. In this regard, O can successfully pursue a claim against VC for the outstanding freight. The action may be commenced by filing an action is rem. An action is rem is an action not against a ship, although it impacts the ship’s owner.6 The ship in question is the Jolly Roger owned by VC and purportedly arriving in the UK, which is the only asset that VC will have in the UK. The jurisdiction for filing an action in rem is facilitated by Section 20(2) of the Supreme Court Act 1981. In this regard, Section 20(2) of the 1981 Act provides that actions in rem may be pursued in any of the two following circumstances: (g)  any claim for loss of or damage to goods carried in a ship; (h)  any claim arising out of any agreement relating to the carriage of goods in a ship or to the use or hire of a ship.7 In addition, the jurisdiction of the Admiralty Court may be invoked relative to an action in rem when: (a) the claim arises in connection with a ship; and (b) The person who would be liable on the claim in an action

DB4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

DB4 - Essay Example Once the goal of the process is defined, the next thing is to make a team that will be responsible for doing the job analysis; the team should comprise of HR people who have expertise in identifying the key factors related to various jobs (Cronshow et al., 2007). When job analysis is conducted, the most important elements or areas that need to be focused are duties, tasks and responsibilities of the job, material, tools and equipment required for the job, working conditions and reporting responsibilities, and qualities, skills and experience that will be used for the tasks performance (Shukla, 2011). When the applicants are short-listed for a position, the employer will have to ensure that they have the skills, qualifications and abilities required to perform the particular job. During the interview sessions, the candidates should be given some situation questions so that their ability to handle the tasks can be judged and it will give an idea about the compatibility of the candidate with the specified position. Hence, these are the two key areas that the employer will have to consider to ensure that the right person is hired for the job so that he/she can be beneficial for the organization’s enhanced

History According to Neo-Conservative Historians Essay

History According to Neo-Conservative Historians - Essay Example Strauss believed liberal government policies were providing the masses with rights, power, and leisure that their simple minds neither deserved, nor were capable of responsibly wielding. Invariably, according to Strauss and Neo-Cons, the devolved masses give rise to Hitler-like evil. Strauss firmly and fully believed that the inherent weakness and ignorance of the masses, social-liberal policies, and the "excess" freedom of leisure coupled with the right to choose their own leaders provided the ingredients for humanitys demise. For Strauss, these devolved masses required strong authoritarian leadership comprised of those intellectually and socially superior (Ray, 1993). In nearly every aspect of todays American political life and foreign policy we see Strauss theory of constant struggle and conflict being employed and carried out. The media has often decried the obvious combative, angry, and mean-spirited nature of Americas contemporary political discourse. FOX News, which is the propaganda and disinformation outlet for the Neo-Conservative movement, has, by design, ensured Strauss theory of conflict plays out in the American political life. It certainly isnt by accident that prominent Neo-Conservatives like Bill Kristol are often featured on FOXs programs (Ray, 1993). Furthermore, the only purpose for the network to employ the bellicose and outrageous OReilly, and venomous and angry Sean Hannity is to divide American against American and instill a degree of political nastiness never before witnessed. A quick trip around the AM Radio dial will make apparent an entire legion of Republican and Neo-Conservative propagandists doing their part to foment all-out political warfare in the United States. Finally, few propagandists are loved and cherished more deeply by the Neo-Cons than the hate-spewing and liberal demonizing Ann Coulter (Halper & Clarke, 2005). The

Gun Control Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 6

Gun Control - Research Paper Example Crime rates have gone up drastically due to easy access to all manner of handguns, rifles, and automatic weapons. California has recorded a drastic increase in drug-related crimes, robberies, and rape in the past years due to gun possession. Moreover, gun owners feel they have the right to threaten, control, and mishandle other citizens using their weapons. Thus, is it necessary to illegalize possession of guns in California because they cause unnecessary deaths, more crimes and lawlessness, and increased violence in the society. Misuse of weapons leads to 50% of gun related incidences in the form of crimes and gun related lawlessness. In 2009, robbers, burglars, rapists, and drug criminals had easy access to weapons, leading to gang violence, intimidation, breaking of laws, and controlling the other people (Editorial 3). Citizens lived in fear due to rowdy criminals who can access handguns easily and threaten people’s lives. Massive access to different types of handguns, automatic rifles, and machine guns, has made it hard for police to keep up with combating crime in the state of California. Crimes happening in homes, schools, places, of work and on the streets due to guns increased by the day before enforcement of gun laws. Moreover, some gun owners take advantage of the situation and believe they have the right to end someone’s life, cause harm, and intimidate the person on the slightest provocation. Additionally, once guns are in circulation, they end up in the possession of wrong people w ho do not hesitate to use them on innocent citizens. Furthermore, once in possession of guns, criminals gain power over their victims and can inflict all sorts of harm including rape, and death. This power also has resulted in increased organized crimes as the criminals take advantage that they have guns to protect themselves and kill anyone against them. Nevertheless, misuse of weapons has decreased rapidly

Critical Introduction to Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Critical Introduction to Law - Essay Example Basically feminism concerns the study or movement against women’s subordination common to all of them in a particular society. And it is culturally and historically specific. Thus forms of oppression of women are different among societies, races and countries. The subordination of Afro-Caribbean women, Asian women, working class women, lesbian women, single mothers are qualitatively different but unified by gender. For example, reluctance of the police to intervene in Asian women’s protest against domestic violence in their community. Police justify their reluctance citing the value of extended family system in Asian communities and letting them settle their disputes on their own. This is not only sexist but also racist bias. White State power has also been indifferent to the voices of these Asian women. 2 Women have been excluded in market place and government and given the main responsibility of bearing and rearing children and to give refuge to men from the pressures of capitalist world. This separation of women from the public sphere was more acute in the nineteenth century. At the same time, men are dominating both the public and private spheres even today by legal orders with private sphere devoid of legal control making them even more dominant in private life. In America, females were excluded for exercising franchise in the 19th century. In 1820s and 1830s, white males got franc hise rights even without property holdings. And after the civil rights movement when black men gained the franchise rights, women regardless of race, were left behind. It was only through the 13th amendment, women gained the right to vote. It did not mean women finally got the rights and duties befitting electoral status. It was only in 1961, they were accorded jury duty. The armed combat duty as a test of citizenship has still not been accorded to women today. In English common law, women were not allowed to enter certain professions like law

Gun Control Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 6

Gun Control - Research Paper Example Crime rates have gone up drastically due to easy access to all manner of handguns, rifles, and automatic weapons. California has recorded a drastic increase in drug-related crimes, robberies, and rape in the past years due to gun possession. Moreover, gun owners feel they have the right to threaten, control, and mishandle other citizens using their weapons. Thus, is it necessary to illegalize possession of guns in California because they cause unnecessary deaths, more crimes and lawlessness, and increased violence in the society. Misuse of weapons leads to 50% of gun related incidences in the form of crimes and gun related lawlessness. In 2009, robbers, burglars, rapists, and drug criminals had easy access to weapons, leading to gang violence, intimidation, breaking of laws, and controlling the other people (Editorial 3). Citizens lived in fear due to rowdy criminals who can access handguns easily and threaten people’s lives. Massive access to different types of handguns, automatic rifles, and machine guns, has made it hard for police to keep up with combating crime in the state of California. Crimes happening in homes, schools, places, of work and on the streets due to guns increased by the day before enforcement of gun laws. Moreover, some gun owners take advantage of the situation and believe they have the right to end someone’s life, cause harm, and intimidate the person on the slightest provocation. Additionally, once guns are in circulation, they end up in the possession of wrong people w ho do not hesitate to use them on innocent citizens. Furthermore, once in possession of guns, criminals gain power over their victims and can inflict all sorts of harm including rape, and death. This power also has resulted in increased organized crimes as the criminals take advantage that they have guns to protect themselves and kill anyone against them. Nevertheless, misuse of weapons has decreased rapidly

Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Law - Essay Example This is why some evidence is kept for years under protection to ensure that every suspected criminal is rightfully charged. Doctor and attorney client privileges exist because every individual has a right to defend themselves by using an attorney before being charged. The defendants also have the right for a doctor in case they have medical complications. Every suspected criminal is expected to have an attorney who are of high qualities, excellent judgment, absolute integrity, fearless and have good knowledge of the case and the evidence presented to them (Totten, 2012). Privileges to an attorney and provision of doctor are very essential as it prevent innocent people from being prosecuted or individuals who are found guilty being given a fair trial that guarantees them a reasonable sentence depending on the crimes they have been found guilty for. The way a case is handled does not only affect the prosecuted and the prosecutors but the society at large. This is why the decision or th e judgment of the prosecutors should not be based on the public pressure, political influence or media instead should be based on the evidence found and the level the attorneys can prove the guilt or the innocence of the person at interest. This is why the prosecutors say that it is never easy being the one to make a judgment of whether a person is guilty or not, being able to put someone in jail makes the journey so lonely that there are people waiting for your decision and whichever you give one party will be hurt. The job takes character; it dictates one to have self confidence and inner strength (Totten, 2012). Without having solid moral direction and be compassionate in their approach the society will judge them and try to bring them down. Where there is evidence, the prosecutor should be guided by common sense and fairness because the decision they make may extremely affect the lives of many others than the suspected criminal. Suspected criminal should have privilege for an at torney who is supposed to represent them regardless of the amount of evidence found against them. This ensures that the evidence provided is properly marshaled and severely adduced because there can never be a fair trial without fair prosecution and presentation of enough evidence. The attorney also tries to reduce the charges brought against their clients by taking up deals (Siegel, 2009). The attorney is required to have the client attorney privilege of ensuring that they keep everything the client has told them under protection unless they decide not to represent those clients. Question 2 In the case Ulster v. Allen, 442 U.S. 140, 1979, presumptions as evidence was used where the defendants refused to the introduction of the guns into evidence since there was no enough prove to connect them with the guns. The trial court canceled the protest, relying on the presumption of custody created by a New York law providing that the existence of a weapon in a vehicle is presumptive confir mation of its unlawful ownership by all people then occupying the automobile, except when inter alia, the weapon is set up upon the individual of one of the occupants (Samaha, 20111). To find guilty a criminal defendant, the prosecutor must confirm

The World without Us by Alan Wiesman Essay Example for Free

The World without Us by Alan Wiesman Essay In Alan Wiesman’s book, The World Without Us, it is centered on the idea of what would happen to the world if only humankind were to disappear off the face of the earth. The purpose of this essay is to show how humankind are causing a modern world crisis, specifically focusing on plastic and how its ability to not decompose in the environment is having a negative effect on the wildlife as well as how humans are killing off many birds and bird species each year due to their careless human errors. Weisman through much research comes up with an estimated time of how long it will take the earth to recover from these human mishaps before the world can repair itself to how it was before humans controlled it. The Bialowieza Puszcza, puszcza being the Polish word for â€Å"forest primeval†, spreads between the borders of Poland and Belarus and stretches over half a million acres. In the 14th centaury, Wladyslaw jagiello, declared the forest a royal hunting reserve until many centuries later Russia dominated the Polish- Lithuanian union and proclaimed the Bialowieza as that of the tsars. The forest survived through World War 1 and in 1921 it was declared a Polish national park. Although this forest was supposedly protected there has been damage done to this primeval forest as forest ministries in Poland and Bulgaria have allowed management to cull and sell the mature hardwoods that would have become nutrients and a windshield for the forest. It is believed that before humans build their entire infrastructure and dominated the forest, the whole of Europe would have looked like the Bialowieza Puszcza. Andrezej Bobiec, a forestry student in Krakow, discovered the biodiversity in this forest was ten times more than any other forest. This forest is home to all nine species of the European woodpecker, which is not evident any other European forest, this forest is also home to the wisents, a specie which is nearly extinct, with only 600 in the world, most in this particular forest. This primeval forest is evidence of what Europe would look like without any human influence. It shows how human influence on other European forests have killed many species, driving them from their homes in order for humans to cut down the forest and use it for their own benefit without the consideration of the other species both animals and plants. It is estimated that Europe would need 500 years before a true forest would grow back and once again dominate most of Europe’s vegetation. Weisman uses the Bialowieza forest as an illustration of what part of the world, specifically Europe would look like without any human influence. This forest is seen as the lingering scent of Eden showing how it is seen as a primeval forest. Richard Thompson, studied at the University of Plymouth to become a marine biologist, in the 1980’s he would spend his time organizing the Liverpool contingent of Great Britain’s national beach cleanup whereby his 170 teammates would collect metric tons of rubbish along 85 miles of shoreline. Thompson started to realize over the accumulating years that the trash collected was becoming smaller amongst the usual bottles and tires. Thompson and another student would collect these and examine them under a microscope but they were usually to small to determined what source they came from. Once he had complete his Ph.D, Thompson started to compare this unknown matter to the database of known material using a Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer, this device allowed for microbeams to be passed through a substance once this is completed the device compared its infrared spectrum to the database. Thompson found small material waste to be nurdles, these two-millimeter high plastic cylinders come in an array of colours and known to be â€Å"raw materials of plastic production† that are melted down to manufacture many plastics products. In the early 20th century, Alister Hardy the marine biologist of Plymouth, took many samples around the British Isles but only every second one was examined and the remaining samples were stored in a climate-controlled warehouse which decades later were discovered by Thompson who examined the samples. He found that during World War II plastic barely existed and was only evident in telephones and radio applications. In the 1960’s there was an increasing number of plastic particles and by the 1990’s, triple the amount of particles were present than three decades earlier. The evidence from these samples shows that the amount of â€Å"acrylic, polyester, and crumbs of synthetic polymers† in the water are increasing at a rapid rate and most of human kind are not even noticing. These small little plastic pieces mainly float and according to Hardy’s plankton recorder they are being caught about 10 meters below surface. Nurdles are now becoming smaller and smaller because of the friction from both the waves and rocks and therefore are being taken by global sea currents. The problem with these nurdles becoming smaller is that they are still not degrading and there is no sign of them ever being able to degrade. Plastic is very dangerous, once animals swallow it through mistaking it for edible food, the plastic causes a blockage in animals intestines and therefore causes constipation and later resulting in death. Animals also are strangled and caught up in fishing line, nets and polyethylene rings from six-pack drinks. Animals such as sea otters, gulls, sea turtles and fish are all prone to these fatal accidents. Ph.D student Mark Browne also discovered that in beauty products that contain exfoliants such as hand and body washes, body scrubs and face washers that do not contain 100% natural exfoliants are actually using polyethylene in a micro or bead form. These little plastic sizes can also be traces in paint and once they are disposed of and sent through the sewage system they will inevitably land up in the sea allowing for little sea creatures to swallow these bite size plastic portions which, does not have a positive effect. At the marine plastic summit, a senior research scientist at North Carolina’s Research Triangle, Dr. Anthony Andrady produced a long term prognosis compiling a 800 page tome on Plastic in the Environment. Andrady spoke of photodegrade when â€Å"ultraviolet solar radiation weakens plastics’s tensile strength by breaking its long, chain-like polymer molecules into shorter segments.† This means that because the strength of plastic lies in its length of polymer chains, the UV rays of the sun are causing these to break and therefore plastic starts to decompose. Problems that this theory face is that because most of the plastic waste is found in the ocean and water it takes the process of photodegrade much longer as well as its chemical nature will like wise be around for hundreds and thousands of years. Plastic is not having a positive effect on the environment mainly because it cannot decompose. In Weisman’s book he explains how nurdles, which are used to manufacture all plastic products, are being broken down in the sea but are not completely decomposing. This means that these little plastic pieces are being eaten and are causing blockage in sea creature’s intestines resulting in their death. It is not only nurdles but also fishing line, nets, toys and plastic bottles that are suffocating and trapping animals. Some human products mainly used for beauty are also harmful to animals in the environment as they contain small plastic exfoliants within the product that eventually find their way into the sea also causing harm for the sea creatures. Human’s need to find a better and safer way to get rid of their plastic waste so not to damage the environment. If humans were to disappear off the planet completely, plastic would probably still be evident in the world for hundreds of thousands of years before they may decompose due to photodegrade. Weisman also looks at the effects humans are having on the life of birds and how they are slowly causing them to become extinct. â€Å"Of more than 10 000 species that have coexisted with us†¦ about 300 have disappeared.† Of these 300, birds including the moas which were eliminated by the Polynesians within in two centuries of discovery, the dodo which in a hundred years was killed and eaten by the Dutch settles and sailors passing by, the great auk by hunters, the moa-nalo and the passenger pigeon in America. In the 20th century the passenger pigeon could have been classified as the â€Å"most abundant bird on Earth† but humans carelessly lead to their extinction. First humans cut off most of their food supply and destroyed their homes by cutting down most of the forests on the eastern plains of the USA. Because the forests were now being cut down, it made the birds easier prey as they were now spotted faster and more were being shot in a shorter period of time. Once humans realized what they were doing to the bird population, it only increased their need to kill the birds and by 1900 only a few were left surviving, mostly living in the Cincinnati zoo but due to the lack of care the last bird in 1914, leaving the passenger pigeon extinct. The passenger pigeon is a good example of how humans are carelessly allowing animals to become extinct through their own human actions, which can be controlled by law restrictions on hunting and killing. Radio-transmission towers are a huge treat to the different bird species because of their red blinking lights, which are used to warn aircrafts of their position. In Syracuse, Kansas in 1998, a snowstorm occurred at night and because of the fog the only visible thing to the Lapland longspurs was the red blinking lights from the radio-transmission tower which resulted in 10 000 birds lying dead, frozen on the ground. Not only are radio-transmission towers a problem but so are cell phone towers, which result in over half a billion of birds being killed each year. Birds that migrate and travel at night are most prone to the danger of these towers, birds from North America like the red-eyes vireos, Tennessee warbler and wood thrushes and those more rare like the red-cockaded woodpecker are at most risk. Another problem occurring for birds is the telephone and electricity lines. Most birds die from just simply colliding with these power lines resulting in a high amount of deaths each year. If a bird is perched on a power line it is safe as long as they do not circuit themselves with another line or the ground but birds such as hawks, eagles and herons have a problem as they can span across more than two lines. If a bird were to connect the circuit between 2 or more lines not only would their feather ignite but it is possible for their beaks and feet to melt as well. 60 to 80 million birds annually are reportedly killed from flying into windshields and windows. Muhlenberg College ornithologist, Daniel Klem, explains how birds do not recognize both clear glass and reflective pane windows as objects. Migrating bird are forever flying into high-rise buildings and breaking their necks. Klem worked out that over 1 billion birds in the United States alone are killed from flying into windows. Windows are another example or how humans are irresponsibly killing off many bird species. Although humans are quickly killing off birds with their hunting and man made equipment such as towers, power lines and windows there is evidence that birds do repopulate and do come back even after disasters. Ukraine was home to Chernobyl, nearly one of the biggest nuclear complexes on Earth. In 1986, there was a huge explosion due to a human error and landscapes were destroyed and the environment was left birdless. Yet in the following spring the birds returned showing that life does go on and that although there are disasters the environment does attempt to repair itself. Although it is said to believe that humans are killing off billions and billions of bird species all around the world there is one bird, the Attwater prairie chicken, which is questionably only alive due to human impact on the environment. Oil industry apparatus and the arrival of both petroleum and the Chinese tallow tree (a â€Å"cold weather specie coated it seeds with harvestable quantities of wax to guard against winter†) has help keep the Attwater prairie chickens habitat alive. Due to the annual burning in the Nature Conservancy, humans are maintaining the artificial wilderness that these birds need to keep alive and to repopulate in. In the first year of humans disappearing billions of birds would flourish as radio and connection warning lights would cease to blink, the high-tension wires would go cold and birds would once again return to nuclear reactor sites. Humans are having a very negative impact on bird species through out the world and if they are not careful it will result in many more extinctions. Humankind are quickly emerging themselves in a world crisis. Through their plastic waste and carelessness they are causing major problems for mostly the sea wildlife as these nurdles and small plastic particles are being digested and blocking sea creatures intestines resulting in a fatal problem. Plastic, because it is not biodegradable, will be left in the world hundreds of thousands of years after humans disappear. Although there are few species that depend on humans for their survival like the Attwater prairie chicken, humans are having more of a negative impact on birds. Because of their careless hunting and human inventions such as towers, telephone and power lines and windows, billions of birds are dying each year. If humans were to disappear completely it would only take birds one year to flourish and populate over a billion birds more than the previous year. The world varies on how long it takes to eliminate the problems humans are leaving it but over many centuries the world will finally mend itself to look as if humans never existed.

Corporate Social Responsibility And Impact On Company Performance Management Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility And Impact On Company Performance Management Essay Traditionally, governments were the main providers of development assistance and were responsible for stimulating social development. In recent years, Corporate Social Responsibility has gained considerable ground and it is now common for corporations to get involved in activities resembling those carried out in the name of development assistance. Organizations which eventually practice this approach are looking for answers for questions such as does Corporate Social Responsibility really payoff, are the objectives set by the CSR manager really fulfilled, is their money worth spending at such practices? Considering the current financial scenario around the globe, managers are in dire need to make better, precise and eventually correct decisions. The purpose of the thesis is to investigate (1) if we can reap tangible benefits such as higher financial performance, higher employee commitment, and better reputation by engaging in CSR activities (2) if developing countries would benefit from corporate involvement. (3) Can corporations benefit by gaining access to new markets along with sustaining present markets and will it lead to innovative business strategies. Appropriate literature for this thesis has been derived from previous research journals, thesis, case studies, news paper articles and magazines which have helped us in acquiring general understanding and finding the scope and nature of the subject. The conclusion up till now is that CSR has played an important role in enhancing an organizations image and reputation along with bringing positive change in customers purchasing patterns. I KEYWORDS Corporate Social Responsibility; CSR Payoff; Impact on Company Performance Page No 17 Figure 2-1 CSR and Marketing Strategies Drivers and Constraints III LIST OF TABLES Page No 6 12 Table 1-1 Karachi Sector Division Table 2-1 Potential Benefits of Being Socially Responsible III INTRODUCTION The introducing chapter of this thesis provides a background of our study along with a concept of corporate social responsibility. It also aims to highlight the subjects topicality, significance, and the studys objective on which literature review would be based. Furthermore, the kind of research methodology used along with how the data collected would be interpreted is discussed. Finally, the studys scope, limitations, and significance are discussed. 1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY In todays competitive world the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become one of the imperative strategies for the companies to stand out in the cut throat market environment. In circumstances where market dimensions and customers preferences become more unpredictable and complex, CSR can play an extra pivotal role to cope up with such situations. But even still managers are confused or rather unaware of whether their CSR approach will prove to be beneficial for them as less efforts have been put into finding out the results of their implementation. Initially CSR was evolved around corporate philanthropy but after passing through several phases it has entered into a new dimension with solidarity movements and environmental activism from the civil sector which is now highly involved in business activities. Accordingly pressures from governments, courts, civil organizations, NGOs, WTO have compelled corporations to follow stringent parameters of corporate behavior, forcing them towards legal compliance, doing business for betterment of the society and less occurrence of damage to civil society and environment and protecting the consumers. In Pakistan, however, where poverty, illiteracy, corruption is the talk of the town CSR journey is in its initial phases and is still struggling to be accepted in its first phase i.e. of philanthropy and legal compliance which is society and government focused. But still some leading organizations in Pakistan have realized that the government alone is not in a position to handle this everlasting situation and have finally spread their arms to help them out in this hour of need. The present societal marketing concept has started making inroads into Pakistan. Many leading corporations have accepted this challenge and have adapted this approach and begun to promote themselves and their brands by associating with it. CSR hence has open new ventures of competition and leading and non-leading corporations are in the race to make a mark on general public and show how much efforts they are putting in to CSR. Companies embrace the responsibility of serving to its stakeholder through different ways; it may be in the shape of improvising their internal operations so that employees, customers, society and environment do not get hurt or doing an act or deed that may increase their customer, employee, supplier loyalty etc. There are numerous ways to show how socially responsible an organization is or wants to be but is this act or deed actually fulfilling the objectives that managers had laid down. What are the success rates achieved by applying CSR? Did customers actually buy their product after looking at a beautiful monument donated to the government? There are many such questions that need to be answered so that managers in future feel confident in taking the right CSR decisions. Ultimately, does CSR payoff or is it a tradeoff between social criteria and investment returns? 1.2 CSR ITS DIFFERENT VIEWS For CSR there exists contrasting point of views, supporters of this concept argue that CSR is the source of value enhancement of any organization, while some organizations argue that the social work is the responsibility of the government and not the business. As awareness regarding pay off of CSR has increased, the debate regarding CSR seems to be disappearing. Prior goals and strategies evolved only around profit maximization with no view of serving the society at large. There have been controversial statements issued in the past such as the social responsibility of business is to increase its profits stated by Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman, September 1970, in New York Times Article. However since the birth of this approach CSR has been touched upon by many authors who show its importance and its inevitable desire to stay in business and society. The birth of CSR has been a long debate with various researchers having different views over its time period and the individuals involved. There have been different arguments placed over it genesis with some saying that its birth took place when in 1930s there was a debate between AA Berle and E Merrick Dodd over the role of managers (Post 2003 ; Turner 2006). Others such as Carroll have described Bowen as the modern Father of Corporate Social Responsibility and believe that his work marks the beginning of the modern period of literature on CSR. Peter Drucker was one of the first to explicitly address CSR, including public responsibility as one of the eight key areas for business objectives developed in his 1954 book, The Practice of Management. While Drucker believed that managements first responsibility to society involved making a profit, he felt it was also most important that management consider the impact of every business policy and action upon society (Joyner Payne 2002, p. 302). The World Business Council for Sustainable Development in its publication Making Good Business Sense by Lord Holme and Richard Watts, used the following definition. Corporate Social Responsibility is the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large The best definition that suits our research is by Mallen Baker published on his website which states that CSR is about how companies manage their business processes to produce an overall positive impact on society. 1.3 PROBLEM STATEMENT Traditionally, governments were the main providers of development assistance and were responsible for stimulating social development. In recent years, Corporate Social Responsibility has gained considerable ground and it is now common for corporations to get involved in activities resembling those carried out in the name of development assistance. Organizations which eventually practice this approach are looking for answers for questions such as does Corporate Social Responsibility really payoff, are the objectives set by the CSR manager really fulfilled, is their money worth spending at such practices? Considering the current financial scenario around the globe, managers are in dire need to make better, precise and eventually correct decisions. 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTION Based on previous discussion in the preliminary phase and the problem statement, the following questions arise; Does CSR really payoff? In order to provide an in depth answer to this question, the following sub questions are derived which are also our 1.5 OBJECTIVES OF OUR STUDY 1. Does CSR influence consumer purchasing decision? 2. Does CSR provide an opportunity for a firm to have a competitive advantage? 3. Is there a relationship between CSR activities and corporate performance? 4. Do people perceive a CSR implementing organization and a non CSR implementing organization as same by keeping all other factors constant? 1.6 DATA COLLECTION METHODS Primary Data: In order to measure and quantify our research, survey methods will be used for primary data collection. Questionnaires will be distributed among employees, customers, students and general public. This will help us in getting accurate information regarding the payoffs of CSR and decisions regarding CSR investments. Secondary Data: Secondary data will involve a thorough analysis of related research articles, journals, publications, magazines, newspapers and studies from both international and local websites. 1.7 DATA ORGANIZATION The relationship between organizations corporate social responsibility initiatives and its pay offs is of valued importance. This research has both opportunity and potential. Initially, appropriate literature will be derived from previous researches, case studies and news paper articles which will help us acquire general understanding and finding the scope and nature of the subject. Subsequently, unstructured interviews would then be carried out with professionals concerned within the subject of corporate social responsibility. The purpose of the interview will be to discuss the success and failures caused while implementing CSR in their organizations and would also help in further understanding and approaching the topic in a more creative way. Furthermore our subject will also be discussed thoroughly with our thesis coordinator for better guidance and direction. The literature stage would constitute of thorough understanding of previous researches and theoretical frameworks which are relevant, accurate to our study. Both national and international researches will be considered with no limit concerning the point of time the research was carried out. Internet search engines such as Google will be used comprehensively. Keywords such as Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR payoff, Impact on Company Performance will be used along with other phrases to find the most accurate literature online. 1.8 SAMPLING The sampling frame will constitute of employees (Business Sector) and students (Higher Education Sector) that lie in four different zones of Karachi i.e. North, South, East, and West. The sample for survey will be selected through Non-Probability Stratified/Quota sampling method. There will be two different questionnaires designed for employees and the general public/customers. Questionnaires will comprise of closed-ended questions so that it would be convenient to analyze the findings. The analysis will finally be done on Microsoft Excel. SAMPLING SIZE Below is the breakup for the sample size: Table 1-1: Karachi Sector Divisions KARACHI BUSINESS SECTOR EDUCATION SECTOR North 75 Questionnaires 75 Questionnaires South 75 Questionnaires 75 Questionnaires East 75 Questionnaires 75 Questionnaires West 75 Questionnaires 75 Questionnaires 1.9 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY Our study will be beneficial for organizations as well as for society and the government. Organizations will be able to better realize the importance of CSR and hence can then engage themselves in long term strategies rather than focusing on short term tactics. As a result of this activity society can then be served more effectively. Due to this a multiplier effect can be generated and a cash starved government can also benefit from this approach. Findings of our study will help organization to find out the way to utilize resources on social welfare and up liftmen efficiently and effectively. 1.10 SCOPE LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY The scope of the study is to quantify the impact of CSR activities and measure its performance to see whether the investment done in implementing CSR has really paid off or not. As students we lack sufficient resources to broaden the geographical scope of the study and extend it to whole of Pakistan, which has forced us to limit our study to Karachi, Pakistan only. Also employees, customers, general public and other students will be involved in our sampling frame, which might lead to biased responses as they will consider us premature students rather than professional researchers. In order to measure the impact of CSR we will have to limit our study and findings to only those CSR initiated projects which are visible to masses. Only then can we be able measure the impact correctly as than our findings will reflect the true scenario. This study is being conducted for an academic purpose with certain time constraints and has to be completed within minimum resources available. The study will be completed by last week of April 2011. LITERATURE REVIEW INTRODUCTION We have entered the new millennium with countless societal, environmental, political legal, health issues surrounding us but there seems to be no respite when we talk about corporate social responsibility (CSR) and its numerous false dawns that have occurred in the past decades. Perhaps, business shocks and scandals which involved some huge organizations such as Enron, WorldCom and Nike, Shell, together with the impact of rapid climate change on the environment, have played a major role in pushing organizations irrespective of their sizes to rethink their responsibilities towards their stakeholders and rationalize their attitudes according to the societal norms. The upcoming conversations about CSR suggests that it is a normative, multi-level concept, whose meaning depends on various perspectives and relationships, and, that it changes in response to social trends (Silberhorn, D Warren, RC 2007) . Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has variously been described as a motherhood issue (Ryan 2002), the hot business issue of the noughties (Blyth 2005) and the talk of the town in corporate circles these days (Mees Bonham 2004). While earlier thoughts of CSR often had a regional, person-centered philanthropic focus, recent conceptions of CSR are inclusive, broad and diverse (Silberhorn, D Warren, RC 2007). Due to the diverse philosophical status that CSR has achieved over the years it has seriously hampered the theoretical development as well as research into the implementation of these policies (Goebbels, 2002). In order to start research, the first step that has to be taken is to explore how corporations are themselves defining and interpreting CSR. Most empirical studies of CSR have been focused on firms in the USA, Canada and the UK, but few have attempted to assess whether definitions of CSR differ between countries (Hopkins, 2004). These are one of reasons that have led to slow development of CSR in developing countries such as Pakistan. Swanson (1995) suggested that there were three main types of motivation for CSR which helps in engulfing organizations towards this approach: The utilitarian perspective (an instrument to help achieve performance objectives); The negative duty approach (compulsion to adopt socially responsible initiatives to appease stakeholders); and The positive duty view (businesses self-motivated regardless of social pressures) (Maignan Ralston 2002) Companies are primarily reactive with respect to CSR, responding to external pressures rather than proactively defining CSR (LEtang, 1994; Vogel, 2005). Here, industry-specific issues as well as public visibility play a role. ODwyer (2003), Esrock and Leichty (1998) found that companies from sectors with a high-environmental impact had to respond more to external pressures. In addition, societal developments appear to force businesses to evolve their thinking for CSR (Carroll, 1999; Wilson, 2000; Zadek, 2004). Such pressure is said to increase when codified by legislation (Pinkston and Carroll, 1996; ODwyer, 2003). Mass media are then also seen to exert control and build pressure by making company behavior public (Pinkston and Carroll, 1996). There has been a significant growth of CSR firms in the past ten years and the growth is mainly associated with economic development of a region or a state (Poddi, L Vergalli, S 2009). Preston and O, Bannon 1997, Woddock and Graves 1997, MacWilliams Sieger 2001, tried to establish if there exists a link between social responsibility and the performance of firms. Their results were ambiguous and did not show any connection. While on the other hand Poddi, L Vergalli, S 2009 states that there is a clear positive relation between CSR and performance, and it has been proved that CSR influences a firms performance. Lacey, R Kennett-Hensel, PA (2010) noted that customers CSR perceptions are positively linked to their trust in and commitment to the firm. Their findings also show how a firm that engages in CSR initiatives may reap rewards by building trusting and committed customer relationships which, in turn, help forge desirable customer behaviors. It is also been evident from the research that customers level of commitment has a positive effect on purchase behavior, word-of-mouth communications, and following the firms performance. Addressing social issues comes at a cost to business (Tim Barnett). Till the businesses internalize the costs of CSR actions, they keep on hurting their competitive position in the market. This argument is truly relevant in todays context especially after prevailing globally competitive environment, which is if businesses in one country expand assets to address social issues, but those in another country do not. Some argue that employees are not trained to address such problems. This suggests that organizational involvement in CSR may actually make the situation worse. Corporations can best serve societal interests by sticking to what they do best, which is providing quality goods and services and selling them at an affordable price to people who desire them (Tim Barnett) Reasons behind the failure of the CSR are that people often dont have enough knowledge regarding the environment and their rights (Vogel, D 2008). Results from CSR practice cannot be seen quickly. On the other hand, it cannot be directly linked to improved financial performance of the company (Bugariska, B 2009). We can find many examples of organization which have been and are implementing CSR approach but still have not been able to able to increase their reputation and performance (Vogel, D 2008). BP (British Petroleum) is one recent case whose image has been badly affected after its oil spill off Mexico Coast in 2010, before that it was enjoying a strong CSR reputation and had even made a positive contribution towards society and changed its identity. But if we look at the, Goldman Sachs Report (2007) it clearly shows companies that are considered leaders in implementing environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies to create sustained competitive advantage have outperformed the general stock market by 25 percent since August 2005. Additionally, 72% of these companies have outperformed their peers over the same period (Bugariska, B 2009). Any publicized disaster might become an opportunity for good companies to show their social inclinations. The same could be seen with different ts unami or earthquake caused destructions, or the recent floods in Pakistan (2010). CSR strategies may work under certain conditions, but they are highly vulnerable to market failures, including such things as imperfect information, externalities, and free riders (Doane, D 2005). I have not been able to find any research that shows CSR to be a bad thing, states Holme, C 2010. But does it pay? Is it worth doing? We can find enormous web sites of large corporations which only outlay a positive picture. Negative examples are not even touched upon. Research that shows that the heaviest polluters are not the heaviest reporters only serves to confirm the suspicion that the whole story is not being told properly (Brooks, 2009). Holme, C 2010, argues that within organizations CSR activities that support and develop the competitive uniqueness of a business offer considerable opportunities to secure a place in the market. The evidence that he presents is that businesses are still developing their CSR related values during a period of recession which proves its importance for even firms to survive in these harsh times. University of Michigan business administration professor Aneel Karnani believes that companies do what they do because they are responsible to their shareholders. One of the members of top management of the Best Buy Public Affairs Company said that they dont allocate budget for CSR separately but they consider it as the integral part of their companys business model, they are of the opinion that success lies behind CSR. 2.1 CSR CUSTOMERS CSR is rising sharply as a corporate priority: by 2011, the percentage of executives giving high priority to CSR is expected to be 70% (Franklin 2008). There is a belief that firms designs CSR actions because they care and consider CSR activities as companys moral obligation (Vlachos, PA, Tsamakos, A, Vrechopoulos, AP, Avramidis, PK 2008). Some studies (McWilliams and Siegel 2000; Mohr et al., 2001) suggest there is no effect of CSR on consumer loyalty. But according to Casteldo (2008) consumers are interested in the social behavior of firms and the CSR profile of a firm largely influences their purchasing decisions. Sen and Bhattacharya (2001) suggest that CSR can affect consumers intentions to purchase. It is important for firms to communicate and advertise firms CSR initiatives to its customers (Du 2007) which provides greater credibility, and strength to its brand with competitive advantage (Teresa, T, Uncles, MD 2006). It may appear that the strength of CSR as a communication tool can be affected by factors such as consumer involvement and/or switching costs. Not all individuals perceive CSR actions in the same way (BÃ ©nabou, R Tirole, J 2009). CSR is more beneficial when it is not promoted as per normal advertisements, by doing this a favorable impact on the organizations goodwill can be reaped (MOHR, LA, WEBB, DJ HARRIS, KE 2001). A recent study in Pakistan (Ali 2010) confirms that in a developing country context, there is no positive relationship between awareness of corporate social responsibility activities and consumer purchase intention. In developed countries though a lot of pressure has been forced on companies to consider CSR practices which has given rise to organic products and products created according to fair trade ethical and environmental principles (Azmat, F, Samaratunge, R 2009). Table 2-1 Source: Swaen, V 2002, p 7. 2.2 DOES CSR AFFECT PURCHASING DECISIONS? Consumers need to be aware of a firms level of social responsibility before the affects can be quantified (Varadarajan Menon 1988). Ross, Stutts, and Patterson (1990-91) found that 53 percent of a sample could recall a CSR based advertisement, while Webb Mohr (1998) found 79 percent of a sample could describe a specific CSR based campaign only after the concept was explained to them. Customer lacks responsiveness towards CSR because they dont have much knowledge regarding CSR (MOHR, LA, WEBB, DJ HARRIS, KE 2001). Though people study regarding CSR as its clear from the quantity sold of a renowned book Shopping for a better world which is explaining multiple angles of corporate social responsibility (Council on Economic Priorities 1994). As mentioned above we can easily figure out that consumers really desire knowledge on how to spend their money better. Most of the previous studies shown that organization have put less efforts to make people aware first and then taken initiative rather they assumed that people know regarding initiative. However, CSR can be used as a strategic tool to enhance the reputation and public image of a business institution, while at the same time, prove to be profitable for an institution in the long-run (Dusuki, AW Dar, H 2005). The 1999 CondRoper Cause Related Trends Report has researched upon consumer responses to companies participation in CSR based marketing (Cone Communications Press Release 1999). Studies that were conducted since 1993 have shown that more than 80% firms have reported a positive image if it is involved in promoting particular cause. Furthermore, two-thirds of the sample said they are likely to switch brands or retailers to those participating in CSR activities. When research was conducted by Ross and his group members based on 225 sample regarding CSR initiatives by firms, they identified that 55% respondents would purchase a product if they get to know that the firm is supporting a cause. More than 50% respondents were also inclined to switch their brand in near future as the result of the CSR involvement of the company. In another research conducted by Smith and Alcorn (1991) identified that majority of the respondents were of the view that they would switch their brands because the company make donations to nonprofit organizations, and nearly a third (30%) stated that they sometimes buy products simply because the manufacturer supports charitable causes. Consumers also expect firms to protect the environment and behave ethically and that they sometimes base their purchasing decisions on these factors (MOHR, LA, WEBB, DJ HARRIS, KE 2001). However, no surveys could be found that attempt to measure the proportion of people whose purchasing is actually affected. 2.3 OVERVIEW OF DIFFERENT SECTORS In Stock Markets, CSR activities do not generate shareholder value in short run but it is also not correct to say that CSR activities do not generate a negative impact on the market value of a company. This is usually because investors think that CSR activities do not affect the future cash flows of a firm (Karlsson, J Chakarova, Y 2008). Research findings in housing sector showed that a great majority of buyers in Malaysia expected a socially responsible developer to provide more CSR features. However, less wealthy buyers were more sensitive to house price. However all participants were ready to pay for extra CSR features (Yam, LHS 2008). In the banking sector, unless the stakeholders perceive CSR investments as being beneficial, these investments may prove to be ineffective. It would appear that CSR activities have been employed too hastily (Calabrese, A Lancioni, F 2008). 2.4 CSR PAKISTAN SOCIETY In Pakistan, mostly multinationals are implementing CSR, competition being the reason behind. Organizations like Unilevers, P G Nestle, Siemens, ICI Pakistan, Pepsi, and Coca Cola have led the scene in Pakistan. Many national companies such as Engro, Jung Group, National Foods Pakistan, English Biscuits Manufacturing have also entered the race. Lately banks have also started following this new trend. In developing countries such as Pakistan, the concept of CSR has been intermingled with the concept of philanthropy or charity (Visser, W). Aga Khan Foundation and Resource Centre NGO conducted a survey of senior officials in over a hundred major companies working in Pakistan and found out that there is enormous potential for involving businesses in community improvement activities. Corporations in Pakistan are donating cash to education and health sectors. Generally pharmaceutical, chemical, food and beverage industries donate their products on a customary basis to different charities and beneficiaries, and also actively react to disaster relief contingencies resulting by floods and other unforeseen natural calamities by donating required products to the affected areas (Ali 2004). Unfortunately the local industry not completely realizing the importance of CSR; proper investment in this area is not been done. Electronic media as well as print media are often silent on this topic. According to a research conducted by Ali, I, Rehman, K, Yilmaz, AK, Nazir, S Fatima Ali, J 2010, they found very low awareness level in customers about CSR, with no linkage between CSR activities and customer purchase intentions. On the other hand D.Dodd, M in his research states that a positive association exists between an organizations involvement in CSR programs and consumers purchase intentions. It can be pointed out that while making a buying decision, customers in Pakistan do not consider corporations contribution towards society. But significant relationship was found between service quality and customer satisfaction. The results showed that customers are ready to pay more attention to pricing strategies than CSR activities of service providers. CSR is now a core business management issue the world over including Pakistan. The stakeholder has finally arrived to share the boardroom agenda with the stock-holder says Waheed, A (2005) in a UNDP report. From labor unions to watchdog organizations, there are multiple organizations available that have the responsibility of establishing and awarding credential to organizations that wishes to be judged for its impact on society. These include ISO 14000 (for environmental management systems), the SA 8000 (social accountability standard) and numerous more. At national level, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has made a first contribution by forming Code of Corporate Governance, and the 2002 Trade Policy formed by the government of Pakistan. Pakistan itself has had to learn quickly in adapting to the CSR paradigm. The country has suffered billion of dollars of damage through the 1990s and still are. International buyers are now continuously asking for CSR credentials from Textile and other edible good industry. Within this environment, it is unavoidable for Pakistan to stay away from CSR (Waheed, A 2005) or the whole economy might collapse. 2.5 CSR PERFORMANCE Belu, C Manescu, C (2009) in their research have found a continuous positive correlation between socially responsible initiatives and financial position of a firm. This proves that there is potential for increased profitability when conducting business with CSR in sight. There is a positiv