managing change Essay -- essays research papers

MANAGING CHANGE Change is a necessary way of life. It is all around people: in the seasons, in their social environment, and in their own biological processes .Beginning with the first few moments of life, a person learns to meet change by being adaptive. A person’s very first breath depends on ability to adapt from one environment to another. As indicated by the first quotation introducing this essay, each hour is different, offering people new experiences. Since human beings are adaptive and familiar with change, how is it that they often resist change in their work environment? This question had troubled managers since the beginning of the industrial revolution, and the fast peace of change required by the electronic age has made its solution more important. Even when managers use their most logical arguments to support a change, they frequently discover that workers are unconvinced of the need for it. Work change The nature of work change   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The term â€Å"work change† refers to any alteration that occurs in the work environment. Its effect is illustrated in an elementary way by an experiment using air filled balloon. When a finger (which represents change) is pressed against the exterior of the balloon (which represent the organization), the contour of the balloon visibly changes at the point contact. Here an obvious pressure, representing change has produced an obvious deviation at the point of pressure. What isn’t obvious, however, is that the entire balloon has been affected and has stretched slightly. As shown by this comparison, the generalization is drawn that the whole organization tends to be affected by change in any part of it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The molecules of air in the balloon represent a firm’s employees. It is apparent that those at the spot of pressure must make drastic adjustments. Though the change did not make direct contact with the employees, it has affected them indirectly. Though none is fired (i.e., leaves the balloon), the employees are displaced and must adjust to a new location in the balloon. This comparison illustrates an additional generalization: change is a human as well as a technical problem.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Admittedly, the foregoing comparison is rough. A employing is not a balloon; a person is not a molecule; and people are not as free and flexible as ai... ...  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Refreezing Unfreezing means that old ideas and practices need to be cast aside so that new ones can be learned. Often this step of getting rid of old practices is about as difficult as learning the new ones. Changing is the step in which the new ideas and practices are learned so that an employee can think and perform in new ways. Refreezing means that what has been learned is integrated into actual practice. Resistance to change can be reduced by helping employees recognize the need for each change, participate in it, and gain from it. In summary, five management guidelines for responsible change are: a.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Make only necessary and useful change. Avoid unnecessary change b.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Change by evolution, not revolution c.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Recognize the possible effects of change, and introduce in with adequate attention to human needs d.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Share the benefits of change with employees e.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Diagnose the problems remaining after a change occurs, and treat them Change when improperly handled manifests itself in slowdowns and showdowns.

Tencent Crossfire

Tencent, one of the biggest and most influential IT Corporation in China, had launched its signature first person shooting game Crossfire in 2008. Based on reported statistics, it has over a million online users every day1 and always ranked top place in a lot of game websites. Many Other IT companies always pursue profits when forming their price strategy, but Crossfire is free to play, which seems bizarre and risky. Ultimately, there must be other ways for them to generate the cash to operate the system as well as to earn profits. Firstly, Tencent promised Crossfire is totally free to play, but the underlying strategy is smart and shocking. People may not believe it because everybody knows there is no free lunch in the world. Anyhow, when they give a try, most of them feel surprised that Tencent might have kept its promise. It is definitely free to register an account and download the game package. Tencent will not charge you a cent for it even when you literally play the game. However, after few days trail play, the commitment Tencent made has become pale and weak. That is to say, not only you have to pay, you have to pay a lot. Crossfire is a game in which you will have a gun battle with other online users. People try their best to kill their enemies with the ‘weapons’ in their hands. The ‘weapons’ are usually a gun or other ammunitions, but they are virtual goods. When you are new players, it is capable for you to survive with a simple pistol because you are protected from high level players. Yet you will find it is getting harder and harder facing other veteran players with simple, basic weapons in your hands when you finish the rookie training. Thus, in order to survive, to save your dignity, or if you are already addicted to the game, you have to purchase the weapons you need. The higher level the weapon is, the more it costs you. In fact, this strategy is a very clever move in the online game market. By adopting ‘freemium’ strategy, Tencent enjoys 29. 5% share of revenue in China2 and is a nightmare for its competitors. First of all, the revenue is from creating and selling virtual goods at almost zero cost. Moreover, it is a great opportunity to expand their influence in the market. Sometimes, the choices of a teenager can be random. When playing a game, all they want to do is to have fun with their friends. So if many teenagers are attracted by ‘freemium game’ at first place, the guys left out will soon switch to the same game. When more and more people are playing this game, the social influence will emerge and spread out rapidly, and other products from Tencent can easily take advantage of this. What’s more, it threatens or even damages its competitors in the market. By stealing customers from other games, Tencent compresses the room for other companies since the time people spend on online games are stable. That is, they would not double their play time when he plays two games. Therefore, once a customer is attracted by Crossfire, the profit of the other game which offers hourly based payment will be hugely decreased while Tencent is risk-free with its ‘freemium’ strategy. Also, Tencent is a company that is very good at modeling consumers’ behaviour. Tencent knows that people don’t mind to give a try for free stuff because they think they have nothing to lose. This could be true in reality, but not in Tencent’s world. Online games are addictive, especially for teenagers. Instead of blocking teenagers out by expensive payment at first place, Crossfire let them in and enjoys the game. Then, as time goes, the simple challenge cannot satisfy their needs. Finally, they are addicted to the product and willing to spend money on it. Similarly, the proof is not hard to find in the Apple store, in which the freemium games are leading all app revenue models and are now  accounting for more than 65% 2of app revenue. Finally, ‘freemium’ age has come. As a consumer, it is necessary to know the fact behind the ‘fairy tale’ of free. But for a company, the way of earning money is changing all the time. As the saying goes, â€Å"nothing ventured, nothing gained†. Undoubtedly, Tencent is just the perfect explanation for the proverb. Reference: 1. http://en. korea. com/blog/tech/games/crossfire-%E2%80%9Creaches-2-million-users-in-china%E2%80%9D/ 2. http://www. buzzom. com/2011/09/online-gaming-market-in-china-reaches-usd-1-3b-chinese-firms-dominant/ 3. According to Flurry’s analysis http://blog. flurry. com/? Tag=Freemium

Simmel, Marx, and Mead

After reading the specified passage #8, pages 101-108, I sat back and thought about who and what we have studied this semester. The information in the passage connected with three of the five major sociological minds that we have studied: Simmel, Marx, and Mead. The beginning of the passage talks about immigrants starting a new life in a new place, and what we a Americans think about it, which reminds me of Georg Simmel. A lot of the passage talks about how class and jobs relate to one another, which made me think of Karl Marx. One part of the passage discusses what Barbie is for little girls, which reminds of George Herbert Mead. I think that it is clear that these three sociological minds influenced parts of this section of Barbie Culture. Rogers gives the Statue of Liberty as an example of an icon. She talks about what it represents for Americans. To us it represents â€Å"political freedom and mass democracy (independence), this same icon has become a harbinger of a society supposedly open to â€Å"teeming masses† of needy, if not desperate, immigrants (dependence). Rogers goes on to say that Americans â€Å"see foreign-born newcomers as threats to their society. Fearful of the alien lifeways and multiple tongues of these international migrants, such Americans commonly invoke sentiments seemingly incompatible with this cherished icon† (Rogers: 101-102). Pampel talks a lot about how Simmel felt about the way he and other Jewish people were treated when they moved to Germany and into its big cities, and how most Germans tried to keep them from gaining any power or status. One example that Pampel gives is â€Å"universities placed limits on the number of Jewish professors they would promote: although about 12 percent of lecturers came from Jewish backgrounds, only about three percent reached he position of tenured professor† (Pampel: 131). Simmel was held back at almost everywhere he taught. Nearly everyone that heard his lectures like him and what he thought about things and how he broke things up and made sense out of them. He should have been tenured way before he finally was, but because of racist views of him he was not, no matter how brilliant he was. Pampel writes a lot about Marx and what he thought about the inhumane working conditions. Pampel tells us how Marx’s view on why things were the way they were. â€Å"Mattel’s hierarchy grows wider as one descends the ladder† (Rogers: 102). Marx knew that there were a lot more proletariat (workers) than there were bourgeoisie (owners of the capital). Everyone wanted as much money as they could get. Nobody really cared how the workers that were actually making the products lived or even felt. Marx felt that the key concept to all of that is social class. Society is both enabling and constraining. It enables few people to make a lot of money and the major decisions that affect everyone and constrains most people to just do as they are told. The workers had to work with low pay and in bad working conditions just to make enough money to survive. They really had no choice. Marx’s perspective is called conflict theory, and classes are always going to be in conflict with one another. Last but not least, Rogers talks about how or why Barbie came to be. Ruth and Elliot Handler were on vacation in Switzerland with their son, Ken, and their daughter, Barbara. They were out shopping when they came across the Lilli doll, which was a German doll that came from a cartoon strip and that was mostly marketed to men as a sex symbol. â€Å"Barbara Handler was fascinated with the doll, and Ruth Handler claims to have seen it as a perspective plaything for girls past the baby-doll stage† (Rogers: 103). Ruth must have thought that girls still needed a doll to play with so that they still had a sort of learning tool, even though they had out grown baby-dolls. Mead thought that toys/dolls could be used for role-playing, which really helped in the process of becoming one’s social self. Children could adopt the roles and attitudes of the doll. They act out and assume the roles of others in their imaginations. This role-playing helps â€Å"children develop a better sense of the meanings and attitudes held by other people† (Pampel: 194). Once children learn these things they can start forming their own opinions about things and really become and individual. Simmel taught us that the world is not fair. Even though he was a brilliant man and had a lot to offer the world, he was not able to because of racism and stupid people. Marx thought that society could be a great thing, but at the same time it could hold people back and make a lot of people miserable. Mead said that dolls play an important part in becoming a functioning member of society by helping children learn to develop their own attitudes and opinions as well as respect the attitudes and opinions of others. These three men contributed a lot to form the great sociological world that we have today.

The Success Of Flight Centre

The Success Of Flight Centre Flight Centre is a travel agent situated in Australia that has enjoyed a lot of success over the years making it one of the leading travel agents in Australia and the rest of the world (Roth, 2010).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Success Of Flight Centre specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The main objective of compiling this special report about Flight Centre as an organization is to find out the secrete behind the success of the company and the various management approaches and principles applied by the company’s management to ensure the company maintains its level of success (Johnson, 2005). This paper will explore the management strategies of Flight Centre and the importance of social co-operate responsibility in the development of the company image and brand. Flight Centre Limited as a company became fully operational in 1981 and since then has emerged as the leading travel agent in Australia and the re st of the world. The company had a market capitalization of $1.145 billion on the Australian by the year 2006 indicating a steady growth since its establishment (Johnson, 2005). The company has expanded beyond the boundaries having opened up branches in ten other countries in Europe, America and Africa. Flight centre is one of the leading employers offering jobs to over 8000 workers in its 1500 stores spread across different countries (Roth, 2010). Some of the major countries in which the company has experiences rapid growth include Canada, United States, United Kingdom, New Zealand and South Africa. Since its establishment, the company has revolutionalized international travelling and diversified its services to fully meet customer demands (Roth, 2010). Apart from being a travel agent, the company offers other services such as accommodation, car rentals and holiday packages to comprehensively meet business and holiday needs for its clients. Flight Centre has been able to increase i ts sales because of its effective market segmentation strategies that cater for online, wholesale, corporate and retail clients (Joyce, 2001). Some of the major outstanding factors that make Flight Centre remain very competitive in the market is its extensively network of stores that makes distribution faster and effective and the fact that it is an internationally recognized brand compared to other brands (Thompson, 2005). Flight Centre is the leading travel agent in terms of online transactions making it have a competitive edge over its competitors. Flight Center has been acquiring other companies around the world with the recent one being the Liberty Travel company as a strategy for penetrating the North American market (Dobson et al., 2004).Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More One of the weaknesses of Flight Center is its inability to sell tickets directly to its c lients a fact makes it face a lot of competition from other travel agencies like Qantas, Trailfinders, Webjet and S8 which are able to sell their tickets directly. The company also is threatened by the preference of many travelers to make their travel arrangements online instead of engaging the services of travel agents (Soloner, et al., 2006). However, the company has an opportunity to exploit the market due to the ever increasing number of leisure travelers and students who are in need of more affordable flights that can only be organized by travel agents. Flight Centre has a current share price of $21.590 regardless of the fact that there were many natural disasters experienced in the just concluded financial year. The company is expected to record a pre-tax profit of around $ 250 million which will be a 20% increase compared to the previous profit record (Roth, 2010). All the Flight Centre branches in ten countries recorded an increase in sales with the United States Branch bein g the highest with a $2 million profit. The high profits recorded in the last financial year are attributed to the increase in the number of leisure of travelers (Copley, 2004). The success of any organization depends on the strategic plans of the company and the management principles applied by the company’s leadership. Flight Centre has remained competitive and stable over the years because of the board’s resolve to safeguard the value of its shareholders all the time (Clegg et al., 1999). Some of the strategies put in place by the board to ensure the shareholder’s value is safeguarded include effective communication and charting of the company’s objectives, constant performance monitoring, establishment of risk identification and control mechanisms and strict monitoring and control of capital expenditure and investment. The board delegates power to managers and employees to ensure all the company’s financial and strategic objectives are met (Kot ler, 2005). All the employees are expected to uphold ethical standards in all their dealings. All the decisions made are based on the company’s constitution and core philosophies. Integrity is highly emphasized with all the managers and employees expected to comply with ethical and legal requirements of their area of duty.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Success Of Flight Centre specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Flight Centre has a well established audit committee that ensures that there is integrity in all financial reports of the company (Baherjee, 2007). The audit committee has the responsibility of reviewing the company’s financial reports to ensure all financial policies of the company are not altered in any way. Flight Center has transparent mechanisms that ensure a continuous disclosure of information to its shareholders especially on issues concerning share values (Werther, 2010). The compan y’s management respects the rights of its shareholders with the shareholders being given an opportunity to raise their concerns and opinions during annual general meetings. Flight Centre has well established risk management and control mechanisms with a strict compliance to Australian laws. The Remuneration structure of Flight Centre is fair to all the employees with the board ensuring that it is done responsibly and all the records included in the annual financial report (Mallin, 2009). Flight Centre has a fare wage structure compared to other players in the industry which has contributed immensely to the high level of motivation among its staff. Corporate Social Responsibility is an integral part of a company’s business activities and involves processes that ensure that the organization brings a positive effect to its immediate environment and the society in general (Kotler, 2005). Most companies are always under scrutiny by external stakeholders who always want to k now what the company does to promote the immediate communities and how it treats its staff and other stakeholders. Companies have the responsibility of improving the quality of life of its employees and the local communities. Companies pay taxes from their profits and also allocate a certain percentage of its profits to charity works that improve the general welfare of the society (Kotler, 2005). Social responsibility ensures that the company is well managed to make business remain competitive and sustain the value of wealth creation. Corporate Social Responsibility helps the company address environmental and social concerns voluntarily. Corporate Social responsibility offers the company a good opportunity to interact with its stakeholders and in the process impacting the society positively (Baherjee, 2007). By contributing to societal growth and development, the company is in other words promoting public interest.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More A good company should not only focus on making profits but should also be concerned about the environment and the people inside and outside the company. Corporate social responsibility clearly shows the consumers what the company stands for and its actual mission (Kotler, 2005). There is no formal legislation to govern corporate social responsibility but companies have to adhere to principles for responsible investment (Kotler, 2005). Apart from benefiting the society, companies receive a fair share of benefits through its Corporate Responsibility activities. The benefits might include financial benefits through gaining business, staff retention and recruitment, risk management, brand differentiation and goodwill from the government. In conclusion, Flight Centre Limited is one of the leading travel agent organizations because of its effective management strategies. Despite stiff competition from its competitors, the company has remained stable through diversification of its services and its efficient distribution centers established in more than ten countries around the world. Strategic planning combined with effective management approaches and principles have made Flight Centre to continue enjoying high profits over the years despite the many challenges the industry has been facing. Corporate social responsibility forms an integral part of the company’s involvement in the betterment of the environment and the society in general. How the company treats its employees together with their families and its role in improving the environment and the general society are key aspects of an effective Corporate Social Responsibility strategy. Apart improving the welfare of the society, the company gets some business and goodwill benefits in return. References Baherjee, S. B., 2007. Corporate social responsibility: The good, the bad and the ugly. New York, NY: Edward Algar Publishing. Clegg, S. et al., 1999. Global management: Universal theories and local realities . New York, NY: SAGE. Copley, P., 2004. Marketing communication management: Concepts and theories, cases and practices. New York, NY: Butterworth-Heinemann. Dobson, P. et al., 2004. Strategic management: Issues and cases. New York, NY: Wiley-Blackwell. Johnson, M., 2005. Family village tribe: The story of Flight Centre Limited. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons. Joyce, P., 2001. Strategic management: A fresh approach to developing skills, knowledge and creativity. New York, NY: Kogan Page Publishers. Kotler, P., 2005. Corporate social responsibility: Doing the most good for your company and cause. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons. Mallin, C. A., 2009. Corporate social responsibility: A case study approach. New York, NY: Edward Algar Publishing. Roth, M., 2010. Top stocks 2011: A share buyer’s guide to leading Australian companies. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons. Saloner, G. et al., 2006. Strategic management. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons. Thompson, J. L., 2005. Strat egic management: Awareness and change. New York, NY: Cengage Learning EMEA. Werther, W. B., 2010. Strategic corporate responsibility: Stakeholders in a global environment. New York, NY: SAGE

Essay on Eastern Sentiments

Essay on Eastern Sentiments Essay on Eastern Sentiments Essay on Eastern SentimentsEastern Sentiments is the book written by Yi T’aejun on his experience as Korean intellectual living in the country occupied by the foreign superpower, Japan, which had taken the tight control over the nation but still Koreans had preserved the opportunity to develop their culture and maintain their traditions, in spite of the occupation. The book involves the broad scope of different aspects of life described by the author. He shifts from the personal experience to national and regional ones describing the life of the nation and East Asian region under Japanese control. In such a way, the book is a valuable primary source of information on the colonial era and the life of Korean people and East Asia under the Japanese rule.   The experience described by Yi contributes to the better understanding of the colonial policy conducted by Japan on occupied territories and how the population of occupied countries responded to the Japanese rule. Yi reveals the colonial perspective on the life of Korean people under the Japanese rule and how the colonialism affected the life of Korean society and culture, individuals and East Asian region at large.The author narrates the story from the perspective of Korean intellectual, who holds the position in the upper-class in Korean society. Yi was the scientists, who dedicated his life to his scientific work, although he was never sure whether it was work at all. At any rate, in his book he clearly states that he does not really view his actions as the work. Nevertheless, he does his best to describe in details his personal experience of Korea in the time of the Japanese colonization. The colonization was the most significant event that can be clearly traced throughout the book, while Yi seems just to record his experience and makes his observations in the anecdotal form. More important, he does not just narrates the story of colonization but, instead, he gives the retrospection to the Korean pa st allowing readers to compare how he and Koreans lived before and during the colonization.At the same time, the author uncovers the position of Korean upper-class under Japanese occupation. As a representative of the upper-class he is not involved in any manual labor. Instead, he dedicates all his life to scientific works and whatever he likes to do, including gardening, cultural studies and performing other activities which are interesting and important for him in person. His lifestyle and activities were the characteristic of the lifestyle of the representative of the upper-class in Korean society. In this regard, the Japanese occupation and colonization of Korea did not have a considerable impact on the lifestyle of the upper-class of Korea. Instead, they led the same lifestyle. The only change the colonial policy had on the upper-class of Korea was the limitation of access of representatives of the class to the political power of the country and the supremacy of Japan that held the full political authority and power over Korea. On transmitting the political power to Japan, Koreans still preserved their economic privileges and cultural autonomy as long as they remained within their community which Yi defines as the interior space of Koreans during the colonization. Naturally, the Japanese got political and economic preferences as the country that occupied and colonized Japan but the Japanese did not eliminated Korean upper-class or changed the balance of power in the Korean society. The upper-class remained in the privileged position, while lower-classes born the major burden of the occupation which though referred to political and economic fields mainly, while cultural effects were dubious since Koreans   had managed to preserve their culture, while Japanese colonists were respected and Japanese cultural norms and traditions were manifested and supported publicly but it was rather showing-off attempts or manifestations of the respect to Japanese culture than the true admiration and acceptance of Japanese culture by Koreans.The book provides the detailed description of the Korean culture focusing on specific issues which are the characteristic of Korean culture, such as calligraphy. For instance, Yi describes calligraphy is one of the major achievements of Korean culture, which though may be unusual for the western audience, but still it helps to understand better Korean culture of that time and reveals the development of cultural traditions of Korea. Yi writes different anecdotal stories which uncover cultural norms and traditions of Korean people which Koreans preserved, regardless of the Japanese occupation and colonization of the country by the foreign power. In such a way, the writer uncovers the power of Korean culture and impact of traditions on the lifestyle of Koreans. In fact, the book shows that Koreans had preserved their cultural identity during the colonization and Japan had failed to ruin or change the cultural ident ity of Koreans.At this point, it is possible to refer to the personal experience of Yi, who apparently regrets about the past of Korea and he feels nostalgic about the past, when the Choson dynasty ruled Korea. His regrets are the result of his position of a scholar, who held the honorable position in the Korean society (Uchida 2011). He was free not to do any manual labor and was a highly respected person. In such a way, he could focus on his scientific research and explorations.   As a representative of Korean intellectual elite, Yi had preserved his cultural identity throughout the occupation and colonial time. He remained Korean all his life and the Japanese occupation had never changed his identity. Therefore, the author implies that other Koreans also had preserved their cultural identity during the colonial time. Such a preservation of the cultural identity of Koreans proves that Japan has proved to be either unable or unwilling to set absolutely new ideology in the coloniz ed territories (Randall188). The author describes the colonial experience of Koreans as the ‘mild’ colonization that may be unusual for western readers, who have the reading experience related to the colonial experience during the Nazi rule in Europe, when Nazi Germany imposed the fascist ideology on occupied territories eliminating any forms of opposition or difference (Uchida 2011). Even though Japan also enhanced fascist ideology, its impact was not overwhelming in Korea and the local population had preserved the cultural identity that was different from that of Japan.The author describes traditions and lifestyle of Korean people focusing on the life of representatives of the upper-class mainly, although he includes the description of other classes too (Wells 4). The theme of the life of a scientist in Korea of the 1930s is one of the main themes of his book. The life of the scientist in Korea was the life of the representative of the upper-class, who was free of the manual labor and had plenty opportunities to conduct his scientific studies as was the case of Yi.At the same time, Yi is not a narrowly nationalist in his writing concerning the socio-cultural environment he lived in. Instead, he has elaborated a broader view on the development of Korean and East Asian culture. In fact, he conducts the exploration of East Asian culture focusing on Chinese poetry, Japanese literature and culture. The broader view on the colonial policy and occupation of East Asian countries by Japan allows revealing the essence of colonial policies of Japan on occupied territories. The author views the colonization not as a mere occupation of Korea by Japan but as a part of the large scale expansionist policy conducted by Japan which was driven by its imperialist ambitions, while fascism served as the ideological ground for the territorial expansion of Japan and occupation of Korea and other countries in East Asia.   In such a way, Yi viewed Korea and Korean cult ure in the context of the East Asian culture. Therefore, he has managed to overcome national boundaries and has had a broader view on Korean culture in the context of East Asian one. Yi has managed to show the cultural development of East Asian countries under the Japanese rule. Yi estimates that other countries also tended to share Korean experience of colonization and Japan conducted similar policies in other countries of the East Asian region.In this regard, the colonial impact of Japan played probably an important part in the development of the worldview of the author because the occupation of Korea by Japan opened new broader perspectives on Korean and East Asian culture. Hence, the Japanese occupation contributed to the broadening of the eyesight of the author. As a result, he viewed the historical and cultural development of East Asia not from the sheer Korean perspective but from the East Asian or universal one.At the same time, the author uncovers the considerable impact of Japanese culture on Korea and population of occupied countries but this impact was basically limited to the political control and economic privileges of Japanese on occupied territories. In addition, the population of occupied territories viewed Japanese culture as mainstream but still they preserved their cultural identity and maintained their cultural norms and traditions.   However, the experience of the life of Korean people under the Japanese occupation reveals a number of noteworthy facts which reveal the substantial difference of Korean occupational experience with that of European countries during World War II, for example.Along with the profound attention to the cultural life of Korean and East Asian society, he focused on the broader scope of his description of social and cultural life of his time. In fact, his narrative is the detailed description of people living in his time, their problems, issues that were important for them. In such a way, his narrative reveals the modernity which Yi describes in details and readers feel the spirit of his epoch and the life of people living in Korea and East Asia in the 1930s.Yi also conducted the study of literature during the 1930s, which also saw the rise of Japanese fascism. The author uncovers the transformation of Japanese literature during the 1930s reveal clearly the trend to the emergence of fascism in Japan. The trend to the rise of faschism in Japan grew stronger along with the aggressive foreign polices of Japan. In such a way, the author gives insights into the essence of colonial policies as impersialist ones, while the occupation and colonization of new territories were justified by the fascist ideology which laid the foundation to expansionist policies of Japan.At the same time, he manifested his opposition to Japan publishing some avant-garde writers, although he had never openly opposed to Japan or criticized it publicly. In such a way, he remain devoted to his Korean cultural norms and trad itions, assisted the development of Korean literature and culture but formally or publicly remained loyal or, at the most, indifferent, to Japan.Social inequality was beneficial for the wealthy, upper class and even the occupation of Korea by Japan did not have absolutely destructive impact on their position (Yi, 185). In such a way, social inequality becomes one of the main themes of his books, which though is not always intentionally presented by the author. On the contrary, the social inequality becomes obvious from the context, as Yi uncovers his own life, as the life of the representative of the upper-class. On conveying his personal experience, Yi shows how different was his life from the life of the average people in Korea as well as other East Asian countries.At the same time, the author pays attention to the theme of the life and work of a scientist in Korean society of his time. He uncovers this theme because it is apparently close to him as a scientist. Being scientist hi mself, Yi shows that he did not suffer the severe oppression during the colonial time. Even though he regrets about the past, he does it just because he regrets about the Korean dynasty which he considered to be better for him because he liked their policies better than Japanese one, although such preferences may be the result of his patriotism rather than the quality and effects of policies conducted by the Japanese (Uchida 2011).However, one of the main themes of the book is the theme of occupation. At this point, it is quite noteworthy to compare the occupation of Korea by Japan and the occupation of western countries. For instance, the occupation of western countries is traditionally depicted as the severe oppression and full suppression of national movements, elite, and cultures. The Japanese occupation was milder than western one judging from the book written by Yi, who depicts the Japanese occupation of Korea as the ‘mild’ occupation compared to western perceptio n of occupation. Yi reveals the fact that, in spite of suppression from the part of Japanese, the local, i.e. Korean, upper-class still maintained its position.At this point, it is worth mentioning the fact that Yi distinguishes private and public spaces in colonized countries. Referring to the Korean experience, he insists that colonized nations tend to develop interior spaces, where they maintain their cultural norms and traditions. At the same time, there is the public sphere controlled by colonizer.   More important, there was no direct suppression of Korean culture by Japanese one as was the case of European occupational policies conducted by the Nazi Germany, for instance, which imposed German culture and rules on occupied territories (Wells 17).   In contrast to Japan the Nazi attempted to control all spheres of social life suppressing any manifestation of opposition or devotion to non-Nazi norms and traditions (Wells 17).Furthermore, Yi uses anecdotal essays as a popular form of narration which attracted the audience and made the book interesting for the large audience, including not only those, who are interested in Korea and Asia studies, but also the average readers, who want to explore new horizons and learn more about different countries of the world. In such a way, the author uncovers the impact of the colonization through anecdotal stories which depicted different episodes from the life of Yi and life of other people.Thus, the book Eastern Sentiments by Yi T’aejun reveals the experience of the writer, who depicts his life and the life of Koreans under Japanese occupation. At the same time, the author offers a broad view on the colonial policy of Japan and its impact on East Asian countries. In this regard, the author reveals the fact that Koreans had preserved their cultural identity, in spite of the colonization, but they had to develop dubious models of behavior. On the one hand, they retained their interior space, where they remain ed fully devoted to their Korean traditions, cultural norms and standards. On the other hand, there was the public domain, where Koreans had to manifest their loyalty to the Japanese and Japanese culture. Nevertheless, Korean culture and the upper-class maintained their pre-colonial position mainly, while the colonization had   had the most significant impact on the political and economic life of occupied territories.

Definition and Examples of Degree Modifiers in English

Definition and Examples of Degree Modifiers in English In English grammar, a degree modifier is a word (such as very, rather, fairly, quite, somewhat, pretty, sort of, and  kind of) that can precede adjectives and adverbs to indicate the degree or extent to which they apply. Also known as a  degree adverb(ial) and a degree word. The degree modifiers are adverbs that normally modify gradable words and answer the question How? How far? or How much? See Examples and Observations below. Also see: Adverb of EmphasisDowntonerIndirectnessIntensifierModification Modifier and  Premodifier QualifierSubmodifierTotally Overworked WordsVerbal Hedge Examples and Observations The good thing about Camp Catoctin was that it was  pretty small  overall. It was fairly easy to find your way around, even in the dark.(Beth Harbison, Thin, Rich, Pretty. St. Martins Press, 2010) Susie Van Berg was  awfully pretty, and  awfully kind.(Patricia Wentworth, Outrageous Fortune, 1933)Young love is a flame; very pretty, often very hot and fierce, but still only light and flickering. The love of the older and disciplined heart is as coals, deep-burning, unquenchable.(Henry Ward Beecher, Notes from Plymouth Pulpit, 1859)I addressed a question to him but he shook his head without speaking and gave me a  sort of sad smile- a lost world of a smile.(Lawrence Durrell, Tunc, 1968) His uniform was  a little too big, his black shoes a little too shiny, the crease in his troopers hat a little too perfect.(Scott Smith, A Simple Plan. Knopf, 1993) When a man asks himself what is meant by action he proves that he isnt a man of action. Action is a lack of balance. In order to act you must be somewhat insane. A reasonably sensible man is satisfied with thinking.(Georges Clemenceau, 1928) Intensifiers and DowntonersAdverbs of degree describe the extent of a characteristic. They can be used to emphasize that a characteristic is either greater or less than some typical level: Its insulated slightly with polystyrene behind. (CONV) They thoroughly deserved a draw last night. (NEWS)Degree adverbs that increase intensity are called amplifiers or intensifiers. Some of these modify gradable adjectives and indicate degrees on a scale. They include more, very, so, extremely. . . .Degree adverbs which decrease the effect of the modified item are called diminishers or downtoners. As with intensifiers, these adverbs indicate degrees on a scale and are used with gradable adjectives. They include less, slightly, somewhat, rather, and quite (in the sense of to some extent.) . . . Downtoners are related to hedges (like kind of). That is, they indicate that the modified item is not being used precisely. . . .Other degree adverbs that lessen the impact of the modified item are almost, nearly, pretty, and far from.(Douglas Biber, Susan Conrad, and Geoffrey Leech, Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written English. Pearson, 2002) Context Dependency of Degree ModifiersDegree modifiers . . . give specifications of degree concerning  the adjectives they modify. Adverbs such as very, extremely, absolutely  scale  adjectival properties upwards,  whereas other adverbs, such as slightly, a little, somewhat scale adjectival properties downwards. Rather, quite, fairly, and pretty set the qualities that gradable adjectives denote to a moderate level. Along with moderately and relatively, these degree modifiers are known as moderators (Paradis 1997).Like most degree modifiers,  rather, quite, fairly, and  pretty  are typologically unstable because they do not always neatly fit in the functional categories that linguists have assigned them. For example, quite is likely to be interpreted as a maximizer when it modifies an extreme/absolutive adjective (this novel is quite excellent) or a telic/limit/liminal adjective (quite sufficient), but it is likely to be a moderator when it modifies a scalar adjective ( quite big) (Paradis 1997:87). Past research has shown that context dependency  between adverbs and adjectives is not always decisive. It is often impossible to decide whether quite is a maximizer or a moderator. For example, quite is ambiguous when it modifies the adjective different (Allerton 1987:25). . . . Similarly, rather, pretty, and fairly can scale upwards or downwards . . ..(Guillaume Desagulier, Visualizing Distances in a Set of Near-Synonyms: Rather, Quite, Fairly, and Pretty.  Corpus Methods for Semantics: Quantitative Studies in Polysemy and Synonymy, ed. by  Dylan Glynn and Justyna A. Robinson. John Benjamins, 2014) Positioning Degree Modifiers- The word quite [as in the phrase The quite white house] belongs to the word class degree modifier.  A degree modifier is positioned  relative to an adjective, irrespective of the surrounding words, just as the article the is positioned relative to a noun, irrespective of the surrounding words. We can understand this by saying that quite and white are in the same adjective phrase, and that a degree modifier must come at the beginning of an adjective phrase.(Nigel Fabb, Sentence Structure, 2nd ed. Routledge, 2005)- Youre either very modest or  quite stupid. Take your choice.†(May Sarton, Anger, 1982)   The Fixed Class of Degree Words[An] example of words that dont fit neatly into one category or another is degree words. Degree words are traditionally classified as adverbs, but actually behave differently syntactically, always modifying adverbs or adjectives and expressing a degree: very, rather, so, too. This is a relatively fixed class and new members do not enter it frequently.(Kristin Denham and Anne Lobeck, Linguistics for Everyone. Wadsworth, 2010)

Public Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Public Management - Essay Example But in recent time, the emphasis on New Public Management/ Public sector management approaches has forced public organizations to pay closer attention to their services delivery as con summers have begun to expect and demand more for their tax dollars". In this instance, no consumer of public goods and services are content with grumbling about poorly- produced goods and services and the under-qualified, untrained employees who render these services to them. Hence, as societies become more critical and litigious, public service organizations must seek all possible avenues for improving their output and providing the satisfaction their clients require and deserve. This couple with the complex nature of governance in contemporary times, where government partakes in nearly every sector of the economy (statism) in service provision (though there is a reduction in this through the privatization policies of must governments), then there is the need to ensure that quality service is delivere d. Strategic management is usually associated with private organizations that operate in a competitive environment, but now it is a noticeable management technique adopted in the New Public Management, as a concept and practice, by public sector organizations. This essay tends to look at the advantages and disadvantages associated with the adoption of strategic management in public sector organizations. Also, the argument on the difference context of strategic management in the private and public sectors would be deliberated upon. CONCEPTUALIZATION OF TERM Strategic Management: strategic management involves a rational planning process directed towards achieving clearly defined coherent goals. According to Armitage (1992), strategic management is a continuous process that works to fit an organization into its changing environment. Strategic management is a broader concept than strategic planning. In the sense that strategic planning (or long- range planning) is traditionally regarded as a period process to develop long-range plans for the organization. On the other hand strategic management encompasses both strategic decisions making and strategic planning. Thus, strategic management focuses on any strategic decision that must be made, regardless of its time frame and the planning necessary to complement that decision. Strategic management is then conceive as "a continuous activity of setting and maintaining the strategic direction of the organization and its business, and making decisions on a day- to day basis to deal with changing ci rcumstances and the challenges of the business results; it is all about people, leadership, technology and processes. Effective combination of these elements will help with strategic direction and successful service delivery (OGC, 2005). New Public Management: the concept of new public management differs from