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Academic Personal & Professional Development

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Institution

Table of Contents

TOC o “1-3” h z u Introduction PAGEREF _Toc381321003 h 3Skills evaluation PAGEREF _Toc381321004 h 5Higher Education (HE) learning PAGEREF _Toc381321005 h 5Employability PAGEREF _Toc381321006 h 6Self-evaluation PAGEREF _Toc381321007 h 6Positives PAGEREF _Toc381321008 h 6Negatives PAGEREF _Toc381321009 h 7Action plan PAGEREF _Toc381321010 h 7Academic skills PAGEREF _Toc381321011 h 8Professional/personal skills PAGEREF _Toc381321012 h 93 assignments PAGEREF _Toc381321013 h 9Applications PAGEREF _Toc381321014 h 11Presentation Skills PAGEREF _Toc381321015 h 11Conclusion PAGEREF _Toc381321016 h 12References PAGEREF _Toc381321017 h 13Appendices PAGEREF _Toc381321018 h 15Appendix I: Skills Action Plan PAGEREF _Toc381321019 h 15Appendix II: assignments action plan PAGEREF _Toc381321020 h 17

List of figures

Figure 1: A representation of an action plan on academic skills ………………………………….8

IntroductionI am from Saudi Arabia, one of the richest countries in the world but very poor in education. On realizing its low potential in education, the Saudi Arabian government in collaboration with the ministry of education developed an education policy. The main objective of the proposed education policy was to promote education to all in order for the country to meet its economic, religious and social needs, and eliminate high literacy rates present among Saudi adults (Alkhazim, 2013). In addition, the Saudi King developed a program that sponsored Saudi students who recorded high performances and willing to study overseas in any of these countries; United States (U.S.), United Kingdom (U.K.) Australia, and Canada. I personally chose to apply for my king’s Studying Program in United Kingdom.

I am a humble person with high creativity nature and likes thinking outside the box. My objective in life is to pursue a career that will enable me achieve highest levels of productivity as an individual, and fully maximize the knowledge I acquire to exploit fully my talents and potential. I am always focused in my life dreams and reacts very fast when called upon to perform a task because I believe it is the only way to achieve success. In my studies, I have always loved to be as close as possible to my family since it gives me hope and desire to achieve my goals. To achieve my life goals, I need to conduct many researchers and write many reports in order to gain the knowledge needed in my field of study. I chose U.K. because it meets all my study expectations and I will have an opportunity to apply my lifestyle. Moreover, I require a degree in order to become a respected person in the society and encourage other Saudi people to specialize in education.

Skills evaluationSkills and human capital form the two main factors that determine the economic prosperity and social well being of an individual in the twenty first century. Individual and societal progress in the contemporary knowledge-intensive society and economies is widely driven by new technological advances; however they are all achieved through skills acquired in education (Dill and Van, 2010). In order to achieve my goals, I am supposed to pass through the higher education learning and possess skills that will enable me acquire a better paying job.

Higher Education (HE) learningHigher education forms a critical factor of innovation and capital development and plays an essential role in the success and acquirement of knowledge (Teichler, 2012). Students have an option of continuing their education to higher levels or just become comfortable with formal learning. HE is provided in universities, colleges, seminaries and academies. A person who goes through university education acquires a degree in higher learning (Chan, Brown & Ludlow, 2014). Cleveand noted the conflict of higher learning whereby employers want to train students for their first job after university whole the education rules require a student to learn for 50 years to gain self-fulfillment. The trouble, however arises because the student wants both. This creates a collision between each student’s short-term and long-term goals in the areas of training and education. As such, higher education is necessary in order to acquire both survival skills and also gain professional skills. In addition, higher education has become more popular in national agendas and most countries have made various reforms in the education sector (OECD, 2012).

EmployabilityThe main reason for studying, either acquiring a formal education or higher education, is to become employed. Employment has become a very challenging element because most people find it hard to acquire an employment opportunity even with the highest level of education. In order to ensure I successfully finish my HE and get a better place to practice my expertise, I require to posses some skills.

In order to be successful in higher learning and acquire a better employment, the following skills are required. These are communication, performance, creativity, and problem solving (Burns & Sinfield, 2012). Firstly, excellent communication skills are essential for an individual to pass in education and secure an employment. Communication enable a person share his knowledge and also, demonstrates one’s weaknesses. In addition, communication in class makes a student relate well with a lecturer and avoid barriers that might hinder him/her from passing. Secondly, to pursue in higher education and get an employment requires a performing individual. Good performance makes a person pursue his or her learning without any challenges. Moreover, employers look for a performing employee who has the capability of improving an organization. Finally, one should have quality problem solving skills and creativity. A person in higher education should have the capacity to get solution to any problem faced with irrespective of its nature. This skill also enables a person solve problems in workplaces once employed. An employer would like an employee who has solution to every problem in the company.

Self-evaluation

Positives I am proud of myself because posses almost all the needed skills to succeed in higher education and secure a better job. I have excellent communication skills which I learned when I was a young person. My parents used to challenge me to present a speech before the elders. Secondly, I am a good performer. Throughout my formal education I have been achieving higher grades, and also received several awards being in the first position. I used to pass my exams with exceptional marks that made my tutors recommend me for a scholarship. I am also very creative when needs arise. I used to invent many projects during our science congress competitions in high school.

NegativesEven if I posses quality communication skills, I get bored when someone brings an argument. I am poor in arguing even when I know I am right, I just quit. Secondly, I am slow in making decisions and always find myself unable to solve problems requiring immediate attention. I become nervous when faced with a challenge.

In order to improve on my short comings, I need to become more relaxed and dedicate more time in my higher education learning in order acquire the missing skills. In addition, I need to learn how to solve problems fast by trying online quizzes and attending discussion forums in the university. The few negative skills I posses have the potential of affecting my higher education learning and eventually ruin my dream of acquiring the best job in my career.

Action planAs discussed in the self-evaluation section above, I require taking serious action in order to acquire and improve on the academic skills and personal/professional skills missing.

Academic skills

Excelling in any learning institution requires a learner to have quality academic skills (Green, 2010). The figure below helps in guiding me on how to plan on how to acquire and improve the missing skills.

Set targets using information from appropriate sources and plan how to achieve them

Seek information on how to achieve what I want

Use the information to set real targets and develop clear action plan

Plan on time management gathering support to overcome challenges

Figure 1: A representation of an action plan on academic skills

From figure 1, the first action would be to set goals I need to achieve using information from appropriate sources. My past teachers used to tell my weaknesses in academics and why I usually fail to pass the exams with 100% mark. As shown in section 2, I have poor skills when it comes to arguing my point. My teacher once told me the reason why I failed in a debate class is because I never know how to argue a point. This skill has affected me a lot because I find it difficult to participate in debates of whatever nature. The best action plan on this matter is seeking motivation from my peers and lecturers in order to encourage me so that I can gain more confidence. On the other hand, I need to improve on time management and speed. I always find myself late with exams because I am slow in making decision and getting solutions to problems, even if get them correct at last. To improve on this skill, I must learn how to work fast by timing myself with others who are fast at solving problems.

Professional/personal skills

According to Andrews & Russell (2012), the first step in planning a personal skill improvement plan is identifying personal strengths and weaknesses. An individual requires being actively involved in a life circle of self evaluation, reflection, and target setting. As discussed in section 2 above, I mentioned my strengths and weaknesses and I can now come up with an action plan. My worst weakness is the inability to make quick decisions, which has the capacity of making my employer lose hope in me. Presently, organizations are run by people who are swift in all operations because of the high rate of competition. As a person with well set goals and objectives of leading a big organization, I require to improve on my decision making skills in order to tackle issues presented by my employees. The best action plan to follow on this skill is registering for management classes where I will be attending during my free time. The lessons I will learn will assist me in managing both my personal and professional life by having quick decision making and fast problem solving skills.

3 assignments

Assignment #1: S.A.D (System analysis and Design)

Assignment #2: Visual programming final assignment

Assignment #3: CAN (Computer & Network architecture)

Action Plan:

The following assignment is very demanding and the lecturer requires it at the end of the course. The following action plan will be adopted:

Step 1: Write the assignment down clearly and accurately at the time it is given recording the following:

Subject

Expectations

Assignment details

Number of pages required

Due date

Step 2: Estimate the amount of time needed to complete each assignment.

Step 3: Decide on the amount of time available for homework after class work each day

Step 4: give assignments with earliest deadline first priority

Step 5: Breakdown each homework time

Step 6: Stick with the schedule

Finally, I will conduct a self assessment to determine my ability to follow the proposed action plan. Appendix I shows skills action plan showing my strength, what I need to work on, and how I will measure my achievements. Appendix II is a Gantt chart representing the action plan on how to work on the assignments.

ApplicationsThe application of the skills learned in this subject can be applied in any the following three topics.

Topic 1: Presentation skills

Topic 2: Research & Referencing

Topic three: Goals & Time-Management

In my part, I handled the topic on presentation skills

Presentation SkillsOn this topic, the person presenting a topic needs to understand the main aim of presentation. A perfect presentation should inform, inspire, instruct and entertain viewers. The most important successful skill presented on this topic is communication skills. A person making any presentation must have quality communication skills. Effective communication allows flow of information and ideas from one person to another by use of gestures, smiles, and body movements (Worth, 2009). In addition, to make a good presentation one requires making notes of the important facts about the topic of discussion and memorizes them. Here the skill of memory keeping comes in. A university presentation must be brief and to the point. A person presenting a topic should be fully prepared to give proper explanation and answer any question that comes from the audience.

Lessons learned

From this topic, I learned that communication is vital for any presentation. Secondly, I discovered a successful person must have plan for any action in order to avoid being caught unaware. When presenting, one should be armed with answers to any question that might arise, or an explanation to any relevant information that the audience never understood.

ConclusionThe following discussion has given me an insight on how to become successful in life and achieve my goals. Firstly, I have gained more knowledge on requirements for a person to pursue higher education learning. The above skills and qualities will make me perform well in my university education and attain the grades I desired. Moreover, these skills will assist me when I acquire a place in a company because I will be in a position to please my employers with good professional skills.

ReferencesAlkhazim, M. A. (2013). “Higher Education in Saudi Arabia: Challenges, Solutions, and Opportunities Missed”, Higher Education Policy, 16(4), 479-486.

Andrews, G., & Russell, M. (2012). “Employability skills development: strategy, evaluation and Impact”, Higher Education, Skills and Work-based Learning, 2(1), 33-44.

Burns, T., & Sinfield, S. (2012). Essential study skills: the complete guide to success at university (3rd ed.). Los Angeles: SAGE.Chan, R., Brown, G. T., & Ludlow, L. (2014). What is the purpose of higher education? Philadelphia, PA: April 5, 2014.

Dill, D. and F. Van Vught (eds). (2010). National Innovation and the Academic Research

Enterprise; Public Policy in Global Perspective. Johns Hopkins University Press,

Baltimore.

Green, T. B. (2010). “Back to School With a Plan of Action: Are You Ready?.” NASN School ,

25(5), 199-199.

OECD. (2012). Tertiary Education for the Knowledge Society. OECD Publishing, Paris.

Retrieved from:

www.oecd.org/edu/tertiary/reviewTeichler, U. (2012). “Higher Education and Employment: Changing Conditions For Diversified Structures Of Higher Education,” Higher Education in Europe,19(4), 51-59.

Worth, R. (2009). Communication skills (3rd ed.). New York: Ferguson.AppendicesAppendix I: Skills Action PlanStrengths, skills and qualities

Good communication skills

Better performances

Creative

High IQ level

What I need to work on, develop or improve

Faster decision making

Control tempers

Time management

My Priorities: What I am going to do, When and How

What? When? How?

Exercise During class time Ensure I answer questions asked during class time

Engage in class debate and group discussion During debate time By calling upon my course mates to make me a leader in our group

Wake up early Every day Setting an alarm time everyday at 0600 hrs

How will I measure if I have improved?

Looking at my academic performances

Setting goals and achieving them

Letting my group members rate my participation in class debates and discussions

Appendix II: sample action plan

Business Intelligence and Data Analytics of Wal-Mart

Name

Institution

Abstract

The report offers data analytics and business intelligence plan for Wal-Mart. In recognition of the competitive nature of the retail industry, Wal-Mart must have accurate and actionable information generated from different data that is collected from the firm to promote its value chain’s activities effective and efficient. The blueprint proposes that the company should implement different data analysis systems such as, Sisense, analytical CRM, and GEP software to help generate information that can help improve business efficiency. Additionally, the management of data analytics and business intelligence data should be guided by the AckOff hierarchy of data. Data should be processed through the five phases to ensure that it is valuable and actionable.

Business Intelligence and Data Analytics of Wal-Mart

In the competitive retail industry business environment, where prompt response o market changes and needs are essential, collection and storage of data regularly are very important. The major requirement in the retail sector is the ability to extract valuable information from the collected data. Attaining such a goal needs significant resources and can take a huge time unless business intelligence and data analytics are used. Nonetheless, it is important to note that some of the information collected and interpreted may be incorrect and misleading. Therefore, to enhance the accuracy of information drawn from collected data, businesses such as Wal-Mart must invest in the Business Intelligence and Data Analytics by deploying updated approaches that generate and deliver the right abilities to meet the wants of a given user group. In this view, this report offers business intelligence and data analytic blueprint to help Wal-Mart attain effectiveness and high performance in its value chain.

Objectives

The main objective of this blueprint is to enhance the automation and improvement of information-intensive elements of business planning, variance analysis, performance management, and root cause analysis. It also aims at promoting automation and acceleration of correct and timely generation of business-unit and enterprise KPIs and dashboards to focus the attention of the company on Key customers and primary channels that drive the business’ desired results. The blueprint also seeks to improve the automation of trade promotion through enhancing its analysis effectiveness to cope with the trade promotion’s volume. His will enable a surgical approach to changing the trade support to customer-based marketing and advertising. Through the implementation of Business intelligence tools, the company will be able to offer comprehensive and standardized historical business facts and information for several enterprise budgets and plans. Besides, this blueprint will ensure that there is a cost-effective and timely monitoring of the company’s business operations through a standardized and dynamic view. It shall enhance the generation of business information and analytics in a manner that suits the utilization preferences of various components of the business.

Benefits of BI at Wal-Mart

The implementation of Data analytics and business intelligence in Wal-Mart will enhance the performance of the business since it has many benefits. These components will integrate relevant operational and financial information from different sources to boost their effective management. Besides, these technologies track several multiple aspects of business performance against the established performance metrics. It tracks customer behaviors and offers insightful information that can improve customer relations with the company. It offers multidimensional analyses of different customer traits to generate informative marketing and stocking information that enhances the efficiency of the business on the customers’ end. Furthermore, it offers a sophisticated decision making support since its information is directly based on historical information of business and decision-makers can make decisions from an informed point of view (Sato & Huang, 2015).

Ackoff’s Hierarchy of Data

Ackoff’s knowledge hierarchy of data also known as Knowledge hierarchy or pyramid illustrates different levels of data including wisdom, understanding, knowledge, information, and data. The pyramid was developed with the focus that managers require not more relevant information but little irrelevant information. Knowledge is illustrated as the know-how resulting from learning from experiences, instructions, and adaptation. Therefore, the process from the data to knowledge and wisdom requires an analysis of different issues, why they occur and how to improve them. As such, there is a need to automate information systems within Wal-Mart to generate information from different data that is collected. This will ensure that people can draw knowledge from this information since the systems only apply the knowledge created by people and do not develop it by itself. Besides, it wisdom of the users of the information will add value to the knowledge acquired to ensure that it is effective and applicable (Sleep et al., 2019). In this view, the Ackoff hierarchy of data will be the primary guide of the implementation framework of business intelligence and data analytics in Wal-Mart.

Business Intelligence and Data Analytics Tools for Wal-Mart

Primary Activities

Logistics and Operations

It is recommended that Sisense should be used in data analytics and business intelligence concerning logistics and operations. The system will intelligently manage Wal-Mart’s logistics and operations with analytics that offer accurate and complete insights into various data sources. The system accelerates the process of decision making with operational analytics. With the system, Wal-Mart will get almost real-time visibility into the vital operational performance indicators and maintain the speed of the business through capturing, analyzing, manipulating, and delivering relevant information for operation. The system can be customized into different categories. In the case of Wal-Mart, the system will be categorized to capture and analyze data of three different but inter-twined categories including inbound logistics, operations, and outbound logistics. The system will capture real-time data of in-progress and inbound inventory data. The data can be analyzed based on the location and number of tracks within the company. A combination of analysis with the outbound logistics will ensure that there is effective management of feet to ensure that there is not the truck that comes or leaves the company’s warehouses empty. Besides, these will ensure swift and fast deliveries to the customers and warehouses. The system will also enhance the analysis and generation of actionable information relating to the operations within the company. It will continuously analyze the activities within the company to ensure that similar operating concepts are applied in the company (Sisense.com). Through comparison to other companies and technologies in the market, Wal-Mart can use the system to identify the best operational practices that enhance efficiency and productivity within the company.

Marketing and Sales

The analytical CRM is the best system that can enhance the business intelligence of Wal-Mart. The system is the most viable because it gathers information about customers, stores, and analyzes it to enhance business operations internally and externally. The analytical CRM always collects huge data and processed to generate valuable insights. These insights help the marketing and sales team to make more informed and strategic marketing plans for Wal-Mart. The sales and marketing departments move from the insights to tangible actions which can streamline business process such as the sales pipeline. The system is the most appropriate for data analytics and business intelligence because it offers a systematic aid to decision making in the business. It aggregates customer information to create customer behavioral knowledge via data analysis and scouting for new sales opportunities. The benefits of this system are that it ensures that Wal-Mart discovers new forecasting and trends. It allows the company to conduct sales trends predictions and forecasts including geographical location and speeds at which they are created. The system not only creates an opportunity to develop effective sales and marketing plans but also informs online and warehouse analytics. The reports that it generates includes, customer analysis, sales analysis, market analysis, and service and channel analysis (Crm.com). These reports will ensure that the management and the concerned users add their value to make them actionable and promote low prices and tailor product categorization based on communities and the layout of the stores.

Services

The analytical CRM software shall be used to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of services within Wal-Mart. The system tracks the behaviors of the customers and provides analysis to ensure that the needs of the customers are satisfied. The customer satisfaction category of CRM focuses on the collection and analysis of customer information to build customer profiles and enhance understanding of their preferences, values, and determine geographic as well as demographic information. Indeed, being able to acknowledge the customer life cycle based on quantitative data creates a holistic opportunity to understand how to engage leads, convert them to customers, and also retain them. The system generates a service analysis report which combines information from customer sentiments, polls and other channels to identify customer satisfaction rates and perceptions (Crm.com). This allows Wal-Mart to work on its customer service offerings and directing efforts and resources to the right places. This can also allow the management to breakdown the cost of service and work on the balance between revenues earned and the service costs.

Support Activities

It is recommended that Wal-Mart incorporate Sisense software in its operations to help in deriving important information about the support activities of the company. The software enhances the cleaning of data without changing the original data; thus, it facilitates error-free analysis. The system also generates information which users can share to collaborate then, the goals of the company, and KPIs. The system uncovers actionable insights since it analyses the trends of collected data and identifies patterns that can be used by the users to make business decisions and predictions (Selecthub.com). The system can improve the firm’s infrastructure practices since it streamlines business efficiency. However, the system can only generate actionable insights that help managers to draw knowledge from them. It is, therefore, important that the managers add their wisdom, insights and what they know to ensure that the information becomes more actionable. The system will ensure that there is information that can boost the integrations of activities and enhance a balanced scorecard in the value chain.

The system is highly recommended because it is considered as fast and secure. Sisense delivers its analysis fast through single-stack technology which eliminates bottlenecks between data and the analysts. Besides, the system stores data securely using the advanced learning machines which detect anomalies in the data and instantly transmits an alert. These components are very important since there is a need for the data and information generated to be remitted fast and in a secure manner to benefit Wal-Mart’s business. The system has in-chip analytics which combines the smart algorithms, and columnar database as well as a combination of either ram or disk as opposed to disk or ram only. This feature allows the processing of other tasks and improves speed. The software also enhances the ability of users to blend big datasets from various sources promptly. Users can do dicing, slicing, and exploration of data in an accessible interface. After analysis of data, the system organizes it into visual information, for instance, line graphs, pie charts, and bar charts to facilitate easy interpretation. It has machine learning abilities that allow the system to learn previous analysis patterns and actions to provide a suggestion for performing recurring reports (Selecthub.com).

The system will enhance the overall operations of the business, particularly in the support activities because it is effective in collecting and analyzing data on operations of businesses. The system has an API framework that allows users to customize and standardize the platform to meet their business wants to ensure that they attain their expected results out of it. In this view, the software can be customized to gather and analyze information on different components including firm infrastructure, human resource management, technology development, and procurement. The system can offer information concerning different infrastructures of the company visa via its competitors and new infrastructures in the market to enhance efficiency in its management. It shall help create an efficient management process of employees through the collection of their reviews and feedbacks to understand their needs and deliver on them promptly (Kocakoç & Erdem, 2010). Besides, it will enhance the analysis of the compensation strategies of the employees to ensure that they are remunerated well. It shall facilitate the comparison of different technologies in the market to ensure that the most efficient ones are utilized within the company.

For procurement, the GEP software is most appropriate since procurement entails the generation of a huge and specific volume of data. The software offers both ongoing and hoc analytics in different areas. The software is essential because it offers self-service analytics as well as reporting to enable procurement to create reports and analyze different components of procurement. It has predictive analytic features that ensure a forecast of procurement spending and requests based on anticipated changes and previous business history. It also has an offer scorecard that helps monitor the performance of procurement based on the established efficiency and effectiveness metrics. This promotes instantaneous and informed decision-making processes in the procurement sector. The system also identifies risks to the suppliers, including compliance and pricing risk (Gep.com). Therefore, this system will ensure that there is a real-time association between suppliers and store inventories and best company-supplier relations.

Application of Ackoff’s Hierarchy of Data

The recommended systems are only data analytics and business intelligence tools that collect and analyze data of Wal-Mart to help in decision making. However, the generation of actionable reports entails a process that moves beyond these systems. In this case, Ackoff’s hierarchy of order will help the company in converting the information collected into valuable knowledge and actionable information. The data analytic systems and software that are proposed above only offer insights and information that can help the company make critical business decisions. The information generated from the recommended system is often contextualized (Sleep et al., 2019). In this view, it covers the data and information category in the hierarchy of data.

In the knowledge pyramid, knowledge sits above information. In this case, after data has been analyzed and information generated by the system it is upon the users to extract important knowledge from them. Knowledge from the information that is generated by the different systems shall be done by experts in different fields (Sleep et al., 2019). For instance, the marketing and sales personnel shall interpret the information from the analytical CRM to create establish the know-how and convert the information into actionable instructions or plans.

Using the knowledge gained from the interpretation of the generated information from the system; the experts in different departments will develop appropriate and strategic plans to improve on the areas that are identified to have inefficiencies and also strengthen the primary and secondary activities of the Wal-Mart to improve its productivity and profitability (Erickson & Rothberg, 2019). For instance, the logistics and operations personnel use the knowledge gained from the information generated by the Sisense to create operational plans that enhance effectiveness and efficiency in the management of truck fleets and inventories.

The wisdom which is defined as the knowledge that is applied in action is at the peak of the knowledge hierarchy. It is the process through which individuals make comparisons of the proposed actions (Sato & Huang, 2015). Experts at this stage will have to further analyze the proposed actions and determine the reasons why they implement a given action. Besides, the review will determine the best possible actions to be implemented to ensure not only effectiveness but efficiency in different activities within Wal-Mart.

Conclusion

Overall, it is important to acknowledge that the main component of the blueprint which will ensure that there are efficiency and effectiveness in all activities at Wal-Mart is the adoption of Ackoff’s knowledge hierarchy in the analysis and interpretation of data analytics and business intelligence data. The major software that is recommended includes Sisense for support activities, GEP software for procurement activities, Sisense for operations and logistics, and analytical CRM for services, sales, and marketing. These systems will help collect and analyze data that can be used by the management to make key decisions that will improve effectiveness and efficiency. Consequently, the systems will facilitate the creation of actionable plans that can help improve the business operations at Wal-Mart.

References

Crm.com. ‘Analytical CRM Software-Definition and Key features.’ Retrieved from https://crm.org/crmland/analytical-crmErickson, G. S., & Rothberg, H. N. (2019). Big data, knowledge, and business intelligence. In Advanced Methodologies and Technologies in Business Operations and Management (pp. 569-577). IGI Global.

Gep.com. ‘Big Data Analytics for procurement.’ Retrieved from https://www.gep.com/big-data-analytics-procurementKocakoç, I. D., & Erdem, S. (2010). Business intelligence applications in retail business: OLAP, data mining & reporting services. Journal of Information & Knowledge Management, 9(02), 171-181.

Sato, A., & Huang, R. (2015, December). From data to knowledge: A cognitive approach to retail business intelligence. In 2015 IEEE International Conference on Data Science and Data Intensive Systems (pp. 210-217). IEEE.

Selecthub.com ‘Sisense Software.’ Retrieved from https://selecthub.com/business-intelligence-tools/sisense/?from_category=258Sisense.com. ‘Agile to Build Powerful Analytic Apps.’ Retrieved from https://www.sisense.com/why-sisense/Sleep, S., Hulland, J., & Gooner, R. A. (2019). THE DATA HIERARCHY: factors influencing the adoption and implementation of data-driven decision making. AMS Review, 1-19.

Abusive Customers Cause Emotions Run High

Student’s name

Department of affiliation

Course

Instructor

Date

Abusive Customers Cause Emotions Run High

Dealing with customers, especially of late, has had its ups and downs. This is one of the jobs which can mess up a person’s emotional stability in a horrible manner since customer service involved dealing with all types of people as long as they are customers. This exposes a person to kind, humble, angry, irritated, and other categories of people who never allow the customer care even to talk or express the company’s stand. Some of these customers can be humiliating to think of and more so to deal with. Therefore, customer care service providers must always be prepared for anything and not always take what is said to them personally. The challenge of dealing with customers who are not considerate also comes with the burden of preparing for emotional “dryness” or merely the inability of a person to be adversely affected by what they are told. Therefore herein discussed is how dealing with an abusive customer leads to burnout and stress, personalities best acquainted with the ability to handle any customer and the role of emotional intelligence when it comes to dealing with customers (Gnewuch et, al. 2017).

Stress and burnout are everyday experiences of many people since almost everyone gets tired at some point in their lives. The stress of knowing that a person has to get back to the same kind of job daily and to go and deal with a particular person or people be it, customers, work-mates or boss, can cause a lot of emotional instability since a person keeps on thinking the worst that can happen and this never makes them do their job in the right manner. This stress ad burnout is even more critical to the individuals responsible for operating at the customer service desk in any company or organization. This is because people have different tissues which they go through every day, and life to the customer service providers becomes a mixture of every kind of person. The customer service providers experience the challenge of abusive language from the customer to the customer service agents. This is never seen as a good thing but rather as a way of being rude.

However, since the companies and organizations do not exist for the emotional, behavioral, and spiritual direction of a person’s life, it becomes tough to help some of their clients because of emotional instability and their issues which they amplify to the companies even for the smallest mistake done by the company or organization. This makes it very difficult not only for the company but especially for the customer care who receives this. Therefore, it is always essential for a company to train their customer service members on how they can do away with this issue of getting emotionally frustrated and how to channel these bitter feelings and anger caused by clients and customers.

Therefore it is true that dealing with abusive customers can lead to burnout and stress. Stress in the first place comes up with trying to please the customer who is not willing to be pleased and who is not willing to listen to the situation as it is. Therefore this already makes the customer service provider stressed about how he/she can put it for the customer to understand. This mostly happens when customers call to complain and give out their problems about a specific issue they do not like about that particular company or organization. This makes life difficult for the customer service providers and makes it at times unbearable as the customer service providers get too much emotional luggage they have to deal with. It is even made more difficult because most businesses value their customers and clients more than their employees. Therefore the customer care has to make sure that they accommodate and never show emotional anger or dislike.

This, even though intended for the company to retain its customers, brings a lot of emotional damage to the employees, especially the customer care people. From the continuous streams of stress, the customer acre personnel develops burnout as they do not have a way to deal with what they are going through. This is one of the undesired effects of working as a customer service personnel.

Deciding the person supposed to fill a certain position is always difficult unless a person has been close all through. Therefore this is a common challenge and it is the challenge I could face if I had to decide the people to get into a customer call center. The difference in people’s behaviors and traits makes it difficult or easy for them to be indifferent to situations, some of which are viewed as challenging and others viewed as suitable for anyone. Therefore it also follows that some individuals fit best for a customer service call center than others.

These differences come in from their personalities or experiences. A job of a customer service call center requires a person who can redirect his anger and thoughts and the anger and frustration that come along with the clients positively and make sure that it does not affect him or her negatively (Alkahtani, 2016). Therefore, if I were the hiring human resource manager at a call center, I would mainly check a person’s personality and traits and how much they can withstand emotional frustration.

The major personalities for consideration of this job include; the hard worker, empathizer, innovator, controller, the rock, the competitor, and the accommodator. From a general perspective, an agent of a customer service call center should overcome the emotional baggage thrown at them. Other qualities include their ability to solve problems creatively, empathy, proper organization, calm under pressure, good memory, optimism, team player among other factors which would make them perform very well in dealing with the customers. The empathy and intelligence of the one being employed should be used not only for the customers who call but also for the whole working environment (Herzig et, al. 2017).

Of the seven types of personalities present among service delivery among individuals, companies and working environments of late have a large number of empathizers. Even though this personality works well and empathizes with the customers if they are undergoing a problem, controllers are still the best choice and therefore this means I would choose a controller over an empathizer. This is because controllers use less energy in helping clients while the empathizers take more time to empathize with the client or customer which is unnecessary.

Controllers’ ability to keep calm under pressure, optimism, good memory, and other factors that qualify them for the job also makes them worthy of making peace reign among the employees and everyone around them. Controllers have different qualities within them and some of these include; Emotional intelligence, talkative and their ability to let their feelings be known to the other side of the talk. Therefore hiring this kind of person becomes a very crucial asset to the company. Therefore I would dismiss the other types of personalities or maybe cooperate with a few of them but rather concentrate and focus on controllers. Through this, the call center would be the most favorite of all people, and it would also be respected for quality service (Alkahtani, 2016).

Emotional intelligence means a person can put aside their emotions when dealing with the customer or rather be ready enough to face the customers from a very mature level whereby the customer is swayed back to what should be happening rather than beginning to talk with the same amount of anger which the customer uses. Therefore emotionally intelligent people remain calm and take time to think critically and respond to issues. This can help a lot in dealing with abusive customers. The nature of talking is that if a person is angry and I don’t get angry but rather keep calm and talk to them, I will make them calm. However, it is responding to a person with the same amount of anger which they use to attack me that means I would only accelerate and make the anger more and these areas always awkward instances whereby a customer and a customer care provider both are arguing over very few things which do not matter very much. (Kaptanoğlu, 2017).

By using emotional intelligence, a controller can sense what the customer is feeling. Therefore, they try to bring in solutions to the customers because they know what they want from afar. Through this, an emotionally intelligent customer care agent will express empathy to the person going through an issue, and in this case, the person is the customer. Here, the apprehension skill can be stated to be handling other people’s emotions. Along with this other apprehension skills which are essential and which emotionally intelligent people use are; dealing with personal emotions more readily, ability to push forward in the face of setbacks, sensing what the others are feeling, etc. therefore, through these dimensions, an emotionally intelligent person can deal with the others around them and in this case to deal with customers and clients.

Therefore, in conclusion, I can say that it is true that the work of customer service is considered difficult by most people. However, suppose a person is ready to be formed on how to deal with and handle different people. In that case, this is an opportunity for a person to get to know how much they can be social and what that they can make the world a better place by utilizing their strengths and recognizing their weakness however never allowing themselves into them and therefore through this it becomes possible for achievement to be realized and in this case for customer service to be made better.

References

Alkahtani, A. H. (2016). The influence of leadership styles on organizational commitment: The moderating effect of emotional intelligence. Business and Management Studies, 2(1), 23-34.

Gnewuch, U., Morana, S., & Maedche, A. (2017, December). Towards Designing Cooperative and Social Conversational Agents for Customer Service. In ICIS.Herzig, J., Shmueli-Scheuer, M., Sandbank, T., & Konopnicki, D. (2017, September). Neural response generation for customer service based on personality traits. In Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Natural Language Generation (pp. 252-256).Kaptanoğlu, R. (2017). An application on organizational commitment and emotional intelligence. Balkan and Near Eastern Journal of Social Sciences,(IBANEZ), 3(3).

Latif, H., Majoka, M. I., & Khan, M. I. (2017). Emotional intelligence and job performance of high school female teachers. Pakistan Journal of Psychological Research, 333-351.

Political Science

Name:

Professor

Institution

Course:

Date:

Maurizio Viroli on patriotism

Maurizo Viroli has vital information to people who are interested in matters concerning nationality. He believes that people should not waste their time trying to find out the nature and scientific definitions of nationalism and patriotism. Instead, more focus should be on what it means to love a country. This crucial information will be obtained from prophets, agitators, poets and scholars. The different views, which are presented, by people has made the words nationalism and patriotism not be known by many people. The view point on internal hermeneutic is responsible for ensuring that global citizenship is achieved. The republic is of valuable concern to many patriots and has various reasons to support this notion. For example, the republican life allows people to have a lot of freedom and thus a reason why it is popular.

On the other hand, cultural and spiritual unity among people is valued as well as upheld by those in support of nationalism. The nature of republican life is an issue, which is not treated as it deserves most times. There are different love types that exist and are often expressed by nationalists and patriots. According to patriots, love is meant to be generous as well as charitable. This means that people who are well off should be helped as a result of the republican love, which exists. Political freedom is an issue that needs to be addressed as it is related to patriotism. Values of a nationalistic nature should be banned as they are a determent towards achieving a republican status. Citizens of a country should always aim at achieving loyalty that is univocal.

An antidote, which is powerful in solving the matter concerning nationalism, is patriotism among republicans. The former often leads to directing, strengthening and resuscitating people’s passions. It lays emphasize on people’s historical and cultural identity, as opposed to approving rational agents that are interpersonal. It can be claimed that as the world is being affected by globalization, people are aware about their obligations as well as rights. This means that matters concerning patriotism are being ignored as they are of no value. People should aim at embracing patriotic republicanism, which is contemporary. According to Nathanson, people should obey the power, which rules and governs them. They should only question it if their lives are being threatened. This concept is similar to that, which is presented by Maurizo Viroli.

The writer Martha Nussbaum is known for being a classicist as well as influential. According to her, patriotic people owe their loyalty to other citizens and their country. This means that patriotism is against the fundamentals of cosmopolitanism. The latter encourages individuals to think in a globalised manner. They are often taught to be world citizens, and Nussbaum is a firm believer of this notion. She believes that patriotism is required if cosmopolitanism is to succeed. The power of legitimacy is upheld by the states, and its citizens have to abide by it. When people are, required to approve of the political legitimacy it does not mean that they are being patriotic. Rather, they are following what their power has established, and authority dictates that they do so. This means that the love they have for the state is not voluntary, but rather it is forced. This love is known to be induced as citizens are subjected and persuaded to follow their political authorities.

Citizens should at all times demonstrate that they are capable of expressing their collective responsibility. They have to be aware of what it means to be patriotic and mostly on matters concerning justice. People who are patriotic are often informed on matters concerning justice. Forms of justice, which exist in society, should bring effective racial relations that are distributive and productive. Citizens should always make decisions that are of high quality as well as ones, which are moral. The democratic ideals, which exist in society, should be upheld by various citizens. Cosmopolitan considerations should always be made as it comes with various distinct responsibilities. People have a duty of being cosmopolitan in order to deal with the problems that exist concerning patriotism.

As a result of using the same reasoning as Socrates, it will be possible to find out more about Nussbaum’s reasoning. Globalization has ensured that people believe in the same ideologies but convincing them will be extremely difficult. In higher institutions of learning, students are being taught on how they can become liberal. In order to solve errors and excesses, cosmopolitan pluralism must exist. In conclusion, the arguments presented by Maurizio Viroli demand that patriotism is in need of being revived, and this is true. Furthermore, globalization has affected people’s perceptions concerning citizenship and patriotism. Moreover, Nussbaum’s arguments on the needs to have citizens who are cosmopolitan is extremely true as well as beneficial. Indeed, republicanism should be enhanced so that people are aware about the need to attain political freedom.

References

Viroli, M. (1999) .Republican Patriotism. Oxford: oxford University Press.

Nussbaum, M. (2002). Patriotism and Cosmopolitanism. New York: Beacon Press.

Heater, Derek. (1999). What is Citizenship. New York: Polity.

Nathanson, S. (2001). Should We Consent to Be Governed 2nd Ed. New York: Wadsworth.

Name

Professor

Course

Date

Mission statements of my goals and objectives in life

As a college student, I am tasked with the responsibility of planning for the rest of my future after I complete my studies. It is thus ideal for me to come up with goals and objectives that will guide the choices I make in the next level of my education. I intend to take on engineering as a career in the future. This is a relatively challenging course to pursue due to the amount of hard work involved. My love for reading has been instrumental in the determination of the essential inspirational books. One of the books that have played a significant role in determining my objectives is Steven Covey’s 7 habits of highly effective people. The books assist students to develop habits that enhance growth in all aspects of life. It is advisable to exemplify successful role models so as to follow in their footsteps. Covey mentions the qualities of some of the people who have been monumental in the success of their economies.

Achievement can be weighed using different premises of argument. An individual can choose to achieve both in their personal life and career life. One of my goals is to have a successful career that will cater financially for the rest of my life. It is difficult to achieve this today due to the economic recession that hit the country in 2008. This however does not deter me from fulfilling my dreams which are attainable through hard work and focus. The book seeks to inspire upcoming entrepreneurs in their quest to dominate their world market. One of the initial steps of making my dreams possible is through listing the number of goals and objective that I intend to accomplish in the next five years. It is recommended to come up with a five year plan so as to create a time limit of one’s goals and objectives. After college I expect to advance into the next stage of my life by getting a job in an engineering company. This should pave the way for me establish myself amongst influential people in the industry. One of the ways that I can make this possible is by accustoming myself to the environment that I would prefer to work in.

My ultimate goal is to however have a successful company which will determine the way I spend the rest of my life. Most people take up a form of investment that caters for their retirement when they choose to stop working. This requires a colossal sense of discipline in order to save considerable amount of money. I intend to live a comfortable life which does not limit my spending in the possible future. Most of these goals and objectives can become a reality through the determination and following the stories of highly effective people. The look at Covey’s book acts as a guide on how to take on challenges that one may face during the pursuit of their dreams.

Becoming an engineer is not only vital for my future but for that of my family and surrounding environment. Having my own company will help me empower qualified persons thus giving them an opportunity to improve their livelihoods. This in turn will earn me a mark in society as a monumental contributor to the growth and sustainability of the community as a whole. Contributing effectively to the society’s development will leave a legacy of my traditions, norms and values on the event that I pass on.

Mission, Vision, Values, and Goals

Lockheed Martin’s mission, vision, values, and goals are as follows:

Mission: “We solve complex challenges, advance scientific discovery and deliver innovative solutions to help our customers keep people safe” (Lockheed Martin Corporation 2022). This mission means that the company is in place to provide solutions to complex issues, advancement of scientific discovery and provision of channel where innovative solution in the industry can be sought to help ensure the safety of the people their customers serve. This is clear especially based on the fact that the company deals with government agencies and hence the end user impacted by the technology is the citizen. Ensuring that the end user is safe is paramount and hence all decisions, innovations and advancements must be based on this mission and all operations aligned to it, which is an actual reality for the company.

Vision: “Be the global leader in supporting our customers’ missions, strengthening security and advancing scientific discovery” (Lockheed Martin Corporation 2022). Lockheed Martin envisions itself as a leader in supporting its clients’ missions in areas of security with a clear focus on advocating for scientific discovery.

Values: The company identifies its core values as; Do What’s Right, Respect Others, and Perform with Excellence (Lockheed Martin Corporation 2022). For the company to achieve its vision of being a global leader, it has recognized that it must respect issues such as diversity, human rights and good labor practices as well as quality driven performance. Thus, the company directly indicates that it values and admire doing that which is right in all situations and circumstances; maintaining self-respect and respect for others; and ensuring that all performances are geared towards excellence.

Thus, there is a good alignment of the company’s vision and core values. It makes sense, therefore that as a company that has been dealing with public agencies and governmental organization, its impact on the larger society is significant. Upholding the above values on a global scale will help to achieve the vision and by extension assist in realizing the broad mission of being dedicated to innovation to solve complex global and local challenges.

Goals: Besides being guided by the mission, vision and core values, Lockheed Martin has strategic goals that are short-termed and evaluated every few years. The goals are based on prevailing issues in the industry and also in the external environment and are designed to support its mission and vision. For instance, there are the Go Green Goals set in 2016 as the baseline to immediately reduce per-occupant waste by 11%, energy use by 14% in 2025 and overall carbon emission by 70% in 2030 (Lockheed Martin Corporation 2021). These professionally crafted strategic goals are set in the background of the climate change debate.

Reference

Lockheed Martin Corporation (2022). About Us. https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/who-we-are.html

Lockheed Martin Corporation (2021). Lockheed Martin. Your Mission is Ours. https://www.lockheedmartin.com/content/dam/lockheed-martin/eo/documents/lockheed-martin-fact-sheet.pdf

Meat Made Manifest: Complicated Consumption in My Year of Meats

John Ueno, a Japanese advertising representative, has just returned, intoxicated and clumsy, from a night at the bar. He stumbles into his apartment, mumbling incoherently and seeking his gracile, porcelain wife. By the end of the night, he has violently raped her and, consequently, performed the ultimate act of subjugation and domination. Ueno uses sexual intercourse, an act that typically symbolizes affection and passionate consummation, in order to exert his masculinity and power. This rape, an example of sexualized violence within Ruth Ozeki’s My Year of Meats, demonstrates the way in which the consumption typically associated with food may become intertwined with the idea of dehumanization, thereby causing the consumption of man. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, consumption is defined in multiple ways. It is primarily defined as “the action or fact of consuming or destroying; destruction,” and additionally defined as “the using up of material, the use of anything as food, or for the support of any process.” The emphasis placed on the destructive element of consumption reinforces the idea that when a man consumes a woman, he is metaphorically “digesting” her role as an autonomous female and recreating her new role as a soulless “meat” that may be exploited to fulfill any purpose desired by the male counterpart. In My Year of Meats, the consumption of meat is paralleled by a similar physical and moral consumption of people, thereby transforming humans into soulless pieces of meat that may be consumed without consideration and effectively blurring the animal-human boundary that is commonly accepted in society.

In My American Wife!, the TV show that John Ueno represents, it is constantly proclaimed that “Meat is the Message” (8). The show equates each week’s featured wife, presumably the focus of the show, with high-quality beef, and likens the perfect wife to a specific kind of meat: “ample, robust, yet never tough or hard to digest” (8). Through the equation of women and cuts of beef, Ozeki highlights the common assumption of men such as Ueno, Suzuki, and Oh that the consumption of females within society is comparable with consumption of beef, promoting the belief that consumption of female sexuality is linked with the destruction of female autonomy. The roles of a proper wife are also characterized within the description of meat: the perfect wife should be fertile and strong, yet also feminine, obedient, and graceful. The “traditional family values symbolized by red meat in rural America” are thereby transferred to Japanese women through the television show, and the women become the “meat made manifest” (8). The producers’ ability to interchange the wives featured on the show and the beef they are preparing as if one is solely the representation of the other emphasizes the way in which women are treated like beef – consumable and dehumanized.

Akiko Ueno, John’s wife, is required to watch My American Wife! and produce the meat recipes that are featured on each week’s show. Ueno forces this requirement on Akiko due to her battle with infertility – her inability to have children is attributed to the fact that “her ovaries were starved” (20), and Ueno believes that if she “put some meat on her bones” (20) she would be able to produce a baby. In addition to her sterility, Akiko also suffers from bulimia. During her struggle with this eating disorder, she vomits every time Ueno forces her to eat meat. The lifeless meat, described as “an animal alive…climb[ing] its way back up her gullet until it burst from the back of her throat” (37) is personified with the capabilities of living flesh. Additionally, her vomiting is explained by the fact that she “could not keep any life down inside her” (38). This directly corresponds to her inability to become pregnant and keep a child inside her uterus. Subsequently, her bulimia stops as soon as she begins menstruating and consequently regains her ability to maintain life inside of her. By describing the meat as a life force that is capable of wreaking havoc on Akiko’s internal organs and concurrently comparing pregnancy to ingesting meat, Ozeki compares the internal process of digestion with the creation of human life and distorts the boundary between meat and man.

Ueno supports the animalistic consumption of man through the production of his TV show, but he also demonstrates this activity in episodes of his own life. At the climax of the novel, Ueno commits the ultimate act of inhumane sexual consumption – rape. Ueno’s rape of Akiko perfectly illustrates the transformation of a human female, containing emotions and thoughts, into a piece of meat that may be consumed at one’s will. His sole objective is the creation of a child; through progeny, Ueno hopes to redeem his masculinity and restate his role as the head of the household. In the process of fulfilling his own selfish desires, he disregards the emotions and desires of his wife. Rape – an action defined by its focus on violent, carnal satisfaction – debases the act of sex, eliminates the uniquely human idea of intimacy, and focuses on the fulfillment of the body rather than the soul. When Ueno commits rape, he disregards the human qualities of his wife and essentially reduces her to the emotional value of an animal. Furthermore, immediately prior to ejaculating, he makes a reference to Akiko being “in heat” (239). Human females are not typically referred to as being in heat – this is a term used by cattle breeders in order to effectively breed livestock and produce offspring. By comparing Akiko to a cow and sex with her to a mere form of breeding, Ueno reduces Akiko to chattel whose sole purpose in life is the creation of progeny.

The woman-meat correlation and Ueno’s obsession with fertility continues within one of Ueno’s conversations with Jane. He states, “We Japanese get weak genes through many centuries’ process of straight breeding. Like old-fashioned cows. Make weak stock. But you are good and strong and modern girl from crossbreeding. You have hybrid vigor” (43-44). The words that John selects in order to describe the fertility complications experienced by him and his wife and the way in which he perceives the apparent fertility of Jane draw very clear comparisons to meat and cattle breeding, therefore comparing women to livestock that must be properly bred with men. Ironically, the idea of “hybridity” that John apparently prefers in his choice of mate is the same concept that he detests in his selection of the wives for My American Wife! In the memo that details the guidelines for wife selection, it states that each chosen wife should be “a middle-to-upper-middle-class white American woman with two to three children…a modern role model” (13). John’s statement takes on another layer of irony considering Jane’s infertility and the fact that after several unsuccessful attempts at pregnancy, she declared herself “a ‘young mule’…[whose] mulishness went further than just stubbornness or racial metaphor…like many hybrids, it seemed…[she] was destined to be nonreproductive” (152). There is a very strong focus placed on the cattle-breeding idea that hybridity, or lack thereof, can influence a woman’s reproductive or marital success, although evidence clearly shows that with humans this is not the case.

The novel’s focus on the animalistic consumption of females is also apparent in its recurrent references to pornographic sexuality. Suzuki is described as a man with a “passion for Jack Daniel’s, Wal-Mart, and American hard-core pornography” (33). Ueno’s affection for Texan strippers, curvaceous and fertile, highlights his dissatisfaction with his wife’s “scrawny” (43) body and inability to produce children. When one of the strippers, Dawn, gives Ueno a lap dance, the act is described in terms of consumption as well, stating that she “straddled his tenderloin and offered up her round rump for his inspection” (43). The direct correlation between Dawn and a cow under inspection creates an additional comparison between women and meat. Pornography and stripping are two facets of society that revolve around the consumption of bodies as opposed to the appreciation of people. Pornographic material revolves around the mass production and consumption of sexual behavior as marketed to an audience, stripped of any kind of true intimacy or emotion, and stripping is a profession that is based completely upon the appreciation of a woman’s physical assets and disregard for her personality. Ozeki, describing the male proponents of this type of entertainment, is criticizing the mass consumption and dehumanization of sexual behavior commonly observed in animals as opposed to the private, intimate nature of intercourse that is unique to humans.

Jane furthermore explores a relationship between meat and sexual activity within her relationship with Sloan. They begin their relationship over the phone, maintaining anonymity and using phone sex as a method of sexual interaction. When they finally have their first sexual encounter, the sex is still relatively anonymous as they barely know each other, and Jane even states that she feels “rocked by the heart-pounding terror of fucking a total stranger” (54). This anonymous sex, based on nothing more than physical attraction and carnal desire, downplays the importance of love – or even emotional respect – within the sexual experience. Moreover, after one of their later sexual experiences, Jane reminisces that they “spent the weekend tangled in the polyester sheets, celebrating the mouthwatering diversity of meats” (166). She directly compares their sexual experience with the consumption of meat.

Although Ozeki draws a clear comparison between men and beef through her multiple comparisons of the two entities, she also stresses the connection through certain passages where humans are deliberately compared to animals that are not considered red meat. When Akiko doesn’t care about sex, Ueno describes her as a “cold, dead fish” (195). Her disinterest in the consumptive activity of sex removes her cattle-like characterization and instead classifies her as a cold-blooded fish. Within the context of My American Wife!, the TV show that Ueno uses to express his belief about what constitutes the “perfect” family, only beef may be consumed by the acceptable women. Along with pork and lamb, fish is an inappropriate food and therefore intolerable within society. By depicting Akiko as a fish, and thereby rendering her unfit for consumption, Ueno is emphasizing the fact that her lack of interest in sexual activity makes her an undesirable, imperfect wife.

In addition to Akiko, paraplegic Christina is portrayed in terms of non-red-meat food when she is described as “more or less a vegetable, uncomprehending, incapable of speech” (132). When Christina is removed from the sphere of red meat, a description that classifies women as objects of consumption, she is placed on a higher plane of existence and becomes practically ethereal. According to the Mayor, her transformation into a vegetable caused her to be “on another plane…above us somehow, but not really here” (139). This otherworldly quality that Christina possesses places her above the base acts of carnal consumption and instead endows her with a wraithlike, beautiful quality. Her physical attributes support this image, and she is described in the following manner:

Christina Bukowsky was beautiful. Not beautiful in any ordinary, earthbound, Midwestern sense of the word, but transgressively so…her skin had grown so clear that you could see life moving below the surface of her cheeks…when she opened [her eyes] again, her new blue was pellucid, the eyes of an angel that had rested for a while on Another’s countenance…Christina was simply and heartbreakingly radiant (137).

Suzuki and Oh, previously characterized by their obsession with pornography and tendency to “use [magazine cutout] girls for target practice, shooting out their tits and crotches with air guns they’d bought at Wal-Mart” (34), fell in love with Christina and became captivated by her delicate beauty. She had such a profound effect on them that she transformed their fixation on the sexual appeal of women into a feeling of love and affection, evident in their appalled reactions when the flight attendant jokingly asks if they believe Christina “still can, you know…[have sex]” (138). After Suzuki and Oh meet Christina, Jane notices that the two of them “stopped shooting out the crotches of blond girls in their motel room… [the] visit to Hope had changed them” (139). By meeting a woman who rose above the “meat-like” sexual appeal of normal women, the two men overcame their obsession with the sexual, cattle-like aspects of females and chose love over sexuality.

Furthermore, Christina does not menstruate – a complication that effectively renders her incapable of fulfilling the role of fertility that is typical of her sex. Not only is she not “red meat,” but she is not even capable of producing children This apparently moves her to a superior plane of existence, eliminates her categorization as an item of consumption, and equates the menstrual process, which allows women to bear children, with the image of being more meat-like and therefore worthier of being consumed. By inviting this comparison, Ozeki is addressing the societal idea that sterile women are inappropriate wives since they cannot be mothers – a belief that instigates a one-dimensional view of appropriate femininity and brings into question what allows a person who fulfills the female sex role to additionally fulfill the feminine gender role. If infertility precludes femininity, then nothing technically separates barren females from being considered men, and they therefore cannot be the targets of female sexual consumption. This could be an explanation for Christina’s removal from her sex’s role as objects for sexual consumption, her placement into a higher level of existence in which she encapsulates aspects of both manhood and womanhood, her resulting function as a paradigm for a “gender role” that rises above the weaknesses of each gender’s stereotype, and her final characterization as a Christ-like figure, angelic and ethereal, that seems to transcend corporeal existence altogether.

Within My Year of Meats, Ruth Ozeki draws numerous comparisons between humans (specifically females) and meat. By linking the consumption of female sexuality to the consumption of red meat, specifically emphasizing the connections forged with fertility, pornography, and debasement, Ozeki calls attention to the blatant objectification of women in today’s society and the ways in which women are valued solely for their roles as sexual objects. In a world that is defined by the overabundance of strip joints, pornography, dirty magazines, and advertisements that blatantly objectify women, it is important to analyze the way in which this chauvinistic attitude is both created and perpetuated. Ozeki’s semi-cannibalistic claim that the basis of a prevalent focus on objectification is the desire for animal-like consumption of the female body can offer an explanation, and possibly a mechanism for change, for the blatant accentuation of the female sexual role in modern society.

Business Law

Student’s Name

Institution of Affiliation

Question 1: Engagement Ring.

The question as to whether an engagement is a contract for marriage in particular if an engagement ring is presented has been controversial with some people claiming that it is a contract. However, this is not true, in that there is no contract for marriage. Engagement rings are treated as conditional gifts in which a person gives their partner in the period of courtship. Anything can happen before marriage, and the couple may call it off. According to many states, an engagement ring is a conditional gift that is conditioned upon marriage between two willing parties. Therefore, if the condition does not occur, that is, the parties don’t end up in marriage, then the gift is not completed. It would be assumed that the gift never reached the intended recipient, and therefore, the ownership of the gift reverts to the original owner or the individual who gave and who is presumed to have bought the ring.

In an engagement, many people may do it without the involvement of a lawyer, and it may just be considered as a promissory note by the partners that they will be in marriage in a few months or years. Under this approach, it is difficult for legal action to be taken, and therefore, the courts refuse to consider the party responsible for the breach in a failed agreement. It should be noted that in many cases, the courts as well may not be able to identify the precise reason for ending the relationship as it considered private affairs. It would be wrong if a court to wade in murky waters in trying to assess faults in a broken relationship. If the engagement ring was offered by the family of one of the partners, it should be returned to them as it never served the intended purpose.

Question 2: Corporate Social Justice

In Dodge v. Ford Motor Company, 170 N.W. 668, the court was right in that the company owed a duty to the shareholders of the Ford Motor Company to operate his business to profit his shareholders rather than the community as a whole or the employees. However, corporate has a moral responsibility to society, and this means that they cannot only operate on the principle of shareholder value alone. The shareholders are not the only ones that play a crucial role in the success of the business as without the customers and the employees. It would be much difficult to achieve the much-desired profit value by the shareholders.

Having the company benefiting the community and the employees is an advertising strategy that might be a long-term goal for the company to increase the pool of customers, which will eventually increase the profit margin. Therefore, if I were given the opportunity to run a such a business, my primary priority would not be to the shareholders but to the employees and the community as it is more of an investment and their contribution is not only money but also the growth of the company’s image which have the eventual results of business expansion. When the court states that the company should concentrate on the shareholders and not the entire community, it fails to recognize the corporate’s social justice responsibility in which all human beings are treated based on the concepts of human rights and equality. Everyone has the right to benefit from the company without discrimination.

Name

Professor

Course

Date

Abuse in Elderly Nursing Home

Slyne-with-Hest a nursing home in Lancashire found themselves in the news for all the wrong seasons. There were four staff in the home that were charged for abusing the elderly who had dementia as they though these individuals would not remember what was done to them. The elderly experienced both physical and emotional abuse that was characterized by being pelted with bags, bullied and mocked. According to one of the elderly person in the home, he stated that his foot was stamped on deliberately while another was almost tipped from their wheel chair. The actions of the workers are considered abuse because they inflicted pain on the elderly with the belief that these individuals would not end up remembering what happened to them.

The suspects, Michael Bryne, Daren Smith, Carol Ann Moore, Katie Cairns and Gemma Pearson were araigned in court and were charged with abuse of the elderly. Smith got an 8-months sentence, Cairns got a 5- months sentence, Moore 4months and Pearson was asked to carry out 12 months of community service and carry out 40 hours of unpaid work. Most of the victims were pulled from this home by the family because the management did also cover up the crimes.

In my opinion, the nursing home needs to fire everyone who was involved in the abuse incuding the entire management and hire other people who may have much compassion. There should also be close monitoring of the workers to ensure they carry out their tasks diligently. I believe the case was handed as it should have been. When local authorities received information about the possible abuse, they visited the home. Later the case was followed up by Care Quality Commission due to anonymous emails sent. The four suspects were arrested by police and the Lanshire County Council demanded a full inquiry into the issue.

Reference

Walker, P. (2014, January 10). Hillcroft nursing home care workers jailed for abusing elderly residents. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jan/10/hillcroft-nursing-home-carers-jailed-abusing-residents

Business Environment

Student’s Name

Institutional Affiliation

Business Environment

Slide 1: Definition of Business Concepts

At the beginning of the course, I understood business as a process of exchanging goods and services with the aim of earning profit. Through this course, my comprehension of business has changed from just a process which does not only involve the exchange of goods and services. In this business has come out as an aspect that requires planning and laying of strategies to overcome the competitive forces of the free market (Stiglitz, 2015).

Slide 2: Definition of Business Concepts

Ideally, in this course, I understood business as a single-tier aspect involving general stakeholder analysis. However, this course has explicitly outlined to me that stakeholder analysis is a vital aspect that allows the business to understand and protect the interest of people who are influenced or influence decisions made in the business (Corporateethics, 2009). Ideally, the role of the government in business has been outlined to be laying out a regulatory framework to ensure fair competition and genuineness of products sold.

Slide 3: Definition of Business Concepts

Consumer behaviour as a business principle indicates why consumers make certain choices for products they purchase for consumption. For this reason, businesses have to understand the consumer decision-making process for them to understand consumer behaviours. Ideally, companies also ought to conduct an internal analysis to identify the strengths and weakness of the business (Corporateethics, 2009).

Slide 4: Business Environment

This is composed of external or internal factors which have a collective impact on business performance. Throughout this course, I have understood that external factors also influence how business organization functions. The business environment is also composed of microenvironment and microenvironment (Stiglitz, 2015).

Slide 6: Lessons relation to the Present and Future.

Lessons learnt throughout this course are helpful to my present and future career path. In the present, the knowledge I have acquired allows me to comprehend the fact that business is more than a collection of activities aimed at making profits. In the future, the knowledge that I have acquired in this course will allow me to effectively plan and strategize for my business as well as perform a stakeholder analysis. By understanding the concept of business environment, I can effectively understand the various aspects that have a collective impact on business performance and functioning of the business.

Slide 7: Reflective Business Practice

In this course, we learnt on the concept of reflective business practice which allows business practitioners to apply critical thinking and evaluation of one’s actions with an aim to continuously learn and develop professionally. By studying, the deeper contexts of this concept, I will be able to create platforms for my business to grow as well as improve my profession based on the reflections and critical evaluation of my actions.

Slide 8: Applying Concepts in the Future.

Having gone through this course, I have acquired knowledge of the business environment and other essential business concepts. Through this, I will apply this knowledge to perform stakeholder analysis, business environment scanning, complying to the existing government regulations and managing my workforce. Ideally, I will also use the knowledge acquired to perform consumer behaviour analysis. All these aspects will be aimed at boosting the business-stakeholder relationship and the overall business performance.

Slide 9: Professional Development Outside Formal Studies

Outside the formal learning environment, I will use various platforms that will help me professionally develop myself. Such platforms include special business projects, community involvement, job rotation at the work place and use of groups such as committees and peer groups.

References

BIBLIOGRAPHY l 1033 Corporateethics (Director). (2009). What is stakeholder theory [YouTube]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIRUaLcvPe8

Stiglitz, J. W. (2015). Principles of economics(Ebook-Second Edition).