DM Bicycle Company

As the HR director of DMBC I have witnessed first hand the change in Mr. Duncan’s responsibilities to the company. He has become deeply afflicted by the diagnosis of Batten disease to his nine year old daughter Nicole. Wanting to begin a new CSR program aimed at combating Batten disease Mr. Duncan has gone out on his own accord to use the windfall created by the FY11 projections to help fund this endeavor of his. Though I’m empathetic and personally feel for what he and his family are going through, Mr. Duncan still has a responsibility to the employees and shareholders of DMBC. By combining his role as CEO with his role as a father it is clear he has gotten off track and has overstepped his responsibility as the face of the company. My concerns with what is happening at DMBC has to do not just with the proposed CSR program for Mr. Duncan and it’s effects towards the company, but also with the duties of the senior leadership and the current culture amongst them. If he goes through with funding a new CSR program in order to help his daughter Nicole, Mr. Duncan will be doing more than just taking away bonuses from our well deserved employees. He will be changing the core principles and key practices of DMBC. When I approached Jim Miniter in order to get some resolution about the situation he told me several things that created a feeling of unease. As we talked in his office he said â€Å"We’re going to have to present this change (new CSR program for Batten disease) in the annual report and at the shareholder meeting—but I guess Gino can finesse those things,† and when I asked him if he would talk to Mr. Duncan he responded with â€Å"I can’t. It would be like betraying a brother. This rationalization by Mr. Miniter and his loyalty to Mr. Duncan has skewed his primary duty as the CFO of DMBC. I believe as the CEO, Mr. Duncan is an agent to the individuals who own the corporation and its employees not the other way around. By letting him fund this project without debate, he has created an environment where employees are afraid to speak up about his direction. He wants to change the current CSR program of Ride for Life towards a cause that personally benefits his interests which is ethically unsound. Senior leadership has been passive in letting Mr. Duncan force his future CSR program for fear of disloyalty and reprisal. While talking to other employees they’re also afraid. They’re afraid of possible effects on promotions and evaluations if they do not follow suit or participate in helping Mr. Duncan use the projected windfall for his daughters fight against Batten disease. I make these following recommendations in order to thwart off any negative effects Mr. Duncan’s professional choices could have against DMBC. Create an indoctrination program for all new employees and a refresher training course for all current employees to establish the company’s code of ethics and values. By doing this, we’ll have employees who are responsible into ensuring that leaders are consistent in their commitment to proper ethical behavior. Rather than put the Ride for Life program on hold we need to expand on it by creating a program that raises the issue of Batten disease. Raising awareness for Batten disease doesn’t have to be just monetary. The Ride for Life program has been so successful—both in raising employee morale and in creating positive public relations that Dottie Thompson had been working for nearly a year to take the program national. Though Mr. Duncan is the CEO, he should lead the Ride for Life/Fight Batten Disease CSR program so it allows him to focus on his cause and spend more time with his family. By having him focus directly on what has been side-tracking him from his professional duties for the last several months he will have a greater impact with everyone who is connected to DMBC. It also allows him to expand awareness of DMBC CSR programs from Greensboro to Rochester, New York that will benefit the company. Lastly, employees should be allowed to dictate where their bonuses and participation goes without fear of retaliation from corporate. I can assure you by allowing them to decide where their bonuses and volunteer work go they will end up supporting Mr. Duncan and his cause even more than despising him. I understand my position as the HR Director at DMBC, but it is also my duty regardless of title to uphold my values, integrity, and my overall responsibility to the employees and shareholders.

Amending the U.S. Constitution

The Constitution is considered as the fundamental law of the land. This holds true because it lays down the basic laws that govern governmental activities. It also provides the rights that every citizen enjoys. In addition, it serves as a guide in the policy-making of the government. Historical accounts reveal that certain provisions in the Constitution become necessary depending on the acts of the government. Through time, demands also change, and in meeting these demands, the need for change arises. Thus, the Constitution allows itself to expand by virtue of ratification or amendment.This has been inculcated in Article V of the Constitution which states the amendment process. Constitutional Amendment Procedure In amending the Constitution, the proposal has to undergo a tough and strenuous process. By virtue of Article V, Constitutional amendment can be done in two ways and requires the process of proposal and ratification. The first way of amending the Constitution is through a pro posal emanating from the Congress. When Congress wants to make amendment, the proposal shall be approved by a two- thirds vote of each house of the Congress (Oatman 9).If the required vote was met, the proposal will be sent to the states for ratification (Oatman 9). In the state legislature, a vote of three- fourths of the states is required for the proposed amendment to be ratified. The second way of amending the Constitution is through a proposal coming from the states (Oatman 9). In this method, two- thirds of the states need to agree on Constitutional amendment. When the required number is met, the states will request for Congress to setup a Constitution Convention where an amendment will be proposed (Vile 1).Three- fourths of the states in the convention must ratify the proposal before it becomes part of the Constitution. During this process, the Congress specifies either to do it through legislature or through special ratifying conventions (Vile 1). In any of the processes, an y state should not be deprived of their right to equal representation, unless they have consented to it (Vile 1). From the Constitutional amendment processes provided, it can be inferred that such entails majority and strong common agreement on the proposal.In addition, in each process, the federal government plays a vital role. Thus, the Constitution itself is federal in nature (Vile 1). Reasons for Establishing the Methods for Amending the Constitution Prevention of abuse of power is one among the reasons for adopting the above stated procedures. When Article V was being deliberated in Congress, George Mason perceived that abuse of power may result if the consent or the power to propose amendment be left alone with the Congress (Labunski 127).On the other hand, if the power to propose is granted to the states alone, they may also abuse their power, and Congress will have no way to interfere. Thus, the deliberation ended with participation of both federal and state legislature. Ano ther reason is the prevention of other amendment processes that involve violence and chance which happened during the British era (Vile 2). Through the processes recognized by the Constitution, any proposed amendment will have to pass an â€Å"an easy, regular and Constitutional way† (Vile 2).Thus, the established Constitutional amendment was meant to preclude abuse, violence, and by chance procedure in amending the Constitution. Successful Amendments: The 13th Amendment Among the successful and popular proposed amendment is 13th Amendment which states: â€Å"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction† (â€Å"Constitutional Amendments†).The said amendment further states: â€Å"Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation† (â€Å"Constitutional Amendments†) . The amendment was proposed on January 31, 1865 and was ratified on December 6, 1865 by both North and South states of America (â€Å"Constitutional Amendments†). The impact of the amendment was overwhelming as it was as useful tool in eradicating slavery in the country. Moreover, it grants the Congress to legislate laws to enforce the first part of the amendment.Unsuccessful Proposed Amendments: ERA There are also several proposals which did not pass ratification, such as the â€Å"Equal Rights Amendment† or ERA which was intended to establish equality of men and women (â€Å"Constitutional Amendments†). Despite its zealous purpose, the proposal was not ratified because the number of states that approved it was not met before the deadline, even if it has been extended (â€Å"Constitutional Amendments†). It seems that several states were unwilling to express equality among men and women in the Constitution.Perhaps, the proposal failed because of its impe nding threat to the dominance of men. Based on the above stated, it can be clearly concluded that amending the Constitution is not an easy task. Moreover, Constitutional amendment entails the participation of all levels, from state to federal government, because of the public interest that proposals raise. Furthermore, the required vote is abundant enough to strongly establish the willingness of the majority. Conclusion The process of amending the Constitution is not an easy task, nor is the process simple.A state that wishes to make amendments passes a strenuous procedure which starts from petitioning the Congress for a convention to ratification. The convention will not be formed if the states fail to meet the required number of states. On the other hand, the Congress, voting separately, has to meet also the required number in order to make proposals. The Congress then passes the proposals to the states for ratification. Hence, in amending the Constitution, regardless of the propo nent or origin of the proposal, both the state and federal governments are involved. Works Citedâ€Å"Constitutional Amendments† 2008. US Constitution Online. 20 August 2008 . Labunski, Richard, E. James Madison and the Struggle for the Bill of Rights: And the Struggle for the Bill of Rights. New York: Oxford University Press US, 2006. Oatman, Eric. Amending the Constitution. Pelham, NY: Benchmark Education Company, 2006. Vile, John, R. Constitutional Change in the United States: A Comparative Study of the Role of Constitutional Amendments, Judicial Interpretations, and Legislative and Executive Actions. London: Greenwood Publishing Group, 1994.

Analysing Product Development Within Dell Computers

Analysing Product Development Within Dell Computers The Product Development at the Dell Computer Corporation case can be summarized with just its name, product development. The case focuses on development of Dell’s personal computers, highlighting the area of the laptops. The personal computer industry can be dated back to the 1830’s and Charles Babbage with his invention of the first digital computer. However with limitations of materials and marketing his vision mainly stayed on what is called â€Å"the drawing board.† It was not until the time period of World War II when a factory size computer was created by army engineers, they were named Mark I and Colossus and they were 50 feet in size. Through the 1960s and the 1970s only the government, mainly for defense, and big business had the opportunity to use computers. As technology increased and microchips replaced the wires and transistors, and financial availability became friendlier for consumers the microcomputer revolution began. In the 1970s and 1980s Appl e Computer was a successful leader in a commercialized interface that was easy to use. Apple set the technological pace for cramming as much new technology in to their products as possible. IBM who was always trying to play catch up with Apple kicked off its traditional corporate based computer line, with strong direct sales and service. Dell also released its own branded personal computer in 1981. During the 1980s personal computer sales grew from nothing to $40 billion dollars. It was in 1983 when Dell Computer was started by Michael Dell, who at this point in time was a freshman at the University of Texas. He would upgrade IBM compatible computers and go door to door selling them. The success was overwhelming for Dell, and he moved off campus and dropped out of school, with the initial idea of returning back to school if there was failure with the business. However, with $180,000 in sales during his first month the idea of going back to school never entered his mind. The next ste p for Dell was to buy and assemble his own brand name personal computers and get them directly to the customers. This is where Dell’s principle to eliminate the middle man began. With this premise in mind, high growth rates and attractive margins the building of the Dell name began. Soon, Dell would start a 24 hour complaint hotline and they would offer a supply of backup replacement equipment. By 1990, Dell computers had a distinctive line of its own personal computers which won several trade magazine awards for service and products. By 1990 microcomputers accounted for 40% of all computers sold. And there was major competition the brands helping to drive down the costs of manufacturing as well the cost for the consumers. With the development and success of Dell and their direct to consumer sales as well as their laid back sales manner, imitators such as Gateway 2000 and CompuAdd began business. While focusing on the competition Dell expanded in to the retail market attempti ng to gain more revenue. However, this was unsuccessful since Dell overshot the target budget of sales, finding them in a cash crunch. It was then decided on that that needed to do something different. They needed to stand out again

Obstacles in the Facilitation of Critical Thinking in Nursing students Research Paper

Obstacles in the Facilitation of Critical Thinking in Nursing students in Jeddah - Research Paper Example Nursing students need to be trained and exposed adequately to the critical thinking process as part of nursing syllabi and pedagogy. A literature review of the works in the area of critical thinking has thrown up many issues. This paper examines: what Is critical thinking; critical thinking as needed in the nursing profession; strategies to facilitate critical thinking; techniques that can be used by teachers to help the students identify and challenge their assumptions and barriers to critical thinking. This paper also seeks to address the various obstacles to critical thinking process being faced by a population of nursing profession students at King Abul Aziz University in Jeddah. This is done by triangulation method deploying the quantitative analysis and qualitative analysis of the collected data. Quantitative data has been collected via a structured questionnaire administered to nursing students and qualitative data is collected from smaller subgroups of both nursing students a nd faculty. The results of the analyses are used to form findings and recommendations. Enhancing critical thinking amongst student nurses is a common concern of nursing education. At least one previous study is known which ventured into probing the strategies to overcome obstacles in the facilitation of critical thinking in nursing education (Mangena & Chabeli, 2005). The findings of this study indicated that there is a need for nurse educators to model critical thinking in all aspects of nursing education. Recommendations suggested an entire paradigm shift in nursing education from the traditional teacher-centered methods to a more learner-centered approach that will facilitate critical thinking of student nurses. Drawing from this study this research project would test the hypothesis that a paradigm shift in nursing education from the traditional teacher-centered methods to a more learner-centered approach.

Paper 3 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Paper 3 - Assignment Example Friedman tries to explain that targeted sanctions were used by the Greek Empire to address territorial conflicts. The aim was to pressure the enemy or political foes to change tactics.Friedman analyzes the evolution of politically motivated sanctions in the ancient Greeks. Also, he also explains that there has been a lengthy history of nations blockading their opponents to force a change in behavior. Friedman concludes that sanctions have become a new political tool in the 20th century since they are currently active compared to the 2,400 years ago as a result of several changes in civilization and new appearance in political arena as compared to the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. European pacifists enacted a series of conferences in the early 20th century in order to discuss how to enforce the decisions of the proposed International System of the arbitration. This was a regulation body handling any aspect of dispute resolutions. Henri La Fontaine, Belgian International law professor persuaded delegates to approve peaceful sanctions through acquiring the legal terms from the nations who had better governance. As a result, delegates from member countries adopted the resolution as a solution to national conflicts. However, French representatives endorsed a treaty to isolate countries in times of war. The French officials described the resolutions as a diplomatic expression. In 2011, the US and the United Nations enforced political, economic and territorial sanctions against the Libyan president. The mission of the enforcement was to isolate the Libyan president and his allies. During the sanctions in Libya, struggles for bank software to recognize the various s pending of the Librarian president was to be ascertained. However, the sanctions could not achieve their objectives because of technical flaws. Between 2011 and 2012, the US imposed

The Affordalbe Care Act Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Affordalbe Care Act - Research Paper Example every citizen has the right to obtain affordable and dependable health care, which is the responsibility of the Federal government to make sure efficient provision of the service. The notion encouraged him to fight for legislation the Affordable care act. Obama’s ideologies on health care is founded on believe that the insurance companies unrestrained authority to influence care, and patient insurance have left many Americans uninsured and underinsured (Phillips 20). In accordance with the new law commonly termed as â€Å"Obama care,† Obama believes that American citizens are geared towards the provision of a health care system that is secure. The scheme entails Americans receiving health insurance through employers to make citizens coverage reasonable and secure. The scheme permits individuals with pre-existing conditions the capability to get preventative care with no payment of deductibles and co-pays. Additionally, Obama states the new law would eradicate insurance overpayments and fraud cases in Medicare together with Medicaid systems, which would save people a lot of money. This move permitted Obama to ensure the expansion of health care provision to many people who would have been insured, but now enjoy coverage on their parents’ scheme until they reach 26years of age. The Affordable Care Act offers seniors similar benefits that would need individuals earning more than $200,000, to make contributions to the Medicare Trust Fund beginning starting in 2013. When evaluated the health care visions in the past and the current are noticeably

Business Models and Planning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Business Models and Planning - Essay Example Of course, this meant that the market was viable. With about 99.99% of the market untapped, there was a great business opportunity for Chase and partner. More drivers would soon need the services so that business idea was highly viable, and there would be great returns (Hart et al., 2005). The main competitors were Swiss Mobility CarSharing-it had 1400 cars at the moment-and Stadtauto. The latter had only 300 cars. The former had a membership of 30,000 people, and operated in some 700 locations and was mostly concentrated in expanding in Switzerland. Drive Stadtauto had about 7,500 members and did operate in 110 locations. Other competitors were only potential in that they had not already set shop. They included CommunAuto, Car-Sharing Inc. and FlexCar. To differentiate it, Chase and partner focused on cost effectiveness and convenience when other companies focused more on environmental impact. They priced their services relatively cheaper and had diverse products when other competitors concentrated on just one or two products (Hart et al., 2005). Chase and partner used a catchy name-Zipcar. The name communicated their intention so that customers readily related to their services and the core rationale behind their idea; which was basically to share ownership of cars at individual convenience. They employed low-budget advertising techniques. For instance, they got 40% of their customers through word of mouth and referrals where already registered members referred others. Public relations also came in handy for them since they got 25% of their customers through this tactic. They also employed guerrilla grassroots efforts of marketing. Members advertised the services even without knowing they did through well-crafted logos that conveyed environment conservation (Hart et al., 2005). Chase ensured that communication was passed through the websites. She emphasized on quality, convenience, low costs and the

Internal Legal Memorandum Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Internal Legal Memorandum - Term Paper Example When Jones walked over to the Colt house to complain, they set the dog on her and she narrowly missed being bitten, falling down in her panic and because of her recent hip surgery. She returned home in a complete panic and developed a nervous tic and paranoid about leaving her home The major issues raised in this case would be (a) nuisance (b) harassment (c) assault and (d) intentional infliction of emotional distress as well as (e) criminal destruction of property. The first issue arises because of the noisy parties at nights, with bright lights in the backyard and during the day, the children trying to send their balls into Jones’ birdbath. The harassment arises because of the way the Colts responded to her request to stop the nuisance activities with the threat to unleash their dog on her. The assault issue arises because the dog Sirius did indeed attack her and would have quite likely caused actual physical harm if it had not been distracted by another dog. As it is, the dog caused injuries because Jones fell down and hurt her hip that had recent surgery. The intentional infliction of emotional distress arises because of the way the Colts responded to her grievances, with animosity and an attitude of conflict rather than amity and cooperation. The l ast issue of criminal destruction of property arises because of the fence the Colts built that impeded the access to sunlight of the plants in Jones’ garden. The rule on nuisance would assess how much disturbance was caused to the Plaintiff and whether this could be deemed intrusive of her right to peace and privacy. The rule on harassment requires the plaintiff to demonstrate externally that there were hurt or injured feelings arising out of the harassment. In a case of assault, the balance would be between the forseeability of harm against the burden of preventive measures.

Advanced Corporate Reporting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Advanced Corporate Reporting - Essay Example This is in particular for the companies that issue public bonds on a regulated European market. These accounting standards have shown a significant impact on the potential influence on the behaviour of economic agents. Accounting standards caused the financial institutions to behave in a certain way that enhances the financial stability in the long run.1.2 Arguments of European Commission/ Union on IFRS: It was opined by analysts that the core of the financial mismanagement lies within the commission and due to the fact that structure is opaque. The problems of financial mismanagement are the basic enforcements weaknesses. The court of auditors of European union admitted that the 80 percent of taxpayers money was never accounted properly. The responsibility for combating fraud has been considered by European commission. It was observed that the EU's financial regulation 2342/2002, article 87(4) claims that there I no need to attempt the recovery of any sum less than million euros and this has been ruthlessly exploited. By eliminating the loop hole, the European commission resulted in shared responsibility instead of separation of the responsibilities. As the improvement is not possible if each EU institution or department works with different standards and criteria, the common standards for the accounting were considered. Due to the erroneous accounting the debtors of European commission simply disappeared in 2002-03. ... Another problem with the old system is potential mismanagement of cash due to lack of principles in cash flow analysis. The maintenance of huge cash suggests the deliberate retention of member states and companies surpluses against EU rules, the establishment of own resources by the tax payers money. These huge funds are used to maximize the public funds. This should be avoided as the cash in hand by any company should be reported and the use of it can be restricted. To avoid these issues, the credit rating of the companies should be true and fair and must be based on accounting statements. This should be regulated by EU. The implementation of IFRS auditing on EU and the companies in the EU states resulted in overcoming the problems regarding the financial mismanagement and misuse of cash. The action on fundamentals and injection of commercial reality was made possible by the introduction of IFRS. The commercial organizations will ask themselves the questions regarding their performa nce and they should be reflected in the financial statements. The IFRS made it possible and the transparency has been resulted in the use of the money of the investors. This needs a creation of financial infrastructure and that was taken by the lesson from New Zealand that will audit fully singed annual accounts within three months. The auditors were made independent in assessing and auditing the company's financial statements and strict guidelines have been imposed according to IFRS. This made possible good financial management in the company's possible and gave the required security for investor's money in the company. This gave chance to investor to estimate the

Critically discuss the centrality of anthropology to colonial Essay

Critically discuss the centrality of anthropology to colonial domination of africa through the lens of a positivists and imperialist approach to domination, rather than a critical and dialectical - Essay Example Imperialism and colonialism have been used interchangeably in defining the relationship between Africa and Britain. Brtisch Empire occupied many territories in Africa (Erickson & Murphy, 2008). European Colonial rule in Africa spans from the late 1800s up till the Second World War. Since the advent of the Europeans in Africa, anthropology has largely been seen from the perspective of the outsiders and the view that the colonial power was projecting across. Therefore, anthropology in Africa could not flourish to its complete entirety. In fact, anthropology in Africa greatly suffered as a result of the domination of the imperial powers. When anthropology of different cultures was started being studied in the late 1800s, Africa’s contribution to the economic system was not considered and therefore it remained largely untouched by anthropologists for a long period of time. There were no anthropological researches conducted in Africa up till the Second World War. When anthropologis ts started conducting cultural studies in Africa, there methods were largely criticized at not being reliable and comprehensive enough. Thus, anthropology in Africa could not receive its due share of research. The development of anthropology in Africa during the Colonial rule was also undermined due to the image projected by the colonizers abroad. European contact was taken as a representation of Africa (Wehrs, 2008). Child pornography and the publicity of the extremely dire economic circumstances the African community was afflicted with, like poverty, lack of infrastructure etc. had an adverse effect on anthropological studies. Another reason that influenced the development of anthropology in Africa is due to the projection by the Europeans about the illiteracy and savagery of the Africans. Post-colonial rehabilitation of anthropology hence becomes difficult. This is partly because Africa still remains undeveloped and can not debunk the stigmatized

History of Electronic Media Essay Example for Free

History of Electronic Media Essay The history of providing information has been shaped by innovations and innovators. This paper attempts to chronicle the different factors and events that led to the media landscape of today. 1) Congress and the FCC began deregulating broadcast and cable television in the late 1970s. Describe the ideologies which motivated these deregulations. What changes in the television industry occurred as a result of these deregulations? Include two of the following in your discussion: Financial Interest and Syndication Rules, Telecommunications Act of 1996, media ownership debates in the 2000s and intellectual property regulations in the 2000s. The Financial and Syndication Rules, or more popularly known as Fib-Syn, were implemented by the Federal Communications Commission in 1970 with the objective of increasing programming diversity thus breaking the monopoly of the three major TV networks in the United States: CBS, ABC and NBC. Its rationale was to democratize UHF airwaves making it easier for independent television producers to penetrate the television market. The rules primarily targeted two areas to disempower the big networks: freeing television programs from the ownership of the networks after its first run and the introduction of in-house syndication arms in the major networks. The idea was to discourage the networks monopoly on tv programs and restricting the networks part in syndication. These steps would substantially reduce production incentive and lead to the separation of production and distribution practices in the big networks. The FCC justified the implementation of Fin-Syn as beneficial for independent television producers since it gave them the larger part of production profits and allowing them a foothold in the business of syndication. The democratization of syndication would lead to a wider distribution of shows and prevented the networks from its exclusive use in their affiliated stations. Supporters of the rule envisioned a television industry where innovative and   much more diverse programs would be available to the viewers ( McAllister , www.museum.tv). The Telecommunications Act of 1996 was promulgated by the FCC to address issues regarding the rapid development of telecommunication technologies in the United States. It contained new rules and regulations regarding TV, Radio, Cable, Telephone and Internet services. President Clinton, when he signed it into legislation, proclaimed that the act would â€Å"stimulate investment, promote competition, provide open access for all citizens to the Information Superhighway† (Clinton, White House press release 1996). Upon closer inspection, the Telecommunication Act of 1996 was the final step in disassembling the provisions of Fin-Syn Rule. The act loosened rules on media ownership in traditional media forms such as TV and radio, thus empowering them to compete with emerging media technologies such as cable and the Internet allowing for the development of new and innovative services. However, the implementation of both the Financial and Syndication Rules of the FCC and the telecommunications Act of 1996 met harsh criticisms once they were fully implemented. The introduction of Fin-Syn bred more problems than solutions. Most critics pointed out that instead of empowering independent TV producers, it just shifted the competition from one Goliath to another. Instead of   competing with the big networks, the independent TV producers where now pitted against large production organization such as Disney/ABC and   Warner. In the end, it was these larger TV production companies that benefited financially from producing television shows with independent companies opting to produce cheaper productions such as talk shows and game shows. Thus, it produced more conventional shows rather than innovating the television industry. Eventually, television groups especially television distributors called for a change in the implementation of Fin-Syn which eventually led to FCC totally removing the rule in 1995. Studies showed that although there were periods of diversity on TV programs from 1970s to the 1990s, the general conclusion was that there was no significant changes in the programs in the implementation of the FCC rule (Einstein, p. 5). With the disappearance of the rule, productions and distribution companies started to merge especially in the big three networks. This culminated in the emergence of FOX Network and its merger with Paramount and Warner Bros., a step followed by Disney when they bought and merged with ABC Network. The deregulation that resulted from the implementation of the 1996 Telecommunications Act fueled much debate on media ownership and responsibility. Questions arose on whether the the Act did deliver its promise of innovative media services from increased competition and serve the public interest with increased diversity in media programs and information. Critics cite that the only ones who benefited from the Act were media moguls who were able to merge with other media corporations and in essence creating media monopolies that could have the power to control information. William Melody reveals that media entrepreneurs will always look for profit and economic efficiency leading to media monopolies which threaten freedom of speech (Melody, p. 32). Concerned groups have also reasoned that public interest have always been the core value of media regulation and not profit, and to diminish government control on ownership would mean violating public inters. Deregulating media ownership can only lead to a monopoly of information resulting in less diversity, Neumann noted that the creation of media conglomerates have led to the mass media having similar â€Å"content and world-view† (Neumann, p.130). On the other hand, those who were in favor of the Act identified it as a much needed move in revolutionizing media. By allowing media corporations to merge, it has led to a more comprehensive and cohesive delivery of information. Supporters also point out that instead of eliminating diversity, viewers have had much more program options with th emergence of 24 hours news channels such as CNN and FOX News and specialized channels such as Discovery and History (Compaine, www.reason.com). In fact, Adam Thierer revealed that instead of the lack of diversity of programs, audiences are actually experiencing â€Å"information overload† due to explosion of media options. He pointed out that todays media environment is â€Å"diverse and characterized by information abundance† (Thierer, p.2). The issue, as FCC concluded in revising the Telecommunication Act, â€Å"was whether media companies will be able to dominate the distribution of news and information in any market, but whet her they will be able to be heard at all among the cacophony of voices vying for the attention of the Americans (FCC proceedings, p.149) 2) The three broadcast networks ABC, CBS and NBC did not face a broadcast network competitor until Fox emerged in the 1980s and the WB, UPN and Univision grew in the 1990s. Why did these networks emerge when they did? What regulatory changes aided their growth? How did they differ from the other networks in terms of their relationships with their affiliates? What audiences did they target and what types of programs did they use to do so? How did they change as they grew? You may choose one or more network(s) to illustrate your points. From the 1950s to the 1980s, the big three networks dominated the American airwaves. Independent and local television networks would occasionally penetrate the national airwaves but most of these did not survive due to financial constraints. It was in 1986 however that the first rival to the big three emerged with the establishment of   FOX Network.It started out dabbling in TV business by producing and distributing shows for the three big networks. In 1985, Rupert Murdoch bought 50% shares in the 20th Century Fox   movie and television studios. When Murdoch finally achieved full ownership of the studios, he proceeded to buy television stations owned by Metromedia which gave Murdoch a foothold in the major U.S. cities such as New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston and Chicago (www.teletronic.co.uk). This move would spur Murdoch to create a â€Å"fourth network†. In a brilliant move, the new Fox network labeled their new venture as a â€Å"satellite-delivered programming service†(www.teletronic.co.uk). This enabled Murdoch, who was not a citizen, to bypass FCC rules such as foreign-ownership and the definition of FCC of a â€Å"network† as â€Å"airing more than 20 hours of programming per week†. These enabled Fox to operate unhindered by the FCC rules on networks, thus being able to still distribute its TV productions to other networks but only airing 2 hours of primetime shows as opposed to the 3 hours of the big Networks. When it was launched in October 1986, almost 96 stations were connected to Fox enabling it to reach 80% of American audiences. Before making it big, Fox had to start from scratch in expanding its audience share. The network first major release was the â€Å"Late Show† with Joan Rivers. They hoped to capture the 11:30pm late-night slot and targeting young audiences. This strategy however failed as ratings fell with viewers switching back to their previous stations. Despite these failures, Fox continued to lure the younger to middle -aged viewers with shows such as â€Å"Tracy Ulman† which won the station its first Emmy, â€Å"Marriedwith   Children† which would be its first biggest hit and â€Å"21 Jump Street† which was its first drama. These shows were some of the first forays of the network into the Sunday prime-time slot. Although they were received lukewarmly at first, these shows would gain momentum in the coming years. The success of Fox would lead to FCC relaxing the Fin-Syn rule and redefining their concept of â€Å"network†, which would finally result in the elim ination of the Fin-Syn Rule in 1995. (www.museum.tv) The success of its first primetime shows would lead to Fox introducing documentary-style shows such as â€Å"Americas Most Wanted† and â€Å"Cops†. But their biggest success would come in when Fox reintroduced animation to the primetime slot with â€Å"The Simpsons†. The animated show would penetrate the top 30 primetime ratings and would then become the longest running comedy show on television (www.teletronic.co.uk). Soon, Fox found its niche by veering away from conventional shows, like game shows and   talk shows, by introducing reality-based shows and shows that targeted the young viewers. Fox owner Rupert Murdoch would change the media landscape when it snatched exclusive rights to air the National Football League in 1993 (Kimmel, p.162). This move would cement Foxs role in the ratings game. As of today, Foxs main draw is its reality-based shows such as American Idol that have dominated airwaves since its release in 2002, capturing much of the 18-49 viewer demographic (tvbythenumbers.com). With success comes controversy. Such was the case of the Fox news network as critics accused it of being biased towards the U.S. Republican Party (Greenwald, p.4). Despite these, Fox shows and its affiliated cable channels still rake in much of the ratings with Fox News attracting 2.4 million viewers in the first quarter of 2009 (Gold, www.latimesblogs.latimes.com)

Close Relationships Essay Example for Free

Close Relationships Essay I never have been a very good communicator, be it family, friends or strangers. After reading the article â€Å"Close Relationships Sometimes Mask Poor Communication† it really hit home for me. My husband and I have poor communication skills. We have been together for the past six years, and we still have a problem commutating. He likes to take over the conversation, or cut me off when we are talking. I feel at times that he is talking at , not to me, or he is making me feel like I don’t have a clue on what it going on. He has at times actually told me that I just don’t know as much as he does, therefore his ideas and suggestions should be followed, and not questioned. This has honestly caused a huge amount of arguments and constant disagreements. My lifestyle is so busy I communicate and think very quickly and a lot of the time I guess I expect people to know what I mean without fully explaining it. In my observation over time, people seem to communicate better with strangers than they do with family members. I feel that when communicating with strangers one tends to give more detail, because you never know how a stranger will understand what you are trying to communicate. People commonly believe that they communicate better with close friends than with strangers. That closeness can lead people to overestimate how well they communicate, a phenomenon we term the closeness-communication bias, (Keysar, 2011) I found this sentence very interesting. A wife who says to her husband, its getting hot in here, as a hint for her husband to turn up the air conditioning a notch, may be surprised when he interprets her statement as a coy, amorous advance instead, (Savitsky 2011). It has become very clear to me that even though I may communicate something to my husband, at times when he doesn’t seem to understand, I get frustrated, I plan to try a lot of the communication tools I have learned in this class to try and help clean up my communications with my friends, family and co-workers. Our problem in communicating with riends and spouses is that we have an illusion of insight. Getting close to someone appears to create the illusion of understanding more than actual understanding, (Epley, 2011). I actually had this situation happen to me last weekend. My husband and I were working in the yard, he was fixing a sprinkler wire, and I was replacing sprinkler heads and drip lines. We were both doing our own things while still working in the yard. I thought everything was going great, then out of now where, my husband says, that I don’t appreciate the effort he is putting into helping â€Å"Me† in the yard. I was completely blown away. I said in a defensive tone, that I didn’t know I had to tell him thank you every time he does stuff around the house. I went on to say that it is his house to, so why do I always have to thank him, or ask him to do things to help out around the house. I know that I could have handled this situation differently; however it really gets tiresome to always have to tell him I appreciate every single little task that he completes. I had another situation between my husband and myself over the weekend. I was talking with him about hanging up our American flag, I asked him if he knew where my curtain rod went, I explained to him the one I was looking for, he finds this small rod and says that he wanted to use that one, I told him I already had plans for that rod, and the one I was looking for was perfect. He continued to take the rod that I did not want to use and put the flag on it, and they tried to hang it up. He kept telling me to just come and look at it. So after telling him for the 7th time that I didn’t want to use that rod, I went to look at it. It was too small and would not hang correctly, I told him that again, and he got pissed off at me, and told me to never ask him to help me do anything ever again†¦ I was pissed that he wouldn’t listen to me; it is always his way or no way. When this happens, it is very easy to become angry with my spouse because we expected them to understand what we meant or said, to listen and try to understand. As couples, we want to believe that we are on the same page all the time because we are so close. Whether we are face to face, back to back, in another room, or on the phone with each other, misunderstandings can and will happen without further questioning from the other spouse. When something is said, it is the other spouse’s responsibility to make sure they are clear in what they are hearing. Without this tactic, there will be misinterpretations between the spouses. This creates unhealthy communication between the spouses. My spouse it not a good family man, he prefers to do what he wants, when he want too. This tends to be a huge problem for our relationship. When my spouse gets mad at me for not listening to him, he starts making threats, like I mentioned earlier, don’t ever ask him to help again, etc So, I stop including him in those things, then he starts going through all kinds of changes because of it. He would say, I support you in anything you do. Then he would vent like crazy about our life not being the same anymore. Your self-image, in turn, results in your level of self-esteem, the beliefs and feelings you have about yourself. Self-esteem has two primary components: a sense of self-efficacy or your personal effectiveness and a sense of your personal worth and self-respect. However, your self-concept, self-image, and self-esteem are not destiny. You can also enhance your self-esteem through affirmations and positive self-talk, (Sole, 2011). You can build your self-image and your self-esteem by successful experiences. Your successes create self-confidence, which enables you to take on new challenges and continue to increase your self-esteem in an upward spiral of success. It is critical that one learns to communicate accurately; it will help all your relationships become stronger and be successful.

Cultural Approach to Organisations Theory

Cultural Approach to Organisations Theory The Theory Of Cultural Approach To Organisations Abstract This report will revisit the culture theory proposed by Clifford Geertz how Michael Pacanowsky claims the concept is applicable to an organisation. It will use Whitireia Polytechnic as an example for an organistain culture. When you hear the word ‘culture you often associate it with a persons background, ethnic heritage and race. However, culture is a way of living in an organisation. It is also not limited to a country or city either, even corporate organisations have culture which contain stories, symbols rituals and within it contain sub cultures. You may not even know that this is a part of your everyday life without realising it. This report will help you understand what your organisations culture is like, how this applys to you, whether it can be changed. Introduction Purpose This report is based on the Organisational culture and what I have learned about this theory. The foundations of this theory were created by Clifford in which Michael applied Greetz work into his organisational culture theory. This will help explain (in accordance to the theorists work) what the definition of culture is, what the makings of a culture are and what standards techniques ethnographers use to describe a culture. Scope My first insight into this topic was a first look at communication theory book which gave me an idea of what the topic would be about. I then utilised the resources provided by Whitireia polytechnic which was library databases in which I found little success formation. After trying a variety of databases such as Proquest, Gale proquest etc I found that I could find more sources utilising internet websites. Limitations The only limitations I found was the little use the databases were to me. I also found it difficult to find information by Michael E Paconowsky who is the co creator of the organisational culture theory. I could only find one source which elaborated more on the organisation culture limiting me to using Geertz as a primary source. I did not know whether to attribute this to my searching methods or whether the availability of information was insufficient. Research Methods The databases were of little use to me my primary sources of information came from Articles Internet websites using Google. At first finding information was difficult as I used the library database as my primary source for Information. Although I did find some sources, my primary source of information came from a website which contained a large amount of articles. In regards to my topic this site contained more information then my other internet book sources. Structure Of Report Title page – Followed by an abstract Table of contents Introduction – Includes purpose, scope, research methods, structure of report limitations Literature review – A summary of 6 sources which I used to use for my report Findings – What I have discovered about the theory Conclusion – Includes Summary critique of theory Literature Review Doing Organizational Culture in the Saturn Corporation Retrieved August 10th, 2009 from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m4339/is_1_22/ai_75579345/ Summary This includes an in depth look into the organisational culture in the Saturn Corporation. The Authors who researched this topic discovered how they came to their conclusions by poststructural analysis of the video advertisements, examining metaphors along with interaction interpretation of the organisations culture.. It also gives a chronological description of the significant events concerning the study of organisational culture. It also briefly covers the importance of image metaphors. However its primary focus is on the symbolic meaning of storytelling and the effects it has Saturn on its organisation culture consumer culture Accuracy Validity All three Authors Terry L. Mills, Craig A. Boylstein, Sandra Lorean are experts in the field of Sociology. Terry L. Mills earned his PHD in Sociology in 1996 at the University of Southern Carolina. He has received many honours awards and specialises in many topics concerning the age of sociology organisational organisation. He has conducted a lot of research and has published many of his works in articles, books journals. Terry L. Mills is currently a Professor in the University of Florida and is also a dean for associate affairs. The combined knowledge of these authors is apparent when they outline the history of the study of organisational using it as a base for their evidence in this subject. The concepts in this article are not new, they are simply a tool to back up their research and explain the organisational culture of the Saturn Corporation. Turner, L..H., West, R ., (2007) Introducing Communication Theory (3rd Edition) New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education Summary This book covers a number of theories including the Organisational Culture Theory covering its main points. It also delves more into the organisational side of culture by providing examples and elaborating on concepts created by Michael Pacanowsky including different types of assumptions, rituals, performances symbols etc. It also includes information on Clifford Geertz work and provides an explanation on Thick description, a technique important in Ethnography. Accuracy This information is accurate because it draws from sources which happen to be some of Geertz Pacanowsky most prominent work. It gives clear cut examples and all the examples provided are cited from reliable sources. Geertz, C. (1973) The Interpretation of Culture (2nd ed). New York: Basic Books Summary This source of information elaborates on the interpretation of culture theory from the perspective of an ethnographer. Greetz who is an ethnographer himself describes his work as being a thick description, which can be described as Intertwined layers of common meaning that underlie what people say or do. In this chapter Greetz describes his experience of a different culture of a foreign landscape. Often puzzled at the events that occur in this culture, his stance on his interpretive approach is not to just simply document what is happens in the culture. It is to reduce the puzzlement and to have a greater understanding of why it happens in the culture. Accuracy Clifford Geertz is a champion of symbolic anthropology. He has made several major publications with his most seminal being Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight. His work on interpretive theory has had a major impact in the field of anthropology and his extensive amount ethnographical work in Indonesia Morocco highlands only solidify the validity of his work. He is also the co creator of the cultural approach of organizations theory. Geertz, C. (1973) Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight† Retrieved August 1, 2009, from http://www.si.umich.edu/~rfrost/courses/MatCult/content/Geertz.pdf Summary In this source of information Clifford Geertz gives an insight into the balinise cockfighting culture. This does more than what happens in these cockfights he explains the deeper meaning behind the culture. He stresses that it is much more than about money or entertainment it is about social status: The Cocks are simply there to stand in for men who are engaging in these matches. Clifford also describes the social networking and ins outs of this cockfighting culture. Accuracy Validity This is Clifford Greetz more known works and is essentially one of the core concepts of this topic: Culture. This work is simply an interpretation of a culture and is undoubtedly one of the main reasons why Cultural approach to organisations theory is here today. It is interesting to note that the cockfighting metaphor is applicable to many cultures and everyday life occurrences. Fafaeli, A., Worline, M. Symbols in Organizational Culture. August 22, 2009, from http://iew3.technion.ac.il/Home/Users/anatr/symbol.html Summary This source goes into detail about what symbols are and how they apply to organisational culture. It briefly provides four functions that symbols serve in an organisation and how the use of symbols can provide a deeper understanding in a n organisations culture. Accuracy Validity This has also been referenced in a first look at communication. It has also been published in a number of books and draws some of its concepts from Clifford Geertz work. I can also see the similarities how it relates to the ideas of cultural approach to organisation theory. Both authors have PhDs in their respective fields and have done extensive research on this topic. Ardichvili, A.,Basten, F.,Daley, B.,Kraemer, T.J.,Kuchinke, K.P.,Morgan, G.,Shindell, T.,Short, D.C.,Willis, V. The Role of Metaphors in (Re)producing Organizational Culture. August 3, 2009, from http://www.orleon.nl/publicaties/metaphor_in_hrd.pdf Summary This source discusses metaphors and provides a storyline about the NBS organisation. It talks about how metaphors can describe the NBS organisation in a six part storyline written by employees. The author also provides analysis on the metaphors that were used and what they mean. Accuracy Validity These sources concepts are very similar to those created by Geertz Pacanowsky. Although this source does not reference them there is a clear connection between Pacanowskys idea of metaphorical analysis and this source. Findings Background Of Theorists Clifford Geertz was born in San Francisco, California on August 23, 1926. For two years (1943–45) he served time in the U.S Navy during World War II. He would later attend Antioch College receive his B.A in philosophy. He later studied social anthropology received his PHD from Harvard University. After he taught a number of schools he would join the anthropology staff of the University of Chicago. Subsequently he became a professor in social science at Harvard University in whicch he would receive several honory doctorate degrees from numerous colleges including Cambridge, Harvard Chicago University. After his divorce with Hilderd Greetz he would end up marrying Karren Blu who was also an anthropologist. In his later years his decline in health due to heart complications would eventually catch up to him, he died on October 30, 2006. Outline Of Theories/key Issues What Culture Is; What Culture Is Not Clifford Geertz, a champion in anthropology found through his research that culture is a shared meaning, shared understanding shared sensemaking in â€Å"a web of significance that he (man) has spun.† The foundation of this theory especially from an anthropological perspective can be attributed Clifford Greetz who primarily focused on culture itself. In Clifford Geertz eyes no culture is inferior/superior and no culture can be changed. Thick Description – An Ethnographers Occupation In order to understand a culture one must become an ethnographer. Ethnographers are researchers who immerse themselves within a culture also meaning they are in it for the long term. Clifford Geertz spent a number of years in Southeast Asia North Africa studying various cultures which eventually led him to call his extensive material in his journals to be known as thick descriptions. Thin descriptions would simply describe an event; thick descriptions however would describe an event within a context. His primary example in The Interpretation of Cultures theory describes the puzzlement when something simple as a wink can cause when it is not described within a context. Culture As A Metaphor Of Organisational Life Michael Pacanowsky found Clifford Geertz work helpful and would use work to give a better understanding of organisational culture. This in turn would help give us a better understanding the behaviour of organisations by understanding the way how groups live and interact with one another. Michael Pacanowsky discovered that not only materials such as paperwork were crucial but also analysing the behaviour of how groups operated was equally as important to understanding an organisations culture. As part of his work he used three components to better understand a culture which were metaphors, stories and rituals. Metaphors To understand a shared meaning of a culture Michael Pacanowsky used metaphors to describe the W.L Gore organisation. He used three metaphors to describe this unique culture the first being that Gore was a cluster of peasant villages because of its decentralised environment and focused use of oral communication. This could be attributed to the fact that Gore has an all in this together attitude and though a differential status exists amongst workers, there is a lack of hierarchical authority everyone checks with other â€Å"associates† before making significant decisions. Other metaphors Michael Pacanowsky used to describe Gore was that he saw it as being an improvisational Jazz band because of its like minded workers who liked to try new things and and compared the workers as being factions in Colonial America because of its innovative approach to work. Using metaphors to describe a culture is a valuable tool for ethnography. Stories – A Window Through Which To View Corporate Webs Of Significance Stories are used in to corporate organisations to guide employees to how to function within an organisation. It can also be used as a motivational tool to draw inspiration or to simply give a historical account so that employees may find themselves and become a part of something much bigger than just the corporation. Stories also give ethnographers a way to understand a culture There are three types of stories: Corporate stories, Personal Stories Collegial stories. Corporate Stories Corporate stories are ones that can be seen in pamphlets, advertisements etc. This is the vision of the upper level and management that they want to reinforce; sometimes to the public eye. An example of this would be how a corporate boss who would spend his Christmas Eve working with his employees and would be the last to leave. Personal Stories Personal stories are something that an employee may tell about himself to help identify with other workers or how he would like to be perceived within an organisation. An example of this would be how an elderly worker describing his experience in the workplace prior to the technological dependency and how a pre robot like environment developed more personal interaction and a sense of community amongst workers. Collegial Stories Collegial stories can be positive or negative and are used to describe others in an organisation. An example of this would be how a new manager who has taken has a cut throat approach to his employees and that his technological happy approach would result in a loss of jobs in the organisation. Rather than describe what each story means (doing so is to be done with great caution) it is not the proper way for the ethnographer to dissect each piece and explain every intricate detail, it is to interpret everything as a whole and see the bigger picture. Rituals – The Rites Of A Culture Rituals are existent in all forms of culture the Balinese Cockfight written by Clifford Geertz shows this. Without looking at it without an open mind Balinise cockfighting could be percieved as nothing more than a primitive shallow form of entertainment. However Clifford Geertz insight into the topic shows it is much more then that; it is the Men who are fighting for status and the cocks are simply just a representation of that. An example of this in a corporate organisation would be casual Fridays where formal clothing is optional. Or Free lunch Wednesdays where food is catered and provides an opportunity for staff to interact with one another. Where a ritual such Balinese cockfighting would be considered sacred (although it is illegal) changing or removing it completely would meet much opposition. In a corporate environment with a free spirited approach and lack of formality, changes to rituals would in most cases see little opposition. Application Of Theory I will use a real life example when applying the cultural approach to organisations. My example is about Whitireia Polytechnic. Clifford Geertz talks about Cultures having subcultures and there are many examples of this in Whitireia. A broad example would that every sector of Whitireia e.g BIT, CIT, has its Location can affect cultures an example would be Computer Services the BIT section of Whitireia. Although in an ideal world both would work together in a fluid manner an observation I made was that many of the services provided by Computer services are not known to BIT. When working for my evaluation procurement assignment I noticed that somethings were not communicated to one another effectively this is because of the difference between subcultures. Another example I think applies to this theory is the subculture created by Teachers. Although BIT culture as a whole is relatively the same, the subcultures are different. George Tongariro has a relatively informal style of teaching which is very much ‘alive ‘vibrant. This in turn influences the students especially the ones with who share similar attributes. This type of sub culture would likely clash with another teachers sub culture that has a very reserved formal approach to teaching. Even students have sub cultures w hich result in people having different social circles because tend to socialise with people who have similar values. Stories are told amongst students and teachers, corporate stories I have read are from pamphlets and websites. However the personal collegial accounts were told to me orally from both teachers students. Personal stories I have heard about Whitireia is a students experience with a certain teacher, paper, class etc. A collegial story I have heard students express is their dislike of how work intensive a certain class is. An example of a collegial story I was told in class from a staff member was how they disapproved with how BIT section of Whitireia was run and how it ran without ‘order and how ‘disorganised it was. If I was to document every story in a journal I could create a thick description that would effectively help an outsider understand whitireia polytechnic culture. A Ritual in this context would be performing a practical lab I get given every Tuesdays and Wednesdays in which I must complete within a designated time. Another example would be students playing table tennis or pool at the student centre on their break on a regular basis. You may also notice I used metaphors to help understand the culture present in Whitireia. I have also been at Whitireia Polytechnic for a nearly two years in which (despite the lack of a PHD) adds credibility to how I can apply this organisational culture to this industry. I also tend to hear more positive things about polytechnic and with an increase of students have changed the student sub culture. Evaluation Of Theory I will be using the standards from the book ‘A Look Into Coomunication Theory† book by Em riffim New Understanding Of People Interpretive scholarship is good when it offers fresh insight into the human condition. Geertz Pacanowsky do this by interpreting their readings and using techniques to describe a culture within a context. To have an insight human culture is to have a insight to teh human condition. Clarification Of Values A good theory brings peoples values into the open. Both Greetz Pacanowsky where able to define an organisations culture by using thick descriptions, metaphors, stories rituals. Aesthetic Appeal The appeal of Greetz Pacanowsky theorie is that it used real examples in which they both experienced. The way they convey their research through narratives, stories metaphors also provides an artistic interesting insight and makes their material appealing to read. Especially through the use of metaphors which help illustrate capture the essence of an organisations culture. A community Of Agreement Clifford Geertz is considered to be a champion symbolic anthropology and some of his most famous works such as the Balinise cockfight were innovative ultimately allowed Pacanowsky to apply his ideas into the theory. Although there is some criticism towards organisational culture theory the support is much more apparent within the community. Reform Of Society Change in organisational culture is sometimes considered to be ethically challenging. Understanding an organisational culture is becoming more apparent and is now used for a competitive advantage. Conclusion Summary In summary Clifford Geertz work e.g description of culture, pioneer of ethnography inventor of thick descriptions, combined with Michael Pacanowsys interpretation of organisations through use of stories, metaphors and rituals ultimately lead to a theory that is applicable to many organisational cultures. Stories, metaphors rituals are all practical ways of describing and interpreting a culture. I have also shown a real life example of how applicable it is and though it may not anywhere near the level of Geertz or Pacanowskys work, it should show how this can be used in different types of organisations. Critique Of The Theory As you should know by now Clifford Geertz stance on Culture isnt to change it, it is to understand it. Nor did he wish to interfere or influence culture. Critical theorists however criticise this approach and see a moral obligation to make changes rather then to just describe interpret it. This is not how a researcher who uses the cultural approach to organisation sees it. An ethnographer does not use his research as a tool for change nor does he use it to pass judgement or criticise the morality of a culture. Ethnography is about providing a better understanding and how to function in a culture through symbolic analysis. It is ultimately up an organisation and its staff to make a change. Cultural approach is also not as popular as it used to be. Some say that it is because few people if any can match Clifford Geertz writing style. People have described reading his work is like reading an engrossing novel. This in turn may have affected the aesthetic appeal and until someone who can write as well as he can, resurgence in this theory is questionable. Glossary Of Terms Ethnography: a methodological strategy used to provide descriptions of human societies Ritual: Performaces that reoccur on a regular basis Sub Culture: A Culture within a culture. Thick Description: Explanation of the meaning of layers in a culture References Articles Deep Play: Notes on the Balinise Cockfight Retrieved August 13th, 2009 from www.si.umich.edu/~rfrost/courses/MatCult/content/Geertz.pdf Doing Organizational Culture in the Saturn Corporation Retrieved August 10th, 2009 from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m4339/is_1_22/ai_75579345/ http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m4339/is_1_22/ai_75579345/?tag=content;col1linise Cockfight Books Geertz, C. (1973) The Interpretation of Culture (2nd ed). New York: Basic Books Griffim, E. (2006). A First Look at Communication Theory (6th ed.) New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education Turner, L..H., West, R ., (2007) Introducing Communication Theory (3rd Edition) New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education Internet Sources The Role of Metaphors in (Re)producing Organizational Culture Retrieved August 13th, 2009 from http://docs.google.com/gview?a=vq=cache:MH7Ir3IC9LAJ:www.orleon.nl/publicaties/metaphor_in_hrd.pdf+http://www.orleon.nl/publicaties/metaphor_in_hrd.pdfhl=engl=nz Fafaeli, A., Worline, M. Symbols in Organizational Culture. Retrieved August 22, 2009, from http://iew3.technion.ac.il/Home/Users/anatr/symbol.html ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE Retrieved August 13th, 2009 from http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/ndu/strat-ldr-dm/pt4ch36.html Ardichvili, A.,Basten, F.,Daley, B.,Kraemer, T.J.,Kuchinke, K.P.,Morgan, G.,Shindell, T.,Short, D.C.,Willis, V. The Role of Metaphors in (Re)producing Organizational Culture. August 3, 2009, from http://www.orleon.nl/publicaties/metaphor_in_hrd.pdf

Teens and Sex - Sex and Disease :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

Sex and Disease    Since the beginning of the semester we've been working in groups in order to complete a mid term report, based on our picked topic. I'm part of the group Sex in the New Millennium. We as a group focused our attention on three main categories, sexuality, and sexual preferences, Pregnancies and abortions, and finally sexually transmitted diseases.    Sex is the key ingredient that most companies and advertising agencies are using to sell their products. And as a result we the viewers (being what ever age we may be) are the true victims. You turn on the television and the first thing you see is someone or something being sexually exploited. Daytime TV and talk shows are long time abusers of this. As a result more and more people are practicing sex all over the country and the world. And coeincidentliy the ages of these participants are getting younger and younger. STDs are the at a all time high.    What are STDs ? STDs are sexually transmitted diseases, formerly called venereal diseases (VD), which are transmitted by direct sexual contact. Some are considered among the most serious diseases of the world . Any person who is sexually active or is thinking about having sexual activity should be familiar with the symptoms, prevention , and treatment of these diseases. Most forms of STDs may be treated and cured in the early stages, but putting off treatment can be dangerous.    The germs that cause sexually transmitted diseases can survive only for a few seconds in the air, so the diseases are transmitted only by direct body contact. Like most other diseases we do not know where or when sexually transmitted diseases started. To add to the list of STDs there is the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) which may lead to Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS).    In North and South America combined, there are estimates that up to 2 million people are currently infected with the HIV virus. The World Health Organization estimates that 8-10 million adults and 1 million children worldwide are infected with the AIDS virus. By the year 2000, 40 million people may be infected with the virus . More than 90% of these persons will likely reside in the developing countries. Based on 1989 data, AIDS is the number four cause of death in males ages 15-54.

jurassic park :: essays research papers

Introduction–First Iteration Summary Introduction In the late twentieth century, the field of biotechnology and genetic engineering has positioned itself to become one of the great technological revolutions of human history. Yet, things changed when Herber Boyer, a biochemist at the University of California, founded the company Genentech in 1976 to exploit the commercial potential of his research. Since then the field has exploded into a global amalgam of private research firms developing frivolous, profit-hungry products, such as square trees tailor-made for lumber, without any sort of government regulation. The appearance of a company like International Genetic Technologies, then should come as no surprise. InGen, as the company is informally known, apparently was the instigator of some sort of "incident," and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1989. The proceedings drew little publicity, but certain parties involved were amenable to discussing the events that transpired on a remote island off the shores of Costa Rica... Prologue: The Bite of the Raptor Roberta "Bobbie" Carter, a doctor working in a medical center in Bahia Anasco, Costa Rica, is on duty one stormy night with her paramedic, Manuel. An "InGen Construction" helicopter lands nearby and a red-haired man named Ed Regis brings in a man who he claims was injured in a construction accident. Bobbie suggests Regis bring the patient, a young man around eighteen years old, to San Josà ©, the nearby capital city where better facilities are available. Regis resists, claiming the helicopter cannot make it any further in the bad weather. Bobbie looks at the boy's injuries, tear-like lacerations across his torso and thigh, and is skeptical they were really caused by construction equipment. She asks Regis to leave and takes a few photographs of the injuries, then the boy wakes up whispering, "Lo sa raptor." Manuel is obviously distressed by the slippery, foul-smelling foam they have found on the boy's cuts and by the boy's eerie "raptor" statement. Nonetheless, Manuel claims he does not know what the phrase means. As the boy continues to whisper, Manuel states that the boy has been bitten by one of the raptors or "hupia"—ghosts who, according to a local superstition, live in the islands offshore and kidnap children. The boy suddenly sits up, vomits blood and falls to the floor, convulsing. He is dead. Curious about the word "raptor," Bobbie looks it up in a Spanish dictionary and finds that it means "abductor." She also looks it up in an English dictionary, which says that it means "bird of prey.

Main Themes in A Streetcar Named Desire :: English Literature

Main Themes in A Streetcar Named Desire Fantasy/Illusion: Blanche dwells in illusion; fantasy is her primary means of self-defense. Her deceits do not carry any trace of malice; rather, they come from her weakness and inability to confront the truth head-on. She tells things not as they are, but as they ought to be. For her, fantasy has a liberating magic that protects her from the tragedies she has had to endure. Unfortunately, this defense is frail and will be shattered by Stanley. In the end, Stanley and Stella will also resort to a kind of illusion: Stella will force herself to believe that Blanche's accusations against Stanley are false. The Old South and the New South: Stella and Blanche come from a world that is rapidly dying. Belle Reve, their family's ancestral plantation, has been lost. The two sisters, symbolically, are the last living members of their family. Stella will mingle her blood with a man of blue-collar stock, and Blanche will enter the world of madness. Stanley represents the new order of the South: chivalry is dead, replaced by a "rat race," to which Stanley makes several proud illusions. Cruelty: The only unforgivable crime, according to Blanche, is deliberate cruelty. This sin is Stanley's specialty. His final assault against Blanche is a merciless attack against an already-beaten foe. On the other hand, though Blanche is dishonest, she never lies out of malice. Her cruelty is unintentional; often, she lies in a vain effort to plays. Throughout Streetcar, we see the full range of cruelty, from Blanche's well-intentioned deceits to Stella self-deceiving treachery to Stanley's deliberate and unchecked malice. In Williams' plays, there are many ways to hurt someone. And some are worse than others. The Primitive and the Primal: Blanche often speaks of Stanley as ape-like and primitive. Stanley represents a very unrefined manhood, a romantic idea of man untouched by civilization and its effeminizing influences. His appeal is clear: Stella cannot resist him, and even Blanche, though repulsed, is on some level drawn to him. Stanley's unrefined nature also includes a terrifying amorality. The service of his desire is central to who he is; he has no qualms about driving his sister-in-law to madness, or raping her. Desire: Closely related to the theme above, desire is the central theme of the play. Blanche seeks to deny it, although we learn later in the play that desire is one of her driving motivations; her desires have caused her to be driven out of town.

Decision Making Across the Organization

The Martinez Company has decided to introduce a new product and would like to evaluate the costs of manufacturing through capital intensive and labor intensive manufacturing methods to determine which of the two methods to employ. The values to be used in the evaluation for capital intensive manufacturing are direct materials at $5 per unit, direct labor at $6 per unit, a variable overhead of $3 per unit, and fixed manufacturing costs of $2,508,000. The values for material, labor, and overhead are summed to find the total variable cost of $14.The labor intensive values are direct materials at $5.50 per unit, direct labor at $8 per unit, a variable overhead of $4. 50 per unit, and fixed manufacturing costs of $1,538,000. The research department of Martinez recommended an introductory price unit sales price of $30. Incremental selling expenses are estimated to be $502,000 annually plus $2 for each unit sold regardless of the method used to manufacture. Capital Intensive To calculate ca pital intensive estimated break-even point in annual unit sales of the new product the contribution margin per unit and contribution margin per ratio are necessary.The equation for contribution margin per unit is Selling Price + Variable Cost, or $30 + $14, for a contribution margin per unit price of $16. The equation for contribution margin ration is Contribution Margin per Unit / Selling Price, or $16/$30, for a contribution margin ratio of 53%. The break-even point in units is calculated by dividing the fixed costs by the contribution margin per unit value, $2,508,000 / $16 = 156750 units as the break-even point. The fixed costs divided by the contribution margin ratio, $2,508,000 / 53% = $4,702,500 break-even point in dollars. Labor IntensiveTo calculate capital intensive estimated break-even point in annual unit sales of the new product the contribution margin per unit and contribution margin per ratio are necessary. The equation for contribution margin per unit is Selling Pric e + Variable Cost, or $30 + $18, for a contribution margin per unit price of $12. The equation for contribution margin ratio is Contribution Margin per Unit / Selling Price, or $12/$30, for a contribution margin ratio of 40%. The break-even point in units is calculated by dividing the fixed costs by the contribution margin per unit value, $1,538,000 / $12 = 128,167 units as the break-even point.The fixed costs divided by the contribution margin ratio, $1,538,000 / 40% = $3,845,000 break-even point in dollars. Unit Sales Volume of Indifference The volume of unit sales at which the Martinez Company would be indifferent between the two manufacturing methods is calculated as Sales = Variable Costs + Fixed Costs + Net Income. The value for sales is equivalent to the sales price, $30, multiplied by the number of units sold. Variable costs of $14 for capital intensive and $18 for labor intensive are also multiplied by the number of units sold.Fixed costs were provided at $2,508,000 for cap ital intensive and $1,538,000 for labor intensive. Net income is assumed to be $0. The equation values for 180,000 units under capital intensive manufacturing and 240,000 under labor intensive manufacturing is the volume of units for each method to equal sales of $2,880,000, the point at which the annual unit sales volume would be indifferent. Conclusion Evaluating the costs of manufacturing help management to make crucial decisions about methods of manufacturing that will result in profit for the business.Evaluating the capital intensive manufacturing method versus the labor intensive method provides the values necessary to make business decisions. The circumstances in which the Martinez Company would employ a capital intensive manufacturing method for the new product, based on the numbers provided in the scenario, would be if the contribution margin and per unit cost were cheaper than the labor intensive values. In this scenario, the labor intensive values offer a smaller break-ev en point value for units and dollars than the capital intensive method of manufacturing. Decision Making Across the Organization The Martinez Company has decided to introduce a new product and would like to evaluate the costs of manufacturing through capital intensive and labor intensive manufacturing methods to determine which of the two methods to employ. The values to be used in the evaluation for capital intensive manufacturing are direct materials at $5 per unit, direct labor at $6 per unit, a variable overhead of $3 per unit, and fixed manufacturing costs of $2,508,000. The values for material, labor, and overhead are summed to find the total variable cost of $14.The labor intensive values are direct materials at $5.50 per unit, direct labor at $8 per unit, a variable overhead of $4.50 per unit, and fixed manufacturing costs of $1,538,000. The research department of Martinez recommended an introductory price unit sales price of $30. Incremental selling expenses are estimated to be $502,000 annually plus $2 for each unit sold regardless of the method used to manufacture. Capital IntensiveTo calculate capi tal intensive estimated break-even point in annual unit sales of the new product the contribution margin per unit and contribution margin per ratio are necessary. The equation for contribution margin per unit is Selling Price + Variable Cost, or $30 + $14, for a contribution margin per unit price of $16. The equation for contribution margin ration is Contribution Margin per Unit / Selling Price, or $16/$30, for a contribution margin ratio of 53%.The break-even point in units is calculated by dividing the fixed costs by the contribution margin per unit value, $2,508,000 / $16 = 156750 units as the break-even point. The fixed costs divided by the contribution margin ratio, $2,508,000 / 53% = $4,702,500 break-even point in dollars. Labor IntensiveTo calculate capital intensive estimated break-even point in annual unit sales of the new product the contribution margin per unit and contribution  margin per ratio are necessary. The equation for contribution margin per unit is Selling Pri ce + Variable Cost, or $30 + $18, for a contribution margin per unit price of $12.The equation for contribution margin ratio is Contribution Margin per Unit / Selling Price, or $12/$30, for a contribution margin ratio of 40%. The break-even point in units is calculated by dividing the fixed costs by the contribution margin per unit value, $1,538,000 / $12 = 128,167 units as the break-even point. The fixed costs divided by the contribution margin ratio, $1,538,000 / 40% = $3,845,000 break-even point in dollars. Unit Sales Volume of IndifferenceThe volume of unit sales at which the Martinez Company would be indifferent between the two manufacturing methods is calculated as Sales = Variable Costs + Fixed Costs + Net Income. The value for sales is equivalent to the sales price, $30, multiplied by the number of units sold. Variable costs of $14 for capital intensive and $18 for labor intensive are also multiplied by the number of units sold. Fixed costs were provided at $2,508,000 for ca pital intensive and $1,538,000 for labor intensive.Net income is assumed to be $0. The equation values for 180,000 units under capital intensive manufacturing and 240,000 under labor intensive manufacturing is the volume of units for each method to equal sales of $2,880,000, the point at which the annual unit sales volume would be indifferent.ConclusionEvaluating the costs of manufacturing help management to make crucial decisions about methods of manufacturing that will result in profit for the business. Evaluating the capital intensive manufacturing method versus the labor intensive method provides the values necessary to make business decisions.The circumstances in which the Martinez Company would employ a capital intensive manufacturing method for the new product, based on the numbers provided in the scenario, would be if the contribution margin and per unit cost were cheaper than the labor intensive values. In this scenario, the labor intensive values offer a smaller break-even point value for units and dollars than the capital intensive method of manufacturing.

Budget Process

A. THE BUDGET readying surgical accomplish OBJECTIVES OF BUDGET PREPARATION During cypher conceptuality, trade-offs and prioritization among programs essential(prenominal)(prenominal)(prenominal) be made to ascertain that the reckon fits giving medication policies and priorities. Next, the most represent- resolutionive variants essential be selected. Finally, means of increasing working(a) strength in presidency activity must(prenominal) be sought. N angiotensin-converting enzyme of these evict be accomplished unless fiscal s con nonativeys argon built into the treat from the actually lead astray. Accordingly, the cypher ricochetion growth has quad study dimensions1 Setting up the pecuniary organises and the start aim of use of neats and servicess congruous with these tar descends. This is the bearing of preparing the macro- sparing cloth. Formulating pulmonary tuberculosis policies. Allocating imaginativenesss in conformity with twain policies and pecuniary targets. This is the of import objective of the means offshootes of figure prep atomic proceeds 18dness. Addressing operational faculty and performance field of studys. This chapter decoctes on the result plowes of cipher conceptualization, and on mechanisms for amount of m whizzy expending suppress and strategic allocation of esources. strength and performance issues argon discussed in chapter 15. personaal efficiency interrogatives at a epoch related to the ar throw upments for cipher eagerness atomic number 18 discussed in section D at a lower place. B. THE IMPORTANCE OF A MEDIUM-TERM placement FOR BUDGETING The need to address all troika objectives of world(a) expending heed pecuniary discip railroad, strategic resource allocation, and operational efficiencyis emphasized in chapter 1. This calls for a yoke surrounded by constitution and ciphering and for a persuasion beyond the immediate futurity.Of course, th e future is inherently uncertain, and the more than than(prenominal) so the longer the full point considered. The ecumenical trade-off is amongst constitution relevance and certainty. At one extreme, disposal reckoning for just the following week would hurt the to the lowest degree question all when all overly be almost irrelevant as an instrument of polity. At the early(a) extreme, cyphering for a conclusion of too m either an(prenominal) age would provide a broad mount just carry much dandyer uncertainty as muscular. 2 In implement, multi family means medium-term, i. e. , a stance back one-third to five years including the cipher year. wee-weely, the feasibility in intrust of a multiyear perspective is greater when r exit d proclaimues atomic number 18 fore take inable and the mechanisms for maneuverling outlay surface- readyed. (The U. K. , for drill, has late(a)ly go beyond a multiyear perspective to an un circumscribed three-year ci pher for most cipherary rates. ) These conditions do non exist in m any(prenominal)(prenominal)(prenominal) ontogeny countries. 3, The dilemma is that a multiyear perspective is e finically weighty in those countries where a clear sense of insurance form _or_ dodge of authorities mode is a must for sustainable t severallying, and ordinary managers ar a lot in natural need of slightly squallability and flexibility. The dilemma that a multiyear perspective is especially needed where it is to the lowest degree workable tummy non be resolved easily, tho must non be ignored. On the one hand, to try and ex guide the cartridge holder sight of the cypher bear on below conditions of severe gross uncertainty and fallible usance control would spotlessly involve to grass wobbles in ceilings and appropriations, quickly shake off into a formalistic workout, and dis identification the hail itself, thus compromising later attempts at remediatement.On the oth er hand, to remain wedded to squeeze pathetic-term prudence of globe usance would preclude a move to amend thinkage surrounded by policies and disbursals. In utilise, so, efforts should eternally be exerted to meliorate revenue fortune telling ( finished much(prenominal) means as relieving administrative or semipolitical pressures for overoptimistic auspicates), and strengthen the linkages surrounded by insurance formulation and victimisation up, as well as the cost control mechanisms themselves. As and when these efforts yield work out, the judgment of conviction horizon for compute readiness suffer and should be lengthened. Because revenue- fortune telling mprovements and the falsify of insurance polity- pulmonary tuberculosis links and cost control mechanisms be all principal(prenominal)(p) in each event, efforts to touch these fundament yield the double emolument of improving the short-run cypher impact at the alike(p) eon as they perm it expanding the figure sequence horizon to take beak of developmental priorities. on that pointfore, although in almost all countries regime cyphers be prep ard on an one-year cycle, to be make upd well they must take into account events outside the one-year cycle, in bad-tempered the macro sparing realities, the expected revenues, the longer-term be of programs, and organization policies.Wildavsky (1986, p. 317) sums up the arguments against sequesterd one-year calculateing as follows short-sightedness, because solitary(prenominal)(prenominal) the next years outgos atomic number 18 freshen uped over outlay, because huge disbursements in future years ar concealed conservatism, because incremental changes do not liberal up stupendous future vistas and parochialism, because programs move to be viewed in isolation quite than in comparison to their future be in relation to expected revenue. Specifically, the one-year reckon must reflect three paramoun t multi annual considerations The future re contemporary be of detonating device outgos The sustenance need of entitlement programs (for manakin debt service and transfer payments) where usance directs whitethorn change, even though basic form _or_ system of regimen remains the same Contingencies that whitethorn forget in future using up requirements (for example establishment loan guarantees (see chapter 2). A medium-term mentality is call for because the time span of an annual cipher is too short for the prescript of adjusting expenditure priorities and uncertainties become too great over the longer term.At the time the budget is formulated, most of the expenditures of the budget year need already been committed. For example, the salaries of permanent obliging servants, the pensions to be nonrecreational to retirees, debt service cost, and the like, argon not variable in the short term. former(a) cost mountain be adjusted, b arly ofttimes still whe n marginally. The margin of engineer is unremarkably no more than 5 percent of arrive expenditure. This means that whatsoever real adjustment of expenditure priorities, if it is to be successful, has to take place over a time span of several years.For instance, the government may wish to switch from top proviso of wel distante services to targeted provision designed for those most in need. The expenditure implications of such(prenominal) a insurance change strand so forth over several years, and the constitution so suffer hardly be implemented by a blinkered focal point on the annual budget. Medium-term expense travailions be to a fault demand to demonstrate to the brass instrument and the frequent the desired direction of change.In the absence of a medium-term program, rapid pass adjustments to reflect changing heap get out inc bend to be across-the- mesa and ad hoc, centre on inputs and activities that can be put sight in the short term. (Often, these atomic number 18 important public enthronement expenditures, and one of the typical matters of annual budgeting d fuddlestairs limit circumstances is to define public coronation funds funds in effect as a mere resi bivalent. ) If the expenditure adjustments argon not form _or_ system of government- found, they leave not be uphold.By illuminating the expenditure implications of circulating(prenominal) polity purposes on future years budgets, medium-term expenditure projections enable governments to adjudicate cost legalness and to determine whether they argon attempting more than they can afford. 5 Finally, in purely annual budgeting, the link mingled with orbital policies and budget allocations is practically debile. Sector politicians announce policies, exactly the budget often fails to provide the prerequisite resources. However, dickens pitfalls should be avoided. First, a multiyear expenditure show up can tself be an occasion to develop an evasion stra tegy, by pushing expenditure off to the out-years. Second, it could lead to claims for increased expenditures from path ministries, since new programs argon easily change into entitlements as soon as they argon take in the projections. To avoid these deuce pitfalls, legion(predicate) an(prenominal) developed countries encounter check the scope of their multiyear expenditures estimates to the cost of existing programs, without devising fashion for new programs. 6 trinity variants of medium-term year expenditure programming can be considered A mere practiced projection of the ship costs of on-going programs (including, of course, the continual costs of enthronements). A nasty planning advent, consisting of (i) programming savings in non antecedency sectors over the planned effect, to leave room for higher(prenominal)priority programs hardly (ii) including in the multiyear program ongoing programs and except those new programs that are include in the annual budge t presently under breeding or for which backing is certain. such(prenominal) plans include only a a couple of(prenominal) new projects beyond their commencement drill planned year (e. g. the Public enthronization Program inclined(p) in Sri Lanka until 1998). The genuine planning start out, which identifies plainly new programs and their cost over the entire period. This includes development plans masking piece all expenditures, or many public enthronisation programs incumbently prepared in several develop countries, as well as expenditure plans prepared in developed countries in the 1970s. Where the institutional mechanisms for inspectory sensation indemnity decision fashioning and for budgeting are not in place, this climb up can lead to overloaded expenditure programs.The feasibility of implementing these diverse attemptes and their linkages with the annual budget seems on the electrical condenser and institutional context of the vocalismicularised count ry. However, the annual budget should unceasingly be placed into some kind of multiyear perspective, even where formal multiyear expenditure programming is not feasible. For this purpose twain activities are a must (i) systematic estimates of the front costs of ongoing programs, when brushuping the annual budget entreats from grapevine ministries (ii) kernel expenditure estimates self-consistent with the medium-term macroeconomic poser (see section C).It is often objected that estimating forward costs is fractious, especially for re online costs of new public investiture projects. This is true, merely irrelevant, for without such estimates budgeting is trimd to a short sighted and parochial exercise. Please see machine-accessible Figure 4. xls C. CONDITIONS FOR SOUND BUDGET PREPARATION In addition to a multiyear perspective, conk out annual budget education calls for making early decisions and for avoiding a number of funny practices. 1. The need for early decisions By definition, preparing the budget entails hard choices.These can be made, at a cost, or avoided, at a furthermost greater cost. It is important that the necessary trade-offs be made hardcorely when formulating the budget. This go forth permit a smooth writ of execution of priority programs, and avoid disrupting program management during budget execution. Political considerations, the avoidance mechanisms mentioned below, and insufficiency of needed training (notably on continue committednesss), often lead to postponing these hard choices until budget execution. The postponement makes the choices harder, not easier, and the consequence is a less efficient budget cognitive operation.When revenues are overestimated and the stupor of continuing fealtys is underestimated, sharp cuts must be made in expenditure when executing the budget. Overestimation of revenue can come from practiced concomitantors (such as a big appraisal of the contact of a change in value indemni ty or of increased tax expenditures), barely often as well as from the desire of ministries to include or maintain in the budget an intemperanceive number of programs, plot of land downplaying unenviableies in financing them. Similarly, epoch underestimation of expenditures can come from un practical(prenominal) assessments of the cost of unfunded liabilities (e. g. enefits granted outside the budget) or the partake of permanent obligations, it can to a fault be a reckon tactic to dump new programs, with the design of requesting increased appropriations during budget execution. It is important not to assume that skillful improvements can by themselves resolve institutional chores of this nature. An overoptimistic budget leads to accumulation of payment arrears and muddles rules for compliance. Clear signals on the amount of expenditure compatible with financial backwardnesss should be infractn to disbursement agencies at the start of the budget supplying form.As will be stressed repeatedly in this volume, it is possible to execute seriously a realistic budget, but unsurmountable to execute well an unrealistic budget. There are no satisfactory mechanisms to make up the cause of an unrealistic budget during budget execution. Thus, across-the-board appropriation sequestering leads to uneconomically dispersing merely resources among an un effortable number of activities. Selective hard currency rationing politicizes budget execution, and often substitutes provider priorities for program priorities.Selective appropriation sequestering combined with a mechanism to regulate loyaltys partly avoids these problems, but still creates punishingies, since spending agencies lose predictability and time to adjust their programs and their cargos. An initially higher, but more realistic, mo breadary famine target is far preferable to an optimistic target ground on overestimated revenues, or underestimated existing expenditure commissions, which will lead to payment delays and arrears. The financial impact is correspondent, but arrears create their own inefficiencies and destroy government believability as well. This is a strong argument in regard of measuring the pecuniary dearth on a commitment terra firma, see chapter 6. ) To alleviate problems impartd by overoptimistic budgets, it is often suggested that a midpoint program at heart the budget be isolated and higher priority given to this program during budget executing. In times of high uncertainty of addressable resources (e. g. , very high inflation), this approach could possibly be considered as a secondbest response to the situation. However, it has miniscule to recommend it as normal practice, and is vastly inferior to the straightforward alternate(a) of a realistic budget to begin with.When applied to trus dickensrthy expenditures, the stub program typically includes personnel expenditures, term the noncore program includes a percentage of unattackables and services. Cuts in the noncore program during budget execution would lead to increase inefficiency, and reduce upgrade the meagre operations and maintenance budget in most developing countries. The core/noncore approach is ineffective withal when applied to investment funds expenditures, since it is difficult to halt a project that is already launched, even when it is non-core. Indeed, depending on strong political support, noncore projects may in practice chase out core projects. (See chapter 12 for a discussion of public investment programming. ) 2. The need for a hard constraint Giving a hard constraint to telephone circuit ministries from the beginning of budget preparation favors a shift from a inevitably mentality to an handiness mentality. As discussed in circumstance later in this chapter, annual budget preparation must be framed in spite of appearance a perish macroeconomic manikin, and should be organized on the following lines A top-do wn approach, consisting of (i) be nitty-gritty resources available for public spending (ii) establishing sectoral spending limits that fits government priorities and (iii) making these spending limits known to line ministries A bottom-up approach, consisting of formulating and costing sectoral spending programs within the sectoral spending limits and Iteration and reconciliation mechanisms, to produce a constant b oilers suit expenditure program. Although the process must be tailored to severally country, it is chiefly desirable to start with the top-down approach.Implementation of this approach is al counselings necessary for good budgeting, regardless of the time period covered. The good articulation of this approach in the context of medium-term expenditure programming is discussed in chapter 13, for the annual budget. 3. Avoiding questionable budgeting practices Certain budgetary practices are widespread but inconsistent with auditory sensation recording budgeting. The main ones are incremental budgeting, unrestricted processes, excessive negociate, and triplex budgeting. a. Incremental budgetingLife itself is incremental. And so, in part, is the budget process, since it has to take into account the latest context, continuing policies, and ongoing programs. Except when a major shock is requisite, most morphologic stairs can be implemented only progressively. Carrying out every year a zero-based budgeting exercise covering all programs would be an expensive illusion. At the other extreme, however, incremental budgeting, understood as a mechanized punctuate of changes in a precise line-item budget, leads to very execrable results.The dialogue surrounded by the Ministry of finance and line ministries is confined to reviewing the various items and to bargaining cuts or increases, item by item. Discussions focus solely on inputs, without any reference to results, surrounded by a Ministry of finance typically uninformed about sectoral re alities and a sector ministry in a negotiating mode. Worse, the dialog is seen as a zero-sum game, and ordinarily not approached by either party in good faith. Moreover, incremental budgeting of this sort is not even a good pricking for expenditure control, although this was the initial aim of this approach.Line-item incremental budgeting focuses generally on goods and services expenditures, whereas the budget busters are normally entitlements, subsidies, hiring or pay policy or, in many developing countries, expenditure financed with counterpart funds from orthogonal aid. Even the most mechanical and inefficient forms of incremental budgeting, however, are not quite as bad as brainish large swings in budget allocations in response to purely political causality shifts. b. Open- finish processes An open-ended budget preparation process starts from requests made by spending agencies without clear indications of financial constraints.Since these requests express only needs, in the aggregate they invariably go finished the available resources. Spending agencies have no incentive to place savings, since they have no guarantee that any such savings will give them additional financial room to undertake new activities. spick-and-span programs are include pell-mell in sectoral budget requests as bargaining chips. wanting(p) information on the relative merits of proposed expenditures, the Ministry of pay is led to making arbitrary cuts across the board among sector budget proposals, usually at the last minute when finalizing the budget.At best, a fewer days in the first place the deadline for presenting the swig budget to the Cabi electronic network, the Ministry of finance gives firm directives to line ministries, which then redraft their requests hastily, themselves making cuts across the board in the programs of their subordinate agencies. Of course, these cuts are also arbitrary, since the ministries have not had enough time to reconsider their pre vious budget requests. get ahead bargaining then taxes place during the review of the budget at the cabinet level, or even during budget execution. Open ended processes are sometimes justified as a de cardinalized approach to budgeting. spellually, they are the very opposite. Since the total demand by the line ministries is inevitably in excess of available resources, the Ministry of finance in fact has the last word in decision making where increments should be allocated and whether reallocations should be made. The less constrained the process, the greater is the excess of aggregate ministries request over available resources, the stronger the power of the rally Ministry of pay in deciding the make-up of sectoral programs, and the more illusory the ownership of the budget by line ministries. . Excessive bargaining and conflict avoidance There is al offices an element of bargaining in any budget preparation, as choices must be made among conflicting interests. An apolitical b udget process is an oxymoron. However, when bargaining drives the process, the only predictable result is inefficiency of resource allocation. Choices are based more on the political position of the incompatible actors than on facts, ace, or results. alternatively of transparent budget appropriations, false compromises are reached, such as increased tax expenditures, reation of earmarked funds, loans, or increased contingent liabilities. A budget preparation process henpecked by bargaining can also favor the emergence of escape mechanisms and a shift of key programs outside the budget. 7 A variety of undesirable compromises are use to avoid internal bureaucratic conflictsspreading scarce funds among an excessive number of programs in an effort to forgather everybody, deliberately overestimating revenues, underestimating continuing commitments, postponing hard choices until budget execution, inflating expenditures in the second year of a multiyear expenditure program, etc.These c onflict-avoidance mechanisms are frequent in countries with faint glueyness within the government. Consequently, amend processes of policy formulation can have benefits for budget preparation as well, through the greater cohesion generated in the government. 8 Conflict avoidance may measure up not only the alliances surrounded by the Ministry of pay and line ministries, but also those between line ministries and their subordinate agencies.Indeed, suffering cohesion within line ministries is often used by the Ministry of pay as a justification for its leading subroutine in determining the firearm of sectoral programs. Perversely, therefore, the all-around bad habits generated by open-ended budget preparation processes may reduce the incentive of the Ministry of finance itself to push for real improvements in the system. d. soprano budgeting There is frequent confusion between the crock up presentation of current and investment budgets, and the issue of the process by whic h those devil budgets are prepared.The term forked budgeting is often used to refer to either the first of all or the second issue. However, as discussed forward, a separate presentation is needed. Dual budgeting refers therefore only to a dual process of budget preparation, whereby the responsibility for preparing the investment or development budget is assigned to an entity different from the entity that prepares the current budget. Dual budgeting was aimed initially at establishing appropriate mechanisms for giving higher priority to development activity.Alternatively, it was seen as the application of a golden rule which would require match the recurrent budget and get only for investment. In many developing countries, the giving medicational arrangements that existed in the first place the advent of the PIP approach in the mid-eighties (see chapter 12) typically included a separation of budget responsibilities between the key core ministries. The Ministry of Finance w as credi devilrthy for preparing the recurrent budget the Ministry of Planning was trusty for the annual development budget and for medium-term planning.The devil entities carried out their responsibilities individually on the hindquarters of different criteria, different staff, different bureaucratic dynamics, and, usually, different ideologies. In some cases, at the end of the budget preparation cycle, the Ministry of Finance would simply collate the two budgets into a oneness document that made up the budget. Clearly, such a practice impedes the unified review of current and investment expenditures that is necessary in any good budget process. (For xample, the Ministry of Education will program separately its school construction program and its streamlet costs and try to get the upper limit resources for twain(prenominal), while not considering variants that would consist of edifice fewer schools and buying more books. ) In many cases, coordination between the preparat ion of the recurrent budget and the development budget is poor not only between core ministries but within the line ministries as well. While the Ministry of Finance deals with the financial persona of line ministries, the Ministry of Planning deals with their investment department.This wave-particle duality may even be reproduced at subnational levels of government. Adequate coordination is particularly difficult because the spending units responsible for(p) for implementing the recurrent budget are administrative divisions, while the development budget is implemented through projects, which may or may not report systematically to their relevant administrative division. (In a few countries, while current expenditures are paid from the Treasury, development expenditures are paid through a separate Development Fund. ) The origination of rolling PIPs was motivated partly by a desire to correct these problems. Thus, the crux of the matter of the dual budgeting issue is the lack of integration of different expenditures contributing to the same policy objectives. This real issue has been clouded, however, by a superficial attribution of deep-seated problems to the skillful practice of dual-budgeting. For example, dual budgeting is sometimes held responsible for an expansionary bias in government expenditure. Certainly, as emphasized earlier, the initial dual budgeting figure of speech was related to a growth seat (Harrod-Domar et al) based on a mechanistic relation between the level of investment and gross domestic product growth.This paradigm itself has unquestionably been a cause of public finance overruns and the debt crises inherited in Africa or Latin the States from badquality investment programs of the 1970s and early 1980s. The implicit disregard for issues of implementation cognitive content, or efficiency of investment, or mismanagement, putrefaction and theft, is in hindsight difficult to understand. However, imputing to dual budgeting all pr oblems of bad management or adynamic governance and turpitude is capablely simplistic and lead astray.Given the same structural, capacity, and political conditions of those years (including the Cold War), the same outcome of mess upful, and often corrupt, expansion of government spending would have resulted in developing countriesdual budgeting or not. If only the massive economic mismanagement in so many countries in the 1970s and early 1980s could be explained by a wiz and comforting technical problem of budgetary procedure In point of fact, the pecuniary overruns of the 1970s and early 1980s had shrimpy to do with the visible dual budgeting.They originated rather from a third invisible budget black boxes, uncontrolled out-of-door borrowing, array expenditures, casual guarantees to public enterprises, etc. 10 Public investment budgeting is submitted to strong pressures because of particular or regional interest (the questionable pork barrel projects) and because it giv es more opportunities for corruption than current expenditures. 11 Thus, in countries with poor governance, there are vested interests in plow separate the process of preparing the investment budget, and a tendency to increase public investment spending.However, under the same circumstances, to concentrate world-beater and bribe opportunities in the hands of a powerful unified-budget baron would hardly improve expenditure management or reduce corruption. On the contrary, it is precisely in these countries that snap first on improving the integrity of the separate investment programming process may be the only way to assure that some resources are allocated to economically sound projects and to improve over time the budget process as a whole. 12 By origin, in countries without major governance weaknesses, dual budgeting ften results in practice in insulating current expenditures (and especially salaries) from structural adjustment. Given the macroeconomic and pecuniary forecast s and objectives, the resources allocated to public investment have typically been a residual, estimated by deducting recurrent expenditure needs from the expected amount of revenues (given the general deficit target). The residual character of the municipal funding of development expenditures may even be aggravated during the process of budget execution, when pressing current spending preempts investment spending which can be postponed more easily.In such a situation, dual budgeting yields the opposite problem unmet domestic investment needs and scant(predicate) counterpart funds for good projects financed on favorable external toll. Insufficient aggregate provision of counterpart funds (which is itself a symptom of a bad investment budgeting process) is a major source of waste of resources. Recall that the real issue is lack of integration between investment and current expenditure programming, and not the separate processes in themselves.This is important, because to mis show the issue would lead (and often has) to considering the problem solved by a plain merger of two ministrieseven while coordination remains just as weak. A former minister becomes a surrogate minister, organizational boxes are reshuffled, a few people are promoted and others demoted. But dual budgeting remains alive and well within the bosom of the umbrella ministry. When coordination between two initially separate processes is close and closed circuit effective, the two budgets end up consistent with each other and with government policies, and dual budgeting is no great problem.Thus, when the current and investment budget processes are separate, whether or not they should be unified depends on the institutional characteristics of the country. In countries where the agency responsible for the investment budget is weak, and the Ministry of Finance is not deep involved in ex-ante line-item control and periodic management, transferring responsibilities for the investment budget to the Ministry of Finance would tend to improve budget preparation as a whole. (Whether this option is preferable to the alternative of trengthening the agency responsible for the investment budget can be decided only on a country- particular proposition basis. ) In other countries, one should first study carefully the existing processes and administrative capacities. For example, when the budgetary system is strongly oriented toward ex-ante controls, the capacity of the Ministry of Finance to prepare and manage a development budget may be inadequate. A unified budget process would in this case risk dismantling the existing network of polishedized servants who prepare the investment budget, without adequate replacement.Also, as noted, coordination problems may be as severe between separate departments of a single ministry as between separate ministries. Indeed, the lack of coordination within line ministries between the formulation of the current budget and the formulation of the capital budget is in many ways the more important dual budgeting issue. Without integration or coordination of current and capital expenditure at line the ministries level, integration or coordination at the core ministry level is a misleading illusion.On quietus, however, the general presumption should be in favor of a single entity responsible for both the investment and the annual budget (although that entity must possess the different skills and data required for the two tasks) Where coherence is at a premium, where any consistent policy may be better than several that expunge each other out, where layers of bureaucracy already frustrate each other, and where a single budget hardly works, choosing two budgets and two plants of officials over one seems strange. The keynote in poor countries should be simplicity.Designs for decisions should be as honest as anyone knows how to make them. The more complicated they are, the less likely they are to work. On this basis, there seems little antecedent to have several organizations dealing with the same expenditure policies. One good organization would represent an enormous advance. Moreover, choosing the finance ministry puts the rouse of reform where it should bein the budgetary sphere. 13 D. THE MACROECONOMIC AND POLICY place setting 1. Macroeconomic simulation and pecuniary targets a. wideness of a macroeconomic frameworkThe starting points for expenditure programming are (i) a realistic assessment of resources likely to be available to the government and (ii) the establishment of pecuniary objectives. (There follows, of course, meaning(a) iteration between the two, until the desired traffichip between resources and objectives is reached. ) As noted earlier, the capacity to translate policy priorities into the budget, and then to promise conformity of true expenditures with the budget, depends in large part on the soundness of macroeconomic projections and revenue forecasts.Overestimating revenues leads to poor budget formulation and therefore poor budget execution. (As mentioned earlier, this may sometimes be a deliberate ploy to evade the responsibility for weak budget management and discipline. ) The preparation of a macroeconomic framework is therefore an crucial element in the budget preparation process. Macroeconomic projections are not easy forecasts of contracts of macroeconomic variables. Projections are based on a definition of argets and instruments, in areas such as monetary policy, monetary policy, telephone modify rate and trade policy, external debt policy, command and promotion of private-sector activities, and reform of public enterprises. For example, the policy objective of reducing inflation normally corresponds to targets such as the level of the deficit, and the specific instruments can include tax measures and credit policy measures, among others. 14 Projections should cover the current year and a forward period of two to four years. b. pecuniar y targets and indicators The establishment of explicit pecuniary targets gives a framework for budget formulation, allows the government to state clearly its pecuniary policy and the legislative and the public to admonisher the implementation of government policy, and, ultimately, makes government politically as well as financially accountable. financial targets and indicators should cover three areas current fiscal position (e. g. , fiscal deficit), fiscal sustainability (e. g. , debt-, tax-, or expenditure-to-gross domestic product ratios), and vulnerability (e. . , analysis of the composition of the foreign debt). The summary indicator of fiscal position used most commonly is the overall budget deficit on a hard currency basis, specify as the deviance between actual expenditure payments and collected revenues (on a hard cash basis) positively charged grants (cash or in kind). 15 The cash deficit is by definition oppose to the government borrowing requirements (from dom estic or foreign sources) and is thus integrally linked to the money supply and inflation targets and prospects.The deficit is therefore a major policy target to ensure that the budget will be financed in a noninflationary way and without crowding out private investment, while keeping the growth of public debt under control. The cash deficit must ever so be included in the set of fiscal targets. The cash deficit does not take into account payment arrears and drift debt. In countries that face arrears problems the deficit on a cash basis positivistic net increase of arrears is also an important indicator, and is very similar (but not needs identical) to the deficit on a commitment basis, i. e. the difference between annual expenditure commitments and cash revenues and grants. 16 The IMF Code of monetary Transparency requires at least a memorandum inform arrears, when the country does not use accrual or limited accrual accounting (which would systematically generate reports on o verdue accounts see chapter 10). As discussed in chapter 6, the precise definition of commitment varies from one 17 country to another(prenominal) . Commitments include orders not yet delivered, may concern multiyear contracts, or, in some countries, be only the administrative reservation of appropriations.Therefore, when using the deficit on a commitment basis as fiscal indicator, it is necessary to specify what transactions are included in the expenditures on a commitment basis. This indicator would be meaningless if it includes multiyear commitments and commitments that are merely reservations of appropriations. Moreover, to estimate arrears more accurately, orders not yet delivered should be separated from actual expenditures (accrued expenditures, or expenditures at the halt stage). As discussed in chapters 6 and 10, this requires an adequate accounting system for bring in the uses of appropriations.The primary deficit (on either a cash or a commitment basis) is the differenc e between noninterest expenditures and revenues and grants. As a target for budget policy, it does not depend on the vagaries of interest rates and exchange rates, and is therefore a better measure of the governments fiscal adjustment effort. In high-inflation countries, to take into account the impact of inflation on the stock of debt, a frequent indicator is the operational deficit, which is equal to the deficit on a cash basis less the inflationary subdivision of interest payment. 18The current deficit is the difference between current revenue and current expenditure. It is by definition, the government saving, and thus, in theory, the piece of government to investible resources and economic growth. However, since the current spending of a government may be as important for growth as capital spending, the macroeconomic meaning of this indicator should be interpreted with care. Depending on the circumstances, it may also be necessary to isolate once and for all the fiscal result s from other operations, as, for instance, the sale of public assets, or a special recovery of tax arrears. 9 Please see attached Table 2. xls It is natural to underline that the broad objective of fiscal policy is not a specific level of deficit, per se, but a fiscal position that is sustainable in lax of policy goals and likely resource availability. Indicators of fiscal sustainability include the ratio of debt to gross domestic product, tax to GDP, net unfunded social security liabilities. The numeration of the deficit on an accrual basis and the assessment of the net worth of the government allows a etter assessment of liabilities and therefore their impact on sustainability (see chapter 10). However, huge movements in net worth can be caused by valuation changes in assets such as land, that the government has no immediate intention of liquidating. Hence, net worth measures could be risky if used as indicators for near-term fiscal policy. 20 An assessment of fiscal vulnerabi lity is also needed, especially in countries that benefit from short capital in accrues.Especially relevant to Asian countries touched by the financial crisis that began in 1997 such an assessment could be based on the analysis of the maturity of government debt, the volume of usable foreign exchange reserves, etc. There is no question that the exemplar deficit measures may indicate a healthy fiscal situation which is in reality fragile. However, as shown by recent developments, guidelines for assessing fiscal vulnerabilities are doubtful and unclear. This question is related to the perennial and difficult issue f early ideal systems to predict the probability of an impending fiscal or financial crisis. It may well be that such early warnings are feasible and appropriate. Among the thorny difficulties, however, there is the risk of a self-fulfilling prophecy, where the early warning itself could cause financial markets to become concerned and hence form bubbles a crisis. Thus, on the equaliser of the flip over, against any real crisis that an early warning system has predicted accurately, one should place other crises, that efficacy not have happened were it not for the warning itself. . Preparation of a macroeconomic framework A macroeconomic framework typically includes projections of the balance of payments, the real sector (i. e. , production), the fiscal accounts, and the monetary sector. It is a bastard for checking the agreement of assumptions or projections concerning economic growth, the fiscal deficit, the balance of payments, the exchange rate, inflation, credit growth and the dowry of the private and public sectors on external borrowing policies, etc. 21 Preparing a macroeconomic framework is always an re reiterative exercise.A set of initial objectives must be defined to establish a overture baseline scenario, but the final framework requires a progressive reconciliation and point of intersection of all objectives and targets. Consid ering only one target (e. g. , the fiscal deficit) in this iterative exercise risks formation other important targets as de facto residuals. General government (see chapter 2) should be considered when preparing the fiscal projections and defining the fiscal targets, but the fiscal targets should also be broken down between central and local government.In some decentralized systems, by law a fiscal target cannot be directly imposed on subnational and local government. In those cases, it is necessary to assess the feasibility of achieving it by means of the different instruments under the control of the central government (such as grants, control of borrowing). However, the constraints on running fiscal deficits are typically much tighter on subnational entities than they are on central government. The main reason is the central governments capacity to regulate money supply. Therefore, in some federal systems (e. . , the U. S. ) many states have their own constitutionally mandated r equirement of an annual equilibrize budget. monetary projections should cover the consolidated account of the general government and quasi-fiscal operations by the banking system. Future expenditures related to contingent liabilities as a result of government guarantees should be assessed (see chapter 2). In a majority of developing countries, it is desirable to prepare consolidated accounts of the public sector, to identify financing requirements for the public sector as a whole.Very often, however, only the central government is included, giving a misleading fiscal picture and the temptation to download the fiscal deficit onto local government entities. This practice is conducive neither to sound fiscal policy nor to the subsidiarity organise appropriate to the specific country. Unfortunately, governments and international financial institutions have paid insufficient precaution to this problem. The degree of sophistication of fiscal projections depends on the technical capaci ties within the country and the availability of data and appropriate tools. Sophisticated odels can be useful. Nevertheless, since the major objective is to set a general frame for formulating macroeconomic objectives and checking their consistency, the preparation of a macroeconomic framework does not of necessity require in advance(p) modeling techniques. On the contrary, these techniques may give a sense of misplaced concreteness and a forecast illusion which may stifle the practical value of the framework. Using simple quasi-accounting models would already represent significant progress in many countries. 22 Such models include mainly accounting relations (e. g. GDP plus net imports equals ingestion plus investment) and only a limited number of behavioral relations defined by simple ratios (e. g. , consumption, income), without resorting to econometric techniques. The models are also easier to use in discussions on fiscal policy, whereas the outputs of a sophisticated econom etric model depend on the approach adopted by the modeler, and the process is necessarily more opaque. In any case, predict revenues should be based on small analyses and forecasts by individual tax rather than on the aggregate outputs of a macroeconomic model.The problems revealed by the projections (e. g. , lack of consistency between economic growth targets and monetary policy) must be discussed among the agencies involved in macroeconomic management. The preliminary baseline scenario gives the macroeconomic information needed for preparing sectoral and detailed projections, but these projections usually lead in turn to revise the baseline scenario. Such iterations should continue until overall consistency is achieved for the macroeconomic framework as a whole. The iteration process is not only necessary for sound macroeconomic and xpenditure programming, but is also an invaluable capacity-building tool, to improve the awareness and understanding of involved agenciesand there fore their cooperation in formulating a realistic budget and implementing it correctly. Please see attached Figure 5. xls The preparation of a macroeconomic framework should be a permanent activity. The framework needs to be prepared at the start of each budget cycle to give adequate guidelines to the line ministries. As noted, it must then be updated throughout the further stages of budget preparation, also to take into account intervening changes in the economic surroundings.During budget execution, too, macroeconomic projections require frequent update to assess the impact of exogenous changes or of possible slippage in budget execution. In addition to the baseline framework, it is important to formulate variants under different assumptions, e. g. , changes in oil prices. The risks related to unexpected changes in macroeconomic parameters must be assessed and policy responses determine in advance, albeit in very general terms, of course. The importance of good data cannot be un derestimated. Without reliable information, the macroeconomic framework is literally not worth the paper it is pen on.This includes the collection of economic data and the monitor of developments in economic conditions (both of which are generally undertaken by statistics bureaus) as well as the monitoring and consideration of changes in laws and regulations that contact revenue, expenditure, financing and other financial operations of the government. 2. Aggregate expenditure estimates Typically, a macroeconomic framework is at a very aggregate level on the expenditure side, and shows total government wages, other goods and services, interest, total transfers, and capital expenditures (by source of financing).Assumptions and underlying policy objectives therefore concern the broad economic categories of expenditures, rather than the allocation of resources among sectors. Moreover, transfers or entitlements are not reviewed in sufficient detail and assumptions on future development s are not compared with continuing commitments. Thus, when elaborating a fiscal framework on the basis of the overall macroeconomic framework, estimates of the impact of the assumptions and the aggregate fiscal targets on the composition of expenditure, by sector or economic category, are required to assess whether the fiscal targets are realistic and sustainable, and to etermine the conditions to face-off these targets. Therefore, the preparation of aggregate expenditure estimates could suffice in assessing the sustainability of expenditure policy, and thus improve the budget preparation process (notably when defining expenditure ceilings for the various sectors). These estimates could cover (i) the forward costs of large investment projects (ii) projections for the more important entitlements and (iii) aggregate projections of other expenditures, by function and broad economic category.These estimates are less demanding in terms of capacity and institutional process than the for mal Medium-Term cost Framework (MTEF) described in chapter 13, but could be a step toward the implementation of a schoolwide MTEF. Indeed, this step is authorisation if some sectoral multiyear expenditure programming exercise is carried out (covering only investment or a few sectors), to embarrass contrast between the sectoral program and the macroeconomic framework, or the crowding out of expenditure in noncovered sectors or categories.Focusing only on technical issues while neglecting the fundamental question of the division of administrative responsibility inevitably produces a weak or inoperative macroeconomic framework. Some major considerations in this respect are discussed in chapter 5. 3. Consolidating the fiscal commitments a. fashioning the macroeconomic projections public While the iterative process leading to a realistic and consistent macroeconomic framework must remain confidential in many of its key aspects, when the framework is completed it must be made publi c.The legislature and the existence at large have a right to know clearly the government policy objective and targets, not only to increase transparency and accountability, but also to reach a consensus within civil society. While such a consensus may take additional time, and require difficult debates, it will also be an invaluable foundation for the robust and effective implementation of the policy and financial program. A good example is provided by the government of Hong Kong, china, which annexes its medium-term forecast to the annual budget speech (box 16 and annex VII). stroke 16Medium-Range accounts The Example of Hong Kong, China The Medium Range Forecast (MRF) is a projection of expenditure and revenue for the forecast period based on forecasting assumptions and budgetary criteria. To derive the MRF, a number of computer-based models that reflect a wide range of assumptions about the factors determining each of the components of governments revenue and expenditure were used. As summary is shown here, a fuller definition is in Annex VII. Assumptions relating to developing expenditure and revenue forecast over the mediumterm period are the following estimated cash flow of capital projects forecast completion dates of capital projects and their related recurrent consequences in terms of staffing and running costs estimated cash flow arising from new commitments resulting from policy initiatives the expected pattern of demand for individual services the trend in yield from individual revenue sources new revenue measures in 1998-1999 In addition to these assumptions, there are a number of criteria against which the results of forecasts are tested for overall acceptability in terms of budgetary policy Maintain adequate reserves in the long-termExpenditure growth should not scale the assumed trend growth in GDP Contain capital expenditure growth within overall expenditure guidelines Revenue projections reflect new measures introduced in thi s years budget To summarize, the MRF of Hong Kong is shown below (in $Hk beation) 1998-1999 Revenue 192,680 Expenditure 182,480 Surplus 10,200 congeries public expenditure 288,890 Gross domestic product 1,497,880 Growth in GDP (nominal) 12. 9 (real) 5. 0 Public expenditure as a percentage of GDP 19. 3 Forecast years 1999-2000 2000-2001 211,390 242,900 200,740 227,830 10,650 5,070 315,830 354,060 1,690,740 1,908,420 12. 9 12. 9 5. 0 5. 0 18. 7 18. 6 2001-2002 271,330 258,570 12,760 393,980 2,154,130 12. 9 5. 0 18. 3 reference point Medium Range Forecast of Hong Kong, The Internet, August 8, 1998. In some countries, government projections are submitted to a panel of nonsymbiotic and respected experts to ensure their reliability, while preserving the confidentiality required on a few rude(a) issues. In other countries, the projections are pass by the Auditor General (e. g. , the joined Kingdom and the Canadian province of Nova Scotia23).The liberty of the Auditor General adds cr edibility to the projections. However, any other form of participation of audit offices in the budget formulation process would be questionable. In any event, usage and alteration of forecasts would soon reduce the governments credibility and hence its influence. b. Binding fiscal targets? several(prenominal) countries have laws and rules that restrict the fiscal policy of government (fiscal rules). 24 For example, an earlier golden rule stipulated that public borrowing must not exceed investment (thus mandating a current budget balance or surplus).In some cases, the overall budget must be balanced by law (as in subnational government in federal countries). In the European Union, the Maastricht agreement stipulates specific fiscal convergence criteria, concerning both the ratio of the fiscal deficit to GDP and the debt/GDP ratio. (The former has been by far the more important criterion. ) One frequent criticism of such rules is that they favor fanciful accounting and encourage non transparent fiscal practices. When they are effectively enforced, nondiscretionary rules can also prevent governments from adjusting their budgets to the economic cycle. 5 Aside from the special case of European integration, one may generally consider that, in countries with fragile coalition governments, fragmented decision making, and legislative committees acting as a focus for periodic bargaining, setting up licitly binding targets may be appropriate. In other countries, however, binding targets could in effect predetermine the budget before its preparation even begins. 26 In contrast with an approach based on inflexible targets, other countries (e. g. , New Zealand) do not mandate specific fiscal targets, but refer to criteria such as provident levels and reasonable degrees.It is left to the government to specify the targets in a compute constitution Statement, which presents total revenues and expenses and projections for the next three years. This bidding is published at least three months before the budget is presented to Parliament, and is reviewed by a Parliament committee but not formally voted by Parliament. 27 Box 17 The New Zealand Fiscal responsibility Act Enacted in 1994, the New Zealand Fiscal Responsibility Act offers a comprehensive legal framework for formulation and conducting fiscal policy in general, and for incorporating a long-term orientation in the budget process in particular.While many OECD countries have similar practices in place, the Fiscal Responsibility Act is an example of these practices being enacted into law. The primary objective of the Fiscal Responsibility Act was to fasten sound fiscal policies and make it difficult for future governments to deviate from them. There are two provisions of the Act (i) a regime for setting fiscal objectives that focuses attendance on the long term and (ii) an massive system of fiscal reporting with rum mechanisms to ensure its credibility and integrity. The extensive reporting r equired by the act serves two purposes.First, it serves to monitor the consistency of the governments fiscal actions with its stated fiscal objectives. Second, it brings general transparency to government finances by mandating the disclosure of all relevant fiscal information in a well-timed(a) manner. The act requires two specialized reports the Fiscal Strategy Report and the PreElection Economic and Fiscal update. The Fiscal Strategy Report, which is presented to Parliament along with the budget, assesses the consistency of the policy framework contained in the budget with the short-term fiscal intentions and long-term fiscal objectives outlined in the calculate Policy Statement.The Pre-Election Economic and Fiscal Update contains the threeyear forecasts of all key economic and fiscal variables. Both reports contain two statements of responsibility, one by the Minister of Finance and one by the Secretary to the Treasury (a civil servant). These statements of responsibility aim t o clarify the roles of politicians and civil servants in producing reports and give a greater role to civil servants in producing them, thereby increasing the overall credibility of the reports. Source Budgeting for the future, OECD working paper, 1997.More important than specifying ex-ante targets and general criteria is to ensure that institutional arrangements and processes favor coherence among resource constraints, fiscal objectives, and expenditure programs. This broader issue involves the mechanisms for policy formulation, the budget preparation process, the role of the Ministry of Finance in budgeting, and the development of appropriate instruments for reviewing expenditures within a longer period than the annual budget. Box 18 A heartfelt Macroeconomic Coordination Practice The Gang of quadruplet in Siameseland The Thai system of budgeting is exceedingly centralized.It embodies a longstanding set of arrangements, rules, and procedures that unneurotic help exert discipl ine on aggregate fiscal management. It grants very little autonomy to line agencies over their budgets, and imposes weak accountability on them for their performance. The hallmark of the Thai budgeting system is aggregate fiscal discipline. A gang of four interacts to control the level of spending and thus the deficit the issue Economic and Social Development be on (NESDB), the Ministry of Finance (MOF), the Bank of Thailand (BOT), and the Bureau of the Budget (BOB) in the Prime Ministers Office.The gang of four is responsible for formulating the macroeconomic framework that serves as the basis for the aggregate expenditure ceiling. It also determines for the most part the ministerial ceilings. Prioritization is largely a function of the gang of four. It ensures that the budgetary requests of line agencies are consistent with the objectives of the five-year development plan. The gang of fours control over aggregate allocations to agencies and to expenditure categories implies that it exerts considerable leverage over priority setting.In Parliament, the Budget Scrutiny committee chaired by the Minister of Finance evaluates the governments proposal. Cabinet members can propose amendments to the governments proposal but seldom make significant changes in allocations to line agencies because of limited technical susceptibility to evaluate such proposals. Politicians can alter the allocation of line agencies. After a series of deliberations and negotiations, the committee submits the budget bill to Parliament. The Parliament almost always accepts the bill.Source Campos and Pradhan, budgetary institutions and expenditure outcomes, 1996. 4. Policy formulation a. vastness of policy formulation The budget preparation process is a powerful tool for coherence. The budget is both an instrument of economic and financial management and an implicit policy statement, as it sets relative levels of spending for different programs and activities. However, policy decision ma king is intricate and involves different actors in and outside the government.It is a technocratic illusion to embed all policy formulation within the budget process (as to some extent was the ambition of the PPBS see chapter 3). However, a coherent articulation should be sought between the policy agendum (which should take into account economic and fiscal realities) and the budget (which should accurately reflect the governments policy priorities). The budget process should both take into account policies already formulated and be the main instrument for making these policies explicit and operational. However, policies must be defined outside the pressure of the budget process. Making policy through the budget would lead to a focus only on short-term issues and thus to bad policy, since the policy debate would be invariably dominated by immediate financial considerations. (This is frequently the infelicitous outcome in developing countries with weak capacity faced with financial difficulties. ) In earlier times, medium-term development plans were intended as the instrument for setting up government strategy. However, these plans were rigid, invariant, and usually out of sync with financial realities.Paradoxically, therefore, they indirectly led in practice to the same dominance of short-term financial considerations. Organizational arrangements are discussed in chapter 5. b. The policy-budget link A bridge between the policy making process and the budget process is essential to make policy a breathing reality rather than a statement of wishes. For this purpose at least two clear rules must be established. 28 The resource implications of a policy change should be identified, even if very roughly, before a policy decision is taken.Any entity proposing new policies must quantify their effects on public expenditure, including the impact both on its own spending and on the spending of other government departments. The Ministry of Finance should be consulted in good time about all proposals involving expenditure before they go into ministerial committee or to the center of the government and certainly before any public announcements are made. in spite of appearance the budget formulation process, close cooperation between the Ministry of Finance and the center of government is required, at both the political and the technical level.The role of the center is to ensure that the budget is prepared along the lines defined to arbitrate or smooth over conflicts between the Ministry of Finance and line ministries and to assure that the relevant stakeholders are appropriately involved in the budget process. (This is a major challenge, which can only be mentioned here but requires care and commitment on a sustained basis. ) An interministerial committee is needed to tackle crosscutting issues and review especially sensitive issues.And, most importantly, each entity involved in the budget process must perform its own role in a responsible fashion, and be given the means and capacity to do so. c. Reaching out The importance of perceive Consultations can strengthen legislative exam of government strategy and the budget. Legislative hearings through committees and subcommittees, particularly outside the pressure environment of the annual budget, can provide an effective mechanism for consulting widely on the justness of policies (issues related to the role of the legislature are discussed in chapter 5) .The government should try to get feedb