Comparing and contrasting Booker T. Washington's 'Up from Slavery' Essay

Comparing and contrasting Booker T. Washington's 'Up from Slavery' story and W.E.B. Du Bois 'The Souls of Black Folk' story - Essay Example Both men wrote extensively, and often from very different viewpoints, regarding the position of the black man in the post-Civil War American society, having a profound impact upon how these individuals were perceived by the greater American public and playing large roles in both establishing educational facilities for black children and in organizing advocacy groups for the black people. As can be seen in his autobiography, Up From Slavery, Washington felt that the best way to help the black man was to train him in ‘industrial’ type jobs while Du Bois, as can be seen in â€Å"Of the Training of Black Men† in The Souls of Black Folk, felt that the black man could best benefit from the same type of classical education deemed important for white men. Writing his autobiography in 1901, Washington details his rise from the ranks of slavery to the position of a degreed professor even as he highlights the various reasons why he feels an industrial education is the correct course of action for the majority of black men and women. Writing in an easy, flowing style, Washington works to present himself as clearly as possible, making it easy to understand the major events of his life as well as to see where the founding principles of his ideas came from. The concept of including technical education in with ‘book learning’ as he founded Tuskegee was one borrowed from Washington’s early educational experiences at the Hampton school, where students were encouraged to increase their academic knowledge while retaining a connection to their rural heritage. It was believed that by doing so, the students would be encouraged to re-invest their education into the communities from which they came, thereby helping to elevate the situation of the entire race. â€Å"We wanted to give them such a practical knowledge of some one industry, together

Trade Unions and High Performance Working Essay

Trade Unions and High Performance Working - Essay Example The government also has not been left behind in passing legislations that ensure protection of worker’s rights. High performance working involves employee involvement and participation, learning and development, teamwork, information sharing, and other HR practices such as talent management, and performance management among others (Cox et al. 2006). The role of trade unions has been declining over the past two decades which bring us to the question as to whether trade union presence enables the British management to develop high performance. To answer this question, the paper will discuss the various high performances work practices in British organisations today and assess their effectiveness in absence of union representation. This is to try to show that despite declining union influence in organisations today, most of the practices require the presence of the union for them to be effective. Another issue of importance is whether an extended coverage of employee rights to of fer protection to workers can be a replacement for union representation given the nature of British laws which allow discretion to management in enforcement. Over the years, women participation in employment has increased but women have yet to achieve equal treatment as their male counterparts, does this require the intervention of unions? Another key debate is the work-life balance. HRM friendly practices claim to enable workers to have flexible working so as to balance work and family life and so are legislations passed to that effect such as the Working Time Regulations, but the question is, â€Å"are workers having a satisfactory work-life balance and what is the role of the union in this matter?† Another issue worthy noting is the current revitalisation efforts by the unions especially through advocacy for lifelong learning. The paper will first give a short history of trade unions to include the structure and changing legal framework of employment relations. The paper w ill then cover the alternative forms of voice both individual and collective and their effectiveness as well as the legal institutions and regulation of workplaces. The increasing role of women in trade union will be discussed and finally the paper will discuss the strategies used to revitalise unions such as use of learning representatives. History of Trade Unions Trade unions in Britain can be traced back to 17th century during the time of crafts trade whereby craftsmen formed guilds to guard their trade. The system of employment relations in place at that time was voluntarism characterised by low regulation or non government intervention in employment issues. The craftspeople carried out their trades at home and engaged the services of family members as apprentices and therefore there was no need for intervention. However, industrialisation changed the nature of employment relations as work turned to the factory system where labour was impersonal. The trade unions became more org anised as various guilds from different parts of the country joined to form unions so as to protect themselves from the effects of the factory system (Hyman, 2001). The role of the earliest unions was to offer mutual assistance to members and to defend their jobs and wages. As crafts trade was wiped out by

The Self in Human Communication Essay Example for Free

The Self in Human Communication Essay Looking-glass self— the image of yourself that others reveal to you through the way they communicate with you b. Comparisons between yourself amp; others (you gain a different perspective when you see yourself in comparison to your peers) c. Your cultural experiences (these experiences provide benchmarks against which you can measure yourself; for example, your ability to achieve what your culture defines as success contributes to a positive self-concept) d. Self-interpretations amp; self-evaluations; your evaluation of your own thoughts amp; behaviors i. Self-interpretations- your reconstruction of the incident amp; your understanding of it ii. Self-evaluations- the value-good or bad- that you place on the behavior B. Self-awareness- your knowledge of who you are; of your traits, your strengths amp; limitations, your emotions amp; behaviors, amp; your individuality (basic to all communication) 1. Your 4 Selves (Johari Window); divided into four areas or â€Å"panes,† the Johari window shows different aspects or versions of the self (4 areas are not separate from one another, but interdependent; when one area gets larger, one or another becomes smaller). Open self- represents all the information, behaviors, attitudes, amp; feelings about yourself that you know amp; that others also know (varies according to your personality amp; the people to whom you’re relating) b. Blind self- represents knowledge about you that others have but you don’t (Example: habits you don’t realize you have); a large blind self indicates low self-awareness and interferes with accurate communication c. Unknown self- represents those parts of yourself that neither you nor others know (could be revealed during hypnosis or in dreams) Hidden self- represents all of the knowledge you have of yourself but keep secret from others (successfully kept secrets) 2. Growing in Self-Awareness (important in communication) a. Listen to others- feedback you need to increase self-awareness b. Increase your open self-increases the chances others will reveal what they know about you c. Seek information about yourself- use everyday situations to encourage people to reveal what they know about you; seek in moderation d. Dialogue with yourself; no one knows you better than you know yourself; ask yourself self-awareness questions Self-esteem- a measure of how valuable you think you are 1. Ways to increase self-esteem; increasing self-esteem will help you to function more effectively in school, in interpersonal relationships, amp; in careers) a. Attack self-destructive beliefs- set unrealistically high standards amp; therefore almost always lead to failure ii. Examples of self-destructive beliefs: 1. The belief that you have to be perfect; this causes you to try to perform at unrealistically high levels at work, school, amp; home; anything short of perfection is unacceptable The belief that you have to please others amp; that your worthiness depends on what others think of you 3. The belief that you have to take on more responsibilities than any one person can be expected to handle b. Seek out nourishing people (also seek to become more nourishing) i. Noxious Vs. Nourishing People 1. Noxious people criticize amp; find fault with just about everything 2. Nourishing people are positive amp; optimistic; they reward us, stroke us, and make us feel good about ourselves c. Work on projects that will result in success (if a project does fail, realize this does not mean that you’re a failure) Remind yourself of your success (only focus on failures if your objective is to correct what you did wrong or identify the skills you need to correct those failures) e. Secure affirmation- positive statements about you, statements asserting that something good or positive is true of you (focus on your good deeds, your positive qualities, strengths, amp; virtues) II. Self-disclosure A. Self-disclosure. Who you are- individuals who are more sociable, extroverted, comfortable communicating, competent, amp; self-confident are more willing to disclose 2. Your culture- various cultures view self-disclosure differently 3. Your gender- women generally disclose more about relational topics than men with certain exceptions; in initial encounters men will disclose more intimately than women, perhaps to control the relationship’s development; also in a study between Americans amp; Argentineans males indicated a significantly greater willingness to self-disclose than females. Your listeners- self-disclosure is more likely to occur in dyads (groups of 2 people) or small groups than in larger groups; we disclose to people we like amp; trust, amp; to those that disclose to us (dyadic effect- what one person does, the other also does; not universal across all cultures- Americans are likely to follow dyadic effect while Koreans aren’t) 5. Your topic amp; channel- we disclose more positive information about superficial topics (job or hobbies over sex life or financial situation); individuals are more likely to disclose online (disinhibition effect- people seem less inhibited in communicating in e-mail or in social network sites than in face-to-face situations) C. The Rewards amp; Dangers of Self-Disclosure 1. Rewards a. Self-knowledge- helps you gain a new perspective on yourself amp; a deeper understanding of your own behavior b. Improved coping abilities- helps you deal with problems, especially guilt (receiving support rather than rejection) c. Communication enhancement- you understand the messages of others largely to the extent that you understand the individuals; when they are serious or joking, or being sarcastic out of fear or resentment) d. More meaningful relationships- tells others you trust, respect, amp; care enough about them and your relationship to reveal yourself 2. Dangers a. Personal risks-the more you reveal about yourself, the more areas of your life you expose to possible attack; the more they know the more they can use against you (competition or romance).

Auditor Crazy Eddie

Auditor Crazy Eddie Question: What specific mistakes (apart from failure to notice â€Å"red flags†) did the auditor make? For each mistake, describe what the auditor should have done. If you were the Managing Partner for the CPA firm and had full knowledge of all the facts and events in this case, what changes in policy or procedures would you implement to make sure this audit failure does not occur in the future? The Crazy Eddies financial statements had many fraudulent over and understatements done in many ways that the auditors should have caught. They created fictitious revenues by a number of means. They prepared phony invoices showing sales which overstated their revenues to show the company was growing faster than they actually were. Their vendors collaborated in the fraud by lying to the auditors when the auditors attempted to confirm some of these receivables. The auditors were not diligent when they verified these invoices. They should have probed further into the vendors to verify that these sales occurred. They also should have understood the relationship between Cray Eddies and their vendors to understand if there were motives for fraud. They overstated their assets by overvaluing inventory. They would borrow merchandise from suppliers to inflate the ending inventory. The suppliers would ship the merchandise to the Crazy Eddies stores and hold the billing until after the end of the accounting period. The employees of Crazy Eddie went to great extents to deceive the auditors. They would move inventory to the stores or warehouses that were being audited to conceal the shortages. The auditors should have caught that the merchandise was not billed and understood what accounts they charged in the books when the merchandise was received. Another means of overstating the inventory was they shipped inventory from one store to another store so it could be double counted. This should have been caught by the auditors by having the entire inventory verified in parallel. The employees included in their inventory consigned merchandise and goods being returned to suppliers. This could have been found by understanding the details of Crazy Eddies inventory. The auditor should have identified the consigned merchandise and goods being return to separate it from the normal inventory. Crazy Eddie used the accounting periods to overstate assets and income. They held off closing the books past the end of the accounting period to overstated assets and income by boosting sales. The other means used was to reduce liabilities and expenses by not recording them until the next period. The auditors should have verified books at the end of the accounting periods to make sure that all transactions were recorded. The auditors needed to verify the transactions around the end of the period to verify their timing accuracy. Another category of fraudulent activities was when they were completing their financial statements. They didnt adequately disclose facts in the financial statements according to GAAP. The footnote during one period stated that certain income was recognized when received and the following period disclosed that income was recognized when earned. The auditors should have added an explanatory paragraph or a modification of wording for lack of consistent application of GAAP. Main Hurdman was the auditor for the companys annual audits and its consulting division was charging Crazy Eddie millions of dollars to computerize Crazy Eddies inventory system. This violates rule 102 for integrity and objectivity. Auditors cant objectively audit an inventory system they developed which means this is a conflict of interest. They should have chosen to develop the inventory system or be the auditor but not both. Crazy Eddies employees later stopped using the computer based inventory system designed by Main Hurdman and used their manual inventory system. The auditors should have noticed the change in the inventory system being used and understood why they changed. This should have been a signal that they were removing some of the quality controls in the inventory system. Many of Crazy Eddies accountants were former members of Main Hurdman accounting firm. The SEC added a requirement in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act that requires a member of the audit team not work at the client for one-year in certain key management positions. The firm is not independent with respect to the audit client if a former auditor accepts employment with the client. There were several reported instances where the auditor requested the client documents and were told that those documents were lost or inadvertently destroyed. Sarbanes-Oxley Act states that all working papers must be retained for 7 years. The inadvertent destruction of working papers that are less than 5 years has a penalty of 10 years in prison. The collusion of key personnel at Cray Eddies made it very difficult for auditors to uncover the fraud. If the auditors would have done a risk assessment prior to engaging with the client they would have identified a risk with so many family members employed at the company. The success and growth rate of Crazy Eddie was not normal. The auditors should have completed a comparative analysis of other electronic retailers. This would have shown that their high growth rate wasnt typical compared to others. This would have prompted the auditor to look closer at why they were outperforming the competitors. To prevent the CPA firm from having this occur in the future, they should follow the elements of quality control. The one element is the policies and procedures before accepting or continuing a new client relationship. They should complete a client evaluation form which includes evaluation of the clients management. If this was done in the Crazy Eddies case, they would have found that it was a risky client based on his selling techniques alone. The firm should follow the element of personnel management where all new personnel should be qualified to perform their work competently. The personnel should have adequate training and proficient. The field auditors for Crazy Eddies were young and inexperienced. The management team was able to manipulate and influence the auditors. The auditor needs to follow the procedure of verifying the inventory count by observing it. Precautions must be taken to avoid allowing the inventory to be moved by verifying it in parallel if multiple locations exist. Crazy Eddies auditors were fooled by not taking precautions to avoid double counting the inventory. The firm must follow the Generally Accepted Auditing Standards. One of the standards of field work is to obtain a sufficient understanding of the entity and its environment including its internal control. If this was done, the auditors could have seen that Crazy Eddie had influence over his suppliers to cooperate in inflating the assets. The change in the inventory system back to the manual system showed a lack of internal control. The firm must follow the rules of conduct. They must keep their objectivity by not providing other services such developing or advising an inventory system. They must remain independent by not auditing a client that has former members of the audit team working at the client within one-year.

Womens Roles in The Yellow Wallpaper and The Withered Arm

Women's Roles in The Yellow Wallpaper and The Withered Arm In the late 19th century, women were expected to conform to the conventions of society. This meant that they were expected to get married young, pure and beautiful. They were treated like objects as if men bought them. How the woman felt was irrelevant in this period. Women were expected to produce an 'heir and a spare'. Women were also victim to double standards. For example, women had to deal with a child out of wedlock yet were given no responsibility for this. This contrasts strongly to a woman's role in society today. However, women are still expected to get married and give birth to a child. I am going to explore this issue in two short stories; The Yellow Wallpaper written by Charlotte Perkins Gilman in 1892, and The Withered Arm written by Thomas Hardy in 1887. The Yellow Wallpaper is about a women suffering from postnatal depression that is given the 'rest cure'. She feels trapped and eventually goes mad. The Withered Arm is about a milkmaid called Rhoda who had a child out of wedlock and has been excluded from society. The man with whom she had the child with gets married to a young girl who Rhoda resents and in a dream disfigures her arm. The young bride tries to cure her arm by touching a recently executed man who turns out to be Rhoda's son. The shock kills the young bride and the husband sees the error of his ways and soon dies himself. In The Withered Arm, Hardy portrays how negative life was for women in Victorian society. However, on the other hand, he clearly shows sympathy for the plight of women which suggests he had a desire for change. Hardy shows how the role of women in Victorian society was to get married. If... ...ath also forces Farmer Lodge to see the error of his ways. In The Yellow Wallpaper, The speaker defies the conventions of society by creeping around openly in front of John, however, in the same moment; she appears to have gone mad. This appears to be the only way out for her. Both stories symbolise how hard it was not to conform to society; a person died in one and in the other, a person went mad. They show that emancipation was almost impossible for a woman in Victorian times. The two stories use different narrative viewpoints. The Withered Arm uses the third person narration, which is seen to be more sympathetic towards the plight of women and more objective. The Yellow Wallpaper uses the first person narration, which seems less convincing and bias, however it also symbolises the aloneness of the speaker and her lack of voice empathises her plight.

Colonialism Essay -- essays research papers

European overseas expansion evolved from sixteenth-century colonialism driven by mercantilism to nineteenth-century nationalistic imperialism. Both had different forces compelling them; thus different countries—although most the same—participated in each phenomenon with unique, but largely similar goals. These two forces that overtook the world are comparable as they both have the same objectives; however, mercantilism compelled colonialism while nationalism drove imperialism. Colonialism Beginning in the sixteenth century and lasting until the early seventeenth century, several European countries colonialized by formally exerting the control of their political entity over another political entity in a different geographical location. Spain, Portugal, England, France, and Holland were the primary â€Å"exerters of control,† while the Americas and its neighboring islands, along with small colonies in Africa and Asia, were the â€Å"exerted upon.† The main force compelling these expansions was the doctrine of mercantilism. Three different systems of colonialism played themselves out in different locations. Plantations were assembled when the climate was favorable and the workforce was available; factories were set up when extractable resources were to be obtained without a foreign conquest; and settlement colonies appeared where the Europeans favored the environment and felt unintimidated by natives. Basically, these strong countries dominated weaker ones to promote their own national s...

Dillon V. Champion Jogbra Case Essay

Going green is the new trend now in corporate America. Everyone wants to save in some type of way. Human Resource Management is one of the biggest changes in corporate America today with HRM being the main source for all employees. When someone is employed majority of the time they have to deal with the HR department and this is where they fill out all of their forms and paperwork to make sure that they are legally able to work in United States. It is also where they go to fill out their tax forms and sometimes this is where they do their initial orientation. Times are changing and the changes could be great but then can also cause disappointment. The technological change going on today is the movement from paper to all electronic submissions. Some at first thought this to be a great initiative but later seen that I could cause problems. Take Cari Willis the manager of HR e-business solutions at IBM, she stated that it was absolutely a breakthrough for the HR department, but since the breakthrough happened it got harder to provide self-service in order to meet the needs of more than 140,000 active employees and 116,000 U.S. retirees (Greengard). IBM’s human resource department is almost all electronic today allowing for electric benefits enrollment, succession planning, e-recruiting, and online learning. Even though this new revolution has dropped cost and depleted paperwork there still needs to be someone who can manage the task most efficiently (Greengard). There is a lot that goes into building an e-procurement system; one had to determine what can all be included such as payroll, benefits, and training. You also would need to distinguish what type of access to have available to employees, whether they can access at work or at home. There is now a product out called TrainingNet which is a good example of how an e-marketplace can transform business to business transactions. TrainingNet aggregates various types of instruction such as classroom,  on-site, online, books, videos, and CD-ROMs from over 1,200 providers (Greengard). This hub allows employees to access courses online without having to sit in a classroom with an instructor. Genzyme Corp, a biotechnology firm started using this system in 1999 to move towards e-HR. Before turning to this new revolution they had their own training program that became costly and inefficient (Greengard). Senior vice president of HR Russell Campanello stated that employees from 20 Genzyme offices around that country had to fly into corporate every time that they need instructions (Greengard). The site also allows HR to monitor how employees click through the site and also allows for analysis of what training is needed. HRM has also gone electronic for recruiting as well. Companies are now able to post positions on websites like Monster.com or Indeed.com. These websites also allow perspective employees to apply directly for posted positions. Different websites also give people the opportunity to post their resumes and employers can contact people based on their qualifications. This revolutionary change is great but is it taking away from putting in hard work to find a job. One can sit at home and do nothing and get calls, when years ago you had to get up, get dressed, and go job searching. Now a job can come knocking at your door literally. Lawson Software vice president Larry Dunican believes that this revolution has only begun stating â€Å"Dramatic changes are a foot in the way HR users interact with each other and the external buying community, thanks to the evolution of e-business (Greengard). He also states that it will not be easy and that HR departments need to be aware fully of this new economy, they must understand that there would be new setups of portals and new tools that have to be established for this new evolution to work for them. Here are some ways that human resource can benefit through electronic systems. Portals can create a single interface for accessing key date. Online recruiting eliminates paperwork and can speed up the hiring process. Having self service can automate record keeping. Electronic payroll cuts cost. Electronic travel and expense reporting will cut out paper usage and speed up reimbursements. Online retirement planning can map out employees  future thus eliminating paperwork and questions (Greengard). In conclusion it seems that the technological change in HRM is moving in the right direction. Everyone wants to be able to do things simpler and faster. My job allows for us to log into a system and view our paycheck two days prior to payday, which is nice. The transformation will take a while for some companies, but this is just the start and in some years to come all companies will be forced to move to e-HR just to keep up with the competition.