Explore The Character and symbolic significance of Simon Essay Example for Free

Explore The Character and symbolic significance of Simon Essay After the end of the Second World War, novelists had fighting time writing on events that had just happened. It made a lot of writers think deeply about mankind and themselves. One of these writers was William Golding who Lieutenant in command of a rocket ship; his first novel was an allegory called Lord Of The Flies published in 1954 it asks the question is humanity all evil/self-destructive. Through out the book mankind is portrayed in a very pessimistic way. The characters in the novel reflect a particular part of humanity Jack reflects dictatorship and he creates a division between the group of children, very cleverly he becomes the leader of a tribe of animalistic savages that remind the reader of early man in its time. The Littleuns symbolises the vulnerable in society, Simon, on the other hand, is their saviour he picks the Littleuns fruit from the trees, which they cannot reach. He represents the spiritual aspect of humanity. Simon as a character is a caring and compassionate child who has not a bad intention in his mind. He is not govern by the negative human traits that influence our day to day reactions; human traits such as aggression or hate red even to the children that treat him badly, he treats all the children equal and helps them when ever it is need. An example is when he helps the littleuns, Simon found for them the fruit they could not reach,, passed them back down to the endless, outstretched hands. Simon or though his caring and compassion, he is quiet inarticulate, this is his only weakness, he finds it extremely difficult to communicate with the other children, this has an extremely bad effect on his ability to change the events on the island. Although his wisdom he never mangers to show the others how he could change the mistakes they make. He is physically weak and doesnt really take part in the greatly physical activities. At the beginning of the novel, as they all meet at the platform, you find out that he has fits, so he is epileptic or has a disability similar to that. He sometimes tries to interact with the other children but he feels the pressured of personality, on his views on the island and the beast, an example is when he says the wrong thing. Whats the dirtiest thing there is? Simon. He helps Simons always about This quotation describes how Simon lives in peace with the island and all the children on it. Simon is the only one with unreal view and the beast he is genuinely different to all the others. But he still mangers to live in peace with everyone, even Jack he mangers to get on with, there not friends as such, but the dont really bother each other. Does with show that the other children can see thats he is different and is some who respected because of this? Or though Simon does live in peace with all the others he is still treated and considered as an outsider by them all this is one of the unfortunate affects of being different, no matter how wise or intuitive you are. This is so easily sensed in the quote, when jack and Ralph go to find Simon. Hes queer. He funny They dont not like him they just realise that Simon is total Different to them selves. The one thing about how the children see Simon is that it changes though the novel and by the end, most of the children, not all of them but a proportion of them, respect him and are quite fond of him. Simon, you can tell is instantly different to the rest of the boys, his absolutely wise view on the beast and island. But William Golding in this novel made him more than just a mere boy he represent intuitive thought, this is to say that he get his knowledge from nowhere really he just know its, When he is talking about the beast existents What I mean.maybe its only us No child really think that way, William Golding is making it so that he symbolises Intuitive thought but it doesnt end there. At one time as he goes to prove the beasts inexistent, it reachs it climax when he meets an the lord of the flies, he has an encounter with the pigs head on a stick, the creature is crawling with flies hence calling it the lord of the flies. Fancy thinking the beast was something you could hunt and kill! You knew, didnt you? Im a part of you?

Descartes Conceivability Argument For Substance Dualism Philosophy Essay

Descartes Conceivability Argument For Substance Dualism Philosophy Essay Substance Dualism is the view that the mind and body are distinct. It pictures the world as consisting of two independent domains, the mental and the material, each with its own distinctive defining properties. We have clear and distinct awareness that the body is physical therefore it is spatially temporary and made from atoms which follow physical laws. It has dimensions, mass, texture etc. We also have clear and distinct awareness that the mind is non-physical therefore is not made from atoms or follows physical laws. The essence of the body is to be extended whilst the essence of the mind is to think. The mind is logically distinct and an independent entity to the body. So what can be asserted for one cant be asserted for the other. The mind will continue to exist without the body. It is infinite and immortal and will go to the afterlife. But the body is subject to decay because it is physical. It is not immortal and cant exist without the mind. The claim is there are two complet ely distinct substances, where substances mean a fundamental thing rather than stuff. In Descartes Sixth Meditation, he states one of his arguments for the mind and body being distinct. This is known as The Conceivability Argument: 1. I can clearly conceive existing without my body 2. What is clearly conceivable is possible 3. So it is possible for me to exist without my body 4. So I am neither identical with, nor a part of my body 5. So substance dualism is true Descartes, when considering himself, had a clear and distinct idea of myself (himself) inasmuch as I am (he is) only a thinking and unextended thing. Since he is thinking now, he must be a thinking thing. This property must be there as it belongs to his essence. If thinking ceases then he doesnt exist, an argument which he tries to prove in his early works in The Discourse. He has a clear understanding of what thought is. This allows him possibly to be non-extended as spatial temporality is not essential to him. He also has a distinct idea of body, inasmuch as it is only an extended and unthinking thing. If we think about an object we comprehend that its necessary extended and its essence is not thinking. For example, the essence of a stone is to be extended not to be a thinking thing. It is very hard to comprehend a stone thinking and if we can it is definitely not an essence of the stone. It is possible to conceive of the mind existing without the body and the body existing without the mind. Descartes uses the word possible in the sense that it is logically conceptual therefore not self contradictory that he can exist without his body. This is because it is possible to conceive of something being extended and non-thinking. Also it is possible to conceive of something being non-extended and being a thinking thing. For example we can conceive of my mind thinking but having no spatially temporality. God can create a world where whatever is conceivable is metaphysically possible because all things which I apprehend clearly and distinctly can be created by God. Thus anything conceivable becomes an actual truth. For example God cant create a square circle as it is not metaphysically possible. But God can create me, a thinking thing, distinct from my extended body since they may be made to exist in separation at least by the omnipotence of God. Therefore it is possible that my mind can exist without my body resulting in having a body not being essential to me. Descartes is moving from this doubt of his body to his essence. Descartes is using his scepticism that he is not going to accept anything that he is not certain of. He is certain of his own thinking and existence though. He concludes that this he can be sure of but this is the only thing he can be sure of: I am a real thinking thing and really exist, but what thing? I have an answer: A thing which thinks. But there are two different meanings to a thinking thing. One is something that thinks or another is something whose essence is to think, a thing that cannot not think. These are very different claims. He is making an epistemological claim to a metaphysical claim. He is arguing from how we come to know something to what it actually is. The argument shifts from a possible sense to a possible fact: It is possible that I am a thinking thing to my essence is a thinking thing. Knowing that I am thinking, it does follow that I am thinking in one sense. If I am thinking then I must be capa ble of thinking. But the claim that his essence is thinking is fallacious. If we take John Lockes claim that God can make matter think then God can make a stone think. A stone would then know that it is only a thinking thing and not know that it is extended. Therefore as its only aware of its own perceptions it can conclude that its essence is thinking. Just as God has made the stone think, God can take this away. Therefore the stone is left with its essence being extended and non-thinking. Moreover, all because the mind and body have different essences, this does not mean that they have to be two different substances. Surely they can be one and the same thing. Cant there be one entity which is thinking and extended? Jerome A. Shaffer uses the example of one entity, a man: The defying characteristic of being a husband is being a married man and the essence of being a parent is having offspring, but one and the same person can be both. Hence all because we have conceived of two entities having different properties it does not mean that they actually exist distinct from each other. For Descartes it would seem that they have completely distinct essences that it is impossible for them to not be distinct. Therefore the example of a husband and a father is seemingly weak because the actual properties of the occupier of the essences are both extended and male. Whereas the properties of extended and thinking things have, according to Descartes nothing in common. It would appear that there needs to be a stronger example from Shaffer to show that the mind and body can be one and the same thing. George Graham has a stronger example of the Gods making Oedipus marry his mother. As he didnt want to marry her he would say: very idea disgusts me, I find it unconceivable that I will marry my mother. Oedipus then falls in love with Jocasta, who is actually his mother. If we asked him what he thought about marrying her he may say: Very idea pleases me, I find it very conceivable. We would then conclude that Oedipus can conceive of himself marrying Jocasta but cant conceive of himself marrying his mother. Therefore they are not the same person. If I can conceive of myself as disembodied but cant conceive of myself without a mind you cant conclude that your mind and body are distinct as they can be one and the same thing. This is because the conclusion is aspectual and realises on aspectual knowledge. This aspectual knowledge that Graham mentions is a major downfall to Descartes conceivable argument. Gottlob Ferge explains this with the ancients knowing that Venus is the morning star whilst believing that the evening star was Venus as well or illiterate people not knowing that water is identical to H20. The mind and body could be the same thing but he they are assessed differently, one by introspection and one by inspection but this doesnt mean they can be separated and exist apart from each other. W. D. Hart creates a story to strengthen Substance Dualism and tries to show that the mind and body are not one and the same thing. This is because we can conceive the mind to exist without a body: Imagine one morning you wake up and go to the mirror. Looking in the mirror you realise that your eye sockets are empty. You can visualise your face with empty eye sockets as it would look to you in the mirror. You then saw around your head and see that your brain is not there. You can visualise how your empty brain pan would look to you in the mirror. Lastly it is still possible to visualise if you had no body. You would see the reflection of the room in the mirror. So you have a recipe for visual experience of yourself disembodied. As this is a thought experiment it could not actually occur in the real world. But the fact that we can imagine being disembodied. As we can imagine being disembodied without contradiction, it means that it is metaphysically possible. Hart would conclude that it is metaphysically possible for me to exist disembodied. Therefore the mind and body are distinct as disembodied existence can occur. Is it not possible to conceive of water not being identical to H2O even though it is metaphysically impossible? If we can then it is possible to conceive of the mind existing apart from the body doesnt show that it is metaphysically possible. For this metaphysically possible for the mind to exist with the body then the mind must be numerically distinct from the body. Kripke used his concept of rigid and non-rigid designators for Cartesian Dualism argument to prove that they are numerical distinct: If a and b are rigid designators, it follows that a = b if true, is a necessary truth. If a and b are not rigid designators, no such conclusion follows about the statement a = b The rigid designator water is identical to the rigid designator H2O. This is true scientifically. Water is identical to H20 in every possible world. If we have two rigid designators and the two are identical then this will mean that conceivability entails metaphysically possibility. This is because we cant conceive of a possible world where H2O is not Water. According to Descartes this would mean that God couldnt create a world where Water is not H2O as they are the same substance with the same essences. We cant conceive metaphysically that water is not H2O as this would make no sense. However it does not work if we use water non-rigidly. Water may not be a direct reference to H2O but a summary of the properties. This would be topic neutral as we are leaving out the nature of water. We could have a sample of water but not know that it is H2O, just like our predecessors. We cant conceive of them being identical in every metaphysically possible world therefore H2O is not water. We can easily conceive a non-rigid designation of water, for example tap fluid, rain, a lake that may not have been H2O as it is only there empirical properties that we know. As long as it is a non-rigid designator of water and we produce the properties, water can be anything. Thus we could conceive of the substance described as having a different chemical composition in a possible world. Kripke applies this to a brain state being identical to a mental state and tries to improve Descartes argument. We are immediately subjectively aware of mental states. We have immediate perceptions of them inside me. What you are experiencing when in pain is pain. It is an internal content of consciousness and this is the only way we can understand it. Therefore it is a rigid designator. If we can conceive of mental states being identical to the body then this would mean that it would be a necessary truth. If Descartes can conceive of himself being distinct from his body then Descartes is not identical to his body. Through modern neuroscience research it is possible to see that Descartes immaterial explanation of thinking being the essence of the mind is a lot simpler than getting a brain dependent theory. He believed that: Each substance is thought to have its own laws and its own range of properties; hence research on the brain is not going to yield any knowledge of the mind. But as more research occurs with neuroscience and neurology the more we realise how absurd the concept of Substance Dualism is. The mind apparently has higher functions which are reasoning, consciousness, emotion etc. All of these higher functions can be changed by drugs or an injury. For example damage to the temporal Lobe, the person with this damage will learn complex cognitive skills but will be unaware he has done so, even while engaging in them. There are many other examples of how the brain affects our higher functions. If the brain is dependent on the mind then how can this be true? How can the brain affect thinking as thinking is not its essence? Therefore it would seem that dualism fails not so much because of our limited knowledge of the mind but rather because of modern science. As the conceivable argument needs the essence of the mind and body to show that they we can conceive of them distinctly, if Descartes has got the essences wrong then he cant conceive of himself di sembodied. Doesnt entail it false as further research may discover there is a substance dualism but at the moment there is no leads.

Different Perspectives on Guns in the USA :: essays research papers

The right to own a gun Some states in America do not consider the right-to-carry law. In 1986, only nine states in America had the right to carry a gun law. But by 1998, 31 states had this law, and more than half of America’s population live in them. Nowadays, nearly all Americans own a gun. 80% men own a gun and 20% women. About 17 million American women own a gun. Different states in America have different gun control law. In New York, there is a juvenile possession law, a permit to purchase a gun, registration, licensing of owners and a permit to carry a gun are all required. This is quite strict compared to Texas. In Texas, there is a child access prevention law but no other controls are required. There are many gun rights interest groups in the USA. One of them is the Rocky mountain gun owners. They argue that the freedoms of US people have been eroded too far already. They succeeded in blocking tighter gun control laws. Most gun control interest groups argue that a gun is the only commercially available product solely designed to kill. They believe there should be a ‘cooling off’ period before people are allowed to purchase a gun from the time of application for a license. Should Children be allowed guns? In the USA, more than 135,000 guns are brought to school by pupils, some children as young as nine years old. But this is not a good idea because some children use it seriously and just shoot their friends because they are annoyed at them. Many of these teenagers are in gangs and say that they need guns for their protection. But is this true? Every 2 hours an American child gets shot, and sometimes it will be by another child his/her age.

Technology and Education Essay -- Teaching Education Essays School

Technology and Education Education is one of the most important professions in the working world. Technology has done many things for us in today’s society especially for education and schools. Technology in the school system has impacted the students and teachers in many positive ways, including virtual field trips, testing tips, teacher resources, class web sites, and lesson plans. With computer use in our schools, we have access to many different sources and various types of learning. Virtual field trips are a good way for kids to learn and get involved with computers. Students can go on all sorts of exciting trips and not even leave the classroom. Students can go on boat trips. They can follow other kids in different countries observing what they do throughout the day. I thought this was a great tool for teachers to use to introduce the students to new things about different cultures. Another database that teachers find helpful is International educator. This program helps teachers find jobs in other countries and receive information on other school systems throughout...

Formation of an Alkene by Alcohol Dehydration

Formation of an Alkene by Alcohol Dehydration Lab Report Balanced Chemical Equation for the Main Reaction Mechanism The acid-catalyzed dehydration of secondary and tertiary alcohols involves non-isolable carbocation intermediaries. In the first step of the of the reaction mechanism below, a phosphoric acid catalyst adds a proton to the oxygen atom of the alcohol to form an oxonium ion. The OH is converted to a better leaving group as the positive charge on the oxygen weakens the carbon-oxygen bond. The carbon-oxygen bond breaks during heating giving water an unstable carbocation. Without a nucleophile, the carbocation intermediate loses a proton from a carbon and forms a carbon-carbon double bond from the carbon-hydrogen electrons. The formation of a carbocation intermediate from the loss of a leaving group classifies this as an Elimination Reaction. Table of Reagents Pertinent Safety Information The phosphoric acid in this lab is a corrosive acid. Caution must be used to not get the acid in contact with skin or clothes. Gloves must be worn while pouring it. If there is a spill, wash the area with large amounts of water. Cyclohexanol, and especially cyclohexene, are very flammable liquids. Do not use an open flame as a source of heat with these substances. Outline of the Procedure Add 20 mL of cyclohexanol and 5 mL of 85% phosphoric acid to a 50-mL round-bottom flask along with 1 or two boiling chips Swirl the flask gently to thoroughly mix the layers and incorporate this into a simple distillation column Heat the flask until distillation begins and slowly distills the mixture, controlling the heating so that the temperature of the distillation vapor does not go above 100-105 degrees C. Cool the receiver in an ice bath to reduce the loss of distillate to evaporation Continue the distillation until only 5-10 mL of high-boiling residue is left in the flask Allow the flask to cool and disconnect the apparatus Transfer the distillate to a separatory funnel and shake it with 10 mL of saturated sodium chloride solution, then drain off lower aqueous layer Add 5 mL of 10% sodium carbonate to solution to neutralize any acid, gently shake the mixture, and drain off the lower aqueous layer again Pour the upper layer into a dry, clean Erlenmeyer flask Add 1-2 g of anhydrous calcium chloride, and allow the flask to stand for 15-20 minutes with occasional stirring Clean and dry the condenser, distillation flask and adapters for the final distillation Decant or filter the dry cyclohexene from the calcium chloride into a dry distillation flask and set up a simple distillation apparatus Add 1-2 boiling chips to the flask and distill the cyclohexene, collecting the liquid that boils between 79 and 85 degrees C in a small graduated cylinder Data and Observations The purpose of this lab is to synthesize cyclohexene from cyclohexanol using phosphoric acid. This student had difficulties maintaining the temp erature of the distillation vapor between 100-105 degrees C. the distillate recovered that was between 79 and 85 degrees C was discarded. The receiver was placed in an ice bath to reduce evaporation. A total of 21 mL was collected. Results and Discussion Volume of cyclohexene: 2. 8 mL Weight from density of cyclohexene: (0. 810 g/mL) / (2. 8 mL) = *0. 29 g cyclohexe*ne Percentage yield of cyclohexene: 20 mL x 0. 960 g/mL = 19. 2 g = 0. 192 mol 0. 192 mol x 82 g/mol = 15. g x 1mL/0. 81 g = 19. 4 mL (Theoretical Yield) 2. 8 mL/19. 4 mL x 100 = 14. 4% Yield (but of excellent quality) In a small test tube, add 5 drops of cyclohexene to 1 mL of 0. 5% aqueous potassium permanganate solution The solution turned brown immediately and then formed a dark, thick precipitate within 1 minute 1 mL of a 2% solution of bromine in carbon tetrachloride The solution immediately turned clear, and remained that way throughout the lab Conclusions The dehydration of alcohols is one of several methods to p roduce alkenes. This dehydration may be accomplished using a strong mineral acid such as sulfuric and phosphoric acid. The first step in this transformation is protonation of the hydroxyl group by the acid yielding an excellent leaving group. Next water is eliminated from the molecule resulting in a carbocation intermediate, which then eliminates a proton to form an alkene. Questions Name and draw the structure of the alkenes that might be obtained by acid-catalyzed dehydration of 2-methylcyclohexanol 3-methyl-3-hexanol What would be the best alcohol to use in an acid-catalyzed dehydration to prepare 1, 3-dimethylcyclopentene? The most suitable alcohol to use is 2*, 5*-dimethylcyclopentanol. Write equations to show the products that form in the reactions of cyclohexene with potassium permanganate and bromine.

Organizational Behaviour Assignment †Management Essay

A manager is a person who supervises one or more subordinates (Bailey et al., 1991, p. 14) by using the management functions of planning, organizing, leading and controlling. Managers can make a group of individuals more efficient to achieve (Reid) an organization’s goals. In addition to the functions, managers have roles to play in an organization and skills which make easier for them to do so. The management functions of planning, organizing, leading and controlling is a way for managers to mold individuals into ideal employees. With planning, managers can define the goals of the organization, and then establish an approach to achieve it (Gibson et al., 1997, p. 16) by developing a plan. Inputs from subordinates concerning about the plan are very much encouraged; as they’re the ones that make a plan work and by asking for their thoughts, subordinates would feel valued. After a plan is designed, organizing it will be the next step. Everything should be on stand by and everyone should understand the significance of their role (Gibson et al., 1997, p. 16). Next comes leading, where managers are seen motivating the employees and resolving conflicts. When the plan is being implemented, managers can control activities to ensure everything goes accordingly. A back-up plan should be developed in case of a crisis (Reid). Being aware of all these functions, managers can effectively assist an organization to attain its goals. In Henry Mintzberg’s study, he concluded that a manager’s roles falls into three categories; interpersonal, informational and decisional roles (Robbins & Coulter 2002, p. 9). In the category of interpersonal roles, a manager is a figurehead, a leader and a liaison of which he is a person who to gets closer to other individuals in the organization by developing a more personal connection with them. To accomplish this, managers should recognize that individuals have life to lead outside their office. Within the informational roles category, managers are the organization’s monitor, disseminator and spokesperson. Information is used here as an advantage for subordinates; managers facilitate by seeking receiving and transmitting information to them. In the decisional category, managers are seen as an entrepreneur, disturbance handler and resource allocator. Managers make important decisions that can influence individuals’ work environment. By assuming these rol es, an effective manager can be born in oneself. An effective manager needs certain skills as well. Skill is an ability to transform knowledge into act that ends in a desired performance (Bailey et al, 1991, p. 22). The vital managerial skills are sorted out into three categories; technical, conceptual and human skills (Robbins & Coulter 2002, p. 11). A technical skill is a specialized knowledge, which can be learned through experience or basis education. Conceptual skills are the potential to analyze, identify and correct problems. Human skills are the capability to work well with others by using motivation and understanding human behaviors. Organizational Behaviour is a knowledge which helps managers who deals closely with human resources to understand their subordinates as an individual, a group or as a whole organization (Robbins, S. P. et al., 1998, p. 10). Organizational Behaviour offers several concepts in helping managers to understand individuals better. The concepts are globalization, workforce diversity, improving quality and productivity, empowerment, improving people skill, ‘temporariness’, simulating innovation and changes, balancing family with work and ethics (Robbins, S. P. et al., 1998, pp. 13-18). Globalization is interdependency of transportation, distribution, communication and economic networks across global boundaries (Gibson, Ivancevich & Donnelly 1997, p. 54). This influences a manager’s people skills by two ways; he’ll likely be transferred to a foreign country or having to deal with individuals from difference countries (Robbins, S. P. et al., 1998, p. 17). To adapt, managers should think globally and being aware of the process of globalization. Managers should sensitise themselves while dealing with a global organization (Gibson, Ivancevich & Donnelly 1997, pp. 57-58). A clear code of conduct for the workplace can be developed so that employees have respect for difference cultures. To benefit from globalization, managers should equip employees with information about cultures in a country that they wish to penetrate its market (Gibson, Ivancevich & Donnelly 1997, p. 58). Procter & Gamble’s introduction of liquid detergent failed in Europe because European washing machines weren’t equipped for it so modifications had to be made to their product (Gibson, Ivancevich & Donnelly 1997, p. 56). This is an example in which Procter & Gamble had to suffer the loss of profits because they were ignorant in finding out about the pros and cons of launching their product. Managers will have to give pleasure to local as well as international needs so that global success can be attained. A diverse workforce will help managers to appreciate the intricacy of globalization. Workforce diversity occurs when an organization becomes more distinct in terms of gender, race, ethnicity and minority (Robbins & Coulter 2002, p. 41). Managers will have to mingle with the diverse workforce. Cultural awareness training for the current workforce (http://www.pwcglobal.com/us/eng/careers/diversity/index.html, 2001) can help employees and managers to learn about each other’s background. At PricewaterhouseCoopers, a Diversity and Workforce Champions are appointed in each department to find solutions concerning diversity problems; in hope of enhancing work performance. Jim Schiro, the CEO there, said that; â€Å"When you make a genuine commitment to diversity, you bring a greater diversity of ideas, approaches, experiences and abilities that can be applied to client problems. After all, six people with different perspective have a better shot at solving complex problems than sixty people who all think alike.† (http://www.pwcglobal.com/us/eng/careers/diversity/index.html, 2001) From the statement above, it shows that a diverse workforce is well appreciated because it can improve an organization’s quality and productivity. To improve quality and productivity, this is where Total Quality Management (TQM) comes in. TQM is a philosophy of management that is driven by constant attainment of customer satisfaction through continuous improvement of organization (Robbins & Coulter 2002, p. 46). Managers can use the approach of reengineering (Gibson, Ivancevich & Donnelly 1997, pp. 349-50) which is to reconsider how work would be done if it was from scratch. This can be done if a manager’s conceptual skills are used. Managers will have to come out with an arrangement that can improve organization’s productivity and quality so that customer satisfaction could be maximised. The organization should be completely change for the better; not only the final product but also the small things like how quickly is the employees’ response to complaints, how polite are they and so on. Citigroup’s employees are promoted based on their work performance (http://www.citigroup.com/citigroup/corporate/values/index.htm, 2003). At Hewlett-Packard Corporation, customers’ respect and loyalty is earned by providing high-quality services (http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/abouthp/corpobj.html, 2001). This can be done by putting employees in direct contact with customers. By doing so, employees can personally identify customer needs, so better choices can be made to satisfy the customers. Managers can empower employees to achieve customers’ approval. Empowerment means putting employees in charge of what they’re doing. It eases employees because when there’s no managers breathing down their necks during their work. At Nokia, employees are rewarded for the overall success based on their performance so it generates an environment for employees to optimize to their full potential; which managers can provide by giving employees all the information they need to succeed (http://www.nokia.com/nokia/0,8764,5452,00.html, 2003). Motivation is the best means for managers. In the Lesson of the Red Horse, it stated that employees tend to work more competent when employees are able to think on their own (Reid). Managers should treat employees as individuals and show that their contribution to the organization count. Meetings across departments; as a whole should be held regularly to help employees recognize the organization’s objectives better. In those meetings, ‘brainstorming’ (Robbins, S. P. et al., 1998, p. 741) can be done so new ideas from employees can be considered. Susan M. Heathfield wrote that: â€Å"†¦I attended a meeting led by a young manager. I watched †¦ as she provided [information] and led a discussion. The most striking feature of the interaction was that she talked to the group as if they were all colleagues working on the same goal.† (Heathfield, 2003) This exhibits that a manager isn’t more or less important than other individuals in the organization. Organization’s goals can be achieved when its managers’ people skill enhances. Employees should have a sense of importance and thrill, exhibit openness, insight and originality, and flourish on change, challenge and competition. A manager can make an employee have that sense by making them know that mistakes are tolerable as long as it’s being dealt with as soon as possible. Citigroup encourages an ‘open-door’ management style where doors in the office aren’t close at any given time to make the working environment more laid-back and giving the employees an opportunity to converse as well as interaction with their co-workers and managers alike without fear of rejection (http://www.citigroup.com/citigroup/corporate/values/data/index.htm, 2003). Communication is the key to bring individuals closer. At Nokia, a culture of internal and external communication is valued. Its range of communication channels that helps employees to use corporate information that they receive and by doing so knowledge is pooled and a sense of openness in Nokia is supreme (http://www.nokia.com/nokia/0,8764,321,00.html, 2003). Managers can take cue from people at Nokia as there is a Nokia People magazine which is published in 4 languages, a Nokia News Service which offers daily organizational news online, and an Intranet that contains Nokia’s company information. The reason why Nokia was focused is because of their commitment in bringing the Nokia employees throughout worldwide closer to one another (http://www.nokia.com/nokia/0,8764,5450,00.html, 2003). Managers should familiarize themselves with employees to can create a sense of family bond in the workplace. At HalfPrice books, its founder made the working environment enjoyable by encouraging a sense of play at work and enlivening employees so that they feel they’re a part of something brilliant (Heathfield, 2003). Managers have to simulate employee’s creativity and tolerance for change. The business world today is a global one with the introduction of the Internet. It offers plenty of opportunities for organizations to discover in. Hallmark, a greeting card company recognised this and developed their own website. Managers can nurture innovation by making information accessible to its employees and selecting creative people who are trained to develop first-class products (Robbins, S. P. et al., 1998, p. 18). Even if the company is the first to develop something new, it’s time to move on to the next best thing when their competitors reached the same product level. At Citigroup, management are willingly to invest in infrastructure and focus more on technological innovation because they want employees to give the very best service to their customers (http://www.citigroup.com/citigroup/about/index.htm, 2003). A change in an organization is inevitable therefore managers and employees face the concept of ‘temporariness’ (Robbins, S. P. et al., 1998, p. 18). They have to learn flexibility, spontaneity and unpredictability in the workforce today, by constantly updating themselves to better perform. Employees tend to defy changes because fear of getting fired, getting a lower pay or just fear of the unknown (Robbins & Coulter 2001, pp. 345-47). Resistance to changes can be avoided if the changes are planned well and there is clear communication between management and employees. Explaining the need for changes to employees and getting their views can diminish the resistance. Companies like Ford or JVC had to deal with changes when computerised assembly lines were introduced. All these changes happened due to new innovations being made everyday. Change creates stress for employees. Managers have to realise that employees have another part of life outside the workplace (Robbins & Coulter 2001, p. 351). Balancing work and family add more stress to employees that it disturbs their working potential. Work and family relates to one another. Organizations realized family concerns jeopardize business results. Managers should be aware of this as employees are afraid to voice out their concerns in fear of appearing less dedicated to their jobs. At Motorola, a work-life vision statement is made and a â€Å"Special Delivery† program gives expectant parents a 24-hours nurse hotline in hope of comforting and calming employees (Hammonds 1997). Satisfying employees’ personal needs can encourage more effective workers with less constant worry. Companies that recognise the need to adapt work to peoples’ life will win employees’ loyalty which gains them an edge in the business. Managers might find themselves dealing with ethical dilemma where they’re required to define right or wrong conducts. Managers need to create an ethically healthy working climate at the workplace for employees. Levis Strauss became the first global company to establish a broad ethical code of conduct in 1991 (http://www.levistrauss.com/responsibility, 2003). Values of the organization can be seen through its employees. For example, Malcolm Walker who heads a retail food chain called Iceland is also a member of an environmental awareness group called Greenpeace (Robbins & Coulter 2001, p. 130). His company showed ethical behaviour when they decided to sell products which are free of chemicals that can harm Earth. Managers should hire ethical individuals, establishing a code of ethics at workplace (Robbins & Coulter 2001, p. 131) and of course, be a good role model by making the right choices in managing the organization. Managers can either make or break an organization as they can influence and control the employees into doing anything they want. Managing individuals isn’t easy; however, it can be done effectively with the aid of organizational behaviour concepts and knowledge. It is something that a manager can improve on with practice and experience throughout their working profession. Reference List ‘About HP: Hewlett Packard Corporate Objectives’, [online] 2002, Available from: , [2003, October 10]. Bailey, J., Schermerhorn, J., Hunt, J., Osborn, R., 1991, ‘Chapter 1 Organisational Behaviour and the Manager’. In: Managing Organisational Behaviour. London: Jacaranda Wiley Ltd. p. 14. – – -. p. 22. ‘Citigroup – Our Values’, [online], 2003. Available from: , [2003, October 9] ‘Citigroup – About Us’, [online], 2003. Available from: , [2003, October 9]. Gibson, J. L., Ivancevich, J. M., Donnelly, J. H. Jr., 1997, ‘Chapter 1: The Study of Organization’. In: Organizations Behavior Structure Processes. ed. Biernat, J. E., Rob Zwettler. United States of America. p. 16. – – -. ‘Chapter 3: Globalization’. p. 54. – – -. ‘Chapter 3: Globalization’. pp. 56-58. – – -. ‘Chapter 13: Organization Structure’. pp. 349-50. Hammonds, K. H. 1997, ‘Balancing work and Family: Business Week’, [online], Available from:, [2003, October 15]. Heathfield, S. M.,2003. ‘Help People Thrive at Work’. [online]. Available from:, [2003, October 9]. – – -. ‘Make Learning Matter: Become A Learning Organization’. [online]. Available from: , [2003, October 1]. ‘Levi Strauss Co. | Social Responsibility’, 2003. [online], Available from: , [2003, October 4]. ‘Nokia – Internal Communications. [online], 2003, Available from: , [2003, October 4]. ‘Nokia – Nokia as an Employer’. [online], 2003, Available from: , [2003, October 7] ‘Nokia – Performance Based Rewarding’. [online], 2003, Available from: , [2003, October 10]. ‘PricewaterhouseCoopers:US:Careers:Diversity’, [online], 2001. Available from: , [2003, October 10]. Reid, J., 2003. ‘Lesson of the Red Horse’. [online]. Available from: [2003, September 18]. – – -.2003. Management 101. [online]. Available from: [2003, September 18]. Robbins, S. P. & Coulter M. 2001. ‘Chapter One: Introduction to Management and Organizations. In: ‘Management’. Prentice-Hall International Inc. p. 9. – – -. p. 11. – – -. ‘Chapter Two: Management Yesterday and Today’. p. 41. – – -. p. 46. – – -. ‘Chapter Five: Social Responsibility and Managerial Ethics. Pp. 130-31. – – -. ‘Chapter Thirteen: Managing Change and Innovation’. pp. 345-47. – – -. p. 351. Robbins, S. P., Millett, R., Cacioppe, R., Marsh-Waters, T., 1998. ‘What is Organisational Behaviour?’. In: ‘Organisational Behaviour: Leading and Managing in Australia and New Zealand’. French’s Forest NSW: Prentice Hall. p. 10.

Balanced Scorecard

Since the Market downturn in October 2007, a challenging set of economic events has been rocking the financial services industry and AXA equitable has since experienced major changes to keep the company competitive. A well-developed balanced scorecard is what AXA Equitable needs in order to remain a worldwide leader in the financial services industry. In the past, management have believed that the factors critical to the success of a company were based solely upon financial measures; this is why the Balanced scorecard was developed. The BSC has gained increasing popularity as an effective management tool that aligns employee actions and goals with corporate strategy since first being introduced in 1992 (Davis Albright, 2004). Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton proposed the balanced scorecard (BSC). The Balanced scorecard is a widely recognized tool to support decision making at the strategic management level which improves the satisfaction of the strategic objectives (Kaplan Norton, 1992). The BSC provides feedback on internal business processes, performance, and market conditions in order to review the trategy and future plans and  Large U. S. companies, such as General Electric and Federal Express, and non-profit and public organizations have implemented the BSC approach (Creamer Freun, 2010). According to the module, â€Å"financial measures are inadequate, however, for guiding and evaluating the journey that information age companies must make to create future value through investment in customers, suppliers, employees, processes, technology, and innovation (Baltzan, Phillips, Haag 2010). The balanced scorecard deals with a proposed model that embraces both financial and non-financial aspects to measure performance of an organization in the financial services industry (Wu, Tzeng, Chen, 2009). The  balanced scorecard[pic](BSC) is a multi-criteria evaluation concept that highlights the importance of performance measurement, and it recognizes that performance measurement should be incorporated in both of financial and non-financial measures; it captures not only a firm’s current performance but also the drivers of its future performance (Tseng, 2010). The balanced scorecard would be a positive force for AXA Equitable as it is a vital part of an overall strategy to become and remain an industry leader. Since times can be unsettling and while no company is immune from the challenges of a volatile market, management should strive to identify the factors that are critical to the success of the company. AXA Equitable needs to implement the measures listed on the balanced scorecard to achieve the company’s critical success factors. This will strengthen the company and continually improve AXA Equitable’s ability to manage through turbulent market conditions when necessary. The Balanced scorecard has four main parts. The balanced scorecard is developed along the four well-known perspectives of Financial, Customer, Internal Business Process, and Learning and Growth Performance, which, at any point in time of measurement, characterize the current status and future potential of organizations (Craig Moores, 2010). The financial perspective includes the measure of an organizations financial performance. For instance, it measures revenue growth, shareholder’s value, assets under management, and cash flow. This perspective links the company to its shareholders with main attention to the question: â€Å"How do we look to our shareholders and those with a financial interest in the organization? † Financial goals include achieving profitability, maintaining liquidity and solvency both short term as well as long-term, growth in sales turnover and maximizing wealth of shareholders (Asosheh, Nalchigar, Jamporazmey, 2010). The customer perspective includes the measure of an organizations market share, customer satisfaction, customer retention, customer referrals and value added activities. This is the second external oriented perspective that takes a look at the organization’s customers, who are the crucial factor for financial success generating revenue by buying products and services. The question is: â€Å"How do our customers perceive us in term of products, services, relationships and value-added? † (Asosheh, Nalchigar, Jamporazmey, 2010). The internal process perspective includes the measure of an organizations productivity, research and development, customer complaints and returns, and operational speed. This Measure focuses on the internal processes that will have the greatest impact on customer satisfaction and achieving an organization’s financial objectives. Firms should decide what processes and competencies they must excel at and specify measures for each of them (Asosheh, Nalchigar, Jamporazmey, 2010). The learning and growth perspective includes the measure of an organizations turnover ratio, hiring goals, education and training of new and existing employees, and number of new and improved products or services. This perspective identifies the infrastructure that the organization must build to create long-term growth and improvement. Intense global competition requires that organizations continually improve their capabilities for delivering value to customers and shareholders. Thus the question remains: â€Å"To achieve our future vision, how will we continue to improve and create future value for our stakeholders? † (Asosheh, Nalchigar, Jamporazmey, 2010). The best way to measure AXA Equitable’s financial performance is the shareholders value. This shows the value that the shareholders perceive AXA Equitable to be worth. There is strong evidence that the balanced scorecard is an effective strategic management tool that leads to improved shareholder returns (Crabtree DeBusk, 2008). The primary objective of management should be maximizing its shareholder’s value. Since the turbulent economy, AXA Equitable shareholder value is back on the up rise again. This can be seen with the stock price. AXA Equitable stocks, just like most other companies, were not immune to the highly volatile market conditions; However with the market getting back together, the stock price is gradually rising again. The management decisions at AXA should be geared towards maximizing the wealth of AXA Equitable shareholders, which means increasing the value of shares owned by existing shareholders. A good measure of AXA Equitable’s superiority over its competition would be the ability to generate consistent and high total returns that it gives to its shareholders over time. Major company issues will exist with AXA Equitable if management interests are not aligned with those of shareholders. When managers pursue self-serving behavior rather than the maximization of shareholder wealth, several symptoms may become apparent: low stock returns, below-average operating performance, and suboptimal investment decisions. The likelihood of company problems is higher when managerial incentive systems do not coincide with shareholder wealth maximization (Manry Stangeland 2003). It is very important that AXA Equitable management put the interest of the shareholders first. Research suggests that firms with management that pursues its own interests at the expense of shareholders will perform comparatively worse than firms with management whose interests are aligned with shareholders (Manry Stangeland 2003). When a company like AXA Equitable is able to generate wealth for its shareholders year after year, it is able to differentiate itself from the competition and creates better value for its shareholders. Investors who purchase AXA Equitable shares hope that the returns they get on their investments would be higher than what they could get from putting those funds in a risk-free savings account. This shows that the investors are definitely willing to tolerate more risk of ownership in AXA Equitable because of the chance of making higher returns. Assets under management are a measure of the total market value of client assets with the company. AXA as a whole has 1. 46 trillion dollars in assets under management, making it the 13th largest company in the world. One of the biggest advantages of having assets under management as a critical success factor on the balanced scorecard is that focus on increasing the total value of assets under AXA demands continuous efforts and improvement by the management and employees of AXA. This financial measure is not only obvious to AXA management and employees but also those outside the company, i. e. the public. Ranking organization like Fortune 500, use the figures for assets under management as a financial success measure to rank companies against their competition and industries. Constantly increasing the sale of financial products or services is a very important aspect of a company especially one in the financial services industry. AXA Equitable offers a wide range of financial products and services like fixed income investments, equity investments, individual retirement accounts, education planning accounts, life disability insurance and annuities to its clients. The products or services is used to address their needs and help shape their financial futures. The sale of AXA Equitable’s financial products or services is crucial in measuring the financial success of the company. The product or services sale is exactly how the company makes money and becomes profitable. Employees of AXA Equitable earn production credits after each sale of its products or services. Production Credits are the total amount of compensation that AXA Equitable pays to its employees in form of commission for the sale of its products or services. The total amount of production credits earned by each employee is the best way AXA uses to measure employee performance. The Production credits can also serve as a measure of financial performance that AXA Equitable uses as a requirement for other benefits other than commission for its employees. Benefits such as medical plan eligibility, stock options, stocks appreciation rights, AXA Share plan and AXA Equitable Advantage. AXA Equitable should strive for consistent and positive investment results for its investment portfolios. This is very important to a company that deals with attracting new prospects and retaining existing clients. An AXA Equitable client, for example, with a portfolio with poor investment results will not remain with the company if that client can get better results with other financial companies outside of AXA Equitable. AXA Equitable financial advisors manage the managers. Portfolio managers manage the investment portfolios and financial products inside AXA Equitable. Those managers are in turn, managed by the financial advisors that make these investment portfolios available to the clients. The portfolio managers are responsible for picking the equities and bonds available in each portfolio, making changes and the investment results for the portfolios they handle. Clients can benefit from a professional allocated portfolio of AXA Equitable funds that delivers automatic diversification, risk management benefits, quarterly rebalancing, and consistent investment results. The customer perspective section of he balanced scorecard cannot be effective if customer satisfaction is not the number one focus. The first and most important rule for any company in the financial services industry is that the client is of the utmost priority. Financial advisors should learn to put the interest of their clients first before any other interests. Companies in a service industry should understand that customer satisfaction is a great measure of performance. Banks and other companies that deal with providing financial services to the public must first put more emphasis on customer satisfaction, and then on financial return. These companies must ensure that their customers remain loyal to them and develop new markets to attract new customers (Wu, Tzeng, Chen, 2009). A crucial part of maintaining client satisfaction is understanding the clients and their needs. AXA Equitable and its advisors are responsible for making financial recommendations and providing its clients with financial products and services, and financial education to address their needs and help the clients create the retirement of their dreams. AXA Equitable should take sending out client satisfaction surveys to every client on the anniversary date of purchasing a financial product or service very seriously. This Client Satisfaction Index survey is a true measure of customer satisfaction and has helped the company identify the key drivers of client satisfaction. AXA Equitable uses this survey to get client feedback on their financial products and the level of service that their advisors showed the client throughout the year. Value added activity is an important way a company can separate itself from the competition. Companies in the financial services industry primarily offer financial products or services to their clients. Why would a client want to use AXA Equitable’s products and service versus another financial company like American International Group (AIG)? What can AXA Equitable offer that client that no other company can? For example, every financial advisor is required to provide the clients with a contract after every sale of a financial product or service. This contract usually contains copies of signed forms and prospectus. It is better to hand deliver these contracts instead of mailing it to the clients. AIG, a major competition for AXA Equitable, usually sends out thank you cards and client referral forms after every new sale of the company’s financial product or service. This is very effective because it showed that AIG appreciates the client and their business. Value added activities can be as simple as remembering a customers’ favorite drink. Whatever the activity is, managers must find a way to capitalize upon it, as doing so will enable them to gain a competitive advantage. AIG uses this service-oriented strategy to get additional referrals and establish relationships with their clients. BSC is an effective performance measurement tool in performance improvement, which positively affects service quality (Ghani, Said, Laswad, 2010). Exceeding client expectations is another critical success factor on the balanced scorecard that AXA Equitable and its employees should incorporate. When this strategy is taken seriously and done correctly, the clients are satisfied; they stay with the company longer, purchase additional financial products or services and most importantly, refer others to the company. Customer satisfaction offers an immediate, meaningful and objective feedback about clients’ preferences and expectations (Mihelis, Grigoroudis, Siskos, Politis, Malandrakis, 2001). AXA Equitable has provided several tools like eRelationship ® for its financial advisors for client contact. The eRelationship ® platform is a good way for the advisors to have continuous contact and build strong relationships with their clients all year long. For example, doing the simple things like remembering and sending out birthday cards, wedding anniversary cards, seminars invitations, could go a long way in building and maintaining credibility, trust and satisfaction with the clients. When the financial advisor is compassionate and is always willing to help, the clients can now see the true value of the advisors. AXA Equitable needs to generate clients constantly to be successful in the financial service industry. To be successful in this business, the financial advisors have to constantly be in front of their clients. Activities that drive the success of AXA Equitable financial advisors include prospecting and meeting new clients, number of appointments set, running appointments and appointments closed. AXA Equitable uses to 5-3-1 weekly matrix to guide our advisor activities They will be successful every week if they can have five prospecting visits, run three client appointments and sign up one new client†. Internationale Nederlanden Groep (ING), another major competition in the financial services industry uses a performance management strategy to keep track of employee activities. The financial advisors are required to submit their performance goals, development plans, and action plans at the beginning of every quarter to their managers. At the end of the quarter, performance reviews are conducted by the managers to measure the activities and production of the financial advisor. The balanced scorecard will help enhance communication between the client and the organization to ensure favorable organization performance (Wong, Lam, Chan, 2009). The internal business process perspective measures efficiency and productivity level within the company. During the client appointments, after the recommendations have been presented to the client, how quickly and efficiently can AXA Equitable provide the financial products or services needed to the client? This can be done with a software called eDox ®. eDox ® is an online database software that the financial advisor carries with him to every appointment with clients. eDox ® contains information about every product that AXA Equitable offers to its clients as well as links to products from other companies that AXA Equitable advisors can also offer to its client. Intra-industry trade (IIT) has been central to increasing the variety of products available to consumers (Moshirian, Li, and Sim. 2005). eDox ® also serves as a tool that top management uses to send out memos, journals, sales ideas, and information on new product launches to every employee of the company. When the client agrees to go ahead with the advisors recommendation and get the financial products; all the applications and forms necessary to make the sale can also be found on eDox ®. A continual review and constant improvement of eDox ® would be very important to keep productivity levels high to become an industry leader. AXA Compliance department is faced with the task of keeping AXA Equitable and its financial advisors compliant with the governing rules made by the Security and Exchange Commission. The Security and Exchange Commission set rules, regulations and guidelines that govern all the companies in the financial services industry. The SEC draws up new regulations periodically that sometimes make business very difficult in the financial services industry, for example, the 90-24 transfer rule, which involves more documentation for transfers of funds between one financial companies. Meeting these guidelines and standards set by the Securities and Exchange Commission is important to eliminate client complaints, trading malpractice, and negative internal and external audit for AXA Equitable Growth within a company like AXA Equitable does not always have to mean more profits because it is in the financial services industry. To become a leader in this industry, the financial company would have to hire more financial advisors to acquire more clients, which in turn leads to more productivity within the company. AXA Equitable should set hiring goals for its managers each year that the company expects to be met because an increase in the number of financial advisors every year will cause an increase in the amount of business written in that year. AXA Equitable and other companies in the financial service industry are constantly rolling out new financial products or services to keep pace with market volatility and unlimited client needs. The companies equip these products with better features and benefits to make them more attractive to the clients and stand out from the competition. AXA Equitable should be committed to providing its financial advisors with the resources necessary to build a lifelong career. Companies facing intensive competition also have a greater impetus to find ways to differentiate their products and services from those provided by competitors, this frequently results in a greater number of product and service lines and differentiation sought through increased customization of products and services in order to meet specific customer desires. (Guilding and McManus, 2002). The Learning center at AXA Equitable is set up to train and support new and experienced financial advisors. For example, when a new financial advisor is hired, the advisor is required to take some necessary courses on AXA Advisors Virtual University (AAVU) to learn everything about the company, its policies and financial product or services. American International Group (AIG) is another company that has a similar new employee development strategy. AIG developed a New Branch Employee Orientation Program where new employees receive online orientation sessions that include information about AIG, as well as company policies and benefits. AXA Equitable should require additional sessions for training and development for their financial advisors. These sessions should include experiences and accomplishments of experienced licensed financial advisors to keep the all other financial advisors motivated and knowledgeable about everything going on with the company and the industry as a whole. Introducing a balanced scorecard in an organization and implementing the critical success factors identified on it will not be an easy task. When firms develop a  scorecard they often start with a strategic performance measurement system which includes a set of financial and non-financial measures. Afterwards, the cause and effect relationships between the different (sets of) measures are developed further to translate the firm strategy to operational activities (Wiersma, 2009). AXA Equitable’s Management and employees will have to cultivate a change initiative. The increasing use of balanced scorecards is changing the way top managers run their companies. When envisioning a firm’s future development, they no longer focus chiefly on monetary success indicators in the financial area, Instead balanced scorecard is designed to complement financial measures of past performance with their measures of the drivers of future performance (Asosheh, Nalchigar, Jamporazmey, 2010). Companies need to address issues to help assess competition in their industry. The Balanced Scorecard is generally implemented at the corporate, business unit, and individual level, and also becomes a powerful tool for the directors to monitor the implementation of the corporate strategy.