The implications of downsizing to the employees, communities and families of the employees

Introduction Downsizing is a corporate practice that many employees are concerned about. This process can be described as a practice whereby firms reduce the number of employees and the scope of their business in order to achieve improved service and financial performance (Baumol, Blinder, Wolff, 2003).Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on The implications of downsizing to the employees, communities and families of the employees specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Many companies lay off their employees due to a variety of reasons that may include the following: when the service of an employee is no longer required owing to technology upgrade; an internal shift in the requirements of the organization; restructuring; a change in financial fortunes, etc. Downsizing is a common practice in the corporate world, especially in times of financial hardships. For instance, in 2007, during the global financial crisis, close t o one million employees were laid off in the United States (Bain Company, 2010). The impact of downsizing is felt hardest by the departing employees as well as their families and the community in general. This paper seeks to establish the effects of downsizing to the employees, communities and the families of the employees. The paper will also discuss the current or future applications and relevance of downsizing. Effects of Downsizing on Dismissed Employees Losing a job impacts significantly on any employee. Though the effects are mostly negative, there can be one or two positive consequences that come with losing a job. Positive effects It’s rare for anyone to benefit if he/she has been a victim of organizational job cuts. Normally, success or failure following a job dismissal will depend on an individual’s preparedness and the availability of other opportunities. All employees who lose their jobs through downsizing are often compensated, especially if the employmen t contract provides a severance pay policy (Baumol, Blinder, Wolff, 2003). There are rules and guidelines which organizations are required to abide by when downsizing.Advertising Looking for term paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More These include the provision of an early notice and the severance pay. Receiving a severance pay can be positive for some employees as it can enable them to boost their savings or fund their own business ventures (Mroczkowski Hanaoka, 1998). It’s depressing for a worker to hear that he/she will be laid off. However, this fact presents other opportunities which the employee might not have considered. Several organizations assist departing employees to secure alternative employment. Therefore, a dismissed employee may land a job that offers better pay and working conditions (Baumol, Blinder, Wolff, 2003). Negative effects As stated earlier, the negative effects of lo sing a job far outweigh the positive effects. The negative impacts can be broadly categorized into the psychological and financial effects. Most employees get shocked when learn about their sacking. Initial emotional reactions may include bitterness and anger towards the company. There are several other psychological effects that may come along the way. These effects commonly include depression, increased anxiety and subjective perceptions of incompetence (Mellahi Wilkinson, 2004). Job loss is also associated with increased incidences of suicide, risk of alcohol abuse and violent behavior (Tyler Wilkinson, 2007). Individuals who are downsized often develop negative views towards the administration and politics in general. They blame governments and the capitalistic systems of economy, and generally give pessimistic views on the economy (Cascio, 2002). Job loss almost always results into negative financial impacts on the dismissed employee. People construct their lifestyles based o n the regular income they receive (Mellahi Wilkinson, 2004). Some commit themselves to pay mortgages and other debts that are deducted on monthly basis. Losing a regular means of income can be financially devastating for an individual, especially if he/she cannot secure another job in the short term. The severance pay provided by the company might not last more than two months and therefore cannot effectively cushion a downsized employee.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on The implications of downsizing to the employees, communities and families of the employees specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In some cases, one can find himself/herself in a job that offers a lower pay and he/she is forced to change his/her lifestyle to accommodate the lower earnings. According to the data provided previously, more than 65% of people who lost their jobs through downsizing report being paid lower than what they were being pai d in their previous employment (Tyler Wilkinson, 2007). And many of them find new work in temporary or part time arrangements. Effects of Downsizing on Employee’s Families and the Community in General The impacts of downsizing are often felt beyond the dismissed person. His/her family and the larger community are subject the ripple effects of downsizing. An individual’s family may go through similar physical and psychological experiences as the downsized individual. These effects can be broadly classified as financial, social, and psychological effects. Effects of downsizing on the employee’s family The family of an individual who has lost his/her job may not be able to continue with the same lifestyle they had before. They are forced to cut their spending to accommodate themselves to the new reality. The family might be forced to forego some privileges they previously enjoyed. If the situation is not solved in the short term, the family may find it hard to mee t their basic needs. Job loss through downsizing can be socially devastating for the victim’s family. The family might be required to vacate their current home and look for a cheaper house elsewhere. Sometimes it reaches a point where one cannot pay rent or mortgage a house. For some people it may imply losing home through eviction or foreclosure. A family that finds itself in this situation may find it hard to survive. Finding a new house offers many social challenges which may include finding new friends and getting children to new unfamiliar schools. Changing schools negatively impacts children’s academic performance due to the fact that they are forced to abandon the educational setting that they are familiar with.Advertising Looking for term paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Families that have no emergency savings usually suffer the most. Basic things like food usually turn into luxuries that they can barely afford. As a result, many families address welfares associations to get money for food and other basic requirements (Tyler Wilkinson, 2007). The psychological effects are far much overwhelming as compared to the financial and social effects. Normally, the family members may go through anger, anxiety and bitterness that might accompany loss of employment. The tension that is built up due to anxiety causes a lot of friction in the family setup. Several studies have shown that loss of employment has contributed to the rise in divorce incidences (Mellahi Wilkinson, 2004). The reason for that is such families tend to quarrel and argue more. Other psychological impacts of downsizing that affect the entire family include low self-esteem, stigma, the feeling of being isolated, and depression (Cascio, 2002). The psychological effects may give rise to real health issues in the affected families. However, there are families that work through the difficulties and come out as a stronger unit. This normally depends on how the family members communicate during that period. Effects of downsizing on the community in general The economic effects of downsizing are not limited to the dismissed individuals and their families alone. Jobs usually provide â€Å"stability for individuals, their families and the communities they belong to. Salaries of the employed usually flow back to the community when they buy goods and services† (Hossfeld, Legerton, Dumas, Keuster, 2005). When mass layoffs are carried out, particularly in times of economic hardships, the effects tend to be felt throughout the community. A study carried out in Robeson County, NC, to identify the effects of loss of employment on the community, established that the loss of employment due to loss of manufacturing activity caused far reaching economic implications to the Robeso n community (Appendix 1). In times of widespread economic problems like the global financial crisis, many companies downsize to better manage their resources. When a significant number of employees lose their jobs as a result of widespread downsizings, the ripple effects are felt in the community. Other sectors, particularly the service sector, will register decreased profits as a result of reduced spending by their clients. Layoffs also increase the existing level of unemployment in the community. The unemployed members of the community usually find it hard to meet their basic needs. Studies have shown a high incidence of poor health in the unemployed. This includes disease such as diabetes, pneumonia, bronchitis, influenza, and other specific chronic illnesses (Sahdev, 2003). Children who are born in families with parents who have lost their employment are likely to have long-term educational and social problems (Mroczkowski Hanaoka, 1998). The family stress that is associated wi th the loss of employment has been identified as a major cause of behavioral problems in their children (Hossfeld, Legerton, Dumas, Keuster, 2005). Loss of work through downsizing and other causes also results into social divisions. In most cases, the less fortunate in the society are contempt to live less affluent older industrial areas. Effects of downsizing on the remaining employee’s morale Downsizing has been known to impact negatively on the morale of the remaining employees. Most employees acquire friends and mentors among people at their place of work. Such close people might be affected during a downsizing activity. The remaining employees may be affected in a number of ways that will impact his/her confidence levels, interpersonal relationships, and perception of job security (Sahdev, 2003). In today’s society, many people are spending more time with their coworkers as compared with their families. Many employees are usually heartbroken to see their coworker s sacked (Sahdev, 2003). Downsizing impacts heavily on the sense of familiarity and the support networks developed by employees (Sahdev, 2003). The trust that had existed between different sections of the company will need redevelopment. Apart from loosing key friends and colleagues, downsizing will cause fear among employees. The remaining employees may feel that they will be targeted in the next round of downsizing. Studies indicate that downsizings usually happen in waves, as the management experiments and gauges the effect. The fear that one might be targeted in the next round of downsizing affects his/her productivity. Such employees may begin to consider other options that are available to them even before they are laid off. Downsizing also affects the employee’s confidence in the employer. Most companies fire people when things are not working as expected. While the company may cease further downsizing, workers will be aware that other measures will be instituted to cu t spending. They might be subjected to pay cuts, lower allowances, and reduction of business trips among other cost cutting measures (Sahdev, 2003). This may result in a less motivated work force. Relevance of Downsizing as Measured by the Objectives Many companies usually find it necessary to reduce their work force in order to survive through hard times and achieve improved efficiency. However, studies indicate that the stated objectives of retention are rarely achieved by the organizations that indulge in the practice (Mroczkowski Hanaoka, 1998). A study conducted by Wyatt found that only a third of the 1,005 corporations included in the study, had gained from layoffs (Tyler Wilkinson, 2007). Less than a third part gained higher than what they had anticipated, while four out of five had to hire again to refill the vacant positions left after downsizing. Indeed downsizing only serves as a short term reprieve for the company. In the long term most companies are not able to show a ny gains from previous downsizing strategies. Some of the issues that affect companies after downsizing have been described above under the effects on the morale of the employees. The adverse effects associated with corporate downsizing can be partly related to the focus on the outgoing employees rather than those who remain back. Managers tend to concentrate on offering counseling, training and other support services to the laid off staff. While there is no doubt that the laid off staff need such services, it should not be done at the expense of the remaining employees, who are equally affected (Baumol, Blinder, Wolff, 2003). The effects of downsizing on the morale of the remaining employees have been discussed earlier in this paper. Companies that carry out downsizing should rethink the strategy because it is least likely to improve efficiency (Tyler Wilkinson, 2007). The practice only results into great psychological and physical suffering of the affected employees and their fa milies. Thus, firms should develop other strategies of dealing with short term financial problems rather than indulge downsizing activities. Many studies have shown that sacking is a practice that is negatively viewed both from inside and outside the organizations (Cascio, 2002). Conclusion This paper sought to establish the effects of downsizing on the employees, communities, and the families of the employees. The paper also aimed to discuss the current or future applications and relevance of downsizing. It has been established that downsizing impacts negatively on dismissed employees, their families, and the community in general. The effects are mainly economic, social, and psychological. The practice also negatively impacts on the remaining workforce and the reputation of the organization that indulges it. According to the findings of many research studies, downsizing is not that relevant as it does not serve the intended purpose in most cases and only creates a lot of suffering for the dismissed employees and their families. The practice has contributed to a significant level of rebellion against capitalism in several areas of the world (Mellahi Wilkinson, 2004). Downsizing should only be carried out in justifiable circumstances such as technology upgrade or major change in company’s operations. References Bain Company. (2010). Downsizing. Retrieved from Management Tools: https://www.bain.com/insights/management-tools-2011-downsizing Baumol, W., Blinder, A., Wolff, E. N. (2003). Downsizin in America:Reality, Causes  and Consequences. New York: Russell Sage Foundation. Cascio, F. W. (2002). Strategies for responsible restructuring. Academy of Management  Executive , 16(1): 80-91. Hossfeld, L., Legerton, M., Dumas, C., Keuster, G. (2005). The Economic and Social  Impact of Job Loss In Robeson County North Carolina 1993-2003. Lumberton:Center for Community Action. Mellahi, K., Wilkinson, A. (2004). Downsizing and Innovation Output: A Review of  literature and Research Propositions. London: British Academy of Management. Mroczkowski, T., Hanaoka, M. (1998). Effective downsizing strategies in Japan and America: Is there a convergence of employment practices? Academy of  Management Review , 22(1): 226-56. Sahdev, K. (2003). ‘Survivors’ reactions to downsizing. Human Resource Management  Journal , 13(4): 56–74. Tyler, M., Wilkinson, A. (2007). The Tyranny of Corporate Slenderness.  Understanding Organizations Anorexically, Work, Employment and Society , 21: 537-549. Appendix Appendix 1: Impact of loss of employment in Robeson County This term paper on The implications of downsizing to the employees, communities and families of the employees was written and submitted by user Adam D. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Media The Power to Make or Break a Nation essays

Media The Power to Make or Break a Nation essays "Communication remains God's great gift to humanity without which we cannot be truly human, reflecting God's image." (Ca "Monkey see, monkey do" has become a well-known saying in today's society. In addition, this is how media influences society as it leaves a large impact on the individuals. Media has been considered by Ciony C. Gonzales as "...the most dominant art form...." (1984, 9) as it has an innate power to engage and affect the total person. It leaves a compelling and lasting impact on both the conscious and subconscious (Gonzales, 1984, 9). Though media informs and educates, it also corrupts and exploits, leading it to contribute to the moral degradation of society. Media's role in society is to inform, educate, and entertain. It tells the truth and provides positive stimulation that can build up images and reputations the right way (Grantoza, 1993, 31). It can also be a tribunal of justice (Reuter, 1993, n.p.). Therefore, media has contributed greatly in ways that both enlighten and enrich society, but in other ways have deteriorated and perplexed it. It is not a surprise to learn, then, that media is the most powerful source of information, and nothing else in today's world influences public perce...

Example of a Permutation Test

Example of a Permutation Test One question that it is always important to ask in statistics is, â€Å"Is the observed result due to chance alone, or is it statistically significant?† One class of hypothesis tests, called permutation tests, allow us to test this question. The overview and steps of such a test are: We split our subjects into a control and an experimental group.  The null hypothesis is that there is no difference between these two groups.Apply a treatment to the experimental group.Measure the response to the treatmentConsider every possible configuration of the experimental group and the observed response.Calculate a p-value based upon our observed response relative to all of the potential experimental groups. This is an outline of a permutation.  To flesh of this outline, we will spend time looking at a worked out example of such a permutation test in great detail. Example Suppose we are studying mice.  In particular, we are interested in how quickly the mice finish a maze that they have never encountered before.  We wish to provide evidence in favor of an experimental treatment.  The goal is to demonstrate that mice in the treatment group will solve the maze more quickly than untreated mice.   We begin with our subjects: six mice.  For convenience, the mice will be referred to by the letters A, B, C, D, E, F. Three of these mice are to be randomly selected for the experimental treatment, and the other three are put into a control group in which the subjects receive a placebo. We will next randomly choose the order in which the mice are selected to run the maze. The time spent finishing the maze for all of the mice will be noted, and a mean of each group will be computed. Suppose that our random selection has mice A, C, and E in the experimental group, with the other mice in the placebo control group. After the treatment has been implemented, we randomly choose the order for the mice to run through the maze.   The run times for each of the mice are: Mouse A runs the race in 10 secondsMouse B runs the race in 12 secondsMouse C runs the race in 9 secondsMouse D runs the race in 11 secondsMouse E runs the race in 11 secondsMouse F runs the race in 13 seconds. The average time to complete the maze for the mice in the experimental group is 10 seconds. The average time to complete the maze for those in the control group is 12 seconds. We could ask a couple of questions. Is the treatment really the reason for the faster average time? Or were we just lucky in our selection of control and experimental group?  The treatment may have had no effect and we randomly chose the slower mice to receive the placebo and faster mice to receive the treatment.  A permutation test will help to answer these questions. Hypotheses The hypotheses for our permutation test are: The null hypothesis is the statement of no effect.  For this specific test, we have H0: There is no difference between treatment groups.  The mean time to run the maze for all mice with no treatment is the same as the mean time for all mice with the treatment.The alternative hypothesis is what we are trying to establish evidence in favor of. In this case, we would have Ha: The mean time for all mice with the treatment will be faster than the mean time for all mice without the treatment. Permutations There are six mice, and there are three places in the experimental group. This means that the number of possible experimental groups are given by the number of combinations C(6,3) 6!/(3!3!) 20. The remaining individuals would be part of the control group. So there are 20 different ways to randomly choose individuals into our two groups. The assignment of A, C, and E to the experimental group was done randomly.  Since there are 20 such configurations, the specific one with A, C, and E in the experimental group has a probability of 1/20 5% of occurring. We need to determine all 20 configurations of the experimental group of the individuals in our study. Experimental group: A B C and Control group: D E FExperimental group: A B D and Control group: C E FExperimental group: A B E and Control group: C D FExperimental group: A B F and Control group: C D EExperimental group: A C D and Control group: B E FExperimental group: A C E and Control group: B D FExperimental group: A C F and Control group: B D EExperimental group: A D E and Control group: B C FExperimental group: A D F and Control group: B C EExperimental group: A E F and Control group: B C DExperimental group: B C D and Control group: A E FExperimental group: B C E and Control group: A D FExperimental group: B C F and Control group: A D EExperimental group: B D E and Control group: A C FExperimental group: B D F and Control group: A C EExperimental group: B E F and Control group: A C DExperimental group: C D E and Control group: A B FExperimental group: C D F and Control group: A B EExperimental group: C E F and Control group: A B DExperimental group: D E F and Control group: A B C We then look at each configuration of experimental and control groups. We calculate the mean for each of the 20 permutations in the listing above.  For example, for the first, A, B and C have times of 10, 12 and 9, respectively.  The mean of these three numbers is 10.3333.  Also in this first permutation, D, E and F have times of 11, 11 and 13, respectively.  This has an average of 11.6666. After calculating the mean of each group, we calculate the difference between these means. Each of the following corresponds to the difference between the experimental and control groups that were listed above. Placebo - Treatment   1.333333333 secondsPlacebo - Treatment   0 secondsPlacebo - Treatment   0 secondsPlacebo - Treatment -1.333333333 secondsPlacebo - Treatment 2 secondsPlacebo - Treatment 2 secondsPlacebo - Treatment 0.666666667 secondsPlacebo - Treatment 0.666666667 secondsPlacebo - Treatment -0.666666667 secondsPlacebo - Treatment -0.666666667 secondsPlacebo - Treatment 0.666666667 secondsPlacebo - Treatment   0.666666667 secondsPlacebo - Treatment -0.666666667 secondsPlacebo - Treatment -0.666666667 secondsPlacebo - Treatment -2 secondsPlacebo - Treatment -2 secondsPlacebo - Treatment 1.333333333 secondsPlacebo - Treatment 0 secondsPlacebo - Treatment 0 secondsPlacebo - Treatment -1.333333333 seconds P-Value Now we rank the differences between the means from each group that we noted above. We also tabulate the percentage of our 20 different configurations that are represented by each difference in means. For example, four of the 20 had no difference between the means of the control and treatment groups. This accounts for 20% of the 20 configurations noted above. -2 for 10%-1.33 for 10 %-0.667 for 20%0 for 20 %0.667 for 20%1.33 for 10%2 for 10%. Here we compare this listing to our observed result. Our random selection of mice for the treatment and control groups resulted in an average difference of 2 seconds. We also see that this difference corresponds to 10% of all possible samples.  The result is that for this study we have a p-value of 10%.

HIV drug treatment in South Africa Literature review

HIV drug treatment in South Africa - Literature review Example It also highlights the side effects of these drugs and mention ways of making the HIV drug treatment as safe as possible. HIV is an important health concern as about a million of people are infected annually by this pandemic. Africa is disproportionately bearing the weight of HIV/AIDS epidemic. The population of Africa forms 11 percent of the world’s total population and about 67 percent of the people infected by HIV are living in Africa. About 22.4 million population of Africa is infected by HIV virus and about 1.9 million new HIV cases were reported in the year 2008. About 10 million African children lost their parent because of HIV, in the last year. The countries located in the north of Africa have the lower prevalence HIV rate. However according to statistics South Africa is the worst HIV affected part of this continent. About 10 percent of the population of Zambia, Swaziland, Namibia, Lesotho, Botswana and Zimbabwe, is affected by HIV virus. In the sub- Saharan part of Africa the HIV patients acquire half of the beds present at any hospitals. Health care professionals have been highly affected by this pandemic. In the years 1990-2005 about 17 percent of the health work force was lost because of this killer virus. In response to this major health risk a number of initiatives have been taken to educate the population of Africa, in order to reduce the potential risk of HIV. In 2013, a special report was issued by UNAINDS. According to this report the number of people receiving anti-retroviral treatment in the current year is seven times more than the patient receiving treatment five years back. Education is the main source by the help of which develop Africa fight against HIV/AIDS. There are several institutions that offer training to the individuals to eliminate the misconception about HIV this help them to make informed decision related to their health. There are several programs being offered in Africa one of which is â€Å"sensitization

Dada Movement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Dada Movement - Essay Example Political affiliations played a conclusive and directive role in the art movements of the times. It was held to be an inviolable rule that the art aught to spring out from the human desperation for assigning some black and white meaning to life and must hence be meaningful and conventional. Elaborate philosophies were built around art movements and art evolved into a highly institutionalized form of self expression. Bourgeois ideas of taste and decorum dominated the art world and artists used to work with a coveting eye on the market value of their art. There was set a standard of beauty and taste and the art was strictly expected to cater to such calibrated specifications. The artistic urge for experimentation had been diluted and subdued over the years and the art was turning out to be a very predictable and complacent aspect of life. Then we had the World War I that mercilessly exposed the sense of waste and nihilism embedded deep in the Western consciousness. The unrestrained violence and mayhem that embodied the spirits of the times gave way to a sense of disillusionment with the established standards of meaning and value. The sacrosanct and well entrenched ideas about ethics and norms simply crumpled before the carnage let loose by the till now invisible human affiliation with violence and rage. The cardinal quest for imbuing life with some sort of meaning and purpose, now seemed to be irrelevant and unrealistically ambitious and arrogant. The set standards of beauty and good taste turned out to be a superficial and artificial faade that simply faded away before the corrosive impact of times and underneath it emerged a scenario dominated by frustration, disappointment and a pathetic loss of hope. I believe that this moment in the European history represented a unique aspect of human consciousness that was the hallmark of those times. Such a frustrated state of human psyche desperately yearned for some sort of artistic expression and release and Dada movement symbolized the human endeavor to give some discernable form to this human obsession with waste and confusion My main objective behind writing this paper is to somehow analyze the genesis and relevance of Dada movement with the local and international communication communities. The world today is as much in danger of being gagged and benumbed by a sense of stagnation and inertia as it was in the times that led to the flowering of Dada movement. Such a crisis gives way to a plethora of queries pertaining to Dada movement. Was Dada movement just a fluke unleashed by the circumstantial desperation or was it a phenomenon built around authentic and desirable aspirations Does Dada movement have any meaning and relevance for the contemporary art lovers Above all, will Dada art succeed in soliciting the reverence and attention from the contemporary connoisseurs or will it unceremoniously succumb to a looming apathy and aversion, which was its fate in the days of the yore. It is said that history repeats itself and much to my surprise, I have discovered that that the contemporary

Performance Evaluation Task Essay Example for Free

Performance Evaluation Task Essay All employees want a fair and accurate performance evaluation. It’s it important that an evaluation reflect each employee’s job duties and how well they have performed. In this scenario, the engineer’s first performance review ended with him being angry over the way in which he was being evaluated. There were three main issues with the engineer’s evaluation. The engineer felt that no one in the company, including the plant manager was qualified to complete his annual review. He felt this way because he is the only trained engineer in the company. As a result, the engineer had little confidence in the way that he was being evaluated and was upset that most of his review was based on relationships with other co-workers and his own personal characteristics. For the second annual review the plant manager is exploring other options when it comes to evaluating the engineer. The three most commonly-used sets of evaluation criteria which should be used in evaluations are individual task outcomes, behaviors, and traits. In this scenario, the engineer could be judged on what he was able to accomplish. For example, the changes that the engineer suggested resulted in considerable savings on manufacturing energy cost and eliminated a significant safety hazard that had been previously overlooked. Behavior refers to not only how the employee works with others but also organizational performance, promptness, and suggestions for improvements. In the scenario, the engineer clashes with other employees and has a poor attitude towards co-workers. However, the engineer’s suggestions have led to positive changes with the company. Traits are referring to the engineer’s attitude, showing confidence, and being dependable. In this scenario, the engineer demonstrates a poor attitude towards co-workers and does not pay close attention when the manager is speaking. When you compare the most commonly used sets of criteria of claim evaluation the manager needs to determine the importance or weight of each category. Is what the employee achieved as important as how the tasks were done or that they got along with the other members of the team? What the engineer achieved is something that can be measured though the completion of tasks.  Behaviors and traits can be more subjective. It could be the engineer’s personality to be standoffish or he doesn’t socialize well with others. This doesn’t necessarily mean the engineer is not a successful employee. In the annual review, the manager should consider the outcome of his tasks as the highest priority. Behaviors should be the next factor, and finally traits. In an effort to get more buy in of the performance evaluation process, the plant manager can include the opinions of supervisors, peers, and subordinates. This is an example of a full 360-degree program. There are advantages and disadvantages to this process. The advantages include the hope to give everyone more of a sense of participation in the review process and gain more accurate readings on employee performance. The use of multiple sources is more likely to capture a variety of behavior more accurately. It also provides employees with a wider perspective of their performance. Some of the disadvantages of the 360 degree evaluation are that it has the potential to be misused. Some corporations allow employees to choose the people who evaluate them which can provide some inaccurate feedback. There can also be issues in handling disagreements and contradictions between those who complete the evaluations. (E-textbook) The plant manager will also need to consider how the engineer would be evaluated. There are several options when considering how to evaluate an employee. The first method that can be considered is a written essay. This is a written narrative describing an employee’s strengths, weaknesses, potential, performance, and suggestions for improvement. The success of this method can be determined as much by the evaluator’s writing ability as by the employee’s level of performance. Another method of evaluation is critical incidents. In this type of evaluation, the evaluator focuses on the behaviors that make the difference between performing a job effectively or ineffectively. It provides an example of what behaviors are wanted and those that are opportunity areas. The third and one of the most popular methods of evaluation is the use of graphic rating scales. In this evaluation method, a set of performance factors such has quality of work; cooperation, attendance, and initiative are noted. The evaluator rates each of the factors on incremental scales. One of the advantages to this method is that  they are less time consuming to complete. They also provide for easy analysis. However, evaluation methods can be biased and have as much to do with the evaluator as with the employee being evaluated. For example, the evaluator unintentionally can inflate an evaluation or even undervalue the evaluation. The evaluator can also be influenced by the assessment of one characteristic. Some evaluations can be biased by the evaluator favoring employees who have similar qualities to their own. Or in some cases, the evaluator can see the process as an opportunity to reward or punish employees. While the evaluation process at times is not perfect there are ways that it can be improved. In the scenario, the engineer feels that no one is qualified to complete his evaluation including the plant manager. He has little confidence in the evaluation process and that the rating themselves focus on personal characteristics and relationships with co-workers. One way to improve the evaluation process is to train evaluators. If no one is qualified then the company needs to make a qualified evaluator. Training someone to be an evaluator can make for more accurate ratings of an employee. This can help to build confidence that the evaluations are accurate and fair. Another alternative is to use multiple evaluators such as in the 360-degree method. This provides an opportunity to achieve more accurate evaluations. The evaluators can review different areas of job performance such as evaluating suggestions for improvements and personal characteristics. A third option is to evaluate selectively. In the scenario, the evaluation would only be done by someone who has some expertise in the area in which they are evaluating. This again can help the engineer have confidence in the evaluations that are being completed. In conclusion, the engineer wants a fair and accurate evaluation. He wants to have confidence in the people who are completing that evaluation and that he is being evaluated on criteria such as improvements to company and how timely and effectively his tasks are completed.

Quentins Struggle in The Sound and the Fury Essay -- Sound and the Fu

Quentin's Struggle in The Sound and the Fury      Ã‚  Ã‚   Too much happens...Man performs, engenders so much more than he can or should have to bear.   That's how he finds that he can bear anything.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   William Faulkner (Fitzhenry   12) In Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury, we are given a character known as Quentin, one who helps us more fully understand the words of the author when delivering his Nobel Prize acceptance speech "The young man or woman writing today has forgotten the problems of the human heart in conflict with itself" (The Faulkner Reader   3).   Quentin engenders so much more than he can or should have to bear, as the opening quote by Faulkner suggests is the fate of all humans, but he does not discover he can bear anything.   Instead, Quentin's heart is so in conflict with itself, a condition Faulkner argues many overlook in his speech excerpt above, that he commits suicide.    There are three kinds of struggles in life.   There is man versus the universe, man versus man, and man versus himself.   Quentin's conflict is with himself.   In fact, despite his imagining otherwise, Quentin is completely locked within himself, unable to cope with external reality.   Internal reality is the only reality which he entertains.   Like Hamlet, he tries to live up to the internalized idealized image of nature and himself that he imagines should be external reality.   As noted in Thompson and Vickery (224) "Psychologically unbalanced by his own inner and outer conflicts, Quentin is represented as being partly responsible not only for what has happened to himself but also for what has happened to some other members of his family.   He has permitted his warped and warping ego to invert exactly those basic and primit... ...   87)    Thus, we can see that Quentin's internal fictions of what he would like reality to be are too much for him to endure in the face of existential realities that are all too often not aesthetic.   He cannot endure because he cannot bear the distance between his internal fictions of reality and reality as it truly exists outside those fictions.    WORKS   CITED The Faulkner Reader:   Selections from the Works of William Faulkner.   New York, Random House, 1954. Faulkner, W.   The Sound and the Fury.   New York, Random House, 1956. Fitzhenry, R. I. (ed.).   The Barnes & Noble Book of Quotations.   New York, Barnes & Noble Books, 1987. Hoffman, F. J. and Vickery, O. W.   William Faulkner:   Three Decades of Criticism.   New York, Harbinger, 1960. Polk, N.   New Essays On:   The Sound and the Fury.   Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1993.