Developing Approaches of Supply Chain Management Systems

296 The International Arab Journal of Information Technology, Vol. 5, No. 3, July 2008 Developing Approaches of Supply Chain Management Systems of Enterprises in Pakistan Danish Irfan1, 2, Xu Xiaofei1, and Deng Sheng Chun1 1 School of Computer Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, China 2 Department of Computer Science, COMSATS Institute of Information Technology, Pakistan Abstract: This paper identifies the problems of pakistani enterprises concerning supply chain networks and orders solutions to improving its overall performance and competitiveness.Seldom, a non-trivial amount of research efforts has been made in emergent nations to improve and enhance supply chain management paradigm. Our survey comprised nine enterprises; among them four are successfully modelled and presented. The detailed supply chain structure and study is also made. The paper concludes by suggesting and adopting modelled approach to the corporations in their move towards implementing supply chain management strategies. Keywords: Supply chain, supply chain management, supply chain networks. Received October 14, 2006; accepted April 25, 2007 1. Introduction Supply Chain Management (SCM) has gained ignificance as one of the 21st century’s manufacturing technology and innovative paradigms for improving organizational competitiveness. SCM has been considered a competitive strategy for integrating suppliers and customers with the objective improving response time and flexibility [6]. Competitiveness in today’s marketplace depends closely on the ability of a firm to grip the challenges of reducing lead-time, cost estimation, increasing customer service levels and improving product quality. Conventionally, sourcing, production, distribution and marketing have been working independently. Unfortunately, although they seem to be working owards a common goal, the organizational units have different objectives. Nowadays, the focus is shifting toward digitally integra ted demand and Supply Chain (SC) configurations that are built around establishing networks of relationships between the firm, its suppliers, customers and partner entities. In our paper, we explain the work of different enterprises of pakistan considering their abilities and the SCM key challenges faced in developing their SCM approach. The data utilized for different SCM systems in this paper are derived from large, nationwide and cosmopolitan pakistani corporations, mong them four of which we refer to as enterprises A, B, C and D. Section 1 gives a brief introduction of the four enterprises from SCM perspective. Section 2 describes the related work in SCM. In section 3, we study existing systems and propose the SCM models for each enterprise. Section 4 concludes the study and presents future directions and strategies. 2. Related Work Unfortunately, there is no explicit narration of SCM or its activities in the literature [2]. The ultimate success of firms will depend on managemen t’s ability to integrate the company’s intricate network of business relationships, allowing improved decision making and onsequently, reducing cost and customer response time. SCM is not only this but much more and beyond. SCM concerns neither to minimize nor to maximize but rather to optimize (integration, coordination, variability, uncertainty management and control) processes for the enterprise. An efficient and responsive SCM aims to move from a simple SC Figure 1 (a) to a well structured and extended SC Figure 1 (b). (a) Simple supply chain. (b) Extended supply chain. Figure 1. Supply chain type. Developing Approaches of Supply Chain Management Systems of Enterprises in Pakistan Literary summary shows the SCM concepts as ollows: centralized vs. decentralized control, business process re-engineering strategies, information distortion, detrimental effect of bullwhip factor, SCM for suppliers and firms performance, incorporating model between supplier and retailer; benefits, impact, influence, activities, challenges to integrated SCM, need for performance measures for support of global supply chain improvement; value of information in a two level SCM; modelling the complexity and dynamics; design and management for SC systems; information sharing; and applications of lean thinking to manufacturing operations [3].Supply chain strategy assessment including sourcing, development of inventory planning and management processes, benchmarking and SC Key Performance Indicators (KPI) collectively approach improvement of SC performance. It combines a strategic approach with practical tactical solutions that save time and money for the consumers. Nowadays, few enterprises are in commencement to adopt SCM to improve their performance and to address their unfavourable inter-organizational purchaser-supplier relationships and disjointed processes. Although SCM in erection is still in its infancy, there is a need for SCM adoption to date and o scrutinize whe ther its maturity matches the key features of such a class of improvement. SCM featuring market saturation driven, operationally agile, consumers customized, logistics optimized and trade focused prioritization are accenture’s successful supply chain strategies which are widely varied but are equally successful [1, 5]. In [4] the SCOR reference model captures the â€Å"as-is† state of the business process with the objective of achieving the desired â€Å"to-be† future state of PTC, pakistan. In the next section we proceed with the modelled SCN schema of the following enterprises. 3. Typical Enterprises Concerning SCM inPakistan In this section, we describe the enterprise structure one by one. Firstly, enterprise ‘A’ describes the SCM phase inspection of certain Vehicle (V). Secondly, enterprise ‘B’ gives proposal of Business to Consumer (B2C) model for development of electrical appliances. Then, enterprise ‘C’ discusses SCM for design and manufacture segments of communication equipment and lastly, enterprise ‘D’ shows the SC mechanism at a research oriented enterprise. We refer to appendix A for acronyms used in this paper. 3. 1. Enterprise ‘A’: SCM Phase Inspection† of Certain Vehicle (V) In this enterprise study, we only focused on the SCM hase inspection of certain Vehicle (V). Its key 297 segments are forecasting, planning, scheduling, demand of components and procurements. The purpose of this phase inspection is to access and evaluate: †¢ Usage of vehicle ‘V’. †¢ Calendar based inspection schedule staggered so as to assure the SC procurement. †¢ Induction of vehicle for inspection in the presently available time. The hierarchy of phase inspection in the enterprise ‘A’ concerning SCM is shown in Figure 2. In Charge Engineering Branch Control Branch Sub Engineering Branch Phase Inspection Branch Figure 2. Hierarchy of phase in spection in enterprise ‘A’.If vehicle usage is more than the specified time then inspection time held is decreased, i. e. , from 10 months to one year. The types of phase inspection as described by OEM along with its codes are shown in Table 1. Table 1. Types of phase inspection as described by OEM. Inspection Code M1 M2 M3 M4 Time (Days) 20 21 22 25 The ‘premeditated maintenance’ branch views the item’s checklist. It receives the current stock levels for a variety of stock types required for inspection and monitors the flow of materials in and out of inventory. All the items are prerequisite before phase inspection’s induction starts.The control branch takes responsibility and forecasts to keep living items recorded and tracks them for timely replacement. It forecasts the processes on three-monthly, six-monthly, yearly and bi-yearly basis. The demand process is initiated by the user and a query is sent to the logistics department. Jet warehou se takes action on demand via Automatic Logistics Management System (ALMS). The demand is processed to the depot for accomplishment; otherwise the item is put on demand from source abroad in consultation with the head office of the department. The SC in phase inspection of the vehicle is shown in Figure 3.It includes procurement agencies, depot Ware Houses (WH), logistics, jet stores, material control and the users. Table 2 shows demand priorities over the lead times of the phase inspection. The ‘designator priority system’ of current enterprise is based on historical assumptions, experience, system log-in, log-out time, intercontinental and local logistics 298 The International Arab Journal of Information Technology, Vol. 5, No. 3, July 2008 in-between lead times and depot area. Here the consumption is based on usage value. Table 2. Demand priorities over the lead times. Demand Priority Code Lead Times (Days) 03 06 13 2 – 13 16 – 17 69 – 84 Alterin g the item criteria for phase inspection is defined as: †¢ Mandatory change items as specified by OEM are forecasted, procured and kept as a kit. †¢ Conditional change items are demanded if the bench checks fail. Firstly, items are sent for Local Repair (LR) and issues Dead-Line-Date (DLD). If it succeeds, items are sent back to procurement department; otherwise a query is placed to the Local Manufacture (LM) department. Automated Logistics Management System – ALMS Automatic inventory management system – AIMS Deport automated inv. management system – DAIMS DAIMS financial management systemAIMS financial management system Purchase order management system – POMS Local purchase management system – LPMS Clothing exchange management system – CEX Catalogue management system – CMS Stowage tracking system – STS Transportation management system -TMS Preservation data collection & analysis system – PDCAS Serialized parts management system – SPMS Calibration management system -CMS Worker training system – WTS Figure 4. Automatic logistics management system. Figure 3. SCM phase inspection of a certain vehicle (V). In the proceeding section we discuss ALMS, an automated system adopted by enterprise ‘A’. 3. 1. 1.Automatic Logistics Management System Automatic Logistics Management System (ALMS) is an interactive, fully automated, incorporating data processing, knowledge base and effective support to all operational units in the organization. It is a family of software implemented on an IBM 3090 machine. Its main functions are inventory and maintenance management. Mainly, it contains a maintenance and supply module as shown in Figure 4. The ALMS characterises the SCM phase which make the whole system. SC modules of ALMS are comprised of Automatic Inventory Management System (AIMS), Deport Automated Inventory Management System (DAIMS), Purchase OrderManagement System (POMS), Loc al Purchase Management System (LPMS), Clothing Exchange Management System (CEX), Catalogue Management System (CMS) and Transportation Management System (TMS). These components results in: †¢ Featuring the whole SC of phase inspection of the enterprise. †¢ Online requisitioning and feed back status. †¢ Auto requisitioning based on demand level. †¢ Assets visibility to all authorized users. †¢ Repairable asset control through Stowage Tracking System (STS). Essential supply reports are made daily on a document register and submitted to higher authorities for completion indication of this phase. Here it oncludes the SCM of phase inspection of Vehicle (V). 3. 2. Enterprise ‘B’: Proposal of Business to Consumer Model for Development of Electrical Appliances Enterprise ‘B’ gives a SCM model for proposal of B2C development of electrical appliances. The main objectives include: †¢ Multiple vendor development for large scale production. †¢ Efficient demand and supply management system. †¢ Self driving automated network. †¢ After sales support network for production support services like spare parts and repair. †¢ Awareness of SC actors. The first objective explains the contingency plan, i. e. , not depending on a single vendor and must have eliable supplier/s. The Main SCM activities of the B2C model for electrical appliance growth are shown in Figure 5. Depending upon product status and type, the customer interaction with the SC can be categorized into three parts. First, in case of complex products e. g. , ship. Customers have to directly contact the manufacturers or the OEM. Second, e. g. , in case of a car, the customer can contact a repair factory and the repair factory or agent can contact the manufacturer. Last, in the example of a desktop computer, the customer contacts with the sales distributors, who further link with the regional suppliers and so on.Developing Approaches of Supply Cha in Management Systems of Enterprises in Pakistan Figure 5. SCM activities flow and coordination in B2C model for development of electrical appliances. Figure 6 describes the use case diagram of the characters of the â€Å"as is† schema of current enterprise. Our main characters include national and regional suppliers, manufacturer, local shop and the customer. 299 In the current system, SCM comprises three main departments: sales and marketing, production and planning control, and procurement and inventory management which serve as the backbone of the SC. The planning phase goes through MRP which checks hat, for whom and how much to order. Capacity planning overviews the additional investment (if any) to meet the targets. Then production planning looks for facilities, technical and transportation phases. Sourcing makes the order scarification. In Bill Of Materials (BOM) it shows the item source code from local and foreign production within the enterprise and then assembles. I t lacks in maintaining a standard of vendor evaluation. The enterprise ‘C’ schema is shown in Figure 7. Figure 6. Case diagram of â€Å"as is† process. The time frame of implementing SCM activities flow is shown in Table 3. The current enterprise chema lacks in customer relationship phase. Regional suppliers must be expanded to give a broader scope for its customers and local retailers. Table 3. Time frame of implementation for different phases. The goal to eliminate the vast majority (costs of receiving, shipping, expediting, data entry, data processing, accounting, and error follow-up) of regional suppliers need Just-In-Time (JIT) interaction with the manufacturer for enhancement of effective SC. 3. 3. Enterprise ‘C’: Design and Manufacture Segments of Long Message Equipment Enterprise ‘C’ discusses design and manufacture segments of long message equipment with the bjective to acquire and develop a sophisticated technological base for long message systems and to enlarge and expand production of components. Durable AS400 system support is available for its Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Supply Chain Network (SCN). Figure 7. Design and manufacturing framework for enterprise ‘C’. For ordering, quotations are called and regarding the minimum amount quotation the order is placed. The steps include: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Quotations call/ float. Cost comparison statements. Selection of potential customers. Order placement. The Receiving/ storing section receives the items in orm of Semi Knock Down (SKD) and Completely Knock Down (SKD). Right from the main entry of the goods in the enterprise, a receipt is generated against the goods received. The phases include Incoming Good Inspection (IGI), Incoming Goods Forwarding (IGF), Incoming Goods Receiving (IGR), allotting code No’s to items and updating inventory in the system. The Quality Control (QC) of the engineering department ensure s the quality of the received products. The receipts along with the inspected goods are frontward to the store department. Here an inventory code is generated for each item. The make/ deliver ensure alue addition and quality inspection. The question arises why to have an inventory? Our requirements fulfil the answer for the question. First, we want to meet anticipated demand and smooth production requirement. Second, we want to have a buffer of items and avoid stock out. It also takes advantage of the order cycle and hedges against price increase. The business nature of the under discussed 300 The International Arab Journal of Information Technology, Vol. 5, No. 3, July 2008 enterprise can be categorized as â€Å"make-to-order† and â€Å"engineer-to-order†. The customer tells specification and the RandD of the enterprise works on the required emand of its customer. The main work in current enterprise ‘C’ is made on â€Å"inventory turn over† or â₠¬Å"turnaround time calculation†. For this, let inventory turnover be Q, inventory I, sales S, cost C and time taken t for the system. Then Q is defined as number of times a company is able to convert its inventory I into sales during the course of a year. It is calculated by dividing cost of sales by average inventory. Q= C( t ) I( t ) (1) Turnaround time= Cost of goods sold from stock sales during one year (2) Average inventory investment during one year past Table 4. Annual inventory turnover. Year Annual Cost ofGoods Sold ($) Inventory ($) Investment Annual Inventory Turnover 2000 – 01 85692 12312 2001 – 02 2002 – 03 2003 – 04 2004 – 05 77600 99356 50000 65000 14923 21981 9766 15330 6. 96 5. 20 4. 52 5. 12 Average 4. 24 5. 21 Table 4 shows the annual inventory turnover which converts inventory into saleable goods for this product. Most of the inventory is pilled up which also checks sales vs. inventory. The disadvantage of annual inventory turnover shows the block up inventory of the enterprise which could be used for some other purposes in the enterprise. Some of the reasons for the pilling up of inventory show that: This analysis of inventory has revealed the cases for increase in inventory over the years. †¢ Some stock is held to cater for after sales support during the warranty period as well as for providing repair services against invoices. †¢ For items where backup support from the main supplier has been stopped, the enterprise has to keep some inventory to provide backup support to its customers. †¢ In order to meet the spare requirement for customers under the contractual obligations, a certain stock of modules is kept. †¢ Pre-ordered materials that are not converted into sales also add up to stock up inventory. Some items are pilled up due to Minimum Order Quantity (MOQ) requirement. The imperfections found in the system are tribulations to manufacturing. First, there is demand of items but no traceability. Demand section is unable to predict the items to fulfill the demand. Second, there is no entry of lead times showing the absence of items from inventory physically. 3. 3. 1. Recommendations for Improvement in Turnover Time of Inventory †¢ All items (sales stores as well as main stores) required after-sales-support during the warranty period may be shifted for the repair (R code) warehouse. The items lying in repair may be xcluded from inventory evaluation. †¢ After the completion of delivery against a project or near the closing of the financial year, if the bulk of the project is delivered, which ever is earlier, the sales and marketing department will transfer an appropriate quantity of modules for backup support during the warranty period to the repair warehouse. †¢ The cost of such items, as worked out by the finance department should be charged to the after sales support account. †¢ When the product is phased out and its backup support i s stopped by the main supplier to other collaborators, the balance of materials for that roduct may be zero valued. †¢ The responsibility of the issuance of material from the repair warehouse should rest with the customer services department. In order to realize some of the struck up funds in the preordered existing inventory of the enterprise, the same may be offered as discounted prices to prospective customers. †¢ Greater emphasis may be given on accurate forecasting to avoid losses resulting from failure to sell pre-ordered material. †¢ The purchase committee should also take care in placing orders against anticipated customer orders. If possible, an agreement should be made with the upplier where it will be bound to take back the materials if the expected customer order is not received. The exercise for obsolescence should be carried out regularly especially after every six months and the materials identified as obsolete should be disposed of to rationalize inven tory value as well as to free storage space. The above SCM study gives opportunity to gain knowledge about: †¢ Envisioning the whole SC and understand its impact on inventory †¢ Cost reduction for a better inventory control †¢ Differentiation between visualizing different ordering types in an enterprise like make to order, ake to engineer and assemble to order etc. , and the same, can be compared with current systems. †¢ Understand how a surplus inventory plays a vital role in lashing up the capital investment of an enterprise (turnover value). Developing Approaches of Supply Chain Management Systems of Enterprises in Pakistan †¢ Understand and calculate turnaround value and its benefits by considering the saved investment to be utilized in an additional business opportunity for the same enterprise. †¢ Understand the impact of ABC analysis on Economics Order Quantity (EOC). †¢ Understand the importance and various aspects of oftware utilization for a good inventory management through visibility and traceability of information. †¢ To use jargons of SC and inventory management effectively and confidently while discussing relevant issues in the current enterprise. 301 receives items from the supplier, called the incoming inspection department. Then items go through various phases from a vendor. The targets for incoming inspection are based on acceptance or rejection of the receiving goods. Specifications of the items like standard, grade, dimension, drawing etc. , are given by that particular department‘s program management which require particular components.A conformance report of the product with specifications acts as a base for rejection or acceptance of incoming items. If a regular obsession is bought then it only needs an OEM certificate. 3. 4. Enterprise ‘D’: SC Mechanism at a Research Enterprise Enterprise ‘D’ embraces the Planning and Production Control (PPC) department, logistics, supplier, log warehouse, QC and demand department for completion of its SCM. It adopts a Supplier Quality Management (SQM) system in the enterprise. Its significance concludes: †¢ The enterprise demands very high standards of its products and in-time delivery of the components. Failure of hardware or software in the business can be calamitous. †¢ Implementation of quality system model AS9100 Quality Management System (QMS) for quality assurance in design, development, production and installation. AS9100 QMS is being used for supplier support. For this, the enterprise provides modern equipment and training for its suppliers. AS9100 was formed to bring all of its vendors to one platform for production of a high standard product. SQM system starts with the implementation of the Master Production Schedule (MPS) of the enterprise. It maintains a database of all suppliers for supplier performance analysis.By communication, it makes a confirmation that synchronization exists betw een the production and supplier components, happening at component level by using cards. The components which are falling short or at production line are mentioned by the card. The components at assembly are measured by the operator who accordingly upgrades and passes it to the logistics department, manually or through the ERP system. The logistics department has visibility about components falling short or in excess. It sends orders to its suppliers whether they bring items internationally or locally. How does quality play an important role in SCM?The system not only ensures JIT delivery but also ensures the right quality of product has been delivered. The QMS works for Quality Control (QC), Quality Assurance (QA) and supplier evaluation system. The link to SC is built through the QC department which Figure 8. SCM pyramid for research enterprise. The focus on supplier control in AS9100 QMS machine gives globalization, diversity of regional requirements, challenges of assuring quali ty of products and suppliers throughout the world and intime delivery. Various vendors/ suppliers or tiers are distributed all over the world, so it is very difficult to align them at ne quality level. Figure 8 shows SCM pyramid tiers for this research enterprise. In the current enterprise, tier 1 produces the vehicle, tier 2 concerns in the software development and tier 3 deals with component assembly and so on. Now, how do we assure that all of these tiers are manufacturing products at a quality and attuned with the standards, or according to the pattern given by the organization? For assurance and conformation of the above scenario, we apply the demand-pull logic of JIT theory. For its deployment, multitasking is ensured, various components are being manufactured at various vendors nd they are required for final assembly. MPS is made commune to all vendors. Since the enterprise status is online, all the components are brought in time to final assembly and fabricated and then deli vered to customers. The current enterprise’s MPS is analyzed on the basis of orders, forecasting, and capacity. It depends upon the size of this period and ABC classification of the supplier. The demand planning shows the supplier visibility/ negotiation and the cumulative lead time of the system. The system SC cycle contains the works orders which are issued on the basis of MPS and orders. The job ards play an important role in this scenario. 302 The International Arab Journal of Information Technology, Vol. 5, No. 3, July 2008 for quality, supplier training, seminar/ exhibition, supplier quality audit and supplier improvement strategies. Hence, we conclude adaptation of the most promising innovations enabled by the modern ITenhanced SCM systems. The modelled approach of the SCM system provides a foundation for future experimentation with prospect scenarios and strategies. Acknowledgments Anonymous reviewers are acknowledged. This work was supported by the National Key Techn ology R andD Program of China (Grant No. 2006BAH02A09) and the High Technology R and D Program of China (Grant No. 2006AA04Z165). PhD Scholarship for Mr. Danish Irfan is awarded by COMSATS Institute of Information Technology (CIIT), Pakistan. Figure 9. JIT pull logic for customer demand. References [1] 4. Conclusions Our current exertion demonstrates that SCM can make a huge impact on the enterprise’s bottom line and customer’s satisfaction level. In the enterprise ‘A’ study, the schema needs design enhancement. Alteration of â€Å"lead time† and â€Å"cycle time† is desired to be minimized and optimized further.Enterprise ‘B’ needs to improve the customer relationships. Regional suppliers must be expanded to give a broader scope for its customers and local retailers. Regional suppliers also need JIT interaction with the manufacturer for enhancement of effective SC. In Enterprise ‘C’, we conclude that the SCM structu re can be made easy by categorization of the items, focused lead times for delivery, cost and quality to acquire and develop a sophisticated technological base for enlarging and expansive production of components. Delivery target of the product to customer is scheduled keeping the view main items in our designed SCM.Thus, it also enables managers to reduce their cost through more effective contract negotiations. Concerned managers now can direct that class A items may be reviewed frequently to reduce the average-lot size and to keep their inventory records accurate. In Enterprise ‘D’, SC targets its goals by making demand visibility through an online ERP system. It has compressed time and breaks down barriers for the top management/ leadership of the enterprise. It has also learnt the organization as working together and teamwork brings up an active SC domino effect. The effective SC has also lead the enterprise to break down arriers by efficient communication, initial planning meetings, communication during contract, partnership [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] Tompkins J. , â€Å"Beyond Supply Chain Management,† Supply Chain Management Review, http://www. scmr. com/article/CA629657. html, 2000. Cooper M. , Lambert D. , and Pagh J. , â€Å"Supply Chain Management: More than a New Name for Logistics,† The International Journal of Logistics Management, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 1-13, 1997. Hurst B. and Jennifer J. , â€Å"A Network Based Methodology to Model Supply Chain Systems,† PhD Thesis, The University of Iowa, 2002. Irfan D. , Xiaofei X. , and Shengchun D. , â€Å"ASCOR Reference Model of the Supply Chain Management System in an Enterprise,† International Arab Journal of Information Technology, vol. 5, no. 3, pp. 292-299, 2008. Saad M. , Jones M. , and James P. , â€Å"A Review of the Progress Towards the Adoption of Supply Chain Management (SCM) Relationships in Construction,† European Journal of Purchasing and Supply Manageme nt, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 173183, September 2002. Wu J. , Ulieru M. , Cobzaru M. , and Norrie D. , â€Å"Supply Chain Management Systems: State of the Art and Vision,† in Proceedings of the IEEE Conference on Management of Innovation and Technlogy (ICMIT), pp. 59-764, 2000. Danish Irfan is a PhD scholar in School of Computer Science and Engineering at Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, China PRC. His research interests include data clustering applications, business intelligence, and SCM. Developing Approaches of Supply Chain Management Systems of Enterprises in Pakistan Xu Xiaofei is a professor and dean of School of Computer Science and Engineering at Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, China PRC. His research interests include computer integrated manufacturing system, database systems, supply chain management, agile virtual enterprises, management nd decision information system, and knowledge engineering. He has published more than 200 academic papers. He is the stand ing member of the Council of China Computer Federation, member of the Expert Group for Discipline of Computer Science and Technology in the Academic Degree Committee of China State Council. 303 Deng Sheng Chun is an associate professor in School of Computer Science and Engineering at Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, China PRC. His research interests include computer integrated manufacturing system, supply chain management, business intelligence, and data mining applications.

Globalization: Indigenous Peoples and World

Globalization is the process in which the world becomes connected through communication, trade, and migration. Globalization can transform cultures and the identity of people within those cultures. One of the primary factors that leads to globalization in the advancement of technology In 1980 Dr. Knauft began to study an indigenous group of people deep in the forests of Papua New Guinea. This group of people had no contact with the outside world until the 1960’s, they were cut off from everything. They had a language and a name that was unknown to Anthropologists at the time. They were virtually invisible to the outside world. When Dr. Knauft arrived he met the Gebusi people, and began his study. He watched as they preformed ritual dances and wore traditional costumes. The Gebusi people lived their lives according to tradition and beliefs and were not affected by the outside world. The truth is no one can hide from globalization, not even the secluded Gebusi people. With in a matter of only 18 years they were transformed, most of them willingly converted to Christian beliefs, and they became focused on politics, economics, religion and nationalism. They were caught up to speed with the rest of the world due to globalization. The culture of the Gebusi people and their identity was drastically changed due to globalization. They were now on the same page as the rest of the world, and were now connected with the outside world. Trade organized groups such as NAFTA and the WTO make globalization easier to obtain for the smaller â€Å"developing† countries. For the countries that are a part of these groups goods, and ideas are much easier to share. With groups such as these and other factors globalization is inevitable so there is no sense in fighting it. If it were embraced rather then rejected everyone would be much better off. I understand that it can interfere with older cultures and traditions of developing countries, but it’s eat or be eaten in today’s world and you need to do what you need to do in order to compete with other countries and to survive within your own. Globalization exposes who ever it effects to a variety of new and different opportunities that must be taken in order for that group to survive. It can be compared to having to evolve, or becoming extinct. A lot of people see globalization as a bad thing, but its essential for survival in today’s world, and with out it we would be totally secluded from the rest of the world and that would just make everything extremely hard. It also helps keep the world balanced with power. Without globalization one country, or one group of people could easily be way ahead of others, and that could lead to wars and many other conflicts. The positives of globalization strongly out weigh the negatives and I’m not sure why anybody would be against it.

Blue Zuma Part 2

After further analysis and the additional resources made available by Mr. Martin to the Blue Zuma Project, we have determined the following recommendations be implemented immediately to ensure that our retailers have the product by February 1, as established by our Mr. Lane. The concern with the original project plan revolved around three activities not having enough resources to complete the project per the timeline identified above.Those three activities were: Detailed Product Design, Detailed Marketing Plan and Manufacturing Process. With the additional resources made available, we are confident we can improve the process within the three activities identified above. 1. Which additional personnel assignments would you choose to complete the project before the February 1st deadline? Explain your choices as well as the reasons for not choosing other options. It appears an additional marketing specialist would be best utilized for this job.The resource sheet depicts that the marketin g specialist is still overallocated; however the other resources appear to be allocated correctly when we added the additional resources provided by Mr. Lane. Cost would be an important factor in determining if any additional employees will/would be needed. However, we can approve overtime to address some concerns. 2. How have these changes affected the sensitivity of the network? Once the changes are in place, the duration of the project has been reduced from 290 days to 274 days.This improvement has reduced the overall length of the project, thus allowing the deadline set by the Mr. Lane (President). We are confident we can now complete the project by January 27. By allocating the additional and available resources, we were able to reduce the amount of critical paths to one. In doing so, we increase the slack in non-critical activities, thus reducing or decreasing the sensitivity of the network. One critical path is now identified in the project.

Is Liberal Democracy the Only Viable Form of Democracy Essay

Is Liberal Democracy the Only Viable Form of Democracy - Essay Example In the present world governed under the liberal democracy, the constitution protects the rights of minorities and individuals, as well as prohibiting the majority will by eliminating the practice of majority rule (O’Donnell, 2009). However, it has been argued that liberal democracy is not the only democratic way of ruling. Some people have said that liberal democracy is not liberal or democratic. Power appropriation can not guarantee the survival of society and the polity future. Evidence has been provided to support that liberal democracy is not the only viable form of democracy, as it has sometimes been compatible with inequality in resource allocation, anti-democratic rule, systematic corruption, and physical operation (Glenn, 2004). There are alternative forms of democracy that ensure that the vote of individuals is compatible with the fate of people. The quality and nature of rule and governance comprise a significant factor for survival, development, and stability of society (Glenn, 2004). Power appropriation by governing or ruling by force or election has no assurance for good governance, or development. For the past many years, there have been several systems of governance which have disappeared as they have failed to offer a promising future of troubled societies. Liberal democracy for this case has gained momentum in many societies as a result of capitalism, in which it is claimed to be the only feasible way of governance. As the other systems of governance are almost getting forgotten, liberal democracy has become a common worldwide system of governance, rule and power legalization, endorsed by the citizens’ votes (Hylton, 2003).

Term Paper on E-Business Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

On E-Business - Term Paper Example As far as the marketers are concerned online marketing has increased the reach, reduced planning time, lowered the costs and with the use of technology they are able to reduce the sales points and offer a number of payment options to the customers. The prevalence of the Internet provides efficiency and convenience but as technology has developed, risks and uncertainties too have developed which directly impact online shopping behavior and customer satisfaction. In the case of internet banking, the perceived security risks are high as a third party can easily intercept the system (Mann and Sahni 2011). On the supply side too, the sellers are subject to security and fraud risks. E-business and online purchase subjects the customer to unique risks such as credit card fraud, non-delivery of goods after purchase, private information being shared with other portals, and lack of guarantee of the good and services purchased (Koyuncu and Bhattacharya 2004). Such risks prevent the customers fr om buying high-priced items online or items that would require visual inspection. Customers also fear delays in delivery or goods damaged in delivery, which poses a challenge for the sellers (Sharma 2011). Lack of face-to-face interactions emphasizes the role of trust in online payments (Ranaweera, McDougall and Bansal 2005). Trust in an online environment takes time to develop and is based on past experience and recommendations by the third party (Mann and Sahni 2011). Fraud and security risks faced by the sellers have limited the growth of e-business. However, as technology has developed secure transactions and encryption have developed too, offering guarantees and security to buyers and sellers. E-business has more risks than retail shopping but in spite of the risks internet business has grown because of the numerous advantages it offers. These advantages include lower transaction cost, lower search cost both in terms of time and money; wider range to select the products from, l ower prices and savings on time as shopping is much faster (Koyuncu and Bhattacharya 2011). However, if the delivery time increases, or the risks of payments increases, the customers are likely to engage less in e-business. The theory of reasoned action (TRA) explains that human behavior is based on the beliefs and intentions. Bonera (2011) finds that online purchase intention could be influenced by the construct of playfulness but then perceived security and usefulness influence the purchase intention. Thus, if the perceived security level is low, online purchase is likely to be adversely impacted. Apart from the security concerns, ease of use and website quality can influence consumers’ online purchase behavior. A satisfied customer would have the intention to return to the website and also be willing to recommend the website to friends (Ranaweera, McDougall and Bansal 2005). While the first transaction may stem from curiosity or playfulness, subsequent transactions would d epend upon the actual delivery and consumption relating to the first transaction. Acquisition costs are higher than retention costs and hence it is a challenge for the marketers to convert the first-time visitors to actual buyers. There exists a definite relationship between website quality and website satisfaction. At the same time consumer

Improving Parent-Educator Relationships for Rural Special Education Essay

Improving Parent-Educator Relationships for Rural Special Education - Essay Example But the authors emphasize that it is not yet too late for them to work in increasing the awareness level of parents. To ensure that the roles of both sides are clearly delineated, teachers must take the initiative in being sensitive about the structure of special education teams and in reaching out to the parents. In holding parent-educator meetings, time and place is a crucial factor; such meetings should allow the two parties to work together and interact in a common venue. Conclusion Effective special education programs are the result of the collective efforts of all stakeholders. Without parents in the circle, educators and members of the larger community will not be able to develop authoritative special education intervention programs since these lack ‘humanness,’ with no bases on real-life experience. In the rural setting, since parents are on the underprivileged side, educators and other special education professionals are supposed to go the extra mile in making t hem involved in developing strategies for educating special children. The article reviewed has clearly articulated the abovementioned message. Since this is more of a survey of previous literature, it is suggested that future studies concentrate on the erring side, the educators, for a fairer assessment of the whole special education process. Using a multi-method approach (i.e., employing both qualitative and quantitative research methods) will help generate reliable information regarding the respective roles of teachers and parents in providing quality education for special children, as well as in applying intervention strategies to help such children cope with the learning environment. Reference Trussell, R.P.,... This essay analyzes that effective special education programs are the result of the collective efforts of all stakeholders. Without parents in the circle, educators and members of the larger community will not be able to develop authoritative special education intervention programs since these lack ‘humanness,’ with no bases on real-life experience. In the rural setting, since parents are the underprivileged side, educators and other special education professionals are supposed to go the extra mile in making them involved in developing strategies for educating special children.The article reviewed has clearly articulated the above-mentioned message. Since this is more of a survey of the previous literature, it is suggested that future studies concentrate on the erring side, the educators, for a fairer assessment of the whole special education process. Using a multi-method approach will help generate reliable information regarding the respective roles of teachers and pare nts in providing quality education for special children, as well as in applying intervention strategies to help such children cope with the learning environment. With the rise in the number of special children in general education classes, today’s teachers are confronted with the challenge of meeting the needs of such exceptional students. From this realization, Jenkins and Yoshimura (2010) demonstrated how professional development will play an integral role in helping teachers acquire basic knowledge and skills in special education.

General Project Description - Technology Research Paper

General Project Description - Technology - Research Paper Example They cannot compete with others to excel in academics if they do not learn the use of computer and its programs and softwares. Even the vast majority of tests they are required to pass to prove their eligibility for higher studies are computer-based. The contemporary business is heavily dependent upon technology (Martinez). Be it planning, scheduling, accountancy, auditing, progress-tracking, management of product distribution channels, or advertisement of the product or service, everything is accomplished with the help of softwares, online or broadcasted programs on the television and/or the Internet. The positive impacts of society’s dependence upon technology include improved efficiency, improved performance (Carte), improved communication, and reduction of time in the accomplishment of tasks in all fields. The negative impacts of society’s dependence upon technology include increased violence, new ways of bullying and blackmailing, reduced safety and security, and increased exposure to risk (â€Å"We Are Detrimentally†). In the contemporary age, one who is not well-versed with the use of technology is outdated and lacks competence to compete with the rest of the world. Apart from the aforementioned uses of technology in the academia and industry, society’s dependent on technology in other fields including traveling and recreation cannot be overemphasized. Dependence on technology has yielded both positive and negative results for the society. A research conducted by CourseSmart and Wakefield Research suggests that students have become very dependent on technology. Use of E-books, laptops, and mobile phones for educational purposes has increased a lot. The positive outcome of this is increased awareness of the students regarding their performance in the class. Despite the immense usefulness of technology in business, the importance of sustaining old practices and processes cannot be overlooked since these

Epidemiology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Epidemiology - Essay Example The professionals in this field rely on biostatistics, biology, disciplines of social science, and assessment of exposure. Epidemiologists involve themselves in study design, data collection, statistical analysis of the data collected, and interpretation of the results, as well as the distribution of the results. This dissemination can be done in systematic reviews, which are occasional, and peer reviewed articles. It helps to inform institutions on policy decisions and medicine that is evidence based via the identification of disease risk factors and preventive medicine targets. This paper aims to take two case studies and address how epidemiology was concerned with efforts to describe, explain, predict, and control the examples. Anthrax is caused by Bacillus anthracis and has been known for more than a few thousand years (Preston, 2002). The causative organism was first described in the 1850s and was used as poof by Koch of Henle’s postulates. The first anthrax vaccines were developed by Toussiant and Greenfield, and the public demonstration was handled by Louis Pasteur in the year 1881 (Preston, 2002). The two vaccines exist in both human and animal form. Bacillus anthracis is a Gram-positive, spore forming, capsulated rod and survives by killing other cells. Its spores can survive for decades in the environment. Its pathogenicity depends on the pX01 and the pX02 plasmids, and it has two key strains. Strain A is found all over the world, while strain B is limited essentially to the southern part of Africa (Preston, 2002). Anthrax acts on the body cells by releasing toxins (Preston, 2002). PA or protective antigen binds itself to the receptor of the host cell, after which furin cleaves off and lets PA20 go free. PA83 undergoes heptamer formation with the enzymes acting as toxin binding to PA63. It is internalized into the cell via endocytosis that is receptor mediated. Acidification of this endosome is causes there to be

Congestive Heart Failure Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Congestive Heart Failure - Research Paper Example When the situation happens, the heart is not capable to provide adequate blood to visceral organs including; the kidneys, brain, and liver. This condition can be caused by the failure of either the left ventricle or the right ventricle or both to function. This ineffective functioning of the heart muscle can be caused by: 2. Diseases that cause the inflexibility or more particularly the stiffening of the heart muscle. These infections of the cardiac muscles are called Myocarditis, additionally; heart attacks can weaken the heart muscles; 6. High blood pressure, on the other hand, reduces the effectiveness of the heart muscles and therefore people suffering from hypertension are at more risk of suffering from CHF than their healthy counterparts. High thyroid hormone level (hyperthyroidism) and vitamin deficiency are rare causative agents of CHF; Apart from affecting the cardiac muscles, the body may be affected by diseases that increase the oxygen demand of the body, therefore, limiting the heart from satisfying the high oxygen demand (McKee, 137). There are various symptoms that characterize or define that one may be suffering from Congestive Heart Disease and therefore likely to develop CHF. These symptoms range from the abnormal morphology of some organs of the body to psychological disturbances. Some of the morphological symptoms include unintentional weight gain, swelling of the feet, the ankles and the abdomen and visible veins in the neck region. Other symptoms include anorexia and indigestion, vomiting and nausea, lack of breath with or without activity, lack of sleep, general body weakness, and increased frequency of micturition especially at night, coughing and low level of concentration at work.  Ã‚  

IT technical support Essay Example for Free

IT technical support Essay External would mean that the company would send you to perhaps a training course which would perhaps cost a bit more then internal training. Internal training would mean that you would train within the company. The amount of training that the IT Technical has done would depend on the organisation hence the better the company the better the IT Technical support will be. Budget A good company with loads of money would be able to employ more technicians which may not be the case for a charity where they are on a low budget where they may only have a few employees. The more employees you would have, the more efficient your company would be which wouldnt be the case for a charity. An example of a company that would have a huge budget would be Microsoft. They have many employees and are able to expand in certain things as in the amount of computers. A charity like Oxfam would not be able to expand which would mean they would only have a few computers and employees. Overall a bigger budget would mean more and better things as in training, computers and more for the IT Technical Support. Type of Organisation. The policies and procedures would depend on the type of organisation as in if it was a company like Microsoft they would have very high and clear policies and procedures. If it was a charity, the policies and procedures would be much more simple meaning they would not have as many targets as a large company would have. This would be because the bigger organisations would have more employees hence they would get through things much faster. This would mean that the IT Technical Support would be depend on the organisation as in Microsoft would have a big team whilst a charity like Oxfam would not. Company Culture This would depend on the employees. A company like Microsoft, Cisco and IBM would have a professional work culture because they would usually work in a team meaning a lot of cooperation would be needed as well as patients. If the staff relationships were good this would mean that they would be very professional meaning they would be able to do their work. This would mean that Microsoft, Cisco, IBM IT Technical Support would be very efficient as in the amount of work completed perhaps because they are company orientated. Work pressure This would depend on the type of company it is. If it is a very big company like Microsoft the work pressure would have very high standards because of all the deadlines that the staffs have to meet. The work pressure of the company would be able to tell whether the staffs are capable of performing the task as in if they can handle it. If they cannot then they would not be needed especially if they work for a company like Microsoft where all the policies and procedures are at a high standard. Overall it would mean that a large company would have a restricted time limit and a charity would have a longer amount of time. This would mean that the IT Technical Support would have to meet the deadlines. User IT expertise This would vary because at Microsoft the user IT expertise would be at a very high standard because they are trained to be very computer literate especially with the training that the company has therefore would depend on the training. For example a charity would not be that focused on the user IT expertise. It would depend if the user is well ne through the right educated meaning that they should have gone through the right procedures which would be linked to the amount of knowledge they have in order to work in a big company. This is needed so that the IT Technical Support knows what they are doing. Other factors Other factors would include Security as in which type of antivirus that the company would use, this would be mainly because of malicious threats also to prevent certain faults. A big company like Microsoft would use an antivirus that cannot be penetrated. A charity may use a normal one such as Norton or one that is better. Fire walls are used in order to stop fraud. Another factor would include the confidentiality; this would consist of the privacy of files that would be restricted to certain staff. The confidentiality would mean the clients files as in their history, Address, Phone number, Date of Birth, account number, Age ECT. This would mean that they would have the data protection act in use where if in breach they would be sued for this. This would keep the IT Technical support on task which would mean that they would not be able to show files or share. Confidentiality is a major thing for a company where they protect certain things from people, it may either be encrypted. Task 3 (M2) Produce appropriate support material that will guide users in relation to a specific area of expertise a) Produce support material that will guide the employees at Cranks Ltd in relation to an appropriate specific area of expertise. This support material can be for one of the following or choose your own. The procedure chosen should not be trivial and the support material should be in depth and cover every aspect of the procedure for everyone concerned   Procedure for advising the staff that the Operating System will be getting updated Tuesday 13th January I will be producing support material that will guide the employees at Cranks Ltd in relation to the system getting updated. The support material that I will be providing will be in depth so that the staff will be able to understand it. The support material will be a letter and an email and a meeting will be held so that the staff will be well informed and aware of what is going to happen. A letter will be produced which will be sent to the staff of Cranks Ltd twice, a week before the Operating system gets updated and then two days left to the system getting updated. The email sent to the staff would contain exactly the same information as the letter. A meeting will be held for the IT Technical Support which would insure that the staffs are well prepared. The meeting will be held before the letter is sent out to the staff. The meeting will be a week before the operating system will get updated where an email will be sent to the staff informing them of the meeting. In this meeting I will be telling the staff what is actually going to happen and what needs to get updated. Notifying the employees at the meeting The Operating system will be implemented on the 13th January. The primary reason we are updating the operating system is so that it can perform tasks efficiently and allows you to get through more tasks throughout the day. This operating system features a friendly user interface. The operating system will have everything the previous operating system had but with a couple more features and it works more productively. The Operating system package has been ordered to be sent to us on the 9th January so that everything is all set up for when the engineers come in to install the operating system. The engineers will be coming in on the 13th January 2009 for the whole day so that everything is set up correctly meaning functioning to the standard. The staff will have to make sure that everything is saved which also includes them having a back up file as an added security measurement. The staff will find using this system is no different from the other therefore know training will be needed. The area will be restricted until the engineers have completed the update therefore you will not be able to go into the area. Once the operating system is updated everything will commence as normal on the following day where you would continue on the tasks that you would usually do. The procedure was explained during the meeting but as an extra measurement it will be shown on this letter which will be sent to the staff twice. Letter Dear IT Technical Support Staff I am producing this letter as a guide to you in relation to the system getting updated on Tuesday 13th January 2009 for the whole day. This letter will consist of the procedure that will have to be taken before the Operating system will get updated. Procedure The Operating system will be implemented on the 13th January. The primary reason we are updating the operating system is so that it can perform tasks efficiently and allows you to get through more tasks throughout the day. This operating system features a friendly user interface. The operating system will have everything the previous operating system had but with a couple more features and it works more productively. The Operating system package has been ordered to be sent to us on the 9th January so that everything is all set up for when the engineers come in to install the operating system. The engineers will be coming in on the 13th January 2009 for the whole day so that everything is set up correctly meaning functioning to the standard. The staff will have to make sure that everything is saved which also includes them having a back up file as an added security measurement. The staff will find using this system is no different from the other therefore know training will be needed. The area will be restricted until the engineers have completed the update therefore you will not be able to go into the area. Once the operating system is updated everything will commence as normal on the following day where you would continue on the tasks that you would usually do. Yours sincerely A. Gooman Azhar Gooman Email Dear IT Technical Support Staff I am producing this email as a guide to you in relation to the system getting updated on Tuesday 13th January 2009 for the whole day. This email will consist of what is happening and when also the procedure that will have to be taken before the Operating system will get updated. Procedure The Operating system will be implemented on the 13th January. The primary reason we are updating the operating system is so that it can perform tasks efficiently and allows you to get through more tasks throughout the day. This operating system features a friendly user interface. The operating system will have everything the previous operating system had but with a couple more features and it works more productively. The Operating system package has been ordered to be sent to us on the 9th January so that everything is all set up for when the engineers come in to install the operating system. The engineers will be coming in on the 13th January 2009 for the whole day so that everything is set up correctly meaning functioning to the standard. The staff will have to make sure that everything is saved which also includes them having a back up file as an added security measurement. The staff will find using this system is no different from the other therefore know training will be needed. The area will be restricted until the engineers have completed the update therefore you will not be able to go into the area. Once the operating system is updated everything will commence as normal on the following day where you would continue on the tasks that you would usually do. Yours sincerely A. Gooman Azhar Gooman Task 4 (M3) Explain the advantages and disadvantages to users and organisations of outsourcing the provision of technical support. Cranks Ltd are considering outsourcing their IT technical support. This is to be a confidential report as this matter is very sensitive as if they outsource the Technical Support the staff in that area would be redeployed (employed elsewhere) or made redundant. a) Explain the advantages and disadvantages for the staff at Cranks Ltd of outsourcing IT technical support. There are many advantages for the staff at Cranks Ltd of outsourcing IT technical support Advantages: Outsourcing the staff would allow the business to be able to save on expenses if the IT Technical Support has outsourced such as certain equipment, software and maintenance of which the IT technical support would deal with. Once you have outsourced IT technical support there would be enough time to complete other tasks of yours. The technical support would have very good user IT expertise meaning that they are very knowledgeable in solving problems therefore would be able to work professionally especially in a team or as an individual. The company itself would have to pay a sum of money for outsourcing but once paid there will be no other expense as in equipment, software and more. Another advantage would be that the customer satisfaction would be improved drastically this is because of the efficiency that the technical support performs at. If outsourced abroad this would mean that they would learn the companys culture and perhaps would have the ability to learn different languages. One of the most major disadvantages is that you will not have that much control over what happens once outsourced therefore things could change as in your first purpose of outsourcing the IT technical support, this would perhaps cause an interruption as in to the clients if the task is out of sight once outsourced. The clients will then end up leaving because of the quality of service. If you wanted to promote a technician you wouldnt be able to because there would be none at the company At times there may be a communication barrier between you and the selected vendor therefore may become a slow process and wouldnt be that efficient. The chosen vendors may have other plans to the selected outsourced department in this case would be the IT Technical support. b) Explain the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing IT technical support for the Cranks Ltd Organisation (Business) Advantages Outsourcing the business would be a great way of helping it to grow in reputation which would then lead onto more clients. Once done the company would be able to have time on focusing on different factors which would also help it grow. The expenses would be reduced. The company would become very efficient meaning that it would be on task. The business would be able to save on expenses such as certain equipment, software and maintenance. Outsourcing the business would lead to an increase in quality which would mean that the reputation would increase which then makes the company money and perhaps even a bit of profit from the work produced. Another advantage would be that if outsourced abroad to somewhere like India, there would be a time zone difference as in night there and day here this would mean that the work would be done with much efficiency. lastly you would be handing most of the responsibility to the outsourced Disadvantages: There are many disadvantages towards outsourcing IT technical support for Cranks Ltd Organisation. One of them would be that there would be hidden costs which would mean that it would be expensive because you would be signing a contract and if abroad there would be more complications towards the cost. At times things could go wrong as in you would have to do a lot of research before outsourcing, this would mean choosing a good partner so that there are no complications as in deliveries and other factors. One of the major disadvantages of this would be that once the business has outsourced the confidential data would be in risk of exposure. Once the company has outsourced the employees are at risk of losing their jobs. The quality of the company might not be as it was because of the change and perhaps the way it will be managed and organised would be different. An outsourced company would perhaps lead away from customer focus this is because you will be more focused on the needs of other things. There may be a communication barrier. Lastly you will not have any control over the management. Lastly the vendor may be contracted to a multiple amount of other businesses therefore be more interested in the others. BIBLIOGRAPGHY http://jobs. lovetoknow. com/Pros_and_Cons_of_Outsourcing http://www. flatworldsolutions. com/articles/advantages-disadvantages-outsourcing. php http://ezinearticles. com/? The-Advantages-and-Disadvantages-of-Outsourcingid=1401755 http://www. ipmaxx. com/article. aspx? id=203958 http://cathlawson. com/2008/02/26/the-pros-and-cons-of-outsourcing/ http://www. bizhelp24. com/small-business-portal/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-small-business-outsourcing-3. html.

Culture Is Separated Into Two Aspects Management Essay

Culture Is Separated Into Two Aspects Management Essay The Oxford Dictionary defines culture as ideas, customs, and social behaviour of a particular people or society; the attitudes and behaviour characteristic of a particular social group. Culture cannot be precisely defined, but it may be sensed and felt. Mobley, Wang and Fang (2005) also states that culture provides direction to peoples behaviours, in visible and sometimes unnoticeable ways; and it deeply influences decision-making. Culture is separated into two aspects which are visible and invisible. Visible aspects include the appearance of a person or what food does he consume. While invisible aspects include the importance of religion, beliefs in a society or the thoughts and feelings people have about certain issues. In the global market today, culture is an important aspect to multinational companies (MNCs). Apart from serving a diversified marketplace, MNCs would also be consisting of different nationalities. As such, companies are faced with the challenges of serving and managing a culturally diverse workforce. In addition, doing business on a global basis requires a good understanding of different cultures. Failure to understand cultural differences can lead to serious consequences such as an impact on the companys business relationships with overseas customers, clients and employees and bad public relations. Culture also shapes the way people do business across international borders. Same organizations of different nationalities may operate differently due to their culture and this impact on policies, communication strategies, organizational structure, and human resources management. Organizations particularly MNCs can no longer afford not to consider the culture of the countries where they operate in. Thus, the main objective of this essay is to critically evaluate that culture is the most important factor in shaping and accounting for international differences in employment relations. The essay will be evaluating culture through national culture and organisational culture. In national culture, it will begin by comparing and contrasting three different countries (France, China and Japan) with their distinct national cultures in employee relations using the Hofstedes six cultural dimensions with case studies of Danone Vs Wahaha and Renault Vs Nissan. The two case studies will then illustrate the importance of national culture to organizations and employment relations. In the second part, the essay will be evaluating the importance and the need of an organisational culture. It will further evaluate organisational culture by using Edgard Scheins Three Levels of Culture with an example of Google as a case study. Lastly, it will end of by discussing the other underlying factors that also help in shaping and accounting for international differences. It will also conclude with recommendations and the rationale why culture is the most important factor. National Culture Hofstede (1991) de ¬Ã‚ ned national culture as the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes the members of one group or people from another. It implies that the people share a collective national character that represents their cultural mental programming which is a set of norms, behaviours, beliefs and customs that exist within the population of a sovereign nation. Hofstede also claims that every national population shares a unique culture. However, in the recent years, many MNCs have not yet grasped the culture of the country which they are operating or selling their products in. By using case studies of Danone Vs Wahaha and Renault Vs Nissan in this essay, it will attempt to compare the vast differences in national culture between France, China and Japan using Geert Hofstedes 6 dimensions of defining and interpreting culture. First Case Study: Wahaha Vs Danone In 1996, Chinas Hangzhou Wahaha food group, Frances Danone group and Hong Kongs Bai fu qin corporation decided to form a joint venture named Wahaha. In this joint venture, Danone attempted to enter the china market using Wahaha brand that is well-received by the Chinese. However, problems surfaced when Danone became the biggest shareholder in 1998; thus producing resentment from the Chinas Wahaha group as they felt that Danone misled them from the beginning. To worsen the problem, Hangzhou Wahaha food group that is managed by Chairman Zong was accused of breaching the contract by establishing non-joint ventures which infringed the interests of Danone, claiming that the Hangzhou Wahahas establishment of the non-joint ventures and the illegal use of the Wahaha trademark has violated the clause in the contract. After which Wahahas Chairman Zong was sued by Danone in California and Italy, he created a series of small companies producing the same products as the joint venture. The Wahaha Vs Danone case has significantly depicted a dispute between ownership rights. Conflicts between Danone and Wahaha may be caused by unawareness of the cross cultural differences between France and China. Second Case Study: Nissan Vs Renault Nissan, a Japanese company and Renault, a French company decided to come together to work on a joint project. Both companies were well known for their distinct corporate cultures and brand identity. The joint project was formed as both companies shares a single joint of strategy for profitable growth and community of interest. However, Nissans management style strongly encouraged group performance while Renault focuses on individual performance. Communication between the top management and employees were unclear and indirect, therefore resulting in misunderstanding within the company. The conflict between the 2 partners was due to Nissans employees assuming that Renault was similar to them that encourage group performance. However, Renaults management style belongs to a much more individualistic approach, making the Nissans employees felt uncomfortable of having the feeling of losing their family atmosphere. Communication between the Nissan employees and Renault employees broke down; Nissan did not understood what were Renaults main objectives and their company goals in their partnership with Nissan. Some of the Nissans managers felt frustrated and opposed to the entry of Renault representative on Nissans board. The managers were old employees, and they felt that employees should be promoted according to their seniority instead of individual performance. The breakdown of communication is also caused by the differences in their language. With such a significant difference in their management style, there is a need in cross cultural awareness for the business joint venture to be a successful one. Geert Hofstedes Six Dimensions According to Geert Hofstedes cultural research studies, culture can be classified into six different dimensions; Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance, Individualism Vs Collectivism, Masculinity Vs Femininity, Long term orientation Vs Short term orientation. The table below illustrates for France, China and Japan. France China Japan Power Distance 68 80 54 Uncertainty Avoidance 86 30 92 Individualism Vs Collectivism 71 20 46 Masculinity Vs Femininity 43 66 95 Long Term Orientation Vs Short term Orientation 39 118 80 Figure 1.0 Scores allocated to the different dimensions for France, China and Japan Power Distance Power distance can be defined as all individuals in societies are not equal it expresses the attitude of the culture towards inequalities among us. Power distance can be defined as to the extent to which the less powerful expects and accepts that power is distributed unequally. (Geert Hofstede,2001 ) In comparison of France, China and Japan, China belongs to a society where the people believes that inequalities is acceptable, there is a presence of a powerful employer-subordinate relationship which the subordinate will abide all rules and regulations set by the employer. France on the other hand may be prone towards a more hierarchical organization system where the attitude towards managers are more formal. Japan belongs to a more hierarchical society where the Japanese should be conscious of their hierarchical position in any situations. All decisions must be reviewed by each level of the management and finally the top management. Individualism Vs Collectivism Individualism can be identified as the high degree of independence a society maintains among its members. It relates to peoples self image in terms of I while Collectivism can be identified to be the opposite. In a individualist society, people tends to only look after themselves and their direct family while a collectivist society consists of people belonging to a group that takes care of them in exchange for their loyalty.(Geert Hofstede,2001) Comparing the 3 countries, there is a significant difference; China belongs to a highly collectivist country where people act at an interest of a group. In this norm, personal relationships prevail over the task and company. However in France, there is a certain degree of independence a society maintains among its members. The French prefers individual and private opinions and work relationships between the employer and employees are contract based where everyone focus on the task itself. Communication within an individualist company would be direct where everyone gives their opinions freely if they do not agree. Referring back to the Nissan Vs Renault case, it has clearly shown that Renault (France) encouraged a more individualist approach by promoting individual initiatives and hoped that the employees are promoted through individual performance. Direct contacts between the top management and employees were encouraged in their individualistic approach. Japan similar to China; belonging to a highly collectivist society, this can be shown through putting their harmony of group above the expression of individual opinions and the Japanese have a strong sense of shame for losing face. In the Nissan Vs Renault case, Nissans employees feel that it is important to have a family atmosphere in their working environment. The managers of Nissan felt frustrated and opposed to the entry of Renault as they felt that promotions should be done according to seniority, not individual performance. Masculinity Vs Feminity Masculinity Vs Feminity is another dimension where we can infer that a masculine society will be driven by competition, achievement and success. It is a value system that starts in the school and continues throughout organizational behaviour. On the contrary, a feminine society will be driven by caring for others and quality of life. It is one where quality of life is sign of success and standing out from the crowd is not admirable. (Geert Hofstede, 2001) In China, leisure time is not as important compared to the status and better salaries. Such examples can be found in students as they care very much about their exam scores and ranking as the main criteria to achieve success or not. France belongs to a relatively feminine society. It may be due to their famous welfare system, securità © sociale where the French are only required to work 35 working hours per week and entitled to 5 weeks of holidays per year. France cares greatly for their quality of life and focuses more on work in order to live the reverse. Competition in the working environment is usually not encouraged and flashy signs of success should not be shown in the public. In the Renault Vs Nissan case, Nissan is shown to treat males and females equally. Some of the female employees were offered several managerial positions in the company. Japan, a total opposite from France has a highly masculine culture. It is usually shown through competitive situations between groups, not individuals. Their famous workaholism is another expression of their highly masculine culture. In Japan, women find it difficult to climb the corporate ladder due to their masculine norm of long working hours. Contrasting Renault in the case study, Nissan belongs to a masculine company which managerial positions are only offered to the male employees, not the female workers. Uncertainty Avoidance Uncertainty avoidance has to do with how the society deals with the fact that their future will not be known. The unknown elements will bring about ambiguity and different cultures will react to the ambiguity in different ways. The uncertainty avoidance can be defined as the extent to which the members of a culture feels threatened by ambiguous or unknown situations and have created beliefs and institutions that try to avoid these. (Geert Hofstede, 2001) High degree of ambiguity can be seen from the Chinese as their language is often full of ambiguity that can be seen as confusing for the westerners. It is shown that the Chinese are comfortable with ambiguity and seem to be adaptable and entrepreneurial. 70% 80% of Chinese businesses tend to be small to medium sized and family owned. France on the other hand tends to have their training done in a deductive approach. In the management level, rules and securities are ensured to create a stress free working environment and a certain level of expertise are welcomed. A change of policies can also be seen as a stressful event. Japanese is one of the few countries that have the highest uncertainty avoidance score. It may be due to the fact that Japan is constantly threatened with natural disasters such as earthquake, volcanoes eruptions that most Japanese are always prepared in any kind of situations. In the business environment, a lot of time and effort are put into feasibility studies and all the risk must be worked out before the project can proceed. Long term Vs Short term orientation In the Long term Vs Short term orientation, a long term orientation can be seen closely related to teachings of Confucius and can be separately interpreted as dealing with societys search for virtue. Long term orientation can be defined as the extent to which a society shows a pragmatic future orientated perspective while Short term orientation shows a conventional historical short term point of view. (Geert Hofstede, 2001) China belongs to a long term orientated society whereby persistence and perseverance is normal. The Chinese are thrifty and tends to invest in long term projects such as real estate. They also recognized that the government is by men rather than being influenced by external factors such as god or the laws. France on a contrary is a short term oriented society; there is a great respect towards traditions, cultures and their language. In business related issues, the French tends to focus on short term results and therefore, companies are usually driven by quarterly results. They do not focus on saving and the management style is based on self-reliance, personal achievement, hard work and managers are judged based on short term results. In Japan, people lives their lives guided by virtues and good examples in life. There is a hint of long term orientation in the constantly high rate of investment in RD, even through difficult times. This is for the sake of a steady growth for market share instead of a quarterly profit, thus increasing durability of the company, serving the stakeholders and the society for many generations to come. Figure 2.0 Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions table for France and China From the graph above, it shows that the cultural differences between France and China are distinctly different in the different dimensions. The graph implicates the importance of focusing on the awareness of cross cultural differences between the 2 country in order for the joint venture between Wahaha and Danone to be a successful one. In the case study, Danone, the French company may not understand the ambiguity in how the Chinese operates in Wahaha and thus misinterpreted their good intentions. Likewise, for Hangzhou Wahaha, it is founded by the Chairman Zong who started the company from a small company which may be very much more family-owned. Chairman Zong may not have a vast understanding of how international joint ventures works and can end up leading to bigger misunderstanding and conflicts which results in failure of the joint venture or business attempts. An example from the case study; Zhang Cheryl(2001) stated that the interpretation of losing control is different between the western society and china. In the western society, losing control may not be treated at a personal level. However, losing control in china is meant as losing face, which would refer to losing the power to make decisions which puts Chairman Zong of Wahaha in a disrespectful situation among his employees. Wahaha therefore insist to runs normally in their daily operations in order to keep their face. To worsen the situation, Wahaha perceived it was losing face when Danone established other IJVs with their competitors resulting in Wahaha being less motivated to settle their conflicts and disputes between each other. From the case study, we have seen how important cross cultural awareness is in shaping and cultivating a good business attempt. Figure 3.0 Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions table for France and Japan In comparison of France and Japan, there is a significant difference in the 6 dimension index from Hofstedes theory. In the Nissan Vs Renault case, the difference in management style, breakdown of communication, different cultural values and language barrier are factors which may have caused a conflict between the two companies. One of the major problems may be the different management style; where Nissan is works in a family like atmosphere. However, Renault focuses on individual performance where an individual only cares about their own results. Nissan can also be seen as a more masculine society which managerial positions are only offered to male employees while Renault treats all employees as equal and it can be shown that several managerial positions were taken up by female employees. In such a different cultural environment, it is important that both companies should have cross cultural awareness for the business venture to be successful. Therefore, it is crucial for MNCs to be exposed to the different international cultural differences as in their daily operations they are exposed to multiple national cultures. This suggests that managing across borders introduces substantial complexity because it forces multinationals to attune their practices and approaches to each and every cultural context they operate in. Edgard Scheins Three Levels of Culture Apart from Geert Hofstedes 6 dimensions of defining culture, there is another famous culture theorist, Edgard Schein that devotes all his effort into comparing and identifying the organizational cultural differences. According to Edward Schein(1992), Organizational learning, development, and planned change cannot be understood without considering culture as the primary source to change. Schein has categorized culture into 3 different levels: Artifacts, Espoused Values, Basic assumptions and values. Figure 4.0 Three Levels of Culture (Schein, 2004, Organizational culture and leadership, 27) Schein defined that culture is first seen through artifacts such as visual organizational structures or tangible items. Underlying artifacts is the values such as strategies, goals and philosophies. The core of the 3 levels would be assumptions such as taken for granted beliefs, perceptions, thoughts and feelings through experience. Through the case studies, it has implied that each country has a unique cultural perspective and approach to certain situations and hence it is important for companies to strive to understand and support relevant programs or strategies in each region. Failure to appreciate and account for them can lead to issues like strain relationships in employment relations, communication breakdown between management team and drag down business performance. Newman Nollen (1996) also state that there is no one best way to manage a business. Differences in national cultures call for differences in management practices. One of their conclusions also states the importance of the congruence between management practices and the national culture should be in harmony in order to produce better performance outcomes, therefore pinpointing in another way the importance of cultural differences. Therefore, the management of a company should pay extra attention to national cultural differences as it may influence the effectiveness of the strategies and decisions that the company makes. Based on Geert Hofstedes research on national culture, he has demonstrated that organizations can also no longer ignore the impact of national cultures on organizations cultures particularly for MNCs. Therefore it is clear that in current times, the implementation of positive organizational cultures and effectively merging of national cultures into organizational culture is critical for positive business performance. Therefore as a start, MNCs should understand and be aware of the different types of national culture as well as adopting a fitting organizational culture themselves to account for international culture differences in employment relations. Organisational Culture Greenberg and Baron (1997) define organizational culture as a cognitive framework consisting of attitudes, values, behavioural norms, and expectations. These values stated have a strong influence on employees behaviours, thinking, and behavioural patterns which in turns encourages diversity and adaptability to support its performance. Organizational culture is also an effective control mechanism for managing employee behaviour. In an organization with different nationalities, the company would need to foster a common diversity culture in the company to create a mutual respect for each and every different employee; which may in turn enhance their full potential. A strong organizational culture is a primary generator of real motivation and commitment and has a unique absorptive power to congregate people (Mobley, Wang and Fang, 2005). Therefore, this is a need for an organizational culture that fits to the needs of the company and its employees. Now, using a case study on Google in this essay, it will attempt to evaluate how Google makes use of national culture and their organizational culture to account and shape for international differences using Edgard Scheins Three Levels of Culture theory. Third Case Study: Google Google is a worldwide company that has strong practices in diversity. Google culture revolves around their mission: to organize the worlds information and make it universally accessible and useful. (Corporate Information, 2011) Google consists of a diversity of staffs, supporting various cultural norms. Through this cultural norm, they encourage and support the diversity of its customers and employees. Google consist of bilingual employees catering to their diverse consumer base. In fact, Statistics shows that more than half of the results Google provides to its customers are outside of the US. (Corporate Information, 2010). Diversity is distinct in Google such as their employees, offices, products, and customers. By understanding national culture and accepting the different nationalities differences, Google leverage and make use of the different skill sets of each employees. Googles Culture As Google consist of a diverse staff group, it shows the importance of having a strategically appropriate culture, a culture which will fits the needs of the organization, its employees and the marketplace. At Google, we dont just accept difference we thrive on it, we celebrate it, and we support it for the bene ¬Ã‚ t of our employees, our products, and our community. (Google Annual Report, 2010) Google has embraced diversity and integrated it into their culture and into their core culture statement. The manifestations of Googles culture are analyzed by evaluating the artefacts at Google (Gagliardi, 1992). Through looking at the various aspects of Google, it is shown that Google has an integrated and informal culture (Martin, 1992), which comprises of four key elements. Mission Innovation Fun Reward Using Edgard Scheins Three Levels of Culture, it is first defined and seen through the artefacts such as visual organizational structures or tangible items. Google supports diversity of norms in each office by utilizing their office and cafes. They are designed to encourage interactions between employees within and across teams, and to spark conversation about work as well as play. Social interactions stimulate knowledge and learning breakthroughs. Without communication, there is no way to express thoughts, ideas, manage differences and feelings. Communication plays an important role in keeping and maintaining values and relationships necessary to keep the system of the organisation united. The next level of culture would be the exposed values which are the strategies, goals and philosophies. Daft (2003) stated that managing a global environment requires managers to have the ability to manage change through innovation and creativity. Therefore, the employees in Google are motivated to contribute their suggestions and ideas. Most of Googles work are project based hence employees are required to team up and pursue the project. The team may consist of a diverse group of members. Through the concept of a group project, members would then need to learn to accept one another and work together. This enhances the communication between Googles employees and hence they share a unified common goal and vision. However, conflicts between the employees are bound to happen in project based work. Therefore, conflict management between employees and respect for cultures must be structured and organized for the many cultures and diversities. One strategy that Google implement is to create awareness of international national differences is by organizing national cultural events such as The 6th Sense: Diversity Week in India and Diwali and Google Mela to develop cultural intelligence to the employees and international cultural competence. The purpose of these cultural events is that the employees would generate a culture-specific understanding of the other and positively regard of the other. Through these events, it will groom and educate the employees on cultural awareness. During such events, Googles employees are able to interact and appreciate each others culture; consequently, an accommodating culture and organizational behaviour is then established within the organization. The next level of culture would be the assumptions such as taken for granted beliefs, perceptions, thoughts and feelings through experience. Googles employees are passionate and self-motivated, and the company empowers them to a certain degree to make responsible decisions. Therefore, employees could get an equal and fair opportunity to innovate and unleash their imagination and ideas through their meetings. After analyzing all of Google culture characteristic, using Deal and Kennedy model of organizational culture (Deal and Kennedy, 1982), Google most likely falls into the work hard/play hard culture. Characteristics of the culture include high levels of activity and where employee has to take few risks and these characteristics are clearly reflected in Google. Through the concept of organizational culture on how they are establish and reinforce, it will make a big difference in the way employees act and in the way the organization act as a whole when ethical dilemmas are faced. Through cultivating a fitting culture from the start, the organization and the employees will have a shared set of understandings about what is correct behaviour and how ethical issues will be handled. Therefore, if a company would to embrace and be accepting to international culture from the start, this will account and shape the employees to be more accepting to cultural differences and hence improve employment relations. Therefore, it is proposed that companies should ensure mentoring their employees through guidance coaching of the culture and encourage bonding and communication between levels of management and their employees. Also managers that have to work across different countries are required to understand the importance of national culture and organisational culture as well. Gabriel (1999) states that managers have to also recognise and build on cultural particularities, adapting organisational products and policies to local cultures and managing employees in a manner appropriate to their culture. It is beneficial to understand the country culture and the organisations culture. The country may have its own set of framework and culture in which they operate in. This will impact and forces multinationals to attune their practices and approaches to each and every cultural context they operate in. Different companies may operate things differently due to their home countrys culture and thus causing an impact on policies, communication strategies, organizational structure, and human resources management. By understanding and managing these cultural differences, it will be a vital ingredient of organisational success. Other Factors In this essay, it has stated the importance of national culture and organisational culture in how they account and shape for international differences in employment relations. However, other factors such as economic, social, political, and technological factors may also constitute an impact on international cultures. Amongst the different factors, economic, political and technological factors are identified to be one of the most important factors that affect international differences. Economic Factors Economic factors like globalization are one of the factors affecting international employee relations. Through effects of globalization where companies may become more advance, the management has to ensure that the skills processed by the employees are compatible with those required in the market to meet the customer needs. Globalisation will increase the competitiveness and inequality among the countries. Under globalisation, industries and services move from one country to another, thus restricting opportunities for permanent employment relationships to the benefit of economic performance. To improve their competitiveness, many MNCs sought to relocate their business operations to countries where labour is cheaper and workers are less protected and hence neglected employment relation to focus more on the performance of the company. Technological Factors Sometimes companies that undergo technological developments have destroyed jobs as they undergo aggressive growth and rapid expansion. This may make it necessary for its human resources department to focus on recruitment and staffing internationally and locally. Therefore a company may have its problems to expand and recruit new employees, as it may need to focus its recruiting efforts outside the region if the labour pool is not large enough. Companies may also make specific requirements for a job where the applicant is required to possess a certain degree of skills or nationality and this in turn affect employment relations. Political Factors These reg

Factors Influencing Static Electricity

Factors Influencing Static Electricity Abstract The purpose of this experiment is to understand the magnitude of static electricity and the factors influencing it. The importance of this study can be linked to climate, technological advances, and improving existing inventions or creating new inventions. The fascination with static electricity motivated me to understand what static electricity is, in order to further my knowledge and flawlessly explain the science of lightning. Static electricity is the imbalance of electric charge which produces a small spark, therefore on a much larger scale, lightning in a thunderstorm is the result of the separation of protons and electrons. For my experiment, I created an electroscope using a glass jar with a plastic lid, a paperclip holding two small pieces of aluminum foil and tape securing the paperclip. I used 3 balloons of different sizes, small, medium, and large and rubbed it on my hair to separate charges, then I brought the balloon closer to the electroscope and the aluminum  foil then repelled from the other piece of aluminum; this successfully conveyed  that there was a separation of charge on the balloon from rubbing it on my hair. I repeated this experiment with the next 2 balloons and recorded my results. To decrease the likelihood of failure, I did 2 more trials; the results I came across supported my original hypothesis which stated that the bigger the material, the greater amount of electric   ch arge, and after conducting the experiment 2 more times with each different size of material, my hypothesis still was proved to be accurate. Upon proving the hypothesis to be true, I then concluded that the magnitude of lightning must have extreme strength considering the large scale damage it can do, and the fascination continued as I felt as though the science behind lightning was now between my very fingertips. To conclude, my experiment has taught me about the science of static electricity, the different ways we can separate charges in order to induce a shock, and how it can be related and interconnected with climate. This field of study has extreme significance and I am confident that the use of static electricity will grow, such as the use of static electricity in printers and photocopiers has already been implemented. For the next experiment I conduct, I would like to test the different influences other factors have on static electricity, such as the type of materials tested, the effects of the environment where the experiment takes place, or the significance of climate regarding static electricity. Introduction fI have always been fascinated with electric charge, static electricity, and the effects of friction. The fascination with science and its relationship to static  electricity and climate leaves me wondering what causes static electricity, how it is produced, and what are the factors that create a higher magnitude of static electricity. The main reason I am motivated to do this experiment is due to the fact that the world is advancing technologically each and every  day. In my opinion the incorporation of static electricity into common  applications is a very important subject to study; especially considering the amazing capabilities, and future advancements, of printers, photocopiers. I have many un-answered questions about the science of static electricity and the various factors that influence it. The topic of static electricity raises interesting points and thought provoking questions, I would like to answer a few such as; how does static electricity relate to lightning? What is the effect of size and temperature on static electricity? And, is static electricity necessary for life on Earth? + The purpose of this experiment is to examine the difference in magnitude of  static electricity, using several materials of different sizes. Testing the different materials will then lead me to understand the factors that may influence the strength of electric charges, and how it could relate to climate. +Hypothesis: I think that the size of an object is ther essential factor affecting  the magnitude of static electricity, that is, the bigger the material, the  greater magnitude Indicatevariables Manipulated  variable :Size of the material testing balloons Responding  variable:  Amount of static electricity Constants:  The types of materials, number of times each balloon is rubbed, and the temperature in the room the experiment will be conducted in. Research Static electricity is an imbalance of electric charges, and is generated by the separation of positive charges and negative charges. Therefore, when two different materials are within contact, the electrons can move from one material to the next when then leaves a surplus of positive charge on the other material, this consequently creates static electricity. Static electricity may be produced by friction and create a spark; however friction does not create it, but rather the transfer of electrons will create the static charge. All materials, people, and objects contain atoms. Atoms possess a nucleus which consist of protons and neutrons, whereas the electrons are outside of the nucleus. Objects and materials are usually neutrally charged as there is an equal number of protons and electronshowever if there is an imbalance between the  electric charges induced by contact, static electricity will generate. Static electricity can also be generated through various ways, such as when putting ceramics under pressure or heat. One can also separate charges by positioning a charged object   near a neutral object. This results in the charges of the neutral object repelling the same polarity as the charged object while the charged object will be attracted to the opposite polarity, which then causes the neutral object to have an unequal amount of charge. Discovering the different ways to separate charges increases my motivation to understand the factors that affect the magnitude of static electricity. The transfer of electrons onto a different material and having an imbalance between charges will result in static electricity, however I would like to understand the  relationship between polarity and size. My entire experiment is based on the many factors that could possibly influence the degree of static electricity. I am using the factors that could possibly affect static electricity as my foundation because static  electricity is vital to human existence, and important.                    . Hypothesis Based on my research, I think that the size of an object is the significant factor affecting the strength of static electricity, in other words, the larger the material, the greater the magnitude. Research that I have conducted has helped me discover the science behind lightning, which reenforces my hypothesis of larger  materials or objects that hold electric charge having greater strength because of how strong lightning is. Lightning is essentially static electricity on a bigger scale. Procedure Materials Glass jar Plastic lid Tape Aluminum foil Paper clip Balloons Ruler Variables o Manipulated variable- For this experiment, the size of each balloon will be manipulated. o Respondingvariable The magnitude of static electricity observable from the  foil repels.   o Constants Types of material, number of times each balloon is rubbed, and the temperature of the environment that the experiment will be conducted in. Stepbystep 1. Inflate 3 balloons of different sizes; small, medium, and large 2. Straighten   the paper clip out, then create a shape with a center circle with two hooks attached to it 3. Make a small opening in the middle of the plastic lid 4. Place the paper clip in the opening with the center circle sticking out from the top, and the hooks at the bottom, then secure it with tape 5. Cut two small pieces of aluminum foil of equal size, then make a small hole in the end of each strip 6. Attach the strips of foil onto the hooks of the paperclip 7. Now we have an electroscope and its time for the experiment to be conducted, create a data chart to record trials and measurements 8. Grab the small balloon, and rub it on your hair 10 times, then take the balloon and get close to the top of the electroscope, the foil should then move apart; this conveys that there is a separation of charges. 9. Measure the distance between the aluminum foil in the data chart 10. Repeat step 8 with the next two balloons and record the results to compare the strength of static electricity 11. Complete 2 more trials for each size of the balloons Results Observations Small balloon 0.7 inches Medium balloon 1inch Large balloon 1.2 inches Conclusion Based on the results of this experiment, the hypothesis that   the bigger the material is, the stronger the magnitude, is proven to be true. The small balloon on  each trial has the smallest distance between the 2 strips of aluminum foil, and the  large balloon has the largest distance. This correlation supports my original  chypothesis and can therefore expand my knowledge of static electricity and apply  Q-:it to wider scales. This study has extreme significance as it can be applied to  creating new inventions with the use of static electricity, explaining climate, and  understanding the different strengths of static electricity and its uses. On a personal interest, I believe the fascination with this topic is because of how   powerful lightning can be, and how it can be conducted from my very fingertips. The purpose of this project for me is to understand the science behind lightning  learned the details of static electricity, why we feel a shock when there is an imbalance of charges, and the different ways to separate charges. For next time, I would like to experiment with varying materials rather than different sizes, and possibly change small details such as, number of rubs per material, number of trials, and trying to experiment in different temperatures. Bibliography Hanania, Jordan, Kailyn Stenhouse, and Jason Donev. Static electricity. Static electricity-EnergyEducation.N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Jan. 2017. . How does static electricity work? Howdoesstaticelectricitywork?{Everyday Mysteries: FunScienceFactsfrom theLibraryofCongress).N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2017. . What Is Static Electricity? LiveScience.Purch, n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2017. .                 Ã‚