The Ethics of Active Euthanasia

One of the most difficult ethical issues faced by scholars, medical professionals as well as philosophers is that of euthanasia. Whichever position one takes, controversies always appear.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Ethics of Active Euthanasia specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More All the ethical theories that have been advanced in support of active euthanasia practice have not been exhaustive in their explanations (Shafer-Landau, 2012). Euthanasia has always been described as the voluntary termination of an individual’s life due to the incapacity of the body to continue with its normal functions. To some, this voluntary termination of life is killing an innocent person while to others it is the right thing to do (Shafer-Landau, 2012). Both positions have all the arguments against and those that are in support of active euthanasia. Nevertheless, the argument that if a deed props up the superlative welfa re of every person who is deemed apprehensive and infringes nobody’s constitutional or civil rights, then that act should be perceived to be ethically all right. This argument materializes to be rather strong in comparison to supplementary euthanasia arguments premises. This premise seems to be universal and take into consideration the rights of the patient. It also draws on the natural, legal and ethical perspectives (Geirsson et al., 2010). This premise is also supported by the fact that it takes a more neutral position. In support of the euthanasia action, the argument is that there are circumstances when the rule of natural life can be violated. That is, when the end is justified by the means (Shafer-Landau, 2012).Advertising Looking for essay on ethics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More In as much as it would appear morally wrong to terminate an individual’s life, it would also be morally wrong to live one to suffer (Geirsson et al., 2010). Though neutral, this premise largely draws on the utilitarianism theory. The perspective weighs the effects of the two causes of action. This encompasses either helping someone to die or to live. In other words, it argues in support of the right cause of action (Geirsson et al., 2010). That is, doing just the right thing. Those in support of this premise take the position that active euthanasia promotes the best interest of all people concerned and thus it does not violates any persons rights (Geirsson et al., 2010). As a result, active euthanasia ought to be perceived to be ethically all right. On the other hand, the natural premise appears to be the weakest of all the arguments that have been put forward. To be precise, if it is natural, it is right while if it is unnatural, it is wrong. This premise is weak because it draws on only the natural theory of the sanctity of life. It does not take into consideration the will of the patient. That natural law draws from the religious and biblical support for the sanctity of life (Paterson, 2001). That nobody but only God has the right to terminate life. In essence, it promotes the moral absolutes with the basic principles of life that can never be broken in spite of the situation (Paterson, 2001). The theoretical guideline this presumption is in contention with is the fortification as well as the perpetuation of life. All moral, legal and ethical rules of not killing an innocent person majorly draw on this precept. In this sense, euthanasia always appears to be naturally wrong. The same principle outlaws killing oneself in as much as the patient would wish to be brought to death.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Ethics of Active Euthanasia specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Basically, this precept argues that Active euthanasia is unnatural (Geirsson et al., 2010). Therefore, euthanasia is wrong. Whereas this pre cept does not provide support to the active euthanasia, it still offers the window for opportunity for those actions whose main aims are to relieve pain even though such measures may lead to fatality (Paterson, 2001). References Geirsson, H., Holmgren, M. Margaret, R. (2010). Ethical theory: A concise anthology. Calgary, Toronto: Broadview Press Paterson, C. (2001). The contribution of natural law theory to moral and legal debate concerning suicide, assisted suicide, and voluntary euthanasia. Los Angeles, California: Viewforth Shafer-Landau, R. (2012). Ethical theory. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley Sons. This essay on The Ethics of Active Euthanasia was written and submitted by user Richard Morton to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Free Essays on Power Of The President

I feel that the President of the United States is too powerful. Some people may agree with me while some don't. I think the government has given too much power to just one man. It's sort of like having a king or some other type of monarch. This type of situation makes the possibility for corruption too great. Haven't we learned anything from the Watergate incident? Though there are many people who contribute to the laws and regulations of this country, our lives are actually in the hands of a single man. The President of the United States has the power to decide what we can and cannot do, what we eat, what we wear, and so forth. Though there are laws to protect us, the President of the United States has the power to make decisions that directly affect every person in his regime. Not only does the President make decisions that affect us here; he also makes decisions about our dealings with other countries whether they are political or military. The decisions that the President makes are ones that can be beneficial and/or detrimental to the citizens of the United States, as well as the countries with which we collaborate. The President, as Chief Executive, leads the executive branch of the federal government. He has ultimate supervision over various administrative agencies. Under the Constitution, he is military commander-in-chief, and director of foreign relations. Under statutes passed by Congress, he has considerable decision-making power, particularly in matters of foreign trade. To me, the role of the president isn't clearly defined. The constitutional provision whereby the President is proclaimed as the head of the executive carries a number of deficiencies. The President's political stature is thus lowered. Even providing that he is simultaneously the head of state, then in practical terms he becomes the head of the executive administration, which produces a correspond- ing attitude to that position. ... Free Essays on Power Of The President Free Essays on Power Of The President I feel that the President of the United States is too powerful. Some people may agree with me while some don't. I think the government has given too much power to just one man. It's sort of like having a king or some other type of monarch. This type of situation makes the possibility for corruption too great. Haven't we learned anything from the Watergate incident? Though there are many people who contribute to the laws and regulations of this country, our lives are actually in the hands of a single man. The President of the United States has the power to decide what we can and cannot do, what we eat, what we wear, and so forth. Though there are laws to protect us, the President of the United States has the power to make decisions that directly affect every person in his regime. Not only does the President make decisions that affect us here; he also makes decisions about our dealings with other countries whether they are political or military. The decisions that the President makes are ones that can be beneficial and/or detrimental to the citizens of the United States, as well as the countries with which we collaborate. The President, as Chief Executive, leads the executive branch of the federal government. He has ultimate supervision over various administrative agencies. Under the Constitution, he is military commander-in-chief, and director of foreign relations. Under statutes passed by Congress, he has considerable decision-making power, particularly in matters of foreign trade. To me, the role of the president isn't clearly defined. The constitutional provision whereby the President is proclaimed as the head of the executive carries a number of deficiencies. The President's political stature is thus lowered. Even providing that he is simultaneously the head of state, then in practical terms he becomes the head of the executive administration, which produces a correspond- ing attitude to that position. ...

Letter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 6

Letter - Essay Example The topic being discussed should resonate with the reader in such a way as to provoke a reaction, a response or an action. I will be the first to admit that I struggle when writing, such as putting the words into the introduction. It is what they call as a â€Å"writer’s block† in which I have ideas but cannot put them down into writing. This is the same case with my conclusion portion of a paper, how to summarize everything that is to be consistent with the material that went before reaching the last part of any paper. In this regard, I have learned how to use persuasion as one of the writing styles with which to convince a reader of my viewpoint. To do that successfully, I need to use all the three factors of argumentation which are pathos (emotions), logos (knowledge) and ethos (credibility). To do so successfully, I believe I need to improve my English skills so I can put my thoughts into the exact words to what I mean. Because of my limited English skills, I understand I can have a harder time than my classmates when trying to make a point in my paper. However, I believe this problem can be solved if I try hard enough. I also realized a bit late that my tone can sometimes be too neutral when I should have been taking a stand on a certain issue or a topic being discussed. It seems I am afraid to commit my opinion to one side and I think this makes my paper a bit tame and therefore also less convincing. In my attempts to express my ideas, I tend to put so many things together in one sentence which can cloud the whole argument I am making or dilutes the essence of my ideas. The reader can get confused which I understand is not the intention of any writing and so some arguments are not discussed so very thoroughly in a way that convinces people to my side. I am probably good in incorporating some notable quotations in my papers but doing so is not effective at times because I end up not showing my tone

Does consuming Vitamin C reduce the risk of having a cold Research Paper

Does consuming Vitamin C reduce the risk of having a cold - Research Paper Example We call it infection. An infected person is the one whose body has been penetrated with microbes such as Viruses, Bacteria or Fungi. As the microbes continue to grow in the body, the disease gets severe until the person infected is killed. Viral infection occurs when tiny disease-causing particles, called a virus, enter the body and begin multiplying. More than 400 different viruses are known to cause infections in humans. (Natural Standard Research Collaboration, 2011)[1] Most commonly known viruses that cause diseases are common cold, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, HIV, Influenza (flu). How are we protected from diseases? To protect from attacks and damage from microbes, God has created human beings with many defensive techniques. The first barrier against the microbes is human skin. Unless the skin is cut, and blood comes out, microbes cannot enter the body. Second protection is white blood cells which are there in the body to defend us. White blood cells eat microbes and also hunt the m down before they can mix in the red blood cell. White blood cells also produce antibodies. Antibodies are natural destroyer of microbes. The antibodies are produced automatically as soon as a microbe enters the human body. For every single type of microbe, a new type of antibodies is made. The third thing that protects microbes from entering our body is hairs in our nose. They catch microbes which are in air or atmosphere. The fourth thing that protects microbes is mucus, a sticky substance that lines nose and windpipe and also washes microbes away from the eyes in tears. In spite of the researches and efforts by human being, the microbes keep entering the human body constantly and make people ill. Those who are infected when do not take necessary medicine on time let the microbes grow to the extent that can kill them. In general all viral infection cause fever and the body uncomfortable which in common terms we call â€Å"sick† or â€Å"ill†. However the sign and sy mptoms depend upon the severity of infection and the type of virus which infected the body. The only way to cure viral infections is to make the body produce antibody which can destroy the viral microbes. The antibiotics made by scientist only cure microbes of type â€Å"bacteria†. However, microbes of type â€Å"virus† do not destroy by antibiotics. Scientists have found a new way to cure virus microbes. This new process is called â€Å"immunization†. A body is immunized when a â€Å"vaccine† is injected in to the bloodstream. This vaccine contains the microbes that cause the disease. The microbes in vaccine are slightly modified. They are either dead or weakened or some portion of it is used. After the injection white blood cells make antibodies against the microbes that were injected by the vaccine. Hence we say that our body is now immunized from a particular viral disease. Any time in future, when a microbe of this type enters the body, it is immedia tely recognized and the army of antibodies comes into action by attacking, hunting and destroying it preventing the body from the viral disease. What is cold? Cold is a viral disease. When a person is infected by cold virus, his throat soars. As the virus grows in the body, the eyes, nose and ears all start to pain. It may raise temperature and cause fever. The effect of cold and flu virus on an individual body depends on the army of antibodies the body posses. Larger army of antibodies

Imaging Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Imaging - Essay Example To better understand the physiology of the airway and its system, it is encouraged to know the anatomy first. With this in mind, the paper will try to explain the anatomy of the lungs of an adult person with presumed healthy and complete parts of it. The Right and the Left Lungs. Normally, the human body has a pair of lungs floating freely inside the pleural cavity which is made up of epithelial membranes forming the pleura. The one which is faced to the lungs is the visceral pleura and the outer is called the parietal pleura. The lungs are contained inside the thoracic cavity and are situated beside each other; thus, the right and the left. They are divided by the mediastinum. Although they are basically and supposedly aren’t connected with any other part in the cavity, they are technically attached to it by its root and the ligamentum pulmonale. When held, the lung would feel â€Å"light, soft, and spongy in texture† and can float when placed in a container with water (Cunningham & Robinson, 1918, p. 1091). According to the authors, the color of the lungs is dependent on the age of a person. It appears rosy-pink in its early years and is darker in adults. This is due to the exposure levels of the lungs to dusts a nd other impurities. The Lungs and Its Form. The form of the lungs is essentially the result of the structure of the thoracic cavity. As the airways seem to represent an inverted tree, the individual lungs are like inverted cones with the tip of the lung in the superior part and the wider part as its inferior and forming its base. The tip is called the apex and the flat surface is the base. The right lung is slightly larger than the left and is, at the same time, bulkier (Gutman, 2009, p. 77). According to Cunningham and Robinson (1918), the location of the liver below the right lung contributes to this (p. 1091) along with the presence of the flat diaphragm underneath the both of

Trends: The Labour Market In Oman

Trends: The Labour Market In Oman Introduction This paper presents an analysis of the following within the working context of the author who is working as External Relations Manager for Bank Muscat, in the Banks Head Office in Muscat. Main issues and trends in the labour market in Oman that impact the key competences of the organisation Bank Muscat, Oman An Evaluation of the Strategic approaches to HRM that can improve organisational performance Organisations approaches to HRM toward Talent Management After the analysis and evaluation of the above HRM issues and approaches, this report concludes with some recommendations for improving the performance in Bank Muscat, where the author is working as its External Relations Manager. Issues and Trends in the Labour Market in Oman Labour market issues and trends are driven by labour market structure and labour diversity (Schuler Jackson, 2007). The labour market in Oman is composed of indigenous Omani workers and expatriate workers (Al-Lamki, 2005) who have different national cultures (with different ethnicities) which give rise to labour diversity (Triandis et al, 1994) as well. Like its member countries of the GCC-Gulf Cooperation Council, Omans labour market is tight which always poses recruitment difficulties (Metcalfe, 2007). The GCC Gulf Cooperation Council countries (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, the UAE, Bahrain, and Qatar) do not have sufficient indigenous skilled work force  [1]  as a result of which the GCC countries had been relying very heavily on imported work force for their economic development. According to the World Tribune report  [2]  , Omans expatriate work force constitutes a majority of 54% of the total work force in the country. As per the recent statistics published by the Ministry of National Economy (2009), Oman, the expatriate population stood at 900,248 against the Omani population of 1,967,180 at mid year 2008. In other words, these statistics indicate that from only a third of the nations population the expatriates occupy a high 54% of the labour market in Oman. In consequence of the above, the Government of Oman has been implementing its Omanisation Policy vigorously since the start of year 2009 (although the Governments Omanisation Policy has been active in the country since 1988 when it was introduced by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said through the Ministry of Civil Services to replace the expatriate work force with local Omani work force) in the private sector. This is due to the fact that the Governments implementation of its Omanisation Policy has been successful so far only in the Omani public sector and not in the private sector as the sector still relies heavily on the expatriate work force (Table 1). Nonetheless the banking sector in Oman is an exception to the poor Omanisation in the private sector (Al-Lamki, 2005). Table 1: Employment of Omanis in the Private Sector  [3]   Currently there are 17 commercial banks, including Bank Muscat, in Oman. Bank Muscat is the largest and leading commercial bank in Oman  [4]  . Bank Muscat has been continuously striving to improve its human resources to enhance its operations as well as to contribute to the further development of national human resources. Currently, Bank Muscat has a very high 92% Omanisation rate which has earned the Bank the prestigious GCC-Level Achievement in Nationalisation of Human Resources in November 2009  [5]  . The Bank also continues to be a heavy investor in information technology to keep itself on top of the competition. Bank Muscat has won for the ninth consecutive year in 2009 the Best Consumer Internet Bank award from the prestigious Global Finance. Service sector organisations are labour intensive and in consequence the human resources represent a substantial portion of the overall operating cost of the service organisation (Massey, 1994). Also human resources cost continues to be one of the most difficult expenses to control in organisations yet it is the critical most factor that affects organisational performance (Pfeffer, 1998). These views apply very well to Bank Muscat also. Being an operator in the services sector where in the customers and the employees engage in direct contact (Schneider et al, 1980), and driven to be more cautious in conducting its daily business due to the current global economic crisis, Bank Muscats major focus of its HRM practice is directed at enhancing customer services through effective customisation of banking products and efficient delivery of quality banking services in a cost-effective way. It would be pertinent here to mention Bank Muscats Mission and its Quality Policy. Bank Muscats Mission Statement Quality Policy Bank Muscats Mission Statement is effectively combined with its Vision Statement which states that, Over one million satisfied customers by 2010 through continuous enhancement of stakeholder value  [6]  . And Bank Muscats Quality Policy Statement states, Our Quality Policy is to achieve and sustain a reputation for quality in the national and international markets by offering products and services that exceed the requirements of our customers. We strive to remain the bank of first choice in all our product and services  [7]  . Accordingly, Bank Muscats strategic emphasis is on building further its sources of competitive advantage which are strong community of satisfied customers and quality offerings of banking products and services. Further the financial services market in Oman (Bank Muscat competes directly with HSBC, Standard Chartered Bank, Oman International Bank, National Bank of Oman, Bank Dhofar, Bank Saderat Iran, and Bank Sohar) is becoming relatively more competitive than the financials services market in the neigbouring Qatar. Currently Bank Muscat runs 125 branches, operates 362 ATMs and 112 CDMs, and 4,200 PoS terminals throughout Oman. And another 3 more branches are going to be opened soon in the other cities of Oman, namely, Sohar, Salalah, and Sur. Human Resource Investment Bank Muscat considers its investment in its human resources as the most valuable asset which forms the basis for the Banks operations. In as much as the Banks human resources contain highly-skilled and experienced people, it also has newly recruited staffs that are relatively low-skilled as they are fresh University Graduates. Human resource movements are caused by recruitments and exits. Since bulk of Bank Muscats operations occur in the Banks retail branches, from time to time Bank Muscat recruits new Omani staffs in order to meet its human resource requirements, based on its formal recruitment and selection policies, at its new branches. There are no effects on the movements in the Banks human resources due to employee leaving. For instance, the employee turnover rate at the end of 2009 was 0% for the third consecutive time, as there were no exits due to resignation, retirement, or termination. For senior positions at the branches staffs are appointed through internal recruitment job promotions (e.g. Assistant Manager to Branch Manager) and the resultant vacancies are filled through the recruitment of new Omani staffs. Competence and Training and Development In view of the above Bank Muscat requires its new staffs with low-skills (who are currently filling in the first-line staffs mostly in the clerical cadre) to upgrade their skills. Acquisitions of higher level skills by these staffs would help the Bank to provide its quality-integrated services to its customers much more vigorously in the pursuit of its strategic mission and vision through a high quality services strategy and at the same time complying with the Governments Omanisation targets. Accordingly, the present HR competence needs of Bank Muscat are derived from the necessity to up skilling its young Omani staffs within the Banks need to maintain competitive advantage against the ongoing rapid changes in the business environment in Oman. To this end the Bank Muscats HR goals are currently focussed in training and development: To reduce skills shortages in the area of complex tasks To Encourage learning to acquire Bank specific-business knowledge for obtaining higher efficiency as well as to cope with changes To provide opportunities for personal and professional development and career growth To forge long term employment tenure on the basis of competence and skills-advancement (through higher/professional education) for entry-level staffs. Strategic Approaches to HRM for Improving Organisational Performance In todays rapidly changing competitive business environment, human resource management is being increasingly considered as a critical part of the strategic management (Sheehan, 2005; Schuler Jackson, 2007) and in consequence Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) as a field in itself has been increasingly applied since the 80s as part of management practice (Becker Huselid, 2006). According to Tichy et al (1982) the strategic approach to HRM is known as Strategic Human Resource Management. The strategic alignment of HRM with the organisations business strategies would contribute to enhanced organisational performance (ibid). Strategic Human Resource Management is defined by Ulrich (1997, p.89) as, the process of linking HR practices to business strategy. The outcome of the application of strategic human resource management is HR Strategy: the mission, vision, and priorities of the HR function (ibid, p.190). Managers can contribute more in the form of value-addition to the firm through the strategic use of their human resource competencies (Mullins, 2007). A strategic approach to HRM for improving organisational performance would demand the matching of the needs and talents of people with that of the organisations objectives (ibid). In other words, a competency-based HRM system can provide an organisation to sustain as well as develop its peoples competencies for the organisations future success. Four-task Model of HRM Schuler et al (2001, p.115), through their Four-task Model of HRM, assert that a strategic approach to HRM would contribute to the development of an effective HR plan which would help improve organisation performance by carrying out effectively the following four core HR activities: The organisation maintains the right number of people Employees are equipped with the right work knowledge and job skills for rendering efficient and effective performance (competence) Employee relationships and behaviour are consistent with the culture and values of the organisation. Employees are motivated adequately to meet the organisations needs. When these core activities are effectively carried out the resulting changes in the human resources in the form of employee attitudes and behaviours within a right organisational climate should lead the organisations successful performance (Bowen Ostroff, 2004). For instance these four core activities can help an organisation to create cultures that maintain its unique competencies, promote social relationships built on mutual trust, knowledge sharing, and teamwork (Schuler Jackson, 2007). Together these imply that an organisation which develops employees to acquire better work skills, become more knowledgeable, and achieve higher competencies would be able to effectively promote improved organisational performance. High Performance Work Practices (HPWPs) A key approach to SHRM is high performance work practices (Huselid, 1995). HPWPs are considered by researchers to produce positive effects on an organisations financial and business performance (Appelbaum et al, 2000; Schuler Jackson, 2007). When individuals are provided with the right environment and collaborative team work with adequate job discretion it is highly likely that they would produce high individual performances which collectively would lead to accomplishing a successful organisational performance (Becker Huselid, 2006). In order to do this the management of the organisation should use high performance work practices (Huselid, 1995). In other words use of high performance work practices would impact positively on both individual performance and organisational performance. HPWPs include employee empowerment, employee training, and teamwork (ibid) and talent management and staff retention (Huselid et al, 2005). Likewise high performance HR practices that includes a rigorous selection of staffs and robust training and development systems to increase employee ability levels and skills, supported by comprehensive incentive schemes to motivate employees, and empowering employees, have positive impact on employee productivity and organisational performance (Appelbaum et al, 2000). These HPWPs can lead an organisation to the development of skilled employees who actively engage in producing successful behaviours for the organisation which thus form a key source of competitive advantage to generate mutually beneficial outcomes to obtain higher organisational operating performances (Schuler Jackson, 2007). HPWPs lead to the achievement of these favourable organisational operating performances through the improved social structure within the organisation that greatly assist in better communication and higher cooperation among the work force (Appelbaum et al, 2000). Employee empowerment today is considered as part of talent management (Bux Tay, 2010). Hence, these two key HR practices that are in use at Bank Muscat have been discussed: in the next section 2.2.1, namely, employee empowerment; and talent management, including employee empowerment in Bank Muscat have been discussed in section 3 later. Employee Empowerment Only when individuals are empowered and made to get involved they can become an organisations most valued employees as a consequence of which they would become the right people who can offer value creation both for the organisation and its customers (Sarkar, 2009). Mullins (2007, p.702) defines employee empowerment as, allowing employees greater freedom, autonomy and self-control over their work, and responsibility for decision-making. According to Spreitzer (1995), employee empowerment is a motivational factor that embeds: employee competences and consistent behaviour and ability to initiate and regulate actions, which collectively influences operating performances in the organisation. The concept of employee empowerment is about leaders giving up their control in order to get the desired results for the organisation (Gretton, 1995 in Mullins, 2007). This is supported by Spreitzer (1995) who states that leaders can become more effective if only they can give up their power, but retain responsibility, to their staffs and teams. An effective management of employee empowerment is capable of producing a large number of benefits to an organisation from the top level to the bottom level (Mullins, 2007). By empowering its employees an organisation can improve both the individual ability and the organisational ability to perform successfully (ibid). Further, employee empowerment can be used as a successful organisational tool to raise employee productivity and profits (ibid). Likewise, empowerment facilitates employees to become innovative and render good performance since conflicts can be greatly avoided and more cooperation can be obtained (Spreitzer, 1995). Appelbaum et al (2000) suggest that empowerment enables greater utilisation of employee knowledge, abilities, and skills which in turn makes them cooperate more in the form of teamwork (Spreitzer, 1995). In many organisations HR role is restricted to routine tasks like hiring and firing, implementing the decisions made by others on pay and benefits (Frost et al, 2002). However, if the HR managers are empowered, then they would be engaged in much deeper aspects of recruitment, selection, and retention, employee training and development and focus strongly on workplace diversity which can contribute to increasing their competence and encourage them to empower their staffs in order to enhance the business and financial performance (ibid). Approaches to Talent Management It would be useful to understand the meaning behind two key words: Talent and Talent Management. CIPD of the UK provides two critical definitions on Talent and Talent Management as follows  [8]  : Talent Talent consists of those individuals who can make a difference to organisational performance, either through their immediate contribution or in the longer-term by demonstrating the highest levels of potential. Talent Management Talent management is the systematic attraction, identification, development, engagement/ retention and deployment of those individuals who are of particular value to an organisation, either in view of their high potential for the future or because they are fulfilling business/operation-critical roles. As discussed earlier, Bank Muscat operates in the services sector and by nature is a labour intensive Company whose main objective of running its banking operations is to provide high-quality customer services in banking and finance. And in this pursuit the role of the Banks people is critical in adding value not only to the customer services they render but also add value to Bank Muscat, thus eventually adding value to the Banks stakeholders. In view of the above and given the diversity of the work force of Bank Muscat, talent management at the Bank would have implications for recruitment and selection of competent staffs and staff retention. Further in terms of succession planning the Bank also has a need to mentor/coach future leaders/managers for Bank Muscat. Figure 1 illustrates the Talent Management framework at Bank Muscat which has been reproduced from the talent management framework supported by the Government of Australia for managing skill shortages  [9]  . Accordingly the following HR activities will be discussed here: Staff Recruitment and Selection Strategic Human Resource Development Mentoring Staff Retention. In addition to the above employee empowerment in Bank Muscat has been discussed as part of the Companys talent management practice under the heading Strategic Human Resource Development. Figure 1: Talent Management Framework The major recruitment and selection objective of Bank Muscat is to attract and retain and thus have the right people with core competencies to enable the Bank to continue to maintain its competitive advantage as a the countrys leading bank in terms of profits, net assets, and up to date IT infrastructure. According to Pollitt (2004, p.24) the following are the core competencies expected from the workers by organisations world wide. These are: Well developed leadership skills, The ability to shift attitudes and behaviors, The capacity to exert effective influence and work through others, The talent for successful partnership working and, most importantly, having the potential to adapt quickly to internal and external change, and To get that change owned and embedded in an organization. Given the low level availability of talent with the above core competencies recruiting right people now is much harder for organisations (ibid). This is particularly true in the case of Bank Muscat which requires people with the above skills and consequential difficulties in finding and recruiting such talent within the tight labour market in Oman. Main (2008) asserts that retaining highly skilled staff is a better option than recruiting new talent as recruiting would not only be an expensive option but also would be time-consuming in the present economic conditions, which applies to Bank Muscat as well though staff recruitment and selection process cannot be ignored. Staff Recruitment and Selection As mentioned earlier the labour market in Oman is differentiated in terms of the composition of the workforce (indigenous workers and expatriate workers). Further Oman has a tight labour market (like its other GCC member nations) which makes recruitment and staffing of employees extremely difficult due to the domestic shortage of skilled people on the one hand and the available young work force lack work experience and the required job skills. In the current economic downturn more and more employers are driven by the need to attract and retain workers with high skills and competencies to improve their organisational performances (Lunau, 2009). Many firms in Oman are experiencing low business and Bank Muscat is no exception which is indicated by a 21% drop in its annual profits for 2010 at OR73.7 million (about USD191.4 million)  [10]  . Nonetheless, aided by its human resource planning the Bank is on the look out for new workers to meet its staffing requirements for succession planning as well as its ongoing retail branch expansions. Without clear job descriptions any recruitment and selection process would be a failure (Frost et al, 2005). For example, the recruitment and selection process in some of the Omani public sector undertakings were criticised by the State Audit institution of Oman. The key to Bank Muscats recruitment and selection process is the use of clear job descriptions for recruiting the right people. Further since competence is considered as the critical element of Bank Muscats HR practices, priority is given to internal recruitment through promotions which actually helps the team members to work with maximum initiatives, increased expectations, and higher motivation. Strategic Human Resource Development (SHRD) Incorporating the core competencies of human resources and relating them for improving organisational performance is the purpose of strategic human resource development (Bratton Gold, 2007). When strategic human resource development is aligned the corporate strategies of the organisation it can lead to the creation of organisation-specific knowledge and skills (Garavan et al, 2007) which will also help build the core competencies of human resources. An effective recruitment and selection process should complement and support the training and development process (Boxall Purcell, 2003 in Bratton Gold, 2007). Accordingly, Bank Muscats recruitment and selection process is complemented by its training and development process which primarily focuses on building strong customer relationships. Training for Skill and Competence Development at Bank Muscat For this purpose, the Bank has been operating successfully its own Management Development Centre since year 2005 as part of its SHRD. Each training programme at the Centre is driven by the HR Departments training needs assessment exercise. This internal training and development Centre handles the training of the low-skilled employees on one end and high-skill positions on the other end. Training is imparted by training consultants from Dubai, London, and Australia who are supported by 3 full-time professional trainers of the Centre. The Centres training emphasis is based on self learning and Job-integrated learning. And the taught instructions along with the workshop learning programmes are delivered by the trainers who interact freely on a dialogue-basis rather than on a monologue-basis, encourage the trainees to participate more actively in the training and development process. The newly recruited low-skilled employees undergo a short and vigorous training to skill them for their current jobs. Likewise, mid-level skilled employees are trained on a regular basis to develop their current skills to high skills. In other words, both these skill groups receive training for advancing their careers within Bank Muscat. As for junior executive positions customised training programmes are provided at the Banks cost through the College of Banking and Financial Studies (CBFS), Muscat. These training programmes are revised from time to time to keep them up to date in terms of relevance to meet Bank Muscats HR needs. To ensure this the Banks HR Director and the College engage in the course revisions. Additionally, for senior executive positions Bank Muscat provides fully funded educational support for the MBA programmes from the UK. However, it is left to the choice of the individual staffs to pursue the MBA programmes. Nonetheless, employees from all the three skill-level categories receive full career guidance from the Management Development Centres Career Counsellor. Performance Appraisals in Bank Muscat Staff progress and promotion are based on formal performance appraisals in Bank Muscat. Performance appraisals are carried out mainly by the branch managers and within the Banks Head Office they are carried out by the departmental managers (e.g. Manager SME Department). Informational inputs to the branch and the departmental managers for these performance appraisals come through the 360 degree feedback process (including customer complaints). Employees of Bank Muscat are expected to have knowledge and understanding of the banking products. Therefore, performance of employees in the Bank is measured on the basis of their sales performances in the branches i.e. sale of the banking products (housing and auto loans, special savings accounts, fixed deposit schemes, Bank Muscat Credit Cards, etc). Once the performance appraisal process is completed the concerned managers and their staffs meet to discuss poor performance issues and commendations. This dialogue is facilitated by the open communication (which is continuously kept alive due to the employee empowerment practice in Bank Muscat). To the knowledge of this author the follow-up to poor performances resulted in the issues being solved rather than the same employee being found fault with, in terms of poor performance, again. Accordingly, none of the Banks employees has ever been reprimanded or were subject to any disciplinary actions by the Banks superiors. Employee Empowerment in Bank Muscat As discussed under section 2.2.1 earlier, employee empowerment is part of the talent management practice in Bank Muscat. Employee empowerment in Bank Muscat is carried out through: A simple 15 minutes briefing before the opening hours of the Bank on each first day of the week (which in Oman is Sunday for the Banks only) by the heads of the divisions/Branch Managers with their respective staffs. Direct communications in the form of intra-mail to the staffs from their bosses. Introduction of team-based work groups across SME Banking, Housing Loan, and Auto Loans that are linked with group bonus schemes for the team members. Active encouragement by departmental managers to engage their team members in planning and decision making relating to customer service issues and issues relating to operations. Above all the HR Executives directly report to the Banks CEO. By empowering its employees through delegation their productivity (faster processing of customer services) Bank Muscat has been able to keep its profitability up even in the current recessionary time. Mentoring A key strategy in the talent management is to put together the employees and their mentors to transfer the mentors skills, experience, and work behaviours to up-skill employee competencies in order obtain higher-levels of organisational performance (Murray, 2001). The purpose of mentoring process is to transfer professional, technical, and generic skills to people who will continue working in the organisation (ibid). In other words the mentoring process would help employees to stay with the organisation and thus ensure not only in retaining their talent but also help the organisation in its succession planning (ibid; Main, 2008). For example, banking companies stand to benefit from the mentoring process in the form of decreasing time needed to master customer service skills (Murray, 2001, p.36). Bank Muscats major objective is to capture key organisational knowledge from its senior leaders who are approaching their retirement and ensure knowledge-sharing among all its staffs. Based on the outline provided by Murray (2001, p.36) the other objectives of Bank Muscats mentoring process are: To improve retention by making our experienced and skilled people feel more valued To improve results-profit or other-with people who are more competent, confident, experienced, and motivated To ensure representation of diverse groups at all levels of the organization To enable our people to learn to work with others with different education, ages, cultures, physical abilities, etc. To improve communication across functional and divisional lines. Bank Muscat applies this to its staffs at all levels i.e. from new workers to newly promoted Managers. In particular the following details the formal mentoring process at Bank Muscat: Each newly promoted Manager will be paired with a mentor. New young recruits and those who are in their early career stages are paired with senior staff members for ensuring their training and retention. Senior members of the staff are to identify leadership and managerial talent and coach them to excel in their present and future work. Special rewards are given to managers whose mentoring leads to staff retention (over a 5-year minimum period). During the last 3 years the top management carried out 4 promotions among assistant branch managers and 3 promotions among branch supervisors among the branches in the Muscat area. Staff Retention The noted management consultancy company, McKinsey Company recommends the creation of Employee Value Proposition (EVP) as a strong means to retain talent in organisations (Brannick, 2001). Four elements make up the EVP (ibid, p.30): Great Company Company and its people care mutually for each other. Employees have pride in working for the company. Great Job Employees feel that their work is highly valued and their talents and achievements are duly recognised by their company. Great Leaders People who provide

Apples to Oranges? (Suicide Attempters VS Suicide Completers) Essays

The title â€Å"Apples to Oranges?: A direct comparison between suicide attempters and suicide completers† immediately grabs readers’ attentions. Though, the title somewhat represents the article. Since the research is conducted within the Major Depressive Disorder population, the more suitable title of the article should read â€Å"Apples to Oranges?: A direct comparison between suicide attempters and suicide completers in Major Depressive Disorder population.† The authors write the research article in simple and concise manners. However, it would have been helpful to the readers if the research report contains the definition of terms section in an abstract. The authors write with the assumption that the readers are already healthcare professionals. Some terms used such as â€Å"mood disorders,† â€Å"Axis I disorders,† â€Å"SCID-IV diagnostic,† are medical terminology and required some medical knowledge to understand the meanings (De Jong, Overholser, and Stockmeier, 2010, pp.90-91). The operational definition of â€Å"depression† should be introduced earlier in the article. The authors operationally define depression as fitting â€Å"all the requirements set forth in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder, Fourth Edition† (DeJong et al, 2010, p.92). This definition can be unclear to some readers. Therefore, the authors should also include the conceptual definition and expand on the list of criteria of depression according to Diagnostic and Statistic Manual of Mental Disorder. Problem Statement The authors imply that previous suicidal studies typically focused on comparing suicidal populations with non-suicidal controls (DeJong et al, 2010). However, the authors realize that it is as important to conduct a study within the homogen... ...me once in a life time. References American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. (2011). Facts and Figures. Retrieved from http://www.afsp.org/index.cfm?page_id=04EA1254-BD31-1FA3-C549D77E6CA6AA37 DeJong, T., Overholser, J., & Stockmeier, C. (2010). Apples to oranges?: a direct comparison between suicide attempters and suicide completers. Journal of Affective Disorders, 124(1-2), 90-97. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. References American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. (2011). Facts and Figures. Retrieved from http://www.afsp.org/index.cfm?page_id=04EA1254-BD31-1FA3-C549D77E6CA6AA37 DeJong, T., Overholser, J., & Stockmeier, C. (2010). Apples to oranges?: a direct comparison between suicide attempters and suicide completers. Journal of Affective Disorders, 124(1-2), 90-97. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

How to Write About Poetry Essay

Poetry may be considered as a painting or sketch done in words rather than in ink or color. To write about poetry we must have an understanding of what the poet is trying to communicate. For this we need to place ourselves in the poets’ shoes and understands his sentiments and interpret his expressions accurately & correctly. To begin writing about poetry we need to consider roughly ten important points. First, consider the nature of the poem i.e. the flow of thoughts that form the poem. The flow needs to be mentioned when the basic elements of the poem are discussed. Second, are the identifications of the central character and the setting of the poem. In order to write about the two it becomes imperative to understand how the poet relates to both and how he uses them in his poem. Third, diction and imagery should be discussed, determining the impact they have on the reader. The description of the figures of speech; metaphors & simile, used in the poem is imperative as it provides a deeper understanding of the thoughts expressed. The tone of the poem should also be discussed as it tells one what to expect (humor, tragedy). Talking about the sound, rhyming, shape and symbolism is an indication of the extra touches used by the poet to make his poem a pretty read. Last but most important, a good description of the meaning, theme and idea is required as it puts forth a simplified yet effective image of the poem for the reader to understand.

7 Essay Writing Tips To Ace Your Next Exam

7 Essay Writing Tips To Ace Your Next Exam 7 Essay Writing Tips To Ace Your Next Exam 7 Essay Writing Tips To Ace Your Next Exam By Stephen Holliday Despite students’ wildest hope of avoiding the dreaded essay exam- one that requires either short or long essay answers rather than multiple choice answers- most find themselves taking such an exam, particularly for subjects like history, philosophy, literature, sociology, political science and others. This type of exam, however, can be successfully managed if you follow a few guidelines outlined here: 1. After the initial panic passes, read through all the questions before you begin to answer any of them, underlining key words and phrases that will help guide you in your answer. In many cases, instructors will incorporate key words and phrases from their lectures in the exam question, so make sure that you focus on these elements in your answer. 2. Based on your comfort level (or lack thereof) with particular questions, after you have reviewed all questions, decide approximately how much time you have for questions that are relatively easy for you to answer and, conversely, which questions will require more time to answer correctly and thoroughly. This is a very important step because it will help you organize your time and effort. 3. Think of each essay answer as a mini-essay in itself, and approach each answer with a shortened version of the process that you’ve been taught to use when writing full essays. If you are used to brainstorming or clustering when preparing to write an essay, go through the same, but greatly shortened, process for an essay answer. The time spent in some form of outlining will save time and effort as you answer the questions. 4. Given the time constraints of most essay exams, you can’t afford to write and re-write answers. From an instructor’s perspective, if a student’s answer contains a great deal of cross outs and perhaps whole paragraph deletions, the instructor will probably conclude that the student is not well prepared. It is critical, therefore, to outline the answer before you begin writing and to follow the outline as you write. Marginal notes of an outline or brainstorming process will probably impress the instructor. 5. The â€Å"rhetorical mode† for an answer may be determined by your instructor. For example, you may be asked to analyze, define, compare/contrast, evaluate, illustrate, or synthesize the subject of the question, and you need to focus on answering the question with an analysis, a definition and so on in order to respond to the question appropriately. 6. Just as you do when you draft an essay, try to begin the answer with one or two sentences that answer the question directly and succinctly. In other words, think of the first two sentences as a thesis statement of an essay, and after you’ve stated the answer’s â€Å"thesis,† support that thesis with specific examples in the body of the answer. 7. Lastly, one of the most important steps you can take is to proofread your answers and make any necessary corrections neatly and legibly. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Business Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Comparative Forms of AdjectivesThe Six Spellings of "Long E"20 Classic Novels You Can Read in One Sitting

Americas Before Columbus Essay Essays

Americas Before Columbus Essay Essays Americas Before Columbus Essay Essay Americas Before Columbus Essay Essay Essay Topic: Equus Before the Europeans adventurers had arrived. the posterities of the prehistoric innovators and ulterior migrators – the Native Americans – had formed a assortment of folks throughout North America. Each folk was related. Some were simple nomads who roamed through the West of the continent. while some were forest inhabitants who worked as huntsmans and fishermen. The southwest part of North America was home to the farming people of the Pueblo state. populating significant metropoliss of rock or adobe ( clay ) . In the Four-Corners ( Utah. Colorado. Arizona and New Mexico ) country was where the Anasazi people ( a. k. a. the â€Å"ancient ones† ) were settled. Their civilization began in about 100 BC. Along the Mississippi we small towns of the Mound Builders who built elephantine earthworks atop which they worshiped their Gods. At this clip. the Native Americans spoke many different linguistic communications. some as different from each other as Italian from English. More than 200 linguistic communications and idioms were developed. There were great fluctuations in imposts and traditions from folk to tribe. Much of North America was non a really good for people to populate in. which is why non that many people lived in North America around 1500. In the northern parts. it’s excessively cold to back up really many people. The winters are excessively long to turn harvests. and there was’t sufficiency works life turning in the natural state to back up people unless there was a batch of land for each individual. In the sou-west. there are immense comeuppances. and even most of the manner up the Pacific seashore ( in what is now California ) it is by and large excessively dry for farming. You can merely farm utilizing irrigation. The early Pueblo people used irrigation for farming. The Great Plains. in the center of the continent. is a grassland for herds of animate beings like the American bison. but largely still excessively dry for farming without the usage of irrigation. Peoples in the Plains lived by chiefly runing American bison. In the Rocky Mountains. dirt was besides was no good for farming. Native American folks in that country such as the Ute lived by runing and assemblage. Along the Mississippi Valley and the Atlantic seashore. there was good farming area. and at that place people like the Mississippians. Iroquois. Sioux. and Cherokee farmed helianthuss. maize. and beans. Because of this. more people were populating at that place. In the Pacific Northwest. there was an copiousness of salmon that could feed a batch of people without farming. and Chinook along with other people lived at that place. The environment changed a great trade between the last Ice Age and 1500 AD. partially because of natural happenings and partially because of things people did. When people crossed over the land span from East Asia. during the Ice Age. North America was partly covered with glaciers. The ice covered the Great Lakes. and most of New York State. The Rocky Mountains had glaciers on them excessively. In the portion of the land that wasn’t covered by glaciers. there were a batch of really large animate beings like mammoths and a immense sort of bison. every bit good as early Equus caballuss and camels. With the terminal of the Ice Age ( 10. 000BC ) . the glaciers melted and shrank. until they merely covered the most northern portion of North America and a small portion of the Rocky Mountains every bit good as other mountains. The clime became warmer all over North America. and there was less grass for the large animate beings to ear. Most of them became extinct. New animate beings like the cowss that became the American American bison. and the Canis familiariss that came along with people. moved in from East Asia. South America South America is a long. narrow continent running from the equator down about to the South pole. So the northern portion near the equator is hot and wet. and the southern portion is really cold. Native Americans spread out rapidly in South America and adapted their life style to the given clime. They inhabited the hot and humid jungles and the cold Andes Mountains. which run down the seashore of South America. In these mountains. there are llamas. Lama guanicoe. vicunas. alpacas. and guinea hogs. The most popular civilization of the country was the Inca. Near the equator. the Amazon River runs east to the Atlantic Ocean. It is the largest river in the universe. and it’s H2O feeds a rich jungle that covers a batch of eastern South America. Rubber trees grow in the jungle. Jaguars. tapirs. chiropterans. toads. and anaconda serpents live at that place. while mahimahis. electric eels and piranhas live in the Amazon River. 3. Some Native American people made a batch of their vesture out of deerskins or the teguments of the other animate beings. Others wore apparels made of yucca and Meleagris gallopavo plumes. While some wove dressing out of bark strips or strands of hemp. Men wore cosmetic chapeaus with plumes. In the cold South near the artic. they made boots out of seal tegument. For nutrient they grew harvests. hunted. fished and gathered wild workss. The work forces had to run while the adult females farmed and gathered. Some of the nutrients they ate were Cucurbita pepos. bison. cervid. elk. blackberries. fish. maize. nuts. beans. and murphies. Through rites and supplications. they tried to delight the liquors. Often their rites included dances. If the liquors liked their dances they would give. in return. rain for their following harvest. Some believed in assorted Gods and practiced the Sun dance. They manus made clayware. wove baskets. and made jewellery to have on. Native Americans used what of all time resources they had to construct their shelter. They used caves for rain. cold air current. a topographic point to conceal for protection from animate beings and enemies. They lived in cone. dome. and rectangular-shaped houses or wigwams. They besides lived in tepees. or wikiups ( a frame of wood held together with yucca fibres and covered with coppice ) . and Hogans. Some built their places out of adobe ( sundried bricks ) . others made their place out of logs. coppice and clay. Other Native Americans lived near the cold artic and used iglu for shelter which were houses made of snow and ice. 4. I believe that I would non be able to last if I was to be transported to the 1490’s. Teenss today are non taught to hold the accomplishments of endurance that the Native Americans used during that clip. Clearly. we are more advanced now than we were about all those old ages ago. Most of the teens and grownups of today’s society are so used to holding their smart phone attached to their hip 24/7. Truthfully. I don’t think I could last with out it. Today. if we have a inquiry. we would merely Google it. Make you believe the Native Americans had luxury of researching a job and acquiring an reply in less than 2 proceedingss? It would likely take me a life-time to calculate out the simplest of undertakings if I living in America before 1500 AD. Sometimes we forget to take a minute to believe about how lucky we are. When you think of runing. you think of modern twenty-four hours arms. When you think of farming. you think of tractors and other modern machines. I doubt that the Native Americans had those tools. Heck. I would hold to do my ain tools. I’d likely starve to decease before I found a manner to do the tools needed to last. I believe most teens today would non be able to last. The fact that engineering. as we know it. would be non-existent in America before Columbus arrived. would do it a really hard being. I genuinely believe that day-to-day life would be excessively hard for me. and I would most likely non survive for really long at all.

Gilgamesh Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Gilgamesh - Essay Example â€Å"Gilgamesh is seeking Utnapishtim, the Babylonian Noah who survived the flood and was granted immortality, in order to gain the secret of immortality for himself.† (Maier, 112) In a careful analysis of the epic, it becomes obvious that the story of Gilgamesh is important in that it suggests how come to terms with death. This paper makes an analysis of how the characters in the epic deal with questions of life and death, how humans come to terms with death, whether immortality is possible and desirable to humans, and how these ideas compare to the notions of another culture. First of all, it is fundamental to recognize that the characters in The Epic of Gilgamesh deal with questions of life and death, and it is best suggested through the story of the hero, Gilgamesh who is dedicated to learn the secret of eternal life. All through the work, the protagonist is unable to realize the realities of death. Specifically, it is Enkidu’s death which leads Gilgamesh to seek a means to escape from death and to achieve immortality. Significantly, his struggle with grief, his clinging to death and mourning, his confused identification of death and life, his quest for immortality, etc suggest how much this character is engaged with the questions of life and death.

Of Mice and Men- Emotion not reason motivates Leni and George Essay

Of Mice and Men- Emotion not reason motivates Leni and George - Essay Example For instance, Lennie and George are emotionally bound in spite of the fact that they are opposites. The emotional sufferings and feeling of isolation binds both men more than a rational decision to buy a farm: â€Å"Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family. They don’t belong no place. . . . With us it ain’t like that. We got a future. We got somebody to talk to that gives a damn about us† (Steinbeck 1993, 23). The varieties of this emotional impact are extensive: they may be a record of emotional struggles and experiences of both men. Steinbeck seeks consciously or unconsciously to give their readers the sort of emotional "en ­joyment; he flatters his readers that the possession of feelings of whatever kind is in itself a good thing, and they account it laudable to be able to move readers. The dream to own piece of land is influenced by emotions rather than a rational choice. George idealizes farming and its benefits which represents the American dream. â€Å"I seen hundreds of men come by on the road an’ on the ranches, with their bindles on their back an’ that same damn thing in their heads . . . every damn one of ’em’s got a little piece of land in his head. An’ never a God damn one of ’em ever gets it. Just like heaven. Ever’body wants a little piece of lan’. I read plenty of books out here. Nobody never gets to heaven, and nobody gets no land† (Steinbeck 1993, 34). The American dream means opportunities for everyone to become rich and prosperous in spite of his background and origin. Lennie and George are motivated by desire to earn enough for living. They see the road as the only possible place to realize their dreams. The farm and land symbolize life experience of a particular person, and it brings message to everyone to think over next step in his life. It implies not only wisdom, but also the whole life of Lennie and George. The killing of Lennie