Different Perspectives

The focus on terrorism has become a global exercise and since it is a human behavior that is subject to the needs and motives of those who engage in it. The psychological perspective had been used to analyze terrorism and how man becomes a terrorist and though much has been learned of the psychology of terrorism, much also has been desired to paint an accurate picture of terrorism.One limitation of studying terrorism is that there are no single definition of what it is, for this analysis, we define terrorism as acts of violence motivated by social, political, religious and economic ideologies directed towards certain groups, race, country or institution in peaceful times. Terrorist acts had ranged from the most violent, gruesome, irrational, and brutal and all of which are incomprehensible to the normal citizen.Terrorism by itself is inhuman and is a basic affront to the divine right of man to live for acts of terrorism had claimed thousands of innocent lives. The question of how and why ordinary individuals become terrorists have been dissected by psychologists in the hope of learning what personality traits are shared by terrorists, what antecedent factors provoke the person to cause terror to others and whether becoming a terrorist is a behavior of sociopaths.Due to the vast research on terrorism in this frame of thought, it has been found that there is no single terrorist personality, that terrorist have come from different backgrounds, different religions, different economic status, have high levels of academic achievement, have various professions and careers and have different personalities. Another frame of thought was to look at the social psychological context of the would be terrorist, but it was also found that poverty, oppression or even strict fundamentalism do not preclude terrorism.Majority of those who have been oppressed or from poverty do not become terrorists but instead strive to alleviate their situations, the susceptibility to be recruite d by terrorists have also not been supported. Clinical psychology also tried to define terrorism as a form of sociopath disorders since terrorist seemingly do not feel guilt or remorse when they commit acts of violence, they also have a twisted view of justice and retribution as well, but this analogy did not hold up since terrorists do not have the compulsion to kill if it is not within their cause or their objectives (Ruby, 2002).Moreover, sociopaths have limited mental functioning, whereas terrorists are capable of extremely detailed and careful planning and plotting and function normally as members of the society and do not kill just for the need to kill but it is tied to some specific end goal. With the seemingly incomplete analysis of terrorism and terrorists, the psychological perspective had turned their focus on understanding the root cause of terrorism as a group behavior and how it influences the individual to become a terrorist (Crenshaw, 2000).Terrorism is culturally re lative, this means that American’s may view the siege of a political group of the country’s government as an act of terrorism but to the people of that country, it may be an act of rebellion against an oppressive government which is not terrorism but a necessary action that is for the greater good. Another example is how Israeli’s and the people all over the world view Palestinian suicide bomber attacks as a terrorist act, but to the Palestinian’s it is an act of bravery and loyalty to their country and faith which to them is not a sin but a divine call.Thus, when we study the psychology of terrorism, we must make use of the cultural perspective and identify what is terrorism and what is culturally sanctioned behavior, and from there understand the motives and reasons for being a terrorist (Zimbardo, 1995). For example, the Palestinian suicide bombers are often young men who are idealistic and want to contribute to their family and society, and in a socie ty that encourages and rewards these behaviors are motivated to become terrorists because it gives them the opportunity to become an important person in the society and whose family will be treated with respect.Thus, the suicide bomber would think and believe that what he is doing will benefit those he will leave behind and at the same time be able to serve his country and his God, moreover, suicide is not considered a sin but the ultimate sacrifice. To the Israeli’s, who are the recipient of the terrorist attacks no doubt share with the rest of the world the definition of terrorism, and perceive the Palestinian action as irrational and violent and senseless as it only seeks to inflict pain, fear and terror among them.Psychology however can only identify the reasons and help in the understanding of what makes a terrorist, and the socio-cultural perspective says that it is often influenced by the social and cultural expectations of the particular group and is motivated by inte rnal and external rewards of the act. Another useful perspective to be used in analyzing terrorism is through the lens of the cognitive learning perspective; this approach says that any behavior is a product of learning and the perceptions of the individual.Terrorism is a learned behavior, hence it is taught in various situations and is reinforced by the rewards of the behavior, for example, a terrorist may succeed in bombing of an American building and hence the goal is reached. The behaviors needed to reach this goal are taught in training camps and therefore the achievement of the goal satisfies the objectives of the group. The sense of accomplishment, of being able to see the enemy suffer are rewarding to the terrorist for it validates their skills and knowledge in terrorism.However, one is not just a killing machine; the terrorist is also a mentally functioning individual and makes the choices to behave in such a way (Crenshaw, 1990). Terrorists often believe in something and h ave perceived this as the most important and most worthwhile behavior that would enable them to complete their purpose. Terrorism as a focus of study still needs to be studied and academically investigated, with the new evidence and knowledge that people have of terrorists and terrorism, there will come a time when people would understand what it is and hopefully be able to diffuse the burning coals of terrorism.

Justifying The State Essay

Q1 If the state is not a voluntary organisation, how can one be under any obligation to obey its commands? This is a question about justifying the state. What D. D. Raphael calls † the grounds of political obligation.1 If the state can be justified somehow then so can the commands it makes, whether it is voluntary or not. This would be a state built on individual consent; obligation to the commands of the state would flow from that consent. This essay will discuss the possibility of justifying of the state through the idea of a social contract. The state when it creates a law draws a line one cannot cross without consequences. For clarity I am talking about a serious law, specifically one that obviously has a moral base, the law against murder for example. An individualist might say ‘I have no intention of crossing that line anyway because I believe it would be morally wrong to do so’. The law in his case may as well not exist. Just by not breaking a law it can appear as though he supports it. When what he might agree with is what the law defends/upholds /represents, and that is the moral principle behind it. This is one reason why some people appear to uphold the law when in fact all they may be doing is following a personal moral code. or simply agreeing with the basic rational belief shared by most people that ‘murder is wrong or (maybe) tax for the NHS is good’ for example. I suggest this analogy can be applied when questioning many commands of the state. When I obey the state by paying taxes, I may not be doing so because I am obligated too by law but for other reasons including moral ones. Socialists (as do many others) might argue that they are happy to pay more tax in return for a wider societal benefit that includes all, i.e. as in the National Health Service. Therefore a socialist might argue that she paid her National Insurance not because the law obligates her too, but because it ‘fits her moral attitudes and outlook anyway’. The fact that she has no legal right to refuse to pay becomes relevant in this case only if she actually doesn’t. The above argument is Lockean to the extent that it â€Å"appeal[s] to the idea of individual consent.†2 It is also in part my own view, which is (I think) essentially individualist in nature, though not libertarian. The relevance of my own view to this essay is that when thinking about this question, I realised that I had no idea what my own moral position was regarding some of the most crucial problems and contradictions of political philosophy. Many of these questions require (I think) a moral stance in order to be able to make sense of them. This may seem like a non-academic approach as if I am personalising or reducing this essay to subjective notions, however the questions and issues of political philosophy are in large part moral questions and issues that therefore have as a basis, personal moral opinions. Locke’s view according to Wolff is that obligations to the institutions of the state â€Å"must be justified in terms of the will, choices or decisions of those over whom they have authority.†3 Justification of the institutions of the state that enforce obligation then is reliant on the idea that personal autonomy is of premier value. Will Kymlicka defines this as the belief that the individual is ‘morally prior’ to the community. One objection to this is the communitarian argument that the individual is not ‘morally prior’ to the community instead individuals are a ‘product of the community.’4 There are other objectors to Locke’s idea that autonomy is the primary value. Wolff writes that Bentham considered â€Å"the primary value is not autonomy but happiness †¦ whether we consent to the state is irrelevant.† 5 This utilitarian argument is that the ‘happiness’ of society, as a whole is of more value than personal autonomy or the happiness of the few or one. And that therefore one has a duty to obey the commands of the state as it pursues this goal. So if the state decides that having nuclear weapons is for the greater good (happiness) then I would be obligated to pay my share of tax for them whatever I thought. I may be against nuclear weapons or the military in general for moral reasons (pacifism for example) but my moral objection is sacrificed for the greater happiness. The problem political philosopher’s face is finding ways to solve issues like the one above. Just how does one justify the state? One theory is the idea of ‘the social contract.’ Wolff here defines the ‘project of the social contract theory.’ â€Å"The project of showing that individuals consent to the state lies behind the idea of social contract theory. If, somehow or other, it can be shown that every individual has consented to the state, or formed a contract with the state, or made a contract with each other to create a state, then the problem appears to be solved.†6 It is difficult to support the idea that the state, and thereby its commands and responding obligations, can be justified by the theory of a social contract. â€Å"The theory of a social contract tries to justify political obligation as being based on an implicit promise, like the obligation to obey the rules of a voluntary association.†7 If there were such a contract (based on the idea that the state is a voluntary organisation) the problem of individual obligation to the state would be solved. One could join (or leave) institutions of the state at will, and not be subject to state penalties. This is clearly not so. To clarify this further I can ask a different question: how much like a voluntary association is the state? The consensus among political philosophers is I think that the state is not a voluntary organisation. To be born is to be joined to it. As Raphael says â€Å"the universality of the states jurisdiction makes its compulsory character more pervasive and more evident. â€Å"8 Individuals are inextricably linked to it in many ways, for example through the financial/legal institutions. Neither of these institutions are voluntary, they both carry obligations that are enforceable by law. For a comparison I will examine what I think a voluntary organisation is. The obligations I have to the UEA regarding my degree, I agreed to honour. They were stated, I accepted. This does not mean I think the UEA is perfect. Just because I am obligated, (I agreed to the UEA rules) does not mean I cannot criticise the parking problem. What is important is that I chose to join. My obligations to the UEA are voluntary, and I can withdraw from them voluntarily and leave the university should I choose. This is not possible in the case of the state. â€Å"[I] am subject to the rules whether I like it or not.†9 As a general philosophical attitude I am ‘nervous’ or sceptical of organisations people are forced to join or have to remain joined to, this includes the idea of a state. This could be framed as, (if this sentence makes sense) ‘I do not like the idea that there is a group I am unable not to join’. These reasons might help to explain why I am ‘generally sceptical’ of some of the motives of our own state. So where does this leave us? The above contentions highlight some of the problems of the social contract theory. The central objection to it is that the state is not voluntary therefore there can be no ‘mutually agreed contract.’ Nor has there historically ever been one. As Wolff observes, if there ever was a social contract â€Å"What is the evidence? Which museum is it in?†10 The idea of a hypothetical contract is an attempt to solve this problem. It does not rely on any formal notion of â€Å"actual consent, be it historical, express, or tacit.†11 The hypothetical contract relies on hypothetical consent. If hypothetical consent were possible it would provide a moral reason for political obligation. That is the ingredient the question this essay is discussing implicitly implies is missing. The idea asks us to imagine a position from where we could successfully negotiate a social contract. Rawl’s idea is a very complex one that effects many issues. In his Theory of Justice, Rawls sets out primarily to establish â€Å"what moral principles should govern the basic structure of a just society.†12 Rawls Theory of Justice suggests a set of specific moral principles that he hopes will achieve this consensus view. It is these principles that critics of the theory in the main object to. What they are concerned with is the kind of society that would emerge from behind any veil of ignorance whatever its character. For the purpose of this essay the idea of a ‘veil of ignorance’ which is subject to many conditions, is the device Rawls uses to argue for consent. If people can agree on what would be just, (which he argues is possible using the principles he suggests) from behind a ‘veil of ignorance’ the consent reached would be a voluntary contract. Again the problem remains, what principles really constitute a ‘just society’ are not clear. Objections to Rawls ideas include the ‘libertarian critique.’ Kukathas and Pettit13 argue that for principled libertarians like Nozick the state that would emerge from Rawls’s theory â€Å"is bound to seem inherently evil.†14 Nozick’s objections are based on his libertarian view that â€Å"Individuals have rights, and there are things no person or group may do to them (without violating their rights)†15 To conclude is this essay is very difficult; the argument I have tried to demonstrate is that one cannot be under any obligation to obey the commands of the state using the social contract model. I have argued that the social contract fails because it is not consensual. I have also tried to show that the idea of hypothetical contract cannot work because the ‘veil of ignorance’ still does not produce consent because people cannot agree on what the principles of a just state are. One can only be obligated to obey the commands of the state (I think) when its principles are consensual. Bibliography Chandran Kukathas and Philip Pettit, Rawls, A Theory of Justice and its Critics, (Polity Press 1990) Kymlicka, Will, Contemporary Political philosophy. Raphael, D D, Problems of Political Philosophy, (Macmillan press 1990) Wolff, Jonathan, An Introduction to Political Philosophy, (oxford University Press 1996) Colin Dunlop His II Political Philosophy Dr Kathleen Stock 04-04-03 Q1 If the state is not a voluntary organisation, how can one be under any obligation to obey its commands? 1 Raphael, D D, Problems of Political Philosophy, p175 2 Wolff, Jonathan, An Introduction to Political Philosophy, p38 3 Ibid.p38 4 See Kymlicka, Will, Contemporary Political philosophy, Ch5 (I think) his discussion â€Å"multiculturalism and communitarianism.† 5 Ibid.p38 6 Ibid.p43 7 Raphael, D D, Problems of Political Philosophy, p182 8 Ibid.p181 9 Ibid.p181 10 Wolff, Jonathan, An Introduction to Political Philosophy, p44 11 Ibid.p44 12 Chandran Kukathas and Philip Pettit, Rawls, A Theory of Justice and its Critics, p36 13 Ibid. See chapter 5 † The Libertarian Critique† 14 Ibid.p74 15 Robert Nozick quoted by Chandran Kukathas and Philip Pettit in, Rawls, A Theory of Justice and its Critics, p76

Credit cards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Credit cards - Essay Example For the rich, credit is a means of delaying payment for an item simply because the opportunity exists to purchase several resources without the use of cash transactions. For the business man credit is the chance to provide persons with resources without immediate payment whilst gaining extra income for the customer’s delayed payment. Credit therefore can be an advantage or a disadvantage. It depends on whose eyes you are using. In today’s information age the main method for receiving and allowing credit is the credit card. This essay will focus on how the credit card has evolved as well as its benefits and disadvantages. Today the credit card has become popular all over the world but does is it hold equal benefits for all its users? The piece of plastic called a credit card issued to customers by a Bank is used to make payments for various exchanges. It operates through a system of borrowing money. The customer gets to purchase items immediately and repay the bank at later date. The system of exchanging goods on credit for a card began since the late 1800s. By early 1900s oil companies and department stores gave out individual cards call ‘proprietary cards’. These businesses created these cards to improve customer loyalty and customer service (Gerson and Woolsey, 2009). The interest in cards soon spread to the other industries and in 1946 John Biggins presented the first bank card to be used in America only. It was called ‘Charg-It’. ... Therefore, 1959 marked the beginning of flexible payment but also the beginning of finance charges for customers. In 1966, credit cards were now accepted for the payment of a variety of purchases and in 1967 Barclays launched the first credit card in the United Kingdom. From this time the bank card industry grew at a rapid rate. Presently, more than fifty percent of all transactions in the United States of America and the United Kingdom are made on credit cards. This explosion of the use of credit card came about because of the seeming benefits to the customers. One of the most important features for all users is that people can pay immediately for the things they need. For all users but especially for the poor, the credit card offered a quick and easy help in times of medical and other emergencies. People now had access to a certain amount of money for dealing with unexpected costs. In addition people were able to pay for large purchases, such as furniture, electrical appliances, el ectronics and even precious jewels. What is more is people were given up to 56 days to pay in full before accumulating interest. Imagine the joy these 56 days gave to individuals who live from pay check to pay check. The supporters of credit cards suggest that users could now manage their purchases more than before as all the purchases made on these cards are listed on written or online statements. Not only did users find it easier to keep track of their purchases via the credit cards statements but they could also organise their budgets. They could observe their expenditures in detail and therefore eliminate those expenditures that were causing them to stray from their budgets. In short, credit

Quantitative Geography Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Quantitative Geography - Essay Example It is not a surprise that GIS data today is used by thousands of organizations from different segments of life, from businesses, governments, educators and scientists, environmental and conservation organizations to natural resource groups and utilities. GIS is helpful in solving problems and improving processes, increasing profits, improving services, bettering education at all levels and allowing for more proper use of our natural resources.(GIS website,2007) Â  The combination of geography as a scientific branch and GIS as a way of utilizing geographic information brings us a new idea, one of geographic approach. It is a new way of thinking and problem solving that integrates geographic information into how we understand and manage our planet. This approach allows us to create geographic knowledge by measuring the earth, organizing this data, and analyzing and modeling various processes and their relationships. The Geographic Approach also allows us to apply this knowledge to the way we design, plan, and change our world. All of the above became really essential in the aftermath of the industrial and technological boom in the last two centuries, one that came at a great price of serious depletion of natural sources and serious worries about the future of our planet. Â  In its nutshell, the Geographic approach is just like any scientific, analytical method. It calls for several steps, all of which are necessary for obtaining an end result that is scientifically tested and valuable.

Foundations of Management for Healthcare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Foundations of Management for Healthcare - Essay Example Taylor was one of the main contributors in the theory of scientific management. In fact, he is referred to as the father scientific management. Taylor proposes that organisation need to do a study on tasks and then develop appropriate procedures (Cliffsnotes par 3). For instance, organizations can make calculations on how to improve the performance of its employees by using correct procedures and movements. According to Taylor, people are significantly motivated by money. The study conducted by Tylor on the steel company Indicated that An organisation can significantly increase its product by the use of appropriate management practices in organisation of the tasks (Cliffsnotes part 4). The study further indicated that employees’ productivity can be improved though effective management and arrangement of activities in an organisation. For instance, the employees’ productivity increased significantly. This can be realized through development of the appropriate incentives to induce employees to put more effort. This contribution was of great significance in the management of organizations. This principle can be of great significant in the heath care. Application of this principle can lead to an increase in the level of employees’ productivity hence increased level of services. According to Mayo, for an organisation to be successful, it should not only consider the monetary needs of its employees, but also the non monetary needs (Scribd par 4). According to this principle, people are motivated by social needs as well as good job relationships. In addition, people will tend to be better to work in a group relationship rather than individuals. According to this principle, satisfaction of psychological needs should be packed in the front line in every organisation. McGregor did an intensive examination of the theories of individual behaviors at the workplace. Through this examination, he

Legal Rights Afforded to the Accused Research Paper

Legal Rights Afforded to the Accused - Research Paper Example Miranda rights apply to custodial interrogations and since John is held in police custody he qualifies for these rights (Roberson, Wallace and Stuckey, 2007). Ideally, John is an illegal immigrant and as such is expected to face the due process of the law and similar protection provided in the constitution like other United States (US) citizens. He should therefore be accorded help if unable to communicate in native language by being given a translator. If the police officers fail to advise John of the fundamental rights provided in the constitution, any statements made by John may therefore be suppressed if challenged in a court of law meaning that such incriminating statements may not be used against John during his trial. Some procedural steps that must be taken include booking John for the crimes he has been arrested for. His personal belonging are then taken, photographs and fingerprints taken in order to confirm his identity and establish if there are other warrants of arrests issued before (Kempinen, 2006). John should then be arraigned in court before a judge and at this point the judge will decide if there was a need for the arrest. During the arraignment, a judge also decides the amount of bail or if the suspect would be released on recognizance. Nevertheless, considering that John is not a citizen, the immigration department should put him on hold meaning that even if a bail is allowed, he would not be freed without posting an immigration bond. The immigration will then wait from his case to complete and then commence deportation proceedings against John. Preliminary hearing is mainly used to assess adequacy of evidence against a suspect in order to make a decision whether to go to a full trial. On the other hand, a grand jury is where a group of citizens listen to evidence presented to determine if a full trial should commence. Both preliminary and grand jury allows evidence which gives the prosecutor enough evidence to charge the

Cloud computing Risk or Opportunity Research Paper

Cloud computing Risk or Opportunity - Research Paper Example Since last few years, cloud computing has resulted in a number of positive impacts on the IT ecosystem, thereby giving rise to new markets and widely scattered new user communities (European Commission, 2012). Contextually, the concept of cloud computing is the outcome of the direct industrial needs to enhance resource utilization without intervening consumer requirements. In other words, the concept ensures the use of the available resources in more efficient manner (European Commission, 2012). The paper intends to critically examine the opportunities and the risks associated with cloud computing and draws a valid conclusion on its adoption by organizations. Cloud computing was initially used in an academic perspective by Prof. Kenneth K Chellapa who illustrated it in 1997 at the Informs Conference in Dallas as â€Å"a computing paradigm where the boundaries of computing will be determined by economic rationale rather than technical limits† (Petri, 2010). There are various definitions of cloud computing however the most appropriate and broadly accepted definition is being provided by North America National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST). According to NIST, â€Å"Cloud Computing is a model for enabling convenient, on demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort to service provider interaction† (Petri, 2010). Public Cloud: Public cloud model is provided by vendors and can be accessed over the internet or private network. One or more data centers are used by this model which is shared by multiple customers (Weitz, 2010). Private Cloud: Private cloud model is managed and used internally by the organizations which utilizes ‘shared services model’ and makes variable usage of virtualized computing resources. The data stored in the model are managed within the organization (Weitz,

Response 3 Fielding Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Response 3 Fielding - Essay Example In addition, I vehemently propose that since the story of the novel revolves around the Parson Abraham Adams, the title of the novel should have been after the name of the parson. Joseph Andrews is thought to be the protagonist of the novel due to the very fact that the story starts and ends concentrating upon him. Moreover, he is the person whose refusal to the advancements of Lady Booby gives the go to the circumstances. In addition, he undergoes various financial losses and physical torture, faces mental sufferings and troubles during his adventures on his way as soon as he is dismissed from his job. Further, he is the character of the novel that combines different scenes of novel and has relationships with all other characters including his sister Pamela, his mistress Lady Booby, his mentor Parson Adams, his childhood friend and beloved Fanny, his co-worker Mrs. Slipslop and his parents Mrs. & Mr. Wilson as well as his patterns and benefactors i.e. the Andrews. Even then the dominant role played and performed by the parson makes him as the central figure of the novel. The sacrifices made by the parson and the sympathies and love offered by him are beyond any doubt. It is reality that he had no concern with either Joseph Andrews or Lady Booby, nor he was a rich person having pelf or wealth in plenty. Moreover, he had no political plans in his mind, nor he was a social reformer at all. Even then, he appears to the limelight to stand by the hero Joseph Andrews to rescue him in his miseries. Parson Adams has set out on a journey to deliver as well as sell the sermons in order to get some money in the pursuit of earning some money, but unfortunately the most innocent character of the novel i.e. Parson Adams forgets his sermons at his house and has no benefit to accompany Joseph in his miseries and troubles. Instead of

Research proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Research proposal - Essay Example the companies, government organizations, and individuals are able to follow all the legislative requirements regarding the creation and governance of pensions1. This paper analyzes the extent in which the costs of pension are able to affect the value of a company. This research mainly concerns itself with companies operating in the United Kingdom. It is important to understand that this area of pensions is an area that has been greatly researched, not only pensions in relation to the government employees, but also pensions in relation to private companies. Most researchers aim at finding out the benefits of this pension schemes, and the role they play in the economy (Gustman, Steinmeier, and Tabatabai, 2014). Researchers are motivated by the fact that pensions are useful in helping the aged people to have the capability of satisfying their basic needs. Another reason as to why there is considerable interest in this area of pensions is based on the desire by the UK government to decrease the old age poverty in the country. The government has noted that one of the most efficient methods of reducing old age poverty is restructuring the pension system in the United Kingdom2. This new measures must have the capability of addressing new and emerging needs. On this basis, research on the pension systems is developed to address these needs, and provide a framework for policy formulators to develop a policy that would help the citizens of UK fight old age poverty (Mullen, 2010). Pension is defined as an amount of money, paid on a regular basis for purposes of preparing the payee for retirement. Pensions are a very useful welfare programs, and this is because they normally help the aged to meet their daily needs. However, the pension system has always been accused of failing to remove the aged from poverty, since the amount given is always small, when comparable to the standards of living (Gustman, Steinmeier, and Tabatabai, 2014). This is mainly specific to retired

Corporate Power Global Trend to the Fashion Industry in Ethiopia Assignment

Corporate Power Global Trend to the Fashion Industry in Ethiopia - Assignment Example The fashion industry in Ethiopia is growing since it has received significant amounts of corporate investments. The investors, suppliers, and large corporations have been entering the country to take advantage of low costs of productions in terms of land and labor. The large tracts of land are also fertile for the growth of cotton. The stable government encourages investments. Additionally, Ethiopia has a young population that is trainable. However, the textile industry faces some drawbacks such as transport logistics, corporate scandals, and misuse of land and labor laws. The corporate power would continue to influence the fashion industry positively in Ethiopia if companies continued to take advantage of the country’s favorable factors and co-operated to eliminate drawbacks. The textile industry in Ethiopia has come from far and has a potential of soaring to greater heights if the current corporate investments persist. Ethiopia is in Sub-Saharan Africa, a region that experiences a nascent growth in the textile industry compared to the Northern parts of Africa. According to Fassil Tadesse, Kebire Enterprises Chief Executive Officer, Ethiopia textile tradition can be traced back a long way but its development had begun taking roots just a few years ago. A critical analysis shows that Ethiopian textile industry forms part of a wider pattern of the global trade movement. It moved to Japan after beginning in the United States. It advanced to South Korea before crawling to China (Mousavi). The soaring cost of conducting business in China over the last few years has made investors shift to Africa due to low costs in the region. Speaking to the Economist Intelligence Unit, Fossil said fashion development emanates mainly from Turkey, India, China, South Korea, an d Bangladesh.  

Human Resources Management and Sustainable Development Essay Example for Free

Human Resources Management and Sustainable Development Essay Nowadays, sustainable development is a movement that is increasing in our society. Companies are progressively realizing the stakes of such policies, and are willing to have a try at it. The triple bottom line definition of sustainable development (source: United Nations) stresses an equal importance of the social and economic dimensions with regard to the ecological dimension. The sustainable development director of a company being usually inside of its human resources department, this department must therefore play a key role in the implementation of sustainable development policies. But what role exactly ? How can companies use human resources management to improve their sustainable development strategy ? Sustainable development implies taking into account ethical values and principles. For example, a new trend in companies nowadays is volunteering. Many different projects are available to volunteers, depending on their will and their interest centres : humanitarian missions, reinsertion of unemployed people, etc. These actions, which depend very much on the willingness of human resources management to set them up, contribute to the good image of sustainable development policies implementation in companies. It is even more striking to employees and locals when companies choose to get involved in missions close to its activity, e. g. the Danone group gives away free yoghurts to African communities every year. On the national level Many actions including the social dimension can be undertaken in companies. This includes for examples an improved fairness in the hiring process (e. g. through interviewing methods, anonymous resumes ), a regular training of employees, a more flexible work, etc. The most important part is to involve employees in the sustainable development process. Indeed, managers have the responsibility to spread sustainable development principles and to set them up, while employees realize them and keep them alive. If employees do not agree upon it, the company is walking right into a wall. Companies should therefore explain their initiative, the pros and the cons, and have employees agree on it. Meetings to agree on a charter could be a good thing also. Furthermore, employees’ involvement should not stop there : Companies should encourage their collaborators to integrate ethical and ecological attitudes in their everyday life. For instance, the Aventis Pasteur laboratory encourages its employees to take public transportations rather than driving alone to work. In order to do so, the company signed a contract with ADEME (Agence De l’Environnement et de la Maitrise de l’Energie) so as to improve the bus service to the laboratory. However, taking actions in the home country of a company is not enough today : sustainable development goes abroad ! On the international level With the globalization of firms, they now need to pay attention to the social aspects of being settled in different countries. Companies must indeed take into consideration the local social specificities, as well as local stakeholders. If possible, they should also try developing partnerships with local associations, NGO, as well as local and international public institutions. An example of what a sustainable development policy could be implemented abroad is the Lafarge cement company. Its employees in Africa were for the most part affected with AIDS. AIDS had a negative impact on the social but also on the economic dimension. It was the first death cause at Lafarge Africa. The group set up a policy to help fight the disease and to make working and health conditions as convenient as possible. This policy was set up in cooperation with CARE, an international development NGO. To go even further, Lafarge cooperated with local associations to launch a preventive campaign in the area. Another example is the Accor hotel company, which is involved in the definition and implementation of international standards on areas such as education, as well as the fight against prostitution and child exploitation. Both national and international dimensions must be taken into account in the implementation of a sustainable development policy, in order to make the most out of it. In conclusion, sustainable development being an important issue nowadays, companies are starting to feel implied in this process. Through a good use of the human resources management, social services can be set up in a company, both nationally and internationally, hence the performance of the company in terms of sustainable development.

Perceived User Experience of Interactive Animated Transition

Perceived User Experience of Interactive Animated Transition Perceived User Experience of Interactive Animated Transitions in Mobile User  Interfaces and Visualisation Animated transitions hold an important part of graphical user interface design practice. They can help to guide users attention and highlight changes in the interface. Also Information visualisation research has concentrated thus far on desktop PCs and larger displays while interfaces for more compact mobile device have been neglected. The aim is to investigate how user experience in mobile applications are perceived by different animation principles for animated transition and their visualisation before designing. In addition, the issue of visualisation is addressed by developing a set of low-level interface design guidelines for mobile information visualisation development. This is done by considering a basic set of interactions and relating these to mobile device limitations. The results of various tests on suitability of different animated transitions for the study are reported. The findings provide insights in users perception of animation styles, therefore having implications f or graphical user interface design practice along with the interface visualisation for different displays. KEYWORDS Interface design, visualisation, animation transition, user experience The beginning of the 21st century has been marked by the proliferation of increasingly powerful mobile computing devices. There are currently over 2.23 billion mobile phone users and over 1.75 billion smartphone users worldwide meaning that a remarkable 31% of the global population now own a mobile phone and around 25% already have a smartphone [Lee and Lee 2014]. Moreover, after Chang and Ungar promoted the use of animation for user interface (UI) design, a controversial debate on its influence on user experience (UX) emerged. Animation has become a standard design element in User Interfaces and figure in design guidelines of leading software companies such as Microsoft, Google and Apple after more than 20 years. Information visualisations help us to think using data. Information visualisation techniques have been found to be particularly useful for the analysis of large-scale data and complex data in areas such as gene expression analysis and financial data analysis. Indeed, this push towards larger scale data and more complex data analysis is a possible reason why information visualisation research has focused on larger displays, since larger displays are inherently more suitable for larger datasets. Also, Disneys cartoon animation principles are comparable to design guideline rules and help designing the style of an animation. To evaluate their influence on UX some of these principles have been investigated experimentally. The perception that there is essentially a proportional relationship between the amount of information that can be displayed in an interface, or at least an interface that is comfortable to use, and the dimensions of the display space. This leads some authors to conclude that a smaller display can only be used effectively for aggregates and overviews of the data [Chittaro 2006]. Animation can be applied to various design cases in User Interfaces. However, only appropriate use can enhance the experience. Different states of a User Interface are connected through the use of animation transition which are considered to be effective in guiding attention and explaining change. While there is certainly a strong case for limiting our expectations of what can be achieved on mobile devices, it is felt that this needs to be balanced by a realistic evaluation of the potential benefits of mobile device information visualisation and the opportunities to improve mobile interfaces through inventive and thoughtful design. While mobile devices, by their very nature, will continue to have limited display space. Other device limitations such as limited processing and graphics capabilities are rapidly disappearing. And other useful features such as global positioning, tactile feedback and voice recognition are being added. Moreover, the natural application domain of mobile devices has expanded from activities that need to be performed on a mobile device. People are now using increasingly sophisticated applications on mobile devices and application developers need to either cater to this trend or find themselves left behind. This undoubtedly includes information visualisa tion developers who need to leverage new and improved device capabilities to support mobile visualisation. To summarize, UX can be influenced positively by animations in User Interfaces, but the perception of it may depend upon its purpose and animation style. A wide range of animation styles are used in the literature on animation and UX which varies in design purpose used in the experimental tasks. With regard to UX within a constant design purpose, thorough comparisons of different animation styles are missing, making it difficult to distinctively evaluate the influence on UX. The changes in perception of UX would be clarified by conducting such a comparable study with animation style. There are indeed a number of researchers who recognize the potential of mobile visualisation and have proposed some useful general guidelines for their design. These tell us that the interface should be simple and user should be able to interact more directly with the data rather than have to operate menus and controls [Lee et al. 2012]. Others suggest that interaction should be fluid and flow seamlessly between different functions [Robertsetal.2014]. 2 EXPERIMENTAL DETAILS, RESULTS AND DISCUSSION For the underlying study, UX can be defined by relying on the working model as proposed by Hassenzahl. Hassenzahl developed the 2 questionnaire in order to measure perception of users of digital products with regard to pragmatic and hedonic quality as well as the overall goodness and beauty which is called attrakdiff. The attrakdiff lite version, a shortened questionnaire consisting of 10 items is used for the study. Each item consists of adjective pairs that represent opposite poles. 7point Likert-type scale ranging from -3 to +3 is used for rating items. In the planned study it is sought to clarify how different animation styles influence the perceived User Experience. The research in this area either failed to investigate only parts of objective User Experience or to examine this relation due to its methodological approach. Furthermore, there is very little knowledge about the principles of exaggeration in interface design. Therefore it can be keenly seen whether different animation styles differ in their effect on UX. Further, it has been sought to investigate whether the animation style or its combination with an animated transition are responsible for possible differences in UX. Also, in this paper guidelines are used to build some case study applications by taking a lower-level approach to consider how specific aspects of information visualisation design should be implemented on mobile devices. This allows us to draft a set of guidelines that can be used to either adapt existing information visualisation applications for mobile use or begin considering which techniques to employ in the design of new applications. Issues considered while implementation of interaction for development of a set of draft guidelines for mobile visualisation interface design are as follows: Inspection Selecting an object Selecting an area Moving an object Scrolling Entering text Be aware of the situations in which the application is likely to be used and adapt the interface accordingly for sporadic, hands-free or one handed use. Use techniques that make more efficient use of available screen space or do not require accurate selections. Keep text and selection targets above a constant device specific minimum size and scale other elements of these constraints. Dont display too much information on the screen at the same time. Use virtual buttons to switch between different types of selection. Dont allow important information to be hidden by the users finger during interaction. By conducting this study is sought to contribute to the research on User Interface animation with several insights. It is hoped to indicate whether users generally perceive differences in User Experience depending on animation style; know to which dimensions of User Experience, the compared animation styles may contribute; and find whether the animation itself or its combination with a transition is responsible for the evaluation of User experience. Furthermore, it is expected to provide implications for interface design. The insights into the perception of animation could help interface designers to apply animation principles more purposefully to their aim. Our findings could further contribute to the understanding of widespread animated transitions and indicate whether their perception differs between users of different mobile operating systems. Last, it is expected that this study to set the scene for related research on animated transitions, animation style and User Experience in graphical User Interfaces. Also, a set of guidelines for the design of mobile information visualisation applications has been drafted through an analysis of different forms of interaction and device limitations. These guidelines are applied to the design of various applications which use visualisation techniques that can be applied with inaccurate touch-screen selection and, crucially, make the display more interactive to allow the user to view more of the data over time without saturating the limited display space. The additional cognitive load of having to interact more with the data and having less of the data shown at any one time is reduced by using animation to smooth the transition between successive views. These early results suggest that information visualisation on mobile devices can be more capable than it was previously imagined and that interaction and animation will be a key part of the implementation of effective information visualisation interfaces for more challeng ing data-sets and more demanding user requirements. UI: User Interface UX: User Experience Benedikt Merz, Alexandre N. Tuch, Klaus Opwis. Perceived User Experience of Animated Transitions in Mobile User Interfaces(Santa Clara, California, USA-May 07, 2016) Paul Craig. Interactive Animated Mobile Information Visualisation(Kobe, Japan-November 02-06, 2015) Daniel Liddle.Emerging Guidelines for Communicating with Animation in Mobile User Interfaces(Silver Spring, MD, USA-September 23-24, 2016)

Use of Porosity in Public Spaces

Use of Porosity in Public Spaces Introduction The connection between the built and the unbuilt / between the â€Å"indoor† and the â€Å"outdoor†/ between the mass and the void is a very sensitive and debatable topic. The experience of a space can be severely affected by the ways its edges are treated, i.e. by controlling how a person enters/exits the space. Transitional experience plays a vital role in overall feel and experience of spaces. Different types of spaces require different types of treatments on their edge conditions. Porosity is one of the many guiding factors in designing a space, specially public places, which are the key strategic spaces in providing the area/city its character. Not only does careful design of such spaces increase the aesthetic quality of the place, but also plays a major role in increasing the standards of functionality, safety, quality and many such factors under which a city can be categorised. Porosity, is one spatial quality that can definitely benefit the public spaces, specially in places like Delhi, where the individual is getting isolated from the community in his efforts to cope up with the pace of life that the city has to offer. Also, with the increasing gap between the two extreme income groups of the city, the spaces, which are meant to be ‘public’, cater only to a certain section of the society, neglecting those which fail to fulfil the ‘entrant requirements’ . Apart from giving spaces back to all the sections of the society, increasing porosity in community spaces can also act as a measure against increasing crime rates in the city, as it opens up the space to a larger section of the society. Topic: Porosity in public spaces Research Question: How can porosity in public spaces be increased to enhance their utility for the society in general ? Public Spaces Public spaces are an inevitable component of human settlements. Parks, plazas, roads, beaches, etc are typically considered public spaces. They are the common ground for people to interact with others, share knowledge or goods, or carry out their daily rituals, be it daily routine or occasional festivities. By definition, they are spaces that should be accessible to all the members of the society, irrespective of their economic strength. It was stated that:   Ã‚   Regarding the criterion of access, public space is a place which is open to all. This means its resources, the activities that take place in it, and information about it are available to everybody. Concerning the criterion of agency, public space is a place controlled by public actors (i.e., agents or agencies that act on behalf of a community, city, commonwealth or state) and used by the public (i.e., the people in general). As for interest, public space is a place which serves the public interest (i.e., its benefits are controlled and received by all members of the society) (Akkar, Z 2005). Of course, these definitions refer to an ideal public space, while the urban atmosphere is not entirely composed of rigidly public and private spaces; instead, it is an amalgamation of public and private spaces with different degrees of publicness. Accepting that the relation between public and private space is a continuum, it is possible to define public spaces as having various degrees of publicness. Regarding the dimensions of access, actor and interest, the extent of publicness will depend on three categories: the degree to which the public space and its resources, as well as the activities occurring in it and information about it, are available to all; the degree to which it is managed and controlled by public actors and used by the public; and the degree to which it serves the public interest. Life in public spaces, not only has a function in the society as a whole, but it is also a rich source of individual amusement, pleasure and play. One criticism of the prevailing socio-functional approach towards urban public space can be that the individuals perspective is often disregarded. To what extent do city dwellers like to meet other urbanites in public places? Hardly any planner, architect or urban administrator seems to be interested in that question. Planners and city councils are eager to speak about public spaces as meeting places. They find it an attractive idea to conceive of public spaces as a unifying element where all sectors of the urban population meet. With the help of that image they can present their cities as communities, despite all the contrasts and differences. Most social scientists dealing with urban public space also tend to regard processes that take place in the public realm as a contribution to the social organization, as a fulfilment of societal nee ds. This top-down-view, however, neglects the daily users perspective. Do city dwellers wish to get together with all their co-urbanites? Everybody who has ever been in a city knows the answer: no, certainly not with everyone. On the other hand, it cannot be denied that at least some individuals derive great pleasure from being in public. Whether a space will function well depends on a range of aspects that include scale, use, safety and comfort, density and links. In many cases it is the individuals experience of walking or dancing down a street, and the quality of environment, that is the most important element. Design then becomes about maximizing choice and trying to provide for different individuals goals. Problems with public spaces Despite the resurgence of interest in public spaces, urban design and planning litera- ture has frequently hinted at the diminishing publicness of public spaces in modern cities. Some researchers have pointed out the threat of recent privatization policies, and claimed that public spaces, traditionally open to all segments of the population, are increasingly being developed and managed by private agencies to produce profit for the private sector and serve the interests of particular sections of the population (Punter, J 1990). Others have commented on the high degree of control now maintained over access and use of public spaces through surveillance cameras and other measures intended to improve their security (Reeve, A 1996). Still others have argued that contemporary public spaces increasingly serve a homogenous public and promote social filtering. These open-access public spaces are precious because they enable city residents to move about and engage in recreation and face-to-face communication. But, because an open-access space is one everyone can enter, public spaces are classic sites for tragedy, to invoke Garrett Hardins famous metaphor for a commons (H, Garrrett 1968, cited Ellickson, R 1996) A space that all can enter, however, is a space that each is tempted to abuse. Societies therefore impose rules-of-the-road for public spaces. While these rules are increasingly articulated in legal codes, most begin as informal norms of public etiquette (Taylor, R 1984, cited Ellickson, R 1996). Rules of proper street behaviour are not an impediment to freedom, but a foundation of it (Ellickson, R 1996)

Substitute Mothers in Jane Eyre Essay -- Jane Eyre Essays

Substitute Mothers in Jane Eyre    In Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, Jane is an orphan who is often mistreated by the family and other people who surround her. Faced with constant abuse from her aunt and her cousins, Jane at a young age questions the treatment she receives: "All John Reed’s violent tyrannies, all his sister’s proud indifference, all his mother’s aversion, all the servants’ partiality, turned up in my disturbed mind like a dark deposit in a turbid well. Why was I always suffering, always brow-beaten, always accused, forever condemned?" (27; ch. 2). Despite her early suffering, as the novel progresses Jane is cared for and surrounded by various women who act as a sort of "substitute mother" in the way they guide, comfort, and inspire her. By looking into Charlotte Bronte’s own childhood and family background, as well as discovering aspects of Victorian motherhood in the mid-nineteenth century, one may be enlightened as to why so many substitute mothers are presen t to Jane throughout the novel. The substitute mothers, although a starting point for Jane’s emotional redemption, do not prove to fulfill what a mother in the Mid-Victorian era would be. Charlotte Bronte’s own mother died when she was only five years old, so she and her sisters were raised by her father, Patrick. According to John Cannon, author of The Road to Haworth, "The image of their mother was strong in their minds, and it is often seen in the fictional characters which the girls created, but they were all far too young to be influenced by her in any other way" (Cannon 19). Charlotte’s father tried to remarry yet was unsuccessful, and he therefore raised his children alone with some aid from his wife’s sister. Charlotte’s older sister, Maria, ... ...istreated" (Thaden 27). Given the background of Victorian motherhood, the nourishment, teachings, and support from the mother are never really present in Jane’s life. Placing other women in her life are able to fill the void where her mother would have been, but never fill the void as a mother really would.    Works Cited Berg, Maggie. Jane Eyre: Portrait of a Life. Boston: Twayne, 1987. Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. Ed. Beth Newman. Bedford/St. Martins, 1996. Cannon, John. The Road to Haworth. New York: Viking, 1981. McKnight, Natalie. Suffering Mothers in Mid-Victorian Novels. New York: St. Martin’s, 1997. Moglen, Helene. Charlotte Bronte The Self Conceived. New York: Norton, 1976. Nestor, Pauline. Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre. New York: St. Martin’s, 1992. Thaden, Barbara. The Maternal Voice in Victorian Fiction. New York: Garland, 1997. Substitute Mothers in Jane Eyre Essay -- Jane Eyre Essays Substitute Mothers in Jane Eyre    In Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, Jane is an orphan who is often mistreated by the family and other people who surround her. Faced with constant abuse from her aunt and her cousins, Jane at a young age questions the treatment she receives: "All John Reed’s violent tyrannies, all his sister’s proud indifference, all his mother’s aversion, all the servants’ partiality, turned up in my disturbed mind like a dark deposit in a turbid well. Why was I always suffering, always brow-beaten, always accused, forever condemned?" (27; ch. 2). Despite her early suffering, as the novel progresses Jane is cared for and surrounded by various women who act as a sort of "substitute mother" in the way they guide, comfort, and inspire her. By looking into Charlotte Bronte’s own childhood and family background, as well as discovering aspects of Victorian motherhood in the mid-nineteenth century, one may be enlightened as to why so many substitute mothers are presen t to Jane throughout the novel. The substitute mothers, although a starting point for Jane’s emotional redemption, do not prove to fulfill what a mother in the Mid-Victorian era would be. Charlotte Bronte’s own mother died when she was only five years old, so she and her sisters were raised by her father, Patrick. According to John Cannon, author of The Road to Haworth, "The image of their mother was strong in their minds, and it is often seen in the fictional characters which the girls created, but they were all far too young to be influenced by her in any other way" (Cannon 19). Charlotte’s father tried to remarry yet was unsuccessful, and he therefore raised his children alone with some aid from his wife’s sister. Charlotte’s older sister, Maria, ... ...istreated" (Thaden 27). Given the background of Victorian motherhood, the nourishment, teachings, and support from the mother are never really present in Jane’s life. Placing other women in her life are able to fill the void where her mother would have been, but never fill the void as a mother really would.    Works Cited Berg, Maggie. Jane Eyre: Portrait of a Life. Boston: Twayne, 1987. Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. Ed. Beth Newman. Bedford/St. Martins, 1996. Cannon, John. The Road to Haworth. New York: Viking, 1981. McKnight, Natalie. Suffering Mothers in Mid-Victorian Novels. New York: St. Martin’s, 1997. Moglen, Helene. Charlotte Bronte The Self Conceived. New York: Norton, 1976. Nestor, Pauline. Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre. New York: St. Martin’s, 1992. Thaden, Barbara. The Maternal Voice in Victorian Fiction. New York: Garland, 1997.

College Admissions: Philosophy, Politics and Economics :: College Admissions Essays

The crucial importance and relevance of politics, philosophy and their related disciplines to the modern world have led me to want to pursue the study of these social sciences at a higher level. My experiences of Politics at A Level have shown me the fundamental part it plays in our lives, but it has also shown me that it cannot exist alone, and is inextricably linked to history, sociology, economics and, most of all, philosophy. I have found it useful in my other studies, in adding reality to academic analysis - and a sense of stability and proportion too. I established, and remain editor of, a radical student newspaper at my school and I have tried to bring this fresh outlook and dynamism to my other roles: managing the school Prefects as Vice School Captain, representing the student body on many School Councils and the Equal Opportunities committee, as well as organising younger students as House Captain. My music is important to me, whether it be the band I play in, the school orchestra, or else performing with a local oriental Gamelan group. I work extensively with computers, recently winning a national multimedia competition and programming freelance for a variety of private clients, as well as designing the school magazine. These activities have taught me the importance of balancing academic study with my other interests successfully. Though I do not aspire to professional politics, several years of Public Speaking have significantly helped my oratorical and debating skills. This, along with my music, computing and languages, is something I look forward to developing further in the future, as an aspect of the partnership between vibrant student life and academic study that I hope to discover at university. From what I have seen, the study of politics and philosophy cannot be divorced from real life, nor understood out of context. I look forward to the opportunities to study in depth at degree level, independently but with the guidance of experts and in the company of new and interesting people.

Getting Behind the Punch: The Knock Out Game Essay -- social learning

Outside, a middle aged man walks outside from the back entrance after a long day at work. As he moves through the back alley, a swift cracking noise echoes the area. He drops on the ground, instantly going into a state of unconsciousness as cackling and footsteps run away from him. This horrible scenario has been occurring for the past few years in various urban areas to people who seem â€Å"vulnerable.† This â€Å"knock out game† has various methods of operation but for the most part, â€Å"†¦it typically involves either one forceful punch to the head or a more generalized assault to a random individual (typically standing or walking alone) without any warning or provocation, and without any ulterior motive such as theft or retaliation† (Zonfrillo, Arbogast, & Fein, 2014, p. 513). This trend tends to have a similar demographic of perpetrators (teenage males), yet it does not necessarily mean that the motivation to perpetrate these random assaults are all t he same. These recent attacks are a social problem because they do affect a person’s well being and safety in society. Three different case studies will be examined, along with different criminological theories and finally policies that could be applied for punishment and prevention crime control measures. As mentioned earlier, most cases are not economically motivated which rules out conflict theory since that ideology is associated with perpetrators who believe in class conflict, and using any means to obtain monetary or social power within a divided society. On side note, the trend and cases discussed, Social Learning theory appears to be a universal motivation for incidents which occurred within the context of group settings due to the motivation and skills given by peers (or social media... ... from http://www.myfoxny.com/story/23359158/ny-teen-has-hearing-in-knockout-game-death-case See/Methodist University, E., & Kieser/Methodist University , E. (2013).http://global.oup.com/. Retrieved May 13, 2014, from http://global.oup.com/us/companion.websites/9780199844487/guide1/study_guide.pdf Senate passes stronger penalties for 'knockout game'. (2014). Spin Control [The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Washington - BLOG], The Associated Press (2013, November 22). Deadly 'knockout' game gains national prominence | syracuse.com. Retrieved May 13, 2014, from http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2013/11/deadly_knockout_game_gains_national_prominence.html Zonfrillo, M. R., Arbogast, K. B., & Fein, J. A. (2014). The Knockout Game: Recreational Assault and Traumatic Brain Injury. Lancet, 383( 9916), 513-514. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(14)60184-7

Carlos Ghosn Nissan Ceo

Carlos Ghosn as CEO of Nissan and Renault: Can He Rework the ‘Nissan Magic'? â€Å"We knew some people were concerned about the potential for culture clashes, between the French and the Japanese, but it was not an issue. Cultural differences should be used as a catalyst for change, not as a crutch that inhibits change. You can learn a lot from somebody who is not like you. â€Å"1 – Carlos Ghosn, CEO, Nissan. â€Å"Make sure you are focused on your own people. Bring in them motivation and sense of ownership, then you can do your miracle. 2 – Carlos Ghosn, CEO, Nissan. Introduction In 2002, Louis Schweitzer, CEO of Renault announced that Carlos Ghosn, the president and CEO of Nissan would also take over the reigns at Renault in April 2005, while Schweitzer would remain the chairman of the board. With the new position , Carlos Ghosn would lead two companies Nissan and Renault. As of 2004,Renault held 44%stake in Nissan and Nissan owned around 15%of Renault's shar es. ‘Turnaround artist', as Carlos Ghosn was called was behind the industry's most remarkable turnaround at Nissan.After he became the CEO of Nissan in 1999, he had brought in many un-Japanese changes in the Japanese company and had actively persuaded the employees to accept change. Carlos Ghosn was credited for reviving the company from$254million losses and $19billion debt in 1999 into profits within two years. After taking up his position as the CEO of Renault in April 2005,CarlosGhosn is likely to face many challenges. Heading two different automobile companies from two different countries was first of its kind and industry observers expressed doubts whether Ghosn would be able to take up the pressure and rework the ‘Nissanmagic'.Carlos Ghosn: The ‘Nissan Magic'In March 1999,Renault, the then ninth carmaker in the world announced its alliance with Nissan investing $5. 4 billion. Nissan was in losses for many years from 1990-1999 except for profits reported in 1 997(Annexure I) and looked out for partners to recover from the troubles. The brand recognition was very low and it was estimated that Nissan was losing $1000 for every car it sold in US. By the end of 1990s,Nissan exported cars to Europe and Australia and some parts of Asia. The company was in losses to the tune of $5. billion, had debts totaling around $19 billion and was suffering from a poor product portfolio and diminishing brand value. Nissan’s market share had dropped from 6. 6 %in 1991 to 4. 9%by late 1990s. Renault at the same time was expanding internationally through acquisitions. After the unsuccessful merger with Volvo, Renault under Louis Schweitzer entered into an alliance with Nissan acquiring a 36%stake in the company. Triggering the alliance was Nissan’s strength in product designs and sophisticated manufacturing that blended well with the engineering quality at Renault.For Renault, the alliance would help in international expansions in the long-term while for Nissan; it was to get rid of its short-term troubles that had accumulated. Initially industry observers were skeptical about a non-Japanese manager successfully leading a Japanese firm. While Carlos Ghosn was successful in cutting costs and had sometimes imposed hard regimes during his tenure atMichelin3  , many were apprehensive if he would be successful in Japan. | | He was 46 when he joined Nissan and was far younger than the middle-level managers in the company.Carlos Ghosn knew nothing about Japan and had no knowledge of the culture there. He once said that he had a ‘very vague' idea about the country and accepted, â€Å"I did not try to learn too much about Japan before coming, because I didn’t want to have too many preconceived ideas. I wanted to discover Japan by being in Japan with Japanese people. â€Å"4  On the first day, when Carlos Ghosn arrived at Nissan, he took an elevator to reach his office. As he entered the lift, which was already pa cked with workers who were coming up from garage, everyone knew he was the new CEO. To his surprise, at every floor the lift stopped, none got down.Finally, when he got down, the employees bowed as he left and went back to their floors. After such an unexpected incident, which reflected major cultural difference, Carlos Ghosn realized how important it was to understand them. Since the first day, Carlos Ghosn had made the cultural diversity a catalyst rather than a crutch for the company. 5 Next >> 1]Carlos Ghosn's interview, â€Å"Interview: The road to ruin†, www. themanufacturer. com, December 2002 2]Parachkevova, Anna â€Å"CEO outlines Nissan’s resurgence†, www. thedartmouth. com, May 12th 2004 3]Carlos Ghosn joined Michelin in 1974, where he was chairman and CEO ofNorth American operations and had undertook several cost cutting initiatives. 4]†Carlos Ghosn: standing at the global crossing†, http://web-japan. org, April 5th 2002 5]†Th rowing away the culture crutch†, 2000 Automotive News World Congress, January 18th 2000 Carlos Ghosn: The ‘Nissan Magic' Cont†¦ However, since the beginning, Carlos Ghosn was in a Catch-22 situation as Japanese were not used to dictatorship kind of leadership. He knew that if he tried to dictate terms, that could lead to bruising employee morale, and if he remained lenient, it could hinder the required change.Instead of imposing change ,CarlosGhosn brought about the need for urgency in operations by mobilizing   them an agers. Carlos Ghosn identified that the basic flaw with Nissan’s culture when he took over was that employees were reluctant to accept the failures and held other departments or economic conditions responsible for them. This resulted in a lack of urgency among employees as everyone assumed the other would take action. He found that instead of solving the problems, they were trying to live with them.Nissan throughout 1990s, had been concentra ting on short-termmarket share growth rather than long termgrowth and instead of investing its profits towards product portfolio improvement itwas spending themtowards equity purchases of other companies especially its suppliers. Its product profile was comparatively outdated with old designs when customers craved for stylish designs while competitors were steadily focusing on new product designs. By 1999, it had around $4 billion held in the form of shares while its purchasing costs remained very high, around 20-25%more than that of Renault's.The employees openly resisted cross-functional teams, as they strongly believed in territories and sectionalism, which was a major part of their culture. Carlos Ghosn explained, â€Å"Engineers work very well together, financial people work very well together, salespeople work very well together. But when you start to add an engineer, a marketer, a salesperson, and a manufacturer, here all the strengths of Japan in teamwork disappear. â€Å" 6  To overcome the resistance, he had to explain to the employees why the cross-functional teams were important and how they would impact the overall benefits.Carlos Ghosn believed that the general human tendency was to resist anything different. He considered that by accepting change, people tend to become stronger, as they understand the differences and try to analyze the causes for such differences. Cross-functional teams were formed and employees were involved in the revival process. This helped Carlos Ghosn explain his plans and gain acceptance easily. Through these cross-functional teams, employees were made to look beyond their line of responsibilities, understanding the nitty- gritties of the other departments as well.After the cross-functional teams were in place, people owned up responsibility whenever something went wrong. â€Å"The solution to Nissan’s problems was inside the company. The main [idea] we would have for revival of the company would be a rebuilt m otivation of Nissan employees and partners,† he explained. 7| | Immediately after appointing the teams, they were asked to submit plans to achieve the maximum possible output in each area and within a week decisions were made. The outcome was the Nissan Revival Plan (NRP).After the NRPwas announced, every aspect from the timing, the plan schedules and the commitments as well as targets were clearly stated. Shiro Tomii, vice president, Nissan Japan remarked, â€Å"He establishes high yet attainable goals; makes everything clear to all roles and levels of responsibility, works with speed; checks on progress; and appraises results based on fact. â€Å"8 Next >> 6]†Carlos Ghosn: standing at the global crossing†, op. cit 7]Saadi, Dania â€Å"Nissan's miracle man offers clues to solving national economic woes†, www. lebanonwire. com   8]David Magee, Turnaround: how Carlos Ghosn rescued NissanCarlos Ghosn: The ‘Nissan Magic' Cont†¦ Listening to the employees and facilitating their participation in the decision-making process, was key aspect of Carlos Ghosn's leadership. By avoiding impersonal meetings through mails, he stressed the need for face-to-face communication. He believed that the people close to the company could come out with better solutions than an outsider like him. In contrast, the Japanese were polite, reticent and never spoke about the plans to their boss. Carlos Ghosn had to repeatedly explain to the employees that he needed their viewpoints and would not mind if they speak out.This, according to him was the greatest hurdle. While in France at Renault, he emphasized on teamwork, in Japan he believed it was not required and instead individuality was given more prominence. Price Water house Coopers in a report on change management listed Carlos Ghosn's key human resource management techniques calling them very simple and straightforward By maintaining transparency from the stage of planning to action, he ai med at the best possible out comes while also lifting the morale of the employees who were particularly distressed after the crisis at the company.He invited suggestions from every influential individual from suppliers, Nissan’s ex-employees, dealers etc. He explained, â€Å"As you know credibility has two legs, performance, and transparency. Performance, we had none to show at the time, so we were determined to be highly transparent. â€Å"9  He called the NRP, an ‘organization's collective effort' involving thousands of employees at every managerial level. To show his commitment to the plan, he declared that he would resign along with other top executives if the plan fails in bringing in the benefits. Carlos Ghosn wanted immediate results by fixing short-term targets.While he called the passive style of management-by-consensus a killer, an active and constructional version could work miracles, according to him. He believed that an 85%consensus was enough and 100%w as not always essential. While cultural adaptability had been his key, he was also at the same time affirmative about giving more priority to the bottom-line growth rather than just to the cultural aspects. He remarked, â€Å"I do not want to intentionally offend people, but I am more concerned about making Nissan profitable again than being culturally sensitive. â€Å"10| | The first phase of NRP focused on cutting the costs and improving profits.The first major step Carlos Ghosn undertook was divestments from subsidiaries to reduce the debt. Suppliers accounted for major part of costs of production and the age-old Keiretsu system and the obligations that came with it were adding to heavy costs11  . Deviating from the system, Carlos Ghosn opened the purchasing offer to all the suppliers encouraging new suppliers who were ready to supply at low prices. As part of the revival plan, suppliers were forced to offer discounts to the tune of 20-30%and the number of suppliers was broug ht down to 600 from 1145 while the purchasing costs were reduced by 20%.During a meeting with the dealers of Nissan, Carlos Ghosn announced, â€Å"I don't want any excuses. I want to know what you are going to do to make things better. â€Å"12  Cost cutting at each stage began to be regarded as the need of the hour as the employees were encouraged to reduce expenses through all possible ways. The cross functional teams were given one month time to identify areas to cut costs and increase the profits through bottom-line growth. Next >> 9]Ibid. 10]Larimar, Tim â€Å"Japan, Nissan and Ghosn revolution†, www. sb. columbia. edu 11]The Keiretsu system, in which the companies maintained partnership with each of its suppliers, holding shares in those companies, transferring managers characterized the big family of companies and its suppliers were both shared relationships 12]Larimar, Tim â€Å"Japan, Nissan and Ghosn revolution†, op. cit. Carlos Ghosn: The ‘Ni ssan Magic' Cont†¦ The most un-Japanese practices like closing plants and cutting work force, in a country, which believed in lifetime employment, were the biggest of all challenges.When he planned to close five plants which included both assembly plants and power train plants, the board of directors were not informed until the night before, as Carlos Ghosn knew some people within the company wanted his plans to fail. After he announced, he was reported to have threatened, â€Å"If this leaks out, I'll close seven plants, not five. â€Å"13  For Carlos Ghosn, convincing the labor unions over the disadvantages of rigid job definition was a big task. The seniority-based promotion that was entrenched in the Japanese firm was replaced by a performance based and merit-based incentive system.Instead of sacking people, which was against the culture in Japan, 21,000 jobs were cut through retirements, pre-retirements and golden handshakes out of which 16500 were in Japan alone. The plants were closed, while offering alternative jobs to the employees in other plants of the company. The complex manufacturing structure, which involved 24 platforms at seven assembly plants, was brought down to 12 platforms, which were shared by four plants. Around 10%of the retail outlets were closed and 20%of the dealer affiliates was streamlined to further reduce selling and marketing expenses.After the phase one of the revival plan was over, Nissan reported profits of $1. 5 billion for six months between April to September, which was the best results the company had ever seen. At the same time, Carlos Ghosn began to be called an iconoclast, who had brought in some un-Japanese, western style of culture in the company’s operations. He, in contrast to the traditional Japanese business etiquettes, shook hands with his partners and other executives. As a result, there was discontent among the traditionalists and other industry associations in the country.And his bold decision s like closing plants, had invited repugnance among many including the insiders and Ghosn began to take along a bodyguard wherever he went| | The cross-cultural merger between a French and a Japanese firm, raised several other challenges. The alliance aimed at cost savings through sharing of platforms and engineering capabilities. Initially though the employees and the design engineers were convinced over the superiority of the platforms brought in from the Renault plants, they were reluctant to adopt them.To overcome resistance, regular meetings were conducted among the Nissan and Renault employees. While at the same time, Carlos Ghosn began to recruit more designers from Japan to design new models. He maintained that the best way to solve the cultural differences was to avoid forcing the cultural blend. Rather, he believed in appreciating the differences between the cultures and minimizing the cultural clashes by bringing in a performance-driven management. To ensure that the Japa nese staff understands what the French managers spoke, English was made the common language in the company.A dictionary of 100 key words used by them management was prepared to solve the differences in the way each work was interpreted by French as well as Japanese. The words included ‘commitment', ‘transparency', ‘objectives', and ‘targets' etc. Carlos Ghosn: The ‘Nissan Magic' Cont†¦ In Japan, attending all formal parties of suppliers was very important and one was not supposed to miss them unless there was a strong reason. When Carlos Ghosn missed the New Year Party hosted by the suppliers’ association, it was considered as a sign of disrespect to their culture.Carlos Ghosn had attended all such gatherings since then. Carlo sGhosn understood all these subtle aspects, which were an essential part of the culture, as he began adapting to them. In the second phase of the revival plan, which started in 2001, Carlos Ghosn stressed on selling mo re cars, improving the top line growth as well. Dropping non-performing products from its portfolio, the company introduced trendy new models in SUVs and minivans category. An updated Z sports coupe was reintroduced in the market. The phase two increased sales by one million and debt was brought down to zero.With his unconventional leadership style and charisma, he began tow in praises from the employees of the company as well as from the industry and the public. Sometimes, people in streets would stop him and wish him success saying, ‘Gambatte [go for it]'. TIME magazine named him the most influential global business executive and more and more Japanese companies were embarking on the gaijin [Foreigner]-Ghosn’s style for attaining maximum benefits in a short time. His colleagues at Nissan were particularly impressed by his dedication towards achievement of targets and his 24/7 work ethics reinforcing the importance of hard work.His devotion towards the revival of the c ompany from problems, for which he was not in any way responsible, encouraged his peers to work hard and contribute towards a common goal. Toshiyuki Shiga who was made in charge of the Nissan’s expansions in China had once remarked, â€Å"He told me to make a clear strategy for Nissan in China, and he gave me two months to do it. †Ã‚  14  While he ensured that the progress was undertaken without holding any individual responsible for the past crisis, he was also at the same time particular about results. | Dominique Thormann, senior vice president, Nissan Europe, said, â€Å"To people who don't accept that performance is what is at stake, he can be ruthless. â€Å"15 Calling his turnaround at Nissan a ‘near death experience', Carlos Ghosn said he had experienced extensive cultural diversities during his tenure at Renault, Nissan, Nissan’s North American business and Samsung motors, a Korean based company acquired by Renault. His management style is wov en around two attributes- ‘value and motivation'. He believed in motivating employees and demanding performance by empowering them. Your employees must be interested in what is going on in the company. Nothing is more inefficient than a boring company. You have to create an interesting environment where people are interested in the story you are creating and want to hear the happy ending†, he said. He was called ‘Ice Breaker' by Daimler Chrysler's Chairman Jurgen E. Schrempp because of his unconventional thinking and implementing western style of management in Japan breaking the prevalent myth in the industry. Carlos Ghosn: The ‘Nissan Magic' Cont†¦The biweekly comic series, ‘The true life of Carlos Ghosn' featured Nissan's CEO Carlos Ghosn, depicting his popularity in the industry as well as the country. Some others called him ‘an ambassador of change', ‘the troubleshooter' and considered him as a role model for all those business exec utives who were seeking solutions to the poor state of their companies in Japan. After the implementation of the Nissan Revival Plan (NRP), within two years, the company recovered from the losses and reported a 10. 2%increase in its revenues and nearly 84%increase in its operating profits .Though the sales had not considerably improved, the cost cuttings contributed towards improving the bottom line. In May 2001, the company reported its largest net profit of $2. 7 billion. Carlos Ghosn was named the ‘Businessman of the year' by Fortune magazine in 2002 and Auto mobile Magazine called him' man of the year' for his contributions to Nissan. Renault increased its stake in Nissan to 44. 4%while Nissan owned 13. 5%of Renault's share capital. However, by 2003,Nissan started experiencing a downward trend in its sales, as the volume of goods that passed out from dealers was dropping in size.Customers regularly complained of quality defects and Nissan’s rank in overall quality ( as per a survey by J. D. PowerAssociates) dropped to 11th in 2004 from6th in 2003. It looked as the rigorous emphasis on the faster execution of the restructuring had resulted in these quality defects while Ghosn assured he would fix them. To counter the situation, in May 2004, he sent a quality control team of 220 engineers to the Nissan plant in Smyrna (Tennessee) and every part of the assembly line went through a detailed scrutiny.Subtle issues like the workers who wore studded jeans and rings causing scratches to the freshly painted cars, etc came to light. Ghosn was amazed at some very obvious ones, which could be rectified at the plant, like defective doors and reading lights etc. Carlos Ghosn had already achieved two of the three goals that were set for NRP, the debt was cleared and profitability was achieved. | | The Nissan 180, an extension of NRP was launched and aimed at additional sales volume of one million annually from 2005, the third objective of NRP. US market was c onsidered to play a key role in achieving the goal of additional one million sales.A new plant was set up in Canton, the first in North America where Nissan was facing challenges from other Japanese automakers, Toyota and Honda. Mean while, Nissan was planning an alliance with Mitsubishi after Daimler Chrysler gave up its plans of partnership with Mitsubishi. The partnership would help Nissan enter the mini car segment while Mitsubishi would be able to reduce cost burden of new product development. The shortage of steel supplies forced Nissan to reduce its production in 2004, affecting production of 15,000 units amounting to $58. 5million of loss in sales.Nissan closed its plants for five days following the shortage of supplies, as steel prices in creased with demand for steel increasing after the economic boom in China. While halting production was considered a sign of mismanagement many felt that Carlos Ghosn's attempt to bring down the number of suppliers as part of NRP, had resu lted in over-reliance on few suppliers . However, Ghosn defended himself saying that the savings achieved during that phase were far more [$9. 7 billion] than the losses incurred due to loss of sales. Renault – The French Automaker Renault was a state owned government enterprise since 1945.It was started as a motorized vehicle assembler in 1898. Renault built trucks, airplane engines and heavy vehicles during the World War II and after the war and with the economic boom, Renault achieved high volume sales with its low cost cars like 4CV, Renault 4 and Renault 5 through the 1970s and 1980s. During early 1980s, Renault expanded into US by acquiring half the shares of American Motor Corporation. However, the deal was unprofitable and the company had to withdraw from the market in 1987. A similar deal failed in Mexico, and with both the deals financed through debts, Renault was left ith huge debts accumulated by the end of 1980s. It reported losses of $3. 5 billion between 1984 a nd 1986. Further, because it was a state owned business, obligations with labour unions led to more costs for the company. When Louis Schweitzer joined Renault in 1986,Renault had accumulated debts to the tune of $9 billion and was in huge losses. Its proposed merger with Sweden based ABVolvo in 1993 failed due to unfavorable French political climate and with Swedish shareholders expressing reservation. The company continued to be in losses till 1996,when Schweitzer brought in Carlos Ghosn as the executive vice president.Under the duo, product quality was improved, outsourcing secondary activities and overheads were reduced along with reduction in workforce. The same time, French government started setting ground for its IPO when Louis Schweitzer discovered that privatization of the company could only save it. In July 1996, the IPO was completed. By 1998,with the midsize model Scenic, Renault was successful in European market and in 1998 alone it made profits of $1. 4 billion from$4 0 billion sales. 16 While Renault became the No. 1 automaker in Europe, to be a global player, it had to expand its operations further.By the end of 1990s, it had a very small presence in Asia and was totally absent in the North American market. After the merger of Daimler and Chrysler in 1998, for Renault, expansions became a requisite. And, Nissan seemed a lucrative opportunity, as an alliance with Nissan could help in easier market expansion for Renault in developing markets. While others including Ford and DaimlerChrysler had earlier attempted a deal with Nissan, they later withdrew keeping in view the huge debt that Nissan held and its culture that was inflexible. | After the alliance, Renault managed to reduce its launching and warranty costs for new product introductions by recruiting managers from Nissan to undertake the launch. At the same time, it sent its employees to Nissan to oversee manufacturing, to achieve cost efficient production. Later Renault acquired Samsung Mot ors in South Korea and Roman automaker, Dacia as part of its international expansion. With the launch of multi purpose vehicles, Laguna II and A van time in 2001 and Espace IV in 2002 , and after its association with Formula One racing between 1992 and 1997, its brand popularity improved.By 2004,Renault held strong foothold in European market and reported a 6. 5%increase in sales by the first half of 2004 and was the fourth largest auto company in the world. It held nearly 11%market share in Western European market in passenger car and light vehicle cars. At the same time, Renault performance in large cars segment was sluggish and was struggling to achieve operating margin of 4%, when the demand for cars in the European market was low. Some of the new launches like the Vel Satis, a tall saloon luxury model, were not very successful in the market. Are launch in the US market was also underway.Renault was facing other challenges along with Nissan and other automakers. Environmental fr iendly cars, which seemed a likely potential opportunity, were costly to manufacture at the price the customers were ready to pay. Renault was planning for expansions in Chinese market and South Korea and other parts of Asia through alliance with Nissan. Next ;gt;;gt; 16]†For Renault, a new chance to take on the world†, www. businessweek. com, November 15th 1999 Carlos Ghosn as CEO of Renault and Nissan By 2010, Nissan and Renault would build their cars using the common building blocks.Ghosn viewed the alliance as â€Å"managing contradiction between synergy and identity†17  and confirmed that while gaining synergies, the individual identity of each brand would be safeguarded. The other major alliances in the industry, the DaimlerChrysler and the GM/Fiat had not proved to be very successful because of improper management of merged assets, trans-atlantic product development and failed attempt in understanding local market; Ghosn confirmed that Nissan's alliance w ith Renault would creatively achieve it. At the same time the alliance would avoid merger and would maintain ‘a spirit of partnership'18  .The alliance would be the fourth largest automobile group in the world. In October 2004, the first car was built using a common platform of Nissan and Renault. Modus, a subcompact minivan of Renault shared its base with Nissan’s Micra saving $500million for Renault every year. After Carlos Ghosn succeeds Schweitzer at Renault's in April 2005, he would also continue as the CEO of Nissan. Carlos Ghosn was affirmative that he would not leave the company unless he finds the right person who would succeed him at Nissan. He stressed on the need for a Japanese as the CEO of Nissan in such a culture sensitive country.While at Nissan, he had transformed himself into a Japanese, adapting to the culture, analysts feared if he would breach the French business etiquettes as he takes up the rein at Renault. 19  Two of the five vice presidents at Renault would retire soon, and Carlos Ghosn was to take up the reigns at both the companies, during such senior level management changes. At the same time, many feared if the sense of urgency brought through NRP would continue at Nissan or will the company slip back to its old habits, when Carlos Ghosn leaves.The pressure was considered to be very high, as an analyst stated, â€Å"He will be less present at Renault than he was at Nissan, and less present at Nissan that he used to be. I believe this challenge will be more difficult. â€Å"20 The alliance had helped both the companies equally, in terms of cost savings from not requiring to construct new plants where the alliance can use common buildings, common platforms etc. This had also helped them enter new markets faster and gain other synergies . The purchasing power had also increased as they ordered and bought components through Renault-Nissan purchasing organization for both the companies at a time. | The alliance had fr om the beginning ensured that the inter-company cultural clashes do not exist, by maintaining individual cultural identities. While a merger had been avoided since the beginning, Carlos Ghosn confirmed that it would be its agenda in future also. Carlos Ghosn remarked that when he takes up the two positions, he would blend the strengths of the people at the companies, the innovation excellence of the French and the dedication towards manufacturing of the Japanese. 21  He affirmed that his tenure at Nissan had allowed him to learn the real essence of successful leaders, and would drive his success in future also.He called himself, ‘not a theorist of citizenship but an expert in multi nationality’. 22 Carlos Ghosn called the three major attributes, ‘Value, Transparency and Performance' as the ones that would determine the competence of any CEO. He believed that they act as standards for leadership in global business, in the light of growing corporate scandals, when the top executives of the companies were increasingly coming under scrutiny. He explained that the actual results that are delivered along with simultaneous value creation to the customers and the other stakeholders through maintaining transparency, reflect an efficient leadership.By communicating every strategy to every person concerned, he maintained that it would facilitate a faster reaction to dynamics in the fiercely competitive global market place. An analyst once called Carlos Ghosn, ‘amanager without borders, polyglot and cosmopolitan'. Talking about his dual roles and the cultural barriers that he will have to face as he moves to Renault while also heading Nissan, Carlos Ghosn said, â€Å"Global is global. In my opinion, this is going to be the story of the twenty-first century.This is what's going to happen in the twenty-first century – you're going to see the emergence of more ‘global' standards, some kind of global references; you're going to see mor e and more of it. But ‘globality' doesn’t mean ‘uniformity. ‘ It doesn't mean that. You’ll still have different cultures, you’ll still have different tastes, and you’ll still have some adaptations to make to different countries, but you'll have some basic things that will be common globally, especially in the economic area. â€Å"23 17]†Renault's alliance with Nissan†, www. economist. om, August 16th 2001 18]Parachkevova, Anna â€Å"CEO outlines Nissan's resurgence†, http://thedartmouth. com, May 12th 2004 19]†Carlos Ghosn- Nissan motor†, www. businessweek. com, January 8th 2000 20]Tierney, Christine â€Å"Leadership, bold moves help Renault save Nissan†, www. detnews. com, October 24th 2003 21]Smith, Duvergne, Nancy â€Å"Nissan Renault alliance faces down few challenges†, http://web. mit. edu, November 18th 2004 22]Abescat, Bruno â€Å"I am an expert of multi nationality†, http://liv res. lexpress. fr 23]†Carlos Ghosn: standing at the global crossing†, op. cit