3 Is the Answer

A Christmas Memory Multiple Choice Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. Comprehension The questions below refer to the selection â€Å"A Christmas Memory. † ____1. Buddy and his friend keep their money — a. |at Mr. Haha Jones’s house|c. |buried in the pecan orchard| b. |in the local bank’s Christmas club|d. |under a floorboard beneath the bed| ____2. Buddy and his friend give fruitcakes to everyone except — a. |the relatives they live with|c. |people who visit them only once| b. |a bus driver|d. |President Roosevelt| ____3.Which of the following statements best describes Buddy’s friend? a. |Fashion is her passion. |c. |Big cities fascinate her. | b. |She has strong feelings about God. |d. |She spends a lot of time at the movies. | ____4. Buddy compares his friend to a bantam hen because she is — a. |always poking her â€Å"beak† into things|c. |small and sprightly| b. |not very intellige nt|d. |as flighty as a bird| ____5. When it comes to his other relatives, Buddy — a. |barely acknowledges their existence| b. |feels very close to them| c. |is jealous of the attention they pay to his cousin| d. feels that they offer him a lot of support| ____6. Which adjective best applies to Buddy’s friend? a. |unstable|c. |elegant| b. |generous|d. |cruel| ____7. Which of the following items is not an activity that binds the two friends together? a. |Flying kites|c. |Making decorations| b. |Traveling|d. |Drinking whiskey| ____8. Toward the end of the story, Buddy is separated from his friend. Why? a. |He runs away from home. | b. |His friend is sent to the hospital to suffer her last illness. | c. |A letter from President Roosevelt invites Buddy’s friend to the White House. | d. Buddy is sent to military school by his relatives. | ____9. Which sentence tells you that Buddy’s friend has died? a. |â€Å"A morning arrives . . . when she cannot rouse herse lf to exclaim: ‘Oh my, it’s fruitcake weather! ’†| b. |â€Å"The other Buddy died in the 1880s, when she was still a child. †| c. |â€Å"I wrapped her in a Fine Linen sheet and rode her in the buggy down to Simpson’s pasture where she can be with all her Bones. †| d. |â€Å"I’ll wager at the very end a body realizes the Lord has already shown Himself. †| ____10. Which image from the story appeals to the sense of smell? a. â€Å"sweet, oily, ivory meat mounts in the milk-glass bowl. †| b. |â€Å"A straw cartwheel corsaged with velvet roses out-of-doors has faded. . . .†| c. |â€Å"a hateful heap of bitter-odored pennies. †| d. |â€Å"words tumbling together into a wrathful tune. . . .†| Literary Focus The questions below refer to the selection â€Å"A Christmas Memory. † ____11. Which custom is a major part of the setting and mood of â€Å"A Christmas Memory†? a. |Kissing under the mistletoe|c. |Making and giving gifts| b. |Listening for Santa Claus’s sleigh|d. |Inviting friends to a Christmas party| ____12. What is the difference between tone and mood? . |They are synonyms; there is no real difference. | b. |Tone expresses how an author feels; mood is how an author makes the reader feel. | c. |Tone appeals to the sense of hearing; mood appeals to the sense of sight. | d. |Mood can be created through setting, but tone cannot. | ____13. How are flapjacks and hominy grits part of the setting of â€Å"A Christmas Memory†? a. |They show the traits and attitudes of the two main characters. | b. |The fact that they are described makes them part of the setting. | c. |They help show the customs of characters in a certain time and place. d. |The images of these foods are so detailed, a reader can almost taste them. | ____14. All of the following places are part of the setting of â€Å"A Christmas Memory† except a(n)  Ã¢â‚¬â€ a. |forest|c. |attic | b. |riverside cafe|d. |church| Completion Complete each statement. Vocabulary Development On the line provided, write the word that best completes each sentence. inaugurating|dilapidated|paraphernalia|sacrilegious|carnage| prosaic|disposition|exhilarates|suffuse|noncommittal| 15. The smells of baking and the freshly cut trees ____________________ the old kitchen. 16.Buddy’s friend has a strong faith and never says anything ____________________. 17. Buddy’s friend might be considered ____________________ by some people, but he thinks she is the most special person on earth. 18. The ____________________ baby buggy serves them well. 19. Killing flies to earn money results in a ____________________ of bugs. Short Answer Constructed Response 20. Choose a favorite passage from â€Å"A Christmas Memory. † On a separate sheet of paper, identify its setting, and state what you think the mood of the passage is. Referring to specific images, explain how the setting helps create that mood.A Christmas Memory Answer Section MULTIPLE CHOICE 1. ANS:DPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 1 (plot) 2. ANS:APTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 1 (plot) 3. ANS:BPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 4. 1 (characterization) 4. ANS:CPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 7. 7 (figurative language) 5. ANS:APTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 4. 2 (character interactions) 6. ANS:BPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 4. 1 (characterization) 7. ANS:BPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 4. 2 (character interactions) 8. ANS:DPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 1 (plot) 9. ANS:APTS:1OBJ:9. 2. 1. 11 (making inferences) 10. ANS:CPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 7. 8 (imagery) 11. ANS:CPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 3 (setting and mood/atmosphere) 12. ANS:BPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 3 (setting and mood/atmosphere) | 9. . 7. 19 (tone) 13. ANS:CPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 3 (setting and mood/atmosphere) 14. ANS:DPTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 3 (setting and mood/atmosphere) COMPLETION 15. ANS:suffuse PTS:1OBJ:9. 3. 3 (context clues) 16. ANS:sacrilegious PTS:1OBJ:9. 3. 3 (context clues) 17. ANS:prosaic PTS:1OBJ:9. 3. 3 (context clues) 18. ANS:dilapidated PTS:1OBJ:9. 3. 3 (context clues) 19. ANS:carnage PTS:1OBJ:9. 3. 3 (c ontext clues) SHORT ANSWER 20. ANS: Students’ responses will vary. A sample response follows: A favorite passage of mine is the one in which Buddy and his friend shell pecans for their fruitcakes.It’s set in the kitchen on a November morning after the characters have gathered the nuts in the woods. To me the mood is one of finding joy in the midst of a cold, lonely place. Other people don’t seem to be around, but the kitchen is warmed by the fire and filled with the characters’ joy and friendship. There’s a contrast between light and dark in this paragraph—the rising moon and the fire on one hand, the growing darkness of the night on the other—that seems to me to show the delicate balance between happiness and loneliness in the characters.The image of the characters’ reflections in a dark mirror, mingling with the rising moon, sum that up for me. In that dark mirror there’s a hint of another mood—the bittersweet m ood of the adult Buddy looking nostalgically back at his childhood and a few precious moments, fully aware that as the events of the story seeded the rich emotional life that sustained him as a boy, so those same moments, the empty shells of his memories, now feed the transforming fire that makes him a writer. PTS:1OBJ:9. 1. 3 (setting and mood/atmosphere) | 9. 1. 7. 8 (imagery)

Organisation Study

INTRODUCTION The Organization Study undertaken as a part of the curriculum has completed at Handicraft Development Corporation in Trivandrum. This study provides the opportunity to expose the student to an organization and its operational conditions. This study also aims at having a better understanding of various departments and its function. Organization study helps to know overall functions of a concern. This is a detailed study of the organization, product profile, service profile, organizational hierarchy, various departments and their functions.This study proved to be fruitful by familiarizing us to the organization and at the same time it also helped us to create practical awareness. The Handicraft Development Corporation is to be selected for undergoing the organizational study for the following reasons: †¢Trivandrum Handicraft Development Corporation is the head office. †¢In this organization has goodwill in general public. †¢Handicrafts have a major role in T ourism Sector. 1. 2 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY †¢To understand the flow of authority and responsibility in the different departments of the organization. To assess the overall efforts adopted by the company in order to satisfy the consumer demand. †¢Find out the overall services of the organization to the customers. 1. 3 METHODOLOGY Primary data was collected by conducting formal and informal interviews with the employees and by observation. Secondary data was collected through the company documents, magazines, books and by the use of internet. 1. 4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY The study is intended to attain a firsthand experience of the overall running of an organization.A detailed analysis of each of the activity performed by the departments is beyond the scope of the study. It also provides a chance to see the practical constrains faced by the managers while putting theory in to practical. 1. 5 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY †¢Time was Insufficient to the completion of the project. â € ¢It has chances of guarded and biased response from the reliable source. †¢Busy time schedule of the employees. 1. 6 CHAPTERS Chapter 1: Introduction Introduction chapter contains the objective, methodology, scope of the study, limitation of the organization study and cauterization. Chapter 2: Industry Profile In this chapter includes industry profile of Handicraft Development in india. Chapter 3: Company Profile Company profile includes the complete profile of the organization. Strategic indent and also innovative products are included. Chapter 4: Organization Structure Chapter 5: Analysis Objective wise Detailed and complete analysis is to be included in this chapter. This chapter mainly analysis secondary data has been collected. Chapter 6: SWOT Analysis In this chapter includes the findings from the analysis and give proper suggestions for recovering the find problems.Proper solutions are given for the findings and concluded with the solutions. Chapter 7: Findings, conc lusion and suggestions INDUSTRIAL PROFILE Handicrafts industry is a major area of employment generation in the State. Coconut Shell carving, straw picture making, cane work, bamboo and reed weaving, ivory carving, bell metal casting, screw pine and mat weaving are the major handicrafts in the State. Handicrafts Development Corporation and Artisans Development Corporation are the major promotional agencies of the industry.The Handicrafts Development Corporation is procuring and marketing handicraft products through its 19 Kairali emporia spread all over India. Kerala's traditional handicrafts varieties are a class of its own. The artisans of Kerala carve in wood, design in jewellery and makes idols in metal. The gifted artisans makes beautiful idols of Lord Krishna, Ganesh, Goddess Saraswathi, Lakshmi etc. in sandal wood ,elephants in rose wood and other art works in varieties of other woods. The life size models of Kathakali and the models depicting boat race of Kerala are Kerala's own master pieces.The idols of Lord Nataraja in dancing pose and the various lamps (vilakku) which are very essential for every ceremony of malayalees. Aranmula kannadi is another traditional art work in bell metal. The artisans of Kerala are at their best in making screwpine woven articles, beautiful lamp shades and other articles from bamboo reeds. A variety of products ranging from buttons to flower vase out of coconut shell. Kora mats are very popular and are used for prayer and sleep. Articles made out of buffalo horn and Kathakali masks, straw pictures etcare some of the popular items of Kerala.Handicrafts based on various kinds of wood, coconut, palm etc. are major attractions. The State agencies for the development of handicrafts industry include Handicrafts Co-operative Apex Society, Artisans Development Corporation, Bamboo Corporation and Handicrafts Development Corporation. 2. 1 HANDICRAFT INDUSTRY Handicraft, more precisely expressed as artisanic handicraft, sometimes al so called artisanry, is a type of work where useful and decorative devices are made completely by hand or by using only simple tools.It is a traditional main sector of craft. Usually the term is applied to traditional means of making goods. The individual artisanship of the items is a paramount criterion; such items often have cultural and/or religious significance. Items made by mass production or machines are not handicraft goods. Usually, what distinguishes the term handicraft from the frequently used category arts and crafts is a matter of intent: handicraft items are intended to be used, worn, etc, having a purpose beyond simple decoration.Handicraft goods are generally considered more traditional work, in traditional non-industrial and transitional societies created as a somewhat more necessary part of daily life, while arts and crafts implies more of a hobby pursuit and a demonstration/perfection of a creative technique. In Britain in the late nineteenth century, however, the Arts and Crafts Movement was not a matter of hobbies, but of creating useful as well as creative work for people, using natural materials and traditional techniques. In practical terms, the categories have a great deal of overlap. . 2 HANDICRAFTS IN THE INDIAN SUBCONTINENT The history of handicrafts in areas generally now comprising India and Pakistan is an old saga. To peep in to the traces of Indian handicrafts we need to go back almost 5000 years. The first references to handicrafts in the Indian subcontinent can be found from the Indus Valley Civilization (3000 BC-1700 BC). The craft tradition in India has revolved around religious beliefs, local needs of the commoners, as well as the special needs of the patrons and royalty, along with an eye for foreign and domestic trade.These craft traditions have withstood the ravages of time and numerous foreign invasions and continue to flourish till date owing to the assimilative nature of Indian culture and broadmindedness of the handi craftsmen to accept and use new ideas. The Indus valley civilization had a rich craft tradition as well as a high degree of technical excellence in the field of pottery making, sculpture (metal, stone and terracotta), jewelry, weaving, etc. A lot of material information from excavations at Harappa, Mohen-jo-daro, etc. substantiates the craft tradition of the Indus valley civilization.The craftsmen not only catered to all the local needs but surplus items were sent to ancient Arabian cultures via ancient sea routes. Handicraft is the art of creating products using raw and indigenous materials. It develops the skills and creative interests of students towards a particular craft or trade. The basic training provided in a specific craft prepares the students to become competent craftsmen and artists who can contribute to the establishment of cottage industries, thus contributing to the economic growth of the country. 2. 2. 1 STATE EMPIRESThe concept of state was ushered by the rise of t he Mauryan Empire in the 3rd century BC. It is said that during the time of Ashoka, 84,000 stupas were built in India, including the world famous Sanchi Stupa, which has beautiful stone carving and relief work done on it. Numerous sculptures from Bharhut, Mathura, Amravati, Vaishali, Sanchi, etc. show female figures adorned with an array of jewelry, which continues to inspire contemporary jewelry making. The iron pillars of Vaishali (Bihar) and Delhi, created during the time of Emperor Ashoka, are a marvel in the field of metallurgy. 2. 2. 2 POST MAURYAN AGEThe period between the 1st century BC and the 1st century AD was a period of political turmoil as a result of foreign invasions from central Asia. The impact of these intrusions can be seen in the Buddhist sculptures from Taxila, Begram, Bamiyan, Swat valley, etc. which show a high degree of Greek influence. The depiction of Buddha, having curly hair and wearing draperies, until date is the result of this Greek influence. The scu lpture of the Kushan king Kanishka from this period depicting him wearing leather boots and a heavy warm coat amply reflects the influence of the central Asian Culture on Indian craftsmanship.Jewelry, sculpture, textile making, leather products, metal working, etc. were the main handicrafts that inherited these foreign influences and assimilated them in accordance with the Indian milieu. 2. 2. 3 GUPTA AGE The Gupta (AD 320-647) age is referred to as the classical period in Indian history. The points in the field of craft include the rock cut temples of Ellora and the Ajanta murals. These murals give us a realistic view of the lifestyle of that time. The craftsmen of this period, under royal patronage excelled in jewelry making, woodcarving, sculpture, stone carving and weaving. 2. . 4 MEDIEVAL INDIA The Medieval period of Indian history in the context of handicrafts showed a marked shift from north India to the Deccan and southern parts of the country, though the handicraftsmen unde r the Delhi Sultanate period flourished in the field of pottery, weaving, wood carving, metal working, jewelry, etc. The contribution of the Cholas and the Vijaynagar Empire in the field of bronze sculpture, silk weaving, jewelry, temple carving is beyond parallel. The fine example of stone carving from central India can be seen in the form of the Khajuraho Temples, built by the Chandelas.Rich and ornate wood and stone carving can be found in medieval temple of Jagannath at Puri in Orissa. 2. 3 LIST OF HANDICRAFT TRADES †¢Assemblage– collage in three dimensions †¢Beadwork ?Bone carving buffalo, camel, elephant bone carving. ?Cabinet making ?Chip carving †¢Collage possibly involving seeds, fabric, paper, photographs and/or found objects †¢Crochet †¢Embossed aluminum or silver †¢Gardening †¢Buffalo horn carving, Rhino horn carving. †¢Knitting †¢Lath art †¢Parquetry †¢Metalwork †¢Mosaic †¢Needlework †¢Pottery and Ceramics †¢Pressed flower craft — uses real flowers and leaves †¢Puppetry †¢Quilting – also reference Quilt and Art quilts Saddlemaking †¢Scale model †¢Sewing †¢Shoemaking †¢Spinning †¢Stained glass †¢Wood burning, carving, turning, working 2. 4 INDIAN HANDICRAFTS INDUSTRY India is one of the important suppliers of handicrafts to the world market. The Indian handicrafts industry is highly labour intensive cottage based industry and decentralized, being spread all over the country in rural and urban areas. Numerous artisans are engaged in crafts work on part-time basis. The industry provides employment to over six million artisans (including those in carpet trade), which include a large number of women and people belonging to the weaker sections of the society.In addition to the high potential for employment, the sector is economically important from the point of low capital investment, high ratio of value addition, and h igh potential for export and foreign exchange earnings for the country. Although exports of handicrafts appear to be sizeable, India’s share in world imports is miniscule. It is a sector that is still not completely explored from the point of view of hidden potential areas. India, a country with 28 states and 18 languages and more than 1500 dialects offers an enormous range of handicrafts from each of the states.Major centres in Uttar Pradesh are Moradabad also known as the â€Å"Peetalnagari† (City of Brass), Saharanpur for its wooden articles, Ferozabad for Glass. The North Western state of Rajasthan has to offer the famous Jaipuri quilts, Bagru and Sanganer printed textiles and wooden and wrought iron furniture from Jodhpur. The coastal state of Gujarat comes with embroidered articles from Kutch. Narsapur in Andhra Pradesh is famous for its Lace and Lace goods. But this is only a small part of the total product range. India offers much more. 2. 5 HANDICRAFTS CLASSIF ICATIONHandicrafts are classified into two categories: 1. Articles of everyday use 2. Decorative items The craftsmen use different media to express their originality. The diversity of the handicrafts is expressed on textiles, metals – precious and semi-precious, wood, precious and semi-precious stones, ceramic and glass. 2. 5. 1 TEXTILE BASED HANDICRAFTS: Hand printed textiles including block and screen printing, batik, kalamkari (hand printing by pen) and bandhani (tie and die) are used in products ranging from bed-covers to sheets, dress material to upholstery and tapestry.The famous embroidered articles of silk and cotton often embellished with mirrors, shells, beads, and metallic pieces are also found in India. Embroidery is done too on leather, felt and velvet etc. This segment of the industry accounts for almost half a million strong employment in addition to a large number of designers, block makers, weavers and packers involved in the trade. 2. 5. 2 CLAY, METAL AND JE WELLERY: Brass, copper, bronze, bell metals are used for a variety of wares and in a variety of finishes.Scintillating ornaments are available in a wide range of patterns, styles and compositions. Made from precious metals, base metals, precious and semi-precious stones; these ornaments have traditional as well as modern styles. 2. 5. 3 WOODWORK: Wooden articles in India range from the ornately carved to the absolutely simple. One can find toys, furniture, decorative articles, etc. bearing the art and individuality of the craftsman. India is known particularly for its lacquered wood articles. 2. 5. 4 STONE CRAFT: The intricately carved stoneware made of marble, alabaster or soapstone, etc. inlaid with semiprecious stones carry on the heritage of Indian stone crafts. 2. 5. 5 GLASS AND CERAMIC: Glass and ceramic products are a fast upcoming segment in the handicrafts from India. The age-old production process of mouth-blowing the glass instills a nostalgic feeling. The varied shapes o f ceramic and glass in a number of colours, would appeal to Western aesthetics while retaining the Indian touch. 2. 5. 6 CRAFT CONCENTRATION AREAS: A wide range of handicrafts are produced all over Indian artmetalware / EPNS ware, wood carvings and other wooden artwares, imitation jewellery, andprinted textiles, shawls as artwares, embroidered goods, lace and lace goods, toys, dolls, crafts made of leather, lacquerware, marble crafts etc. Although it is difficult to limit a specific place for the particular craft, the following places are listed for their particular crafts. Art metal ware:Moradabad, Sambhal, Aligarh, Jodhpur, Jaipur, Delhi, Rewari, Thanjavur, Madras, Mandap, Beedar, Kerala & Jagadhari, Jaselmer Wooden Art wares:Saharanpur, Nagina, Hoshiarpor, Srinagar, Amritsar, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Jagdalpur, Bangalore, Mysore, Chennapatna, Madras, Kerala & Behrampur (WB)Hand printed Textiles & Scarves:Amroha, Jodhpur, Jaipur, Farrukhabad, Sagru & Sanganer Embroidered goods:Kutch (Guja rat), Jaisalmer, Baroda, Lucknow, Jodhpur, Agra, Amritsar, Kullu, Dharmshala / Chamba & Srinagar Marble & Soft Stone Crafts:Agra, Madras, Baster, Jodhpur Papier Mache Crafts:Kashmir, Jaipur Terracotta:Agra, Madras, Baster, Jodhpur Zari & Zari Goods:Rajasthan, Madras, Baster Imitation Jewelry::Delhi, Moradabad, Sambhal, Jaipur, Kohima (Tribal) Artistic Leather Goods:lndore, Kolhapur, Shanti Niketan (WB) Organisation Study CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION TO THE PROJECT INTRODUCTION TO THE PROJECT I have taken up this project work as a part of my degree in ‘Bachelor of Business Management Course, so to relate the theoretical studies with that of the practical work done in the organization. I have done my project work in the Calicut tile co. In 1879 the Calicut tile co. was incorporated and the circumstance leading to the information of the company is narrated under. The co. was started in 1878 at feroke; the town of clay industries. The founder of the co. was Mr. Soma Sundharan Chettiyar, the great millionaire from Ceylon.And then company was taken over by Mr. V. S. Nadarasa Mudhaliyar from Mr. Soma Sundhara chettiyar. In 1982 the present management takes the co. now there are 8 partners for the co. and mainly two partners are managing the co. OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY * To study the general organizational functions and various department of the company. * To understand the growth of tile industry in India. * To study the production department and its performance. * To study the performance of the organization. * To suggest measures for the development of the CTCMETHODOLOGY A report on the descriptive study conducted at the calicut Tile co. , Feroke, Kozhikode is a project work that depends heavily on data collection particularly through observation the source of data are primary and secondary PRIMARY SOURCES * Observation * Consolation with the managers of various departments like production, HR etc. SECONDARY DATA * Report from various departments. * Report from other external magazines and internet. * Policy manuals. LIMITATION * The major constraint was the duration of the study was only 21 days. Couldn’t spend much time with top executives because of their busy schedule. * Due to absences and hesitation to talk openly by the employees it was difficult to collect accurate data. CHAPTER II INDUSTRIAL PROFILE INDUSTRIAL PROFILE Shelter is one of the basic requirements of man. C lay is one of the cheapest raw materials to satisfy this basic requirement of man. For a very long time man has been using clay for building purpose. Clay is basically an administrative mineral with an exclusive property of mould ability in the presence of water embankments etc.After reinforcement with straw, coir, fibers, bamboo, splinters, of woods sharing. It was rather accidental observation that clay when subjected to heating (firing) developed red color along with high strength and stability. Development of this process led to the production of clay products. In South India the German Basel Mission has performed a very important role in developing roofing tile industry or the Mangalore pattern roofing tiles. In the present scenario, roofing tiles have become a vital part of housing construction activity.By the end of 60’s most of the house used roofing tiles fur their houses. The last decade of the century however showed more interest towards concrete roofs and tile mar ket was down, however it again picked up business as decorative tile walls and floor tiles are in great demand now. The Latin word tegula and its French derivative tile mean quite precisely a roof tile of baked clay. The English tile is less precise, for it can in addition be used of any kind of earthenware slab applied to any surface of a building.The word ‘ceramics’ comes from the Greek word ‘keramos’ meaning pottery: it is related to an old Sanskrit root meaning to burn but was primarily used to mean ‘burnt stuff’ The demand for tile is thus improving when compared to the previous years; other clay products are also gaining importance in the market. However some of the tile manufacturing companies have reached saturation stage of its sales. They have to make changes in overall system of production and distribution to enhance the sales THE INDUSTRY IN KERALARoofing tile industry in India has an age of almost 150 years. In India Mangalore patt ern roofing tile factory was first established in the year 1865 by Basel Mission (German Missionaries) who copied the pattern of French tiles as in Marseilles. However first tile factory in Kerala was set up in the year 1844 by German Missionaries and it was named as â€Å"Common Wealth Trust Limited† or â€Å"COMTRUST†. Hundreds of factories came in to existence in South West cost of the country. Since then the industry has completed approximately one and quarter century of useful service to country.The numerous rivers and backwaters of Kerala provided cheap transport and so it is quite natural that a number of factories have opened at Kollam, Calicut, Trissur and alluva. Thus employment was generated. The abundance of clay was the other factor which contributed for rapid expansion of tile industry in this part of state A review of growth of tile industry in Kerala would suggest the following stages of development. These stages are * Period of First World War * Inter war period * The post second war period Towards the end of 19th century the pioneer factory at Kollam and Calicut was established.The pros iteration of tile factories, especially in Trissur may be considered as the second stage in the development of tile industry in Kerala. It’s considered that third stage is the period which small entrepreneurs became conscious of quality and started introducing machineries. This is partially due to the development of local engineering industry. As a result of mechanization could be implemented at a faster rate. The factories established in the first stage of the development in Calicut district was conceived of superior quality due to better technological process and uality control techniques The second stage of development witnessed a rapid growth in the number of tile factories mainly in trissur district. Local availability of quality clay and large managerial returns for the investment can be probable reasons for such a change. Their work ing started almost as a collage industry and not many changes has taken place as the time passed. The technological advancement that has taken place in the other industry has made no impact on the tile industry.The only forward step that have taken in the replacement of mechanical process is by replacing press, which they could increase the production capacity to 2 to 2. 5 times in an average. Even that change is yet to come in Kollam district. In a large number of units intermittent kilns are still use where high rate of fuel consumption is observed. In Trissur area majority of units have started on a small scale and number of chambers of kiln are limited. But subsequent introduction of revolving press has necessitated increasing the capacity and few more champers was added PROLEMS FACED BY CLAY INDUSTRYFor the last few decades the company has enjoyed a very inscriptive market in the country especially in the Southern states. In olden days industry was in Kerala and South Kerala, d istricts of Karnataka States. However conditions have completely different now. Tile factory have mushroomed through the country with much encouragement and support from the respective Government. The old traditional markets are fast dwindling and will soon disappear altogether in the very near future. Even manufacturing good clay-building material to cater to local markets is also having many problems.The company has to face keen completion from manufactures of concrete blocks and locally available. Late rite stones which are now mechanically cut and finished and are being sold at very low rate in the markets when compared to clay bricks. Apart from these, the main critical problems faced by the industry are the non-availability of good quality clays. Moreover there are environmental and ecological problems faced by tile industry and which are bound to de-stabilize the manufacturing operations consequently lead to loss of production in the year to come.Firewood, the fuel required f or the industry is also becoming scared with the present forest policy of the government and at present industry has to depend on plantation firewood like rub wood and other alternative fuels, for firing their kilns. The demand for roofing tile is steadily on the degrees because of the change in lifestyle of the people. While in olden days people used to construct houses by using timbers, the present tendency is to go for roofs. This has drastically affected the demand for Mangalore roofing tiles.If the industry is to survive man publicity has to be given for the products manufactured by the industry, enlightening the advantage of using Mangalore tiles over stopped concrete roofs which would have a good thermal insulation and also increase the life of these structures. While on the other hand, the industry is suffered with few problems relating to raw materials, environment etc. On the other hand there is likely to be a slump in the market for clay product brought out of industry. T he situation has to be analyzed and steps taken to meet the challenges, in light of these numerous problems being controlled by the tile industry.It is necessary that, government should take steps and try to solve the problems of this industry, which is one of the labor intensive industries in India CHAPTETR III COMPANY Profile COMPANY PROFILE| NAME| Calicut Tile Company| MANAGING PARTNER| Mr. MuhammadMr. M. A Abdhul Azeez| YEAR OF ESTABLISHMENT| 1878| BANKERS| S. B. T Palayam| FINISHED PRODUCTS| Roofing tilesFlooring tilesBricksVentilator bricks| BRAND NAME| Queens Brand| MAIN MARKET| Tamil NaduKarnataka| NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES| Around 300| GENERAL MANAGER| K. M. Salman| The Calicut Tile Company is the pioneer of clay manufacturers in India.It is started way back in the year 1878. It’s still honored as the ‘first among the best of tiles company ’situated near the historical sea fort of Calicut at Feroke ,the companies name is indelibly printed in the industrial his tory of the company. CTC was founded by Mr. Somasundharam Chettiar a great millionaire from Ceylon. At first only roofing tiles were produced due to non-availability of better raw materials and machines. CTC was taken up by Mr. Nadaraja Mudhaliar. They constructed new building and purchased new machineries for producing more roofing tiles. The company becomes famous by the middle of 1970’s.Now the company is family owned partnership. The company was taken by the present owners in 1982. Providing a profitable as well as a beautiful alternative to concrete roofing, the company re-defined the aesthetic concepts about buildings, with its high quality classy QUEEN BRAND terracotta products unique in its stunning varieties of products. QUEEN BRAND is not just a brand name in the market but a trendsetter, leveraging the expertise earn through a legacy of more than 100 years experience. We have fetched big shares in Bahrain, UK, and Qatar markets apart from the domestic ones.The firs t company to bring a lot of innovative tile products, we the CTC has been a revolution through centuries. QUALITY STANDARDS CTC have been awarded the ISO certification recently by Moody International, an US based quality certification of great repute. A daring visionary behind the terracotta revolution, the company imparted geographical significance to Feroke which later came to be known as cradle of clay tile industry In a world that is Turing rapidly to techno friendly, CTC offer an alternative –bio friendly environment where you can inhale life, appealing to your eyes and soothing to your souls.QUEEN BRAND tile products promise you a world of endless imaginations. The most accepted eco-friendly, cost effective and aesthetically pleasing solution to home roofing and floorings, these classy clay products have by now earned International fame and recognition. Tested weather proof and water proof QUEEN BRAND terracotta tiles appear in a range of models applicable to floorings, roofing and ceiling sand as ventilator bricks and building blocks. Producing tiles with quality that confirms to standards set has been the aim of CTC and all its endeavors have been to this end.It’s a tradition that keeps pace with the changing world and changing needs. CAPACITY Presently the company have around 300 employees where 230 of them are permanent and have an annual production of more than 85 lakhs, the company was equipped with excavator, mixed high speed roller, number of revolving press etc for manufacturing tiles and Hoffman Kiln, one with 28 champers and other with 24 champers and each champers having a capacity of 3000 tiles. Now the company had acquired modern technologies for manufacturing tiles. Chain conveyer system was introduced for conveying wet tiles from the press to the kiln and to stock yard.A separate section for manufacturing ventilator bricks and hourdies was erected NATURE OF BUSINESS CARRIED OUT Nature of business means type of business being carried out. It includes the products of the company and weather the business is manufacturing or sales. If it is a manufacturing company what kind of products are being produced in the company. If the company’s main function is sales what it sells and how it is being sold, that is weather it does a wholesale or retail business The CTC does both manufacturing and sales. It produces all sorts of building material made of clay.Its products includes the following ROOFING TILES FLOORING TILES VENTILATOR BRICKS BUILDING BLOCKS In CTC, production takes place as well they sell it to the retailers and wholesalers and also directly to the customers from the company’s sales outlet PARTNERS OF THE COMPANY CTC is a partnership firm consisting of two managing partners and they are Mr. Muhammad and Mr. M. A Abdul Aziz. Other partners are Mr. M. A Abdul nazar Mrs. M. A Rukhiya Mrs. M. A Soubeena Mrs. M. A Asiya Mrs. M. A Salina Mrs. M. A Najeena Mr. M. A Abid Mr. M. A Ramshid Mr. M. A Rajay Mrs. M. A Nargees Mr. M.A Hareer KEY TO SUCESS Key to success is designing and producing products that meet the market demand. In addition to this the company also ensures total total consumer satisfaction. If these goals are achieved it will become a profitable sustainable company. HIGHLIGHTS OF THE COMPANY It is an industry with more than 130 years of experience Engaged in the production of wide range of products It has a capacity to meet huge requirements any point of time Highly experienced management with perfect knowledge about market and its products. QUALITY POLICY OF THE COMPANY ATMOSPHERIC HARMONY: Terracotta tiles created a rhythemetic harmony with the atmosphere where it is used. Its natural elements are harmful to arthritis patients. The tiles also add elegance to the concrete buildings and act as a heat insulation aid, that is why even five star hotels are turn in to clay tiles. ECO-FRIENDLINESS: In CTC innovative and energy saving manufacturing technologies a re used to manufacture eco-friendly products combining economy with ecology. The beautiful glazes of terracotta tiles are softer and more sensitive to scratches and wear and tear than tiles made from normal porcelain or ceramic material.Our clay roof tiles allow for ongoing ventilation that extracts the moisture that otherwise could cause mild dew, rote and overtime the collapse to substructure. VARIETY: We provide different plain tiles and pan tiles. Architects, Builders and roofing specialists etc with their join efforts produces different varieties of tiles according to the requirements of consumers DURABILITY * There are still number of tile roofed building that are 100 years of old where you find a few concrete building leaks within few years. Clay roof tiles are some of the most environmental friendly building material.This is due to long life expectancy that they are made of natural product and can be disposed off fully. NATURALITY Terracotta floorings, ceilings and wall cove rings, is designed with bright natural flair unlike any other things. QUEEN BRAND products are made attractive, colorful, and long-lasting in a functional aesthetically pleasing way. We offer carefully designed precision made roofing tiles comparable only to top quality porcelain product as ceramic floor tiles. FLEXIBILITY QUEEN BRAND tiles are designed for ease of use and versatility. For instance by means of pioneering concept for tile overlap allowing flexible tile to tile fit.As a result tile can be laid simply and quickly, saving time and labor cost. Each and every QUEEN tile is baked by a life time guarantee. PLANT LOCATION Calicut Tile Company is honored as the first among the best of tile companies. The plant is in the town of Feroke is connected with national highway 17. The factory is situated near the Chaliyar River. All infrastructure facilities are available near the company. ORGANISATIONAL CHART CHAPTER IV DEPARTMENTAL STUDIES PRODUCTION Department PRODUCTION DEPARTMEN T Clay is an important raw material used for tiles the quality of tiles depends up on its clay.Therefore the clay is tested before taking it for the production. There are mainly two types of clay namely plastic clay and lean clay. The tested clay is thoroughly mixed by using a machine called excavator. With the help of excavator the clay is sliced. After slicing, the clay is collected using the excavator in tray called trolleys. The sliced clay is then pushed into box feeder. Box feeder consists of 3 chambers and both type of clay will be there at first two chamber and both of this is mixed along with the sand in the 3rd chamber. Then the clay is moved into pan mill.Pan mill performs the crushing of clay and grinds together the different types of clay. Here the clay is crushed well using water. Clay in the form of flakes is passed into hi speed roller one. High speed roller one is an extension of pan mill and the clay is crushed well and then it is move to the high speed roller two where the clay is crushed further and reduce the time module or small pebbles contained in the clay. Then the clay is moved into de-airing pug mill and main purpose here is to remove the air content from the clay otherwise it would lead to breakage after it becomes in to a tiles.The clay is cut and passed to the press where different dice are available and the different shapes or types arise. Different types of tile formed are roofing tiles, flooring tiles, ventilator tiles, building tiles etc. In the press where roof tiles are formed with the help of a trimmer tiles are properly shaped and finished. The slabs are rubbed with oil which is a mixture of kerosene and rice-burn oil before putting into the press so as to dice smooth. The waste clay is recycled. The name of the clay, factory trade mark etc are marked on the tiles by providing necessary impression on the dice.Now the pressed tile contains 25% of water. To reduce the water content of green tile, it is dried in the open air where natural air ios able to enter directly. Artificial drying using external heating system is also rarely used. The tiles required to be dried for around 6-7 days during summer and 10-15 during rainy season. The well dried tiles are placed in the chamber of Hoffman kiln for baking. The kiln consists of different layers where the tiles can be put and heat is made possible to enter into it. Fire wood is used as fuel for burning at a temperature of 800 degree.The kiln works 24 hours a day through out and even on holidays. As the temperature is reached at a required level in one chamber, the fixing will be moved to the next chamber. After that the chamber is cooled and emptied. The burned tiles are moved to an open place where or nearer to kiln yard. Then it is moved to the stock yard where tiles are stocked. Different grade or classes are given to the tiles according to their quality and they are stored separately. It is from the stock yard, the tiles are dispatched according to the order placed. Here comes the end of the production process.PAN MILL PROCUREMENT OF TESTED CLAY DESPATCHING AGAINST ORDER SORTING AND STOCKING SPACE FOR DRYING HIGH SPEED ROLLER DE-AIING PUG MILL TILE FURNISHING TILE PRESSER BOX FEEDERS CLAY EXCAVATION ROLLER I ROLLER II KILN CHAMBER PRODUCTION PROCESS CHART PURCHASE DEPARTMENT PURCHASE DEPARTMENT Purchase department is one of the important departments in CTC. This department deals with 6the purchase of raw material such as purchase of clay fire woods, store good etc and the main function of the department is to invite tenders and quotation for purchasing raw material.Tenders are invited and they select those tenders which quotes the suitable price for the product. They just do not verify the price of raw material but also ensure about the quality of the product purchased. The main duty of the purchasing manger is to: Ensure continuous availability of raw material so that production doesn’t get stopped To reduce ultimate cost of finished product To ensure quality of raw material and there by quality of production Now we can look some of the important raw material which is purchased by the purchase department. CLAY Clay is one of the most important raw materials used for production.There are mainly two types of clay, plastic clay and lean clay. Before purchasing clay, purchase department takes the specimen of clay and test it using in different methods, like sand content test, burning test, and by the usual observations. Company usually collects clay fro the field of Mavoor, Cheruvadi, Karod, Edevanna, Areacode etc. FIREWOOD Fire wood is purchased from sub contractors of Irutty, Kodiyathur, Mavoor, Nilambur etc. The fire wood purchased from keep in it top of the kiln. The fire wood is unlocked in the firewood yard only after visual observation by firewood supervisor.From the above it’s clear that purchase department is one of the strong and back bones of CTC and its effective functioning is very m uch important for overall performance of CTC. WATER Water is one of the essential element of the tile it’s also essential for manufacturing. Water is prowled from the well and it’s purchased rarely. OIL AND KEROSENE It is another item as that of water which is less frequently purchased by the purchase department. Rice bran oil and kerosene In the ratio 2:10 are mixed and applied on the plugged slabs to avoid sticking of slabs each other.Kerosene is also used as fuel in generator. MARKETING DEPARTMENT MARKETING DEPARTMENT The marketing department of CTC is well developed and computerized. The main duty of this department is marketing and sales of queen brand. As we know that is one back bone of a business enterprice. The marketing department has its own value. It is controlled by sales manager and executive sales. DUTIES OF SALES MANAGER Responsibilities of various sales related decision like supplying the right quantity and quality product at right time. Management of cash receipt and paymentProper direction to the executive’s sales regarding collection of duties from customers and other related matters. Keeping proper records for purchase of fire wood. ACTIVITIES UNDER MARKETING DEPARTMENT Marketing activities are carried out and field sales executives explore the potential for sales of the product Appointing dealers Sales promotion activities like sponsorships, radio, banners & boards, calendar, trade fairs etc. Now the company has around 200 dealers all over India and they have or are mainly located in Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.CHANNELS OF DISTRIBUTION The CTC adopts mainly 3 major channels of distribution their channels are as given below; Manufacturer Customers Manufacturer Dealer Customer Manufacturer Dealer Agent Customer QUALITY POLICY TO CONSUMERS 1. To provide dependence products that consistency meets customer’s expectations first time, on time, every time. 2. To recognize through systematic review pro cess that all over products and commitments are expression of quality 3.To constantly strive to achieve optimum customer satisfaction through on time delivery and defect fire parts with acceptable quality level by continuously improving our process and practices to the almost satisfaction of all our clients 4. To strive pure goals aimed at achieving excellence in the product that consistently meets or exceed customer expiations. PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT INTRODUCTION Human Resource department is concerned with the management of human resources. It is the sense of getting things done through people, is an essential part of every managers responsibilities. Many organizations find it useful.Many organizations find it useful to set up a specialist section to provide an expert service in the performance of HR functions. Today no member in the organization disagrees that â€Å"people are more valuable asset in the organization but in reality in many organization it is fou nd that this most valuable resources remains undervalued, undertrained, underutilized Fast changes are taking place in the business enterprise. An organization must have the ability to absorb these changes at a rapid rate than in the past, not simply to prove its competency alone but to justify its existence in the dynamic business world as well.All organization weather large or small must ensure themselves that they have the competent people capable of accepting these challenge. Personnel Management is â€Å"concerned with people dimensions in management. Since every organization is made of people, acquiring their service, developing their skills motivating them higher level of performance and ensuring that they continue to maintain their commitment to the organization are essential to achieve their organizational objectives.This is true regardless the type of organization, government, business education, health, recreation or social action â€Å" In CTC employees are recruited m ainly through personnel interview, recommendation of present employee and through medium of publicity. OBJECTIVES OF CTC To establish and maintain good working atmosphere in the organization. Each employee is given certain objectives and give them amble support to achieve it. To achieve the goals of organization through human excellence. To maintain and increase the level of effectiveness of employers and there by their effective utilization.To provide motivation to the employees to work for the success of the organization. To have a better personnel structure in the organization that is the personnel department. PERSONNEL POLICIES AT CTC Pvt. Ltd. * Satisfied customers and motivated employees are of vital importance to CTC. The past 130 years is a good personnel policy followed by the firm it is seen not good or harmonious industrial relation maintained by the firm. The main three types of policy are staffing policy, wage and salary administration policy and the promotional policy. Other important personnel policies are below Each employee shall: * Understand his or her role. * Take responsibility. * Develop his/ her competence knowledge, skills and ability. * H. R STRUCTURE OF CTC Number of workers in CTC is around 300 which includes permanent and casual workers, among them 50 are skilled workers who are well trained and is called foreman. Attendance register are maintained in the factory to record the time spend by each worker in the factory, it also distinguish normal time from overtime. The working hour of the company starts from 8 am to 12 pm and 1 pm to 5 pm.But the kiln works for 24 hours a day and the operator for kiln is 4 shifts of 7 hours each. Convenient timing has made workers happy in the factory. Overtime workers have been paid double of wages of that day. This is done as they don’t want to spent for recruitment and training of new workers. If in the case of death, casual workers are selected as permanent workers. In administration level there are around 10 office staffs like production manager, personnel manager, finance manager etc. Wage calculations are fully computerized for fast result.The control of the organizational activities are in the hands of top level management, they are responsible for entire functions of the concerned persons. The total number of working days of CTC is around 305 days. Each worker is allowed a holiday during the week. The workers are not required to work on the first of the week that is Sunday. Within the production process there are many departments where employees are classified, they are CLAY FIELD In clay department, at a time there should be 21 employees. Their main duty is to load different type of clay. The main duty s to take the clay in to the excavator where the clay is sliced and their duty ends at the door step of press. The employees in the clay department are given a fixed remuneration of 6000 per month and they have to work for 8 hours a day. PRESS FIELD Here there sh ould be almost 11 employees who have to work hand in hand to achieve the target. Their work starts where the work of clay department ends. Their duty to receive the clay coming out of roller and put in to the press for making it as slabs and to other press where the slabs are press in to particular tiles from where the shape of tile is formed.Remuneration package is time rate and is paid 6000 per month for 8 hours a day. CHICK DEPARTMENT The duty here is to dry the pressed tile, that is to take the tile from press to the region where tiles are dried under direct sun light. Here 6 workers are working at a time and piece rate system is followed here for payment of wage. An employee should take 1400 tile which is treated as one work and for one work 200 rupees is paid. KILN DEPARTMENT At a time there will be 8 people working in a kiln, and it consists of two kilns which contain 28 and 24 rooms respectively.Here also piece rate system is followed and loading of 3000 tile is regarded as one work. BURNING SECTION It’s closely related with kiln department. It is the only one section were 24 works work is carried out. It is from here the kiln is burned. Their main duty is to regulate heat content according to the requirement of tile. Here mainly there are two workers who work on shift basis. They are given a fixed salary per month and double salary for working during holidays. REPAIRS SECTION Here repairs of machinery take place. Machines of the company are repaired within the firm.Here there are 7 workers including a foreman. They have a fixed remuneration. OTHERS There are certain workers who concentrate on loading of dried and finished tile to store rooms. There is no fixed number of employees in this work and depends up on requirement. They are also paid in piece rate form. Some workers are placed in those sections of bringing firewood which is required for burning. Here at present 9 workers are there and piece rate system is followed and for one work they are paid 230 rupees. There is a pottery department where one employee is working for the last 27 years.If he designs 5 tiles per day it is treated as one work and salary is given according to that. EMPLOYEE WELFARE The CTC employees receive multiple welfare facilities. Company provides all the possible facilities and amenities to the workers. Since file industry is labour oriented industry every problem connected with the workers will adversely affect the production and the reputation of the company. The management of this company thoroughly understands that and tries to solve all the problems connected with workers. Various labour welfare activities made by mgt to workers are; I. CanteenThe company is running a very good canteen inside the factory. With the help of this canteen the workers can save 85% of their food expense, that is, the company is providing subsidized food to their employees. II. Increment Every year increment of salary is given to the employees after their retire ment. The minimum service required for getting gratuity is 5 years. Computation of gratuity: Gratuity = Salary x Service x 15/ 26 Other than this the company provides contribution to ESI, PF providing annual leaves and casual leaves, home appliance loan, bonus, etc†¦ PROBLEM FACING THE PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT Though the company is well maintaining its relations with the unions and employees still the personnel department faces a few problems. However most of the problems are effectively bought under organized by various techniques as participation management system used in CTC. * Manpower of human resources may be thought of as the total knowledge, skills and creative abilities, talents and attitude of the total workforce of the organization. Management should consider the fact that of all M’s of management (Men, Money, Machinery, Materials, Methods and Minutes).The most important and the most complex resources are the humans. Hence, men are the most valuable asset of an or ganization rather than money or any physical equipment. Only human resource can ensure the effective utilization of all other resources to lead the business activities in to a success. * * * * * * * * * HOLIDAY WITH PAY IS 26th January Republic Day 14th April Vishu 1st May World Workers Day 15th August Independence Day 2nd October Gandhi Jayanthi 25th December ChristmasShivarathri Good Friday Milady sheriff Onam Navami Id-ul-fither CHART & DIAGRAMS 1. Different posts occupied by the employees in the organization. POSTS| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Manager| 3| 7. 5| Supervisor| 6| 15| Forman| 8| 20| Workers| 23| 57. 5| total| 40| 100| Interpretation: Out of the total employees more than 50% of them are unskilled workers who directly engage in the production of tiles. So, of the total population more than half of them are workers. 2. Number of year worked by the employee in the company? NUMBER OF YEARS| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE| Below 8| 4| 10| -16| 3| 7. 5| 16-24| 16| 40| Above 24| 17| 42. 5| total| 40| 100| Interpretation: The pie diagram indicates that more than 80% of employees are with long term service. This indicates that labor turnover in the organization is not that high and is under control. 3. Have you received any special incentive till now? INCENTIVES| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Yes| 18| 45| No| 22| 55| Total| 40| 100| Interpretation: Out of the total employees in the organization 45% of them says or agrees that they had received incentive, while others contradicts to the statement and says ‘no’ to the question. . Are you satisfied with the present salary? SATISFIED| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Yes| 22| 55| No| 18| 45| Total| 40| 100| Table [ 1 ] Interpretation: The diagram indicates that almost half of the employees are satisfied with the salary and while others are not satisfied with the salary given. So management has to consider these factors well. 5. How do you rate the promotional policy adopted in the organization? RATING| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Excellent| 02| 05| Good| 14| 35| Average| 18| 45| Poor| 06| 15| Total| 40| 100| Interpretation:From the diagram it’s clear that as a whole, promotional policies are satisfactory since only 15% are not at all happy with the promotional efforts. Management should adopt such policies so that these 15% employees also show a positive sign. 6. Are you satisfied with the terms and conditions of the job? RATING| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Not at all| 06| 15| Up to a level| 24| 60| Fully| 10| 25| total| 40| 100| Interpretation: The diagram shows that employees are more or less satisfied with the terms and conditions of the job. Dissatisfaction level is comparatively lower. 25% is fully satisfied which is a good sign. . What is your opinion about relationship with management? RATING| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Friendly| 06| 15| Moderate| 28| 70| Strict| 05| 12. 5| No opinion| 01| 2. 5| t otal| 40| 100| Interpretation: 70% of the employees say that there is moderate relationship between employees and management. So the company is not following an autocratic type of structure. Here the chance of formation of informal organization is limited. 8. According to you which is the best motivating factor? RATING| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Monitory| 15| 37. 5| Non monitory| 06| 15| Both| 19| 47. | total| 40| 100| Interpretation: Since more than 50% of employees are unskilled workers, they can be primarily motivated with monitory incentives. From the diagram it is clear that employees give priority to the mixture of monitory and non monitory factors. 9. Have you received any fringe benefits from the company? | NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Yes| 19| 47. 5| No| 21| 52. 5| total| 40| 100| Interpretation: From the diagram response is 47. 5% says ‘yes’ and rest stays with ‘no’. Company mainly provides fringe benefits to skilled and off ice staffs rather than to the semi skilled workers. 0. Are your grievances fully satisfied by the company? RATING| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Not at all| | | Up to a level| 32| 80| Fully| 08| 20| total| 40| 100| Interpretation: Since the relationship between management and employees are good their grievances are also satisfied to an extent. No one in the company is fully disappointed with the company. 11. How do you rate the safety and security measures adopted in the organization? RATING| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Excellent| 10| 25| Good| 18| 45| Average| 10| 25| Poor| 02| 05| total| 40| 100|Interpretation From the survey conducted it is clear that the company gives much importance for the safety and security measures and 70% of the population is very much happy with the companies policies and only 5% of them is dissatisfied. 12. Are you satisfied with the retirement schemes of the company? RATING| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Highly satisfied| 12 | 30| Satisfied| 22| 55| Dissatisfied| 06| 15| total| 40| 100| Interpretation: The company provides almost all retirement benefits provided by similar companies like provident fund, gratuity etc. rom the graph it’s clear that there is a mixed response from the part of employers. 13. Are you active in trade union activities? R ATING| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Active| 14| 35| Passive| 08| 20| Neutral| 18| 45| total| 40| 100| Interpretation: From the graph it is clear that participation of employees towards trade union activity is neutral, but it may not be so accurate as sample taken is small and employees may not reveal the truth. 14. What is your opinion about canteen facility? RATING| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Excellent| -| -| Good| 07| 17. | Average| 14| 35| Poor| 19| 47. 5| total| 40| 100| Interpretation: It is an area where management has to keep their eyes open as majority of employees are not happy with the canteen. So they should try to take s teps to improve the conditions. 15. What is your opinion about sanitary facilities? RATING| NUMBER OF RESPONDANTS| PERCENTAGE (%)| Excellent| -| -| Good| 06| 15| Average| 21| 52. 5| Poor| 13| 32. 5| total| 40| 100| Interpretation: This is another area where management has to look up on, as employee satisfaction is a key area for the success of an organisation.CHAPTER VI PRODUCT PROFILE CHAPTER VI SWOT ANALYSIS SWOT ANALYSIS Identification of SWOTs is essential because subsequent steps in the process of planning for achievement of the selected objective may be derived from the SWOTs. SWOT analysis is a strategic planning method used to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in a project or in a business venture. It involves specifying the objective of the business venture or project and identifying the internal and external factors that are favorable and unfavorable to achieve that objective. STRENGTHAn industry with one thirty years of experience and highly experienced management. Wide range of products. Focus on producing high quality tiles. Ability to meet huge requirements any point of time. Better superior-subordinate relation. WEAKNESS: Accounting methods are not scientific. Less focus on marketing activities. Transportation totally depends on private vehicles. Cost of tiles is little high as compared to other states. Conventional practice of fixing clay is used. OPPORTUNITIES: Go out for innovation. Opportunities for diversification of product. Try new technologies. * THREATS:Problem of absenteeism. Clay is not available readily Firewood and other fuel used for burning become costly and its availability is limited. Strikes lockouts effect the continuity of production process and there by overall productivity of firm. * CHAPTER VI FINDINGS & SUGGESTIONS FINDINGS * CTC concentrates on production of tiles. Product of CTC is of high quality. Compare to other firms, price of CTC is lower. Employees are satisfied with the terms & conditions of the job as well as with the management. Productivity has increased in a slow rate. Less concentration on marketing of products.Since it is an organization with more than 100 years experience, it enjoys high degree of goodwill. Shortage of raw materials, firewood etc is great threat to the company. * SUGGESTIONS Demand for the product is high but the availability is low, so try to increase the production. Better salary should be given to employees so as to gain their confidence. Company should increase promotional efforts. Firm should concentrate on adding diversity to the product and then only it can with stand in the market. Reduce cost of production by using modern technologies Step should be taken to improve canteen and sanitary facilities.Find out an alternative source of energy for production. CHAPTER VII CONCLUSION CONCLUSION Calicut Tile Company, Kerala’s first tile company has really created revolution in this field. The QUEEN BRAND terracotta product s developed by CTC which really set the standards in the industry are widely acceptable to different culture, climate, and architectural tastes around the world. World is changing and modernization will have to be incorporated in every phase of working of the company and ways will have to be found to cope with competition and overcome the barriers of innovation.To conclude, management of CTC should make past emphasis and work effectively to supplement formal structures to tackle issues like product launching and cost reduction. BIBLIOGRAPHY BIBLIOGRAPHY Marketing Management : Philip Kotler Marketing Management : A. Vinodh H R management : Mammoria Personnel management : Edwin. B. Flippo Company Records Website : www. calicuttilecompany. com www. google. com

Hewlett-Packard: Case Analysis Essay

Introduction Hewlett-Packard is a pioneer of printer industry, and they considered getting involved in to the Rigid Disk Drives. It was not convinced at first, and they needed professional advice from The Disk Memory Division (DMD). Bruce Spenner, the general manager of DMD, came to Hewlett-Packard and set up a project working on developing The Kittyhawk. He picked up the project team that meant they were going to figure out what the specification would be and how they were able to get access to achieving their goals. In addition, they analyzed every factors of marketing to target their costumers, indentify their competitors, and find the potential market of the Kittyhawk. They went through a hard time because only few companies might have the needs of the Kittyhawk. Eventually, they cooperated with Nintendo to obtain profit on 1.3† disk drive and make it breakeven to prevent failure of the new development. Analysis Project: The project was too big so that it was difficult to implement. Hewlett-Packard was not exactly unable to do it; however, the failure of the project could hurt Hewlett-Packard deeply. Price: The cost was too high to afford by other companies. Hewlett-Packard’s customer was hoping that the price should be $49.95, but Hewlett-Packard cost $250 per unit that was immensely over the customer’s expectation . Market: Hewlett-Packard targeted wrong markets that meant the 1.3† hard drive was a potentially disruptive technology, but Hewlett-Packard had positioned it as a sustaining technology. Vertical Integration: Hewlett-Packard had come up with a new idea;however, they only focused on the specific item. Other technological integrations were not their consideration. Conclusion The case of Hewlett-Packard had shown how important disruptive technology was for a company. In order to make the development of disruptive technology perfect, every company is supposed to clarify everything clearly such as the market, the price, the competitors, and the strategic partners. Moreover, those factors should be considered in advanced. Some recommendations are provided in the next section. Recommendation Sustaining Technology vs. Disruptive Technology I believe that Hewlett-Packard was working on Disruptive Technology because they were creating a new product in a way which was totally different from the others. Being the first mover is the purpose that every firm is supposed to always work hard on, and I am definitely on Hewlett-Packard’s side. They did really well on project management that means they realized every variance before they started developing the new product and they knew how risky it was. In my opinion, we would never know what the result is going to be, and the only thing we can do is accomplish every preparation as much as we can. How to work on Disruptive technology Base on disruptive technology, Hewlett-Packard should keep the project smaller, and I would like to say Hewlett-Packard is supposed to look for an efficient way to work on disruptive technology. Hewlett-Packard was sort of creating customers’ demand instead of just make their customers satisfied that means everything of the whole new project was totally unknown. Unless Hewlett-Packard is absolutely confident, they should never give any possibility to the project that might impact the company. The project should be considered an experiment to make sure Hewlett-Packard would not be damaged by failure. Moreover, disruptive technology should be profitable, and the market should big enough as well. I do not think a big scale company, as Hewlett-Packard would like to focus on many niche markets. The most important thing is before the beginning of developing new disruptive product; the target market should be indentified. The target market should be recognized advance When a company is trying to develop a new disruptive product, they are supposed to identify whom they are going to sell and what product might able to integrate with it. For the case of Kittyhawk, Hewlett-Packard should have negotiated with their potential strategic partners to prevent failure on targeting market. Such as the price, the capacity, and the efficiency, those are important to every stakeholder. It is essential nowadays because most disruptive technology is costly. None of those big companies such as Hewlett-Packard wants to spend a bunch of money on a useless project. Again, every company should necessarily focus on developing disruptive technology  because this is the only way to keep the company being competitive. Furthermore, being a first mover always maximum the profit in your company, the innovated opportunity provides the company access to succeed. The importance of innovation will never change in the next several decades.

Modern Accounting Systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Modern Accounting Systems - Essay Example Contrary to ‘paper-based accounting systems’, where older documentations are hard to assess because the amount of paper rises with the passage of time, modern systems can conveniently show old records as well as trends supported by past years. Executives can check with old financial plans and cost data to advance existing estimations. When exterior circumstances modify, modern systems have the capability to forecast outcomes for various situations, letting administration to develop estimating with forecasts for all eventualities. While not capable of eliminating ‘human error’, modern accounting systems have confirmation abilities that lessen the occurrence of such mistakes. â€Å"Once the data is entered correctly, it is permanently captured and reading errors are eliminated† (Turner & Weickgennant, 2008). Programmers can configure fields so that the system just allows information in the right design. They can inflict information confirmation so the s ystem verifies whether the information is rational, and discards it if it is not. These actions perk up the accurateness of information as well as the consistency of management estimates, lessening costly errors within operations based on such information.The objective of nearly all companies is to make a profit. Accounting lets company owners to trace report and evaluate their company’s financial records. Accounting offers information involving â€Å"earnings, the cost of merchandise sold, operating expense, assets, liabilities and owner’s equity†.

Medium and Profession Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Medium and Profession - Research Paper Example Their role is thus important during the development stage, just before the system is rolled out. They could therefore be found in the research and development departments of Internet provision firms. The choice of this career is informed by the critical role that network architects play in ensuring that the Internet system works as required. It is a career that combines knowledge in both software and hardware to ensure that the modeling, analysis and planning of the Internet system runs as required. Network architecture career requires a bachelor’s degree in information systems. However, as noted by BLS (130), most employers would prefer applicants with Master of Business Administration with a major in Information Systems. Therefore, an early concentration in information technology, computer science, mathematics and language arts would be beneficial to a prospective network architect. Several years of experience make one a better performer in this profession. Though not repres ented by unions, the California Employment Development Department, EDD (2) observes that network architects’ unionization would vary by industry. For example, those in telecommunications could be members of Communications Workers of America. Such unions do not provide internship or entry level mentorship. This profession is important in the Internet medium as it ensures that the medium runs and executes the input commands as required. Information Security Analyst The roles in this career include planning, developing, implementing, upgrading and monitoring of security measures so as to protect the Internet network systems from security risks (BLS 128). Therefore, this career cuts across the various stages of the process of production, but particularly plays a critical role during distribution, when the Internet system gets exposed to security risks. These professionals would thus be found in the security department. The Internet is a large source of information accessible to p eople from all corners of the world. Thus, the choice of this career was informed by the need to understand the profession that enforces the security of the information shared through the Internet. This career also requires a bachelor’s degree in computer science with a majority of employers preferring applicants who hold a Master of Business Administration degree having majored in Information Systems. Hence, Kim and Solomon (423) advise high school students interested in the career to take keen interest in information technology, computer science, mathematics and language arts. No union represents these professionals, though they could join unions depending on their industry, such as the Service Employees International Union for public sector employees, EDD (2). It does not represent internship interests or provide for entry level mentorship. This profession is important in the Internet media as it provides for the protection of an organization’s content in the Intern et from attack. Additionally, information security analysts teach users on network security precautions and respond to any security breaches appropriately. Telecommunications Specialist The Internet medium provides for various media of communication including audio and visual. A telecommunications specialist plays the role of designing, supervising the installation and providing the

Charles Manson and his family murdered several people in California, Essay

Charles Manson and his family murdered several people in California, including pregnant young movie star Sharon Tate. Sinc - Essay Example Sharon Tate’s family has done everything in their power to keep the individuals convicted in the Manson murders behind bars. Their efforts have paid off, even after their deaths. Patti created the Tate Foundation after her mother’s death. After Pattie died, Debra Tate continued the Tate Foundation. Although this group has made major changes in California laws concerning victims’ rights, Mason and his followers still seem to be a more popular story. Charles Manson, Leslie Van Houten, Patricia Krenwinkel, Susan Atkins, and Charles ‘Tex’ Watson were all sentenced to death row. However, when the death penalty was struck down all death sentences were commuted to life. Manson and his followers were given life sentences with the possibility of parole. When Van Houten came up for parole first, Doris Tate was incensed. She petitioned the California legislators to allow victim impact statements. Before this law was passed, victims’ families could not sp eak during a parole heahring. This law that Doris lobbied for gave the victims’ families an opportunity to relate how the crimes impacted their families. While alive, Doris attended every parole hearing for Charles Manson, Leslie Van Houten, Patricia Krenwinkel, Susan Atkins, and Charles ‘Tex’ Watson. As a result all of them are still in jail with the exception of Susan Atkins. Susan Atkins died of cancer.

Variations on the Modern Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Variations on the Modern - Essay Example Some of the major political and societal changes which brought about the modernism were the post world wars situation. The huge developments and transformations in industry and technology coupled with the cultural exchanges, transportation and communication developments and influences from the West. The period of modernism in Scandinavia and Italy was both progressive and optimistic. It stems from the renaissance for the historians and was a cultural movement which impacted the Scandinavian and Italian art, architecture, music and literature. The breaking away from the conventional styles to newer representations in the period, where there was a shift from the traditional values. The period also marked growth and innovations in science, ethics, philosophy and psychology besides the previously mentioned art, architecture, music and literature. Different countries have had their share of influencing modernism. This period saw a change in the style and ideology of art during this era. T he philosophy of art was transformed during this period in terms of the themes and subject matter, and also the use of colours, shapes and lines. The intellectual underpinnings of modernism emerge during the Renaissance period when, through the study of the art, poetry, philosophy, and science of ancient Greece and Rome, humanists revived the notion that man, rather than God, is the measure of all things, and promoted through education ideas of citizenship and civic consciousness. The period also gave rise to ‘utopian’ visions of a more perfect society.1 Below is a modernism timeline which shows the significant events between 1920- 1970. Modernism in Scandinavia Scandinavia had a mixed dynamics of cultures, language and politics. This gave birth to a versatile and multi dimensional philosophy of art and design which became more assertive. The movement from Europe enveloped Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland and Finland within its fold. The Scandinavian countries had their own unique, yet impactful role in the move towards modernism. The response to the stimuli from the modern world was distinctive. The countries were experiencing the same changes in the modern life- social equality, industrialization and urbanization. Nonetheless, the outcomes and impact showed the unique natures of art and skills that evolved, which gave individuality and characteristic art and design to each of the countries. Yet the distinctiveness was combined with features which were common to all the Scandinavian countries which include a unifying touch in terms of humanism, tradition, moderation, handcrafted perfectionism, modesty, quietude and purposefulness, 2 which came to know as the style of the Scandinavian modern art. Among the European countries, the Scandinavian were able to portray the modern artistic touch in their traditional and conventional craft most expressively. Countries such as Denmark, Sweden and Finland which had internal dynamics and resources which led to an increased inclination towards the craft industries were most explicit in communicating the modern aesthetic in their art and craft. With the breakdown of the craft guild system in the mid- nineteenth century, they established a number of

The impact of leadership or Entrepreneurship Literature Review Essay

The impact of leadership or Entrepreneurship Literature Review - Essay Example A series of studies published in regard to this issue has been reviewed in order to identify the key aspects of the involvement of leadership in organization. It has been proved that leadership can highly impact modern organizations; still, the level at which leadership affects organizations is not standardized. Rather, differences seem to exist under the influence of internal and external organizational environment. In addition, the impact of leadership in organizations can have many aspects; reference can be made, as an example, to the influence of leadership on organizational strategy (Fairholm 2009). The literature review is presented in section 2 of this study. The particular section, which is the study’s main body, has been divided into two parts. The first one presents the literature that addresses the potentials of leadership to impact organizational performance. Then, in the second part of section 2, the various aspects of impact of leadership in organizations are ana lytically presented using relevant academic studies. 2. Impact of leadership in organizational performance – literature review 2.1 Can leadership impact organizational performance? Udoh and Agu (2012) have investigated the potential influence of two specific types of leadership, the transformational and the transactional leadership, in organizations operating in the manufacturing industry of Nigeria. The workers of three organizations operating in the particular industry have been asked to participate in the survey. A total of 286 workers have accepted to state their view in regard to the issues explored through the particular study. It should be noted that workers at different level of the organizational hierarchy have participated in the study, aiming to secure the study’s credibility. The responses of the participants indicated a close relationship between the two leadership styles, i.e. the transformational and the transactional leadership, and organizational perfo rmance (Udoh and Agu 2012). The importance of the above study can be identified at this point: the study of Udoh and Agu (2012) shows that, even if based on different approaches for enhancing employee performance, the transformational and the transactional leadership are equally powerful in securing high employee performance. On the other hand, for Boerner, Eisenbeiss and Griesser (2007) transformational leadership is more likely to boost organizational performance, compared to transactional leadership. The above researchers used both the literature review and the empirical research in order to check the impact of transformational leadership and organizational performance. The review of the literature related to this issue revealed that transformational leadership can enhance employee performance by focusing on the relationship between the leader and employees (Boerner, Eisenbeiss and Griesser 2007). Indeed, it seems that through transformational leadership ‘trust, agreement o n values and self efficacy’ (Boerner, Eisenbeiss and Griesser 2007, p.15) help employees to keep their performance at high levels, a fact that positively affects organizational performance. When the effectiveness of transactional lea

Counterterrorism and Public Perception Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Counterterrorism and Public Perception - Essay Example Since the September 11 tragedy, the federal government of the U.S. has been on the watch out for any suspicious activities that may be a security threat to the state and the general public at large. This process of ensuring public and national security is sometimes made even harder in cases where the information is leaked or made available to the public. Presently, information sharing is handled by multiple sharing environments that are intended at serving a handful of agencies: defense, intelligence, foreign affairs, law enforcement and homeland security (Homeland Security Council, 2007). The role of the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) in the Federal Government is to analyze all information and intelligence related to terror activities and to provide support to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). This includes other agencies in the same field to fulfill their tasks to disseminate information that is related to terrorism (Homeland Security Council, 2007). Through a secure network, NCTC Online, the information is shared by NCTC and the whole federal community by producing comprehensive analytical products that are federally coordinated; thus the information reaches numerous users in the whole Federal Counterterrorism community. The Interagency Threat Assessment and Coordination Group formed within NCTC is aimed at facilitating the production of information related to terrorism that is federally coordinated with intention to disseminate it to the State, local, tribal and the private sector (Magumi, Wood, Mileti, and Bourque, 2008). In order to stop or warn about an impending terror attack, information has to be available about the action. According to Homeland Security Policy (2009), this type of information is usually gathered by the State, local and tribal government officials during their normal law enforcement duties. These governments perform their counterterrorism duties within a broader context

Central cities in urban areas have become places that contain a Essay

Central cities in urban areas have become places that contain a disproportionate number of both low income and well off households - Essay Example First is the presence of a rich variety of services and consumer goods like transport, internet, technology, restaurants, shopping malls, brands, theatres, physical settings like architectural beauty etc. Good public services like good schools/education and less crime are also linked up with urban growth. Further cities have marked a trend of improving technology day by day for transporting goods, people, and ideas. Keeping in view the above attributes of cities it is clear that these all factors have become needs of rich people and with the passage of time these have and will be increased with change in technology and modern era. Similarly on the other hand poor people outside the city are not blessed with the facilities available in cities. Being inspired by good transportation system, multiple/excessive employment opportunities and social services, poor have always migrated to central cities however this is not case of middle income. Major reason behind is that there is not much difference in the income level for the middle family as they are enjoying the same income either they are in city or outside city which has already been reflected in the census conducted in 2000. (Logan 2010) Public education plays a significant role in household sorting & suburb. Suburbs generally have lower crime rates and offer more public services of better quality than their urban counterparts, thus providing more benefits and advantages to their residents The main purpose of household sorting is to solve urban problems like poverty, crime, inadequate housing which are not spread that evenly throughout metro areas but are concentrated in some areas. Public education basically creates awareness among people who cannot differentiate between good & bad. In order to increase their standard of living education is the only tool which can help them to move out themselves from household

The Influence of Essentialst Attitudes Portrayed in the Modern Day Sitcom on the Views and Beliefs of Modern Society Essay Example for Free

The Influence of Essentialst Attitudes Portrayed in the Modern Day Sitcom on the Views and Beliefs of Modern Society Essay The Influence of Essentialst Attitudes Portrayed in the Modern Day Sitcom on the Views and Beliefs of Modern Society. Throughout its long history, the sitcom has been commonly understood to define the cultural norms of modern society through such comedy techniques as satire and irony. Like modern society, certain characteristics of the sitcom have evolved over time, while others have remained consistent. The evolution of the sitcom coincides with the generational shift in attitudes of society towards certain beliefs and values. So, it would seem that there must be some sort of correlation between the evolution of the sitcom and that of society, as if one is the cause of the other. * * While this can be safely said about the effect of society in shaping the structure of the sitcom, whether the modern sitcom has a significant effect on the views and beliefs of society is debatable. This essay will demonstration that, although the modern version of this genre contains essentialist themes and characters, it does not promote essentialism and therefore does not negatively influence society. From the fifties to the eighties, sitcoms have adhered to a rigid structure involving a live studio audience and certain unchanging characteristics that would define the genre. They also conveyed a very apparent moral code. In the 90’s, Seinfeld’s seemingly non-existent moral code would see it labeled by some as â€Å"apolitical or nihilisticâ€Å" (Gencarella 2005,390). However, even if these aspersions were true, it would not necessarily follow that the audience would agree with these moral values and thus accept them as normal behavior. In any case, Gencarella (2005) argues that, although the four main characters do show an extent of self-interest, their moral behavior does not reflect the teachings of the show. Issues of race, gender and politics are still addressed but are presented in a different way than they were ten to forty years ago. * The ingredients of a successful sit-com consistently involve strong, sometimes iconic characters, which often represent stereotypes. Recent sitcoms have challenged and broadened the idea of traditional stereotypes. For example, Gencarella (2005,394) argues that the four main characters of Seinfeld represent four distinct political stereotypes: the individualist, the hierarchical, the egalitarian, and the fatalist. The way these political stereotypes interact with each other and their community have no doubt contributed to the comicality and thus the success of the show. * Unlike the 2005 sit-com The Office (American version), Seinfeld does not consistently display essentialist traits in its characters. It conveys essentialist themes through satirical situations involving essentialism. This is none more evident than the following example (â€Å"The Yada Yada†), which Gencarella (2005,398) also uses to describe the egalitarian nature of Kramer: * Jerry: Those people can be so touchy. * Kramer:â€Å"Those people. † Listen to yourself. * Jerry: What? * Kramer: You think that dentists are so different from me and you? * They come to this country just like everybody else in search of a dream! * Jerry: Kramer, he’s just a dentist. * Kramer:Yeah, and you’re an anti-dentite! * Jerry: I am not an anti-dentite! * Kramer:You’re a rabid anti-dentite! Oh, it starts with a few jokes and some slurs – â€Å"Hey denty! † Next thing you know you’re saying they should have their own schools! * Jerry: They do have their own schools! Jerry Seinfeld is clearly representing an essentialist point of view towards dentists. The absurdity of the situation, however, entails that this essentialist view is not being endorsed; rather it is being exposed in a ludicrous fashion. It shows the absurdity of prejudice and racism. This draws comparisons, as Detweiler (2012,730) explains, to Randy Newman’s defense of his controversial song Short People. The song criticises short people in an essentialist manner, describing them as having small voices and little beady eyes. Randy Newman explains, â€Å"that by choosing an object of prejudice so absurd, he might expose the absurdity of all prejudice†¦Ã¢â‚¬  * In the case of The Office (American version), Michael Scott is blatantly and shockingly racist, sexist and prejudice. The perception that the audience recognizes this view as essentialist, which is the basis of its humor, reinforces the idea that the text does not endorse this kind of behavior. As Detweiler (2012,730) describes, this is further broadcast by the occasional ironic facial expressions, to camera, of Michaels Scott’s colleague, Jim Halpert. Through the clever use of irony it sets an example of how not to act. * Due to the satirical and ironic nature of the sit-com, the question of whether the inclusion of stereotypes and essentialist views warrant a critique as a conclusively essentialist text depends solely on the audience’s interpretation of the text. The writer’s intention here is irrelevant.

A Short Review of Walden Essay Example for Free

A Short Review of Walden Essay Walden is a book written by Henry David Thoreau, published in 1854. He is an American writer and naturalist who left his family and lived in solitude. He lived a simple life during his two-year stay and only received a few visitors because he spent most of his days thinking and observing nature and working on his essays. In his book, he explains why he sought refuge from society. I like what he says about life, that we must live the most out it. No matter how mean life is we should not shun it and call hard names because life is not as bad as we think it is. I like his emphasis on how to cherish life despite its imperfection. I agree that there really is more to life than richness. Despite how poor you may be, people should still call it life because even in the slums life is more than what we see. In the first chapter of the book, Thoreau identified the major problem, which is how the acquisition of material goods may consume your life. In one of his passages, he stated that, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived, which means that he want to live out his life. It is an irony. I also got confused when he kept on encouraging on living life to the fullest when he himself is trying to avoid the specific lifestyle he does not even make a genuine effort to try his ideas and follow his own advice. However, I noticed some bitterness in his work. He encourages his readers to welcome change but he seemed much laid back in things such as not trying to improve oneself either in the physical appearance such as the clothing he wore and even not socializing and meeting many friends. I think he is attempting to rearrange society and he sound more like doing a religious talk, a sermon. In Walden, Thoreau keeps emphasizing the importance of nature and his view of materialism as a force damaging the human spirit. I think his ideas are brilliant, very close to reality. It points to the very core of our society’s problem. In Walden, Thoreau believed the major problem only exist in his time when the problem of materialism grew until these days. The acquisition of material goods puts you to an addiction that only you can get away with. We all must apply his ideas on our lives. I believe that it is best if we put importance on spirituality over materialism. Although, we cannot avoid this modern society from upgrading so fast but we can stop and control ourselves from being consumed by all of those. I think it is wiser to be conscious and be aware of how materialism could affect our spirituality. It is like a parasite dwelling on us, consuming our spirit and without us knowing we left with nothing but scarred soul. His ideas can very helpful to us by starting on ourselves. By applying the system to our lives and putting spiritual above the material. We are all responsible of our own destiny that is why we must be logical about our actions. That is why sometimes we need to give ourselves a time alone, a time away from the busy life, and just be alone in a place where we could reflect helps us clear our minds from negative notions. It is a way of challenging ourselves if we could resist the temptation of life from reach for something not very necessary for survival and if we could resist the temptation of luxury and greed, is a called a test. Who ever dares to take the test of simple living, lives a life of happiness and contentment. Work Cited Thoreau, Henry David. Walden and Resistance to Civil Government. Rossi, William, ed. New York: W. W. Norton Company, 1992.

Replication of the Stroop Effect

Replication of the Stroop Effect Abdus Azad Abstract This experiment is a replication of the Stroop effect, in which you are supposed to identify colors, where colors are in different texts. Also the name of the word when in different colors. There was one experimenter and the participants were 20 (15 females, 5 males) Hunter College Psychology 250 students. The age ranged from 19-32 with a mean age of 23.5. The Experimenter tested the participant’s in two effects and three conditions. In one effect they were to identify the word, in three conditions congruent (matching the color), incongruent (different color), and control (neutral black text). In another effect the students were tasked with identifying the color in three conditions, congruent (same color matched), incongruent (different text), and control (neutral black text). We hypothesized there will be an increase in the mean time when participants are tested in the incongruent conditions due to interference. Using a one-way repeated measures ANOVA the result of this study found that there is a significant difference in incongruent condition when participants were tasked to name the color F (1.554, 23.32) = 7.434, p= 0.0055. Using a second one-way ANOVA for naming words, the results showed no significance F (1.845, 27.68) = 0.1289, p= 0.8642. A Replication of The Stroop Effect When we focus our attention to do one task, this is called selective attention. This means to exclude any other stimuli which may cause distraction. While on the other hand divided attention is when we have the ability to divide our attention to a few tasks, sometimes while doing these tasks, it may become an automatic process which makes dividing your attention between these two tasks much easier. Automatic processing, is when you cannot control your thought process, it can be thought as implicit thinking, in other words thinking that may occur unconsciously. Automatic processing may not always be helpful, you may have conflict with automatic and controlled processing. The Stroop Effect tested how these processes worked. James McKeen Cattell (1886) had originally conducted research and found that objects and colors when compared to their corresponding words, took longer to speak aloud. He knew there was an interference with automatic and controlled processing. Even though he had already made this connection, Ridley Stroop (1935) is more recognized for work with color and words. Stroop in his experiment had used six colors and did three different experiments. The experiment’s consisted of participants reading lists of colors, on one list color was written in black, and on the other list was color written in different colored inks. They were supposed to identify the color of the words and also timed. The other experiments that he did was similar involving shapes. The way Cattell and Stroop’s research differs is that Cattell ha d concluded there was an interference between automatic and controlled processing, while Stroop’s research was more about developing an understanding as to why this interference is occurring. In Stroop’s article â€Å"Studies of Interference in Serial Verbal Reactions† he had concluded that your mind can automatically decide the semantic meaning of a word, hence when the color matched the word the time it took to figure out the color was much quicker vs when the colors did not match the word. Further replications of the Stroop test were performed, J.D. Dunbar and C.M. McLeod’s (1990) replication like Stroop also consisted of a congruent condition (words with the same color as the text) and incongruent conditions (colors don’t match the word text). They also added a control condition, the words were in a neutral color. Flowers, Warner, and Polansky (1979) did a variation of Dunbar and MacLeod’s Stroop test. They used rows numbers, the number was the same in each row and they asked the participants to determine how many numbers were in the rows. The findings by both Danbar, McLeod (1990) and Flowers, Warner, Polansky (1979) showed there was a noticeable gap in time and errors made in the incongruent condition compared to the control and congruent conditions. With their replications, we can conclude that participants in the incongruent group take more time identifying the color and made more errors Haely (1994) spoke of further research on automatic processing. An experiment was conducted on how we process words that we use frequently, words like â€Å"of†, â€Å"the†, etc. It showed that participants found it harder to focus on the individual letters of the words. She gave the participants some English text to read and asked them to circle every letter â€Å"t† that they saw. The findings showed that participants frequently missed letters that were in more common words, words like â€Å"the†, â€Å"then†, etc. When it came to less used words they were able to more easily identify it. These findings showed how we automatically process words. Words that are commonly used daily, when reading them, we see a whole entity, instead of the individual components. This way our brain automatically reads words further supports Stroop’s findings. In our experiment we will attempt to do a modified replication of Stroop’s experiment to see how our results correspond to his. We will have two groups one will be to Name The Color, and the other to Name The Word. Our null hypothesis is that there will be no significance mean difference in time recorded for participants in congruent and incongruent groups from the control group. The alternative hypothesis for our experiment is that the time recorded for participants in the incongruent groups will be significantly more. From the many studies done on Stroop Interference, mostly all suggesting that the incongruent group will take more time to identify the color or word due to Stroop Interference, this is where our alternative hypothesis has come from. Method Participants The participants of this study were all Hunter College students. There were 5 males and 15 females, ages from 19-32 (M=23.50, SD=3.80). 10 of the participants spoke English as a second language. The hours of sleep the participants had varied from 4 -7 hours (M=5.36, SD=1.02). Only one participant had reported vision problems. Ethnicity and socioeconomic status were not taken into consideration. All of the students who participated were from the Psychology 250, class that meets on Mondays Thursdays from 8:00 am to 11:20 AM. The participants will all be compensated in the form of a letter grade from the professor. Materials The testing was taken on a consisting of three conditions. Control (color of word written in black text), congruent (word was written in same color), and incongruent (color of word was different from text), the time it took to answer was recorded by the computer. The results were displayed on the screen and were written on paper with a pen or pencil. The students transferred their results into a shared excel data table which was uploaded on Blackboard. The participants completed the test in a computer lab using computers. Procedure There was informed consent and the students were briefed on the experiment with no deception. The students were all presented with the same instructions. We conducted a within subjects design, to select the order of the participants a counterbalancing method was used to avoid possible sequence effects. Each participant was assigned a number from 1-6. Depending on your assigned number you would start with a different condition. 8 participants started with the Control, 6 participants started with the congruent, and the remaining 6 started with the incongruent condition. 3 participants were chosen at a time and went took the experiment on different computers in three different rooms. Once in the room the participant closed the door, and started with the assigned condition. There was two effects, in one the participant was required to Name The Word, and the other the participant was supposed to Name The Color. Each effect had three conditions. The control condition was black colored text displaying a color. The congruent condition had both had a text corresponding to the color. The incongruent condition had a text of a color displayed in a different color. Words would display and the user was required to click the answer as quickly as possible, after one condition was completed they moved on to the next. After a participant was complete another participant shortly followed to the empty computer following the sequence previously mentioned. We chose to exclude any extreme values from our data any person with values  ± 2.0 SD from the mean Results When the participants were required to Name The Word, in the control condition the mean score and standard deviation was (M=1494.89, SD= 314.19), in the incongruent condition the mean score and standard deviation was (M=1545.93, SD=283.30, and in the congruent condition the mean score and standard deviation was (M=1483.74, SD= 264.03) see Figure 1. In the second effect when the participants were required to Name The Color, in the control condition the mean score and standard deviation was (M=1661.22, SD=248.22), in the incongruent condition the mean score and standard deviation-n was (M=17.63.41, SD=416.93), and in the congruent condition the mean score and standard deviation was (M=1400.78, SD=454.59) see Figure 2 . A one way repeated measures ANOVA was conducted twice once to test Name The Color and another to test Name The Word. It was found there was significance difference in mean time for Name The Color group F (1.554, 23.32) = 7.434, p= 0.0055, the post hoc analysis shows inco ngruent had a significant mean time slower at (p p= 0.8642. Our hypothesis was partially correct, our results show that when naming color there is a significant delay in the incongruent condition. While when naming the word there is no significance. Discussion The aim of this study was to do a modified replication of the Stroop effect. We hypothesized that participants would have an increase in interference with more complex tasks. In other words, the mean reaction time will be significantly higher between the incongruent conditions. The results proved our hypothesis partially correct, which was that participants would have an increase in mean time in the incongruent condition. In other words, the mean reaction time will be significantly higher in Naming The Color and Naming The Word incongruent conditions. Our result found significance when participants saw words with different colors and they were required to name the color. There was no significance when they were required to name the word. The findings were somewhat inconsistent with our hypothesis because other previous studies also showed that when the word conflicts with the ink color, people are slower to respond and they are faster if the word agrees with the ink color, (Cohen, Dunbar, McClelland, 1990). So, previous studies agree with our results. Our findings were consistent with the first and second experiment, which was done by Stroop (1935). Our results agree with Stroop’s study because in both studies tested participants in different conditions and the conditions were counterbalanced to avoid order affects. Stroop had found a delay in his second experiment when the color was supposed to be named with different words, and no significant delay in the first experiment. Our replication yielded similar results. In both studies, participants had a task of naming words of colors which were written in a different color (incongruent) and then also naming neutral words (control). Since previous research had already explained that when a word complements its ink color, it leads to the processing of naming the word and the color together and if the color and the word are different it takes a longer time of reaction or response, (Cohen, Dunbar, McClelland, 1990), we can conclude that both studies would have similar findings. Our result was also consistent with the second study done by Algom, Eidels, and Townsend et al. (2009) which found that when a participant is given the task of naming color words that are printed in color, they report the ink color faster if that color word is the name of the color rather than the name of a different color. By doing this study we were able to see that when faced with two tasks at the same time our brain responds to the immediate visible one. So, when we see the word blue written in the color green, we automatically are triggered to name the word, which is blue because that is processed in our brain first. However, if we are told to say the name of the color that the word is written in, like blue written in green, it takes a longer time because now the brain has to overcome the first step in automatically just recognizing the word, we have to voluntarily pay attention to the word and it’s incongruent color to name just the color of the word, which takes a longer time, as explained by Cattell (1886), Posner and Snyder (1975), Shiffrin and Schneider (1977) in their studies. Some limitations of this study was that the sample size was too small (N=20) so it was not representative of the larger population. There is a biased sample, the age group of the participants is fairly narrow. So the results obtained would not be acceptable to generalize the whole population. With a larger sample, the results may have varied. Also, the experiment was done too early in the morning when people are usually tired, sleepy, moody or hungry. So, their moods can have a great effect in how much time they take when testing in the three different conditions. And since, condition 3 took more attention and concentration, certain moods or hunger could have affected their concentration. Future studies should examine look at Stroop test in regards to color and shape.in color-object naming instead of just color-word naming to see if our brain works the same way for both tasks. The sample size should be much larger and there should be more variability. Also, gender should be divided equally because in our study, there were 9 females and only 3 males. Also, future studies should do the Stroop task with other different age groups and compare how one age group’s mean reaction time is different from that of a younger or older age group. References Cattell, J. M. (1886). The time it takes to see and name objects. Mind,  11, 63-65.85). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Cohen, J., Dunbar, K., and McClelland, J. (1990). On the Control of Automatic  Processes: A Parallel Distributed Processing Account of the Stroop Effect. Psychological Review, 97 (3) 332-361. Retrieved from www.psych.stanford.edu/~jlm/papers/CohenDunbarMcC90.pdf. Eidels, A., Townsend, J., Algom, D. (2009). Comparing perception of stroop stimuli infocused versus divided attention paradigms: Evidence for dramatic processing differences Cognition, doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2009.08.008. Flowers, J.H., Warner, J.L., Polansky, M.L. (1979). Response and encoding factors in ignoring irrelevant information.Memory Cognition, 7,86-94 Healy, A. (1994). Letter detection: A window to unitization and other cognitive processes in reading text. Psychonomic Bulletin Review, 3, 333-334 Shiffrin, R. M., Schneider, W. (1977). Controlled and automatic human  information processing: II. Perceptual learning, automatic attending,  and a general theory. Psychological Review, 84, 127-190. Stroop, J. R. (1935). Studies of interference in serial verbal reactions. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 12, 643-662. Figure1. -. The control condition the mean score and standard deviation was (M=1494.89, SD= 314.19), in the incongruent condition the mean score and standard deviation was (M=1545.93, SD=283.30, and in the congruent condition the mean score and standard deviation was (M=1483.74, SD= 264.03). The bars represent SD from the mean Figure 2.- The control condition the mean score and standard deviation was (M=1661.22, SD=248.22), in the incongruent condition the mean score and standard deviation-n was (M=17.63.41, SD=416.93), and in the congruent condition the mean score and standard deviation was (M=1400.78, SD=454.59). The â€Å"**† represents a p