Game theory in setting quantity oligopoly Essay

           Game theory is a formal study of conflict and cooperation in economics. In fact, it is usually concerned with predicting the real outcome of the games of strategy where the potential individuals have incomplete awareness about the others’ plans. The game theoretic concepts usually apply whenever the actions of several agents are interdependent. Probably, these agents are either, groups, individuals or firms. The concepts of game theory give a language to prepare a structure, analyze, and comprehend deliberate scenarios.          Game theory has straight relevance to the study conduct of the venture as well as the performance of the firms in oligopolistic markets. A good approach is the decisions that companies takeover pricing and levels of production. Also, how much money needs to be invested in research and development expenditure (Binmore, 1993).          Oligopoly is a type of imperfectly competitive markets. It has only a few sellers, provide a related or identical product to the buyers in the market. Collusion in economics is simply an agreement of two or more firms with an aim to exclude a couple of competing companies in the market so that may obtain high profits. It is clearly that competition in the oligopolistic markets reduces accelerating the performance of that collusion. For that reason many firms quit the marketing operations enhancing profitability to the relating competitors hence deteriorating their economic decisions. This results to complete dissolution of the firms. The output of the collusion increases since most of the firms have quit the market; others loosen their momentum to adhere to the upcoming changes launched in by the oligopolistic markets (Mertens, 1994). As a matter of fact, this becomes advantageous to the remaining firms in the market (Thomas, 2003).             It is noted that collusion is a characteristic trait of oligopolistic firms. Stiff competition and interdependent decision-making encourage oligopolistic firms to cooperate. In fact, one way to lessen the oligopolistic rival is joined together and meets targeted forces forming collusion. There are two main types of collisions in an oligopolistic market. Exclusively, include explicit collusion and implicit collusion. Explicit collusion is a type of collusion which has more two than firms in the same industry. It is formally agreed to control the market force on their own way whereas implicit collusion also more than two firms in the same business but informally they have the similar outlook in the market, habitually with nothing more than interdependent (Binmore, 1993).The price collusion is a form of criminal offense since several firms work as a team so as to keep the price of commodity high with an aim to receive huge income. The relating firms involved necessar ily try to chase out their competitor. History and impact of game theory          In 19th century, game theory was first discovered by one of the early inventors. Consequently, in 1838, the first publication was done by Antoine Cornet. In broad spectrum, he came up with well-formulated researchers on the Mathematical Principles of this kind of theory basing on wealth. He went further to illustrate more on the principles of the publication relating to the game theory. Notably, he tried to explain the underlying rules constituting the actual behavior of the duopoly in the discipline. Even though this publication was associated with the theory of Games and Economics character in 1944, it had the latest principles of game theory that were formulated in it. The game theory has been greatly applied to the behavior of producers with few or one competitor. This perspective of the game theory was conceived by Von Neumann in 19th century.          In macroeconomics, oligopolistic markets are characterized by a few, large firms and its differences from the other market structures as stated above. It is noted that more competitive markets in the firms are of smaller size and its firm’s behavior have slight or no effect on its close competitors. Besides this oligopoly markets changes its output, enlarge into a new market, provides modern services and even advertize. This will have a consequential impact on the market competitors, therefore, increasing the profitability. This enhances more power in the market operation hence deviating losses had to be encountered. For this reason, the firms in oligopolistic markets are always considering the act of their competitors when implementing their economic decisions. The oligopolistic owners strictly tackle any leakages in their market so that they may attain their set goals and formulated objectives. Information exchange in collusion         In broad spectrum, information is an essential tool in planning to come up with mature and complete mechanization of the involving firms. Basing this argument on the game theory, it is realized that in decision making, information is significantly employed. For that reason, a successful collusion in the oligopoly market has sophisticated means on how to underlie its perspectives in a manner that no rival firm come to know. Therefore, crude ideas empower any collusion with a vision to reduce their competitors in the market. Advances in economic theory have enabled the economists to set competitive distinctions between different types of information exchanged between the firms. The required beneficial effect on the consumers and potential side-effects for competition depend on the nature and characteristic of the information that exchanged and also the type of competition in the market. Therefore, it should be known that firm owns the secret in the industry such as firmâ €™s prices, sales, cost demand and other parameters.According to game theory, the competitors are not supposed to get any of this secretive information. Competition authorities are strictly suspicious when information is conveyed especially about prices and quantities because this information is normally significant for monitoring deviations from collusive arrangements and hence empowering collusion. Mostly exchange of information on the cost and demand is seen in another dimension and more favorably. However, information about the prices and quantities is used to convey information about the cost or demand in collusion. For instance, when the firms share information on the past or current prices and quantities inform other players about the demand in the market. This enables their rivals to obtain inferences on how to predict the future period which is against the game theory. Notably, this will weaken their collusion that later on begins to deteriorate in their existence in th e market. As a matter of fact, demand and cost information is useful since is the central element for predicting future demand.               Effective collusion needs good coordination that is well supported by the exchange of information about their plans. This monitors the performance of the collusion in some days to come. In so doing, their rivals will be unable to out-compete them. They become prominent in the market achieving their set goals and objectives. The aggregated information determines whether the collusion will succeed or not. This depends on how the decision making is done. The aggregated information means anonymous or individualized information. Probably, such information may be valuable to the firms. Therefore, it is necessary to know who or where a certain estimate has been made or whether it is enough to comprehend the private signals in the entire industry. In addition, information can be either private or public. The effects of information exchange extremely differ depending on whether the information is made public or kept private, especially in the industry that exchange inf ormation. The game theory does not support exposure of the firm’s intentions. Definitely, they try it, their rival players will come up with the newest perspectives to out-compete them. Therefore, this should be done privately for future success (Thomas, 2003).          It realized that if the information does not give rise to competition distress it will be definitely positive to welfare. Indeed, the usefulness from information exchange is large compared to its demerits. There are quite number of the ways in which information exchange is useful in the welfare. Information exchange is a great part of the discovery mechanism in the industry economy. This implies that through exchange of information in between the formed collusion encourages expansion of the market economy. It also improves investment decision and organization learning. It is only through information where collusion members come up with complete ideas to uplift their set goals. Information exchange also results to output adjustments and lowering search costs in the firm. In the world, information is really required about the demands and rival activities. Notably, the firms would have to become accustomed to the changing circumstances by a trial and error process. Inform ation exchange is a great tool in playing the role of uplifting market economy in collusion hence output in the firms. Impact of rational behavior in collusion            Rationality is one way of decision-making practice wherein a firm exercises prudent choice making that gives it a maximum amount of benefit. Rational behavior usually facilitates decision making that is not productive in collusion. But it only strives to achieve benefits that are mostly achievable in nature. This usefulness can be either monetary or non-monetary. The word monetary stands for finance activities whereas non-monetary is associated with non-financial activities in a company. Therefore, any successful firm considers the following perspectives. This kind of decision making may not possible return materially to the firms at that moment on (Chatterjee, 2014). Therefore, rational choice theory is an economic principle. It states that firms make prudent and logical decisions so as to attain a complete satisfaction in the firm due to its abundant benefits.            The output of collusion increases over time due to changes made in by the decision makers. The identified plans that based on rational behavior usually alter operation of oligopolistic market. Operations may greatly expand performance of the company undermining its valuable transactions. When the collusion need to uplift its operation have to be economical on the way do operate their activities so that can observe a slight differences. Notably, some measures need to be employed to overcome its competition from its rivals. The firms recruit innovative and competent staffs to invest great fortune in the organization.            Competent economists formulate ideas flourishing functionality of the collusion hence uplifting profits, quantity, and its dignity. This shows how game theory is significantly applied in the oligopolistic market basing on the rational behavior. It is preferably considered as a means of competition through decision making. This scares rival players in the market such that are unable to operate their firms. Due to this condition, many firms in the markets are readily to be dissolved. The cause of this is just continuous losses experienced on every end fiscal year resulting to dissolution.             According to game theory, rational behavior is greatly a crucial tool required to make decisions that are needed to eliminate relating firms in the market. Most importantly, competing firms’ quantity reduces as well as its income accelerates due to well-played game theory in the oligopolistic market. Mainly rationality has a positive impact to the prudent collusion. Therefore, game theory is correlated to rationality behavior as far as decision making is concern in an oligopolistic market as mentioned earlier. Only that rational behavior is conditions suitable for accomplishing this specified theory (Mertens, 1994). Even though, participating firms can employ it, frequently is determined by competency of the collusion. Impact of time horizon in the collusion             In economics, time horizon is also referred to as a planning horizon, is a fixed point of time in the future at which some activities will be evaluated. It is noted that is specified a time when all planned activities or processes are supposed to terminate. Therefore, time horizon is a vital condition to any successful stakeholders. It enhances a strict time layout on how to operate your business transactions before targeted deadline. This minimizes time wastage and considers it as a significant factor in implementing business laws. Actually, the set objectives and underlain goals, with the cooperation of competent experts in business, are easily achieved. Time horizon has optimum benefits to those who put it into consideration.             Collusions have unique pathways on how they operate their organizational activities. Additions to that have business ethics for guiding set goals to reach its financial year and attain them. For a successful collusion, time horizon is much in demand to eradicate other firms out of the market. Especially, it needs strictness so that the set firm’s goal is accomplished on reaching time horizon. It confers bright future to competing firms enhancing increased output in the collusion. Time horizon sharpens performance of the most firms with an aim to make more profits in their organizations. Similarly, time horizon is a beneficial condition on practicing game theory in an oligopolistic market. It creates immense difference in the industry. The time horizon can be a month, a week or a year depending on the decision of the firm (Mertens, 1994).Broadly, time horizon is a viable and secret â€Å"tool† that empowers collusion to diminish performance of its riv als in the industry. Eventually, it becomes determinant condition in collusion leading the business to enjoy huge profits and crude output. Collusion lowers its products’ price encouraging more sales whereas its rivals remain constant to the initial price. Cost is usually lower hence encouraging more sales due to high demand. The collusion stagnates in the same price until time horizon comes. At that planning horizon, several firms would have left the industry enabling collusion with uncompetitive environment to work on (Chatterjee, 2014). Conclusion             In broad spectrum, game theory deals with decision making that reinforce competition perspectives in the market. It is kind of a game whereby participating individuals hide their intentions purposely to win over the other. In this case, information, rationality, and time horizon are determinant conditions that boost succession of collusion in an oligopolistic market. It signifies that to acquire viable benefits in the market has to employ well-formulated conditions.Therefore, cost, demand, and quantity differ from relating firms in the industry. Strictly, collusion tries to lower its prices with an aim to increase its output and eliminate the number of firms in the industry. Similarly, quantity in the industry increases with increased prices from other firms. Due to that reason number of consumers in those firms reduces joining newly formed collusion. This enforces rivals to reduce its prices of their products leading to uncountable losses hence leading to collaps ing of many firms. The collusion succeeds its target of eliminating other firms from the industry henceforth starts enjoying oligopolistic benefits including profits. Reference Binmore, K. (1993). Frontiers of game theory. Cambridge, Mass. [u.a.: MIT Press Telser, L. G. (1971). Competition, collusion, and game theory. London: Macmillan. Chatterjee, K., & Samuelson, W. (2014). Game theory and business applications. New York: Springer. Mertens, J.-F., & NATO Advanced Study Institute on ‘Game-Theoretic Methods in Economic Equilibrium Analysis’. (1994). Game theoretic methods in general equilibrium analysis: [proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute on Game Theoretic Methods in General Equilibrium Analysis, Long Island, NY USA, July 1 – 12, 1991]. Dordrecht [u.a.: Kluwer. Thomas, L. C. (2003). Games, theory and applications.Voigt, S., & Schmidt, A. (2005). Making European merger policy more predictable. Dordrecht: Springer. Source document

My Summer Narrative Essay Essay

Narrative Essay It was a hot summer day in the year 2002 when I went camping with my family in Savannah, Georgia. I will never forget this day because it’s the day I learned the lesson that if I don’t obey my parents the consequences will be large. I was only about six years old when we first pulled into the campground. Of course being a young child the first thing I noticed was this extravagant playground out near the road. When me and my sister, Natalie who was around seven at this time, saw it we both looked at each other and knew we were going to go play on that playground. We pulled into our campsite that was located near the very back of the park and our parents started unpacking everything and setting up the motorhome. They were making it obvious they wanted us out of their way. They grabbed our dolls, bikes and chalk out of the car and told us to go play. Natalie and I knew this was the perfect time to go play on the playground that we saw on our way in. It just so happened there was a playground right by our campsite as well. We came up with the perfect plan. We would tell our parents we were going to go play on the playground and trick into them into thinking we meant the one right near our campsite. In reality we planned on going to the big one near the front of the campground and not have to lie in the process. So we grabbed our bikes and asked our parents if we could ride over to the playground and play. They both said yes, so we rode off towards what we thought was the most beautiful playground we’ve ever saw. It was probably about a fifteen minute bike ride for us to get there. We dropped our bikes and ran to the playground and started playing. About a half hour passed when my sister Natalie decided she had to use the restroom. So she went around to the other side of the playground away from the road and decided to go. By this point we noticed there was this blue truck that drove past a few times while we were there. We began to get a little scared and thought maybe we should start going back to the camper. No sooner than we got back on our bikes our mom and dad came driving up with anger in their eyes. Me and Natalie knew we were about to be in some big trouble. Just as my parents got out of the car the man in the blue truck stopped and walked over. He started reprimanding my parents and told them they can’t let their kids run around without any supervision. He also said he was the manager and told my parents Natalie sed the restroom right out in the open. My parents apologized to the man and then made us apologize as well. The manager accepted our apology and told us we weren’t allowed back on that particular playground for the rest of our stay. By this point my our parents were livid and gave me and Natalie a 10 minute lecture about the dangers of them not knowing where we were and not being able to see us. They grabbed us and our bikes and we headed back to the campsite. When we got back they took all our toys and our bikes and we were told we weren’t allowed to join any of the activities the rest of the week. That week my family went swimming, horse back riding and hiking. Natalie and I didn’t get to do any of it and our siblings made sure they told us after every activity how fun it was. It was a time I’ll never forgot. It seems everything seems so much more traumatic when you are young. I learned the lesson that I should obey my parents even if I don’t necessarily want to. I’m not saying there aren’t times I don’t go against their will; but ever since that day I think to myself and analyze if the rule that I am about to break is worth the consequences I’ll have to pay if I get caught.

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Law Commission - Essay Example It may be stated that while legal entitlement may not be as clear cut in a cohabitation agreement as they are in a marital relationship, many of the same issues occur in both types of relationships. Since it is largely women who are the primary caretakers and providers of non financial components of a partnership, their interests cannot be ignored. Unless some of the marital provisions on divorce and inheritance of property are also enforced in cohabitation relationships, inequity will be generated, because such a relationship will provide further incentive for economically stronger cohabiting partners to derive the benefits of support from their partner without making financial provision as would be legally required in a marriage, thereby providing an undue advantage to one party at the expense of the other. Therefore in conclusion, the Law Commission’s proposal to introduce a fresh scheme for financial relief for cohabitees is to be welcomed, however care must be taken to ensure that the rights of the weaker partners are preserved in allocating financial relief on disposition of property. Moreover, couples without children must also be included within the scope of relief to be provided under the new schemes for cohabitees.

Certificate IV in Credit Management (FNS40111) project Essay

Certificate IV in Credit Management (FNS40111) project - Essay Example Research these sites to identify similar products to the ones you have listed and their features. The available home loans in Commonwealth Bank include Standard Variable Rate Home Loan, No Fee Variable Rate Home Loan, Fixed Rate Home Loan, Veridian Line of Credit, Introductory Rate Home Loan, Equity Unlock, Customize with loan add-ons, and Investment loan options. RAMS Home Loans offers to types of loans: Fixed Rate Home Loan and Full feature Home Loan. Loans available in ANZ include Simplicity PLUS Home Loan, ANZ Variable Rate Home Loan, ANZ Fixed Rate Home Loan, ANZ Breakfree Home Loan Package. Commonwealth Bank differs with other Australian banks since it has a unique twist to the types of loans offered. ANZ’s personal loans include Variable Rate Personal Loan, Fixed Rate Personal Loan, ANZ Car Loans, ANZ Overdrafts, and Debt Consolidation. Commonwealth Bank has four types of personal loans: Fixed Rate Loan, Variable Rate Loan, Secured Car Loan, and Personal Overdrafts. RAMS does not give direct personal loans since it receives much of its funding for home loans from Westpac Bank Community. Therefore, the personal loans under Westpac will apply. Westpac offers 3 types of personal loans: Westpac Flexi Loan, Westpac Unsecured Personal Loan, and Westpac Secured Personal Loan. From the banks listed above, ANZ offers sacral options of personal loans. In the Credit Card category, ANZ offers products such as Low Rate, Low Fee, Rewards, Frequent Flyer, Prepaid Cards, Business cards, and Debit Cards. Commonwealth Bank has credit offers such as Low Rate, Low Fee, Awards and Small Businesses. In total, there are 9 choices of credit cards to be chosen from. Credit cards in Westpac include Low Rate, 55 Day Credit Card, Earth Platinum Credit Card, Singapore Airlines Westpac Platinum, Earth Credit Card, Altitude Card, 55 Day Platinum Credit Card, Altitude Business Gold Credit Card, and GM Holden MasterCard. From the options above, Westpac has the most

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Proposal - Assignment Example In this regard, this proposal is requesting for a grant to introduce an instruction software, which will easy the work of teachers and enhance the learning process of students using an innovative software, such as the Drill-and-Practice Software. The Drill-and-Practice software offers exercises that allow students to work using examples, one at a time and they receive the feedback immediately, informing them whether they are correct or not. The effective feedback model of the instruction software will allow students to gain quality comprehension of what they will be learning. It will also offer students the technological instruments for exploring the topic they are learning. If appropriately implemented, the program will help teachers comprehend the areas that their students have difficulties, meaning that the relationship between the teacher-students will enhance (Roblyer & Doering, 2013). The teacher will direct the students on the right way to study and comprehend the subject under study. The Drill-and-Practice instruction software has proven to be effective and the outcomes are seen on the deeper comprehension of the topics of study among the students, who will also show tremendous enthusiasm. In addition, the instructio n software will guarantee that students will be more interactive with other innovative utilizations of technology. The Department of Enhancing Educational Through Technology (EETT) offered the class the software grant of $10,000, which will b utilize to enhance the learning process of the students. The Drill-and-Practice instruction software is more of a self-study, whereby students carry out a number of exercises on the topics they have studied. The flash-card activity is the type of drill-and-practice instruction software that will be implemented in the classroom. The students will test

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Against super PACs - Essay Example The next presidential election will be one like no one has ever seen before in terms of campaign funding and expenses. Even now, the GOP Presidential Primary races are already showing signs of how money will not be an object for their presidential candidate. This paper will delve into the committee's history and the reasons behind the public outcry against the existence of Super PACs. A Super PAC is an independent - expenditure only committee that has the legal power to raise unlimited sums of money in campaign contributions from individuals, corporations, unions, and other (lobbyist) groups. The committee was the result of a landmark Supreme Court Decision (Citizens United vs. Federal Election Committee) that dictated that campaign contributions to third party groups cannot be limited. The term Super PAC can be attributed to Eliza Newlin Carney, a reporter who worked for CQ Roll Call. She was the first person to have used the term Super PACs in the context of the word definition (We theimer, â€Å"Citizens United and Contributions to Super PACs: A Little History Is in Order†). Although Super PACs were not meant to openly support any single candidate, the committee has become a force to reckon with this campaign season. Its power and financial backing of particular candidates can be seen and felt in the negative ads that candidates like Mitt Romney have run, all amounting to tens of millions of dollars. That is one reason the public has come to reject the idea of the Super PACs. It has the turned the political campaign into a shallow, reality television, mud-slinging type of contest from which the candidates can never return. The ads being run in the newspapers, television, and radio stations cost these candidates and Super PACs money that could have been used for better political means such as contributions to charitable organizations by the candidates or their support groups on their behalf. That sort of act would have had a greater political impact upo n the voting public than an ad campaign explaining the ills of Newt Gingrich. Even more sickening, is the fact that most of the candidates will feign knowledge of participation in any negative campaign movements because of the independent nature of the Super PACs. The candidate can deny any involvement in the act all the while coordinating with his Super PAC under the radar of mass media. These negative campaigns leave the candidate free and clear of any involvement as all the Super PAC has to do is run the ad with a clear disclaimer absolving the candidate the ad supports of any wrong doing because the ad was not sanctioned by the candidate or political party. In other words, Super PACs gives a voice to people with money. All corporations that have money to give are giving millions and millions of dollars to the candidates across the board. Independent voters do not have that money to donate, so their candidates are not as prominent in terms of connecting with voters. Such is the e ffect of the Super PAC. It makes it seem like only certain candidates have a right to be in the political race because they are the ones with the (lobbyist group) backing and financing. However, ordinary citizens also find themselves scratching their heads in terms of wrapping their brains around the idea of a Super PAC not being a coordinated group founded by the political figure. Take for example the case of Newt Gingrich and the Winning Our Future group. Disclosures later in the campaign proved that he was the very person who founded the group and his close friend Becky Burkett worked for the group. His personal

Analyzing media-presented issues related to the nursing profession and Essay

Analyzing media-presented issues related to the nursing profession and nursing practice - Essay Example In March 2013, the ministry of health came up with an advertising campaign that which compared smoking with flatulence. The response of this advertisement is twofold, there is one group that supports it, arguing that it is effective in depicting smoking as an anti-social behavior. This is the stand that Hager (2013), an editor with the Ottawa Citizen. This is an online newsfeed that is only available via the internet. However, Quan (2013), an editor with the times news feed has a different opinion. According to her, the advert is ineffective in portraying smoking as an anti-social behavior. This is because flatulence is a normal activity among mammals. According to her, the advert encourages people to smoke because it portrays it as a normal behavior. This is because it uses the notion of flatulence. The third article that this paper analyzes is a journal article by Pechmann and Reibling (2000). This journal talks about how to create an effective anti-smoking advertisement campaign i n Canada, and the United States. It uses a case study approach in explaining the effective method of creating an advertisement campaign. Basing on that, this paper takes a stand that to create an effective anti-smoking advertisement; the creators of the advertisement must consider the age of the spokesman, the content of the message, and the manner in which the advertisers depict the behavior. Quan(2013) in her article argues against the use of flatulence in creating an anti-smoking advertisement campaign. According to her, flatulence is a normal biological process amongst mammals, and on this basis, equating smoking with flatulence sends a message that smoking is a normal social behavior. According to her, the intention of the advertisers was to denote that smoking is as embarrassing as engaging in a farting activity. This idea is wrong, and she denotes that there is nothing embarrassing with farting. She even further goes on to denote that even small children know that farting is a normal biological process. Quan (2013) describes the 53 seconds video advert. She denotes that the video depicts a young woman who admits that she farts at parties, but this does not make her a farter. According to Quan (2013), the intention of the advertisers was to denote that smoking is wrong, and it doesn’t matter where the act takes place. However, to her, the use of video in this campaign was ineffective, and therefore did not meet the objectives of the advertisers. Hager (2013) on the other hand does not agree with Quan. Hager denotes that the advertisement achieved its objective of depicting smoking as an anti-social behavior (2013). According to Hager, the target of the advertisement was people between the ages of 18 to 29. Hager denotes that farting is an embarrassing social behavior, and using this concept in the anti-smoking advertising campaign manages to give a message that smoking is an embarrassing and ridiculous social behavior. Hager (2013) further goes on to denote that the use of a young woman in the anti-smoking advertisement campaign is an effective method of reaching out to the young people. This is because they identify with her age. To support his opinion, Hager gives the number of views that the campaign got in the social media. He denotes that the advert got 36000 views within a week of its release. This to him is a proof that the advert was effective in sending out its message. Pechmann and Reibling (2000) on the other hand, in their Journal article describe how to create an

Some Issues of Global Finance Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

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Women and Child Welfare and Development Ministry Essay

Women and Child Welfare and Development Ministry - Essay Example A classic use of color technique has been significantly and vigorously applied in the dresses worn by the characters in the ad to demarcate between the sexes – male and female – in a distinctive manner. However, the simple but inappropriate words used in the ad are particularly catchy (the hook). The positioning (layout) of the parents on the sides with their daughter at the center portrays a protective and guidance role bestowed upon parents to the upbringing of their young ones. The relative sizes of the images in the ad are unequal. The parents are relatively taller than their daughter (placed at the center), perhaps to reinforce their positions as the center of admiration and modeling. The inclusive features of the ad authoritatively expose (purpose) to the parents/guardians (the target audience) the likely inflicted injury to young brains impacted by what they hear around them. Children, especially those at the age of school beginners, are usually very attentive to the happenings around them. As a matter of fact, parents/guardians become the initial locus of attention to their children before spreading their wings during later stages of development. Thus, whatever they do or say has the possibility of having a lasting impact in the life of a child.   Being the target audience, the inappropriate words in the ad are specifically associated with them – adults. Indeed as expected, the perceptiveness of a young mind is clearly at work: picking and retaining whatever crosses the ear into the brain (role of the text). Through the ad, a lad pours out what is in the mind: a clear indication that what is absorbed from the surrounding environment influences thoughts. Evidently, a child is not just a passive member of a family but an active partaker of what the environment offers (message). Without a doubt, the ad calls on the parents/guardians (message) to keep watch over their utterance to avoid imparting negative traits to those under their

Visual Art in Greek Mythology Essay Example for Free

Visual Art in Greek Mythology Essay Visual art is one of the most important facets of ancient culture. Not only is visual art aesthetically pleasing to the senses, but it aids us in grasping the concepts of civilizations and stories that we could not fully understand in simple text. Greek mythology has bred some of the most beautiful works of art ever created. These works tell the stories they represent in lively form, color and style. One of the most famed works of art representing Greek mythology originated in 460-450 BC. This is the statue of Zeus. There are arguments about whether it is Zeus or Poseidon, because they are both pliable possibilities, but for simplicitys sake, let us assume it is Zeus. The statue of Zeus is one of great pride. He stands without hesitation. He appears to be in his 40s, but his physical body is muscular and shapely. His very stance is once that demands attention and respect. This represents his role: Zeus the chief god. Zeus is strong, powerful, and just. In the statue, Zeus is about to throw one of his lightning bolts of justice. His face is very stern and focused, as if he is seriously concentrated on the matter at hand. He stands unashamed of his exposed manhood, which is very representative of Zeuss character. Zeus is most known for his tendency to spread his seed throughout both the goddess world and the mortal woman world. It was considered a great honor to be a son or daughter of Zeus. Years and years later, in 1622, a sculptor named Gian Lorenzo created the sculpture Pluto and Proserpine. This sculpture represents the story of the capture of Persephone by Hades. Hades, the Roman Pluto, is depicted holding Persephone, the Roman Proserpine, by her waist and thigh. Persephone is turned away from Hades, pushing his face away. She attempts to squirm free of his strong grasp, a look of horror and fear on her face. It would seem this represents the moment Hades brings her to the underworld and tells her she is to be his queen. It is clear they are in the underworld because of Hades dog at his side. As Persephone pushes him away, he almost looks offended at her refusal. It is clear she cannot escape, for his body is obviously strong and muscular, and both her feet are off the ground, but her attempt is a feisty, determined one. This shows how much she does not want  to stay with Hades in the underworld. The pain she feels is so apparent; her other arm is raised, as if reaching for some sort of escape, and her face is turned, as if she wouldnt even look at him. The open mouth of Hades dog also indicates that theres some sort of struggle going on, like it is barking. There is so much violent, sexual energy in this sculpture. It probably also represent the very moment before Hades ravishes Persephone. Moving further through time, the beautiful painting Cupid Kissing Psyche is created by Francois Gerard in 1798. This piece is absolutely mesmerizing. In the story of Cupid, or Eros, and Psyche, Eros is commanded by his mother Aphrodite to shoot his arrows at Psyche and make her fall in love with an ugly creature because she is jealous of her beauty. When Eros sees Psyche, he himself falls in love with her, and takes her away to be his secret bride. The only condition she must follow is that she cannot see him, for she cant know his true identity. At first Psyche is frightened, but begins to love Eros, still unknowingly. This painting represents this stage of the story, where Psyches love for the unidentified Eros is growing. The very color scheme of this painting is intensely calming and serene. Psyche sits amidst beautiful scenery, staring straight ahead. Eros is next to her, but she does not seem to notice. His hands are so close to her, but its hard to tell whether he is touching her or not. The beautiful youth of Eros is obviously deeply in love with her. Though Psyche cannot see Eros, her face seems to sense him there, and there is no trace of fear. Though it is a painting of Eros and Psyche together, I believe the painter intends for it to be an expression of their love, and not a literal scene. (Meaning, Eros is not actually there beside her. ) She is holding herself tenderly, as if treasuring a memory. Both their bodies are painted so softly and so insanely beautiful that the mind is overcome by their love when viewing this work. In 1809, painter John Vanderlyn painted Ariadne Asleep on Naxos. Ariadne was a beautiful brown-haired maiden who fell in love with the hero Theseus. Ariadne aided Theseus in his slaughter of the Minotaur, and in return, requested to be his bride. Theseus accepted her offer, and after defeating the Minotaur, brought her with him. On the island of Naxos, however, Theseus abandoned her as she slept. This painting represents the moment Theseus sails off, as seen in the background to the right. Ariadne sleeps, stretched out on the ground, her body exposed and relaxed. She looks peaceful, as if she is happily dreaming of her lover, Theseus. The red shades used around her body give her a sexual energy, and yet she rests on a cloth of white, representing her innocence and virginity. Perhaps she is dreaming of her long-awaited wedding with Theseus and the birth of her sexuality. It is tragic in the sense that she may be thinking all these things, while her fiance is sailing off without her and she has no idea. But because she is portrayed in such a desirable way, it almost hints that there will be someone else. As one story goes, the god Dionysus finds her on Naxos and makes her his wife. There is a burst of light where Theseus is sailing away, representing a love that leaves her. But there is another burst of light coming from the opposite direction, hidden in the left, illuminating her body, possibly representing a love that finds her. Painted more recently, in 1908, is Apollo and Daphne by John William Waterhouse. The story behind this painting begins with a conversation between the sun god Apollo and the god of love, Eros. Apollo asks why such a youth like Eros is carrying around weapons of war, and Eros becomes offended. Eros shoots Apollo with the gold-tipped arrow, making him fall desperately in love with the wood nymph Daphne, while he shoots Daphne with the lead-tipped arrow, making her despise Apollo. Apollo pursues Daphne and she rejects him. Daphne is soon transformed into the laurel tree, and Apollo is seen professing his love to this tree. This painting shows the end of the chase. Apollo is reaching for her, his face locked to hers. In his other hand is his musical instrument, ready to woo her. Daphne looks distressed and frightened because of Apollos persistence. The roots begin to hold her in place, beginning the transformation. In their faces, you can see the results of Eros arrows. Apollo is so focused on winning Daphnes affections that there seems to be nothing else in the world for him to do. Daphne seems so repulsed by him, you can almost hear her scream Leave me alone! just by looking at her face. These five examples really express the importance of visual art in mythology. Because we can see these pieces whenever we want, we can relive the stories whenever we want as well. They allow us to really see the thematic emotion behind each story and each god, goddess, nymph and mortal. They take the immortals and make them, well, immortal.

Communication In An Organization Management Essay

Communication In An Organization Management Essay Communication in an organization is significant and its continuous effectiveness is fundamental for the seamless integration of its internal publics into the organization. Ferguson (1999), suggests that communication priorities must be capable of responding to the requirements of both external and internal audiences. Apparent communication channels echo the well being of an institute. Clampitt (1991) suggests that effective internal communication helps to improve an organizations success. Clampitts proposition is consistent with Heaths (2001) observations that effective internal communication leads to increased productivity, satisfied clients and maintenance of the organizational structure. Furthermore, Clampitt and Downs 1993 cited in Hargie and Tourish (2000) suggest that organizations benefit a lot from improved internal communication. This includes improved productivity, reduced absenteeism, higher quality of service and products. Organizations also experience increased levels of innovation, fewer strikes and reduced costs of operation and high staff turnover. Taylor (2005) summarizes the benefits of effective communication in the acronym as, SUCCESS defined as follows: S- stronger decision making and problem solving; U-upturn in productivity; C-convincing and compelling corporate materials; C-clearer, more streamlined work flow; E-enhanced professional image; S-sound business relationships; S-successful response assured (p. 11). . For an organization to assess the effectiveness of its internal communication based on its employees attitudes about the firm, it needs to conduct a communication audit (Argenti, 2009). Therefore, the assurance that effective internal communication systems exists is vital to the success of any organization. This ensures that all the objectives undertaken by an organization are clearly understood by its employees. A communication audit Scott (2007) defines a communication audit as an indicator used in a particular time to help an organization assess its current communication practices and also to show how effective they are. She suggests that a communication audit can also be used to identify areas with problems such as frequent misunderstandings, information blocks, information gaps, information duplication or misrepresentation. McGann (2010) suggests that, a communication audit is a snapshot of the organizations communications programs, practices and activities. A communication audit will inform you on what is working, what is not working and what needs to be changed or improved in terms of communication within the organization (p. 1). According to Hargie and Tourish (2000), communication audits have been used to identify and reward good practice and at the same time help organizations to manage crisis and improve business performance. Snyder and Morris (1994) cited in Hargie and Tourish (2000) observe that there is a positive correlation between the employee perceptions of communication and job satisfaction which in turn correlates to the overall organizations effectiveness. This can be achieved by the results of the communication audit. Seitel (1995) states that, organizations utilize communication audits to analyze the perception of its constituents, evaluate the readership of its communication, annual reports and newsletters which are the vehicles of the organization. Further, the author suggests that, communication audits provide the organization with important information on how to solve problems like employees working at cross-purposes, uneven communication workloads and benchmarks against which public relations programs can be applied and measured in the future. The author concludes that, a communication audit will determine the communications systems which are being used by the organization, which are the most effective and if the information that is being transmitted by the organization is regarded as adequate by its recipients. This study is an internal communication audit of the CDF Board and Secretariat which aims to determine the effectiveness of the communication systems used within the organization. History of CDF in Kenya In the recent past, the government of Kenya has created a number of alternative windows to allow allocation of resources directly to devolved government units in response to the needs to ensure equitable development at the grassroots. For instance, there has been substantial increase in resources committed at the constituency level and the local government units. When President Mwai Kibaki was in opposition he introduced a motion in parliament that sought to have funds devolved at the grassroot level, however the motion was defeated by the then head of state President Daniel arap Mois government. In the year 2003 when H. E Mwai Kibaki took power, the Ol-Kalao Member of Parliament Hon. Eng. Karue having been a member of his party, brought the motion again to Parliament seeking the funds to be devolved at the grassroot level and it was passed. Constituency Development Fund (CDF) became operational in 2004 with an annual budgetary allocation of a minimum 2.5% by the central government to each of the countrys constituencies. The fund aims to address imbalances in regional development. It targets community projects at the constituency level, particularly those aiming to combat poverty. It also provides individuals at the grassroot the opportunity to make development choices that maximize their welfare in line with their needs and preferences. Some of other notable devolved funds in Kenya include the Community Development Trust Fund (CDTF), the Roads Fund, Constituency AIDs Fund, the Local Authority Transfer Fund (LATF), Women Enterprise Fund, Youth Enterprise Development Fund, Rural Electrification Programe Levy Fund (REPF), Free Primary Education Fund (FPEF) and the Constituency Education Bursary Fund (CEBF). The over-arching goal has been to improve the development outcomes by involving local communities in the decision-making process and management of projects (CDF Board Strategic Plan, 2010-2014). During the period of CDF existence, the fund has registered substantial achievements and has greatly contributed in transforming the lives of Kenyans. The researchers observations are that, the impact of the fund is widespread that in all corners of the country one can never miss a project which has been financed from the CDF kitty. They include the improved infrastructure especially in the rural areas in the form of rural access roads, education and health facilities. The fund has enabled many students to access education through bursary. In addition it has enabled locals to build capacity at the grassroot level through empowerment in participation in project management through various committees. CDF has received a lot of media attention both positive and negative despite the fact that it has brought a paradigm shift in most of Kenyas rural areas in terms of development. However, just like any other noble idea, the Fund has had its own share of challenges ranging from mode of financing, accountability to the public, political interference in identification of projects, approval and implementation of the projects, low level of awareness among communities on the operations of the fund among others. However, Gikonyo (2008) observes that CDF has been a great success despite the challenges faced by the fund. This idea has been seconded by New Partnership for Africa Development (NEPAD) as it acknowledges the Fund as one of the best innovations in Africas development and as a result many countries are seeking to adopt the CDF model. By law, the CDF is controlled by the Member of Parliament of a constituency. This amount is then shared among all the constituencies on an established formula that factors in equality and the poverty levels of each constituency. Thereafter, the onus of disbursing and ensuring the constituencies use their share of the money efficiently and accountably falls with the CDF Board and Secretariat. This body was established under CDF (Amendment) Act 2007 section 5 (CDF Board Strategic Plan, 2010-2014). However, this Board and Secretariat is charged with the overall responsibility of managing the Funds and reporting to parliamentary Constituency Fund Committee (CFC) on its usage. The Board activities are also coordinated by a Secretariat based at its headquarters in Nairobi County. The CEO to the Secretariat is also the Secretary to the Board and the chief accounting officer to the fund. The CDF Board and Secretariat just like any other organization is believed to have communication channels in place. These communication channels play an important role of information dissemination from one person to another. However, they need to be evaluated so as to give the guidelines based on what is working, what is not working and what needs to be changed. The communication channels used by organizations include memos, telephone, emails, newsletters, website, notice board, suggestion box, meetings, annual reports and face to face. In this study the researcher will provide a credible baseline of the actual status of communication in the CDF Board and Secretariat with its internal publics. Problem statement Good internal communication is supposed to ensure low staff turnover, high quality of service and goods, improved productivity, reduced absenteeism, and reduced cost of operation. For an organization like CDF Board and Secretariat good internal communication is critical because it will ensure seamless integration of its internal publics. Staff retention is important to ensure such a young organization has officers long enough to understand, establish and concretize its mandate to ensure it serves the purpose for which it was established. A look at the CDF Board and Secretariat website indicates that several senior officers have left the organization in a period of one year. Although no exit interviews were conducted to establish the reason for their departure, poor internal communication, according to Hargie and Tourish (2000) is a major cause of high staff turnover. These authors further suggest that an organization should conduct a communication audit between five and seven years or after any major change in the organization. This enables the organization to realize what is working and what needs to be changed in terms of communication. The high staff turnover at the CDF Board and Secretariat in the long run would increase the operation costs of hiring and training new staffs regularly and also paint a negative image of the organization. This study therefore aims to investigate whether the CDF Board and Secretariat has effective internal communication and whether poor communication could have contributed to challen ges like high staff turnover. Purpose of the study The purpose of this study is to conduct an internal communication audit of the CDF Board and Secretariat and to analyze the effectiveness of its communication channels between the CDF Board and Secretariat and its internal publics. Objectives of the study General objective The general objective of this study is to carry out an internal communication audit of the CDF Board and Secretariat and to establish what communication styles are in place, how they work and the perceived effectiveness of the organizations communication. Specific objectives of the study will be: To establish the communication systems used to communicate amongst the internal publics of the CDF Board and Secretariat. To verify the effectiveness of the communication systems in meeting employees information needs. To establish employees perception on the relationship of internal communication to job satisfaction and employee retention. To document the strengths and weaknesses of the existing communication practices and propose a way forward. Research questions The issues that this study will address include:- What are the communication systems that are used to communicate among the internal publics of the CDF Board and Secretariat? What is the perceived effectiveness of communication amongst the internal publics? What is the employee perception on the relationship of internal communication to job satisfaction and employee retention? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the existing communication practices at the CDF Board and Secretariat? Rationale/ significance of the study This study will help the organization to develop possible solutions to communication problems if they will arise and also help the organization to avoid other forms of crisis including high staff turnover. The study findings could also be adopted by the government of Kenya as a basis of developing a comprehensive policy framework for internal communication among public institutions in Kenya. Such a policy would ensure smooth flow of information on government policy and directives among the public servants, which would translate to better service delivery to the public/citizens. Further, the study finding will contribute immensely to the body of knowledge in the country, and help scholars and practitioners better understand the subject of internal communication. At the completion of this study, the researcher will provide significant recommendations concerning communication issues from the research findings which will be useful to the organization. This will help the CDF Board and Secretariat to improve its internal communication systems for better and more effective internal communication within the organization. Assumptions of the study The following are the basic assumptions of the study. That CDF Board and Secretariat has got communication systems that can be audited. That the CDF Board and Secretariat employees will be truthful in responding to the research questions. That the CDF Board and Secretariat will allow the participation of its internal publics in this study. That the CDF Board and Secretariat will provide relevant information to the researcher. Limitations and delimitations In this study the researcher will focus on the internal publics of the CDF Board and Secretariat who include the CEO, the staff and the Board members. The researcher will not extend the study to the external publics. In addition, some employees may opt to withhold information due to fear of victimization. This is because most of the information that flows within the CDF Board and Secretariat is classified. To delimit this, the researcher will assure the respondents that the information provided will only be used in this study. In addition, most of the Board members do not report to the Secretariat head office on a daily basis; they only meet on several occasions in a month. To delimit this, the researcher will make arrangements to have the interviews with the Board members when they are at the head office. Scope of the study The research will be conducted at the CDF Board and Secretariat head office which is situated at the junction of Uhuru Highway and Haile Selaisse Avenue at Harambee Sacco Plaza 10th floor in Nairobi. The study will restrict itself to the audit of communication of the internal publics of the CDF Board and Secretariat which includes the CEO, Board of Directors, management staff and subordinate staff. Definition of terms Communication audit Is a snapshot of the organizations communication programs, practices and activities which inform the organization on what is working, what is not working and what needs to be changed or improved in terms of communication within the organization (McGann 2010). For the purpose of this study a communication audit will mean a gauge which helps the organization to analyze its perceived communication to its publics. CDF Board and Secretariat Is the body which has been mandated by the Government of Kenya to manage constituency funds and report to the Parliamentary Constituency Fund Committee on the usage of the funds (CDF Board Strategic Plan, 2010-2014). For the purpose of this study it shall remain one and the same thing. Communication systems: These are the communication networks which help in the flow of information from one level of employee to another. For the purpose of this study it shall remain one and the same thing. Effective communication: Fielding (2006) defines effective communication as the management of flow of information, this means from the sender, the message itself, the channel, the receiver and the feedback. Collins (2009) defines effective communication as the practical guidance on using communication vehicles and tools. For the purpose of this study, effective communication will mean transfer of information and understanding between the sender and the receiver. Internal publics: Broom (2009), refers to internal publics as the employees including managers and people being supervised. Lundblad and Stewart (2005) define the internal publics as the individuals / groups in the employ of the organization. Seitel (1995) says that the internal publics are the publics who are inside the organization though they vary from one organization to another, depending on the nature of the organization. For the purpose of this study the internal publics will be the CEO, the Board of Directors and the employees of the CDF Board and Secretariat. High staff turnoverà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Staff retentionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. Summary This chapter covered the introduction and background to the study, defined a communication audit, and gave a brief history of CDF in Kenya, CDF Board Secretariat. Problem statement, objectives of the study, justification of the study and operationalization of terminologies has also been done in this chapter. The next chapter will cover the literature review, the role of corporate communication in conducting a communication audit, theoretical, and conceptual framework. Chapter two: Literature Review Introduction This chapter reviews a literature on communication audits and related concepts. Key topics covered include: the role of corporate communication in conducting audits, empirical studies of internal communication audits, and the process of communication in organizations. Others include internal publics, and barriers to effective communication, communication systems, employee information needs and the theoretical and conceptual frameworks of the study. Communication audits Communication audits have been used as indicators to help organizations assess their current communication practices and show how effective they are. They are used to identify areas with problems such as frequent misunderstandings, information blocks, information gaps, information duplication or misrepresentation Scott (2007). More importantly, the communication audits provide a snapshot of the organizations communication programs, practices and activities. In addition, they act as a tool which helps one to know what is working, what is not working and what needs to be changed or improved in terms of communication within the organization McGann (2010). Contribution of communication audit to organizational success Downs and Adrian (2004) say that there is a tendency of organizations paying attention to communication only after a problem/crisis has occurred. The organizations need to overcome this behavior by conducting a communication audit periodically. Knowing the problem early enough saves image, time and reputation. They add that, organizations have got the responsibility to monitor the effectiveness of the messages they send to the employees because the survival of the organization depends on the employees ability to exchange and coordinate the information they are receiving. However, the authors point out that communication is not the only challenge experienced by organizations. Organizations need to have accurate impression of what their internal publics think of them, how they receive and transmit messages. This amounts to the importance of auditing communication in an organization (Hargie Tourish, 2009). For an organization to know how effective their communication is perceived based on employees attitudes it needs to conduct a communication audit. The results of the communication audit will guide the communication practitioners to formulate the right internal communication programs for the organization (Argenti, 2007). According to Hargie and Tourish (2000) organizations that conduct communication audits enjoy a long running performance in the marketplace. This means that the results of the audit will help the organization to avert chaos like misunderstandings, misrepresentation of staff, strikes, high staff turnover and poor performance. Furthermore, they suggest that the communication audits have been used to identify and reward good practice and at the same time help the organization to manage crisis and improve business performance. This idea concurs with Clampitt (1991) and Heath (2000) who say that as a result of conducting communication audits organizations have experienced increased productivity, employees job satisfaction and a positive maintenance of organizational structure. According to Hargie and Tourish (2009) organizations that have conducted internal communication audits have experienced high performance from their employees because there is a correlation between high performance and existence of effective internal communication programs. This idea concurs with Hicks and Gullet (1988) who say that there is a positive correlation with the openness of communication channels between the subordinate and the supervisor. The openness of communication channels can be realized as a result of communication audit where employees engagement and commitment to work become more significant. For instance, Arnold (1993) conducted a study of internal publics of General Motors in the United States of America. In his findings, a staff turnover rate of 30% in 1989 went down to 12% by 1991. In addition, the companys bad debt percentage went down from 3.2% to an average of 0.4% per month. The role of corporate communication in conducting a communication audit According to Cornelissen (2011) corporate communication practitioners have a role to act as intermediaries between the organization and its stakeholders, and he refers to this process as boundary spanning. Kitchen (1997) defines boundary spanning as the mechanism used by organizations to gather and analyze data about their environment. He insists that the public relations practitioners/boundary spanners play an important role of strategic decision making. This idea is consistent with Tripathi (2009) who says that the boundary spanning function of corporate communication is supposed to help the management to gather information through conducting a communication audit, interpret it from its environment and represent the organization to its publics. Steyn and Puth (2000) however, refer to the boundary spanning role as the mirror/delicate and important function of the corporate communication practitioner. Likely (2003) cited in Barker and Angelopulo (2007) says that the corporate communication has got the role to provide information for the evaluation of the internal environment of the organization. The evaluation of the communication will help the organization to identify strengths and weaknesses of the organizations communication and the management will be able to provide the input to the development of communication strategy. Empirical studies of internal communication audits At Daystar University some scholars have carried out studies on communication audit to assess the impact of communication channels in organizations. Ndegwa (1996) conducted an audit among Daystar University students. In her findings the study found that students received most of the information concerning the university from the weekly newsletter known as infospot and during chapel. In addition, students expressed a desire to get more information in general and at the same time they also felt that there was need to improve the physical environment in the university. This audit was important to the university as the institution has increased the channels of information dissemination to the students. Wamba (1999) conducted a study on public relations audit of selected publics of the Kenya Wildlife Service. In her findings majority of the respondents stated that the organization meant what it said when it made an important announcement. This was in line with employee management relations. On the issue of employees complaints being taken seriously by the management 61% of the respondents agreed that they were rarely looked into. This shows that the management did not care much about the needs of the employees. On the issue of communication from the management, 70.6% of the respondents agreed that the management was interested in telling them what they thought staff ought to know rather than what staff wanted to know. Ngugi (2004) carried out a communication audit of the internal publics of Kenya National Library Services. About 63.8% of the respondents stated that they would like to receive information from management. A small fraction of 1.3% of the respondents stated that they received information from the communication department. About 57.5% of the respondents stated that they had never heard about an internal news letter as much as it had been available. According to the study, the Kenya National Library Services had a policy guideline on forwarding issues to the management, but according to the respondents departmental heads did not forward their issues to the management (Ngugi, 2004). Pokumensah (2011) carried out a communication audit of the internal publics of the Elris Communication Services Limited. In his findings about 88% of the lower level employees received most of the task oriented information from their supervisors. This explained that the network for task oriented was top down. Another 80% of the lower level respondents states that they share task oriented information with their colleagues. This indicated that the horizontal communication happened among the employees of the same level of organizational structure (Mounter, 2003). In conclusionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The process of communication in organizations Communication is a continuous process of exchanging verbal and nonverbal messages. A message must be conveyed through some medium to the recipient. It is essential that this message must be understood by the recipient in same terms as intended by the sender and a response given within a time frame. Thus, communication is a two way process and is incomplete without a feedback from the recipient to the sender on how well the message is understood by him. According to Hicks and Gullett (1988) most organizations have taken communication for granted. They assume that if an individual can read, write and speak they are communicating. However, communication is not just speaking, reading and writing; rather it is the transfer of information and understanding from the sender to the receiver. According to Watson and Hill (2000) communication includes five key factors that include the initiator, the recipient, the vehicle, the message and the effect. However, they argue that the communication process, sender, message and receiver are all subject to a multitude of cues which are likely to influence the message. Taylor (2005) suggests that as a communicator it is important to ensure that your message is understood, and stimulates the recipient to take appropriate action. Communication can be affected by the context in which it takes place. This context may be physical, social, chronological or cultural. The sender chooses the message to communicate within a context. Second is the sender / encoder a person who sends the message. A sender makes use of symbols (words or graphic or visual aids) to convey the message and produce the required response. For instance, a training manager conducting training for new batch of employees. Sender may be an individual or a group or an organization. The views, background, approach, skills, competencies, and knowledge of the sender have a great impact on the message. The verbal and nonverbal symbols chosen are essential in ascertaining interpretation of the message by the recipient in the same terms as intended by the sender. The third component is the message which is the key idea that the sender wants to communicate. It is a sign that elicits the response of recipient. Communication process begins with deciding about the message to be conveyed. It must be ensured that the main objective of the message is clear. Fourth is the medium which is the means used to exchange / transmit the message. The sender must choose an appropriate medium for transmitting the message else the message might not be conveyed to the desired recipients. The choice of appropriate medium of communication is essential for making the message effective and correctly interpreted by the recipient. This choice of communication medium varies depending upon the features of communication. For instance, written medium is chosen when a message has to be conveyed to a small group of people, while an oral medium is chosen when spontaneous feedback is required from the recipient as misunderstandings are cleared then and there. Fifth is the recipient / decoder who is the person for whom the message is intended / aimed / targeted. The degree to which the decoder understands the message is dependent upon various factors such as knowledge of recipient, their responsiveness to the message, and the reliance of encoder on decoder. Last but not least is feedback which is the main component of communication process as it permits the sender to analyze the efficacy of the message. It helps the sender in confirming the correct interpretation of message by the decoder. Feedback may be verbal (through words) or non-verbal (in form of smiles, sighs, etc.). It may take written form also in form of mem os and reports among others (Management Study guide -Online). Internal publics Grunig (1992) suggests that the employees who are the internal publics of an organization are the most important strategic publics of an organization. He further says that their communication should be part of an integrated and managed communication program. However, Baskin, Aronoff Lattimore (1997) argue that identification of the key publics by the organizations is important for the survival of the organization. Internal publics are the active publics of the organization and seek and process information about the organization or an issue of interest to an organization (Grunig, 1992). Importance of effective internal communication in organizations According to Hamilton and Parker (1993) organizations are made up people and the decisions made on a daily basis are likely to affect the organization, customers, other workers and even the destiny of the organization. This idea makes internal communication to be an important aspect of the organization because it is through communication the organization can gain and offer the information needed to its publics which enables them to make successful decisions. Miller (2006), however, says that internal communication helps the organization to answer the following questions; what information needs to be communicated to the publics? When should it be communicated? Who will be in charge of communicating to the public? How will the information be communicated? Millers proposition is consistent with Katz and Kahns (1966) observations that effective internal communi

Diversity in Human Services

Diversity in Human Services People are both similar and different; diversity is the recognising and valuing difference. Diversity relates to distinction such as gender, age, religion, race, culture, education, occupation, language, attractiveness, health, physical appearance. Cultural diversity is one aspect of diversity with a multitude of differences which come from our cultural heritage. Every aspect of life is touched by culture, culture affects how people perceive things, and it influences how people attribute meaning to communication. When cultural communication systems are unknown or ignored, messages are likely to be misinterpreted resulting in barriers to communication. To ensure effective communication Human Services workers require awareness of and sensitivity to cultural differences to enable them to successfully serve a diverse range of people. This essay examines effective cross cultural communication for the Human Services worker, as culture refers to the language, knowledge, rituals, values that connect any group of people, in the scope of this essay the context of cultures is that from different countries. Firstly, it looks at some of the differences and problems when communicating cross culturally. Then the essay proposes solutions to reduce communication barriers and, finally proposing principles human service agencies should adopt to enhance communication. Working cross culturally the human service worker faces many challenges to effective communication because of the complex nature of culture, intercultural behaviours, core values and expression provide much possibility for misunderstanding. According to Fouad Arredondo communication patterns, styles, symbols and gestures are highly culture bound and unconsciously scripted. (Fouad Arredondo 2007 p42). Several variables can be considered to assist in the understanding of cultural differences to identify why problems arise, individualism versus collectivism is one variable. Individualistic cultures are where emphasis is on individual achievement as contrasted to collective cultures where importance is on what is best for the group. Counselling itself is a culturally specific activity having evolved from a Western philosophy of individualism, asking a client from a collective culture to focus on hyperintrospection and hyperindividualism will not resonate result in a lost opportunity. Whi lst not speaking the same language is a more obvious barrier to communication, consider the communication barrier created when a client for whom English is a second language is expected to verbalise highly complex emotions. (Wheeler 2006 p150) Cultures can also be distinguished as having low context or high context communication, in low context cultures such Australia or America communication is direct, the meaning is in the message. Asian, Mediterranean and Arab cultures are high context where communication is indirect and it is equally important to look at the implicit meanings and body language. Misunderstandings arise when there is a lack of awareness in the different style of communicating. For example, Indigenous Australians would consider it rude to directly ask a question and instead hint (Mundine 1999, p. 1). This is similar to Asian concept of saving face indirect communication is used to prevent discomfort for either party. In some Asian cultures this is extended to some not disclosing physical abuse for fear of losing face or embarrassing the family (Devito 2009, p. 281), however withholding such information creates a barrier to communication for the human services worker. Non verbal communication is another factor which in which meaning differs between cultures, and if these differences are not understood leads to communication breakdown. In some cultures nodding the head means no, or the nod of a head from a Chinese person does not implicitly mean that they agree. In Western culture direct eye gaze is considered a sign of honesty, in cultures such as Japan however, direct eye gaze is a sign of disrespect. De Vito (2009, p. 133) concludes try visualising the potential for misunderstandings that eye communication alone could create. A Human Services worker lacking awareness of cultural-based norms, such as family structure and gender rules, risks violating these rules, their behaviour impeding trust and confidence. For example, married Muslim women cannot touch a man other than their husband. Lack of awareness or sensitivity to these norms creates conflict and a lost opportunity for engagement. Another barrier to communication results where the Human Service worker consider their own culture to be superior to others cultures. Gamble and Gamble conclude that ethnocentrism is key to failed intercultural communication efforts. (Gamble Gamble 2009, p.27). Finally, cultural stereotyping is a barrier to effective cross cultural communication, whilst it is necessary to group people to simplify understanding differences, it is problematic perceive that all are the same. For example, to believe that all immigrants from the Middle East are unable to assimilate into Australian society is cultural stereotyping. Stereotyping demonstrates a fundamental lack of understanding of diversity leading to a breakdown in communication. This paper has looked at some cross cultural communication differences and problems that arise that can be covered in the scope of this essay, the paper now proposes solutions to enhance communication and reduce communication barriers. To enhance communication and reduce barriers in cross cultural communication the Human Services worker develops knowledge and skills. Integral to this is self awareness, being aware of and challenge ones perceptions and bias. Workers must to increase intercultural communication competence by developing knowledge of different cultural differences, Gamble Gamble confirm it is vital to make the unknown known we need to conduct ourselves in a manner designed to reduce the strangeness of strangers; that is, we need to open ourselves to differences by adding to our storehouse of knowledge, by learning to cope with uncertainty and by developing an appreciation of how increasing our cultural sensitivity positively affects our communication competence (Gamble Gamble 2009, p. 30). It would however be uninformed to believe that a person can ever completely understand another culture making it necessary for Human services workers to be comfortable dealing with ambiguity. As important as it is to be familiar the difference in culture conversely it is important not to allow cultural traits to hinder understanding nor to focus excessively on differences. Clients are individuals; human services workers serve a person, not a culture (Egan 2006). Empathy listening skills are integral to effective communication and equally so when communicating interculturally. The Human services worker should put themselves in their clients shoes to imagine what is like from his or her world view point. Listening skills and careful observation of cues such as non verbal signals should be taken into account interpret full meaning, particularly when communicating with a person from a high context culture. To enhance communication the human services worker should also regularly seek confirmation of understanding. A deeper level of trust and confidence may need to be built with people from some cultures before they disclose emotional or what they consider to be shameful. To enhance communication with these people it may take patience, time and also an appropriate level of self disclosure on the workers part. To reduce communication barriers the worker may ask permission before asking sensitive a sensitive question. Workers should also be aware an d sensitive to taboo subjects, in some Indigenous Aboriginal communities it is shameful to talk about mental illness, to reduce communication barriers workers would avoid using certain words or lables (XXXXX). Working with people who speak English as a second language poses another set of challenges in communication, to reduce barriers workers should speak slowly, be patient and allow pauses, alternatively an interpreter could be offered. (Kenny 2009). To reduce communication barriers for their diverse range of stakeholders it is vital for Human services agencies should foster their own culture where diversity is embraced and celebrated. A philosophy of respect of individuality and uniqueness which commitment to self development and ongoing learning is promoted. This philosophy should be brought to life by encourage a diverse range of workers with difference backgrounds and experience. A culturally specific approach to training programmes, developing intercultural communication competencies when working and human services workers be regularly reviewed against competencies identifying areas for development. Culture influences everything about people, including the meaning attributed to communication, this poses challenges for the human services worker when working cross culturally. This essay has considered some of the communication differences and issues that Human Services workers face working interculturally, it has also looked at ways to enhance communication and also principles agencies should adopt to reduce communication barriers. The essence however is that ultimately no two people even those from the same culture are the same, innumerable differences makes each person unique. Human Services workers require cross cultural competency to effectively communicate with the diverse range of people that they meet the most fundamental of these abilities being willingness to learn and respect of all individuals. Biblography DeVito, J 2009, The interpersonal communication book, 12th edn, Pearson Education, Boston, USA. Egan, G 2006, Skilled helping around the world: addressing diversity and multiculturalism, Thomson Higher Education, Belmont. Fouad, NA Arrendondo, P 2007, Becoming culturally oriented: practical advice for psychologists educators, American Psychological Association, Washington. Gamble, TK Gamble, M 2009, Communication works, 10th edn, McGraw Hill, New York. Kenny, S 2006. Developing communities for the future, 3rd edn, Cengage Learning, South Melbourne. Mundine, J 1999 Face to face: communication protocols, viewed 12 August 2010, http://www.nipaac.edu.au/Face2Face_CommnProtocols.pdf. Wheeler, S (ed) 2006. Difference diversity in counselling: contemporary psychodynamic perspectives, Palgrave Macmillan, New York. Aboriginal Mental Health First Aid Training and research program. Cultural considerations communication techniques: Guidelines for providing mental health first Aid to an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person. Melbourne: Orygen Youth Health Research Centre, University of Melbourne and beyondblue, the national depression initiative 2008 Viewed 20 August 2010 http://www.mhfa.com.au/documents/guidelines/8307_AMHFA_Cultural_guidelinesemail.pdf ;

Wetland Ecosystem Essay -- Environment, Sustainable Development

1. Introduction Wetland ecosystem is one of the most productive ecosystems on this planet delivering massive goods and services to human society. However, due to poor awareness of their values and underestimation of their contribution, many wetlands have been converted to farmland or urban areas, or influenced by pollution due to agricultural and industrial activities. Consequentially wetland ecosystems have severely declined and degraded globally during the past decades. In order to restore and protect wetlands, hence ensure a sustainable supply of wetland goods and services, it is important to recognize their values. Vital to this is the development of valuation methods that explicitly link wetland values, the capital base of the ecosystem, to the design of policies (Pearce and Atkinson, 1993; Dasgupta and MÃ ¤ler, 2000; Arrow et al, 2004; Maler et al, 2008; Dasgupta, 2010). For a typical wetland ecosystem, its values can be accounted in terms of the populations of its species, fish harvested per day, the amount of carbon stored per year, or the annual number of recreational visits. These are generally categorised as values from wetland production, regulating or cultural services (MA, 2005). Proper and accurate estimation of these values enables comparative analysis of intervention practices and therefore contributes to the improvement of the design of policies (Barbier, 1993; Barbier et al., 1997; Turner et al, 2000). Quality is a critical factor in determining the values of wetlands. A healthy and functioning wetland may provide rich ecosystem services (Zedler and Kercher, 2005; Maltby, 2009). The quantity of the wetland valuation practice has increased in relatively recent years. In the review by Heimlich et al. (1998), 33... ...s. Since the values derived with a benefit transfer method are not strictly primary studies, we therefore deleted those items. Subsequently, the values that are not of a single service, but a total economic value (TEV) or marked as ‘various’, had to be moved from the list for consistence. Finally, 70 data items from 27 articles remain in the analysis. The cross tables based on the data are given in Tables 1 and 2. Table 1 shows the relationship between eco-services and wetland types in terms of the number of study cases, while Table 2 shows the relationship between the services and the methods used for their valuation. The most studied services are food and raw materials which happen mainly at wetlands unspecified by the authors or at floodplains; the most used valuation methods are the direct market pricing method, there are 41 data items out of the total 70.

Sinking Into Society Essay -- World History

In any nation mistakes have been the source of change. Whether it is safety or governmental reform or a revolution in the nation’s lifestyle and customs, those mistakes have made a lasting imprint on the minds of their people. The sinking of one of history’s maiden voyages, the Titanic, has made such impact on the American people; Titanic cannot be mentioned without stirring deep emotions for those who have perished. It is one of history’s most devastating catastrophes but it is also the first ship to send the new SOS distress call instead of the original CQD signal meaning â€Å"all stations: distress†. Titanic â€Å"was the ship of dreams, whose passengers scrounged up their life savings to purchase a ticket abroad the maiden ship† (Titanic). Constructed with millionaire suites and private promenade decks, Titanic â€Å"was the largest moving object ever made by the hand of man in all history† (Titanic). However, in its determination to mak e the journey across the Atlantic the fastest ever recorded, it ultimately sank to the bottom of the ocean, leaving behind a legacy still found in America today. Titanic’s infamous flounder has affected America’s culture in unthinkable ways; its legacy can be found in American media, the spawning of new technological advancements, and in the world’s current maritime policies. News of Titanic’s sinking reached America quickly. It was front-page news for months and the first time that â€Å"a major news event was reported to the public primarily through electronic means, the wireless telegraph† (Titanic as Popular Culture). The US National Newspaper stated that â€Å"coverage of the Titanic disaster transformed New York Times into a global voice because of its integrity, accuracy, and immediate coverage† (Titanic as ... ... the minds of the American people. It has transformed America in astonishing ways, and its legacy will continue to impact American culture for years to come. Works Cited Minichiello, Ray. "Titanic Tragedy Spawns Wireless Advancements." Audio UK Is the Webs Best Directory for Audio HiFi Dealers and Manufacturers in the UK. Web. 28 Jan. 2012. "Titanic as Popular Culture." Media Awareness Network | Rà ©seau à ©ducation Mà ©dias. Web. 28 Jan. 2012. Titanic. Dir. James Cameron. Perf. Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, and Billy Zane. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 1997. IMDb. Web. 31 Jan. 2012. "Titanic Disaster." Emergency Medical Paramedic. Web. 29 Jan. 2012. Wikipedia contributors. "Changes in safety practices following the RMS Titanic disaster." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free–Encyclopedia, 13 Jan. 2012. Web. 25 Jan. 2012.

Summer Reading :: Creative Writing Essays

Summer Reading It was a bright, hot summer day when it all happened. I could have been sitting at the beach or swimming. Although that was not the case. I had to actually put effort into something, to actually think , to actually well, read. I went upstairs to find the summer reading list. I looked through pile after pile of school computer printouts but still no luck of that little reading list. I began to get frustrated and decided the best thing to do now would be to take a break, and that is exactly what I did. I got into my bathing suit and went for a nice swim. I was swimming for about an hour when all of a sudden I got this thirst for a nice cool beverage. Thoughts began to flow through my mind about how quenching and replenishing that glass of coke would taste. This caused me to immediately jump out of the pool and run in for a drink. As I took a cup from the cabinet I saw in the reflection of the glass a blue sheet on the refrigerator. I immediately turned around and there I saw under a magnet, on the refrigerator, the summer reading list! I wanted to start reading as soon as possible. Although I wanted to see how many books I could read that were on the summer reading list but would not have to go to the library to get a hold of. My mother is a big book reader so I checked her collection and I found one. "The Terminal Man" By: Michael Crichton. To my surprise I actually enjoyed reading this book. I don't like reading that much, I rather watch a movie. This book however was different. It was really suspenseful and hard to put down. I know my story sounds really convincing but I will prove to you any way that I read this book by giving you a quick summary of the novel. Harry Benson, the main character, is a 31 year old computer scientist. About 4 years back he got into a car accident and got brain damage which causes him mental seizures. What happens during these seizures is that he goes on a violent rampage for seven or so hours and then all of a sudden wakes up from this seizure and does not know what has happened or what he has done. Harry is admitted to Universal Hospital, the doctors plan to implant electrodes into his brain to shock the part of his brain that causes the seizure right

Kudler Security Report

Kudler Fine Foods IT Security Report and Presentation Security Considerations CMGT/400 Kudler Fine Foods IT Security Report and Presentation Security Considerations According to Whitman and Mattord  (2010),  The ISO 27000 series is one of the most widely referenced security models.Referencing ISO/IEC 27002 (17799:2005), the major process steps include: risk assessment and treatment, security policy, organization of information security, asset management, human resources security, physical and environmental security, communications and operations management, access control, information systems acquisition, development, and maintenance, information security incident management, business continuity management, and compliance (Chapter 10, Security Management Models). 1.Risk assessment and treatment 2. Security policy: Focuses mainly on information security policy 3. Organization of information security: For both the internal organization and external parties 4. Asset management: Incl udes responsibility for assets and information classification 5. Human resources security: Ranges from controls prior to employment and during employment to termination or change of employment 6. Physical and environmental security: Includes secure areas and equipment security 7.Communications and operations management: Incorporates operational procedures and responsibilities, third-party service delivery management, systems palnning and acceptance, protection against malicious and mobile code, backup, network security management, media handling, exchange of information, electronic commerce services and monitoring 8. Access control: Focuses on business requirement for access control, user access management, user responsibilities, network access control, operating system access control, application and information access control, and mobile computing and teleworking 9.Information systems acquisition, development, and maintenance: Includes security requirements of information systems, correct processing in applications, cryptographic controls, security of system files, security in development and support processes, and technical vulnerability management 10. Information security incident management: Addresses reporting information security events and weaknesses and management of information security incidents and improvements 11.Business continuity management: Information security aspects of business continuity management 12. Compliance: Includes compliance with legal requirements, compliance with security policies and standards, and technical compliance and information systems audit considerations The â€Å"SANS: SCORE† (2012) website provides a free audit checklist for organizations to verify if they comply with the ISO 27002. The following table represents the SANS audit checklist as it relates to Kudler Fine Food’s frequent buyer program. Security policy: Focuses mainly on information security policy | |Section |Audit Question |Security Consider ations |Security concern if |Mitigation | | | | |removed | | |Information security policy|Whether there exists an Information |A security policy is |Without a security policy |Define what needs to be | |document |security policy, which is approved by the |necessary to guide all |in place the restriction |protected in order to | | |management, published and communicated as |access or to block |of information would be |develop a security policy. | | |appropriate to all employees. |access to information. |lost.Uncontrolled access|The importance of the | | | | |will result in the loss of|information should | | |Whether the policy states management | |company information. |determine the severity of | | |commitment and sets out the organizational| | |the security. | | |approach to managing information security. | | | | |Review of Informational |Whether theInformation Security Policy is|The security policy |Without the review of |Each policy should be | |Security Policy |reviewed at planne d intervals, or if |should be reviewed as |security policies they |reviewed periodically to | | |significant changes occur to ensure its |business practices, |will most likely become |ensure its effectiveness. | | |continuing suitability, adequacy and |hardware, software, and |out dated and lose | | | |effectiveness. |the way in which |usefulness. Each policy owner will be | | | |information is shared | |responsible for the review | | |Whether the Information Security policy |change. |Without giving each |of the policy. | | |has an owner, who has approved management | |section of the policy an | | | |responsibility for development, review and|Each part of the policy |owner the policy will have|Each change will be brought| | |evaluation of the security policy. should have an owner who|no one responsible for its|before management before | | | |is responsible for |maintenance. |being brought into action. | | |Whether any defined Information Security |keeping it up to date. | | | | |Pol icy review procedures exist and do they| |A policy to review new | | | |include requirements for the management |A review procedure |policies or changes made | | | |review. should be in place, each|to current policies should| | | | |change made should be |be in place to discourage | | | |Whether the results of the management |reviewed by management. |unauthorized changes. | | | |review are | | | | | |taken into account. | | | | | |Whether management approval is obtained | | | | | |for the revised policy. | | | |Organization of Information Security | |Section |Audit Question |Security |Security concern if |Mitigation | | | |Considerations |removed | | |Management commitment to|Whether management demonstrates active support for |An active role |Without the active support|A definition of the role | |information security |security measures within the organization.This can be|by management |of management the security|management should play in | | |done via clear direction, demonstrated commitment, |is needed to |policy will lose its |the commitment to the | | |explicit assignment and acknowledgement of information|ensure the |effectiveness. |security policy should be | | |security responsibilities. |effectiveness | |stated in the security | | | |of the security| |policy. | | | |policy. | | |Information security |Whether information security activities are |Security |Information security |Ensure that the owner of | |coordination |coordinated by representatives from diverse parts of |activities need|activities need to be |each policy is responsible | | |the organization, with pertinent roles and |to be |organized by employees |for all activities | | |responsibilities. |coordinated by |with higher roles and |associated with the | | | |representatives|responsibilities. The |policies. | | |that carry |security policies protect | | | | |pertinent roles|the information and all | | | | |and |activities associated with| | | | |responsibilitie|the security policy should| | | | |s. |be made by responsible | | | | | |parties. | |Allocation of |Whether responsibilities for the protection of |The business |Without a clear set of |A clear set of instructions| |information security |individual assets, and for carrying out specific |will suffer a |rules governing the |will be provided to ensure | |responsibilities |security processes, were clearly identified and |great many |protection of individual |that each individual asset | | |defined. |losses due to |assets and security |and each security process | | | |unclear |processes the business |is clearly defined. | | |detentions of |will surely suffer a loss. | | | | |procedures. | | | |Authorization process |Whether management authorization process is defined |Authorization |Without the use of an |Any and all information | |for information |and implemented for any new information processing |processes need |authorization system a new|processing facilities need | |processing facilities |facility within the org anization. to be clearly |information processing |to be given ownership to a | | | |stated in the |facility would be left |member of management. This| | | |security |vulnerable for attack. |member needs to ensure the | | | |policy. Any | |security policy is | | | |new information| |followed.Using the proper| | | |processing | |authorization system is | | | |facility needs | |critical to securing the | | | |to have an | |information contained | | | |authorization | |within. | | | |process | | | | | |implemented. | | |Confidentiality |Whether the organization’s need for Confidentiality or|The NDA should |Without the use of an NDA |The NDA needs to be | |agreements |Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) for protection of |be clearly |the legal ramifications |reviewed periodically to | | |information is clearly defined and regularly reviewed. |defined. This |are greatly lessened. A |ensure that any changes in | | | |will help to |business needs to protect |the business are reflected | | |Does this address the requirement to protect the |ensure the |its data to the fullest |in it. | | |confidential information using legal enforceable terms|information is |extent of the law. | | | |not | | | | | |compromised. | | | |Contact with authorities|Whether there exists a procedure that describes when, |This is |The time it takes to act |A plan must be in place for| | |and by whom: relevant authorities such as Law |important to |in an emergency is crucial|different types of | | |enforcement, fire department etc. should be |the physical |to keeping employees and |emergencies involving any | | |contacted, and how the incident should be reported. |security of the|the business safe. A plan|outside authorities. This | | | |business and |must be in place to avoid |can help to prevent | | | |the employee |potential losses due to |injuries and harm done to | | | |within. |unforeseen events. |employees and the business. |Contact with special |Whether appropriate contacts with special interest |Contacts with |Allowing a third party |A policy needs to define | |interest groups |groups or other specialist security forums, and |third party |group access to any |the steps needed to apply | | |professional associations are maintained |groups need to |information can be a risk |for special interest groups| | | |be approved my |to the business. All |and how the relationship is| | | |management. third party associations |maintained. | | | | |should be approved in | | | | | |advance by management. | | |Independent review of |Whether the organization’s approach to managing |Security |The loss of strength to |To ensure the highest level| |information security |information security, and its implementation, is |management |the security of |of security a review should| |reviewed independently at planned intervals, or when |should be |information can occur |be implemented periodically| | |major changes to security implementation occur. |reviewed at |through time (small |and whenever a major change| | | |planned |changes) or when a major |takes place. | | | |intervals and |change has taken place. | | | | |when major | | | | | |changes occur. | | |Identification of risks |Whether risks to the organization’s information and |Allowing third |Allowing third parties |Strict rules and an access | |related to external |information processing facility, from a process |parties access |access to the business |policy must be implemented | |parties |involving external party access, is identified and |to the network |network and the contents |to allow a third party | | |appropriate control measures implemented before |poses serious |of the business systems |access to any information | | |granting access. |risks to the |poses a serious threat to |in the business. | | | |integrity of |the integrity of the | | | | |the |system. | | | |information. | | | |Addressing security when|Whether all identified security requirements are |Allowing |Allowing customers access |Access to information by | |dealing with customers |fulfilled before granting customer access to the |customers with |to information in the |customers should be stated | | |organization’s information or assets. |the access to |business system poses a |in the security policy. | | | |certain |threat. Customers should only be | | | |information can| |allowed access to minimal | | | |help to | |information, a separate | | | |increase | |website or informational | | | |customer base | |address. | | | |and customer | | | | | |awareness. | | |Addressing Security in |Whether the agreement with third parties, involving |All third party|Agreeing with a third |Any third party contract | |third party agreements |accessing, processing, communicating or managing the |agreements |party contract can hold |should be reviewed by the | | |organization’s information or information processing |should be |some legal ramifications. |legal department to ensure | | |facility, or introd ucing products or services to |reviewed before| |the contract agrees with | | |information processing facility, complies with all |implementation. | |all of the businesses | | |appropriate security requirements | | |security requirements. |Asset Management | | | |Section |Audit Question |Security Considerations |Security concern if |Mitigation | | | | |removed | | |Inventory of Assets |Whether all assets are identified and an |The businesses assets |Without a clear definition|Each new asset will be | | |inventory or register is maintained with |need to be registered to|of assets the business |registered and assigned an | | |all the important assets. |ensure their safety. |could suffer a loss or |owner. | | | |theft of assets. | | |Ownership of Assets |Whether each asset identified has an |The security policy must|The business could suffer |Each new asset should have | | |owner, a defined and agreed-upon security |include clearly defined |a loss without giving the |an owner and restr ictions | | |classification, and access restrictions |parameters for |asset an owner and |to its access. | | |that are periodically reviewed. |registering assets. defining access | | | | | |restrictions. | | |Acceptable use of Assets |Whether regulations for acceptable use of |Legal issues and profits|Without regulations on the|Defineing all acceptable | | |information and assets associated with an |losses could occur from |use of assets the company |uses of business assets is | | |information processing facility were |the misuse of assets. |could suffer losses and |crucial. | | |identified, documented and implemented | |legal issues. | |Classification guidelines |Whether the information is classified in |Classification of |By classifying information|All information should be | | |terms of its value, legal requirements, |information is crucial |is can be easier to |classified in terms of its | | |sensitivity and criticality to the |to the business. This |determine who has access |va lue, legal requirements, | | |organization. |will determine who has |to it. |and sensitivity to ensure | | | |access to the | |it is only accessible to | | | |information. |authorized users. | |Information Labeling and |Whether an appropriate set of procedures |A set of organizational |Unorganized information |All information should be | |handling |are defined for information labeling and |parameters should be |can result in the loss of |organized within a set of | | |handling, in accordance with the |devised to create a |the information. |parameters defined in the | | |classification scheme adopted by the |classification scheme. | |classification scheme. | | |organization. | | | |Human Resources Security | |Section |Audit Question |Security Considerations |Security concern if |Mitigation | | | | |removed | | |Roles and responsibilities |Whether employee security roles and |All personnel authorized|Unauthorized access of |All confidential | | |responsibilities, contractors and third |to access confidential |this information could |information should be | | |party users were defined and documented in|information needs to be |result in identity theft. |handled by authorized | | |accordance with the organization’s |identified by management| |personnel only. | |information security policy. |team. | | | | | | | | | | |Were the roles and responsibilities | | | | | |defined and clearly communicated to job | | | | | |candidates during the pre-employment | | | | |process | | | | |Screening |Whether background verification checks for|All applicants |If not performed, persons |All employees should be | | |all candidates for employment, |considered for |with a history of theft |free of any criminal | | |contractors, and third party users were |employment have to |could be hired. |history that may cause | | |carried out in accordance to the relevant |undergo a criminal | |concern to the company. | | |regulations. |background check prior | | | | | |to a job offer bei ng | | | | |Does the check include character |made. | | | |reference, confirmation of claimed | | | | | |academic and professional qualifications | | | | | |and independent identity checks | | | | |Terms and conditions of |Whether employee, contractors and third |Management must define |Unauthorized access of |To prevent confidential | |employment |party users are asked to sign |what information is |this information could be |information to be disclosed| | |confidentiality or non-disclosure |confidential in |used for personal use. |to unauthorized persons. | | |agreement as a part of their initial terms|accordance to existing | | | | |and conditions of the employment contract. |laws and company policy. | | | | | | | | | | |Whether this agreement overs the | | | | | |information security responsibility of the| | | | | |organization and the employee, third party| | | | | |users and contractors. | | | | |Management responsibilities|Whether the management requires employees,|Management must define |Unauthorized access could |To prevent confidential | | |contractors and third party users to apply|which users have to have|be used for personal gain. |information to be disclosed| | |security in accordance with the |this access. | |to unauthorized persons. | |established policies and procedures of the| | | | | |organization. | | | | |Information security |Whether all employees in the organization,|Management and Loss |Private information could |To educate all personal | |awareness, education and |and where relevant, contractors and third |Prevention must develop |be disclosed to |about privacy policy. | |training |party users, receive appropriate security |a training program and |unauthorized persons for | | | |awareness training and regular updates in |establish how often it |personal use. | | |organizational policies and procedures as |needs to be | | | | |it pertains to their job function. |administered. | | | |Disciplinary process |Whether there is a formal discipl inary |Management must |Private information could |To advise employees what | | |process for the employees who have |establish corrective |be disclosed to |recourse their actions will| | |committed a security breach. |action measures if there|unauthorized persons for |have. | | | |is a security breach. |personal use. | |Termination |Whether responsibilities for performing |Management must advise |If an employee was not |To define the procedures of| |responsibilities |employment termination, or change of |what actions will |properly terminated could |terminating employment. | | |employment, are clearly defined and |terminate employment and|result in a lawsuit. | | | |assigned |what procedures are | | | | | |involved in the | | | | | |termination process. | | |Return of assets |Whether there is a process in place that |Management must define |If not returned, certain |To ensure that all | | |ensures all employees, contractors and |what materials employees|company items could be |appro priate company | | |third party users surrender all of the |must return upon |used for personal use. |materials are returned. | | |organization’s assets in their possession |employment. | | | | |upon termination of their employment, | | | | | |contract or agreement. | | | |Removal of access rights |Whether access rights of all employees, |Management will define a|If not defined, it is |To prevent unauthorized | | |contractors and third party users, to |timeframe in which a |possible that a terminated|personnel from accessing | | |information and information processing |terminate employee |employee could still |company information. | | |facilities, will be removed upon |access is removed |access company | | | |termination of their employment, contract | |information. | | | |or agreement, or will be adjusted upon | | | | | |change. | | | |Physical and Environmental Security | |Section |Audit Question |Security Considerations |Security concern if |Mitigation | | | | |removed | | |Physical security perimeter|Whether a physical border security | | | | | |facility has been implemented to protect | | | | | |the information processing service. | | | | | | | | | | | |Some examples of such security facilities | | | | | |are card control entry gates, walls, | | | | | |manned reception, etc. | | | |Physical entry controls |Whether entry controls are in place to |Physical access to |potential for security |server room should be | | |allow only authorized personnel into |system |breach through |locked with access | | |various areas within the organization. | |unauthorized access to |restricted to authorized | | | | |physical equipment. |personnel.Sophistication | | | | | |of restraint would be | | | | | |dependent upon importance | | | | | |of information and budget. | |Securing offices, rooms, |Whether the rooms, which have the | | | | |and facilities |information processing service, are locked| | | | | |or have lockable cabinets or safes. | | | |Protecting against external|Whether the physical protection against |corruption and/or loss |loss of critical data. |Data and system redundancy,| |and environmental threats |damage from fire, flood, earthquake, |of information due to | |off-site storage and/or | | |explosion, civil unrest and other forms of|environmental conditions| |multiple servers at | | |natural or man-made disaster should be | | |different locations. | | |designed and applied. | | | | | | | | | | |Whether there is any potential threat from| | | | | |neighboring premises. | | | | |Working in secure areas |Whether physical protection and guidelines| | | | | |for working in secure areas is designed | | | | | |and implemented. | | | | |Public access delivery and Whether the delivery, loading, and other | | | | |loading areas |areas where unauthorized persons may enter| | | | | |the premises are controlled, and | | | | | |information processing facilities are | | | | | |isolated, to avoid unauthorized access | | | | |Equipment sittin g |Whether the equipment is protected to | | | | |protection |reduce the risks from environmental | | | | | |threats and hazards, and opportunities for| | | | | |unauthorized access | | | | |Supporting utilities |Whether the equipment is protected from | | | | | |power failures and other disruptions | | | | | |caused by failures in supporting | | | | | |utilities. | | | | | | | | | | |Whether permanence of power supplies, such| | | | | |as a multiple feed, an Uninterruptible | | | | | |Power Supply (ups), a backup generator, | | | | | |etc. are being utilized. | | | | |Cabling security |Whether the power and telecommunications | | | | | |cable, carrying data or supporting | | | | | |information services, is protected from | | | | | |interception or damage. | | | | | | | | | | |Whether there are any additional security | | | | | |controls in place for sensitive or | | | | | |critical information. | | | | |Equipment Maintenance |Whether the equipment is correctly | | | | | |maintained to ensure its continued | | | | | |availability and integrity. | | | | | | | | | | |Whether the equipment is maintained, as | | | | | |per the supplier’s recommended service | | | | | |intervals and specifications. | | | | | | | | | | | |Whether the maintenance is carried out | | | | | |only by authorized personnel. | | | | | | | | | | |Whether logs are maintained with all | | | | | |suspected or actual faults and all | | | | | |preventive and corrective measures. | | | | | | | | | | | |Whether appropriate controls are | | | | | |implemented while sending equipment off | | | | | |premises. | | | | | | | | | | |Are the equipment covered by insurance and| | | | | |the insurance requirements satisfied | | | | |Securing of equipment |Whether risks were assessed with regards |off-site data storage |off-site data may be |proper security measures in| |off-premises |to any equipment usage outside an |centers provide a level |compromised or otherwise |place to ensure integrity | | |o rganization’s premises, and mitigation |of redundancy to |corrupted due to |of data. | | |controls implemented. maintain integrity in |insufficient security | | | | |the event of a local |measures | | | |Whether the usage of an information |breach | | | | |processing facility outside the | | | | | |organization has been authorized by the | | | | | |management. | | | |Secure disposal or re-use |Whether all equipment, containing storage | | | | |of equipment |media, is checked to ensure that any | | | | | |sensitive information or licensed software| | | | | |is physically destroyed, or securely | | | | | |over-written, prior to disposal or reuse. | | | | |Removal of property |Whether any controls are in place so that | | | | | |equipment, information and software is not| | | | | |taken off-site without prior | | | | | |authorization. | | | |Communications and Operations Management | |Section |Audit Question |Security Considerations |Security concern if |Mitigation | | | | |rem oved | | |Documented Operation |Whether the operating procedure is |Management should set |Without direction, |To establish how the | |Procedures |documented, maintained and available to |guideline about how each|employees would not know |company is to operate on a | | |all users who need it. |function should operate |what to do throughout the |daily basis. | | | |in the company. |day. | | |Whether such procedures are treated as | | | | | |formal documents, and therefore any | | | | | |changes made need management | | | | | |authorization. | | | | |Change Management |Whether all changes to information | | | | | |processing facilities and systems are | | | | | |controlled. | | | |Segregation of duties |Whether duties and areas of responsibility|Management is |No one would be |To establish accountability| | |are separated, in order to reduce |responsible for |responsible for ensuring |for task performed in each | | |opportunities for unauthorized |assigning area of |tasks are complete d. |area. | | |modification or misuse of information, or |responsibility. | | | | |services. | | | |Separation of development, |Whether the development and testing |Management needs to |Incorrect information |To prevent incorrect | |test, and operational |facilities are isolated from operational |establish a separate |could cause a delay in |information is not given to| |facilities |facilities. For example, development and |network. |production or development. |incorrect personnel. | | |production software should be run on | | | | | |different computers.Where necessary, | | | | | |development and production networks should| | | | | |be kept separate from each other. | | | | |Service delivery |Whether measures are taken to ensure that |Define what measures are|Goods and services will |To ensure that service | | |the security controls, service definitions|needed and establish who|not be done in a timely |level is established and | | |and delivery levels, included in the third|to monit or. |manner. |maintained. | |party service delivery agreement, are | | | | | |implemented, operated and maintained by a | | | | | |third party | | | | |Monitoring and review of |Whether the services, reports and records |Define what measures are|Goods and services will |To ensure that service | |third party services |provided by third party are regularly |needed and establish who|not be done in a timely |level is established and | | |monitored and reviewed. |to monitor. |manner. |maintained. | | | | | | | |Whether audits are conducted on the above | | | | | |third party services, reports and records,| | | | | |on regular interval. | | | | |Managing changes to third |Whether changes to provision of services, |Define what measures are|Goods and services will |To ensure that service | |party services |including maintaining and improving |needed and establish who|not be done in a timely |level is established and | | |existing information security policies, |to monitor. |manner. |maintai ned. | | |procedures and controls, are managed. | | | | | | | | | | |Does this take into account criticality of| | | | | |business systems, processes involved and | | | | | |re-assessment of risks | | | | |Capacity management |Whether the capacity demands are monitored|Management must decide |Systems will not be able |To establish who will | | |and projections of future capacity |if a third party will be|to process information |monitor computer systems. | | |requirements are made, to ensure that |needed to assist with |needed in a timely manner. | | | |adequate processing power and storage are |their IT needs. | | | | |available. | | | | | | | | | | |Example: Monitoring hard disk space, RAM | | | | | |and CPU on critical servers. | | | | |System acceptance |Whether system acceptance criteria are |Management must decide |Systems will not be able |To establish who will | | |established for new information systems, |if a third party will be|to process information |monitor computer syst ems. | | |upgrades and new versions. |needed to assist with |needed in a timely manner. | | | | |their IT needs. | | | |Whether suitable tests were carried out | | | | | |prior to acceptance | | | | |Controls against malicious |Whether detection, prevention and recovery|IT personnel must ensure|Unauthorized access could |Establish measures to | |code |controls, to protect against malicious |proper measures are in |lead to system shut down. |protect from virus and | | |code and appropriate user awareness |place. | |malware. | | |procedures, were developed and | | | | | |implemented. | | | | |Controls against mobile |Whether only authorized mobile code is | | | | |code |used. | | | | | | | | | | |Whether the configuration ensures that | | | | | |authorized mobile code operates according | | | | | |to security policy. | | | | | | | | | | | |Whether execution of unauthorized mobile | | | | | |code is prevented. | | | | | | | | | | |(Mobile code is software code that | | | | | |transfers from one computer to another | | | | | |computer and then executes automatically. | | | | | |It performs a specific function with | | | | | |little or no user intervention. Mobile | | | | | |code is associated with a number of | | | | | |middleware services. | | | | |Information backup |Whether back-ups of information and |IT personnel will ensure|If not properly manage |To establish back up and | | |software is taken and tested regularly in |that system is properly |could result in loss of |recover of data procedures. | | |accordance with the agreed backup policy. |working. |data. | | | | | | | | | |Whether all essential information and | | | | | |software can be recovered following a | | | | | |disaster or media failure. | | | |Network Controls |Whether the network is adequately managed |IT personnel must ensure|Unauthorized access could |Establish measures to | | |and controlled, to protect from threats, |proper measures are in |lead to system shut down. |protect from virus and | | |and to maintain security for the systems |place. | |malware. | | |and applications using the network, | | | | | |including the information in transit. | | | | | | | | | | |Whether controls were implemented to | | | | | |ensure the security of the information in | | | | | |networks, and the protection of the | | | | | |connected services from threats, such as | | | | | |unauthorized access. | | | |Security of network |Whether security features, service levels |IT/Third party will |The company may not be |To establish what security | |services |and management requirements, of all |advise management the |aware of what is needed to|features of needed to | | |network services, are identified and |necessary requirements |secure the network and the|maintain the network. | | |included in any network services |needed for the network. |system is broken into | | | |agreement. | |compromising information. | | | | | | | | |Whether the ability of the network service|