A Beginners Guide to Identifying Trees in Winter

A Beginner's Guide to Identifying Trees in Winter Identifying a dormant tree is not nearly as complicated as it might seem at first glance. Winter tree identification will demand some dedication to applying the necessary practice to improve the skill of identifying trees without leaves. But if you follow my instructions and use your powers of observation you will find a pleasurable and beneficial way to enhance your skills as a naturalist- even in the dead of winter. Learning to identify a tree without leaves can immediately make your growing season trees easier to name. Using Botanical Markers and Tree Characteristics for Winter Tree Identification Dont be fooled into thinking that a twig key is the only answer when identifying a dormant tree. Your overall observation skills and sizing up a tree will be invaluable even as the twig key is tucked away in your warm library. A trees crown can give you valuable clues to finding a trees botanical name by unique crown shape, fruit and/or their leftover containers, persistent leaves, live twigs and growth habit. Get to know a trees characteristics or markers. Examining a Tree Twig for Winter Tree Identification To use a tree twig key means learning a twigs botanical parts. A key can help you identify a tree to the specific species by asking two questions where you can affirm one and eliminate the other. This is called a dichotomous key. Become familiar with a tree twigs characteristics. Using Alternate and Opposite Tree Leaf and Twig Arrangement for Winter Tree Identification Most tree twig keys start with the arrangement of leaf, limb, and buds. Determining opposite and alternate arrangements is the primary first separation of the most common tree species. You can eliminate major blocks of trees just by observing its leaf and twig arrangement. Identifying a dormant tree can be a visual challenge. Visit the  gallery of winter photos that illustrate many subtle botanical clues exhibited by dormant trees. Naturalist Josh Sayers has developed his Portrait of the Earth photo resource for identifying trees in winter. It may help to use this and other resources as you learn about trees and their dormant parts.

Free Essays on Pilots And Bipolar Disorder

Don’t Fly or Deal With the Consequences Mental disorders are becoming a more recognized ailment in society today. Psychological stressors and genetic backgrounds are two of the main factors triggering these disorders. It is estimated that more than 17 million Americans meet the criteria for mental disorders. This means that there are undoubtedly a small percentage of these Americans that, at one time in their life, will apply for an aviation medical certificate. This is where the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) gets involved. According to FAA regulations a medical examiner is required to deny certification to individuals who show signs of certain mental disorders. Bipolar disorder is one of these disorders in which denial of an aviation medical certificate will be sought. Bipolar disorder is a one of several types of mood disorders, but has different characteristics that set it apart from the rest. Also called manic-depression, it is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in a person’s mood, energy, and ability to function. It is distinguished by behavior that fluctuates from extreme highs to serious lows interspersed with periods of normal mood. Typically everyone does go through normal ups and downs. However, symptoms of bipolar disorder are more severe, resulting in damaged relationships, poor job or school performance and even suicide. Bipolar disorder typically develops in late adolescence or early adulthood and continues throughout life. Symptoms of this devastating disorder include decreased need for sleep, talkativeness, racing thoughts, distractibility, psychomotor agitation, irritability, diminished interest, loss of pleasure in most activities, feelings of inappropriateness and even suicidal thoughts. These symptoms can have a severe impact on pilots in both their social life and on the job. It has been found that bipolar disorder is not a result of just one particular cause but rather a combinat... Free Essays on Pilots And Bipolar Disorder Free Essays on Pilots And Bipolar Disorder Don’t Fly or Deal With the Consequences Mental disorders are becoming a more recognized ailment in society today. Psychological stressors and genetic backgrounds are two of the main factors triggering these disorders. It is estimated that more than 17 million Americans meet the criteria for mental disorders. This means that there are undoubtedly a small percentage of these Americans that, at one time in their life, will apply for an aviation medical certificate. This is where the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) gets involved. According to FAA regulations a medical examiner is required to deny certification to individuals who show signs of certain mental disorders. Bipolar disorder is one of these disorders in which denial of an aviation medical certificate will be sought. Bipolar disorder is a one of several types of mood disorders, but has different characteristics that set it apart from the rest. Also called manic-depression, it is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in a person’s mood, energy, and ability to function. It is distinguished by behavior that fluctuates from extreme highs to serious lows interspersed with periods of normal mood. Typically everyone does go through normal ups and downs. However, symptoms of bipolar disorder are more severe, resulting in damaged relationships, poor job or school performance and even suicide. Bipolar disorder typically develops in late adolescence or early adulthood and continues throughout life. Symptoms of this devastating disorder include decreased need for sleep, talkativeness, racing thoughts, distractibility, psychomotor agitation, irritability, diminished interest, loss of pleasure in most activities, feelings of inappropriateness and even suicidal thoughts. These symptoms can have a severe impact on pilots in both their social life and on the job. It has been found that bipolar disorder is not a result of just one particular cause but rather a combinat...

Finance & Growth Strategies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Finance & Growth Strategies - Essay Example The risk can be greatly reduced by holding diverse security portfolios of various industrial sectors. Good performance of other companies in the portfolio would negate the effect of bad performance of some of the companies. Since the risk is diversifiable investors would not be able to demand a premium on investment due to the unsystematic risk. Systematic, non-diversifiable, market or relevant risk is inherent in the market due to macro and economic factors such as interest and exchange rates, recession, inflation, consumer demand, oil prices, taxation and bear market (market where prices decline). This risk cannot be diversified as the above mentioned factors influence the stock market and subsequently the market index. Investors who want high returns on investments should select assets with higher systematic risks while investors who want to eliminate risks should invest in risk-free assets such as government bonds. However, investors generally prefer higher rate of returns on investments in Public listed companies (PLC) rather than risk free assets to compensate for undertaking systematic risks. Systematic risks are considered relevant as they can’t be successfully diversified. According to Anon, â€Å"Only the systematic risk is relevant for assessing the rate of return required by shareholders – efficient markets do not offer a reward for bearing specific risk† (2007a, p. 6.20). Though diversification is not a guarantee against loss it is a prudent strategy to achieve long term financial objectives. 1. b. According to the CAPM, Beta or financial elasticity and correlated relative volatility is a measure of systematic risk. Systematic risk earns a risk premium and Beta is a calculated coefficient that indicates the amount of risk contributed by a security to the market portfolio. Beta, is determined by taking into consideration both dividend and capital appreciation. Beta is â€Å"†¦a measure of the responsiveness of the expected return on

Jeddah city Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Jeddah city - Research Paper Example Perhaps it is the Red Sea that really defines Jeddah. Due to its location, the primary source of income for the city is the trade done on the port. Products from the sea are exported while products from foreign countries are imported through the port. Jeddah’s tourism is also made rich because of the Red Sea. There are various beaches that attract tourists from around the world. Aside from picnicking, people may also enjoy fishing from the Red Sea. The best place to go would be Jeddah Corniche although there are still other sites you can go fishing. Other water sports are also available like swimming, snorkeling and scuba diving. The best time to visit the city when you want to experience the beauty of the beaches is from October until May. The temperature during these months makes it ideal for tourists to have maximum enjoyment. When you visit the city, you will notice that there are people of different races and religions. Of course the large part of the population is Muslim but there are also other religions practiced in the city. However, only Muslims are allowed to build their place of worship and publicly profess their faith. Practice of other religions are demanded to be done in private so, just a note for those who strongly profess a religion other than Islam, precautions must be taken not to offend a people who highly value their religion. Although there are restrictions for other religions to be publicly expressed, the aim of the government is not to demand people to be converted to Islam but its desire is for our religion to be respected as others would want Muslims to respect them. This is an integral part of the Jeddah, therefore, as any other tourism place, it is requested that the religious demands should be considered with respect. This is a part of Jeddah’s culture or to make it more accurate, this is Jeddah’s culture. Jeddah is not just a

Humanities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 12

Humanities - Essay Example is new style of music changed the traditional pattern and rhythmic harmony of the Romanticism period, by creating music that lacked either patter or rhythmic harmony. The major transformation in music as characterized by atonal music was a shift towards the artists glorifying art itself, as opposed to praising the beauty of people and creations as was previously the trend with the Romanticism music. A major example of the composers of the atonal music is Arnold Schoenberg, whose music applied no particular rhythmic or pattern harmony, such that it was easily categorized as noise by the average music listener (Northern.edu, n.p.). Thus, Arnold Schoenberg’s atonal music took the form of noise, and the meaning was simply that music does not have to praise anyone or anything in particular, but a combination of different sounds themselves can comprise music. In the artistic field, the transformation from the earlier patterns of meaningful art was realized in the 20th century, where the painters and artists completely changed the course of art, sculptures and paintings as communicating objects, to the creation of non-communicating pieces of art. For example, Cubism art movement that developed in the 20th century would just combine multiple perspective and objects within a single piece of art, such that the overall outcome of a painting would be numerous objects that are clamped together in no defined pattern. One of the major and recognized artist of the Cubism movement was Pablo Picasso, whose art majorly combined numerous objects, perspectives and even time different times (Northern.edu, n.p.). The relationship between form and art in the Pablo Picasso’s artwork was simply multiple object form with the meaning that art does not specifically have to address one particular theme, but it can simply be combination of different times , perspectives and objectives. Further, Abstract Expressionism is another artistic development of the 20th century, which was a major

Air France SWOT Analysis and Organisational Culture

Air France SWOT Analysis and Organisational Culture Air France-KLM is an international airline company and a member of the Skyteam airline partnership. The company was formed on May 2004, following the merger of Air Frances and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM), thus creating the worlds largest airline group by earnings and second largest worldwide cargo operator in terms of revenue-tonne kilometers. The company operates under two major networks hubs, Paris-CDG and Amsterdam-Schiphol. The Companys three main businesses are passenger transportation, cargo operations, engineering and maintenance. The company counts more than one hundred thousands employees all over the world. Passenger transports being the major business of the company with more than three hundred destinations worldwide. The majority of the employees are based in France and the Netherlands. Both Air France and KLM continue to operate flights under their distinct brand names as subsidiaries of Air France-KLM. LIST OF ACCRONYMS AF Air France NWA Northwest Airline CSR Corporate Social Response MRO Maintenance Repair and Overall CDG Charles de Gaulle IT Information Technology E M Engineering and Maintenance GDP Domestic Growth Product HR Human Resource CHAPTER 1 Introduction AIR FRANCE KLM AIR FRANCE KLM is the combination of two big airlines such as Air France and KLM. Since their merger in 2004, KLM works closely with Air France within the AIR FRANCE KLM holding company. In terms of financial turnover, AIR FRANCE KLM is the worlds largest airline partnership; it also transports the most passengers and is the worlds second-largest cargo transporter. Air France and KLM carry  more than 71 million passengers per year. They operate more than  594 aircraft enabling them to fly to  236 destinations worldwide with 2,500 daily flights. The two airlines world networks can be combined, forming a vast network organized around the two major hubs of Amsterdam-Schiphol and Paris-CDG. The head offices are located at Amstelveen and Paris. Alitalia AIR FRANCE KLM and Alitalia agreed to strengthen their partnership in January 2009 by AIR FRANCE KLM taking a minority stake in Alitalia. The agreement gave AIR FRANCE KLM greater access to the Italian market. SkyTeam Alliance SkyTeam is a global airline alliance which includes AirEuropa, Air France, Alitalia, China Southern Airlines,  , Delta Air Lines, Aeroflot, Kenya Airways, KLM, Korean Air (including Northwest Airlines), CSA Czech Airlines, Tarom and Vietnam Airlines, Aeromà ©xico. Air France and KLM are members of the SkyTeam alliance. Income Over the fiscal year 2009-2010 the turnover of Air France-KLM was 20.9 billion euros. Together, the two airlines have over 107.000 employees. For more information on AIRFRANCE KLM Finance, please  go to www.airfranceklm-finance.com. Shares The Air France-KLM shares are listed in Amsterdam, Paris and New York. Aim Air France-KLM comprises a holding company which controls two airlines, Air France and KLM, each of which retains its own separate identity and brands. The group is the worlds largest air transport group in terms of revenue, second largest in terms of air traffic (in passenger-km) and cargo (ton freight-km), and third largest in terms of maintenance revenue. Both airlines run their own operations from their respective hubs Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam-Schiphol. Passengers Passenger transport is the largest of the groups three core businesses, generating around 80% of its revenues (as of 31 March 2008), with 74.8 million passengers carried. Cargo Cargo was the first fully-integrated commercial activity at Air France-KLM in 2005. Client companies now have a single point of entry, and a full, simplified offering with flights departing from both hubs and benefiting from both networks. Air France-KLM Cargo ranks first worldwide among air freight carriers (excluding integrators). Maintenance The combination of Air France Industries and KLM Engineering Maintenance allows the group to offer a comprehensive range of aircraft maintenance and overhaul services with complementary areas of specialization. Maintaining the two fleets accounts for two-thirds of the groups maintenance operations, further supplemented by maintenance repair and overall (MRO) operations for 150 third-party airlines. Mission and Vision The mission of Air France KLM is to provide its customers a high quality service adaptable to their changing needs. The overall vision is to become the worlds biggest and leading airline company. Company Background Air France Air France founded on 7 October 1933. The background of the company has been striking by a number of milestones, including investing the acquired capital of UTA in early January 1990 and the combination with Air Inter in 1997. Air France and Delta Air Lines joined forces with Aeromà ©xico and Korean Air to launch the Sky Team alliance in June 2000. Air Frances main hub at Paris-Charles de Gaulle is Europes number one in terms of connecting opportunities. KLM Meanwhile KLM was first founded on 7 October 1919 being the oldest airline still operating under its original name. The recently background has been marked by the formation of a joint venture with Northwest Airlines (NWA) in 1989 and its achievement of the investment of Kenya Airways in 1996. KLM has Amsterdam Airport Schiphol as its home base. Air France and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines have become the largest European airline group Since May 2004 but each airline has retained its individual identity, trade name and brand which mean three businesses, two airlines, and one group SWOT Analysis of Air France Mullins (2007) explained that, in order to evaluate the nature of the business environment and its strategic capability an organization may undertake a SWOT analysis focuses on Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats facing the organization. (S)TRENGTHS Strengths are those positive aspects or distinctive attributes or competencies which provide a significant market advantage or upon which the organization can build. Against a backdrop of increased Liberalization which serves to intensify competition, the profitable growth strategy plays to the groups strengths, the following are the air France KLM group strengths. A modern fleet the groups chief asset Guaranteeing energy and economic efficiency and greater safety levels, the groups aircraft fleet is its chief asset when it comes to meeting the challenges of sustainable development. The dual Roissy Schiphol hub and a balanced network The Air France and KLM route networks complement each other extremely well. The dual hub concept is central to group strategy and is designed to make the most of this. The benefit of dual brand strategy Air France and KLM took an original approach to the merger, choosing to retain the two brands while developing a unified strategy. Air France and KLM each enjoy strong brand identities and are extremely complementary. Enhanced competitiveness thanks to cost control To maintain its competitiveness, the group launched Challenge 10,designed to save 1.4 billion euros by 2009-10, through a 3% cut in unit costs. The plan is four-pronged: Process optimization and productivity gains; Fleet modernization, which will generate fuel and maintenance cost savings; Purchasing, and optimizing group synergies; External distribution costs. The development of high growth areas The groups ambition is to seize growth opportunities in countries driving global economic growth, mainly Brazil, Russia, India and China. In the years ahead, the Air France-KLM group plans to grow by 4.7% per year in terms of available seat-km on its long-haul network. (W)EAKNESSES Weaknesses are those negative aspects or deficiencies in the present competencies or resources of the organization, or its image or reputation, which limit its effectiveness and needed to be corrected to minimize their effect. International economic instability Faced with soaring oil prices, international economic instability, and signs of waning demand, air transport has entered a period of great uncertainty. Our Group can count on its strategic assets, the quality of its fuel hedging and its resolute policy of cost control to meet this challenging period of turbulence and low visibility (O)PPORTUNITIES Opportunities are favorable conditions and usually arise from the nature of changes in the external environment. The organization needs to be sensitive to the problems of business strategy and responsive to changes. Sustained demands In an increasingly global society, the demand for mobility is also increasing. Air transport is a key factor in a countrys economy. Over the last 20 years, air transport has grown twice as quickly as gross domestic product (GDP). In 2008, the rapid development of emerging countries is stimulating growth in Latin America, the Middle East and Asia. This will compensate for the slowdown in the US economy. As for the future, IATA forecasts an increase in global capacity of around 5% per year by 2011. A key contribution to the economy Air transport carries over 2 billion passengers annually. Tons of cargo shipped by air each year represent 35% of the total value of export trade in manufactured goods. By connecting people, businesses and goods around the world, air transport makes an essential contribution to global economic activity. Both directly and as a promoter of growth in other industries. (T)HREATS Threats are the converse of opportunities and refer to unfavorable situations that arise from external developments likely to endanger the operations and effectiveness of the organization. Air France KLM like any other organizations is faced with a number of threats, these includes Increased pressure Growth in European low-cost carriers has been strong for some years and Middle Eastern carriers are planning considerable expansion: Gulf carriers plan 20% seat growth per year for the next three years. This represents stiff competition for European airlines on traffic between Europe and Asia or Australia. Development limited by infrastructures Europe is experiencing air traffic congestion, leading to significant delays, increased costs and CO2 emissions. This is partly a result of the fragmentation of airspace and of the air traffic control process. There is considerable room for improvement. For 10 million flights a year, it is estimated that the actual route flown is 5% longer than ideal. For some routes, such as Amsterdam-Zà ¼rich, it is even 20%. The annual cost of fragmented European skies is estimated at 3.4 billion euros. A sector subject to heavier taxation Air transport is subject to strict regulation, mainly regarding security, safety and infrastructure. The sector is also subject to high charges, among them airport or navigation charges, plus dedicated fees to finance security. Moreover, air transport is the only means of transport to finance soundproofing measures, as it does in numerous European countries. Climate change awareness General awareness of the reality of climate change continued to increase in 2007. This was coupled with local environmental constraints that have always affected air transport activities. Air transport accounts for between 2 and 3% of all man-made CO2 emissions. In Europe, its relative contribution will increase due to growth in traffic and the expected reduction of emissions in other industries. In the past 40 years, the sector has made considerable progress, reducing CO2 emissions per passenger by more than 70%. Summary In spite of its merger Air France KLM is still operating under its identity and brand name with their home bases located at Amsterdam airport Schiphol for KLM and Paris-Charles de Gaulle for Air France. The main core duties of the airline are to transport passengers, cargo and engineering and maintenance. As any other organization Air France KLM has the opportunities to grow much bigger and become the first largest airline company in the world. One group, two airlines, three businesses. Organisational structure The pattern of relationship between various positions in the organization and among members of the organization is referred as structure. Organization is essentially a group of people with a common objective or goal to archive. The structure can either be formal i.e. documented or informal i.e. unofficial. Mullins (2007) defined, Organization Structure as the division of work among members of the organization, and the co ordination of their activities so they are directed towards the goals and objectives of the organization. It is the relationships among positions in the organization and among members of the organization. It makes possible the application of process of management and creates a framework of order and command through which the activities of the organization can be planned, organized, directed, and controlled. It defines tasks and responsibilities, work role and relationships, and channels of communication. Essentially there are various types of organizational structures depending on the nature of organization, such as centralized, complex, stratified and formalized structures. An effective structure is the one that coordinates various parts of the organization and different work areas. Meanwhile the structure of the organization can either be tall i.e. with a long hierarchical chain of command where the freedom and responsibility of the subordinates is restricted or flat i.e. with a short chain of command, there is more effective between management and workers but employees may have more than one manager. However both of two structures above are highly affected by the number of employees who reports direct to a certain manager that is Span of Control. Hellriegel et al (1998) explained, that span of control refers to the number of employees reporting directly to one manager. When the span of control is broad, relatively few levels exists between the top and bottom of the organization. C onversely when the span of control is narrow, more levels are required for the same number of employees. Although there is no correct number of subordinates that a manager can supervise effectively, the competencies of both the manager and employees, the similarity of tasks being supervised and the extent of rules and operating standards all influence a managers span of control. Organisational culture According to Hellriegel et al (1998), the organization itself has an invisible quality a certain style, a character, a way of doing things that may be more powerful than the dictates of any one person or any formal system. Armstrong M (2006) defined, organizational culture as the pattern of values, norms, beliefs, attitudes, and assumptions that may not have circulated but shape the ways in which people behave and get things done. Values refer to what is believed to be important about how people and organizations behave; norms are the unwritten rules of behavior. To understand the soul of the organization requires that we travel below the charts, rule books, machines, and buildings into the underground world of corporate cultures. Indeed there are several ways in which organizational cultures are formed, maintained and changed. Meanwhile there is a very possible relationship between organizational culture and performance, the relationship between organizational culture and ethical b ehavior, the challenge of managing a culturally diverse work force and finally how organizations socialize individuals to their particular cultures. There are several types of organization cultures, these includes labels of baseball team, club, academy and fortress. Organizational culture represents a complex pattern of beliefs, expectations, ideas, values, attitudes and behaviors shared by the members of an organization. More specifically, organizational culture includes routine behaviors, norms, and dominant values held by organization. Essentially the issue of cultural differences and cultural compatibility in mergers between Air France and KLM has gained much attention among the two companies. Since the two companies operate under its brand name and culture, the effects of cultural clashes on the result of a merger and their employees are numerous. Cultural differences may result to poor or low productive behaviour among the employees, such as low level of commitment, trust and cooperation between the groups of employees from the two merging companies. Loss of productivity caused by luck of trust and cooperation is particularly frequent in case of top managers. This is because cultural clash is strongest when the contact between the opposing cultures is greatest; and executives is the people involved in the merger from its beginning till its end. This is a very bad sign for companies, since motivation and commitment of the top managers has a major influence on the motivation of other subordinates. Cultural differe nces mainly influence employees of the merging companies, but perceived cultural distance may also influence potential foreign investors and shareholders who may want to avoid direct ownership because of high information costs and the difficulty in transferring management techniques and values. Organization cultural aspects may be beautiful both for the investors, who find the business models of the foreign partner a considerable advantage and for the managers who expect more opportunities for themselves by working for the partner firm, which they perceive to be high prestige worldwide leader firm and which corporate culture better addresses their expectations. In this situation managers are willing to adopt new culture. Whether cultural differences hinder or facilitate the integration process, their meaning is undeniable. Only some of them notice the complexity of the international mergers where not only two different organisational cultures come together, but organisational cultur es which are deeply nested in national cultures. Common cultural differences embrace differences in communication styles, planning and decision making practices, negotiation strategies, and management or leadership styles. All of them are shaped by both national and organisational cultures, considering the role managers play in the merger and post-merger integration process, it is at the top management level that national cultural differences play the most important role in the life of merging organisations. That is why Air France KLM before making any decisions and signing any contracts should conduct an in depth cultural audit of the future partner. It is important to realise that cultural distance and cultural differences do not necessarily have to mean troubles. Cultures do not have to be the same; it is sufficient if they are complementary. Consequently, the major advantage of such a cultural due diligence is that it raises awareness of issues that should be managed during the integration process. Leadership and management As Hellriegel et al (1998), defines leadership as the process whereby a person influences others to achieve a goal, i.e. is a process of creating a vision for others and having the power to translate the vision into reality. The ways in which leaders attempt to influence others depend in part of the power available to them and in part on their competencies. Leaders draw on five sources of power to influence the actions of others: legitimate, reward, coercive, referent and expert. Vision, empowerment, meaning through communication and self understanding are the competencies that help leaders become more effective. Mullins (2007) defined; management is active, not theoretical. It is about changing behavior and making things happen. It is about developing people, working with them, reaching objectives and achieving results. Indeed, all the research into how managers spend their time reveals that they are creatures of the moment, perpetually immersed in the nitty gritty of making things happen. Teamworking and Mentoring As defined by Katzenbach and Smith (1993) cited in Armstrong M (2006), A team is a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable. For example, after KLM and Air France merged, management decided to create teams of people from both companies to exchange information about particular topics. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¢The most valuable part is the intangible part, teaming up the guy from IT with the CRM guy from marketing, with the network planning guy, who normally dont speak together. Resourcing and Training According to Bratton Gold (2007), human resource planning is the process of systematically forecasting the future demand and supply for employees and the deployment of their skills within the strategic objectives of the organisation. Armstrong M (2006) said, people resourcing is concerned with ensuring that the organization obtains and retains the human capital it needs and employs them productively. It is also about those aspects of employment practice that are concerned with welcoming people to the organization and if there is no alternative, releasing them. It is a key part of human resource management. Mullins (2007) explained that, one of the major areas of human resource management function of particular relevance to the effective management and use of people is training and development. Few would argue against the importance of training as a major influence on the success of the organization. Staffs are crucial, but very expensive resource. In order to sustain economic and ef fective performance it is important to optimize the contribution of employees to the aims and goals of the organization. The purpose of training is to improve knowledge and skills and to change attitudes. It is one of the most important potential motivators which can lead to many possible benefits for both individuals and organization. Since the combination of Air France KLM, each company has kept its own set of policies, especially for Human Resources issues, while developing new common policies in some other areas. Air France-KLM rates as the sector leader on human resources issues and actively addresses all of the challenges relevant to its business Overall, Air France KLMs performance on human resources issues remains stable compared to the last rating. Alongside the environment of the recent merger, severe competition and tough boundaries, the major labour relations issues for the company are to develop employability and staff mobility, essentially through training and proactive social exchange of ideas. Other critical issues for the company entail promoting non discrimination, diversity, and equal opportunities, and safeguarding health and safety in the workplace. Communication skills Cook et al (1997) describes that, communication begins when one person sends a message to another with the intent of evoking a response. The effective communication occurs when the receiver interprets the message exactly as the sender intended. Effective communication is essential for the functioning of any organization. Managers need to transmit orders, and polices, build cooperation and team spirit, and identify problems and their solutions. Performance and Motivation Armstrong M (2006) defined; a motive is a reason for doing something. Motivation is concerned with the factors that influence people to behave in certain ways. All organizations are concerned with what should be done to achieve sustained high levels of performance through people. Giving close attention to the individuals can best be motivated through such means as incentives, rewards, leadership and importantly, the work they do and the organization context within which they carry out that work. Essentially motivation can take place in two ways; such as people can motivate themselves (intrinsic motivation) by seeking, finding and carrying out work that satisfies their needs and secondly people can be motivated by management (extrinsic motivation) through such methods as pay, praise, promotion and punishments such as disciplinary action. In terms of career management, AF-KLM has put increased emphasis on developing careers for older employees. Extensive means are put in place to deal with health and safety issues, although key performance indicators are not disclosed on a group-wide basis, but separately for Air France and KLM. Air France KLM is one of the few companies who show transparency on how to deal with atypical working hours. Air France-KLM has an above average performance compared to its sector peers on Business Behaviour issues. The Group scores very well on its product safety and security commitments and has thorough commitments and implementation measures on responsible contractual agreements, making its management of client issues among the best in the sector. The Groups performance in terms of passenger satisfaction has been stable over the past three years. Air France-KLMs approach to suppliers issues (embedded in its Procurement Charter for Sustainable Development) and anticompetitive practices is similarly comprehensive, although AF-KLM faced a minor allegation related to anti-competitive employment legislation. Overall, the Groups performance improved slightly compared to last rating, and remains far above the sector average. Management systems Earlier this year, Air France-KLM introduced a new combined executive management structure on a functional basis, replacing the separate management structures in Air France and KLM. In place of the Strategic Management Committee, which had supervised the development of Air France and KLM over 2004.2007, the business is being managed from 2007 through an Executive Committee whose members has a group level responsibility and can come from either Air France or KLM while retaining their responsibilities at a company level. Management of change Hellriegel et al (1998) explained, many sectors of the economy, organizations must have the capacity to adapt quickly and effectively in order to survive. To a certain extent all organizations exist in a changing environment and are themselves constantly changing. Increasingly organizations that emphasize bureaucratic or mechanistic system are ineffective. Organizations with rigid hierarchies, high degrees of functional specialization, narrow and limited job descriptions, inflexible rules and procedures, and impersonal management cant respond adequately to demands for change. Organizations need designs that are flexible and adaptive. They also need systems that both require and allow greater commitment and use of talent on the part of employees and managers. Organisational change can be difficult and costly. Despite the challenges, many organizations successfully make needed changes. Adaptive, flexible organizations have a competitive advantage over rigid ones. Thus managing change has become a central focus of effective organization worldwide. There are so many pressures for change, these includes global market, the spread of information technology and computer networks and changes in the nature of the workforce employed by organizations. Thereby, we conclude for the organization to exist there must be innovation process to constantly integrate with the new technologies worldwide. Air France KLM has managed to cop with those technological changes at various aspects so as to comply with customer needs, these includes the revolution of electronic ground services. Air France KLM satisfied the demand autonomy and transparency expressed by passengers. The company is extending the use of the current technologies, i.e. mainstreaming electronic ticketing, extending check in at self service kiosk. The spread of e service offers the company genuine opportunities to reduce the cost and improve quality of service and customer satisfaction. Combination of internet or self service check in is a key e service component replacing the paper ticket with the electronic ticket. This reduces the stress generated by loosing or forgetting ones airline ticket. Meanwhile the service is only accessible at the time of booking either on web, t elephone or at ticket office. As a part of change management the Air France KLM maintain development policy by cutting down on paper use. The self service kiosks can be used by customers without internet access to check in at a self service. Conclusion and Recommendations Air France-KLM is pursuing a strategy of customer-focused profitable growth, based on ongoing cost focus and the synergy between the two airlines. A prerequisite for profitable growth is operating on a level playing field. The complementarity of Air France and KLM in their three businesses (passenger, cargo and maintenance) is a source of significant synergies

Women in Tibet Essay -- Birth Abortion Rights Inferiority Papers

Women in Tibet Although Buddhism embraces compassion as the means to end suffering, the Chinese occupation of 1949 used force and torture to manipulate the Tibetan people, despite the country’s strong pacifist beliefs. Chinese troops aimed to imprison anyone who demonstrates support for the Dalai Lama and often looked for excuses to make public mockeries of these people. In order to implement this idea of genocide in Tibetan culture, China used the practice of ethnic cleansing, or eliminating the Tibetan race; therefore, women were highly stigmatized because of their role in bearing children. Treating the victims as insects, the Chinese forced sterilizations and abortions upon the Tibetan women to ensure their extermination. Continuing to ignore all regulations to treat women as equal to men and to practice safe methods of birth control, China still sterilizes Tibetan women today, leaving them not only with the scar of their surgery, but also a lifetime imprint of the pain and suffering that the Tibetan people have endured for over fifty years. Although so much time has passed since Chinese troops first occupied Tibet, people around the world are starting to realize the horror of this situation as organizations have begun to take action against this dehumanization of Tibetans so that the suffering of these people can finally be eased. Throughout history, women have been viewed as inferior to their male counterparts; however, although Tibet claims to issue women equal rights, the gender gap vastly surpasses the differences seen in America. Even today, Western and Tibetan women are not officially recognized by the Tibetan government in exile, even though the Dalai Lama recently advocated the full ordination of women (Young, ... ...omen of the Himalayas: a journey of the heart, mind and spirit. Colorado Woman News, 13(5), 28. Ma, N. (1999). Tibetan women endangered. America, 180(1), 8-10. Nelson, S. (1999). Buddhist nuns delight crowd. Women’s View from Ethnic and Minority Press, 12(3), 12. Pinto, S. (1999). Pregnancy and childbirth in Tibetan culture. In K.L. Tsomo (Ed.), Buddhist Women Across Cultures: Realizations (pp. 159-168). New York: State University of New York Press. (1994). Tibetan women denied their reproductive rights. Women Envision, 9, 12. (1995). We are using the Beijing process†¦to make our voices heard. The Tribune, 53, 8. (1996). The world is still watching. Herizons, 10(3), 13. Young, S. (2000). Women changing Tibet, activism changing women. In E.B. Findly (Ed.), Women’s Buddhism, Buddhism’s women (pp. 229-242). Somerville, MA: Wisdom Publication.