A History of Total quality management

A History of Total quality management Total quality management is the integration of all functions and processes within an organization in order to achieve continuous improvement of the quality of products and service. Deming defined quality as a never ending cycle of continuous improvement(Allotey, 2003, p.7), Juran defined it as fitness for use (purpose) (Estafanous, Barash, Reves, 2001, p.951). Bearing in mind that TQM is a long term improvement process which requires significant resources. It is also important to realize that TQM is a dynamic process not a static process that is based upon continuous efforts to improve quality. Since there are no deadlines or targets to be met then TQM can never be considered complete which makes it to become a way of life. (Mehra Ranganathan, 2008) During the early years of manufacturing, inspection was used as a tool to decide if a workers job or a product met its requirements. In fact, at that time inspection was not done in a systematic way, yet it worked well when the volume of production was low. However, as organizations became larger and more complicated the need for more effective operations became obvious. (Montogomery, 2001, p.9) In the early 1900s, The Father of Scientific Management Frederick W. Taylor helped to satisfy this need. He proposed a framework for the effective use of people in industrial organizations through his book The Principles of Scientific Management which was republished yet again in 2008. One of his concepts was clearly defined tasks performed under standard conditions. Inspection was one of these tasks and was intended to ensure that no faulty product left the workshop or the factory, it also focuses on the product and detection of problem in the product, and testing every item to ensure that the product match as the requirements or specifications. This process is carried out at the end of the production process and requires specially trained inspectors. The need to performing this process was the reason that led to the emergence of a separate inspection department which resulted in the emergence of defect prevention concept which led to quality control. (Webb Gorman, 2006, P.32) (M ontogomery, 2001) The roots of Total Quality Management can be traced back to the 1920s when Dr W. Shewhart developed the application of statistical methods for the management of quality. He demonstrated that variation in the production process leads to the variation in the product, thus by eliminating the variation of the process a good standard of end product can be achieved. The theory of Statistical Quality Control focuses on the product and detection and control of quality problems that involves testing samples and statistically inferring compliance of all products. This process is carried out throughout the production process and requires trained production people as well as quality control professionals. Towards the end of 1920s the theory was further developed by Dodge, and Romig who developed statistically based acceptance sampling as an alternative to 100% inspection (Webb Gorman, 2006, P.32) (Montogomery, 2001). In 1940s, the quality guru Deming with his peer co-workers Juran and Feigenbaum continued with the improvement of the theory. However, instead of focusing just on quality of products the concept rapidly widened to evolve quality of all issues within an organization i.e. Total Quality Management. (Webb Gorman, 2006, P.32) During the 1950s, many Japanese products were low quality and viewed by the world as junk products. Industrial leaders in Japan recognized this problem and decided to produce high quality products. In fact, Japanese might have not been able to achieve the aim of high quality products unless they had had the help of quality gurus such as Deming, Juran, and Feigenbaum (Soin, 1999, p.1). Deming suggested that this aim could be achieved within just five years. As a matter of fact not many Japanese believed what Deming claimed. However, they followed his suggestion in order not to lose face and because they respected him (Deming, 1995, p.139). In the late 1950s, quality control management developed rapidly and became the main theme of Japanese management. Interestingly, the idea did not stop at the management level. In the early 60s the concept of the quality control circle was first introduced in Japan by K. Ishikawa (Montogomery, 2001, p.10). A quality circle is a group of workers who meet and discuss issues to improve all aspects of workplace and make presentations to management with their ideas for improvement. In this way workers were motivated because they felt that they were involved and listened to (Cole, 1979, p.135). Another advantage was the idea of improving not only the quality of product but also all aspects of organizational issues, which probably was the start of Total Quality. The term Total Quality was first used by Feigenbaum at the first international quality control conference in Tokyo in 1969. (Stephens Juran, 2004, p.77) During the 80s and 90s a new phase of management and quality control began, which became known as Total Quality Management (TQM). Zairi et al (1994) defined TQM as a license to practise. Although there are many other different definitions for TQM yet the concept is still the same. Nowadays, TQM may be called Business Excellence and has a more clearly defined approach (Montogomery, 2001, p.10). Quality movement in Saudi Arabia: Total Quality Management has caught the attention of organizations worldwide ever since its tremendous success in Japan. The term TQM (Total Quality Management) is a management technique in which customer satisfaction is given the prime importance, and the deliverables are made highly acceptable not just through Quality Control techniques but by focussing on the process, encouraging employees to pursue quality and reducing the cost of production. And just like other countries who wish to be world class, organizations in Saudi Arabia are also trying hard to keep up to pace by implementing TQM widely throughout the country. (Al-Sulimani, 1995) In 1973 Saudi Arabia established the Saudi Arabian Standards Organization (SASO), an independent organization concerned with implementation of standards, on the local and international levels. It is also responsible for overseeing quality aspects of locally produced products. SASO developed over time and became the most important Saudi organization concerned with formulating and approving national standards for all commodities and products as well as standards for other quality aspects such as metrology, calibration, marking and identification, methods of sampling, inspection and testing. In addition to this it is also responsible for setting the rules for granting certificates of conformity and quality marks and regulation of their issuance and use. During the early 90s the growth of the quality movement in Saudi enlarged and the first non-profit organization (NPO) in the form of Saudi Arabian Quality Council in the Eastern Province was established and was sponsored by Saudi Aramco. In 1994, with the increasing awareness of the importance of Total Quality Management as a powerful tool for improving the work culture Saudi Quality Council (SQC) established its branch in the Western Region of the country with only 4 members however this organization was later transformed into an independent organization that is operating under the sponsorship of Engineering Committee. In the year 2000, this society was renamed to become known as SQC (WR). The mission of this non-profit, nongovernmental society which has operated in the Western Region of Saudi Arabia over 15 years so far is to advance individual and organizational performance excellence through providing opportunities for learning, quality improvement, and knowledge sharing. SQC (WR) started its actions by executing a SWOT (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis of the status of quality in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The results of the analysis were then utilized to set up long term goals such as making quality a part of Saudi corporate Culture as well as setting short term goals for SQC (WR). King Abdulaziz Quality Award (KAQA): Since its establishment SQC (WR) has managed to organize 150 meetings with a quality theme and has had the participation of over than 7000 quality experts and more than 1700 members from different walks of life in its activities with Healthcare, Education, Construction and Engineering and Business Excellence Interest Groups. SQC (WR) also contributed in establishing and formulating the King Abdulaziz Quality Award (KAQA), a prestigious National Quality Award in Saudi Arabia that intends to maximize quality, efficiency and productivity in different sectors within the kingdom (Al-Amri, 2010). The award was approved in the year 2000 and has the objectives of: Increasing awareness of quality and the importance of its application. Motivating and gently pushing public as well as private sectors to adopt and apply the principles of (TQM). Increasing the quality in the production and services sectors to enhance their competitiveness in the global markets Improving organizational leadership to achieve the total quality management objectives and fulfil their responsibilities Ensuring Continuous improvement in the performance of all production and services processes Encouraging organizations commitments to national and international standards Awarding organizations which achieve the highest level of quality Increasing organizations participation in building and serving the society Building strong relationships with customers, employees, suppliers, and investors to satisfy them and gain their loyalty by applying the best methodology that help determine and deliver their requirements needs and expectations. Establishing a database for the King Abdul Aziz Quality Award Adopting quality strategic planning in order to set business plans and objectives and methods for implementation Training and developing the national workforce and creating a better work environment and improving the efficiency and technical skills of employees to enhance quality Making use of all available national resources to support operational and economic performance on the organizational level and on the national level Measuring performance level in different business areas and comparing it with the performance level of competitors and measuring results improvement Communicating the leading Saudi experiences in regards to quality and to make use of these experiences, and increasing the number of quality experts. (KAQA, no date supplied) According to Al-Amri (2010) the year 2008-2009 will always be remembered as a Year of Quality in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the great achievements that were achieved by the quality movement starting with the introduction and administration of (KAQA). However, without sustainability TQM initiatives usually fail because the main idea behind TQM is continuity over time and integration of quality management initiatives into daily organizational operations (Curry Kadasah, 2002).In support of this further Al-Turki Andijani, (1997) insist on the need for more programmes to be adopted in order to increase awareness of the importance of continuous improvement in Saudi organizations. Work Culture There has been an increasing awareness in Saudi on the importance of Total Quality management as a powerful tool for improving the work culture (Najeh Kara-Zairi, 2007) (Al-Turki Andijani, 1997). Lack of understanding about the concept of TQM by employees, limitation of information available on TQM, lack of support from senior management, focus on quick profit, and lack of documented policies and procedures appear to the author to be factors that hinder the implementation of TQM in Saudi organizations. In support of this (Ahmed Tannock, 2008) have highlighted the limited progress which has been made in quality management development in Arabic-speaking countries. People from different countries often do things differently according to their culture. Furthermore, the culture of the same country differs from one region to another and that individuals of the same culture have different beliefs and behaviours. One way to express these variations in behaviour is the idea of culture (Treven, Mulej, Lynn, 2008), referring to this Al-Sulimani (1995) mentions the difficulties and challenges of implementing the concept of Total quality management in Saudi because of the multinational workforce which is estimated to represent 60 per cent of the total labour force of Saudi Arabia (Woodworth Said, 1996). On the other hand he also argues that a workforce with experienced foreigners should improve the knowledge of the Saudi workforce. Hofstedes five Cultural Dimensions: According to Hofstede (2009) Culture is more often a source of conflict than of synergy. Cultural differences are a nuisance at best and often a disaster. (To be completed) Power distance index (PDI): This dimension represents the extent to which the less powerful member of organizations accepts and expects unequal distribution of power and wealth. The Geert Hofstede analysis of this dimension for the Arab word including Saudi Arabia suggests a large power distance in that region, a score of 80 was recorded for this dimension see figure (1). This is according to Hofstede due to the fact that Arab societies follow a caste system that disables any significant upward mobility of its citizens. Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI): This dimension indicates to what extent a culture programs its members to feel either comfortable or uncomfortable in unstructured situations. The Hofstede analysis of this dimension for the Arab word including Saudi Arabia suggests that Arab societies are highly rule-oriented with laws, rules, regulations, and controls to increase the amount of certainty. Individualism (IDV): This dimension represents the degree to which individuals are integrated into groups. The Hofstede analysis of this dimension for the Arab word including Saudi Arabia suggests that the Arab society tends to be collectivist society. The score recorded for this dimension is 38, which is considerably less than the world average ranking of 64. Masculinity (MAS): This dimension represents the distribution of roles between the genders. The Hofstede analysis of this dimension for the Arab word including Saudi Arabia suggests that women in the Arab countries are limited in their rights due to Muslim religion not due to cultural paradigm see figure (1). Long-Term Orientation (LTO): This dimension is said to deal with Virtue regardless of Truth. This dimension has not been applied to the Arab word. Hofstede does not report any results for Arab countries in relation to long and verses short term orientation.

Entrepreneurship Theories and Contributions of

Entrepreneurship Theories and Contributions of INTRODUCTION ENTREPRENEURIAL THEORIES Richard Cantillons theory The concept of the entrepreneur (Joseph Schumpeters theory) The entrepreneur and profit (Ludwig Von Misess theory) The modernization of entrepreneurship and entrepreneur (Alexander Gerschenkrons theory) CONTRIBUTIONS Economical Development Job creation Economic growth Contribution to GDP Evaluation of entrepreneurs success Social Contributions Innovation Improvement of standard of living INTRODUCTION Over the last few decades, entrepreneurship has been a controversial topic between individuals and societies as researchers and economists cannot agree on what a concrete definition of an entrepreneur should be. Over and over again, people asked, a~what is an entrepreneur? To answer this question, its imperative that we examine a range of theories available today. Generally speaking, an entrepreneur is a leader who deals with entrepreneurship challenges to start a new venture, idea and/or enterprise in potential industries. For the most part, people argue that the term a~entrepreneur originated from a French economist by the name of Richard Cantillon. At that time, an entrepreneur is associated with the characteristic of willingness to take the responsibilities for the consequences of risk and uncertainty otherwise known as a a~risk-bearer. Today, entrepreneurs exist all over the different industries and they are churning the industries to become more competitive in nature. Many agre e that the entrepreneurial activity is critically substantial to flourish the economy and the business industry (Cauthorn, 1989) and its required to move large corporations forward through innovative changes. Although theorists cannot agree on traditional definition of an entrepreneur, they do, however, agree on the importance of entrepreneurs role and responsibility in society and in the economy. For these reasons, I am required to examine the range of entrepreneurship theories and how entrepreneurs contribute to our economy and society. 2.0 ENTREPRENEURIAL THEORIES 2.1 Richard Cantillons theory Richard Cantillon was a French economist who greatly contributed to both the economy and other areas of society in the late 17th century and early 18th century. He wrote a number of books and journals during his life and one in particular, a~Essai sur la Natur du Commerce en General, that discussed and examine the role and characteristics of an entrepreneur. According to one famous economist, Murray Rothbard, Cantillon was the first theorist to coin the term entrepreneur. With Cantillons creative formulation, the entrepreneurs are the professional in solving on their tasks. He hires employees by paying for their labour prior to finish producing the product and testing it in the market first to see whether or not the goods will sell. It is difficult to determine the exact reaction of the consumer to our product and its prices. Therefore, sometimes, we may invest all of our money into renting land and paying wages to produce a product that does not even sell. In that case, we lose all of our investments. This unpredictability of the consumers behaviours and responses to our products quality and prices is what Richard Cantillon would classify as a~risk. As Cantillon would say, the individual who act as a market arbitrager and promises employees fixed income while dealing with the risk of unstable market price is a a~risk-bearer; an entrepreneur. Cantillon investigated that the entrepreneurs should be responsible for all the progress and consequences. For example, the entrepreneur should be a risk taker on his/her business whether it goes successful or not and he/she needs to be evaluated by the consumers in competitive market. In order to pay the wage for employees and land usage, the entrepreneur should earn the profit much more than his/her expenses. As the entrepreneur makes an uncertain profit due to an uncertain selling price, they should maximise their selling quantities. According to Cantillon, the entrepreneur is an individual that balances between supplie s and demands in the economy. 2.2 The Concept of The Entrepreneur (Joseph Schumpeters theory) This innovative trait was not highly considered as the most fundamental identity of an entrepreneurship back before Schumpeter made develop his theory. What he was investigating has been a factor that missed everyones mind at the time, but that is not important. The main reason why most people did not consider it is because economist cannot fit entrepreneurship into its theory for some reasons therefore some economics who already have done some work on entrepreneurship have the tendency to be follow Cantillons or Says way of thinking. But, for Schumpeter, he needed to investigate other ways of defining entrepreneurship and move away from the traditional models or to search for an alternative understanding. He then discovered that the entrepreneur provides a wide range of price options to have innovative trade and generally, they wish to buy materials with much cheaper price and sell them. Schumpeter used a different approach, compared to Cantillon, when defining his entrepreneur. He heavily emphasized the innovative characteristic as the main function of an entrepreneur. He stated that an entrepreneur is the person who creates new combinations from existing goods and resources in the market. The entrepreneur mainly focuses on developing new products, discovering new markets, investigating new type of organization. From Schumpeters point of view, the entrepreneur is the person who guides new way to create a totally new product. In other words, it is necessary for both the entrepreneurs and consumers. Old industries have lost its usefulness as newly generated innovative methods are introduced because with the new methods, production will be more efficient. The firm will be able to produce more at a lower cost. The production frontier will also be pushed outward. This makes old inventions obsolete and unwanted. Sometimes, even if the economy is depressed by some factors, there is adequate number of stock requested and it motivates the entrepreneurs to start being innovative again. In this way of circulation, Schumpeter utilized entrepreneurship to clarify economic growth, structural change, and business circle by exemplifying his arrangement of economic and his ideas. 2.3 The Entrepreneur and Profit (Ludwig Von Misess theory) In capitalism, the entrepreneurs decide whether to invest or not to invest for their production. If they are unsuccessful to generate in efficient and cheapest way those products that the clients are demanding most urgently, they would be suffered losses and are ultimately dismissed from their competitive entrepreneurial position. Other better entrepreneurs who performed better would be replaced their position. Making decision is an essential activity for the entrepreneur. According to Ludwig Mises who was also Austrian economist, he said he determines for what purpose the factors of production should be employed. (Swedberg, p 91) Any other activities which entrepreneurs should perform are only unintentional to his entrepreneurial concern. Mises stated that there is a common rule that the difference between the entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs. Non-entrepreneurs would be confused profits how it should be maximised with other sources. The entrepreneurs are not always perfect of the ir performances due to some reasons. Their position would be reserved by them because they are more responsible and better fit for the performance than other people are in business dealing. They make profit not because they are smart in achieving their duty but they are smarter than other people are. They are not unerring and sometimes making error but they are less responsible and confused less than other people do in entrepreneurship. After of all, Mises concluded his theory that an entrepreneur makes profit by serving the consumers which means the relationship between them is considerably necessary because the primary factor indicating the entrepreneur whether to be successful or not is how they deal with the people, especially the consumers. 2.4 The Modernization of Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneur (Alexander Gerschenkrons theory) Many people will probably agree that the entrepreneurs are considered as the most essential element in the economy and its transformation. There are various ways to define an entrepreneur and it has been argued the definition of entrepreneur for a long time. According to Gerschenkron, for his purpose, it is appropriate to say that economic decisions are determined by the entrepreneurs. Whether it is a small or big decision, or whether the market price has been increased or decreased, all decisions in this process can be called, entrepreneurial decisions. These days, the industry needs large amounts of fixed capital to operate their system because it requires the property, land and machinery. This means entrepreneurs should predict far ahead and be able to make the right decisions into the future. Gerschenkron said the modern industry was indivisible either from the part of technological and organisational movement. New approached to the economy would be continuously appeared and it s hould be developed for both the entrepreneurs and economy. Now only few numbers of entrepreneurs were innovators but most of them are mimics, who were called as a~secondary wave by Schumpeter. The difference between the innovators and the mimics has not been identified clearly however every imitated product from mimics raises large numbers of technical and economical problems that has to be solved immediately. Generally, entrepreneurs  use money as capital and employ staff in order to generate their production however it is very usual circulation how the industrialization is made of. The modern entrepreneurship should be created and new ways approaching to the entrepreneurship should be discovered to develop industrial revolution. ECONOMICS CONTRIBUTIONS 3.1 Job Creations Although the number of employment opportunity has been on decline recent, as a result of the economic downturn and various other many reasons, the role of entrepreneur has still been considered as the key agent responsibility over creation of jobs. Even though most people associate entrepreneurship with self-employment, it is important to notice that in most cases, regardless of how small or big the firm is, a new start-up by an entrepreneur, more often than not, will generate jobs. Assuming that an entrepreneur is an innovative figure as argued by Schumpeter, then when he enters the market, he must be enter with either a new product or services or creating a completely new market segment. Because of this innovative edge, their company will likely to grow as demand increases. This upward demand would require that the firm hires more people to increase production. That is how jobs get created. Especially at this stage in the economic recession, entrepreneur is a substantial agent in h elping move the economy forward and reducing unemployment. According to a recent study in the United Kingdom, the unemployment rate has become a serious issue as the rate continues to climb higher and higher. The figure below illustrates an upward sloping graph indicating that the number of unemployment rate has risen as more and more people fail to obtain a job or get fired. (as cited in trading economics, 2010) From this point, the role of entrepreneurs has been emphasised and they should create more job opportunities. If the government just push for new firms that are not innovative, the firm will probably only provide the same old jobs instead of creating something innovative. The old jobs are not preferable because they do not help in pushing the production efficiency upward. Therefore, we need to encourage the innovative designs of entrepreneurs to help push the production function outward through the creation of something innovative and then driving up demand, as a result of this creativeness, to alleviate unemployment. 3.2 Economic Growth In a way, entrepreneurship and economic growth have a close connection with each other in the sense that when high levels of entrepreneurial activities are present, the economy seems to grow along with it as well. As Schumpeter have discussed in his papers, a growing number of entrepreneurs will boost up the development in economic growth. Swedberg (2000) stated that the significant changes in the economy fields would be managed by the entrepreneur and these important changes would be working slowly by themselves through the business circle. He also implied his thought of change was both economic aspects and social aspects. We still expect high volume of entrepreneurship would associate with economic growth and its development. Therefore, a large number of entrepreneurs should be encouraged to get involved in entrepreneurial activities and should continue to make progress in productive activities, because these activities will lead to economic development. 3.3 Contribution to GDP Over the last few years, the entrepreneurs had contributed tremendously to the recovery of the economy by sustaining or boosting GDP growth, depending on the country. Though the total numbers of new business has slightly decreased, entrepreneurial enterprises still occupies a large percentage of the total number of firms in the countrys GDP (Gross Domestic Profit). Take the private sector in Vietnam for example, it has been estimated that the number of enterprises account for 39 percent of the countrys total GDP (a~Entrepreneurs contributions to national development, n.d.). It has stated that Vietnamese businesses and entrepreneurs have performed well in boosting up the national economy (a~Entrepreneurs contributions to national development n.d.). When the entrepreneur enters the market with his or her creative idea, he or she will attract more consumers to the product because its new and innovative. As more people seek out the goods, the demand for the goods will increase. This incr ease in demand translates to more supplies being required. The firm will need to produce more to not only meet the increased demand in the domestic market, but it will also have to produce more to meet increased demand internationally as well. This increase in production contributes directly into the Gross Domestic Products. 3.4 Evaluation of Entrepreneurs Success. Essential components to be successful in entrepreneurship are considered by many people. Based on its personality and characteristics, the performance of entrepreneur has direct impact to its success and it has been considered by four basic scales to decide whether they are successful or not. First, achievement in business field would be considered. It is the factual evidence how they are performing well in business and it should be first thing that should be indicated. Second, innovation in business should be considered. Based on innovators, it is always required to be innovative and acquisition of new change in business therefore entrepreneurs should be revolutionary innovative and try to attempt to be reformer. Next, entrepreneur should perceive personal control of business consequence. It is important for both the entrepreneurs and individuals due to recognition of business trends and movement. Lastly, entrepreneurs should have self-esteem in their business. It helps dealing with consumers and building reputation. SOCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS 3.5 Innovation Drucker (a~Innovation and entrepreneurship Drucker, P. F.) has been telling us the story about William Conner, a salesperson in the medical industry who decided to start up his own business. Corner begins by having discussions about the problems that surgeons faced during their operations. From these discussions, he was able to learn a lot about the process of a cataract surgery and how it was amazingly easy to operate. While operating, surgeons must make sure that they cut one ligament that has proven to be risky. Conner researched further and learned that theres an enzyme that can melt away those ligaments. He also figured out how to preserve these enzymes during operation procedures. Soon after, he received a patent for his product and that compelled him to enter the niche market with his new way to surgically remove cataracts. With the use of this case, Drucker illustrated how entrepreneurial activities can bring about innovation. William Conner did not care too much about the ca taract surgery; he cared about making profits. It just so happened that when he tried to make the profit, he also contributed to society by inventing something new and improves in its ability to make people healthier. Although, we probably guess how the population will be changing in next few years, it will be so hard to get this kind of chance. These days, many entrepreneurs try to concentrate on a specific industry and on opportunities that already exist, even if its in small and declining industry. Therefore, once again, we must arrange and create policies that can encourage entrepreneurs to be more innovative because their innovations can truly help improve life. 3.6 Improvement standards of living The industrial revolution was considered as one of the most important historical stage in terms of how it helped to improve the standards of living. Increase productivities, innovations, demand and economic growth have all combine to increase and improve employment opportunities. People who never had a job before now have a mean to make money and people who previously had jobs now can move on to a better paying job. With this new income, or increased income, people will be able to purchase more goods to make their life better and healthier. Entrepreneurship plays a significant role in this improvement in standards of living. Entrepreneurs are able to do this my generating more jobs for the people. With these jobs, they will be able to earn an income that can be used to sustain a better or improved lifestyle. Secondly, the innovative nature of an entrepreneur also contributes to this social betterment. As entrepreneurs seek out an opportunity in the market by bringing about new invent ions or combination, they are improving the quality of life in the sense that those new inventions will make life easier, ergonomically speaking. For example, the invention of the iPhone was based on the intention of making money in the market, but as we have learned, it has truly helped people improve their standards of living in that the applications that exist in the iPhone can automate a lot of activities that would normally take manual labour. iPhone have the capacity to act a remote in various areas, make life less tiring. REFERENCES Swedberg, R. (Eds) (2000). Entrepreneurship. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Cauthorn, R.C. (1989). Contributions to a theory of entrepreneurship. USA. Chell, E. (Eds) (2008). The Entrepreneurial personality. London: Routledge. Acs, Z. (2006). a~How is entrepreneurship good for economic growth, Journal of Innovation, 23 February Lee, J. (2007). a~Improve the standard of living, retrieved 15 December, 2010 from http://joeleeblog.com/2007/07/24/improve-the-standard-of-living/ a~Entrepreneurs contributions to national development (2010), retrieved 15 December, 2010 from http://english.vovnews.vn/Home/Entrepreneurs-contributions-to-national-development/201010/120389.vov Arzeni, S. (n.d.) a~Entrepreneurship and job creation, retrieved 16 December,2010 from http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=4AEBE3CD1572F447D4091BF3003DF363.inst2_3b?docId=98682315 Drucker, P. F. (n.d.), a~Innovation and entrepreneurship, retrieved 15 December, 2010 from http://www.bainvestor.com/Innovation-Entrepreneurship-Peter-Drucker.html

Oloudah Equianos The Slave Trade Essay -- Equiano Slave Trade Slavery

Oloudah Equiano's The Slave Trade Olaudah Equiano was born in 1745 in an area of Africa which is now Nigeria. At the age of eleven he was captured and brought into slavery. In his book, The Slave Trade, Equiano describes the slave trade during this time. He illustrates how he became a slave and how slaves were treated. Through his descriptions of his homeland and other aspects of his life, we gain insight into the state of world trade at that time. Equiano's description of his homeland exemplifies "the Columbian Exchange" in operation. First of all, Equiano discusses how planters from the West Indies preferred slaves from Benin because of their ability and hardiness. This statement illustrates a connection between the Eastern Hemisphere and the Western Hemisphere. Equiano also describes some of the crops which were grown in his homeland. He mentions corn and tobacco which are both native to the Western Hemisphere. One can see an example of "the Columbian Exchange" through Equiano's experiences. A network of trade can also be seen in Equiano's discussion of the marketplace of his homeland. He describes the presence of Oye-Eboe people at his village's marketplace. Oye-Eboe is translated as "red men living at a distance." These men would bring European goods such as guns and gunpowder along with hats, beads and dried fish to trade. The Oye-Eboe Equiano describes could actually be Aro people from the south of Isseke who were involved in the slave trade. The Aro would trade these goods for captives to be sold as slaves. Because these people had fish to trade, one can see they were from the coast, therefore, they most likely had direct contact with Europeans. The network of trade between Africa and Europe is mapped out by his... ...e worst of it suffocated. Equiano was very ill and was able to spend a good deal of time on deck, where at least the air was a bit fresher. The crew of the ship were brutal to the slaves. They once tossed fresh fish overboard while the slaves begged to eat some. Equiano was treated like a human being while still in Africa, but like a wild animal on the British slave ship. Through my reading of Equiano's memoirs, much of what I had known before was reinforced. However, there were a few things I didn't understand before. First, I didn't know before that Africa even used slave labor. I was also surprised to learn that African people were enslaved by other African people. I was glad to learn, however, that slavery was used as a form of punishment. I was also very surprised at the strong contrast between the treatment of slaves in Africa and in the Western Hemisphere.

In Book Two of Homer’s The Odyssey Telemakhos gains a significant amount :: Classics

In Book Two of Homer’s The Odyssey Telemakhos gains a significant amount of confidence and decides to call an assembly. At the assembly The Odyssey In Book Two of Homer’s The Odyssey Telemakhos gains a significant amount of confidence and decides to call an assembly. At the assembly a wise man Aigyptios presents the listeners with a rare introduction. He states that an assembly has not occurred for about twenty years and commends the individual that had the audacity to call one. At this assembly Telemakhos protests fervently that his mother’s suitors be expelled since they have no respect and appreciation for their generosity â€Å"these men spend their days around our house killing our beeves and sheep and fatted goats , carousing , soaking up our good dark wine, not caring what they do†. At the end of Telemakhos’s first battle to persuade the minds of the Akhaians against the suitors, a fellow leader named Antinoos decides to defend his fellow suitors. Antinoos counteracts Telemakhous claims informing everyone that the suitors should not be criticized since Penelope is the one to blame â€Å"you should know the suitors are not to blame but it is your own dear –incomparably cunning mother â€Å".He further adds that she has been deceiving them with her clever ability to avoid any decisions about marriage and gives the example of her unwoven loom. The suitors then commands that Telemakhos takes immediate action and either evict Miss Penelope from the house or compel her to marry the man her father suggests. Telemakhos makes a firm stance against the suitor’s suggestions and insists that he will never turn his mother out. During Telemakhos’s plead to save his mother; a pair of eagles appears in the sky. Another heated debate then rises between Halitherses and Eurymakhos in which Halitherses argues that the sighting of eagles foretells that Odysseus arrival is near and that the suitors will face grave danger if they don’t leave, while Eurymachus protests that the sighting of the birds are insignificant â€Å"Bird life aplenty is found in the sunny air, not all of it is significant†. Telemakhos concludes that he is finished with appeals and will let the Gods do the justice. All he desires is to locate a fast ship and a crew of men to carry out a voyage and arrive at a conclusion about his father whereabouts â€Å"If he’s alive and beating his way home you might hold out for another weary year;†¦..then I can come back to my own dear country and raise a mound for him†¦.†. After the assembly Telemakhos feels a sense of defeat and decides to

Free Essay on Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia - To Live or not To Live :: Free Euthanasia Essay

To Live or not To Live: The Choice Is Yours "What do we mean when we say 'life'? Do we mean the continued functioning of the body? Of the brain? Or do we mean the continued experience of the human being?" (Pridonoff, pg. 73). Many doctors are now performing what is known as physician-assisted suicide, which is when a doctor sets up a machine, but the patient actually kills him or herself. Whereas, euthanasia is the act of the doctor killing the patient. There are two sides to this issue. One side is whether or not a person should be allowed to end his or her own life. The other side of the question is, "who's decision is it to end a life?" There is a difference between assisted suicide and euthanasia. The choice to have a doctor help end a terminally ill patient's life is the patients decision to make. Many people are opposed to physician-assisted suicide because of their religious beliefs. Traditional Christian beliefs are that assisted suicide violates one's natural desire to live, suicide harms other people, and life is a gift from God and God should be the only one able to take a life from a human being (Robinson, pg.2). However, there are also religious organizations that believe in physician assisted suicide. One of them is the Mainline and Liberal Christian denominations. They are pro- choice for this form of assisted suicide (Robinson, pg.7). Many of these beliefs urge followers to choose life over death, unless life is sustained by a machine (Edelheit, pg.45). Physician-assisted suicide for patients who are in a great amount of pain should not be illegal. The patients live everyday wishing they could die to end their pain. Sigmund Freud was in extraordinary pain from cancer. He whispered to his physician, "This makes no more sense." His doctor then injected him with a dose of morphine that killed him ("Assisted Suicide"). In this instance, it was best to end his life. He was in so much pain that he no longer saw any reason to live. One the other hand, the decision to end one's life should be a difficult decision and not easy to carry out ("Assisted Suicide"). Very few states have banned physician-assisted suicide. As a matter of fact, most states favor physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill patients who are expected to live less than six months (Cloud and Donnelly, pg.

Letter of Persuasion

I hope this letter reaches you in good health and good graces. I am writing this letter to tell you about this persistent issue Eve had with my teeth. It all started when I was told that along with my four wisdom teeth I had to get an extra tooth which was growing on the bottom right row, extracted as well. After the first grueling month of post wisdom tooth extraction pain, came more problems. Now I have a hole in my mouth on that bottom right row and, I can't go one meal still to this day without it bleeding, and let me remind you that my teeth were extracted about six to eight months ago and the hole still bleeds after a meal, snack etc.Which also makes it hard when you want to get food out of that hole. Because the gap is wide enough after every meal something gets stuck in there and if the hole is punctured with a straw, fork, toothpick, dental floss in efforts to get the food out, it will not only cause more pain but more bleeding as well. This explains why the gap is swollen, because its been stabbed multiple times in efforts to get the food out, so now its become sore. The days you do not have a straw, fork, toothpick or dental floss readily available, the food stays there making the pain more unbearable, and making it more possible for infections.Imagine having to deal with this everyday, and your a sixteen year old boy with a Job which requires a lot of talking, and with every time you move your mouth, you feel a pain from this throbbing hole, which the doctors who took your wisdom teeth and your extra tooth out said would be handled by braces, all that would be needed was the insurance company to say yes. So after breakfast, lunch and dinner, I have to take a Ethylene or David to reduce the pain, swelling and bleeding, and each day that I take one, the drowsier I become, which makes It a lot harder for me to do my Job when Im extremely groggy.On top of all this my breathing has gotten heavier from after the extraction of the tooth, especially when I lay down, my heart rate increases, and my breathing becomes loud. I first noticed that I truly had a breathing issue when I was having a conversation with a friend, and he asked me had I been inning and I said â€Å"no', and he said â€Å"l can hear you breathing† Before the operation my breathing was fine, I never had any Issues, I never even had asthma. Now when I'm standing perfectly still or trying to go to bed, my constant deep breathing Is always there.So I am writing this letter today not plead for braces because of a minor overbite or cross-bite, but I truly hope that from my narrative and Orthodontics narrative that my very serious oral condition will be taken Into deep consideration a second time around. Ever since my teeth were taken out I was assured that the pain loud only be temporary and once the Insurance approved for braces the hole would be closed up and the Issues would be gone but since that surgery date I have had more problems then ever before, which ha s Interfered with my schooling, work and everyday activities.I hope you take pity In the fact that I suffer everyday with this Issue and would Like nothing more then the Insurance company to help finally see what I go through day to day. I would Just Like to say thank you for taking the time to read my letter, and hope you can get back to me soon. Letter of Persuasion By phantom day that I take one, the drowsier I become, which makes it a lot harder for me to do from after the extraction of the tooth, especially when I lay down, my heart rate running and I said â€Å"no†, and he said â€Å"I can hear you breathing† Before the operation my breathing was fine, I never had any issues, I never even had asthma.Now when I'm standing perfectly still or trying to go to bed, my constant deep breathing is narrative that my very serious oral condition will be taken into deep consideration a loud only be temporary and once the insurance approved for braces the hole would be closed up and the issues would be gone but since that surgery date I have had more problems then ever before, which has interfered with my schooling, work and everyday activities.

My Cross-Cultural Experiences

1. First cross-cultural experiences that I have had in my life * The first culture clash I had was on my first trip to Germany. It was when my friend and me went on a ski trip with our school. We arrived a town called Innsbruck where we stayed at a hotel. I got very surprised when I first got there, the first thing I recognized was the houses they lived in, they all had names on their houses. It was painted on their front wall. This didn’t make any sense for me but I was told that it was because some of the houses where family houses.And that they rented out rooms. At the same day when we went for dinner at our hotel we got served 4 meals. We first got soup, then salad, the main meal and dessert. This didn’t make any sense for me, because back home I was not used to get 4 meals at a restaurant. That night I went to take a shower but I couldn't figure out how to turn on the water in the shower. There were three knobs above the tub, so I assumed that they were for hot, wa rm, and cold water. I twisted the â€Å"warm† knob, but no water came out.Then I tried the two others, and I did get some water, but it was either too cold or too warm. I was too embarrassed to ask anyone for help with such a simple thing, so after making several unsuccessful attempts, I gave up. I had a cold bath instead. 2. Second cross-cultural experiences that I have had in my life – The second experience I had was when I first visited the United States. When I first arrived Westminster College I was so excited and scared at the same time.I have never lived in a community called â€Å"dorms† before and I was not sure how it would work and I had no clue how my roommates would be. The first thing I recognized was how much they talked and their conversation was at a very loud level. The next day I recognized how nice the people were, they smiled and they even said hi to me. I got shocked when people even hold the door open when I was far away they would stand t here and wait for me.When we went out for dinner that night I was also surprised when I ordered a coke, when I finished the coke the waitress came out with another one I got confused and told her that it has to be a misunderstanding because I didn’t ordered another one. She told me that it was free refuel. I felt kind of stupid, and my roommates started laughing at me because they thought it was funny. I told my roommates that in Norway we have to pay for the refuel and after that they taught me more about their culture so I could be more able to adapt to their culture.