Thorn Queen Chapter Thirteen

Ysabel couldn't be coaxed out of her room, no matter how hard I tried. I even sent Shaya to do it, seeing as she tended to be a bit more personable than I was. No luck. Ysabel remained firmly entrenched and would only ramble over and over about how she was going to tell her lord about me and escape this accursed place. Evening wore on, and I couldn't drag myself back to Tucson. My feelings were in turmoil. I'd never expected to feel guilty about anything pertaining to Ysabel, but there it was. And as more time passed, I didn't just feel bad about inadvertently suffocating her. As soon as I'd realized what I had done, I knew I had to cease practicing this kind of magic immediately. Storm King had used it to kill his enemies in horrible ways. Kiyo had warned that delving further and further into my powers would put me on a path I might not be able to turn away from. And yet†¦that was the problem. I knew I had to stop†¦but I didn't want to. Sure, I didn't want to learn air magic to kill. But after touching that power†¦I couldn't stop thinking about it. I found my mind spinning, analyzing the air around me and how easy it would be to manipulate it. What had started as a seemingly small lesson from Ysabel was quickly moving into larger and larger implications as I grasped more of air's patterns and how it worked. It was like I didn't even need a teacher. My own nature and pull toward magic was running away and creating its own lessons. My conflicted ruminations were interrupted when a letter arrived via the Otherworld's equivalent of the Pony Express. It was from Leith. As I'd suspected, he'd devoured the engineering books. What I hadn't expected was that he'd already developed a plan for how to implement some of the irrigation systems and was going to accompany some workers out to Westoria in the morning to get started-unless I had any objections, of course. If I didn't, then he would be honored if I would come out to meet them. He also added in his letter that he had investigated the towns near the Yellow River crossroads. None of them had any reports of missing girls. It figured, I thought. I either had enough bad luck to be the only monarch with runaway girls-or I possibly had an enemy specifically targeting me. Considering the number of gentry who resented my rule, the latter wouldn't have surprised me. Regardless, I decided I had to go out to see Leith tomorrow. Even if it was just an elaborate attempt to woo me, he was still going to an awful lot of trouble with this. Plus, I hoped that if I spent the night here, Ysabel might finally emerge. So, I stayed over, giving me the opportunity to meditate with the land. While I noticed no ostensible difference in the morning, there was a strange, intangible feel to it†¦. It seemed healthier. Like always, I couldn't exactly articulate why. Perhaps most disturbing of all, I found that staying over wasn't quite the agonizing ordeal it used to be. I was preparing to head out to see Leith when a guard announced that a rider was approaching. I wondered if it was a messenger-or possibly Leith himself. Instead, it was someone quite unexpected. Dorian. The castle servants fell all over themselves to welcome the Oak King, and he swept inside as though perfectly entitled to it. Which, I guessed, he was. Nonetheless, I had no time for his antics today and greeted him with hands on my hips. â€Å"Not today, Dorian. I have things to do.† â€Å"As do I,† he said. He had that typically laconic tone to his voice, but there was an oddly serious-and impatient-look in his eyes. It was not an expression I'd seen very often. â€Å"I've come to see my subject. I knew you wouldn't welcome her with open arms, but honestly, my dear, your attempts at murder shock even me-no small feat.† My jaw nearly dropped to the floor, both because of his assumption and the fact that she'd somehow gotten a message out to him. â€Å"Wha-? Dorian, it's not true! It was an accident. I didn't realize what I was doing.† â€Å"May I see her?† he asked, not acknowledging my plea. I could hardly deny him that, and he hurried off to her room without another word. She admitted him-no surprise there-and I found myself pacing the entire time they were together. It had been bad enough that Ysabel had thought me capable of assault. But somehow†¦the idea of Dorian thinking badly of me? Well, it struck me harder. I shouldn't have cared what he thought-God knew I was mad at him more often than not. Yet, I realized that deep inside I wanted his good opinion. I felt sick to my stomach that I might have lost it. When he emerged, his face was still serious. â€Å"I believe I have convinced her that your intentions weren't murderous.† I sagged in relief-more, I think, because he appeared to believe me. â€Å"Thank you.† â€Å"The question now is: do you want her to stay?† â€Å"Will she?† I asked, startled. â€Å"She obeys me,† he said simply. â€Å"She'll stay and continue to teach if I tell her to.† â€Å"I don't want anyone here against their will†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I've assured her of her safety. She won't live in-much-fear of you. So, that's no longer the issue. The issue instead is if you want to continue with her teachings.† â€Å"I can't-not after†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I stopped, realizing I was unsure of the words leaving my lips. I didn't want to be like Storm King. I didn't want a natural affinity for learning ways to kill people. And yet†¦I couldn't stop thinking about the way I'd felt wielding that kind of power. Controlling water had given me a rush; air had doubled it. Dorian's gold-green eyes were watching me very carefully. â€Å"I see,† he said. â€Å"Then I'll tell her she'll be staying a little longer.† I started to protest but couldn't. He returned to her, stayed a few more minutes, and then joined me in my parlor where I had resumed pacing. â€Å"Well, then,† he said briskly, â€Å"that is that.† The grim set to his face was gone, and I found myself grateful to see the return of his usual mien. â€Å"I noticed you were about to leave. Off to free humans from your subjects?† â€Å"Off to free my subjects from me.† I explained my task, and his features lit up with interest. â€Å"How convenient that I'll be traveling in the same direction. Unless you'd like me to wait here until you return?† No, the last thing I wanted was to encourage Dorian to make himself at home in my castle. So, I grudgingly conceded that he could go with me, partly because I still felt guilty and grateful over his intervention in the Ysabel incident. One bright side to him being with me was that Rurik decided I didn't need an entire retinue for the trip. He alone accompanied us, and I wondered idly how Dorian managed to go wherever he wanted without an entourage. I didn't like to think he was a more authoritative ruler than me. â€Å"Don't give me a hard time about this air thing,† I warned. â€Å"I don't want any spiels about how I'm embracing my heritage and approaching my destiny.† Dorian smiled, eyes on the road ahead of us. â€Å"I don't need to tell you things you already know.† â€Å"Of course†¦I suppose if I did get a better grip on my magic, I might be able to get rid of those fucking fire demons.† â€Å"You see? I told you I don't need to say anything. You're finding ways to rationalize your use of magic all on your own.† â€Å"Hey, this is a serious threat. You can't tell me you'd be all casual if you had demons running loose in your kingdom.† I frowned. â€Å"Or would you? I got the impression a lot of rulers don't bother themselves with that kind of thing.† Dorian's eyes took on that serious glint again, despite the small smile on his face. â€Å"Aeson didn't bother. Don't generalize to all of us. You know better. If I had demons in my land, I'd lead a group out myself to obliterate them.† I wondered if Dorian could. My potential power might be greater than his, but at the moment, his control and skill made him a more dangerous force than me. A ruler in the Otherworld had to be powerful, or else the land wouldn't accept them. It was a wonder I'd been found worthy. â€Å"Do you want me to help you?† he asked when I remained silent. â€Å"I'll go with you the next time you strike.† â€Å"What would that cost me?† I asked with an eye roll. â€Å"Why do you assume everything I do has an ulterior motive? Isn't it enough I'd want to help you?† â€Å"I don't know,† I said, not liking how his words made me feel bad. Was I attributing more insidious motives to him than he deserved? â€Å"I don't trust anyone around here.† Westoria was looming in the distance. â€Å"I don't even trust Leith's engineering generosity. He's not doing this for the sake of trade.† Dorian's eyes lifted to the approaching village. â€Å"That,† he said, â€Å"we can both agree on. No matter how much you beat yourself up over those demons, you have more than enough strength to bind the land to you.† I hated his uncanny ability to guess my thoughts. â€Å"When Katrice dies, the Rowan Land will either pass in entirety to someone with the power to control it, or it will divide itself and be subsumed into other kingdoms.† â€Å"Shaya said the same thing-and that Leith thinks being hooked up with me would help keep it in the family.† I shook my head. â€Å"One land's bad enough. I don't have the power to control two.† â€Å"You'd be surprised,† he said ominously. Our arrival was greeted with the same wonder and awe I'd had before the demon incident. Apparently, yesterday's food shipments and Leith's presence today had reestablished my awesome reputation. Dorian seemed to have an effect as well. As we dismounted and walked through the village, the residents' eyes followed both of us, filled with admiration and wonder. Glancing at Dorian, I could understand their feelings. He strode through the dusty town just as he had my castle, confident and majestic, even after a hot and wearying ride. He looked like, well, a king, and even I couldn't help but admire his good looks. Beside him, I felt frumpy and insignificant. Then, I tried to pull back out of my glum thoughts and imagine what we must look like to these people, both of us tall and red-haired. We looked good together, I knew. I was in jeans, but I'd cleaned up this morning, and my hair was down. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see where the sun lit it up, giving the red a golden hue that complemented Dorian's truer red. My tank top was blue, a good color for me, and I had on my usual gemstone jewelry. Perhaps most importantly, we carried our titles as king and queen, and to these people, I realized we were probably the equivalent of a Hollywood couple on the red carpet. â€Å"Your majesty! I'm so glad you could-† Leith had come running up to us and came to a total standstill when he saw Dorian. After a few stunned moments, he made a polite bow to the Oak King. â€Å"Your majesty. Also a pleasure.† I could tell Dorian was delighted to have ruined Leith's plans for a romantic interlude. â€Å"Well, I hated to part from Eugenie this morning, so I thought I'd come along and see what's new.† I had to restrain myself from elbowing him. His wording implied that we'd woken up together. Our former relationship was no secret, and Dorian had pitched his words loudly, so that some of the gathered villagers would hear. No doubt this would be all over the Otherworld by tonight. Leith looked even more dismayed than before, and I tried to smooth things over. â€Å"Why don't you show us the project?† I asked him. â€Å"I don't think I can thank you enough for what you've done.† Leith brightened and eagerly led us forward. As we walked, Dorian murmured in my ear, â€Å"Believe me, he's more than sure you could thank him enough.† â€Å"How come you can allegedly do things for me without ulterior motives but no one else can?† I hissed back. Dorian only grinned as Leith headed toward the village's edge and showed us his handiwork. There was little to see of his irrigation system at this point. Mostly people were digging and laying out the foundation. Leith did his best to explain what it would develop into and even showed us blueprints-quaintly written on parchment. I followed them a little but could tell they were gibberish to Dorian, despite his polite and confident smile. Zealous or not, a prince of the Rowan Land was not about to do manual labor, and once the tour was done, he sat down with Dorian and me at the mayor's house. Davros seemed only too happy to keep offering his home as my hangout and eagerly served us wine before leaving his esteemed guests to discuss whatever it was royalty talked about. â€Å"This is only the beginning of what we can do,† Leith said, positioning himself so that Dorian wasn't in his line of sight. â€Å"I'd love to come visit and discuss more ways to work through this. I've got some ideas on how to construct buildings that will reflect light better. Have you ever considered redesigning your castle?† â€Å"Yikes,† I said. â€Å"No. That'd be a big feat.† â€Å"Not as big as you think. Not with the right help.† I shook my head with a smile. â€Å"Let's just focus on the people first.† Leith smiled back. â€Å"Sure. But I will come by some day to show you some palace ideas-just in case you change your mind. Or, better yet, you should come visit us. Mother would love to show you the hospitality of the Rowan Land.† â€Å"Or, better yet, you should throw the Thorn Queen a party,† said Dorian, deadpan. â€Å"I'm sure she would love it.† This time, I did elbow Dorian. Leith didn't notice. Dorian knew perfectly well I dreaded Otherworldly social events-particularly when the focus was on me. â€Å"Really,† I began. â€Å"That's not-â€Å" â€Å"Of course!† said Leith. â€Å"We haven't had a grand ball in quite a while. We could invite hundreds of people†¦.† I decided then that elbowing wasn't severe enough. It was with great restraint that I didn't actually kick Dorian. He placed his own elbow on the table, resting his chin in his hand, appearing quite entertained. â€Å"You'd have to outdo Maiwenn's party, to truly show Eugenie honor,† said Dorian. â€Å"That's going to be hard to do. Of course, Maiwenn has an unfair advantage with her maternal glow, eh? Eugenie was just telling me on the way here how all this baby talk is kindling longings of her own.† I choked on my wine. â€Å"I love children too,† Leith told me. â€Å"I can't wait to have some-once I find the right woman.† I was spared more of this when one of Leith's workers came in, anxious over some mishap. Leith looked devastated at the thought of abandoning me-and also embarrassed over me witnessing a flaw in his grand plans. â€Å"I'm sorry,† he said. â€Å"I hate to leave you. I'm sure this will only take a moment.† â€Å"Actually,† I said, rising. â€Å"We should probably get going as well.† â€Å"Must you?† he asked, face falling further. â€Å"I'm sure I'll see you soon.† â€Å"Yes,† agreed Dorian. â€Å"You should get moving on that ball. Or maybe I should just throw one for her†¦.† Leith totally fell for the baiting. â€Å"No, no. I would be more than honored to.† He swept me a bow, and I let him kiss my hand. â€Å"I'll have news for you soon, I promise.† I smiled and expressed my thanks and allowed him to kiss my hand again when he insisted. As soon as he was gone, I turned on Dorian. â€Å"Are you trying to push me into his arms or away?† â€Å"Ironically, doing one causes the other.† He stretched and stifled a yawn. â€Å"Were you telling the truth? Are you ready to leave?† â€Å"Yeah, I think so-â€Å" â€Å"Your majesty?† Davros stuck his head into the room, wearing his usual apologetic look. His eyes flicked nervously from Dorian to me. â€Å"I'm so sorry to bother you†¦I know you must be busy and†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"What is it?† â€Å"She's been found, your majesty. The missing girl? Her parents tracked her down last night but were afraid to tell you†¦she seemed so distraught. I only just found out myself. I told them you'd want to know-â€Å" â€Å"Of course, I do.† I was already moving toward the door, Dorian fast on my heels. â€Å"Where are they?† Still bobbing his head in obeisance, Davros hastily led us to a small home on the opposite side from Leith's construction. He beat impatiently on the door. â€Å"Open up! The queen is here.† Almost a minute passed before the door opened. The woman who had accosted me on my first visit peered out, eyes wide. â€Å"Your majesty,† she said humbly, inclining her head. She didn't seem to recognize Dorian. â€Å"We-we didn't know you were here.† â€Å"I want to see her,† I said impatiently. â€Å"Let me talk to her.† The woman hesitated, fearful of me but also fearful of something else, apparently. Davros was undeterred. â€Å"This is the Thorn Queen! Let her in.† With a gulp, the woman stepped aside. I found myself in a small but clean cottage, dimly lit thanks to all the curtains being drawn, though all the windows were open to allow a breeze. The woman's husband met us as we walked through the kitchen, his face pale and afraid. â€Å"Your majesty†¦forgive us. We were afraid to tell you. We were afraid she'd run away again.† â€Å"I'm not going to hurt her. I just want to talk to her.† It was a bit depressing, between Ysabel and this family, knowing everyone was terrified of me. Ironically, before I'd known about my gentry heritage, I'd been proud of the fear I inflicted on Otherworldly inhabitants. â€Å"Please take me to her.† I felt Dorian's hand on my shoulder and his breath warm against my ear as he whispered, â€Å"You do not need to say please.† With a quick exchange of looks, the couple led us to the back of the cottage, into a tiny bedroom. It too was darkened, and I could make out a slim girl lying on a bed. There was a washcloth on her forehead that fell off when she sat upright at our approach. She cringed against the wall. â€Å"Who is it? I told you I didn't want to see anyone†¦.† â€Å"It's all right, Moria,† said her mother. â€Å"This is the queen. She's come to talk to you. She's not going to hurt you.† The girl wilted even more, blond hair covering half of her face. â€Å"No, no†¦She's come with the others, come with her human blood to bind us and kill us and-â€Å" â€Å"Moria,† I said gently, holding my hands out as one would under a white flag. â€Å"She's right. I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to talk to you. It won't take long.† â€Å"They all say that,† Moria said, eyes wide with tears. â€Å"They all say they won't hurt you†¦all the humans†¦you're no different†¦they all say they aren't†¦.† She lapsed into muttering too low for me to hear, her hands clinging to the covers. â€Å"I think,† Dorian murmured to me, â€Å"that her experience has left her†¦ah, a little touched. I doubt you'll get anything useful from her. There's a healer at Maiwenn's court who's particularly good with sickness of the mind. You should send for her.† I had a feeling he was right but had to make one more attempt. â€Å"I just want to know where you've been. Who took you. I want to make sure it doesn't happen again. Tell me who it is, and I'll stop them.† â€Å"No,† she breathed. â€Å"You're the same†¦the same as him†¦the Red Snake Man.† â€Å"Red Snake†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I still had demons on the brain, and an image of their red and black mottled skin came to mind. Were they snake-like? â€Å"Moria, were you taken by demons? Or some kind of†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Hell, in the Otherworld, any monster you could imagine pretty much existed, as Smokey had shown us. â€Å"†¦um, snake monster?† She shook her head frantically. â€Å"Our own kind don't hurt us. It's only yours†¦you're all the same†¦the human blood†¦all marked the same†¦.† Her eyes left my face and lowered. For a disorienting moment, I thought she was staring at my chest until I realized her gaze was on my arm. I absentmindedly touched the spot. It was where my snake tattoo coiled around my arm. Moria squeezed her eyes shut. â€Å"All the same†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I stiffened. â€Å"Did he†¦are you saying the person who took you had a tattoo like this on his arm?† â€Å"The Red Snake Man,† she whispered, still refusing to open her eyes. â€Å"Did he banish you? Did he force you to this world? Or did you come back on your own?† â€Å"Iron†¦iron everywhere†¦Ã¢â‚¬  I stared off at nothing for several seconds. â€Å"I'm done,† I said, turning to her parents. â€Å"She can rest now.† I left the house as swiftly as I'd come in, Dorian matching my pace. â€Å"What's going on? That meant something to you.† I nodded, heading toward where Rurik stood with our horses. â€Å"I think I know who took her-and maybe the others. Not bandits or a monster. It was a human.† â€Å"How do you know that?† â€Å"Because of the tattoo.† The Red Snake Man. I'd seen a red snake tattoo just the other day-on Art. He'd had that on one arm and a raven on the other. â€Å"It's another shaman, one who lives very close to where the crossroads around here opens up in my world.† He was also the shaman who had told me to my face he knew nothing about gentry girls. I came to a halt by the horses and absentmindedly stroked the side of mine. She looked back and sniffed me. â€Å"But why? Why would he take a gentry girl? Or more than one? His job is to get them out of our world. I could see him banishing them out of the human world†¦.That might traumatize her, but that doesn't sound like what happened. She disappeared from this world. She made it sound like she didn't want to be in the human world.† Dorian snorted. â€Å"Eugenie, where in your jaded existence did you pick up this naà ¯vete? If a human took one of our girls, it'd be for the same reason we'd take one of theirs. For the same reason any man would abduct a girl.† I blanched at his implications. â€Å"But more than one?† â€Å"He wouldn't be the first man to prefer-ah, how shall we say it? Variety.† I couldn't see it of Art, not the Art who happily tended his garden and offered us beer and pop. He'd known Roland for years. They'd worked together. Was Art truly a kidnapper and rapist? Or was the girl just traumatized from being banished? It could be a pretty horrific experience. I grimaced, feeling a sharp twisting in my stomach. I'd come too close to rape already in my life to treat even a hypothetical situation lightly. Was Moria a victim? Were there others like her out there? Maybe it wasn't truly Art†¦and yet, her words had dark implications. The human blood. A mark like mine. The Red Snake Man. The crossroads to Yellow River. He had to be involved; I just didn't know how. I gave the horse one last pat and then mounted. â€Å"I have to get home,† I said, turning back to Dorian and Rurik. There was some mistake here, some mix-up. Art wasn't involved in this. He couldn't be, at least not in the way Dorian had suggested. â€Å"I have to talk to someone. Immediately.† I waited for the requisite Dorian joke, but none came as he mounted his own horse. â€Å"Then we go different ways. Be careful, Eugenie.† For some reason, frankness and concern from Dorian was more disconcerting than his usual banter. â€Å"If I'm right about this, then it's a human matter. Should be a cakewalk compared to what I deal with around here.† Dorian shook his head. â€Å"I'd have to disagree. Give me demons and restless spirits any day over human deceit. But if you need help, I'm here. Just ask.† Again, there should have been a joke here. I glanced away, troubled by the way he looked at me. â€Å"Thanks. Hopefully it'll be a simple matter.† How exactly? That I didn't know. I wasn't sure that roughing Art up would really accomplish anything-if he truly was at fault here. â€Å"See you later, Dorian.† He nodded by way of a farewell. Then: â€Å"And of course, my dear, you may kill as many humans as you like, but please try not to harm any more of my subjects. If you can help it.† There it was, at last. The joke. â€Å"Noted,† I said. I attempted a glare, but there was a smile on my lips as I did. I set a hard pace back to my castle and the gateway that would bring me back to my own world. Crossing over at the Yellow River one would have been faster, but I needed to go to my home in Tucson and prepare myself before facing Art. Rurik matched my pace easily and mercifully stayed silent. He'd watched me and Dorian together the way a child watches his or her divorced parents, in the hopes that Mommy and Daddy might make amends someday. My whirling thoughts made the trip go fast-as did the land's quick route today-and we were greeted with a commotion when we reached the castle's outer borders. A group of guards came tearing toward us, and my heart seized. What now? A siege? Demons? Kiyo? Yet as they got closer, I could see that the guards almost looked†¦enthusiastic. â€Å"Your majesty! My lord! We found her.† Rurik and I drew our horses to a halt and climbed down. I felt my legs scream and knew I'd be sore later. I wasn't so practiced a rider that I could ride like that without consequences. I ignored the pain and turned to the guards. â€Å"Who?† I demanded. â€Å"We have her. The girl. The runaway girl from Westoria,† said the guard, clearly pleased at his success. Rurik and I exchanged puzzled glances. â€Å"That's impossible. We already saw her.† The guard shrugged. â€Å"We found her out near the steppes, by the Rowan Land border. She matches the description and was clearly afraid of us. She tried to run away.† â€Å"Take me to her,† I said helplessly. Had my guards found another of these kidnapped girls? It would certainly provide more information. He led us inside toward one of the little-used rooms, explaining that they hadn't wanted to put her in the dungeon-although her fear and desire to escape had required a guard. His expression turned uncomfortable. â€Å"We, um, also had to bind her in iron. She kept attempting magic. They're still not able to fully stop her.† A guard like this could never handle iron shackles without causing himself intense pain. Sometimes, though, prisoners would be bound in bronze cuffs with a tiny bit of iron affixed to them. It required delicate handling by the captors but was usually enough to stunt the prisoner's magic. We reached the room, and the men on duty stepped aside for us to enter. There, across the room, a slim young woman had her back to us. Long blond hair cascaded down her back, and I had a weird, disorienting sense for a moment as my brain grappled with the possibility that Moria had somehow made it here before us. Then, as the girl slowly turned around, the torchlight began bringing out glints of red in the golden hair that little Moria hadn't had. I realized what was happening even before I fully saw my prisoner's face. â€Å"You have got to be kidding me,† I said. It was Jasmine.

Metropolitan Area

In this paper, we are going to look at Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which is defined by the United States Census Bureau. This MSA is also be called as Tampa Bay Area. It Is a region close to Tampa Bay and west of central Florida. Throughout this paper, I will collect data from different categories of the Tampa MSA and going to mainly focus on these areas: population and population growth, population density, race & ethnicity, Immigration, education attainment, GDP per-capita, unemployment, poverty and housing prices.Atter collecting data Trom tne aoove categories, I will use tnem to compare wltn US national level. After the comparison, I will see what significant problems the area is facing, for example such as high housing prices, high immigration rate, low GDP, etc. Looking at these data we are able to see if Tampa, FL MSA is a quality living region when it compares to the US national level. After drawing different details from each subject w ith evidence and sources, I will be able to contrast main factors that Tampa MSA should be focus on developing.Whether they should be maintain, higher r lower the rate in order to have a better living standard. We can be able to draw conclusions with the collected data. According to the United States Census Bureau Annual Estimates of the Population of Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas table, the estimated population of Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area is around 2,824,724 in 2011. The population has risen around 36000 since 2010. This number is relatively high when it compares to the population growth within a year in other MSAs.Tampa Bay is one of the top 20 argest metropolitan areas in the US, it ranked 19 among 942 US metro and micro areas as of 2011. However, it is still a low ranking Metro Area when it comes to the weighted density in the US. From the ranking survey from Austin Contrarian, Tampa, FL Metro Area ranked 43 out of 50 in all US Metro Areas in 2010. The population weighted area density in this area is around 3,323. When it compares to other MSAs like New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, it is lower since the density in all these metro areas are recorded with over 10,000.The change in population-weighted density from 2000 to 2010 is -3. 3%. This number is still consider as a regular According to the diversity data gathered by Harvard University, the main racial/ ethnicity group in Tampa MSA is Caucasian with 66. 5% of the population. Hispanic made up the second largest group of race with around 17%. When we look at population in the US as of ethnicity, an estimated 63% of the total population in the US were Caucasian and Hispanics were 17% in 2012. Tampa MSA ethnicity distribution is very similar with the US ethnicities percentage.Two counties of the Tampa Bay region are ranked top counties with high net migration. From 2000-2010, 119,997 foreign-born population were recorded. While the US foreign born population was 28. 4% in the past decade, Tampa MSA was 51. 3%. The number was doubled the US national level. The percentage of high school graduate or higher in Tampa Metro Area was estimated 87% and 26. 2% for graduated with a bachelor's degree in 2010. It is a average percentage when we compare it with other MSAs. These number were very close to the US national level.It showed Tampa Metro Area has put a significant expense in education to follow the US national level of education attainment. From Metropolitan Area on the Bureau of Economic Analysis site, it stated Tampa- St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL (MSA) real GDP per capita is 36,648 in 2012. It ranked 155 out of 381 MSAs. Tampa MSAs' GDP per capita is higher than many other MSAs in the United States. It shows that Tampa MSA industry growth is positive and people earn, therefore they have more disposable income to spend.The largest employment group in the Tampa MSA is trade, transportation and utilities (21. 82%). The second gr oup is professional and business services (18. 46%). Looking at the ocation quotient, the manufacturing industry in Tampa area has the lowest number among all. / represents lampa employment level In tne manuTacturlng level Is lower than the overall US total level of 1. 0. Other employment industry like financial activities in Tampa MSA is going better than the overall national level with 1. 38, which is 0. 8 better than US total. Another industry with a higher location quotient is professional and business services of 1. 14. Both of these industry in Tampa employment is higher than the US total. The overall location quotient of this MSA is ery close to 1 which means similar to the US industry distribution. From the location quotient we can see Tampa is less involved in the manufacturing industry but focused more in financial activities and business services. The most current (Oct 2013) unemployment rate of the US is 7. . Tampa MSA was recorded with 6. 4 unemployment rate, which is l ower than overall US level. Even though is it lower than the overall US unemployment rate but still this is not a very positive number when we compare with other MSAs. The poverty rate of Tampa metropolitan According to the National Association of Realtors data, the most updated third quarter of 2013 median home price of Tampa Bay Area is $151,800. In the third quarter of 2012, house prices was 138,000. It has risen 10% in a year.Even though it has risen ten percent in the past year, it is still a normal figure when we look at overall United States economies. In the NAR report, data showed that 144 out of 163 metropolitan statistical areas increased in 88 percent in the median existing single- family home price. Tampa MSA is one of the fifty four areas that had a double-digit increases, while only 19 had price decreases. This fast rising national median prices is the strongest annual growth in the US in this eight years. Commuting in Tampa Bay Area is disappointing, it is the worst among the nation.In 2010, Forbes. com did a ranking on 60 lasrgest metropolitan areas in the US and Tampa MSA was ranked the worst out of all the metros area. In this survey, they measured travel time, travel delays and road congestion in each of these cities. Also, they looked at percentage of commuters used public transit or carpooled and referred them as the â€Å"green commuter†. Looking at the US Census Bureau's figure of Public Transportation Usage for the 50 Largest Metropolitan Statistical Areas 2008, 2009†³, the usage of civilians who used public transportation to work was only 1. % in 2008 and 1. 4% in 2009. As we can see less than two people out of a hundred used public transit commute to work. With a very developed public transportation system, big cities like New York and San Francisco had recorded over 30% and 15% usage of public transportation. The reason of why residents in Tampa Bay rarely use public transportation may because of the poor development and maintenance of these facilities. In conclusion, Tampa Bay Area

Daisy Miller

Daisy Miller, A Study can be examined as the story of initiation of Daisy, one of its main characters. To demonstrate this conception, we will consider Marcus Mordecai’s, Joseph Campbell’s and W. R. B. Lewis’ works as well as examples from the nouvelle itself. Marcus Mordecai states, ‘the most decisive initiations carry their protagonists firmly into maturity and understanding, or at least show them decisively embarked toward maturity. These initiations usually center on self-discovery’ (Mordecai,1960:223). Daisy’s process of initiation fits clearly in Mordecai’s decisive initiation. She enters the world of maturity through a series of steps. To begin with, we should cite the definition of story of initiation that Mordecai provides: An initiation story may be said to show its young protagonist experiencing a significant change of knowledge about the world or himself, or a change of character, or of both, and this change must point or lead him towards an adult world. (†¦ ) it should give some evidence that the change is at least likely to have permanent effects. (Mordecai,1960:223) To continue, the stages by which Daisy accomplishes her decisive initiation are depicted by Joseph Campbell in his book The Hero with a Thousand Faces. On our opinion when the story begins, Daisy has already crossed the threshold, in others words, she has accepted the call of the adventure in Europe. This is the stage of departure. Being an American girl, what she sees as an adventure is the search for sociability and for being accepted as she had been in America. Daisy is the archetypical innocent uncontaminated heroine: There isn't any society; or, if there is, I don't know where it keeps itself. Do you? I suppose there is some society somewhere, but I haven't seen anything of it. I'm very fond of society, and I have always had a great deal of it (†¦ I used to go to New York every winter. In New York I had lots of society. Last winter I had seventeen dinners given me; and three of them were by gentlemen (†¦ ) I have (†¦ ) more gentleman friends; and more young lady friends too,† (†¦ ) She paused again for an instant; she was looking at Winterbourne with all her prettiness in her lively eyes and in her lig ht, slightly monotonous smile. â€Å"I have always had,† she said, â€Å"a great deal of gentlemen's society. (James, 1879: 11) Moving forward along the story we readers witness the stage of initiation proper. Daisy undergoes several experiences, that is to say, the trials or tests in Campbell’s terms. There are several crucial episodes outlining these tests. Many of them are mainly decisions taken by Daisy, which are seen as inexcusable mistakes by the American European society, though seen as natural behaviour by Daisy, quite the opposite to what she herself qualifies as ‘stiff’. As a way of example, Daisy has to cope with Mrs. Costello’s disdainful rejection, who refuses to become personally acquainted with her. Most importantly, Daisy herself deduces this fact through Winterbourne’s hesitant words. This is not a minor detail, because it is by her capacity of deduction that Daisy’s increasing emotional maturity is made evident: I shall be ever so glad to know your aunt. † Winterbourne was embarrassed. (†¦ ) he said; â€Å"but I am afraid those headaches will interfere. † (†¦ ) â€Å"But I suppose she doesn't have a headache every day,† she said sympathetically. (†¦ ). â€Å"She tells me she does,† he answered at last, not knowing what to say. Miss Daisy Miller stopped and stood looking at him. (†¦ ) â€Å"She doesn't want to know me! † she said suddenly. â€Å"Why don't you say so? You needn't be afraid. I'm not afraid! † (†¦ )You needn't be afraid,† she repeated. â€Å"Why should she want to know me? † (†¦ ) â€Å"Gracious! she IS exclusive! † she said. (James, 1879:18) At Mrs. Walker’s, one of the society matrons, Daisy makes a succession of social mistakes, such as asking Mrs. Walker, who was having a party, to bring her friend Mr. Giovanelli with her. Additionally, she confesses that she is going out for a promenade alone with him. Although this scandalizes Mrs. Costello, who prompted Daisy to desist from this plan, Daisy only fulfills her own desires. To make matters even worse, later on when Daisy is walking with Giovanelli and Winterbourne, Mrs. Walker follows Daisy and urges her to leave the men immediately and go with her in her carriage. Daisy’s firm refusal only accelerates what will be inevitable in the end, her social alienation. At the same time her determination and personality have reached their high peak: Do get in and drive with me! † said Mrs. Walker. â€Å"That would be charming, but it's so enchanting just as I am! † (†¦ ) â€Å"It may be enchanting, dear child, but it is not the custom here,† urged Mrs. Walker, (†¦ ) â€Å"Well, it ought to be, then! † said Daisy. â€Å"If I didn't walk I should expire. † â€Å"You should walk with your mother, dear,† cried the lady from Geneva, losing patience. â€Å"With my mother dear! † exclaimed the young girl. (†¦ ), â€Å"I am more than five years old. â€Å"†You are old enough to be more reasonable. You are old enough, dear Miss Miller, to be talked about. † (†¦)Daisy gave a violent laugh. â€Å"I never heard anything so stiff! If this is improper, Mrs. Walker,† she pursued, â€Å"then I am all improper, and you must give me up. Goodbye; I hope you'll have a lovely ride! and, with Mr. Giovanelli, who made a triumphantly obsequious salute, she turned away. (James, 1879:38-39) Mrs. Walker’s party is what Campbell designates as the Climax. Again, Daisy’s actions only seem to precipitate her dramatic fall. Initially, while she remains at home with Giovanelli, she first sends her mother alone. When she finally arrives she does not wait to be spoken to, totally unconscious of the ‘all the cold shoulders that were turned toward her ,‘ especially those of Mrs. Walker’s (James, 1879: 48). Eventually, the awful truth only dawned on her later: When Daisy came to take leave of Mrs. Walker, this lady (†¦ ) turned her back straight upon Miss Miller and left her to depart with what grace she might. (†¦ ). Daisy turned away, looking with a pale, grave face at the circle near the door;Winterbourne saw that, for the first moment, she was too much shocked and puzzled even for indignation. (James, 1879:44). Lastly, Daisy confronts Campbell’s Final Battle at the Roman Colosseum. When, disappointedly she perceives that Winterbourne, whom she had considered as a real friend, mistrusts in her chastity, she understands hat she will never fit in that hypocrite society, far advanced her ideas are for that era. Now she knows that her Gift, her knowledge, cannot be shared with this community. Therefore, she ultimate resolves to detach herself physically from that corrupted society. Being aware that being non native in Rome, hence not immune to malaria, and having spent many hours at the Colosseum, which is presumed to be in fected with this illness, she nonetheless refuses to take Eugenio’s disease preventing pills. In this way, Daisy completes the cycle of her story of initiation, by fulfiling Mordecai’s Decisive model. However, she does not do so in Campbell’s terms, namely in what he calls the Return. Quite the contrary, she follows W. R. B. Lewis’s pattern of Denitiation of the American Hero, explained in The American Adam : â€Å"†¦ the valid rite of initiation for the individual in the new world is not an initiation into society, but, given the character of society, an initiation away from it: something I wish it were legitimate to call denitiation’ â€Å" (W. R. B Lewis,1955: 115). In other words, the American hero does not return to the place from where he has departed. Instead, from disillusionment he prefers alienation, sealing her physical and social evinction. Henry James used many strategies when writing Daisy Miller, A Study. Whether literary, discourse or narrative, these features are what brought his nouvelle to life and provided it with unity. Henry James was born in New York, in a family of intellectuals. His father was a man known not only for his intelligence but also for encouraging his children to become the best in their fields of study. In Henry’s case, it was literature and he decided to follow literary realism. However, it was psychological realism what he was more interested in. This is what encouraged Henry James to create the term â€Å"central intelligence†: This term is used to describe a character in a story whose main purpose is to tell the story and filter the events taking place in it thought his or her thoughts and feelings. The central intelligence in Daisy Miller, A Study is Frederick Winterbourne. He is the character who filters the events in the nouvelle and he is the teller of the story, even though he is not the narrator. He is introduced in the second paragraph, once the setting of the story is provided to the reader by the narrator. The concept of central intelligence is probably the most important discourse strategy in the nouvelle. It is the main procedure by which the writer brings unity to the text, turning it into a whole. The centre of intelligence can also be seen as a narrative strategy, since it is the use of this character along with the presence of a narrator, the medium by which the writer tells the story. Daisy Miller, A Study has a 3rd person narrator as well as a center of intelligence. The narrator is not an omniscient narrator; it is a narrator who lacks the knowledge of what is happening in the minds of the characters, he only knows what Winterbourne perceives about them. An example that shows this relationship between the narrator and Winterbourne is the following:â€Å"Winterbourne wondered if he had been like this in his infancy, for he had been brought to Europe at about this age†. (James 1879: 6) In this extract of the text Winterbourne meets Randolph, Daisy’s brother. We can see the central intelligence of the nouvelle, how his feeling and thoughts filter the information, in this case Randolph’s behavior, and compares it with his own behavior, of which he is not certain of, since he does not remember. The narrator merely tells us what Winterbourne felt at the time but he does not give us any further information. An example of the narrative strategy found in the text, that shows us that Daisy Miller, A Study is in fact a story of initiation, is how the nouvelle is structured. It is divided in two parts. In the first part of the story we see how the two main characters meet and we learn about Daisy’s personality and peculiar manners. We could say that in this part of the nouvelle, which takes part in Switzerland, Daisy earns herself a bad reputation. An example of what people thought of Daisy can be seen in this extract taken from the text: In the evening Winterbourne mentioned to Mrs. Costello that he had spent the afternoon at Chillon with Miss Daisy Miller (†¦ ) She went with you all alone? †¦) And that, she exclaimed, is the young person to whom you wanted me to know! (James 1879:27) In the second part of the nouvelle, which takes part in Rome, we can appreciate how Daisy is rejected by Mrs. Costello and how the young woman accepts she will probably never be accepted as a respected member of society. As mentioned earlier, this is the moment we think Daisy receives her gift, in this case, the gift of knowledge, which is evidence in itse lf of Daisy’s acquired maturity. She knows what the rules of European society are and refuses to follow them. As the nouvelle progresses, this knowledge is what brings Daisy’s life to an end, both physically and socially. In Daisy Miller, A Study, there is a vast amount of literary devices playing art in what we consider the story of initiation. One such device is symbolism, and we have chosen to give this example since we believe it summarizes Daisy’s story. Flowers are said to be images that furnish sentences that would be very common otherwise. Moreover, the image of a flower can imply growth, maturity. Once flowers are mature enough, they blossom. The following quote shows how Daisy mature, from being a very naive girl, to a â€Å"very clever foireign lady†, as Winterbourne later puts it: â€Å"Winterbourne listened to him [Giovanelli]: he stood staring at the raw protuberance [bud] among the April daisies. † (James 1879:54) To conclude this essay, we would like to ratify our working hypothesis. We strongly believe Daisy Miller, A Study is a story of initiation. As illustrated previously, Daisy Miller, our heroine follows the stages proposed by authors such as Marcus Mordecai, Joseph Campbell and W. R. B. Lewis in her process of initiation and personal growth. As was also previously mentioned, we consider that this story of initiation was possible through the many strategies available to the author and writer of this nouvelle, that is, to Henry James. We also believe, this nouvelle transcends the obvious, it transcends the story of the encounter between an American man and a naive young American lady who does not seem to fit in European society. We think Daisy Miller, A Study is not only the study of the personalities its author describes, but also, and more importantly, the initiation of a young lady into womanhood.

HR Manual - Arcadia Group Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

HR Manual - Arcadia Group - Essay Example For this purpose, this manual is intended to provide concrete set of guidelines to the managers in merchandising managers all across the groups and brands with regards to manpower planning, staff sourcing, recruitment, training and development, motivation, communication and stress management of fresh graduates. Manpower Planning Manpower planning is one of the integral activities in staff management. In this regard, all the managers in merchandising department are expected to have an account of their current staff and their future needs in terms of head count. Furthermore, where an employee is being promoted and there is a position available that is required to be filled, managers are expected to send their recommendations to HR department and an appraisal meeting of the nominee will be conducted with HR Manager, department manager and Department Heads to make a final decision. In addition to that, where an employee is leaving this organization, it is the responsibility of the depart ment manager or team lead to make necessary notifications to HR department (in case where HR department is not included in electronic communication). In case of dissociation and employee departure, HR department will conduct exit interviews and will keep the input confidential until unless there arises a need to discuss any issue or problem with the department managers. Furthermore, department managers are expected to conduct bi-annual appraisals of the staff reporting to them (with the help of evaluation forms available with HR department). In case of fresh graduates, a report is required to be generated after ending of 6-months probation that would indicate if the employee can be retained further. Department managers are required to conduct a meeting with HR manager (or any other person assigned by HR manager) at the end of every quarter to analyze the current staffing needs and heads available in the department. As a result of this analysis, new induction, rotation, induction fro m other brands or group companies, and amalgamation of job roles may take place. In this meeting, succession planning will also be discussed at length followed by the outcomes of last appraisals, peer evaluations and 360 degree surveys. Staff Sourcing Like stated earlier, Arcadia group has a substantial employer branding and it has secured eminent positions in Times Employer Rankings. Therefore, attraction of potential talent is a convenient process that continues throughout the year. However, in order to attract top notch talent, we have following practices streamlined: 1) Arcadia Groups’ Career Portal 2) Other Web portals 3) Employee Referrals 4) On-Campus Recruitment 5) Referrals from Students’ Affairs departments of leading business schools 6) Outsourcing staff from other vendors Out of these practices, we have found employee referrals and on-campus recruitment to be the most practices for staff sourcing. In order to ensure that our campus recruitment campaigns mee t our needs for fresh talent, it is suggested that managers share their requirements for additional staff with HR department in quarterly meetings i.e. April and August. This step is intended to ensure that we are aware of our requirements before actually beginning the mass recruitment cycle that would take place in the months of May and August (before

Mediation Memorandum Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Mediation Memorandum - Case Study Example Our first meeting with the grape supplier was unintended and he is the one who actually came up with the idea of the two of us doing business after he discovered that I own a small local health food products business. During our conversation after my first visit to the class, he told me that his family’s produce company is selling Muscadine grapes and informed me of their potential high antioxidant qualities. I became interested and agreed to promote the grapes and the products developed using their seeds and his family’s produce company became my supplier. Overtime the sales of the product significantly increased due to the aggressive marketing campaign I engaged in. Although his company was by then making prompt deliveries at consistent prices, I decided it would be appropriate to have a signed contract that is legally binding to formalize our contract in order to protect the interests of both parties. I personally drafted a contract that was signed by his son on his behalf. This is acceptable under the law. (Crawford,  2012) Despite the contract guaranteeing consistent price schedule, I was surprised to learn from my Muscadine grape supplier that they intended to terminate the contract contrary to the good faith and fair dealing that has evolved between during our business relationship. There are two contracts currently at issue. The first is the implied contract that came into effect after our verbal agreement during our first meeting at the Sunday school. Although this was not a written agreement, our consistent business relationship amounts to an implied contract whose warranty which is actually recognized by law, and therefore legally enforceable (Chirelstein, 2010). The second contract involved in this case is the agreement that was signed by his son of the grape supplier on behalf of their family’s produce company

People Resourcing and Development Unit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

People Resourcing and Development Unit - Essay Example PAs can be used for development with proper manager training and with employee involvement at each stage of the evaluation process. Table of Contents 1. Introduction 1 2. Benefits of Performance Appraisals 1 3. PAs as control mechanism 1 4. Drawbacks of the feedback system 3 5. Multi-source approval 3 6. PA system can be used for development 4 7. Conclusion 4 References 5 1. Introduction Employee development is a key activity of human resource management and focuses on the process of developing people within organizations. However, organizations oscillate between development and control – the two opposed sets of motivations. The delivery of effective people development process requires effective performance appraisal mechanisms. The traditional approach has been to achieve efficiency by imposing management control but over time it has been found that such an approach is counter-productive (Meyer 1991). In fact most researchers find that performance appraisals are disliked by b oth subordinate and managers alike. For some the process can be unnerving and a frightening experience which can lead to tension between the supervisor and the subordinate (Schareder, Bectorn and Portis 2007). The motivation to control employees manifests in performance management and in performance-related-pay, believe Hendry et al (2006). Performance appraisals (PAs) are primarily meant for development but the system is misused because people are seen as ‘human resources’ rather than resourceful humans, argue Hendry et al. According to Caulkin (2001, p.32) how organizations manage and develop people has a powerful effect on overall performance (cited in Torrington, Taylor and Hall, 2008). This paper will argue that performance appraisal as used by organizations is a means of controlling, not developing employees in modern work place. 2. Benefits of Performance Appraisals Performance appraisals had become institutionalized during the Industrial Revolution when it becam e necessary to monitor the organizational output (Kondrasuk 2012). It is generally assumed that employees would not like to be monitored but assisted to achieve performance goals, because in the words of Grubb (2007) performance appraisals are meant to engage, align and coalesce individual and group effort towards continuous achievement. Appraisals help identify and correct disparities in performance. The main objective of PAs is to compare between the performance expected from the organization with the performance achieved by the individual (Giangreco, Carugati, Pilati and Sebestiano 2010). PAs reduce employee uncertainty as communication occurs between the manager and the employee. PAs enhance motivation and performance while reducing role ambiguity (Pettijohn et al. 2001). Reduced role ambiguity results in commitment, satisfaction and reduced turnover. Davis and Landa (1999) link appraisals to succession planning, to compensation and promotion decisions. It also provides systemat ic judgment to the organization for salary increases, while making the employee aware of the needed changes in his attitude, behaviour or job knowledge (Obisi 2011). However, all these benefits cannot be achieved if PAs are used as control mechanism. 3. PAs as control mechanism Performance appraisals conducted in the traditional manner have been found to be authoritarian (Meyer 1991). PAs inevitably highlight poor performance (Kondrasuk 2012) and

World Bank and the International Monetary Fund Essay

World Bank and the International Monetary Fund - Essay Example Through lending money, the bank supports the ambition of developing nations to join the European Union. This is done through Country Assistance Strategy. Work Bank provides both technical and financial assistance to the developing countries based on the assessment of the priorities of the country, creditworthiness and past portfolio performance (Sadler, 2009). In addition, the World Bank maintains macroeconomic stability, fosters human development, promotes sustainable growth of private sector and improves business environment, and also improves governance and strengthens institutions via building inclusive and efficient public institutions. The role of International Monetary Fund in providing loans to countries is somehow similar to those of World Bank. The International Monetary Fund has a mandate to oversee international financial and monetary system as well as monitor the financial and economic policies of the member countries. This is done through surveillance which enhances international cooperation. The International Monetary Fund also puts up lending conditions that ensure borrowing countries will repay the loan and that the nation will not solve its balance of payment in a manner to negatively affect the international economy (Sadler, 2009). Summarily, International Monetary Fund fosters economic stability and global growth, and poverty reduction through

Service Encounter Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Service Encounter Analysis - Essay Example Although I rather expected a sales person to descend upon me and attempt to make a sale, the fact of the matter was that I spent around 5-10 minutes browsing without anyone even asking if they could assist me. After such a time, I had a legitimate question concerning the specifications of a particular laptop. However, as I tried to make eye contact and get the attention of the section salesperson, I was all but ignored. Eventually I went to the salesperson and asked if they could assist me with a few questions I had. Rather than willingly offering their help, they seemed to begrudge the fact that they had to be troubled by a customer. Although to their credit they were able to answer my question in a knowledgeable way, they did not do so with the determination or desire that I would have expected from someone whose job it was to be in such a customer service oriented position. The physical location of the store was in central London. The dà ©cor and surroundings of the internal store itself were Spartan and geared more towards a utilitarian representation of the product to the customer rather than hoping to create an ambient store atmosphere. This â€Å"big box† feeling somewhat diminished from the customer service experience due to the fact that the customer feels that they are just another face in the crowd whose sole purpose is to come, buy, and leave. As a means of improving this particular service encounter, it is my belief that the situation could have greatly benefitted from hiring an individual who was both knowledgeable and interested in customer service. Although I was satisfied with the information I received, the way in which it was given was not willingly. As a means of bettering the level of customer care, the store might want to pay a closer attention to hiring better people and/or instilling a greater degree of customer care training in the future. Although the experience was less than stellar, the

Effect of the Economic Downturn on a Manufacturing Company Essay

Effect of the Economic Downturn on a Manufacturing Company - Essay Example The essay "Effect of the Economic Downturn on a Manufacturing Company" talks about the economic problems in a manufacturing company and analyzes the actions of the management's team. The union, the main company's problem which strongly opposed the layoff of any employee, happened to guarantee their members job security, which was the main reason that nearly all the workers had joined up. A number of alternatives were suggested by managers during a brainstorming session, the most extreme being to lay off twenty percent of the workforce permanently. The least disruptive was to retain the full complement of employees and merely schedule them on a revolving four-day work week until the crisis is over and the company can return to full production. The management eventually decided to reduce the working hours of each production worker instead of laying off employees. They felt that dismissing workers from their jobs would be too disruptive, and before they could do so they would have to meet with the union members and negotiate who should be dismissed, according to the terms of their collective bargaining agreement. They expected stiff opposition and a possible court case if they were to insist on laying off people. Unfortunately, when the decision was implemented, many of the good employees lost interest in their jobs and filed for resignation when they were offered better-paying jobs by a competitor firm. The final decision achieved the objective to reduce labor costs by twenty percent.... A joint meeting of the executive and operations management committee was called, the finance manager briefed them on the need to reduce operations expense of which the labour cost is the largest, and the managers then brainstormed on the different alternatives that they felt were viable. Bounded rationality in the decision-making process Source: University of Portsmouth, 2005 The four best alternatives were as follows: Twenty per cent of the production employees across the board shall be laid off with two week’s severance pay. The managers should identify who are to be separated. Ten per cent of production employees shall be laid off, only from those departments that may be reduced, and some shifts reduced from the regular three to only two. Some departments may not be affected at all. Convince the employees to take a uniform fifteen per cent pay cut. In this case management will also take a pay cut to make up the difference from what employees save to what finance needs to ma ke up. Scheduled leaves will be given to the amount of the cut. Declare a four-day work week for all production employees, eliminating twenty per cent of the work hours and reducing production personnel’s pay by twenty per cent. There are a number of criteria that the management team considered in making the final decision. The top criterion is to absolutely reduce labour cost in production by twenty per cent. The number is not arbitrary. The finance department reasoned that twenty per cent of the production capacity is being suspended until demand picks up. Other than this, there are many uncertainties, such as the length of the suspension of operations, whether further reductions shall be necessary, and whether the firm will still return to full operations after the crisis

Managers Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Managers - Thesis Example In other words, they are the actual fathers of different processes and activities which are going on within an organization and with which there are a lot of hopes and wishes attached. The whole idea of extracting the benefits and achieving the laid objectives rests on their shoulders and this is indeed a very significant proposition on their part, all said and done. They bring with them a whole list of different undertakings and steps, though accountable at many different levels yet open for judgment on the part of one and all. With this, they ensure that the different policies and steps are in line with the organization's basic values, core mission and vision statements and more than anything else, in line with the ethical and moral grounds in which the particular business operates. Managers need to plan in a sound manner the different things, control these activities and tasks and make them plot against short term gains rather than having a long run perspective and integrate all these activities so that there is a complete mesh in the related ranks and the synchronization is pretty apparent at the end. Managers have the task of maximizing profits but not at the peril of losing the shareholders which are present in partnership with the organization. The different activities being planned, controlled and integrated in distinct fashions makes them look as a complete whole more than anything else. This means that these activities, tasks and processes are complete and they give a view of wholeness when we talk about the organization whilst looking at the products and/or services which are brought out for the general customers. For the induction of these new products and/or services in the market place we find that out that the synchronization process might just be a difficult process to undertake in the first place and it is because of the persistent efforts of the manager himself that the same becomes readily possible. The manager has to plan things accordingly and place priorities over processes either in s sequential manner or in the form of significance attached to the very same. When we talk about the activities in the whole related schema we find that the control aspect, as discussed before is pretty much significant and this has to be ensured even at the most feasible of times. The same is imperative since system breakdowns at any level can happen any time within the process and there could be urgencies attached with the whole ideology nonetheless. The integration of activities similarly is one significant aspect that has to be studied time and again because it brings together all the related processes, activities and tasks coming under the manager's regime on a single platform and thus this forms as the point of focus and attention as far as the whole organization and its tilt is concerned. With respect to the new products and/or services that are being introduced under the organization's umbrella, one has to ascertain as to the exact basis of their operating activities and then go along finding out the eventual patterns on which the change would be made in the realms of the very organization. It is up to the manager as to how best he