Economic Analysis of Hawaii

Economic Analysis of Hawaii Hawaii, with an area of 28,313 sq. km (10,932 sq. mi.), is the 43rd largest state in the U.S.; 6.9% of the land is owned by the federal government. It consists mainly of the Hawaiian Islands, eight main islands and 124 islets, reefs, and shoals. The major islands in order of size are Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, Kauai, Molokai, Lanai, Nihau, and Kahoolawe. Population growth has increased by 80,000 persons over the past five years. Demographics show a large number of Hispanic origin: Asian Hispanics are the most populated with white Hispanic and Asian non-Hispanic following. Hawaii's economy has been long dominated by plantation agriculture and military spending. As agriculture has declined in importance, the economy has diversified to encompass a large tourist business and a growing manufacturing industry. Hawaii's economy has changed drastically since statehood. In 1958, defense, sugar, and pineapple were the primary economic activities, accounting for 40% of Gross State Product (GSP). In contrast, visitor-related expenditures stood at just over 4% of Hawaii's GSP prior to statehood. Today the positions are reversed; sugar and pineapple constitute about 1% of GSP, defense accounts for just under 11%, while visitor-related spending comes close to 24% of Hawaii's GSP. The movement toward a service- and trade-based economy becomes even more apparent when considering the distribution of Hawaii's jobs across sectors. The share of the economy's jobs accounted for by manufacturing and agriculture have declined steadily since 1959 and each currently makes up less than 4% of total jobs in the economy. At the same time, the shares of jobs in wholesale and retail trade and in services have risen, standing at about 23% and 28%, respectively. Since 1991, Hawaii's economy has suffered from rising rates of unemployment . This stands in marked contrast to the period 1980 to 1993, when the state enjoyed very low unemployment rates relative to the nation as a whole. But by 1994 the recession had raised Hawaii's unemployment rate to the national average (6.1%) for the first time in 15 years. In 1995, the state's unemployment rate improved slightly in the first eleven months of the year to 5.4 percent, a 0.6 percentage point decline from the first eleven months of 1994. Despite the lower unemployment rate, the total number of wage and salary jobs declined by 0.6 percent during the first eleven months of 1995. This was due in part to a fall in part-time jobs which are often held by persons who also have primary jobs elsewhere in the economy. The number of construction jobs declined by more than 7 percent in the same period. Other industries--namely, manufacturing, agriculture, transportation, communications/utilities, and finance, insurance, and real estateexperienced declines in the number of jobs as well. Jobs in retail trade and services, however, increased 2.2 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively, reflecting an increase in visitor spending since 1994. Following a dismal first quarter due to the Kobe earthquake, there was steady growth in the tourism sector in 1995 with increases in the number of visitor arrivals and hotel room rates. The number of visitor arrivals to the State increased 3.2 percent during the first eleven months of 1995. The increase in the value of the Japanese yen vis-a-vis the U.S. dollar during this period contributed to a rise in eastbound visitors in the second and third quarter of 1995 by 11.8 percent and 15.4 percent, respectively. However, in the first eleven months of 1995, the number of westbound visitors remained flat. This year is the 11th year in a row that the U.S. has experienced reduced spending on national defense. The continued reduction is due to the decline in superpower tensions and the political disintegration of the Soviet and East European-block during this decade which have prompted the Congress and Administration to initiate significant cuts in the level of defense expenditures in recent years. However, because of the strategic location of Hawaii in the Pacific this changing military posture has not significantly affected Hawaii's $3.7 billion Federal defense sector. The construction industry continued its decline in the first eleven months of 1995. This loss was mainly due to decreasing demand exacerbated by higher interest rates during the first half of 1995, following a 12.4 percent drop in 1994. Another reason is that construction costs rose by 15 percent from 1992 to 1995, which is much higher than the consumer inflation rate of 8 percent during the same period. Agriculture jobs, including self-employed, showed a 6.6 percent decline in the first eleven months of 1995 from the same period in 1994. In the earlier part of the year, the agricultural work force fell to its lowest level in 21 years. Agriculture accounts for slightly less than 2percent of jobs in the state. Latest data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis ranked Hawaii 26th among the 50 states in terms of growth in personal income between the first and second quarters of 1995. During the second quarter of 1995, personal income was estimated to be an annualized 29.2 billion dollars, up 4.0 percent at an annual rate from the second quarter of 1994. The growth in personal income is mainly attributed to an increase in rents, dividends and interest, along with transfer payments of 7.6 percent and 7.5 percent in the second quarter, respectively. The largest component of personal income, wages and salaries, increased by 2.3 percent over the period as compared to only 1.0 percent in 1994. The consumer inflation rate, as reflected in the percentage change of the Honolulu Consumer Price Index, increased by 2.1 percent between the first half of 1994 and the first half of 1995. In the second half of 1995, the inflation rate slowed to 0.7 percent as compared to the second half of 1994. If the current trend continues, overall inflation for Hawaii in 1995 will be slightly lower than 2.0 percent, the lowest since 1986. DBEDT expects the Honolulu Consumer Price Index to increase about 2.0 percent in 1995 and 2.5 percent in 1996. This is lower than the expected consumer price increases of 3.0 to3.5 percent for the nation as a whole in 1996, reflecting the relatively slower growth of Hawaii's economy. Real Gross State Product (RGSP) is expected to grow at an annual rate of approximately 2.2% between 1995 and 2000. Average annual growth in the number of civilian jobs is projected to rise by 1.8% per year over the next five years. Over the same period, the unemployment rate should decline gradually from 5.5% in 1995 to 5.3% over 1996-2000. Growth of real disposable income is anticipated to rise to 1% next year and to an average of 1.2% each year to 2000. Hawaii's people have seen dramatic changes in the economic structure over the last generation. The military and agriculture, the traditional pillars of the Hawaii economy, have declined and no longer employ the bulk of the labor force. At the same time, Hawaii's increasing reliance on service industries, especially tourism, makes them particularly sensitive to external economic events. To some extent, the effects of this sensitivity are reflected in the unprecedented long period of low growth in recent years. At no time since statehood has Hawaii grown at such low rates for such a sustained period. The initial downturn was clearly associated with the cyclical recession on the mainland and eventually in Japan. This cyclical downturn was exacerbated by important structural changes in Hawaii's economy. While Hawaii cannot ignore and must still address these structural issues, it appears that it is now rebounding from the cyclical downturn. Fourth quarter economic data for 1995 show that it is entering an economic recovery and prospects for the medium term are good. Economic Analysis of Hawaii Thesis: As military and agriculture decline, Hawaii's economy has diversified to encompass a large tourist business and a growing manufacturing industry. I. Hawaii A. Land B. Population C. Demographics II. Changes A. Defense B. Agriculture C. Tourism D. Industry III. Labor Force and Jobs A. Distribution B. Decline 1. Manufacturing 2. Agriculture C. Increase 1. Trade 2. Services IV. Unemployment V. Tourism VI. Defense VII. Construction VIII. Agriculture IX. Income X. Inflation XI. Price and Product XII. Recovery 1. HTTP://www.hawaii.gov.html, internet. 2."Hawaii," Microsoft (R) Encarta. Copyright (c) 1994 Microsoft Corporation. Copyright (c) 1994. Funk & Wagnall's Corporation. 3. "Hawaii," World Book Encyclopedia. C1996. Worldbook, Inc. Chicago, London, Sydney, Toronto. 4. Hawaii. Sylvia McNair. C1990. Childrens Press. Chicago. 5. "Hawaii" 1995 Almanac. Microsoft Bookshelf. C1995. 6. Hawaii. Bureau of Economic Analysis. C1996.

Ergonomics in Clerical Environments

ERGONOMICS IN OFFICE AND CLERICAL ENVIRONMENTS ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT 200 GROUP PROJECT WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT Ergonomics is becoming one of the most important aspects of administrative management. Since the introduction of computers, offices are becoming more technologically based. Employees are spending greater amounts of time in the office and therefore must be comfortable to remain productive. Workers that feel stressed and do not like their work environments lose morale and spend more time away from the office than usual. Furniture, climate, training procedures, lighting and many more aspects are related to ergonomics in the office and clerical based environments. Keeling and Kallaus (1996;384) says that office furniture and equipment has traditionally been manufactured and used with a view of using efficient office space and cost saving. Although these factors are vital to work within the budget, managers fails to consider the ergonomics need of the employees. Sleeth (1996;10) defines ergonomics as a study of the office environment to allows employees to work productively. Ergonomically designed work environment that takes into consideration both psychological and physical needs increases job satisfaction and prevents injuries (Hess:1996;28). Troyer (1996;20) says that employers have become extremely concerned about potential discomforts associated with extended use of repetitive duty on computers and other office equipment. These discomforts can cause serious bodily injuries and force organisation to lose millions of dollars in loss hours of work, hospital cost and workers' compensation claim. Organisation became aware of the high cost associated with injuries therefore ergonomic furniture and equipment became an important issue in the work place. Ergonomic furniture and equipment is an important issue that management should consider because it decreases the medical cost, insurance cost associated with injuries and also increases worker's efficiency in the workplace (Allie;1996;20). Keeling and Kallaus (1996;384) says that in order to consider the ergonomic furniture and equipment for the office, the manager must firstly understand the type of work being performed and the ergonomics needs of the employees. Allie (1996) argues that it is also vital to educate employees about ergonomics, provide proper adjustable furniture and equipment. Managers should also understand employees needs and ways to help them work more safely. Troyer (1996;20) states that it is difficult to really determine which furniture and equipment will provide the ergonomic needs for the employees. The author suggests that when evaluating whether certain furniture and equipment can provide the necessary ergonomic need, it is important to find out how the manufacturer design their products. It is important to consider whether the manufacturers uses ergonomics expert, is the product adjustable, does the product provide comforts for the eyes, neck, wrist and back. It is also vital to find out how the manufacturer test the claims they make for their products and the manufactures reputation for making ergonomics product. When buying office furniture and equipment, the purchases that gets the most investigation and examination are usually the one that will last longer. Keeling and Kallaus (1996;386) suggests that when selecting office furniture the following must be taken into consideration, firstly, it should provide adequate safety and comforts to the employees. Secondly, it should be made of good quality materials, build strongly and provide ease for the work to be done. Thirdly the furniture should be adjustable and can be used for different purposes. Finally it should meet the preferences of all the employees who are going to use them. For example when the organisation is looking for chairs for its employees, the key factors management should consider is adjustability. Marston (1996;39) mentions that an ergonomic chairs should able to be adjusted up and down according to the desired height, should have lumbar and arms support, comfortable cushioning, provide backward or forward tilt and the adjustment can be easily made by anyone using the chairs. Beside providing ergonomically design furniture, a variety of office equipment are also required. Equipment such as photocopying, telephones, facsimile and computers. These office equipment facilitate the office task in less time and with greater accuracy (Keeling and Kallaus:1996;391). The guideline provided by Keeling and Kallaus for selecting office equipment, is firstly, the equipment should be made available to employees if it makes their job more efficient. For example in selecting between a typewriter and a computer, the computer will be more faster and efficient than the typewriter but the cost would be higher. In the long term the computer will save the organisation in hours of working time. Secondly, equipment should be considered when they are simple to operate, flexible to use in different situations, easy to move around and be able to adapt to existing office. Thirdly, the equipment that are less expensive and the availability of reliable maintenance service should be selected in place of other equipment. Fourthly, the rates of accuracy that the equipment will provide must also be taken into consideration. Finally the things that the equipment can do and also its limitations also need to be considered. THE AIR ENVIRONMENT The air environment refers to the total atmosphere created in the office by the principal air factors. They are temperature, humidity, circulation (ventilation) and cleanliness. It is used the term air-conditioned office literally. it is an office where the air has been carefully conditioned for human comfort, including the control of temperature, humidity and cleanliness. Workers consider the air environment, especially air circulation and the right temperature as very important to their jobs. It properly maintained air environment improves mental activity. boosts efficiency, increase productivity and decreases absenteeism. On the other hand, stale, dry and dusty air dulls the mind and reduces the output of work. Moreover, according to Labar, most indoor air problems involve the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system. Due to it was not designed and installed properly, is not being adequately maintained or is simply wearing out. According to a survey of 4300 workers in 47 buildings performed by Building Use Studies, 34 per cent of the workers described the air in their offices as uncomfortably dry, hot or stuffy, over 50 per cent reported symptoms such as lethargy, headaches or eye, nose or throat irritation while at work, and 25 per cent felt that the working condition reduced their productivity over 20 per cent. (Journal of General Management, 1992) Temperature Temperature refers to the relative hotness or coolness of the air measured in degrees Fahrenheit or Celsius. If the temperature too hot or too cold in a office environment this can interfere with productivity thorough sickness of the worker. the American Society of Heating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineers suggest that the most comfortable and healthful temperature for work is below 70° F. With normal office activities, such as lighting, heat from computers, body temperature increase discomfort to the operators. The heating or thermal environment is the result of a proper balance in temperature, humidity and air motion. Humidity Relative humidity refers to the percentage of moisture in the air. Air conditioning equipment removes moisture form the air (dehumidifies) during the summer months and may add moisture to the air (humidify) during the winder months. A high relative humidity makes us feel colder on a cold day and warmer on a hot day. Furthermore, too little humidity causes magnetic tapes and disks to stick during processing operations and brings about errors. Too much humidity also produces condensation on the electronic parts of the equipment and causes short-circuiting. Circulation The air most be circulated to ensure that we do not become surrounded by air that approaches skin temperature and saturation point. In general, we should be provided 12 to 15 cubic meters of outside air per person per hour (L. Keeling & N. Kallaus, 1996). Even though the temperature is high, this type of circulated air feels cool because it speeds up the evaporation of body moisture. Common methods of keeping air in motion are vent fans and blowers. Cleanliness The complete air-conditioning system cleans the air of undesirable pollutants. Health problems associated with indoor air pollution make up what is known as the sick building syndrome (SBS). Some of the symptoms of SBS are headaches, eye, nose or throat irritation, dry or itchy skin, dizziness and nausea, fatigue, sensitivity to odours, memory and cognitive lapses and Legionnaire's disease. Over the years, there have been a couple of serious outbreaks of building related-illness, including 29 deaths from Legionnaire's disease in Philadelphia hotel in 1976. There are also instances where poor ventilation and/or specific environmental contaminants have resulted in lesser but nonetheless adverse health effects. (G. Labar, 1992 Oct.) According to the EPA, Indoor air pollution results in at least $60 billion in losses nationally from missed workdays ever year. (J. P. Zmirak, 1993) Scientific measurements of the air confirmed an 80 percent reduction in the number of lung-damaging airborne particulate. Forty percent of the workers felt their productivity would be enhanced by the air-quality improvements and absenteeism has dropped 3 percent. (J. P. Zmirak, 1993) Most offices are tightly sealed and don not allow fresh air in or stale air out. Computers heat the place up and act as dust magnets, while the fumes of chemical glues seep out of carpeting and walls to create a stuffy, toxic atmosphere like inorganic pea soup. (J. P. Zmirak, 1993) An HVAC system inspection should include checking filters, drip pans, drainage piping, heating and cooling coils, outdoor air intakes, supply diffusers, return grilles, humidifiers and controls. The inside of air ducts and plenums should be checked periodically for signs of rust, microbial growth or other contamination. (G. Labar, 1992 Oct.) Lighting An important part of creating an ergonomically sound work environment is to provide adequate and appropriate levels of lighting. This is due to the fact that good lighting lead to happier employees, greater levels of efficiency and ultimately increased profits. According to Andrew S. Nicholson, lighting is a common source of complaint in the modern office. Poor lighting can lead to discomfort as a result of poor posture and eye strain, which in turn can lead to other problems such as irritability and tension. These problems however are not caused by dim lighting alone. Whilst poor lighting does lead to eye strain, light that is too bright may also cause a number of problems due to reflection off screens and so forth. In order to combat the problem of reflection, ambient lighting can be used. This is where uplights are used to direct light up and reflect it off the ceiling and onto other areas. Therefore it is important to provide the most appropriate level of light for the situation. Whilst maintaining effective lighting one must also consider the costs involved. An important part of lighting the office is to use natural light (sunlight) as effectively as possible. It is necessary to let as much light as possible whilst blocking sunlight. According to Keeling and Kallaus, this can be achieved through the use of tinted windows, adjustable blinds and window screens that deflect sunlight and reduce glare. Studies show that workers prefer daylight to artificial light on the job. There are three types of artificial lighting that are used in office lighting. These are incandescent light, fluorescent light and high-intensity discharge lamps (Keeling and Kallaus p368). Incandescent light is a type of light that is commonly used in the home. It involves the use of a light bulb. This type of light is less expensive than the fluorescent light however they are not as efficient in providing the appropriate levels of lighting. Fluorescent lights are usually produced by long tube lamps. They only use a third of the electricity used by incandescent lights. They provide a more even distribution of light. High discharge lamps are the type of lights that are used in stadiums and streets. They allow for the intensity of light produced to be controlled for use in office lighting. The types of activities that require the most amount of lighting are drafting, charting and photographic work. Those areas that require a lower level of lighting are lobbies, reception areas and libraries. Hearing Environment The controlling of noise levels in the office environment is important in creating an environment that is ergonomically sound. There are two main facets to controlling noise levels in the office. The first of these is to reduce noise levels in environments where noise levels are too high. The other is too create a certain level of 'noise' where the office is completely is quiet. "A certain level of sound creates a healthy background and helps to set a tempo for the work to be accomplished" (Keeling p371). This should be audible enough to allow people to be productive while not being loud enough to distract them from their tasks. In the article "Here Ye Hear Ye Noise Guidelines Needed", Walt Clawson offer ten guidelines for managing office noise: • Examine the layout of the Workstation - For example, position telephones in a way that there is no direct path between two workstations. This allows for quieter telephone conversations thus reducing office noise. • Taller panels offer more privacy - It also helps to manage office acoustics. • Invest in a masking sound system - These speakers generate a sound resembling moving air in order to reduce the high pitches in speech and provide more privacy. • Examine the quality of the acoustical ceiling tiles in the space - Tiles can absorb sound waves thus reducing noise. • Blocking sound is paramount - This is of greater importance than absorbing sound. • Carpeting has little impact - Carpet only absorbs little office sound, concentrate on the ceiling. • If there is a way for sound to creep through, it will - Make sure that all openings between rooms are sealed in order to prevent sound travelling too far. • Panel construction can make a difference - Find panels that are able to block noise efficiently. • Don't clutter you panel - The placement of notes on panels can greatly reduce the sound blocking qualities that make the office louder. • Office workers need a bit of din - Workers need some noise in order to be productive. This can be provided in the way of soft music. Ergonomics does not just involve computers, furniture and office equipment, it includes aspects such as employee age, time spent working with computers, training in ergonomics procedures and actual office design. Most valuable employees are relatively older than employees in training and as such are often overlooked. When designing an office, it is important to take into account the effects of aging and the increased care needed by such individuals. According to (Materials Handling Engineering, Jun 1996) stature begins to decline after thirty years of age and flexibility and strength are significantly reduced after the age of forty five years. Lower back pains and hand problems are the main symptoms of a poorly designed office. A typist spends most of the day using a keyboard and therefore will experience hand problems in their lifetime. "Loss of hand function is the number one reason that a person enters a nursing home" (Materials Handling Engineering, Jun 1996). Experts say that people that spend more than four hours at a keyboard each day are most likely to suffer from some kind of repetitive strain injury, (Managing Office Technology, Jul 1996). A natural straight posture during keying with the wrist laying horizontal is the best way to avoid such RSI's. The mouse has to be kept as close to the keyboard as possible and can be rotated to each side of the keyboard to minimise dominant hand overuse. The introduction of computers into the workplace has reduced the need to move constantly and often leads to a more sedentary employee. This in turn produces higher levels of discomfort and reduces worker productivity. Sun Microsystems has mostly eliminated this problem with a series of training programs and employee inclusion when selecting furniture and computer components. Such training programs increased ergonomic awareness and resulted in three times as many symptom reports, (HE Solutions, Jun 1996). This program has reduced injury rates, allowed for employee feedback, created a greater respect for management and generally increased employee productivity. Video display terminals are found in almost every office throughout the world and therefore must be examined when discussing ergonomics. Many older offices have considerably older computer desks that are dangerous for the eyes. The terminal is often placed too high and can result in eye strain and muscular complaints. Ideally the monitor should be placed 15 to 20 degrees above the horizontal line of sight and angled so the employees eyes are closer to the bottom of the screen than the top. The actual monitor should also be placed about 18 to 24 inches away from the user, (Electrical Apparatus, Nov 1996). Another cause of eye strain is the placement of reference material in conjunction to the computer terminal. Books and reports that are placed to the side force the employee to constantly turn their head and may result in stiffness of the back and neck muscles. One aspect often overlooked when using a computer is the position of the legs. If the legs are allowed to dangle, they can often 'fall asleep', which can lead to circulation problems in the future. Foot rests are a god way to resolve such a complaint. When designing a workstation, there are many aspects that must be considered if ergonomics is to be a contributing factor (HR Magazine, Aug 1996). Adjustable furniture is an absolute must to allow for the difference in employee stature. A light dimmer system helps to reduce glare and eye strain. Bright carpets are considered by most to be ergonomically correct. A well cleaned ventilation system that brings in a plentiful supply of oxygen to eliminate 'sick building syndrome'. Flexible ergonomic chairs that insist on a correct posture to reduce back and neck complaints. All such systems are likely to improve employee morale and increase productivity levels. Sick days will undoubtedly decline and employee enthusiasm will begin to climb. It is for these reasons that we consider ergonomics to be an essential factor when examining office and clerical environments.

Equal Pay

Mike K. Essay on equal pay in the work place. In 1963, President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act into law, making it unlawful to discriminate against a worker on the basis of sex. Since that time, the wage gap between men and women in the United States has narrowed by just 15 cents, now being 74 cents, as reported by the U.S. Census Bureau. Pay equality is most prevalent for the 16 to 24 age group, in which women earn more than 90 percent of what men do; however, the gap becomes 75 percent in the 25 to 54 year old group – those at the height of their careers and life responsibilities. A number of factors have contributed to the gap between men’s and women’s wages. These include: occupational segregation of women into low paying jobs; lower levels of unionization for women and attitudinal barriers that have kept women from achieving equality in the workplace and undervaluation for women’s work. The Equal Pay Act (part of the Fair Labor Standards Act), forbids employers to compensate women differently for jobs that are “substantially equal”, that is, almost identical. Traditionally, women have worked in different occupations than men; these occupations tend to be substantially different, pay less and confer less authority. Equity means fairness and justice. Pay equity programs throughout the world attempt to legislate and regulate the elimination of systemic gender-based wage discrimination and to ensure ongoing systems that will maintain equitable wage relationships over time. Pay equity programs attempt to address the undervaluation for work traditionally or historically done by women. Pay equity (also referred to as “comparable worth”) programs require a gender-neutral analysis of comparative work. A variety of very different jobs are compared based on a composite of the skill, effort and responsibility of a job and the conditions under which the job is generally done. The comparison determines the relative worth of those jobs to the achievement of a firm’s objectives, under the proposition that equal contribution merits equal compensation. Where female-dominated jobs in the workplace are found to be of equal or comparable value to male-dominated jobs but paid below the level of the male jobs or payline, then all employees in those female-dominated jobs are entitled to receive pay equity adjustments. But how are these adjustments to be determined in a workplace that already subjectively undervalues the effort and contribution of women and minorities? Over the past decade, under-recognition of jobs and skills attributed to women, their lower human capital attributes and a historical concentration in a culturally-confined range of jobs combined with direct discrimination has produced continuing inequities in pay. It is doubted by those concerned with this issue throughout the world that anti-discrimination and equal opportunity laws relying on the successful legal action of individuals seeking redress cannot address systemic problems due to the undervaluation of feminized work. Equality means equivalent, or equal in value, measures force, significance, etc. The idea of “equal pay for equal work” refers to men and women in the same job, under the same circumstances, ability, seniority, performing equally well but being paid differently. Opponents of pay equity base their criticism on economic theory; stating that the labor market establishes an employee’s worth. But Pincus and Shaw argue that this economic argument disregards the historical and cultural bases for the differential. Many studies show that predominately female jobs pay less, on average, than predominantly male jobs. Debates over “comparable worth” policies come from the findings that the sex composition of an occupation exerts a net effect on the wages earned, even after all other factors, which may influence the outcome, are withdrawn. Studies done in North Carolina showed that the higher percentage of female workers in an occupation had a negative impact on total pay. Thomas R. Tudor points out in “The Complex Issues of Pay Equity” (Journal of Compensation and Benefits, Jan-Feb 1997 v12 n4 p.34) that what employers perceive as fair pay or even what is legislated may not be perceived as such by current employees. Many employers attempt to achieve internal pay policies by standardizing pay ranges for a given position. Influencing factors may include firm size, profitability, growth and market share; however, most companies want to set compensation at whatever level they feel necessary to obtain the highest efforts and results from their employees. Some of these factors can be subjective and lead, not only to defacto discrimination, but employee dissatisfaction in general, as they compare job responsibilities and relative productivity between the people on site. Currently, in all methods of job evaluation, it is the requirements of the job itself that are evaluated, not individual performance, and equity is not the goal. Advocates of pay equity want to legislate that gender composition of jobs not affect the resultant pay. Systems could be set up to establish rating scales on the basis of job evaluations where it is the requirements of the job and not the performance of a given individual within the job that are determinant factors in compensation. This could include educational factors, how much time are spent on different tasks and the sphere of responsibility incumbent upon the employee. Current plans most commonly use skill, effort responsibility and working conditions as factors. Critics of pay equity argue it could never achieve its goal, and even if it did, it would have the undesirable side effects of the misemployment of women and hurt the economy of the enforcing government. The fact is that pay disparity for men and women has a serious effect on the economy, diminishing each woman’s purchasing power in a society in which most marketing is done toward women, and also has adverse effects on families with single mothers or other female head of household situations. Critics also point out that women or minorities come to the market with productivity shortfalls. Conclusions of research done by Neumark in 1999 are that minority workers are paid lower starting wages, which are thought to reflect discriminations based on taste and lower expectations. Will the wage gap ever be solved for good? It is expected that with all the momentum from legislative efforts, individual lawsuits, and well-intentioned proponents, hopes are high that the pay gap will be long gone by mid-century.

Equal Employment Opportunity & Civ~425

Relationships Between Equal Employment Opportunity & Civil Rights Acts and Biblical Values part 2 EMPLOYMENT RETIREMENT INCOME SECURITY ACT OF 1974: The Employment Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 created government protection of pensions for all employees with company pension plans and regulated vesting rights. The Bible states that we should exhort our elders as if they were our parents and provide for them in their old age. As stated earlier, we have a Christian requirement to help others who are less fortunate. The Bible states the following: Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity. Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need. The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, "Do not muzzle the ox while it is treading out grain," and "the worker deserves his wages." People often find it easy to dismiss the opinions of the elderly and avoid taking time to visit with them. The fact that God commanded the Israelites to honor the elderly shows how seriously we should take the responsibility of respecting those older than we. Their wisdom gained from experience can save us from many pitfalls. CHAPTER TITLE VII OF THE 1964 CIVIL RIGHTS ACT: The Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act made it unlawful for an employer to discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin with respect to employment. The Bible states that God does not show favoritism toward any nation or person who accepts Christ as his or her Savior. ‘Then Peter began to speak: "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right."' Jesus stated the following: You have heard that it was said, "Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." The Apostle Paul stated the following: Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back for good — no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother. He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a man and as a brother in the Lord. You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature, rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: Love your neighbor as yourself. If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. CHAPTER CONCLUSION: The EEO and Civil Rights movement are supported by Biblical guidance with exception to the areas of homosexuality and abortion. However, there has been an unfortunate and dramatic increase in the need for support of things such as; single parent families, sexually transmitted diseases, protection from violent crime, and drug abuse. It is extremely important that we tailor our programs in the previous areas so we don't encourage ungodly behavior and social acceptance. I feel that the increase in the above-mentioned areas is a result of our Nation's declining sense of Biblical values. There has been a legal shift in our Country's laws away from the intent of its original foundation and from the expectations of our founding fathers. The result has been a less effective EEO and Civil Rights movement, due to a lack of continued and consistent guidance of Biblical values in our Government's decisions. John Adams, our second President said, "Our Constitution was made for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate for the Government of any other." We cannot effectively police proper behavior, to be effective as a Nation. We must be united with a baseline of unwavering moral values. This will create a Nation of individuals who have a desire to police themselves and guide themselves based on the greatest Commandments: Jesus replied: "‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." I leave you with this thought. The Bible provides us with prophecies concerning the Last Days which include; extreme materialism, increase in speed and knowledge, departure from the Christian faith, widespread violence, and rapid advances in technology. The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy: "There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God — having a form of godliness but denying its power. REFERENCES CITED Barton, David. America's Godly Heritage. Aledo: Wall Builders, 1992. Dessler, Gary. Human Resource Management. 7th ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice-Hall, 1997. Dornan Hot Issue. Affirmative Action. July 1998. [On-Line]. Available Internet: http://www.bobdornan.com/issues/affactio.html. Dornan Hot Issue. The Right to Life Act. July 1998. [On-Line]. Available Internet: http://www.bobdornan.com/issues/rttolife.html. Freedom To Marry. Baehr v. Miike: History of the Law Suit. July 1998. [On-Line]. Available Internet: http://www.ftm.org/overview/history.html. Kennedy, James. What if the Bible Had Never Been Written?. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1998. Martin, W. & Hanegraaff, H. The Kingdom of the Cults. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1997. Minnery, Tom. "The Relationship Between Church, Family and Government." Focus On The Family July 1998, 10-12. Riddiough, C. Employment Non-Discrimination Act. July 1998. [On-Line]. Available Internet: http://www.igc.org/lbg/enda.html. The Bible Promise Book. New International Version. Westwood: Barbour, 1990. The Life Application Bible. New International Version. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1991. Walk Thru The Promises. King James Version. Dallas: C&D International, 1988. Willmington, H.L. The Complete Book of Bible Lists. Wheaton: Tyndale House, 1987.

Entrepreneur Observation Report

This report outlines a very small business of my brother’s. It describes his business, target market, financial plans, and marketing plans. I have tried to keep a neutral opinion about his opinions as much as possible. I have tried to keep my inputs and thoughts in the conclusion only. The whole idea of my brother, insert name here, owning a business started in early March of 1998 when one of the neighbors jokingly suggested he should raise chickens and sell them to people. A few days later he realized it could be easily done, and with a profit. From mid-March to September, he and I raised, and easily sold 600+ chickens, we only wished we could have raised more. When March of 1999 rolled around we were contemplating how many chickens to buy, when the person we bought the chickens from told us about the possibilities of rabbits. Because rabbits are a yearlong project, and we knew I would be leaving in the fall, it became his decision and ultimately his project. He started out with 20 baby doe (females), 3 baby bucks (males), and a small-borrowed hutch (cage) with all 23 rabbits jammed in tight. His investment in rabbits, although considerable, was still to be outdone by the ones in hutches and feed. He essentially spent all profits from chickens the year before and then some. His project now consists of 20 mature doe, 3 mature bucks, and approximately 60 babies. He has taken over a section of a large barn and turned it into a 30+ hutch rabbitry system with a circulating automatic watering system., and recently acquired a large weaning cage. I asked him how he felt when he was getting started and he said he didn’t like spending all that money but he knew he would get it all back someday. I then asked him if he was afraid of competition, or of there not being a big enough market. He said he knew of nobody else selling rabbit meat in the area on any scale, and that because rabbit meat is practically thee healthiest meat, he couldn’t see any problems in the market. He then said that if personal selling fails he can sell them through his "chicken provider" on a per pound basis. One thing I have always known about my brother and his rabbit business is that he is very confident in its success and that even though he knows there will be small problems he is very sure of overall success. When I asked him who he sees as his typical customer he said that first he would talk to people that bought chickens last year, and then possibly put an add in the Kearney Hub (an area newspaper). He then said that because rabbit meat is so healthy he saw the health conscience as his primary customers he also said that because it wouldn’t be real cheap, they would be people with money to spend on special health food. He didn’t have any demographics, Psychographics, or Geographics, but that he knew there the supply and that all demand would be his. I asked him if he saw any reason for his market to shrink, and he said he didn’t see any reason for it not to grow. Most of the funding for his business came from our chicken profits, from me (expecting to be paid back plus some) and from his savings. While he did not have a business plan set in concrete he had some basic numbers that he thought would be attainable and some ideas on how to attain them. He did not receive funding from a bank. Profit margins for his business are somewhat unpredictable the number of kits (baby rabbits) a doe has a year can greatly effect the business. He tries to conservatively figure his profits. Here I will try to give you a little info on the possible income of a 20 doe rabbitry. If the average doe has 12 kits a litter and has a litter every 1 ¾ month or 9 litters a year, then each doe averages 108 babies a year. Take this number times the number of doe or 20 and you get 2160 babies a year. If each baby weighs 4-6 pounds (we’ll use 4) when sold on a per-pound rate you are selling 8640 pounds of rabbit a year. Take this number times $.95, (a conservative price for rabbit meat per live pound) and you’re bringing in $8,200.00 a year. Subtract the estimated $900.00 a year in feed and $500.00 for any other expenses and you’re left with $6,800.00. This only for 20 doe, because it only takes 6 months for a rabbit to mature he could, in theory increase his number of mature breeding stock by a power of 10 in 6 months giving him ten times the income. However he would have to buy that many more cages. As you can see though the business definitely has possibilities for expansion. There is also the prospect of composting rabbit droppings, bagging it and selling it at the farmer’s market. This would nearly cancel out the cost of feed. Rabbit compost is renowned among gardeners as the best fertilizer because of the super efficient digestive system of rabbits. He hasn’t been able to figure the profit percentage yet, but says it will be quite a while before he pays for all of his expenses as doe often need to have a few litters before they become good mothers. He does do all of his own accounting, and book keeping of rabbit due dates weaning dates etc. In four years he plans on going to college, but he said his business has great growth potential and could be quite large by then. He also went on to say that he could sell the business to our youngest sister who has raised and shown pet rabbits before, thus letting the business continue for a few more years. He is not currently marketing any rabbits he does have several baby rabbits but they aren’t quite at the age to be sold. He will initially use personal selling, for this he will call people we sold chickens to last year as well as other people that have shown interest in acquiring chickens. The price for a rabbit won’t be much different than it was for a chicken. Though many people might hesitate at buying a rabbit instead of a chicken, he believes this is only because they are uninformed about rabbits. He is also considering the idea of putting an ad in the local paper to increase his direct sales. He knows that he will produce more rabbits than he will be able to sell directly so he also has permanent buyer lined up that will come pick them up and pay by the live pound. This buyer could do many things with the rabbits, most will probably go to processing plants, but some could go to research facilities. This situation is what he calls a no lose situation. He has read several books on raising rabbits, which suggest talking with local Supermarkets about buying your rabbit meat for them to resell, this is something to look into. While he plans on using the farmer’s market to sell his composted rabbit droppings to home gardeners, he also plans on using this as an opportunity to advertise his rabbits. Because his rabbits will be used for food and possibly research, his product is for both the consumer market and the industrial market, though the consumer market is much bigger. The fact that he will sell a rabbit for roughly the same price as a chicken the year before I consider the price of his rabbits to be low to medium. Due to the fact that last year we charged a little more per chicken than the supermarket it will be a great price for a rabbit which usually goes for a little more than a chicken. He is able to price the rabbits this low because he is producing them compared to buying each chicken as a chick and raising it from there like we did last year. His lack of competition is a key factor to any success he experiences through his limited marketing methods. It also makes his rural location less relevant. I do believe that he is more of an entrepreneur than a small business owner, manager, or technician, because he is always looking for a way to advance his business. He is the owner, manager, and technician, though he doesn’t have anybody to manage he does have to manage his time around the rabbits. Sometimes he can expect ten or more rabbits to have babies within a couple days and must check them constantly to make sure every think is ok. He plays the role of technician when he builds cages, and maintains cleanliness. I don’t think this business could ever become a franchise although it could become a very large company with thousands of rabbits, and several employees. If it were to become a franchise I think it would best be managed by the franchisees. I think this would eliminate any hierarchy or bureaucracy involved in most franchises. Of course there would be a main office to coordinate advertising and to offer help to franchisees with questions or problems. I don’t have too many suggestions except to attempt all of the plans he has thought of. I also think that he needs to make a profit before he starts expanding any more. Once he gets into the cycle of raising and selling the rabbits he can then begin to expand, but not before then. This is really a business that has a lot of potential, and had a lot of things going for it. It is proof to me that the only successful entrepreneur is the guy that gets the idea and does it, not the guy that just thinks it would be a good idea for someone else to do.

Wendy History

Wendy's History Wendy’s Frostys “ I opened the first Wendys restaurant because I felt that there should be a place where fresh hamburgers are made just the way the customer wants it.” That is as true today as it was thirty one years ago when Dave Thomas first spoke those words. People put their trust into Wendys everytime that they eat there. Infact Wendys is the only fast food place that offers the Frosty (Wendys Web Page). November 15th 1969, in Columbus, Ohio, was a very phantasmagoric day in Dave’s life. He opened his very first restaurant naming it after his little baby girl, Wendy. He expected nothing more from his little family owned restaurant, but Dave decided to approach fast food in a different angel. On November 21st 1970 he broke new grounds by opening a new feature, the pick up window. Now he could do twice as much business at the same time. This idea expanded to all of the quick service industries. Over the next thirty ones years, Dave opened up over five thousand Wendys Restaurants, not only in the United States but in twenty-seven other countries around the world. With competition rising among other fast food places, such as McDonalds, Burger King, and Arbys. Promotion would be one of his great ideas (Wendys Web Page). A garbage collector, Craig Randall, found a discarded Wendys cup. The cup had a peel off label for instant winners. Hoping to discover a coupon good for a free chicken sandwich, Craig peeled off the label to find that he instantly won two hundred thousand dollars towards a brand new home and became an instant celebrity. Craig’s whirl wind Osborne 2 media tour included the “Tonight Show,” “Jay Leno,” and hundred of media outlets hungry for a new unbelievable story. This brought many new customers to Wendys to try their luck at the new game. Soon after many other fast food places tried the same promotion ideas and were also very successful (Pook, Cory). Wendys features two main products, the chili and the Frosty. The Frosty is a cool creamy dairy desert that will also quench and thirst. Although is thicker than a milk shakes it isn’t quick as thick as Ice cream. In comparison to the other dairy deserts that the other fast food places sell, Wendys has the least fattening deserts of them all. The Frosty at Wendys has 330 calories in a twenty oz. Cup. While Arbys has 390 calories, Burger King has 570 calories, and McDonalds has 470 calories ( Thomas, Dave). So not only does Wendys have fresh food that is made when you order it but it also has the least fattening dairy deserts around. You might be wondering what exactly are in these scrumptious deserts. Frostys are made up of many ingredients such as: skim milk, cream, sugar, corn syrup, cocoa, dextrose, disodium phosphate, carboxymethlcellubse, vegetable mono, natural and artificial flavors ( Thomas, Dave). With all of these ingredients combined and stored in a cooler, you get a Frosty. You might also be wondering how much these Frostys cost. Compared to the other fast food places the Frosty is priced very reasonably and for the most part even less expensive. You can purchase for the low price of ninety-five cents or you can get the super value menu price of 99 cents for a medium. But for all those chocolate lovers who Osborne 3 crave the large size it is a mere dollar twenty-nine. So not only are Frostys low fat but they are also very affordable. So as you can see, the Frosty is the best thing to cool down with on a steamy hot summer day. Dave Thomas is cooking up a way to create strawberry and vanilla Frostys right now. But until then, keep enjoying the chocolate Frosty at their super price and their low calorie nutrition!

Will the Global Economy Help or Hurt The Next Generation of Americans

Will the Global Economy Help or Hurt The Next Generation of Americans? Will the global economy help or hurt the next generation of Americans? This is the question I am going to investigate in this paper. The global economy is the system pertaining to the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services around the globe. It is important that we understand the global economy because it is and will be affecting the way we learn, work and live. How all of these factors are affected will be discussed in the following paper. I take the position that the global economy will hurt the next generation of Americans. One argument for this position is that our schools are not adequately preparing out students for the types of new work that will be required in the next generation. American schools are using teaching techniques that taught existed in the 1950's. Textbooks date back to the early 1970's. Requirements may have changed but our reaching techniques have not. Every year, students take the same courses with the same prerequisite: A good memory. True, they are teaching classes that are essential to get into a good college but are they teaching the skills that our future generation will need? Are students going to be able to problem solve? Are today's students going to be able to access tomorrow's information? Our schools teach American students to be good at memorization. To be able to spit out recorded information. "You do have the knowledge but you are basically robots with skin; machines, tape recorders that teachers use to record their information. At the end of a chapter, they rewind you and press the 'play' button to see if you can repeat everything they said."1 Also, our schools are not stressing the importance of math and science. Because of this fact, foreign born workers such as engineers are taking over the jobs American workers could have. Our students need to be truly smart because memorized skills can only go so far. Grades cannot always determine the real skills of the students. Anybody can receive a diploma but what do these grades really mean? Not much unless a student can apply their memorized skills for the new way of work. "Just possibly we have a surplus of graduates and a scarcity of real skills."2 The improvement of our educational system, not the number of degrees we hand out, is the only way the next generation can thrive in the global economy. An objection to this position is that our school system is preparing our students in the best way possible. First, we really can't blame the schools for lack of supplies or updated technology. Quite possibly our teachers are the ones who are not prepared and we certainly can't expect schools to do everything. School is simply a basis for learning. "The true inputs to education are students, hard work, quality teaching and rigorous standards and parental engagement. When these are missing money and reorganization can't compensate."3 Also grades in some ways do represent how ambitious a student is about school and whether they get work done on time both of which are qualities of a good worker. High schools in the United States are better than you think. " In the most recent international comparison of reading, which was done in 31 nations, American kids finished second to Finland."4 "We have an evolutionary process where we are getting better and better..."5 Yet the following argument can reply to the latter objection. Our schools may be better than we think but are they good enough to prepare our students for the new way of work? What I mean by this is being able to use technology, apply real life skills and think on their own. Reading and math skills may be second out of 31 nations but what you may not know is "23% of Americans don't finish high school compared to Japans 2%"6 Also, "American students attend school the least amount of days (180 in fact) compared to other economically strong countries such as Britain's 192 days, Japan's 243 and Germany's 290 days."7 So, we have the highest drop out rate and we spend the least amount of time in school. These numbers could explain why our students are behind intellectually with other countries. This could mean our economy may suffer as well. What can we do to improve this though? Already, more colleges are "lowering admission standards so more kids will attend"8. This means our students can pick their schools and school will compete for good students. If we use more technology this will enable students to access information that was not currently available. Businesses should also be involved in helping our schools because today's students are tomorrow's workers. They are the future doctors, lawyers and engineers. "Schools aren't day care centers or churches or scout troops. Their primary mission isn't to teach our children how to drive a car, play football, cook meals, avoid pregnancy or prepare them for marriage, their main job is to teach them academic skills that will enable our kids to earn a living and contribute to a vital nation."9 A longer school year with more emphasis put on math and science and an "increase in the intellectual challenge of courses"10 is the only way America's students will be able to compete and succeed in the global economy. A second position as to why the global economy will hurt the next generation of Americans is due to the arising and already prospering information revolution. due to the changes in technology, the next generation of Americans, "the people presently in their teens and 20's, will be the first generation in America to have a lower standard of living than their parents."11 The facts are all over, either we keep up with the changing world or get out of the way. Technology will pass them by. "New technology replaces workers or companies turn to corporate downsizing to save money"12 "American companies are moving production overseas using new technology to replace workers"13 The evidence is all there, every year more than a half a million good jobs are eliminated by the nation's most prestigious companies. "Workers are going to have to improve their skills or get new ones altogether so they can stay ahead of the game"14 The gap between man and machine needs to decrease. "By the year 2010 or 2015, computer literacy will be no more remarkable than telephone literacy today. Nearly every skilled job will require it."15 Because so many companies are downsizing and merging, this will result in a decrease of jobs and an increase in employment. "The price of beating overseas competition has been bitterly high; wave after wave of corporate downsizing layoffs, wage increases limited or foregone and the replacement of full time workers for part time or temporary hired hands."16 Due top the fact that many people will be out of full time jobs this means more people will be working two part time or temporary jobs." People holding two or more jobs constitute 6.1% of the labor force; more than the unemployment rate."17 Many workers complain this is exhausting. An auto plant worker in Michigan is being asked to do the work of two people, he says, "If somebody retires, all they do is take the work and give it to somebody else."18 This is a similar situation for a worker at a nearby telephone company who says, "I'm doing the work of three people, by the time I get home all I have time for is a shower, dinner and a little sleep and then it's time to do it all over again."19 Another change that the information revolution has caused is the growing number of people working at home. "Home based businesses employ roughly 14 million people nationwide. Nearly 2/3 of these businesses employed, 5.6 million were full time and 8.4 million part time."20 But whether you work for a company or are self employed, part time and temporary workers only draw wages not benefits. So this in the end, a loss of benefits and overworking will result in a lower standard of living for Americans which in turn can only hurt the next generation and the global economy. Yet an objection to this argument would be that the information revolution does not play a major role in our global economy. The unemployment rate is the lowest its been in five years and downsizing "increases productivity or output per worker hour that has helped make the US number one."21 The new work changes are creating jobs, not destroying them. "Despite the persistence of unemployment, the US is still creating about two million jobs per year net and that puts it well ahead of some of the competitors"22 "President Clinton likes to note that 2/3 of the nearly forty million Americans with no health care live in families with full time workers"23 So really full time workers might not be better off after all. Jobs are growing and this is especially noticeable in Oakland county in Southeast Michigan. "Last year in 1994, 9,000 jobs were added and a U-M study predicts 47,000 more jobs will be created next year."24 With all these new job creations our economy will only grow and succeed into the future. A reply to this objection though would be that despite all the job creations, people are still going to be working two or more jobs that have no benefits. The job creations may sound positive but it won't change the standard of living that "generation X" is going to face. "Falling wages have put he traditional American family into play as the one earner middle class family becomes extinct. With children needing ever more costly education's for ever longer periods of time, the cost of supporting a family is rising sharply just as earnings plunge. Mothers are going to have to work longer hours if the family is going to have it's old standard of living."25 This means that people are going to have to work twice as hard for the same quality of living. This also means a constant upgrading of skills necessary for peak job performance. "Important efforts should be better education and a committed and constant upgrading of skills. Our future is a more educated one rather than a cheaper one. Technological revolutions in the past have consistently led to gains in production, commerce, employment and living standards."26 Yet if workers don't improve their skills and constantly upgrade them, shrinking the gap between man and machine, this revolution will be detrimental to the welfare of our workers, their families and most importantly the global economy. Despite all the information on how the global economy will hurt the next generation of Americans, there are also ways in which it will help the next generation. My objection to my original position; that is the global economy will hurt the next generation of Americans is that it will instead help them due to the new ag

Why Is Managerial Accounting Important To An MBA Graduate

Why Is Managerial Accounting Important To An MBA Graduate An MBA Graduate Defined An MBA is a degree awarded to individuals who complete required coursework in the field of Management Science. The MBA title stands for Master of Business Administration and implies that the person holding the degree is qualified to hold a position in senior management within a firm. An MBA manager is similar to the captain of a ship. He is responsible for making decisions and plans about the firm and for controlling the firm’s employees. The goal of an MBA manager is to maximise the firm’s value through the use of the firm’s tangible and intangible assets. He maximises this value by obtaining the highest Profits possible. In the following discussion, I will examine how senior management in general and MBA graduates in particular can use the field of Managerial Accounting to make decisions/plan and control employees in order to maximise Profits. For clarity throughout this essay, senior managers and MBA graduates should be considered as one in the same. Managerial Accounting Defined Managerial Accounting is the process of using information systems to provide data to senior managers who then use this data for decision-making/planning and monitoring employee performance in order to maximise profits. The data that senior managers use is supplied by the Financial Accounting function. This information is used to improve the performance of the Marketing function, which generally provides the Revenue of the firm and the Operations function, which generally incurs most operating costs. Marketing and Operations are thus the functional areas which an MBA graduate is generally concerned. Managerial Accounting is vital to a business’s success because it quantifies a firm’s performance. By quantifying certain performance variables, senior management can carry out its two most important functions: 1) Decision-Making/Planning and 2) Controlling Employee Behaviour. The Theory of the Firm tells us that a business exists to maximise the value of equity investors have supplied. Profits result from decisions about what items to produce and sell (Marketing) and planning what inputs are necessary for this production and distribution activity (Operations). Value maximisation results from maximising Revenue and minimising Total Costs. In business, resources are always limited or finite. Therefore, they must be employed in the most economical and productive capacity in order to maximise profits. MBA graduates are often hired to obtain the highest profits possible; therefore, value maximisation is achieved or forgone as a result of their decision-making and leadership. The field of Managerial Accounting is concerned with helping senior managers use data provided by the Financial Accounting function about the Marketing department and Operations department to achieve the highest profit levels attainable thus increasing the value of the firm as much as possible. Managerial Accounting is therefore cross-functional in the purest sense and should be employed in all areas of a business. The Financial Accounting Role in Managerial Accounting To make informed decisions, MBA managers must use a scientific approach rather than simply following their intuition. This scientific approach often uses historical data supplied by accountants in the Financial Accounting department to plan future activities and monitor employee performance. This historical data includes such items as Balance Sheets, Income Statements, Statements of Cash Flows and Statements of Retained Earnings. Data from these sources can be further extrapolated into measures such as Return on Assets (ROA) and Return on Investment (ROI). The Financial Accounting documents provide senior managers with a tangible starting point for decision-making/planning and analysing employee performance. Through this perspective, we can see that Financial Accounting is backward-looking whereas Managerial Accounting is forward-looking. It is worth noting that in establishing a Financial Accounting system, senior managers must often make a trade off between information used for decision-making/planning and information used form employee control. Different systems provide better information in one area or the other so executive management must make a choice about which function is more important. To illustrate how Financial Accounting systems could help MBA graduates solve Marketing and Operations problems, let’s consider a maker of bottled drinks. Suppose a bottled drink firm makes 5 different drinks; 3 sugary sodas, 1 sports drink and 1 premium bottled water. Each drink is manufactured at its own separate facility but the distribution and sales force is the same for all 5 drinks. Financial Accounting documents are broken down on the basis of each individual drink. These documents which detail Revenue and Cost figures are the starting point for Managerial Accounting. It is this information which senior managers can use to make decisions and plans for the Marketing and Operations divisions. Managerial Accounting takes these Financial Accounting numbers one step further and reacts by making decisions about resource utilisation, production planning and monitoring employees. In the bottled drinks case for example, good senior managers might make a decision to devote more resources to increased production for the sports drink that may be fuelling profit growth. Or similarly, Financial Accounting data could show an unusual spike in labour costs, which might alert senior management to a problem with employee control. The main point to remember is that Financial Accounting provides the numbers that Managerial Accounting uses for planning/decision-making and employee control. The Role of Managerial Accounting in Marketing Profits are the residual income from Revenue earned producing and selling less the Costs of producing and selling. Marketing is generally responsible for the Revenue side of the equation and is therefore important in Managerial Accounting. The question for MBA managers is one of: what to products to produce, what price to charge for the products, how to promote the products and how to distribute the products in order to achieve the greatest profit. Maximizing Revenue while minimizing costs does this. Managerial Accounting uses Financial Accounting data to make Marketing decisions and plans about future output. Financial Accounting for example, assembles data on sales into Total Revenue figures to determine where the greatest sources of Revenue have been. Managerial Accounting is also concerned with controlling the behavior of Marketing employees to maximize profits. To illustrate how Financial Accounting data can be used for Managerial Accounting problems concerning planning/decision-making in Marketing, let’s once again consider the bottled drinks case. In order to decide which area to devote more resources to, an MBA graduate could examine the past three yearly Income Statements to see which drink provided the most Revenue and/or the highest profit margin. Similarly, he could look at the Return on Assets of a particular drink and compare it to the others to see which was providing the highest return on assets used in their production and distribution. These are all important measures because they give senior managers insight into how each item is affecting the bottom line—profit. Suppose for example the sports drink has shown higher Total Revenue growth figures than the other 4 drinks for the past 3 years and the Net Profit Margin has grown at an even faster pace. This growth could be attributable to many causes such as an increase in the playing of sports or the changing preferences of consumers away from sugar-filled sodas. Although the possible cause is important, what is vital to the MBA manager is the Financial Accounting numbers that reveal the trend. Here, senior management may decide to increase the promotional spending on the sports drink to spur further growth. To further illustrate, suppose senior management needs to decide whether to continue making one of the 3 sugary soft drinks it currently offers. Financial Accounting data has shown that the orange flavored drink offered has produced declining Revenues. Management must decide if the trend will continue or could be reversed. If the trend won’t reverse, the drink will be discontinued; however, if there are good prospects of a recovery in sales, the product will be revamped and reintroduced. Here we can see that the Marketing function has provided data on Revenue to the Financial Accounting function. Managerial Accounting is concerned with helping the MBA manager look at this financial information in the context of the Marketing function and make a decision on whether to use resources to produce and sell a particular item. The second goal of Managerial Accounting, controlling employee behavior, can also be achieved within the Marketing function. As was stated earlier, the Marketing function generally provides Revenue to the firm. In order to maximize Revenue, employee efforts have to be guided by MBA managers towards the best interests of the firm. Suppose a field salesman for the bottled drinks company is very keen on selling orange soda; the reasons for this are unclear, but this particular individual has directed his efforts towards orange soda at the expense of the other 4 offerings. We are able to glean this information from Financial Accounting figures, which show him selling more orange soda than any other employee, but his overall sales numbers are near the bottom of the list. Orange soda, however, is not a very profitable item and thus his efforts in this area are not adding much to the firm’s profits. Here, an MBA manager could step in and attempt to redirect this man’s efforts toward the other more profitable products. This is a classic example of a senior manager controlling employee behavior to maximize profits. To summarize, MBA managers can use Financial Accounting data for planning/decision-making and employee control within the Marketing function. This is the essence of Managerial Accounting and shows why it is an important field for the MBA graduate. The Role of Managerial Accounting in Operations The second component in the profit equation is Total Costs. A firm’s Operations division is usually responsible for most of a firm’s costs because of inputs such as materials and labor used in the production process. These Costs are defined as being fixed or variable according to the level of output. An MBA Operations manager should be concerned with minimizing the costs of these items in both categories but especially Variable Costs. As was stated earlier, an MBA manager must not only plan and make decisions, he must also control employee behavior. Employees and lower level managers will often act in their own self-interest rather than in the interest of the firm. Managers and employees have personal biases and preferences that sometimes result in less than maximum Revenue and more than minimum Costs. Financial Accounting systems collect data that can be use to evaluate employee performance and alert senior MBA management to such problems. To illustrate an Operations function employee control problem an MBA graduate might face, let’s once again consider the bottled drink example. Suppose the Income Statement for the premium bottled water division has shown an increase in Variable Costs for the adhesive labels used on the bottles. Since Profits are a simple function of Revenue and Costs, the increase in the price of labels has resulted in a decrease in Net Income, which is antithesis to the concept of value maximization. Senior management has decided to examine why the per unit cost of the labels has jumped so much. When they go to the factory where the bottled water is produced, they discover that the plant manager is a golfing buddy of the label supplier and has forged a deal to pay a higher price for labels than is necessary as a favor to his friend. Here we can see that the plant manager is working in his self-interest to preserve and enhance his friendship. He is not working in the interest of the firm by paying a higher price than is necessary. As a result of the discovery, senior management replaces the plant manager with someone more forthright and hence label costs are reduced. Here, Financial Accounting information (the cost of labels on the Income Statement) from the Operations function has provided data to use in Managerial Accounting (controlling employee behavior). Now let’s consider a planning/decision-making problem within the Operations function that can be addressed by MBA graduates through Managerial Accounting. As was stated earlier, much of a firm’s Total Costs are attributable to the Operations function. These costs are revealed in Financial Accounting documents outlining costs such as the Income Statement. Suppose senior management has noticed a decrease in profits for the lemon-lime soda the firm produces. By examining the Financial Accounting data they have found an unexpected increase in the cost of lime flavoring that is used because a supplier of the product has gone out of business. Here, an MBA manager must make a decision about alternative sources available for the flavoring input and as always look to buy it at a lower price. Once again, Financial Accounting data (cost information from the Income Statement) has been used by senior managers to solve a planning/decision-making problem within the Operations function. Summary In conclusion, Managerial Accounting is process MBA graduate managers can use to gain insight into planning/decision-making and employee control. The process involves examining Financial Accounting data and then applying that information to maximize Profits through the Marketing and Operations functions. Specifically, maximizing Revenue in Marketing and minimizing Costs Operationally. Managerial Accounting is scientific in its approach rather than intuitive and should be used by MBA graduates interested in maximizing the value of their firm.

Working An American Necessity

During the birth of this country, Puritans had to work hard to ensure the success of the new state. In order to make work more appealing, the Puritans emphasized the fruits of labor. This attitude, reflected in modern day by the act of "working for a living," is considered as a "badge of pride." Puritan attitudes toward work and the attitudes of two modern day writers toward work all agree that the act of working has virtuous effects, an attitude that I share because of my working experience (Clee and Clee 233-234). Three different attitudes toward work, expressed by several writers whom I have recently studied agree that hard work yields positive rewards. Henry F. Bedford, a history teacher at Phillips Exeter Academy, and Trevor Colbourne, a teacher at the University of New Hampshire, examine the Puritan attitude toward work in their book The Americans: A Brief History. Puritans stress the goodness of working by relating it to religious beliefs. Sloth is sinful, but the Puritans also pointed out that it was self-defeating. Leisure is even considered an "evil temptation" (Bedford and Colbourne 235-238). Marge Piercy, a modern day poet, essayist, and novelist, attempts to explain why work is desirable on contemporary terms in her poem "To Be of Use." To Piercy, hard workers who really persevere are admirable because of the fact that the world is full of temptations to stop working, or to not work altogether. This admiration for determination is apparent because work is as "common as mud," and it must be done sometime (Piercy 242-243). Wendell Berry, an English teacher at the University of Kentucky, explains the basis of the desire to work in his essay "The Joy of Work." In response to the prediction that there will be no work in the future, Berry emphasizes the importance of work to human nature. He explains that people do work because of "fellow feeling," and that people get satisfaction from doing work (Berry 244-247). The concept of satisfaction as a product of hard work has been proven valid to me through my years of experience. All of these selections agree that work is a basic part of life: without it, one would have a void in his life where satisfaction would be. Success of humanity depends on work.

Women Executives

Women Executives Even though women constitute 40% of all executives and administrative posts (up from 24% in 1976), they are still restricted mostly to the middle and lower positions, and the senior levels of management are almost entirely male domains. A 1990 study of the top Fortune 500 companies by Mary Ann Von Glinow of the University of Southern California, showed that "women were only 2.6% of corporate officers (the vice presidential level up)." Of the Fortune Service 500, only 4.3% of the corporate officers were women - even though women are 6l% of all service workers. Even more disturbing is that these numbers have "shown little improvement in the 25 years that these statistics have been tracked". (University of Michigan, Korn/Ferry International). What this means is that at the present rate of increase, it will be 475 years - or not until 2466 before women reach equality with men in the executive suite. This scenario is not any better on corporate boards. Only 4.5% of the Fortune 500 industrial directorships are held by women. On Fortune Service 500 companies, 5.6% of corporate directors are women. The rate of increase is so slow that parity with men on corporate boards will not be achieved until the year 2116 - or for 125 years. (The Feminist Majority Foundation News Media Publishing Inc., 1995) In 1980, only one woman held the rank of CEO of a Fortune 500 company. This woman came into the top management by inheriting the company from her father and husband. In 1985, this executive was joined by a second woman who reached the top - by founding the company she headed. Even though the newspapers are reporting that women have come a long way and are successful in the corporate world, women are banging into a "glass ceiling" that is "so subtle that it is transparent, yet so strong that it prevents women from moving up the corporate hierarchy". (Ann Morrison, The Feminist Majority Foundation and News Media, Inc, 1955) Women can see the high- level corporate positions but are kept from reaching the top. According to Morrison (http//www.feminist.org/research/ewb glass.ntml.) and her colleagues, the glass ceiling is not simply a barrier for an individual, based on the person/s inability to handle a higher-level job. Rather, the glass ceiling applies to women as a group who are kept from advancing higher because they are women. Just as the overall labour market remains sharply segregated by sex, women executives are concentrated into certain types of jobs - mostly staff and support jobs - and these offer little opportunity for getting to the top. The highest ranking women in most industries are in non-operating areas such as personnel, public relations. or, sometimes finance specialties that rarely lead to the most powerful top-management positions. It seems that women are shut out of jobs in the route that is taken by CEOs and presidents and even when they do get a line job it will more than likely not be in the significant part of the business or the type of job that can stamp them as leaders. It seems to be that the biggest barrier to women in top management levels is the bunch of boys sitting around a table making all the decisions. In other words when a decision has to be made concerning who should be promoted to management, male corporate leaders are inclined to select people as much like themselves as possible - so there is no astonishment that women are often not even considered at promotion time. The guys at the top look at their former colleagues and old school ties. Women executives are often left out of social activities because they do not fit into the "boys club". Even on a more traditional level, women report there are "certain kinds of meetings" they do not get invited to because they are not seen as policy makers. In a Wall Street Journal//Gallup study 80% of the executive women stated they believe there were disadvantages to being a woman in the business world. They stated that men did not take them seriously, they have been mistaken for a secretary at business meetings, they have been prevented from moving up the ladder because of male attitudes towards women and they believed they are paid less than men of equal ability. Many corporate environments tolerate sexual harassment which intimidates and demoralizes women executives. However, many women hesitate to speak out, fearing it will jeopardize their careers. In conclusion, many women have been discouraged from going to the top by a set of myths suggesting women are not suited for top management and that any problems are being solved gradually. (E.g. conflicts with family and home responsibilities, women at the top are frequently single, divorced or have no children, proving how difficult it is to combine family and career, women executives cost the corporation more because they must divide their attention between career and family, women are not as serious about their careers, women are not suited for top management because they are not aggressive enough and lack the self confidence required for the top jobs - to mention a few.) These myths seem work to keep women in their place and to justify the lack of progress for women. Worse yet, these myths often place blame on women rather than on sex discrimination. Men in corporate management tend not to perceive discrimation as a real problem, thereby making it virtually impossible to implement effective remedies. White men have ranked problems encountered by women executives as insignificant compared to how women ranked them. Therefore, without constant pressure from the outside and strong legal remedies, the very real problems of race and sex discrimination in the executive suite may never be adequately addressed. Even though feminists have fought to establish and vigorously enforce guidelines and laws prohibiting sex discrimination in employment, women feel they are a long way from equality in the ranks of American business. They feel that further gains depend on getting more feminists into decision-making positions and creating new strategies for change.

Women As Leaders

Women As Leaders More and more women are rising to the leadership challenge, even in some of the most male-dominated industries. The increase in the number of women attending university, in the workplace or starting their own business has demonstrated to men who own businesses that women can be both managers and mothers, thus showing their male counterpart that women can in fact "do it all". In this paper the history of women in the workforce will be outlined, as well as the challenges they face. The changing attitudes towards women taking over family businesses will be looked at briefly, how women lead along with a comparison to how men lead, and a critique and conclusion of their leadership style will also be discussed. History and The Challenges Women Face A number of events have occurred over the last twenty-five years or so that have resulted in the rise of the female in the work-for-pay world. Beginning in the mid-1970's, women began going to business school and earning their Master's of Business Administration and, as a result, building on that education and gaining work experience (Nelton, 1999). The days of the one income family are over. Females need to be armed with a university or college degree to be a contributor to this century's model of the family unit and in this time of "education inflation", the demand for higher education is growing at a staggering rate. In the corporate sector, the generation of women who entered the corporate world two to three decades ago have blazed the trail now followed by ever-growing numbers of women (Shaiko, 1997). The great strides women are making in the work force can be attributed to numerous factors including the: "passage of equal employment opportunity legislation's, modifications in job requirements, more females on the buying side, elevated educational achievements by females, more women in business schools, the huge percentage of female business school graduates with 'androgynous' orientations, and the willingness of many young women to postpone marriage and child-bearing." (Comer, et.al, 1997) While women continue to make progressive strides toward equality, few have risen to the highest positions-leading companies to the new millenium (Andorka, 1998). Fortunately, women can now demand equal treatment in their respective organizations as a result of the aforementioned changes in history. Many companies have policies in places that require equality at work and punishment for those who do not adhere to such policies. There is a vast amount of evidence that women tend to occupy less powerful, lower paid, and lower status organizational positions than men. These divisions not only occur vertically, but on a horizontal scale as well. Women who seek to enter management level positions fight against stereotypes, discrimination, and myths, not to mention the fight to balance work and family. They have also been overwhelmed by unfamiliar products, skeptical clients or customers, guy talk, a scarcity of female associates and little or no empathy (Comer, et.al., 1997). Sheila Wellington, President of Catalyst, a non-profit organization for the advancement of women to corporate and professional leadership, said in a speech on October 23, 1996 to the Economic Club of Detroit in Detroit Michigan: "Let me be clear, I believe that most obstacles to women's advancement to the top are not intentional, they are a result of unexamined assumptions about women's career interests and of policies and practices that have existed unquestioned over time in the corporate culture. With real commitment to change, the situation is remediable." (Wellington, 1996) Perhaps, the "glass ceiling" that women are under is not the intent of their male counterparts. I believe that it is the socialization of men and women in our society that has lead to this imbalance in the work force. But, somewhere along the line, men have to realize and acknowledge the socialization they have endured is creating much disharmony and discontent among their female colleagues. The Torch is Passed- to the Daughter Twenty years ago, there was no place for women in most family businesses (Nelton, 1999). If they did have a position, it was presumably as secretary, assistant, or some other "behind-the-scenes" role. The traditional successor to the family business was the first-born son and if there was no son, then the widow was discouraged from running the company and urged to sell the business. Those days have since past. As women are achieving higher levels of education and are being employed in more prominent positions, their leadership roles in family organizations have increased (Brody, 1994]. Many young women are refusing to accept the rule of "primogeniture" (Nelton, 1999). Primogeniture is defined as a birthright or an inheritance. Although women are making great strides in this arena, there is still the feeling out there that the son should be considered first and the daughter as a second option, only if there is no son or if the son declines the offer. But, Nelson says that, "young women by and large feel that if they want to go into the family business, the opportunity is there." In each of the cases described by Nelson, the fathers encouraged their daughters to become involved in the family business. As well, each father let his daughter run the show once she was named CEO-the surest sign of support (Nelton, 1999). In more and more families and in business in general, gender is becoming a "non-issue". As roles increasingly change on the home front, the business world will soon mirror the changes taking place in the family structure. Nelton also urges women in leadership roles to not lose sight of the bottom line. She says it is "easy for women to get caught up in the management of people" (Nelton, 1999). She goes on to say that if you cannot prove that you are also profit-driven, you will never make it to the successor level. The Battle of the Sexes There are many characteristics that women inherently possess that make them great leaders. Women tend to handle juggling many tasks at the same time better than men do. Because women have traditionally been the primary caregiver in the home as well as taking care of the household chores, "juggling" or time management has become second nature to them. Although women are skilled in handling many tasks, studies have shown that women are for the most part, people-oriented, rather than task-oriented (Comer, et.al., 1997). Women also value relationships and tend to spend time nurturing those relationships with their family, as well as subordinates (Andorka, 1998). Coaching, counseling, and mentoring, and the building of relationships are among the many characteristics needed to be an effective leader. In the past, commanding and controlling were thought to be the answer to gaining compliance and hard work from employees. The majority of men lean toward the traditional 'command and control' style and were more likely to view job performance as a series of transactions with subordinates offering rewards for services rendered or punishment for inadequate performance (Brody, 1994). Women understand the effectiveness of immediate praise and tend to be more supportive of one another and the people who work for them. Men wait for proof of achievement before extending gratitude or compliments. In the book, Selling is a Woman's Game, Nicki Joy outlines the characteristics she feels are unique to women that make them prone to leadership roles: "The talent to multi-task, willingness to pay attention to detail, their interest in people, their skill in picking up body language, moods and undertones of conversation, and their superior listening skills" (Comer, et.al., 1997) It is important to note that while the majority of women do possess all or some of these inter-personal skills, men are quite capable of exhibiting these same characteristics and it is also possible that there are women who do not possess any of these characteristics. Women are also said to be easy to motivate, are trustworthy and cooperative, and are careful planners (Blanchard, 1988). Current studies suggest that women tend to have strong skills in collaboration and group processes. Many behavioral scientists have concluded that, in general, women's leadership style seeks consensus among subordinates rather than the more typically male independent decision making style. Women are sometimes faced with criticism for being too passive, but if she opts for a more task-oriented, directive style of leadership, she is seen as too aggressive or masculine-a "bitch" (Andorka, 1998). They use an interactive approach to management in which they encourage employees participation but also attempt to "enhance other people's sense of self-worth and to energize followers" (Brody, 1994). Women in leadership roles in organizations are usually highly involved in the day-to-day operations and they seek advice from the community and their peers. When it comes to leadership and management, women "tend to lead in circles rather than pyramids" (Brody, 1994). That is to say that they lean towards creating a cooperative atmosphere rather than a hierarchical, competitive environment. They possess superior creative problem solving and intuitive management skills, these among their other interpersonal skills have been encouraged throughout their lives and they have relied on those very skills in each and everyone of their relationships. Because of women's socialization, these characteristics have come to the forefront. As children, women are encouraged to listen, to build relationships, to be considerate of other's feelings and opinions and so on. As a result, a new breed of leaders was born. The Leadership Challenge What, if any, characteristics of a leader outlined in the Leadership Challenge, do women possess? Well, to begin with Part 4, Enabling Others to Act. Kouzes & Posner found in their research that in cases of success, it was almost never done alone. Women possess a superior sense of teamwork, cooperation, and collaboration. "If the goal is to improve performance, the winning bet will be on cooperation over competition every time. Competition almost never results in best performance; pursuing excellence is a collaborator's game" (Kouzes & Posner, p. 152). Especially in joint tasks, cooperation and collaboration are keys to success. Enabling others to act is innate in women. Again, as primary caregivers, they are subject to letting their children go and experience life and make their own mistakes, this is just second nature to women. Reciprocity is key in executing effective leadership. Women focus a lot of their energy and time in maintaining and building relationships with the people around them. Reciprocity is one of the components of building a relationship, "reciprocity also leads to predictability and stability in relationships, which can keep both relationships and negotiations from breaking down" (Kouzes & Posner, p. 157). Reciprocity is described as having the willingness to be cooperative and an unwillingness to be taken advantage of. To foster collaboration encompasses what women leaders are. The sharing of information and resources is, again, like second nature to women. This is through their socialization. That is not to say that all women possess these characteristics, but it is based on the majority through studies and extensive research. Building trusting relationships is the embodiment of the female psyche. Without trust in the people around them, their effectiveness as a leader, employee, wife, mother or friend is non-existent. Women strive for trust in the people they connect with on daily basis and they strive to be trusted. "Trust is at the heart of fostering collaboration. It's the central issue in human relationships within and outside the organization" (Kouzes & Posner, p. 163). It is a universal fact that women are exemplary listeners. It is the key in understanding the people you work with. To understand what is important to them is crucial to a successful business relationship. To know what an employee needs to feel fulfilled and to work to capacity, superior listening and communication skill are necessary. Celebrating accomplishments are also a fundamental practice in leadership. As mentioned previously, women are more likely to celebrate accomplishments and provide immediate praise to successful subordinates, unlike their male counterparts. Women are drawn to creating social support networks. Once again, women's socialization comes to the forefront. Females are taught by example that to be happy and fulfilled you need your own little "support network" made up of friends and family. When women have problems or need advice they immediately call upon their network for assistance. Unlike men, who by nature, tend to withdraw and put the decision making process solely on their own shoulders. Conclusion Although women do possess many of the characteristics of effective leaders, they are not prone to lead by example (Comer, et.al., 1997). Due to the clash in the scheduling of work and their personal lives, women are torn between being a driven leader and being an effective leader in the home. But, again, gender is not always the determining factor in leadership capabilities. There are exceptions to each of the rules outlined within this paper. It is important to take note that there are male leaders that possess each of these qualities and are superior leaders. Alternatively, there are men and women who possess little or few of these characteristics and have still risen to the top of their ranks in terms of leadership style and capability.