The Resilience of a Firm - Effect of Hope, Stress and Adaptive Humour Research Paper

The Resilience of a Firm - Effect of Hope, Stress and Adaptive Humour - Research Paper Example Various studies indicate that people have three main reactions to shortcomings depending on their levels of resilience; first, they make breakdown psychologically, physically and emotionally, and lose their capacity to move ahead by accepting their poor predicament. Secondly, they may suffer a temporary setback, but recover later after a short period and continue as they were before the setback. In the last group and the most favourable, people suffer temporary setback, and use the lessons learnt from the shortcoming to advance in the area that was hit by the setback. It is this last group that benefits individuals, companies, communities and countries since not only does it recover from setbacks, but does so in a better state than the previous one. Studies have shown that this group uses various combinations of hope and adaptive humour to deal with stress, boost resilience and overcome any setbacks (Luthans, 2002; Abel, 2002; Zellars, Justice and Beck, 2011). Luthans (2002: 701) ass erts that though confidence has been widely acclaimed as having a positive effect on resilience, hope also plays a central role in employee behavior towards challenges at the workplace. In the quest to achieve and sustain a competitive edge in a volatile market, the management of firms should cultivate positivity at both micro and macro levels, to ensure that employee perceptions are in line with the general perceptions in the firm. The only way to encourage the adoption of positive organizational behavior in the firm is by instilling positive psychological approaches to employees and their supervisors. According to Luthans (2002), hope keeps the firm going even when market conditions seem so bleak that the firm is more likely to collapse than survive. This hope is what enables companies to carry on despite poor economic conditions, and the firms survive to thrive in times when the economy takes a turn for the better. According to Abel (2002), a person’s sense of humour plays a central role in determining one’s choice of coping strategies in response to stressful situations; a higher sense of humour recuses the perception of stress, and a person has the capacity to take a better approach to handle stress. Abel’s study (2002: 373) revealed that high humour individuals adopt constructive approaches to stressful situations including comforting coping, distancing, seeking social support, self-control, planful problem solving and positive reappraisal. On the other hand, low humour individuals adopt destructive approaches that may end up aggravating the problem and its effects; these approaches include avoidance and escapism. Therefore, the writer illustrates that a high sense of humour is a preferable trait in employees since it gives them a higher resilience to stressful situations and gives the firm better chances of bouncing back. Zellars, Justice and Beck (2011: 21) recommend that management should stop ignoring the research that links humo ur to the development and sustenance of individual and group resilience.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT - Assignment Example Google ensures through compensation that these talented people are retained. The reward and compensation system at Google is pay-for-performance. The stock option system of the company ensures that employees get compensated and rewarded along with the growth of the company. The most astonishing factor is that in 2005-2006 the employees by themselves demanded a wage cut. According to the Director and Professor of Human Resource Center working at Wharton Business School, "these perks and benefits help Google to recruit people who are willing to spend most of their time at work place". Statistics show that software engineer at Google receives an average salary of $81,239 which is just $8000 less than their senior competitors, yahoo (Small Business, n.d.). Nowadays, many young engineer and professional aspire to get employed at Google. The reason is due to excellent fun and work environment. Top it all, bonuses and compensation, flexibility in working on projects etc. Google has been the most renowned example of a motivating and encouraging employer. There wouldn’t be any single person who wouldn’t wish to work at Google. ... Under this head, comes the most extensively debated subject that is soft HRM and hard HRM. In Soft HRM, companies consider their employees as the most valuable and important resource. For such companies, the needs of employees must be catered at first. Such types of companies are usually considered as ‘good’ employers. Therefore, these companies offer their employees substantial chances to grow not only as workers but also as individuals. Employees are provided regular training in order to ensure that prospect promotions. In hard HRM, companies generally treat their employees as a means of obtaining profits and efficiency. Hard HRM usually do not takes into account the needs and wants of employees. Hard HRM allows the employer to have full control over its workforce and operations. In such organizations, the morale and skills of employees are relatively lower. Companies utilize these approaches according to their corporate culture and type of industry. Those organization s which operate in such industry where norms, standards and benchmark needs to be maintain adopts hard HRM. On the other hand, those companies which are research based and require creative and innovative tactics utilize soft HRM where employees are given full authority to do the work in a way they feel the best. Hard HRM is widely accepted and implemented in organizations like KFC, McDonalds and Ryanair while soft HRM is implemented and encourages in organizations like Facebook and Google. Yes! Google utilizes soft HRM approach (Peter Bamberger, 2000). The culture of Google gives liberty to its workers to bring in innovative and creative stuff. In this regard, they are expected to research and work as per their own way. In fact, Google encourages its employees to spend 20% of

War in Iraq Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

War in Iraq - Essay Example In essence, students are forced to wear uniforms that have two or three colors, for all the years they will be attending the school in question. As a result, their minds clog and rotate around the colors of their uniforms (Brunsma 77). School administrators may have the objective of making students look the same in terms of status while in school through wearing uniforms. However, this is ill conceived because students have diverse physiques, uniforms tend to force some students to be other individuals; it makes them take up a personality that they are not comfortable being (Brunsma 108). When students are given the opportunity of wearing whatever uniform they prefer; they experience freedom. Here, the students’ mind roams freely, in that instead of being limited by the two or three colors in the school uniform, they can wear clothes that are of various colors. In essence, school uniforms create mental prisons in students; their minds atrophy because they lack

Company report about wooden chairs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Company report about wooden chairs - Essay Example taking care that there will not be any deficiency in the raw materials used by the company and, therefore, its continued progress in providing the required goods to the community. There should also be a great balance between the firm and organisation with the social, natural, and economic environments. Challenges do exist in the mentioned fields of interaction with the firm. The corporate governance and strategies of a business have a number of social responsibilities and have to follow the specified ethics. The future prospects and the bottom line of many industries and companies lie within the social and environmental issues surrounding the firm. The social and environmental issues can present opportunities that would be crucial for the future success of the business while at the same, time they could be a source of risk that can result to the failure of the business. The best environment for furniture such as wooden chairs depends largely on the priorities of the caretakers and the resources available. They function as an acting balance between them. Nothing perfect has ever been found for anything. However, there are conditions that are there that contribute towards more or less deterioration or else are the artefacts of preservation. However, the best balance within an organisation has its optimal point of the environment. An environment with a temperature of about forty degrees Celsius and a relative humidity of approximate 50 percent is conducive for furniture and wooden items. The other conditions relating to the well-processing and storage of wooden chairs is the provision of an optimal environment in terms of the dark anaerobic environment free from contact from other items and people. On the other hand, the term environment could also be used to mean the various working relations with the firm that in one way or the other affect the success of the firm (Nelson, 2008). It may be used to mean the market environment, the government relations with the

Management Risks in Financial Institutions Essay

Management Risks in Financial Institutions - Essay Example Basically, risk and return are related in the same direction. A minor example of this would be a bank charging different interest rates on different individuals who have opted for the same loan. The individual who has a relatively poor credit history is likely to receive a higher interest rate as there are chances of him/her not paying the loan bank. Therefore, there is a higher risk and the bank gets a higher return through the higher interest rate charged. However, risk needs to be managed and there can be several huge losses if the financial institution is not ready to deal with it. Risk management is a type of strategy which every financial institution needs to have at its core and there are several parts involved in this including monitoring the risks, measuring these risks and controlling risks. It is the analysis of risk mixed with the element of quality risk controls. Risk management is required by banks and financial institutions as a safety measure to protect the institutio n from any major financial problems. The uncertainty and the potential inherent risks that come with the financial markets makes it important for most of the financial institutions and banks to use risk management. The risk management controls are one of the major determinants of the financial stability of a bank. The most common types of risks faced by most financial institutions There are several types of risks involved with financial institutions and these risks are as follows: Systematic risk. This is also known as diversifiable risk. Basically this particular type of risk means the risk of the change of asset value associated with systematic factors. Therefore, the risk cannot be fully diversified. There are several subcategories under systematic risks and there are various ways in which the value of an asset can be affected. The determinant of the change in the value of the assets owned by the institution and it depends upon natural and economic factors including interest rate s affecting the value of the assets, an increase in inflation might cause an increase in fuel prices which might affect transportation and stock value and changes in economic conditions which may cause several changes in the value of assets. Interest rate risk is one of the major parts of systematic risk and the institutions needs to measure the variation and the responsiveness of the rate sensitive assets towards the changes in interest rates. Commodity price risk and foreign exchange risk are other risks which come under systematic risks that many investors try to measure and try to minimize these. Credit risk. This is the risk which is related to the payment by the debtors. Credit risk is the risk which all the banks face and they need to manage this in order to be proactive against any future losses. Basically the bank is the lender and is the creditor for the borrower and the risk is that the borrower might go bankrupt and might not be able to pay the bank back. This seems as a pretty low type of risk if a sole individual is involved, however, credit risk also involves borrowings worth millions of dollars by huge businesses. Even if the business is popular and has a good credit history, it can go bankrupt which might result in a loss of millions of dollars to the bank. In other words, it means that the company or the individual defaults which is why this risk is also known as default risk. Counterparty risk. This arises from the

The Audit Report and Internal Control Evaluation Essay Example for Free

The Audit Report and Internal Control Evaluation Essay Team D Auditing has been evaluating the evidence presented by Apollo Shoes. The audit team has developed an audit report in response to the audit and has also provided a description of the evidence, a description of the account sampling and testing procedures used, and has also given a brief description of the value of an audit report. This report is only to reflect Team D’s opinion regarding Apollo’s internal controls, financial statements, and management’s assessment. Management Responsibilities We have audited the financial statements of Apollo Shoes Inc. , including the balance sheet, income statement, and statement of cash flows. The company’s management is responsible for preparing these financial statements; in addition, the management is responsible for implementing adequate internal controls to ensure the accuracy and completeness of these statements (Arens, Elder, Beasley, 2012). Our responsibility as an auditor is to conduct an audit in accordance with the Generally Accepted Auditing Standards and express an opinion on these statements based on the audit. Audit Scope The audit conducted by Team D Auditing was executed in accordance with standards set by Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) (Arens et al., 2012). The standards set by these two bodies require the team to arrange and complete an inspection of the evidence to obtain reasonable assurance of whether the company’s financial statements are without material misstatements. Also, the team is to evaluate the internal controls and determine if they provide adequate control over the financial reporting for the material components. The audit includes the examination of the following: Financial Statement Disclosures Evidence that supports reported amounts Internal Controls: Implementation and Current Use Financial Statement Presentation Management-made Estimates Accounting Principle Assessments Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm To the Board of Directors and Shareholders of Apollo Shoes, Inc. Apollo Shoes Audit was conducted under the Public Accounting Oversight Board Standards. Under these standards is required to provide assurance about the financial reporting and the internal control place in operation. In order to achieve assurance the financial statements are evaluated based on an examination of evidence providing basis for our opinion. Our examination included: Significant estimates made by management – evaluate the reasonable of the significant assumptions (Becker CPA Review, 2014). Financial statement presentation evaluate the presentation and format of financial information (Arens et al., 2012). Accounting principle evaluation, corrections of errors involving principle or changing principal not acceptable to an acceptable one† (Arens et al., 2012). Adequate disclosures of significant accounting policies, accounting changes or loss contingency (Becker CPA Review, 2014). Since Apollo Shoes was a public traded company is imperative to test the effectiveness of the internal control, which is based on: Preventive controls that are placed in operation indicating that transactions were valid, recognized, and submitted for processing following the internal control objectives (Becker CPA Review, 2014). Detective controls provide assurance that the errors and regularities are discovered and corrected in the normal course of business (Becker CPA Review, 2014). Our evidence examination should provide assurance that the financial statements are correct in order for us to sustain our opinion. However, it is impossible due to inherent limitations that the internal controls may not prevent or detect material misstatements. As discussed in note 5, based on our finding the sales and account receivables were overstated by $5,765,081.82 and the related cost of goods sold by $3,165, 145.10 (Louwers, 2007). We determined that this sale is not in accordance with general accepted accounting procedures. Based on the evidence and procedures performed as mentioned in the previous paragraph, Team D opinion on Apollo Shoes financial statement for the period ending on December 31, 2007 do not present fairly on all material respect the financial position of the company. However, we are confirming the efficiency and effectiveness of the internal control, based on COSO framework. It is important to mention that Apollo Shoes has a litigation suit in the preliminary stage for $12,000,000, which intend to defend them self. It is reasonable that the loss could reach $10,000,000 after legal fees (Louwers, 2007). No adjustments have been made to the financial statements. Since Apollo has lost his major customer, this has raised a substantial doubt about the ability that Apollo Shoes Inc. can continue as a going concern. The financial statements do not include any adjustment that contemplates this uncertainty. Description of Evidence The evidence used for the audit included several items presented by Apollo Shoes. The team was presented with the SEC 10-K filing from 2006, as well as the minutes from the audit committee meeting. The team also reviewed the company Letter to the Shareholders. The SEC filing provided us with historical financial statements and a wealth of other information about the company, including quarterly unaudited operation results. The team also reviewed the company accounting and control procedures manual to evaluate the controls over the accounting functions of the company, such as accounts receivables and cash management. Team D Auditing also performed an inventory observation, reviewed the sales forecast for the upcoming year, and reviewed the Board Meeting minutes from the meeting June 30, 2007. The team was also able to examine the 2006 audited and the 2007 unaudited trial balances, the work papers for the new computer system and the work papers for the internal control systems. The team was able to perform a thorough audit for Apollo Shoes based upon the evidence presented. Account Sampling The goal of an audit is to ensure the financial statements are fairly presented in accordance to the Generally Accepted Auditing Standards, and to obtain reasonable assurance that the statements are free from material errors. It is impossible and costly to test every transaction; therefore, we will be selecting samples for testing and make inference about the overall effectiveness of these statements. We will use the simple random sampling method to select these samples because this method ensures every item has an equal chance of being included (Arens et al., 2012). In addition, depend on the account we are testing different number of items may be included in each sample. Testing Procedures The auditor used industry data and compared it to Apollo Shoes financial information to comprehend the business and its results to determine if the company financial well-being. The auditor also compared the â€Å"client data with similar prior period data† (Arens et al., 2012, p. 227). This included the following: Comparing the current year with the previous year’s audited balance Examine current and previous year’s trial balance to decipher changes. Compared detail of total balances with previous year’s total balance â€Å"Compare details such as monthly totals of current year and preceding year for sales, repairs, loans payable, and other accounts† noticing significant changes (Arens et al., 2012, p. 227). Compared current ratios and percentages of current and previous years Compare current and previous common-size financial statements with vertical and horizontal analysis; Compare ratios analysis â€Å"solvency, efficiency, and profitability ratios† (Boynton, 2006, p. 325). Compared client prepared information with auditor’s expectations Auditor develops an estimation or expectation of results and account balances and compares it to client’s expectations, results, and account balances examining difference. Examine lead schedules prepared by the client. Audit Report Value The value of an audit report is quite simple. It is the written representation of the auditor’s opinion and acts of an almost guarantee for company investors, creditors, and clients. The audit report lists the auditor and director responsibility, gives the scope of the audit, and reports the auditor’s opinion. It lets the users of the financial statements know that they can be reasonably assured statements are without material misstatement and can use the contained information to make their decisions. Of course, the opinion given is not completely guaranteed. Conclusion Team D Auditing carefully considered the given evidence and performed tests of the internal controls and has come to the conclusion that we are unable to provide reasonable assurance that the financial statements are without material misstatement. We are also concerned with the future of Apollo Shoes with the loss of its biggest client and the pending lawsuit. The audit report, including some additional information regarding the evidence, sampling, and testing procedures have been submitted for review. References Arens, A. A., Elder, R. J., Beasley, M. S. (2012). Auditing and assurance services: An integrated approach (14th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson/Prentice Hall Becker Professional Education/CPA Review (2014) Audit Reports; Devry/Becker Educational Development Corp Boynton, W. C. (2006). Modern Auditing (8th ed.). Danvers, MA: John Wiley Sons, Inc. Louwers, T. R. (2007). Apollo Shoes, InC. Auditing and Assurance Services. McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

The Fundamental Arguments Of Nature Versus Nurture Philosophy Essay

The Fundamental Arguments Of Nature Versus Nurture Philosophy Essay Nature is generally considered the part of a person that is a genetic inheritance, the fundamental identity that determines the choices someone will make. Nurture is the environmental factor to someones development: his or her socioeconomic standing, privileges, disadvantages, opportunity, access, etc. The blank slate, or tabula rasa, theory presented by John Locke during the 17th century states that everyone is born with nothing and is shaped by his or her environment; in other words, Lockes theory supports the nurture side of the nature versus nurture debate. On the other hand, ones genetic disposition to intelligence determines how one will interact with the environment. These two sides propose that they each hold the ultimate verdict to a persons personality and all of the psychological aspects that go along with it. Of course, both the idea of nature and the idea of nurture contribute to the human psyche but they do so at varying degrees in each individual: that is to say, one m ay feel the effects of nature more persistently than the effects of nurture and vice versa. Because of the inconsistent nature of clinical psychology, there is no absolute value for ones percentage of influence being that of nature or nurture but there are instances in which there is no denying that each theory plays a role in human development. A study of leadership suggested that varying degrees of socioeconomic status, perceived parental support, and perceived conflict support determined how much genetic or environmental influence affected someones leadership position; these findings are consistent with the conceptual argument proposing that the presence of adversity and conflict allows for a greater influence of genetic differences in capabilities related to leadership (Zhang et al.). That is to say, depending on the environmental stresses involved, the genetic aspect of the debate took more or less control. A study dealing with low-income mothers perception of their childrens obesity revealed that most of the mothers believed that because of their childrens genetic heritage, no matter what diet, the children could not lose weight; on the other hand, the mothers, with equal force, blamed themselves and/ or other environmental factors on their childrens weight problems (Hughes et al.). Despite the fact that the mothers fi rst argument logically disproves their second argument, the mothers have a vested interest in both aspects of the nature versus nurture debate. They are very unsure as to what degree they have made mistakes and to what degree genetics has influenced their childrens weights. The science is not all there but, for now, it is safe to assume that both sides of the debate carry different percentages of the weight. We all know of cases of people brought up in horrendous circumstances who somehow transcend these to display compassion and tendernessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Conversely, people brought up in seemingly balanced households may be capable of the most horrific crimes (Gaba). Without delving too deeply into clinical psychology, Gaba has made a sizable case for the nature aspect of the debate. Oprah Winfrey stands to be a great example of the rags to riches fable. She was not only a poor, black Mississippian but she had also been sexually abused in addition to getting into trouble as a teen (Walker). Oprah is now one of the most prominent figures in todays society, easily reaching the millions, if not billions, with her successful television and business career. In his autobiography, Stephen Fry describes his stealing compulsion despite coming from an upper-middle class family. At boarding school he would take money from other students even though his parents set up a deal with a local shop owner where Stephen could take as much money as he liked (Fry). His environment provided him with non-thieved money yet Frys nature caused him to develop kleptomania. Psychological studies veer off into the impact of environment. The increasing recognition of genetic propensity to mental health disorder suggests that the advent of genetic therapies in the not-too-distant future may eventually provide alternative biological means of treatment (McVicar, Clancy). In other words, because mental health is a part of the nature piece of the debate, the drugs used to facilitate the mental illness are the environmental aspect. In this case, nurture controls nature. The relationship between an individual and his or her environment is a cause towards that persons mental stability and there are many instances of environmental influences on physical as well as psychological health (McVicar, Clancy). On the other hand, some environments bring forth mental instability for some people. Homelessness tends to wreak havoc on the mind and may bring about a psychological disorder that could have been at bay under a different environment. Mental illness is a source of complication for the nature versus nurture debate because certain peoples genetic dispositions will cause them to develop psychological disorders no matter what the circumstance while others experience trauma which causes them to develop mental disorders while still others inherit genetics that will see them through any difficult episode. There was a study that addressed the environmental and genetic impacts on alcohol, cannabis, and nicotine dependency: the control was Vietnam-era twins from the United States and the researchers concluded that alcohol and nicotine dependency were based primarily on genetic factors but that cannabis dependency was a mixture of genetic and environmental influence (Xian et al.) The contributors of this study fully recognized that their findings do not cross over to different cultures or different time periods within the history of the United States. They do, however, mention that they had a large sample that was pretty much consistent throughout their observations. This simply shows that human science and understanding of the mind is so very complex that it will take an indefinite amount of time to fully understand the human condition on a scientific level. On the issue of drug abuse, the government likes to bombard the television with antidrug campaigns that endorse the environmental influence as the main perpetrator in the case of evil drug use. Conversely, alcohol advertisements are out there on full display, usually showing that drinking is a very natural state of socialization. The study of nicotine, alcohol, and cannabis dependency would support alcohol and discourage the use of drugs. If drugs are an environmental cause, they can therefore be more easily combated because ones environment is more easily controlled than ones genetic inheritance. If drinking and smoking, i.e. nicotine use, are genetically controlled, they are much more difficult to wane out of society. Those in favor of the legalization of marijuana, or, at the very least, comedians, like to argue that drug use is generally less harmful to other people because alcohol is major factor of death by car. Both alcohol and drug abuse are harmful to the individual, most ca n agree to that, but if drug abuse is, indeed, less harmful to the outside world, alcohol is the more harmful of the two substances. Here is the problem with the nature versus nurture debate: if humans are genetically predisposed to like alcohol but they are environmentally enticed to take pleasure in drugs, which is the lesser of two evils? Nature cannot be controlled; people are stuck with the hereditary cards they have been dealt. On the same note, nurture is around at all times, it will have an influence no matter what the case. People who are introverts will stay introverts if they keep to their cabins millions of miles away from human contact. If some introverts are introduced into society at as quiet intellectuals, some will choose to stay, some will choose to go. There are two different paths and which path one will take is dependent on ones emotions which are directly connected to genetics. This argument likes to runs circles around itself until there is no telling which wa y is up. Environment pressure cannot be overlooked simply because genetic bias is the basic groundwork for ones behavior. Environmental experiences come into contact with, and influence individualsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ some individuals may possess genetic risk and protective factors that exacerbate, or partially insulate them from, the effect of negative environmental experiences (Petrill). The key word here is experience. At the first touch of experience, ones genetic impulses take control. Babies do not automatically latch on to their mothers breast for milk but through genetic imperative and experience do they become more accustomed to their environment and learn different techniques by which they may derive their food. Some would argue that music is a genetic inheritance but because of time and effort involved in mastering scales, finger patterns, rhythmic beats, and all of the other skills required to be a master of music, the environmental concept of experience definitely outweighs the geneti c basis for music inheritance. It takes roughly 10,000 hours, or 10 years, to truly be an expert in any given field (Gladwell). Wisdom is the fundamental basis for knowledge. Young people who endlessly fill their heads with historical, scientific, philosophical, theological, and other types of knowledge do not have the experience to back up their findings whereas the older someone ages, the more likelihood there is that his or her wisdom will be deemed more valid simply because he or she possesses more experience. Masters teach pupils for a reason; there will be a day when the student usurps the master but that is because the student has enough experience to do so. Reinforcement theory is the process of shaping behavior by controlling the consequences of the behavior (Cengage). Instead of using physical punishment as a form of reinforcement, parents will try to encourage their children to stop throwing large jars of liquid pickles at the local grocery store in return for an ice cream sandwich. The child is genetically predisposed to throwing a temper tantrum, looks around his environment, sees jars of pickles, and throws them to the ground screaming in sordid agony about not being able to finish watching his favorite television show three times over that day. The mother then introduces another environmental factor, in this case the ice cream bar, to stop the effects of the double-teaming of the effects of nature and nurture. She is unable to control his demented wailing and so chooses to try even further reinforcement therapy by offering a life-time supply of ice cream for the next seven days. He accepts because now the environmental stimulus h e is now receiving is stronger than his genetic malfunction earlier that minute. This just goes to show that for each individual, that nature versus nurture debate is extraordinarily inconsistent within the span of a human life but also inconsistent within just a few seconds. There is no scientific way to determine how much influence nature or nurture has within one human mind but there is evidence to suggest that both exist in their metamorphic forms.