HRM for a new Hotel Free Essays

string(65) " that already possess the skills needed to perform in their Job\." The Headrow Hotel is a much-loved local landmark in Leeds city centre and was first opened in 1904 by the York family, with its location being ideal for the local business community and booming nightlife. The directors have recently decided to make major changes to the hotel by advancing it from a 3 to a 4-star status over the next twelve months. This specific objective will involve a more professional approach to the hotel’s operations with drastic alterations being made to the current old- fashioned standards of service through the addition of a Human Resource Manager. We will write a custom essay sample on HRM for a new Hotel or any similar topic only for you Order Now By employing this particular member of staff they hope to first identify, then address the hotel’s present human resource issues as well as the concerns they may face upon progression of the hotel; and to produce appropriate recommendation strategies in order to resolve the hotel’s HR issues. This will be carried out through the adaptation of relevant theory, principles and practices that will be presented in a report format to the hotel’s board of directors. 1. 1 Context The hospitality industry is certainly a profitable place, especially for businesses that follow the golden rule of â€Å"the customer is always right†. However, with customer service being such a significant part of the customer’s experience when staying in any modern-day hotel, there is always a possibility that the service is not fully satisfactory. Hotel clients have the potential to complain about almost anything in terms of the service they receive; such as the size of the toilet seat or the smell of the dining area. This can have massive impact on the hotel’s reputation if the customer then decides to create bad word-of-mouth advertising to their friends and family. Good reputation is paramount for hotels that want to increase their market-base and ain more regular stayers, which can prove difficult if staff do not contribute to helping the customer’s overall experience. Therefore keeping a good image is imperative for any hospitality company; with friendliness, good service, efficiency, organization and professionalism being the key to success in this industry. Competitors can also play a huge part in determining how well its rivals do. Hotels that are specifically placed in a city centre can face a great deal of competition. Not only must they compete with their rivals on price, but also on customer experience and satisfaction. This involves hotels ensuring that they have the correct facilities as well as the right employee allocation roles in order for them to maximise profit. A strategic and coherent approach to the human resource issues should be integrated into the corporate strategy of the business as in this case successful people management is essential tor the business is to survive in an industry where statt unquestionably the most valuable resource. 2. Current Problems Currently the Headrow Hotel has numerous problems in terms of its internal environment. First and foremost, its reputation has slowly deteriorated over recent ears, primarily due to its decline in standards of service. Secondly, the working conditions for staff have been generally regarded as poor, with low wages and unsociable working-hours also contributing to the hotel’s existing rate of 30% of staff receiving the minim um wage. This, among many other reasons, such as customer complaints and suspected thefts, has certainly had an effect on the hotel’s staff turnover, which was 56% in 2011. Another major concern for the hotel is its lack of training and development opportunities for existing employees, which has also had a negative effect on the hotel’s dismissal rate. Appraisals take place annually, although they are not linked specifically to a structured performance pay scheme unless your role is of a supervisor or above; instead performance bonuses are decided separately by the York family, who have previously handled all staffing issues. All these problems must be addressed whilst keeping the interests of the corporate strategy at the forefront of the hotel’s ambitions. 2. 1 Future Problems In addition to all the complications that the hotel faces, there are several new potential problems that can arise upon upgrading the hotel to a 4-star status. With the added extras of a health spa and swimming pool comes the requirement for increased workforce and skill sets in order to deal with all the new refurbishment adjustments. New staff must be employed and trained by the hotel to handle the redecoration and refurbishment that is to take place, and the increased skills that will be mandatory for staff who are operating in precise areas i. e. specialised training for spa staff. Another possible problem is the customer complaints that the hotel could receive. With most of their complaints being related to staff it is central for the Headrow Hotel to ensure they attract, train and retain their staff decorously so that everyone is satisfied with their role, and even have someone who they can report their own individual workplace issues to. Failure to attract the right staff who are devoted to their Job could result in a further decline in the hotel’s reputation, hence it is crucial that the Headrow Hotel adopts the appropriate policies that match the services needed from new employees. 3. 0 HR Planning When producing a HR plan it is vital that the integration of the design matches the corporate strategy of the business and that the objectives are in correlation to the ime scales specified. In this case, qualitative methods should be applied. With the selection of specific employees in roles that match their specific skillset e. g. a qualified beauty therapist operating in the health spa department and a lifeguard operating in the swimming pool department. However employees, if not already qualified or new to technology advances, could take time to achieve their optimum output, resulting in a slower work-rate which could harm the hotel’s overall output. It would therefore be advisable for the hotel to expand its workforce by hiring employees that already possess the skills needed to perform in their Job. You read "HRM for a new Hotel" in category "Papers" In order to do this, the hotel must first address the issue of salary pay by increasing the hourly rates to that of a more acceptable standard i. e. E6. 08/hour (El above the NMW for 21+) which would also help to attract more experienced staff. This relates to Frederick Taylor’s 1 7) theory ot money as the main motivator tor employees. Next, hours in which employees operate under should be made more flexible subject to the roles they undertake; with employees working on night shifts receiving a fraction of increased salary. Staff turnover is critical for any hotel, especially that of a 4-star restige, which is why the focus should be on providing an exceptional service for guests which can only be accomplished by giving employees a decent wage, as well motivation and inspiration; helping to ensure that future shortages in the workforce are avoided and that the business’ ability to progress is not obstructed. 4. 0 Recruitment ; Selection Recruitment is ‘all activities directed towards locating potential employees and attracting applications from suitable candidates. (Foot and Hook, 2005 p. 63) Based on this, the Headrow Hotel must abide by the proper procedures when choosing and hiring staff. At the moment the hotel’s reputation is declining, primarily due to the service provided by staff. Not to mention, customer complaints, suspected thefts, absences and punctuality problems are all leading to a high level of dismissal. This indicates that the hotel is employing unfitting staff. To prevent this, the Headrow Hotel must review its application policy thoroughly by first altering how it employs new staff. Below is a diagram showing the recruitment process that should be undertaken by management at the hotel: The first step involves recognising the availability of the vacancy. The second step ntails discussing the Job opening with higher management. Thirdly, there should be an analysis which sees the purpose and tasks of the Job in question. Fourthly, a Job description should be carried out by management discussing the aims, results and responsibilities expected from the position. Next, a person specification, which includes conferring what experience and skills are compulsory for this particular role. Lastly, attracting the suitable candidates for the vacancy through an application form and then selecting which candidate will suit the role best by collecting, assessing and comparing the Job applicants. If this systematic step process is followed accurately then the hotel will undeniably help to reduce its high dismissal rate, whilst increasing customer service. 5. Learning ; Development Human resource development comprises activities that help to expand the human capital through the integration of training and individual development which overall increases the organization’s effectiveness. There have been various issues in relation to learning and development at the Headrow Hotel. One major concern is the fact that there is minimal opportunity for training and development at the hotel, which eans that staff leave to attend roles at competitors’ hotels where there are more personal development prospects. This has had a key influence on staff turnover and can be completely avoided by implementing a simple training and development scheme, such as one that allows staff who have worked at the hotel for over two years to undergo a training programme lets them train to attain a higher, more-qualified position within the organisation; increasing general staff stability and performance. Another concern is the low employee commitment and engagement which has arose due to low Job satistaction. The best way to combat this is through motivation ot employees to be active and enthusiastic about their Job. An alternative method mentioned earlier was to increase salary, which has a definite impact on work- performance; yet there are other ways to boost motivation. One of which is to train staff in multiple areas, helping them to manage more responsibility and feel like they have a greater impact on the company. Another method would be to recognise their work output by supporting and offering them occupational promotions based upon how well they are performing in their current role. By viewing at the diagram below you can begin to comprehend the multiple ways in which employers can amplify employee inspiration. Some employees can also struggle to adapt to new technological factors, such as updated computer software for receptionists. Therefore it is important for Headrow to delegate the roles accordingly and re-train staff that require improved specialist knowledge. All these factors help to strengthen the labour force within any organisation by simply listening to the employees and then responding in such a way that both the workforce and corporate goals are met. . 0 Performance Appraisal A must-have for the Headrow Hotel is a consistent review of the work content, potentiality and perhaps expansion for workers. At this moment in time, there is no structured performance management scheme at the hotel; with appraisals only taking place annually towards the end of the financial year. It is also evident that there is no connection between the appraisal performance pay scheme and integration of data collected from employee evaluations. This advocates that the management cannot identify any staff training requirements along with any possible career development, therefore preventing the hotel from evolving its workforce. The supreme applicable system to incorporate into the hotel would firstly be to hold employee appraisals more often, preferably every 4 months. This will allow management staff to analyse and evaluate each employee’s involvement within the organisation three times a year and propose any adjustments that can be made. Furthermore, management must implement a ‘Management by Objectives’ scheme which includes setting clear objectives for the employee to reach before the next appraisal, and discussing to what extent the objectives have been achieved. The advantage to this technique is that the employee’s objectives can be beneficial to the mployer’s own strategic targets e. g. An employee working in the kitchen making sure that they get to work tlve minutes early each time to ensure the kitchen is clean. What’s more Headrow must include a ‘Performance Review Cycle’ within their appraisal system: This particular system follows a 4-step process. It begins by first setting the objectives for the employee to complete by analysing the employee’s role. Next, there is a conversation between the employee and interviewer which discusses the results. Afterwards, the interviewer must distinguish the strengths and weaknesses of the mployee and what action plan should be followed to help achieve their targets. Lastly, the interviewer must converse with the employee about any opportunities for additional training and development; helping the employee to progress further in their role. By following these methods Headrow will assist in improving their staff and give them a greater sense of accomplishment within the organisation. 7. 0 Reward Management Within any modern-day business it is fundamental that employees receive commendation based on the effort and output they commit. At the moment Headrow Hotel do not display a clear link between the appraisal and performance pay scheme, with no structured performance bonus system built-in. A lack of emphasise and acclaim on an employee’s performance can have a substantial impact on their interpretation of the hotel and incentive to work hard; which has led to staff departing to a competitor’s hotel that appreciates them more. Possible changes would be to provide employee rewards based on their productivity – as mentioned earlier, the ‘Management By Objectives’ would provide a foundation whereby the employer could recognise whether the employee was making valid contributions, and hen reward them with a direct reward, such as a pay bonus. An extra perk would be to input a conventional pay system that sees annual increments in salary by an addition of +EO. 50 to their salary for each year they continue to work at the Headrow hotel. Finally, Headrow could correspondingly apply a Job ranking system which consists of comparing Jobs and producing a hierarchy based on the most and least significant roles; helping them to decide what salary matches what Job. All these factors will not only enhance employee satisfaction and motivation, but also help give Headrow a competitive edge over their rivals in the heart of Leeds city centre. 8. 0 Discipline and Grievance Procedures Grievances can happen within any organisation and usually occur when there is a problem, concern or criticism from the employee; while disciplinary procedures arise when the employee does not abide by the rules set. At present the Headrow Hotel is suffering from severe staff turnover, mainly in the kitchen. This may be due to the current Head Chet’s authoritarian regime which could be viewed as gross misconduct under the ‘Employment Relations Act 2004’. A problem like this should be dealt with immediately as it can affect multiple employees and should be done so by following the process below: Headrow management ought to initially resolve the conflict within the kitchen by means of an internal mediator that will attempt to unravel the dispute by communicating to the Chef about his existing strict techniques, and perhaps filling out a written warning. If however the problem persists, then management should consider the dismissal of the Head Chef and begin to search for a replacement immediately. Terminating employees is a tense area for companies as rules and egulations must be firmly adhered to, otherwise the employer could face legal action against them. 10. 0 Conclusion ; Recommendations In conclusion, it is evident that the Headrow Hotel has various human resource issues; most of which are contemporary and some which are imminent as the hotel advances in prestige prominence. The greatest concerns and their solutions at the moment remain: (Problem – Solution – Resource issue) Declining reputation – Recruit more capable staff – Hotel may have to fire any current incapable staff. No structured performance bonus system – Implement employee eview and reward system – Very time-consuming to carry out various employee reviews. Poor working conditions – New income rate and more flexible hours – Expensive financially for the hotel. Appraisal not linking with performance pay scheme – Implement performance review cycle, adjusting accordingly – Will be a time-demanding process for management. High turnover rate – Motivate employees through new reward management processes – Expensive financially for the hotel. Little training or development offered – Implement new employee training and development programme – Could prove time-consuming to train and develop all mployees. Probable forthcoming problems as the hotel is upgraded to a 4-star status include: (Problem – Solution – Resource issue) Shortage of workforce – hire additional staff following new recruitment process – Expensive financially for the hotel. Skill shortages – Delegate roles accordingly and ensure specialist staff are properly trained – Time-consuming for management staff. Customer complaints – Ensure correct employees are hired following new recruitment process – Time-consuming and may be hard to find the right person for the right position. Job dissatisfaction ; lack of commitment – Use new learning and evelopment programmes to motivate workers and have specialist staff they can talk to – Some employees may not agree with new procedures. Failure to attract talent – Combine new recruitment process with new salary changes and development programme – Competitors may still offer better working conditions. As you can see, it is apparent that the solutions do have their potential resource issues; nonetheless the hotel must afford to take these risks when advancing to a higher reputational status and in order to receive a higher return rate in the future. As with any business, people are at the core of the organisation, therefore it is undamental that the precise procedures are followed by the Headrow Hotel board of directors to ensure that not only their employees are content, but ultimately their customers. http://www.blurtit.com/ https://www.bezern.com/read.php?id=191373 https://bb.imperial.ac.uk/ http:// www. kiwipumps. com/human-resource-development. html https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Frederick_Winslow_Taylor_crop.jpg https://learn.lcb.ac.uk/ How to cite HRM for a new Hotel, Papers

Cyber Threats in social Networking Websites †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Cyber Threats in social Networking Websites. Answer: Introduction This report is based on the cyber security threat that poses many challenges for an organisation nowadays (Gharibi and Shaab 2012). This chapter will also analyse the different kind of cyber security threats that challenges protection of confidential data for companies that are dependent on the information system. To analyse a research program has been designed in purpose of getting an insight in the issues and challenges. The scope and objective of the project is also given in purpose of further designing the research. The primary and secondary questions are formed (Silverman 2016). The research design and methodology is discussed and within the context, they are formed. To maintain the reliability and validity of the research the measure are also discussed. The approach to the research and data collection process is also mentioned and discussed thoroughly (Kumar and Phrommathed 2015). The ethical that must be kept in mind while doing the research is also discussed in the process. W hile outlining the research the main criteria is to decide and check the limitations of the research. Therefore, the limitations is also identified and given. To maintain the given time for the schedule of doing every steps of the research is also charted in the end. To propose a research for the threat of cyber security and maintain the privacy of the organisational data To identify and analyse the different threats that are becoming a headache of incorporating the social platform and information technology adopted by small, medium as well as the big firms in the global market. The scope of this project lies in the thorough research and identifying different kind of cyber challenges and threats that a company can face in the present modern world. The advantage of doing this project will be based on the primary data collected and getting different perspective of the challenges faced in different context of using cyber platform for different platform in social internet world. Literature review Cyber security is important for business that is using the information system integrated technology in their companies. The challenges that the companies are facing recently are related to the data protection of their organisation. The abundant use of technologies and increase in the number of crime in data protection these days are quite a challenging issue (Chertoff 2008). The cyber-attacks have become frequent and this critical matter threatens most of the government ministry. The network security is most essential part of resolving the harm that may come from ignorance of the matter. The effectiveness of the organisations management also must be considered in use of technology. In the opinion of Babate et al. (2015) the emerging challenges are in seen in the new devices like Smartphone and other digital devices which enhances the threat of the data. Phishing is identified as the most dangerous tech that uses the clients or individuals credentials that both personal and important in this era. The deceptions are rather threatening , which leads to a crime that is punishable for 12 years of jail (Clemente 2013). Botnet is controlled and operated within the cyber criminal community, which uses viruses to permanently damage the pc or other systems (Donaldson et al. 2015). Malwares and key loggers are programmes that are also harmful and used by hackers to collect private and confidential information. Social engineering is a technique to trap the clients or any individual victims that has valuable information for crime purposes. The Viruses are very well known hacking and virtually affecting software or programmes that are harmful for the whole system. This can also spread through external devices like pen drives (Hall 2016). The impact of virus is very essential to be eliminated or the whole system comes crumbling down. The vendors i n this security industry are very useful and proactive and constantly update the code and security systems in place (Babate et al. 2015). Thus these risks are primarily threatens the organisations. The networking between the organisation and intra organisation have become challenging to use. The lack of leadership and in handling this matter and low ethical consideration of the person is the main issue in the business. The collaboration in the different departments is also among the major problem in withstanding cyber crime (Gharibi and Shaabi 2012). Lack of educational awareness among the employees is also a reason of risk instigated in the cyber security measures. The laws and regulation of the organisation as well as of the nation regarding cyber crimes needs to be firm and implemented thoroughly. This is also a contributing factor of having the cyber security. The regulatory limitations must be facilitated for better result (Gharibi Shaab 2012). The ease in access of the softwa re tools and programmes must be restricted to trustworthy people. Lack of control in the mechanisms is also factor that pushes the criminals to steal data and breach the protection level of organisations. Minimising the impact of this negative aspect of internet and modern world software technologies the organisations must gather the systems and protection measure that are essential for privacy of the clients information protection (Babate et al. 2015). Would this not only influence the annual revenue but also trust factor that a suppliers or a client presents to its customers. Most of the hackers take only minutes to breach the data but the companies will take much more time to recover the damage of the incident. The future of the business are becoming more dependent upon the internet accessibility and cyber space these days. Therefore, the threat also increases parallel. Updating the systems also in addition upgradation of the systems must be done on a periodical basis. In addition, that must be frequent. The changes in the systems will ensure more variety and thus confusing the hackers in their intensions (Foreshew 2017). The threats in the field includes the continuous efforts fro m the hackers side, international connections and time lag in the data breach and detection. The research design and methodology here includes both qualitative and quantitative research approach. The outline of the research including both qualitative and quantitative way of doing research. Qualitative and quantitative research Qualitative research includes the analyzing the categorical variable and mainly focuses on the attitudinal survey and research approach of data. However, quantitative way of doing research is to analyse the numeric and alphanumeric variables. These two methods help in generalising the research (Silverman 2016). The approach to any research must be reliable and valid. The main concern lies in maintaining the reliability and validity of the research data. To ensure the main outcomes is useful and that it can be utilised further in future research these two factors must be considered. These two factors also take into consideration the ethics of the research. The most important emphasis is too given in quality in a qualitative research. The factors that ensure the reliability and validity of the research are applicability, consistency, conformability, credibility and transferability of the research (Silverman 2016). These factors must be concluded as this are the essential factors that maintains the reliability of the method chosen. This also ensures the trustworthiness of doing research. On the other, hand the validity consists of two factors. The concept validity is given to account the imperceptivity of the conceptions that are used in methodology. The construct validity is used to ensure th e steps of the internal process are used to maintain the internal subjective validity (Gast and Ledford 2014). This factor also takes into consideration, the subject variability, maturation, instrument and task sensitivity and population and history of the research. Deciding the approach to research is after designing the research. The inductive and deductive way of doing research is most common method. The inductive way of doing research is to us e the data collection method, observing and analysing the variable and based on the gaps identified the hypothesis are formed and testes. The theory selection must be done beforehand. Here for this particular research proposal the inductive way of doing research is selected. The data collection must be done in the basic inductive way (Kumar and Phrommathed 2015). Research design The exploratory design method is selected for this particular research. The primary and secondary data will be collected and the analysing process will include the descriptive analysis of data. Based on the objectives the research questions and questionnaires will be formed and given. The focus will be onto collecting the primary data from the respondents and based on observation the descriptive study will be formed (Tarone et al. 2013). The secondary data will be collected for different online journal. The literature review will be given on the arguments that are contextual and related to the subject and objective of the research (Tuohy et al.2013). Analysing the risk of cyber security and its potential threat related to data protection of a company in their management system must be based on the gap analysis of the research done previously in the field (Gast and Ledford 2014). The primary data will be collected from one identified company that have used data protection and what have compelled them to use that. A group of 60 professionals in the Information technology department will be identified and questioned. Sampling method and sample size The sample data will includes the variables like the different cyber security threats , what are the risk related to the cyber security and what are the positive and negative outcomes of the process (Panneerselvam 2014). For observing this variables the group of 60 employees will be questioned based on the questionnaire prepared. The variables either will be dependent or will be independent in nature based on the research objectives. The topic of the research is based the cyber security and identified the precautions and mitigating the risk arising from not having cyber security method incorporated in the company Information security system (Mackey and Gass, 2015). The set of hypothesis will depend upon the gaps analysed in the literature review section. Based on hypothesis the result will be calculated and the arguments that are developed in the objective and research scope. Surveying the respondents and with the structured interview questionnaires and based on the convenient sampling method the data gathered will be analysed (Panneerselvam 2014). The sample must be chosen also taking into consideration the probability of the sample size. There are some constraints in conducting a successful research. That is getting the authentic journals and research material from reliable sources, getting peer reviewed data (Mackey and Gass, 2015). In addition, the time constraints must be taken into consideration. The ethics of doing research must be kept in mind. No personal data must be given in the research and the deviation of the result must not be generalised or manipulated at any cost. The real data and analysis result must be presented in the findings section (Tarone et al. 2013). Conclusions Therefore, from the above discussions it can be concluded that cyber security has become a concern for every company using the internet and web integrated technology in their information flow system in their organisation. Thus, it can be a challenging issue for some companies that are planning the incorporation without measuring the risk that can arise. The potential risks are therefore, discussed briefly in the summary section of the literature review from previous assignment. The managerial shortcomings that also contribute to this threat are also discussed in the report. The complete research proposal in opined and steps are explained thoroughly in the text. Reference Babate, A I, Musa, M A, Kida, A M and Saidu, M K 2015, State of Cyber Security: Emerging Threats Landscape, International Journal of Advanced Research in Computer Science Technology, Vol. 3, Issue 1. Chertoff, M. 2008, "The cybersecurity challenge",Regulation Governance,vol. 2, no. 4, pp. 480-484. Clemente, D., 2013,Cyber security and global interdependence: what is critical?. Chatham House, Royal Institute of International Affairs. Donaldson, S.E., Siegel, S.G., Williams, C.K., Aslam, A., SpringerLink (Online service) and Books24x7, I. 2015,Enterprise Cybersecurity: How to Build a Successful Cyberdefense Program Against Advanced Threats,1st edn, Apress, Berkeley, CA. Foreshew, J 2017, Australia faces cyber security skills crisis as challenge, Financial Review. Gast, D.L. and Ledford, J.R. eds., 2014.Single case research methodology: Applications in special education and behavioral sciences. Routledge. Gharibi, W and Shaabi, M 2012, Cyber threats in social networking websites,arXiv preprint arXiv:1202.2420. Grocke, D. 2017, "Emerging cybersecurity threats in large and small firms",Bulletin (Law Society of South Australia),vol. 39, no. 3, pp. 20-22. Hall, P. 2016, "Smaller banks face cybersecurity challenges",Westchester County Business Journal,vol. 52, no. 46, pp. 15. James, C 2016, Cybersecurity: Threats Challenges Opportunities, ACS. Kumar, S. and Phrommathed, P., 2015.Research methodology(pp. 43-50). Springer US. Mackey, A. and Gass, S.M., 2015.Second language research: Methodology and design. Routledge. Panneerselvam, R., 2014.Research methodology. PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd.. Silverman, D. ed., 2016.Qualitative research. Sage. Tarone, E.E., Gass, S.M. and Cohen, A.D. eds., 2013.Research methodology in second-language acquisition. Routledge. Tuohy, D., Cooney, A., Dowling, M., Murphy, K. and Sixsmith, J., 2013. An overview of interpretive phenomenology as a research methodology.Nurse Researcher,20(6), pp.17-20.

April Fools Day Quotes

April Fools Day Quotes William Shakespeare famously said, Better a witty fool than a foolish wit. On  April Fools Day, showcase your wit and humor with these quotes. If you are a prankster, play a harmless prank, and tease your friends. If you are not a prankster, beware of those who are. Mark Twain, Puddnhead Wilson April 1. This is the day upon which we are reminded of what we are on the other three hundred and sixty-four. Plato Even the gods love jokes. George Orwell The aim of a joke is not to degrade the human being, but to remind him that he is already degraded. Will Rogers The trouble with practical jokes is that very often they get elected. Myra Cohn Livingston The maple syrups full of ants.A mouse is creeping on the shelf.Is that a spider on your back?I ate the whole pie by myself.The kitchen sink just overflowed.A flash flood washed away the school.I threw your blanket in the trash.I never lie- I- April Fool! Charles Lamb Here cometh April again, and as far as I can see the world hath more fools in it than ever. Poor Robins Almanac, 1790 The first of April, some do sayIs set apart for All Fools Day;But why the people call it soNor I, nor they themselves, do know,But on this day are people sentOn purpose for pure merriment. Thomas Shadwell The haste of a fool is the slowest thing in the world. Arabian Proverb A fool may be known by six things: anger without cause; speech without profit; change without progress; inquiry without object; putting trust in a stranger; and mistaking foes for friends. Horace Mix a little foolishness with your prudence: Its good to be silly at the right moment.

Bio of Ma Rainey, Influential Early Blues Singer

Bio of Ma Rainey, Influential Early Blues Singer Born Gertrude Pridgett, Ma Rainey (April 26, 1886 - December 22, 1939) was one of the first blues singers to record music. Nicknamed the â€Å"Mother of the Blues,† she recorded more than 100 singles, including the hits â€Å"Prove it on Me Blues,† â€Å"See See Rider Blues,† and â€Å"Don’t Fish in My Sea.† Fast Facts: Ma Rainey Occupation: Blues singerNickname: Mother of the BluesBorn: 1882 or 1886 in either Russell County, Alabama, or Columbus, GeorgiaParents: Thomas and Ella PridgettDied: Dec. 22, 1939 in Columbus, GeorgiaTop Songs: Prove it on Me Blues, See See Rider Blues, Don’t Fish in My Sea, Bo-Weavil BluesKey Accomplishments: 1990 Rock Roll Hall of Fame inductee, 1990 Blues Foundation Hall of Fame Inductee, 1994 US postage stamp honoree Early Years Gertrude Pridgett was the second child born to minstrel show performers Thomas and Ella Pridgett. Her birthplace is often listed as Columbus, Ga., and her birth year is widely reported as 1886. However, census records indicate that the singer was born September 1882 in Russell County, Alabama. Her singing career took off during her early teens. Like many African Americans, she honed her musical skills in church. By 1900, she was singing and dancing in Georgia’s Springer Opera House, now a National Historic Landmark. A number of artists have performed at the theater, including Buffalo Bill, John Philip Sousa, Burt Reynolds, and Oscar Wilde. Rainey, however, stands out as one of the early greats to do so.   In addition to the career success she enjoyed as a young woman, Rainey hit a milestone in her personal life when she married performer William â€Å"Pa† Rainey on February 2, 1904. The couple performed as â€Å"Ma† and â€Å"Pa† Rainey throughout the South. Traveling so much, especially in rural areas, is what led Ma Rainey to first hear the blues, a new art form at the time.   Blues combined African-American spirituals with African musical customs, such as â€Å"blue,† or flat notes. Performers would typically repeat the same lines, and the lyrics often discussed heartache or struggles of some sort. When Rainey first heard a singer perform the blues, the woman described a man who’d left her. Rainey had never heard anything like it. Introduced in the late 1800s, the blues paved the way for several different music genres, namely RB and rock-n-roll. Ma Rainey came to love the genre so much that she soon started performing blues songs. Her performances thrilled audiences, putting her on the path to become one of the early blues greats. Some scholars have said Rainey influenced younger performers, such as Bessie Smith, the blues singer she met in 1912. But it’s unclear if Rainey really acted as a mentor to Smith, whose singing style differed from hers. Well into the 1910s, Rainey continued to enjoy musical success, performing with Fat Chappelles Rabbit Foot Minstrels as well as Tollivers Circus and Musical Extravaganza. Their shows included chorus lines, acrobats, and comedy acts. When Rainey sang at the end of the program, she looked every bit the stage diva, turning up in showy jewelry, like diamond headpieces and necklaces made of cash. She even had gold teeth, which complemented the gold gowns she wore.   A Hitmaker for Paramount Records In 1916, Rainey began performing without her husband because the two had separated. She did not publicly identify as a lesbian, but some of her later musical lyrics and an arrest for throwing an â€Å"indecent† party toward the end of her career suggest she had romantic relationships with women. The newly single Rainey performed with her own backing band, billing herself as Madam Gertrude â€Å"Ma† Rainey and Her Georgia Smart Sets. Ma Rainey was one of the earliest recording artists to perform blues music. Photo by Donaldson Collection/Getty Images Rainey cut several songs for Paramount Records in 1923. They included the hits Bad Luck Blues, Bo-Weavil Blues, Moonshine Blues, and Those All Night Long Blues. Mamie Smith recorded the earliest blues single three years before. Rainey may not have been the first blues recording artist, but she had a prolific output. She went on to record about 100 blues tracks, and Dead Drunk Blues was among the most popular. Her songs had many themes. The lyrics, like those of many blues songs, focused on romantic relationships; they also discussed drinking and traveling as well as the African-American folk magic known as hoodoo. Although Rainey started out performing in the South, the success of her records led to a tour in the North, where she had dates in cities like Chicago with her backup ensemble, the Wildcats Jazz Band. In the following years, Rainey performed with a number of talented musicians, most famously Louis Armstrong. In 1928, Rainey’s music career began to slow down, as her type of blues fell out of fashion. Paramount did not renew her contract, despite the slew of hits she’d performed for the record label. One of the last tracks she recorded, Prove It On Me Blues, openly discussed her sexual orientation. â€Å"Went out last night with a crowd of my friends,† Rainey sang. â€Å"They must’ve been women, ‘cause I don’t like no men. It’s true I wear a collar and tie. Makes the wind blow all the while.† In the promotional image for the song, Rainey is drawn wearing a suit and a hat, speaking with a few women as a policeman eyes her. The song and the image allude to a women-only party Rainey threw 1925. It got so rowdy that a neighbor complained to the police. The women were getting affectionate with one another when the officer arrived, and as party host, Rainey was arrested for throwing an indecent party. While the singer could not openly identify as a lesbian during this era, she is regarded as a gay icon today. She’s one of the recording artists featured in Robert Philipson’s 2011 documentary T’Ain’t Nobody’s Bizness: Queer Blues Divas of the 1920s. Ma Rainey’s Impact Today Although Rainey stopped recording new music in the late 1920s, she continued to perform, simply at much smaller venues than she had during the height of her career. In 1935, she retired from the industry, returning to her hometown of Columbus, Ga. There, she purchased two movie halls- the Lyric and Airdome theaters. Ma Rainey died from a heart attack on Dec. 22, 1939.   She may have been a singer, but Rainey has been a major influence on black literature and drama. Poets Langston Hughes and Sterling Allen Brown both alluded to her in their works. The August Wilson play â€Å"Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom† directly referenced the singer as well. And Alice Walker based blues singer Shug Avery, a character in her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel â€Å"The Color Purple,† on artists like Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith. In 1990, Rainey was inducted into the Blues Foundation’s Hall of Fame and the Rock Roll Hall of Fame. Four years later, the US Postal Service issued a postage stamp in the blues singer’s honor. Her home in Columbus, Ga., became a museum in her honor in 2007. Sources Freedman, Samuel J. What Black Writers Owe to Music. New York Times, 14 October 1984.Giaimo, Cara. The Queer Black Woman Who Reinvented The Blues. Atlas Obscura, 27 April 2016.ONeal, Jim. Ma Rainey. The Blues Foundation, 10 November 2016.

Market Segmentation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Market Segmentation - Essay Example Apart from brushes, kid’s toothpaste is also available. Along with children, Oral-B offers various brushes and dental floss to adults. Mouth rinses are also available. Psychographic: The products of Oral-B can also be divided on the basis of psychographic market segment. People can choose Oral-B toothbrushes according to their individual taste, as variety of brushes with variable prices are in offer. They can also choose brushes according to their color fascination. If someone likes mouthwash or wants complete cleaning care, it is also available in Oral-B, in the form of floss and mouthwash. Apart from manual toothbrushes, power products are also available that comes with rotating oscillation that is effective inn reducing gingivitis and oral plaque. But, they are a bit expensive than manual brushes. Benefit: Oral-B uses benefit segmentation as it offers a variety of toothbrushes. One type of Oral-B toothbrush has nylon bristles that offer extra cleaning power, while some other brushes offer soft bristles for gentle care. Toothbrushes designed for children are easy to hold and they also have cartoon characters in the handles. It also offers angled handle toothbrush to easily clean the areas that is hard to clean. Oral-B also offers interdental and floss for complete oral care, as it is effective in removing plaque. Floss is also effective in fighting gum diseases. Power toothbrushes with rotating and oscillating bristles make cleaning really easy. Toothpastes and mouth rinses are also available in Oral-B. Demographic: Beauty products of Urban Care cater to women with variant tastes and lifestyle. Though the products are meant only for women, there are products for daily use as well as for special occasions. Psychographic: Products of Urban Decay can be categorized on the basis of interests and occupation. Women can use the cosmetics from this company while going to office and can also use other cosmetics while

Technology gets better over time Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Technology gets better over time - Essay Example According to Langdon Winner (2001) in his essay â€Å"Whatever happened to the electronic cottage?,† he has described the illusionary concept drawn by Alvin Toffler in his book, â€Å"The Third Wave† (1980) that technology would help the people to become more closer; they would develop more social bonding among them which would give rise to greater community stability along with an increase in the establishment of voluntary organizations supporting different groups in a society. His vision of an ideal society established on the basis of advancement of technology suggests that there would be less stress and more leisure in the lives of people with an increased focus on the expansion of values and morality within the social structure. The vision drawn by Alvin Toffler came to reality but with bitter results. ... It is important to understand that how these technological interactions have influenced individuals and the groups in a society, at large. The emergence of social networking sites have become a major medium for communication for a large number of people all around the globe. The use of such social networking sites can have positive as well as the negative consequences on the lives of people which depend on how they are using it. In a society where people are geographically separated and one tries to keep in touch with his family and friends, technology has facilitated them in maintaining their relations even in the farthest corners of the world. For a person, it has become just a matter of time to re-connect with his long-lost companion through a social networking site. However, with the benefits and positive aspects related with the use of social networking sites we cannot ignore the negative consequences and risk associated with the use of social networking sites and increased virt ual communications. Different people have different influences of such websites. This issue can be explained with an example of a man who displays all the events of his day on a play card and stands holding them on a public place. Due to this particular act of his display, he draws the attention and reaction of known and unknown people towards the internal affairs of his life; giving an opportunity to comment on his personal life and affairs. The vast extend of all kinds of comments and remarks on social media plays a negative role in the user’s life regardless whether the comments or remarks are true or not; their results are devastating in many peoples’ lives. According to

Sport In The Construction Of Masculinity

Sport In The Construction Of Masculinity Gender studies is an interdisciplinary study which investigate different aspects of gender. Sport is one of the aspects that researchers in these years are trying to analyse in a gender perspective. It is believed that sport is socially conditioned based on many researches. This essay will examine sport contributing to the construction of masculinity by several ways, they are: gender stratification in tradition, homophobia in sport, sport as male bonding ritual, biased opportunities towards men and media influence. Further examples and elaborations will follow in each point to demonstrate sport is indeed a social constitution constructing masculinity. Sport has long been instituted as male dominated and masculine in orientation by a couple of reasons. First, the historical gender stratification throughout a century has established that sport is an institution constructing masculinity. We are living in a patriarchal society that male are always in superior status than female, from economic status to daily life. The society has embedded a concept that the role of women is to give birth and their only obligation is to take care of children. But in 20th century, women are no longer highly dependent on men, as more and more women have become labours in the market. It has shortened the distance between two sexes, but obviously gender inequality cannot be eliminated so easily. Bilrell and Cole (1990) have mentioned that superiority of physical fitness is the key factor of winning in sport, and sport is the main activities emphasis on the sexual differentiation. Since sport emphasizes a lot on strength and bravery, male are thought to per form well innately than women (Klein 1990). As a result, the male participating rate in sport in general is higher than women. It is no wonder that Zane Grey (1992) in his book wrote All boys love baseball. If they dont theyre not real boys. This concept was passed on from generation to generation and eventually sport becomes a site constructing masculinity. Second, homophobia is another factor constructing masculinity in sport. As mentioned in the previous paragraph, sport has somehow developed into a male hegemonic activity. Male who does not participate in sports are not regarded as real man, and female participating in sports are thought to be manlike. They may, therefore, be treated as homosexuals. In fact, in the traditional socialization process, men in the early age had learnt that male who does not perform in manly way may see as homosexual (Messner 1992). Athletics, no matter male or female, may sometimes make apparent or even exaggerated movement to show their masculinity and femininity, just because they are afraid of people confusing their gender identity. Ordinarily, males characteristics are tough, aggressive, competitive, physically strong, whereas women tend to show attractive appearance, to do make-up and wearing feminine clothing. The traditional association of physical strength, power and athleticism with masculinity causes many people to question the sexuality of women athletes. Former tennis star Chris Evert paid great attention to whether or not she acted like a woman in the court, and almost the end of her tennis career she finally willing to admit that she is an athlete (Woolum 1998). Though she is a tennis player, she tried to act like a woman so as to maintain her feminine image. When Evert evaluated on her early stage of career, she said she never feel like an athlete, she was just a person playing tennis (Woolum 1998). She would like to be a complete woman such as having nail polish and wearing fancy hair band, rather than a freak in others eyes. From this example, we have seen that sport is thought to be male-oriented. Since female athletes challenge traditional notions of femininity and their abilities are seen as stereotypically masculine, female athletes are always contending with homophobia so that they will not be labelled as lesbian. It, in turns, lessens females willingness to p articipate in sport. As for men, they tend to participating in sport in order to show their manhood and avoid categorized as gay. It is, therefore, understandable that sports is a site for the embodiment of masculinity because of its nature of male-oriented. Third, sports play an important role in masculinity because sport is constructed as male bonding ritual. Similar to fraternity and military, sport helps young boys making connections in their life (Fine 2000). As we all know, sport focuses a lot of competitiveness and aggression, or sometimes, even involves physical contact and collision in between athletes. These are the elements that enable the notion of masculinity and the hegemonic ideal to construct a boy into a real man. Burstyn (1999) believed that sport provided the kind of rituals of conquest and aggression that men with a weak sense of masculinity needed to symbolize, to make physical and palpable, the difference between a mans man and a mamas boy , which means sport is succeeded in socializing boys into manhood despite the absence of the family father (Burstyn 1999). Here we realize that sport is in fact served as an embodied ritual of confirming and strengthening mens gender identity. Even if some children may live in sin gle-parent families, they are still able to achieve manliness as sport can be a replacement of father for them to obtain masculinity. All men can group together to retain their manhood and to reassert their gender privilege via sport. Thus, we can conclude that sport is a bonding ritual for men to construct their masculinity. In addition, biased opportunity towards men is a way to gradually construct masculinity in sport. Traditionally we are told that girls are only suitable for activities which are related to the aesthetic side of sports such as ice cheerleading and skating. Females are not recommended to engage in high physical contact activities such as rugby, boxing and soccer. In the schooling stage, gender socialization and gender typing shaped teenagers how they should act based on their gender. Plausibly, self-fulfilling prophecy has occurred and these norms have shaped individuals behavior, which in turn shapes future expectations. This cycle has shaped our society into a male supremacy culture, and sport is an embodiment of this notion. The opportununties bias can be seen particularly in the professional ranks. Womens sport would never be at the top of the pirority when business companies looking to use sports to market their product (Person 2009). They concerned with earning money from the adv ertsing and they believed that the money return will not be as much if they invest in womens sport (Person 2009). The average salary can obviously indicate the inequality of opportunities within two sexes, men are able to earn 4 millions in average whereas women can only earn approximately 1.4% of men, around $55,000 in average. Without social and economical motivation, girls devote less time to the sport. As a result, sport become male domain and a site for constrcuting masculinity. Finally, media influence is a factor contributing to the masculine construction in sport. The Amateur Athletic Foundation of Los Angeles has done a research (Wilson 1999) claiming that over 90% of American teenagers consume sports media. Since sports are mostly dominated by men, from the athletes and coaches to the commentators and reporters, media is definitely influential enough to transmit ideas about masculinity and maleness. And when it comes to reporting sport news, the newsworthiness is the main point reporters are focusing on. Mens sport is generally believed to have more attention and enthusiasm from the public, compared with womens sport. Sometimes after a match has finished, reporters are able to immediately interview male athletes in the changing room, it is, however, impossible to do the same thing on women. It is, therefore, clear that there are lots of bias and limitations on sports media which ultimately contribute to the construction of masculinity in our society. In conclusion, sport was demonstrated as being a dominant social institution which naturalized mens power and privilege over women. It has marginalized and trivialized female athletes, which sequentially help reproducing the ideological of masculinity in sport.