Apples Eat Themselves, Law421

Article Review LAW 421 March 25, 2013 University of Phoenix Material Article Review Format Guide MEMORANDUM UNIVERSITY OF PHOENIX DATE: March 25, 2013 TO: Timothy Morris FROM: Debra Aguilar, Brady Benton, Karena Busch, Stephanie Hudson, and Rachel Wichert RE: Apples Eat Themselves ARTICLE SYNOPSIS A review of the legal battles between Apple, a computer company and Apple, a record company, are discussed in this article. Both share a similar logo (an apple) and since 1991, the companies have gone to court to claim the Apple logo should only be unique to one company.In 1991 the Court agreed for each company to continue to use the Apple logo but now, the record company has accused the computer company of not conforming to the terms of the agreement. In 1980, George Harrison noticed an apple in an ad for computers. He thought this infringed upon Apple, the Beatles Record company trademark and filed suit. In 1981, Apple Computer agreed to stay out of the music business. In 1991, Apple Corp . filed suit against Apple Computer for trademark infringement again and settled out of court for 26. 5 million dollars. The two companies divided up the apple universe, indicating where each could use the apple symbol.In 2001, Apple Computer introduced online iTunes Music Store which had a huge impact on the music retail industry. In 2003, Apple Corp. again sued Apple Computer stating music was being stolen from them. Apple Computer was protected because downloads of music are comprised of digital data, and the distribution of digital entertainment content is permitted in the 1991 agreement. Apple computer, now looking from the other side of the dispute, may have issues protecting its own trademark because of current legal action that would force them to share copyright protection software with other companies.The Computer Giant would be forced to make downloads sold on their site playable on any device, not just its own iPod products. This would result in wide open competition, so mething Apple Computer has not faced before. The reason Apple Corp sued Apple Computer over thirty years ago was to protect its trademark, and now Apple Computer may find itself in the same situation. LEGAL ISSUE Apple Corp and Apple Computer have had their share of trademark issues. It’s been about thirty years that Apple Corp and Apple Computers litigated a dispute involving the use of the â€Å"Apple† name as a trademark and its association with music.In 1978 Apple Corp filed a law suit against Apple Computers (Apple Inc) for trademark infringement and eventually agreed to a settlement about two years later with Apple Computer paying out a mass amount to Apple Corps. The legal issue Apple Corps raised is that Apple Computer is involved in the music business and that in the 1991 agreement Apple Computer agreed to stay away from the sound recording industry, committing trademark infringement. In 2001 Apple computer released the iPod as a hardware device that can be us ed to download and play software like music from iTunes.ITunes was released in 2003. Apple Corps claims that Apple Computer is involved in the sound recording industry by the use of the iPod and the music downloads from iTunes that is in violation of the 1991 agreement in which Apple Computer would not have any business dealings that had to do with the sound recording industry. The High Court ruled that, â€Å"The Apple Computer hadn't breached the terms of the agreement and could continue to operate their computer business as usual. †(BBC News, 2006). For years Apple Inc has battled with Apple Corp over trademark issues.In 2007, they finally reached a settlement that determined Apple Inc. would own all trademarks and logos related to the name â€Å"Apple† and would license them accordingly to the Apple Corps music company (Tibken, 2012). During the time of the agreement, Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs commenting on the settlement stated â€Å"We love The Beatles, and it has been painful being at odds with them over these trademarks. † Jobs added that â€Å"it feels great to resolve this in a positive manner, and in a way that should remove the potential of further disagreements in the future. MANAGERIAL PERSPECTIVE The legal issues in this article can affect the business deeply. The main factor is the loss they can occur in sales due to the music company saying they are not following the contract they have put forth. This shows customers and people of the world that their company is not trust worthy in all aspects of their business. In many circumstances this can stop people from buying their products until the situation is over and they find out the truth. The issue is that it could take weeks or months to finish the lawsuit.The problems that have happened with Apple the computer company could have been avoided if they took the correct steps allocated in their agreement with Apple the music company. The first step they should have taken was to sit down and have a business meeting with the representatives from the music company and explain to them what they wanted to do so that the contract could be altered. Instead they did it without coming to an agreement first, which disrespected the music company. Legally this is what should have happened so that the contract was followed and no one broke the contract illegally.References Macklem, K. (2006, Apr 10). Apples eat themselves. Maclean's, 119, 30-30. Retrieved from http://search. proquest. com/docview/218528830? accountid=35812 Tibken, S. (2012). Apple now officially owns Beatles' Apple Corps logo. Retrieved from http://news. cnet. com/8301-13579_3-57540017-37/apple-now-officially-owns-beatles-apple-corps-logo/ BBC News. (2006, May 08). News: Front Page. Retrieved March 20, 2013, from Beatles lose News: Apple Court Battle. Retrieved from http://www. bbc. co. uk/2/hi/entertainment/4750533. stm

Probation: Crime and California College Attended

John Augustus is credited with being the father of probation. A Boston shoemaker, Augustus spent his spare time observing what took place in the courts. Disturbed that minor offenders and common drunks were often forced to remain in jail because they had no money to pay off their fines, he convinced authorities to let him pay their fines and offered them friendly supervision. When the defendants later came into court for sentencing, Augustus would report on his progress toward reformation. Augustus efforts encouraged his home state of Massachusetts to pass the first probation statue in 1878. Four more states had followed suit by 1900. Probation was thus established as a legitimate alternative to incarceration. The first juvenile court was in Cook County, Illinois in 1899. The enabling legislation eventually passed at state and federal levels not only enacted statutes that permitted probation, but eventually defined specific categories of offenses for which probation could not be granted. It is clear that the legislators enacting probation statues intended juvenile offenders and misdemeanants to be its beneficiaries, not hard core criminal offenders. Probation is a sentence serves while under supervision in the community. Its goal is to retain some control over criminal offenders while using community programs to help rehabilitate them. Today, probation is the most common form of criminal sentencing in the United States. Those sentenced to probation must agree to abide by court mandated conditions of probation, with a violation of conditions possibly leading to probation revocation. Two types of conditions are general and specific. General conditions apply to all probationers in a given jurisdiction and usually require that the probationer obey all laws, maintain employment, remain within the jurisdiction of the court and possess no firearms. Specific conditions may be mandated by a judge who feels that the probationer is need of particular guidance or control. Depending on the nature of the offense, a judge may require that the offender surrender his or her driver’s license; supply breath, urine, or blood samples as needed for drug or alcohol testing. The judge may also dictate special conditions tailored to the probationer’s situation. The rapid growth of serious and violent crime in America during the 2980’s contributed to prison overcrowding and spurred a movement toward the increase in the use of felony probation. Prison overcrowding and bulging jails forced the correctional administrators to take a close look at some other categories of felons for relief of an over taxed system. Front end solutions are alternatives sentences such as probation and intermediate punishments that include house arrest, deferred prosecution, electronic monitoring. Back end solutions refer to ways used to reduce prison populations, after the offender arrives in prison. Often viewed as â€Å"early out† or â€Å"extended limits† options: parole, shock parole, expanded good time credits to count against minimum sentence, work and educational furlough, prerelease to halfway houses. Name: Essie Stevens Position: Probation Officer, San Bernardino, California College Attended: Howard University (BS, Criminal Justice) What criminal justice related jobs have you held? Straight out of high school, I took a job as a security guard at the local mall. I had no experience but they took a chance with me. I learned a lot from working there. After about 9 months, I left for college. After college, I pretty much had it in my mind I wanted to be a probation officer. I read on the internet that a small California town needed members of their team. I scheduled a meeting and I’ve been here ever since. How would you describe the interview process? It actually was pretty easy. I stood before three members of the Department of Corrections. I was asked a few questions. I was hired on spot. To this day, I still do not know if it was because my resume was excellent or if it was because they were in desperate need of staff. Please describe your job I am a probation officer for about 115 men, women, and juveniles. My role is to keep tabs on their progress, make sure they are heading down the right paths. I attend court with most of them every 3 weeks to inform the judge of their progress. I also see each of them at least once a week in order to ensure they are complying with all conditions of the program. What is the typical starting salary for this position? $17. 35 per hour What qualities or characteristics are most helpful for this job? You have to be strong and you must have a backbone. I’m not saying you have to be tough all the time but you need to let the offender know you may be nice but you’re about business. You have to be firm in making decisions. Do not let the offender walk all over you. It’s okay to have friendly conversations but always keep it professional. Get to know the offender. I have found that it’s easier for the offender to open up to you when you show interest in their lives. What is a typical day like for you? From the time I come into work (9am) to the time I leave (10pm), I am either meeting with my new juvenile offenders or checking up on the older ones. I usually break for half an hour to review paperwork. What career advice would you give someone in college beginning studies? Pay attention. Trust me; you’re learning some real important material. Apply for internships; they will help in the long run. Network! Now is the time to get in good with as many professionals as possible.

Consumer Durables and Nondurables

Analysis The definition of consumer durables and nondurables Consumer durables involve many kinds of products that is purchased by consumers, it is manufactured for long-term use. Such as: car, furniture and so on. But consumer nondurables are opposite. It is expendable goods purchases by consumers for their daily or short-term use. Such as: clothing, shoes and so on. The characteristics of consumer purchase Because of consumer durables has long-term use, and comparing with consumer nondurables, price is higher, so consumer purchase behavior is more cautious. There are some reasons. First of all, much more selectivity cause consumers are hard to make decision. Secondly, because of there are a lot of different brand, so they will carefully compare the various brands of cost performance, generally, consumer focus on the quality, service, and brand reputation. Finally, consumers can not buy from nearest store, they are willing to go to large scale shopping malls. But consumer nondurable is opposite. There are some features of consumer nondurables. Because of nondurables goods are short-term use, it can be daily product, such as towels, soap and so on, so consumer is willing to buy those at nearest store. Also, it can be visual product, when consumer decide to buy it, they might be affected by packing and store’s ambience, which means consumer can make decision easily. On the other hand, consumer has less loyalty for brand, they usually change same product with different brand. So we can sum up some features about consumer purchase habit, which are easy, fast, impulsive and emotional. Main characteristics of market Consumer durables: For product advertising strategy, company usually focus on product exhibition and display as much as possible, also they must have a large scale warehouse for inventory Consumer nondurables: For advertising strategy, Company is willing to choose outdoor billboards in the down and some crowded place, or promote on the internet. They don’t need large size warehouse for inventory.

Management Report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Management Report - Assignment Example This doesn't mean that the MD has started doubting the integrity of Directors. It simply means that to run an organization effectively and efficiently certain conventions and procedures are to be followed. Having 'many' LANs and many 'known' and 'unknown' computers within a department does not give reflection of a professional approach. Development of an integrated approach encompassing safe growing, harvesting, processing and retail/foodservice handling practices from farm to table required a real time information network with effective means of enhancing fresh fruits safety. Today we are in the 'information age', which effectively means It can be safely said that, 'Information is power! It is an asset that can help overcome uncertainty and open new avenues for opportunity. Any business can make fullest use of the information if it reaches the right person, at the right time, in the right format. This requires a dependable backbone in the form of an Information Network. Real time networking arrangements are required not only for Information Management at the headquarter end, but it is required for the procurement, storage, distribution, order confirmations, consignment tracking etc. For example some fruits are chilling injury sensitive requiring warm weather growing conditions. Warm humid conditions may favor human pathogen persistence and increase wildlife pest pressure and activity. Many wildlife species (birds, insects, amphibians and snakes) are known to be potential carriers of human pathogens. Heavy rains may also cause certain fruits like melons to be covered with soil due to rain splashing. All this updated stuff has to be communicated to the workforce in the field so that the information can be translated into the practical solution. Therefore to start with; There has to be no "unofficial" PC. As is apparent from the company's policy, the MD wants all computers to be network enabled therefore all computers can be networked to access 'relevant' data from the central server. The present policy appears to be to connect all PC's to the company's network in order to provide all personnel with access to corporate data. To start with not all persons are required to access all the information all the time. Therefore if the 'sales' team is provided with 'procurement' data all the time, it will be redundant for the sales team. Therefore the networking must be done in such a fashion that only relevant data is accessed by the relevant department. This will have a dual benefit, first the unconcerned departments won't be inundated with redundant data and secondly, speed of the network will be reasonably good enough. In case there's a need for one department to communicate some info to the other department (which will of course be required), it can be routed through the central server, so that it leaves a logging into the central server for monitoring and subsequent follow up. The company's corporate network is made up of a number of

Healthy Eating Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Healthy Eating - Essay Example For instance, nowadays, we are aware that cholesterol or fat is of two varieties, one that is good for health and the other that is positively harmful to the human body. In addition, people are lured by unhealthy food, on account of its attractive appearance and taste. Some methods for avoiding such food have been suggested in this work. These methods have been shown to be extremely effective in preventing their practitioner from falling prey to unhealthy food. Finally, conclusions were arrived at and recommendations were made. In order to remain healthy, it is important to avoid unhealthy eating or overeating. Bad eating habits can be eliminated by developing the desire to eat right. In addition to making up one’s mind to get rid of a bad habit, one should undertake a properly planned series of actions that will help in achieving this objective. Mere will power is insufficient to realise goals. Instead of relying on the force of will, one has to undertake well planned measures to convert one’s desires into reality. This applies to healthy eating, and one should comprehend the specific situations or conditions that provide opportunities for overeating. Such conscious knowledge is of great importance (Eating Right: A New Self-Control Paradigm 2009: 1). A healthy diet used to consist of a balanced diet of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. This was supplemented by the recommended amounts of vitamins and minerals. Adherence to such a diet provided sufficient energy and nutrients to the body. A healthy body effectively prevents disease. Subsequently, the development of science, served to extend the concept of a healthy diet. Although, the essential components of a well balanced diet remained unchanged, considerable knowledge was gained regarding the exact combinations within each food group (Eating for health 2008: 2). Overeating is a problematic habit and it should be relinquished as soon as possible, so as to avert harmful

Safety And Danger Of GM Food Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 4

Safety And Danger Of GM Food - Essay Example Using findings from studies that have been conducted and an analysis of the genetic makeup and the number of chromosomes of various organisms, this paper will establish facts about the concept of genetic mutations. It will examine and establish the facts behind the allegation that genetic engineering techniques are the reason behind the increased number of cancer cases globally. Cancer is caused by the existence and persistent growth of cells which are unregulated. It occurs where there is an unregulated growth of cells after cell division in a certain area of the body and the cancerous cells are capable of spreading to other parts of the body. The concept that genetically modified foods are carcinogenic is disputed because the predisposing factors to cancer are vast and their scope is not well understood by experts. Arguments for the case are for the opinion that the genetic composition of humans could be altered the same way that of plants is altered by the introduction of foreign genes thus causing the growth of cancerous cells. Even though there are scientists who see it as baseless, some have still gone ahead and conducted a number of experiments to determine the real effects of genetically modified foods have been conducted using rats. In this particular experiment, a group of rats is fed on a lifelong diet of some of the best selling genetically modified corn while the control experiment was fed with normal nongenetically modified meals. A report by Poulter, 2012, on the studies conducted showed that the rats that were fed with genetically modified corn developed tumors and some of their organs stopped functioning properly. 65 percent of them had developed tumors by the twenty-fourth month. On the other hand, the tumor rate of the rats that had been fed with normal food was at thirty percent (Poulter, web).

Pop Culture Women's Voices Discussion Coursework

Pop Culture Women's Voices Discussion - Coursework Example It was the coming of age of a few older favorites like Madonna, Prince, Michael Jackson, and one of the best girl groups of all time, TLC. There was barely a song out about women â€Å"talking to† men that wasnt about real life, as if musical artists have a great deal of insight into the way men chase and women (supposedly) run, or play hard to get. The song â€Å"No Scrubs† by TLC was phenomenal because of its theme about pride and not giving your girl power to a â€Å"scrub,† or a man who â€Å"hangs out the passenger side of his best friends ride.† The hidden meaning of a scrub is that he is so lame, or unimportant or non-committal, that he cant even manage a car of his own. The song is not dedicated to men, but to women, about belittling themselves to get into a bad relationship that is not true to them or their futures. Women had come a long way, but were also far-removed from the Womens Lib movement of the 1960s. Women were still struggling with sexual and gender identity approximations in the 90s, or how far they could go to be themselves without being left completely alone. The universal answer to a scrub is â€Å"No.† Deadbeats – men who live with others and mothers and own nothing theyve earned speaks to the widely held ideas of the 90s woman, her independence and simultaneous self-initiated sexual exploitation, as if its okay to tease a man and not go all the way. Horizons expand with â€Å"lady music† aimed directly at men about their behaviors and hard-held beliefs about the place of women in

Research study Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Research study - Assignment Example He asserts that several elements can be used to define quality of goods and services. Such factors include performance, operational features, aesthetics, reliability, durability, conformity, perceived quality and serviceability. Garvin reiterates that satisfaction among customers should not be restrained to goods alone. It should also be extended to services. According to the research, it is clear that customers establish a balance between price and benefits obtained from the goods and services acquired. For this reason, the research emphasizes that marketers should often equate value of goods and services with price. In order for businesses to deliver excellent services and products, they should exactly understand customers’ tastes and preferences. However, it is worth noting that different customers have various perspectives pertaining to what they really value in goods and services. Typically, not all dimensions used by businessmen to attract customers are appealing to them in a similar way bearing in mind that preference of certain brands by marketers is an indication of how customers perceive their goods and services. According to Garvin (2009), businesses should try as much as possible to comprehend their clients’ tastes and perspectives. Consequently, they will be able to increase the success rate of marketing their merchandises. For instance, Big W is a departmental store located in Australia that deals with sales of major products such as households, leisure, health, farm, entertainments and kids’ products. In the process of expanding its sales coverage, it has established a series of stores in Australia. At the same time, the company has increased several components including grocery. Currently, the company has put in place several links both at the local and international level. Needless to say, employees and managers in the company are very keen in analysing and adhering to consumers’ tastes and preferences. The researche r defines quality characteristics targeted in the research. The researchers note that entrepreneurship in business is about exchanges between buyers and manufacturers. Since it is continuous process, business men ensure that they win customers favour for future. For this purpose, it is important to understand the quality characteristics of products or services in order to ensure constant inflow of customers. Companies are able to sustain a royal group by offering quality products and services hence guaranteeing their future sale. Vividly, customers influence on future purchase is dependent on the present quality of goods and services obtained in the market. If at any time they feel dissatisfied, they are likely to change their purchase sites in future. It is evident from research conducted that, the quality of products derived from companies highly influence purchases in future either positively or negatively. Further, the researcher notes that it is advisable for businesses to fost er qualitative satisfaction to clients and their target groups. This can be done by conducting an analysis of clients’ preferences. The latter analysis will assist businesses to identify which products are highly preferred and to what extent customers are willing to purchase them. Additionally, considering customers preferences will help business men to make vital and reliable decisions that will favour customers. In line with this, this will help companies to optimize on more designs in terms of services and products. In order to accomplish this, they

Marketing Case Philadelphia Phillies Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Marketing Philadelphia Phillies - Case Study Example ntangible products involve an on-going relationship between the organization and its individual customers that begins before and continues after the sale (chap.1). However, marketing a service needs to have a more intensified and careful relationship with the customer than marketing a product, because with the former, you come in contact with your clients and your customers. In short, when marketing a product, customers would just be concerned about the performance of the product and not with who manufacture them, but with service, customers should have to like the seller or the company (www.businessknowledgesource.com). In terms of segmentation, marketing a product would be much easier than marketing a service such as the Philadelphia Phillies. The aggregating of prospective buyers to market a product would result to different products variants, suiting the specific need of its aggregate or market segment (chap.9). So, for a toothpaste example, we expect a variant for the kids with probably sweeter taste and for the adults with more fluoride and a stronger flavour. But after this, you can just leave your product on shelf, without really creating a customized or personalized product. This is where the difference between marketing a service and a product, lies, as in service the offering should be customized or personalized. For the Philadelphia Phillies for example, people can range from diehard fans, to kids 14 years and below, to those who are 15 years old and above, to senior citizens, young professionals and to corporate and community groups. Since they have different needs, the value that the c ustomer gets from attending a baseball game in the stadium should fulfil their individual needs and wants. Using the 4 Ps analysis, services will also differ with products, specifically in terms of promotion and sales. Products can be advertised through popular tri-media channels such as television, services such as Philadelphia Phillies are not. Promotion for a

Peer Pressure Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Peer Pressure - Essay Example The negative results of peer pressure can be quantified in terms of truancy, delinquency, contact with law enforcement, and eventual incarceration. Indeed, there is an explosion of youth deviance, sexual activity, and violence that affects us all. The results of peer pressure may be overt, but the causes are often more subtle and elusive. Understanding peer pressure is a critical factor in understanding the teenage years and mediating the potential bad decisions that are made by teenagers as they surrender their judgement to a group's expectations and norms. Peer pressure is a destructive force that has proliferated in the face of impersonal social institutions, diminished life choices, and families that fail to offer their children the emotional support necessary to develop a well-rounded sense of self-esteem and personal identity. The issue of peer pressure has gained increasing importance in recent years due to the proliferation of pop culture media, social networking, availability of drugs, and the easy access to guns in our society. This paper will use a review of the existing literature to determine the underlying vulnerabilities to peer pressure, and highlight the ways in which its social impact can be minimized. The representation of teenage socialization in the mass media often highlights the influence that peers have to corrupt teenage values, which "leads to deviant behaviors such as smoking, drinking, drug use, dangerous driving, violence, provocative dress, and sexual promiscuity" (Schwind, 2008, p. 1015). These social forces conspire to motivate teenagers to make decisions that they would otherwise reject if they based their behavior solely on family socialization, community values, and accepted social norms. However, it is the suspension of these beliefs in favor of a group's deviant values that results in poor decisions and behavioral problems. By the time a child reaches middle school, their friends are the biggest influence in their life, and peer acceptance or rejection is the number one predictor of their personal emotional safety (Hartnett, 2007, p. 37). By this age, the child has become aware of their status among their peers, uses gossip for information and retaliation, is concerned about rejection, and is willing to significantly modify their behavior to gain peer group acceptance (Deutsch, 2000, p. 333). When these forces result in a beneficial outcome, such as church attendance or volunteer work, it is called a positive influence. When the results are negative, it is labeled peer pressure and has the negative connotation of coercion. Though peer pressure affects all ages and has a wide range of outcomes, this paper will focus on the negative results from peer pressure during the teenage years. Peer pressure in adolescents has a dual motivational aspect, as it has the positive goal of gaining group acceptance, and expresses the negative motivation of the rebellion against the established power structure. As teenagers struggle to create and express their identity, the symbols of group alliance become a part of their personal individuality. These outward symbols may be the overt fashions and accessories that they wear, the use of

My Tiger Mom Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

My Tiger Mom - Assignment Example Music is supposed to be about freedom, right? Not at all! Tiger moms choose what you can play. Playing the piano is a requirement. You can’t just play for fun. You play for the win. FTW- For The Win. I hate that urban acronym. It’s always about that. FTW. You can’t be second in anything, or worse, the third. Excel in almost everything! Or face the wrath of your Tiger mom! At first, I thought I played the piano only for my Mom. But I actually loved it. I loved how my fingers created music. I love my piano. I love my music. I love music. I excelled in playing the piano for some time, but soon enough, my peers surpassed me. Mom wasn’t too pleased. I tried my best, but I gave up. I wanted to do something else. I still play the piano, but only when I feel like it. Only when my soul wants me to. Mom didn’t mind because I was doing great in school. Her priority, I mean, our priority, is academic success. Now, let’s talk about sports. My mom was not into sports so much. But she let me swim. I swam and I was free, but not as free as I wanted to be. I wanted sleepovers and more time with my friends. Not that we talked about these things in China. My friends and I only imagined our days of freedom together, falling in love with strangers, and making mistakes.

My intercultural communication at school Essay Example for Free

My intercultural communication at school Essay My ESL classes at Heald College took six months and these were necessary requirements so that I could pursue major courses in Architecture. There were other students like me from other countries and it felt good to belong to a group that was being taught the American way of life and culture. It felt good because it gave me the feeling that I was not alone in my hardships. It did not feel so bad and odd being with a group struggling with nuances of the English language and pronunciation and the idiosyncrasies of American culture. While I considered myself an out-group when I was with natural-born Americans, I felt like a member of an in-group when I was with the foreign students. Probably, this feeling springs from the fact that one naturally feels out of place when all others behave and talk in a different way. There is some comfort gained from knowing that one is just like the others. My struggle to fit in was at times frustrating, as I could not be properly understood by the teacher on account of misplaced accents or outright mispronunciations. At first I really felt stupid when the teacher would rephrase my statement and ask if it was what I meant. When I would say it was not what I meant, another classmate would butt in with a genuine intention to help me out but I would end up all the more confused and misunderstood. Realizing the setbacks of my lack of facility with the language, I resolved more than ever to master the English language. My Intercultural Communication at Work Working as a busboy and later, as a waiter in a restaurant gave me the chance to encounter more people and gain more facility with the English language. Finding work was quite an exhilarating experience for me. I felt that I could already communicate my ideas clearly and so I gained more confidence. Of course, there were still some instances when some patrons would fail to understand how I pronounce my words but whenever such a thing happened, I would remember the word and practice saying it correctly when I got home. I had discarded my Dari-English dictionary and I could already carry on a conversation with a native speaker of American English without fumbling for the right word or halting. I once attempted to be friendly with other waiters hoping to generate deeper camaraderie while we were up and about with our tasks. To my horror, I found that Americans seem to be single-minded and so focused when they go about their work that banter is misconstrued as not being serious about work. From then on, I learned to be very business-like while doing my work, bearing in mind that I was not working in an Afghan setting Conclusion This profound reflection on my sojourn in America has made me realize a lot of things that I once took for granted. First, I realized that I possess the resilience and tenacity that is a hallmark of a true Afghan. I used to take for granted the lore and history that due to the Afghan experience of a succession of foreign invasions, Afghans are by nature strong in spirit and character. Indeed, it is no easy task for an 18-year-old boy to force himself to become an adult almost overnight due to peculiar personal circumstances. I realized too that exposure to another culture widens ones horizons and makes one more tolerant of other people. Assimilation into another culture truly begins and is facilitated by an earnest desire to learn the language to a level that one speaks it like one born into the language itself. Together with this is a keen sense of awareness of the seemingly insignificant cultural differences between one’s culture of origin and the host culture. Cultural sensitivity, if I may use the term, enables one to steer clear of problematic situations. Indeed, it is not always wise to act and behave according to one’s cultural orientation when one is in another cultural setting. My intercultural communication with the Peterson family was at first regulated by cues from the reactions of Mr. Peterson. I came to know what he disliked by observing how he reacted. Yet, the sincere sharing of cultural traditions was the factor that truly made our relationship rise up to a higher level. Mutual respect and understanding resulted from the open sharing and this could not have happened by merely observing each other’s reactions. Truly, if one wants to have a meaningful intercultural communication, it must begin with an honest sharing of culture and traditions. It makes it possible to view the other person from their own cultural perspective. The moment I stopped my automatic comparison of Afghan and American values whenever I encountered an unfamiliar cultural practice, I became more accepting of American culture. As Holliday, Hyde and Kullman advise, â€Å"Put aside simplistic notions about what is real and unreal in your perception of another culture, and appreciate that every society is as complex and culturally varied as your own†. (10) The moment I began to have this attitude in my attempt to fully integrate myself into American society, I may have taken the first step towards â€Å"intercultural competence†. Alred and Byram (2002) define intercultural competence as â€Å"the ability to behave appropriately in intercultural situations†¦. the ability to stabilize one’s self-identity while mediating between cultures† (340). I may have taken the first step but I still have a long way to go. All people regardless of culture have the innate need to feel a sense of belongingness. I am sure this is the reason why I felt at ease with my fellow Afghans as I did with other foreign students who were struggling to deal with language difficulties. Yet, once a genuine intercultural communication is initiated, it leads one to learn and marvel at the diversity and richness of all cultures around the world. Works Cited Alred, Geof and Mike Byram. â€Å"Becoming an Intercultural Mediator: A Longitudinal Study of Residence Abroad. † Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development 23. 5 (2002). Retrieved from http://www. multilingual-matters. net/jmmd/023/jmmd0230339.htm on April 25, 2007. Holliday, Adrian, Martin Hyde, and John Kullman. Intercultural Communication: An Advanced Resource Book. New York: Routledge, 2004. Questia. 25 Apr. 2007 http://www. questia. com/PM. qst? a=od=108464145. Robson, Barbara, Juliene Lipson with Farid Younos and Mariam Mehdi. â€Å"Afghans Their History and Culture, Cross-Cultural and Adjustment Challenges, published by the Center of Applied Linguistics, The Cultural Orientation Resource Center last updated 6/30/02. Retrieved from http://www. cal. org/co/afghan/acult. html on April 25, 2007.

Secretors and Non-secretors Disease Susceptibility

Secretors and Non-secretors Disease Susceptibility Human population can be categorized into secretors and non-secretors based on A, B and H antigen on basis of presence or absence of these blood group antigens in the body fluids and secretions, such as saliva, sweat, tears, semen, serum, mucus present in the digestive tract or respiratory cavities etc. Secretors are individuals that secrete blood group antigens in their body fluids while non-secretors are the individuals that do not secrete them in their body fluids and secretions. It is a known fact that ABO blood type is controlled by blood type coding genes present on the chromosome 9q34 but the secretor status of an individual is decided by interaction of a separate gene (called secreting gene) with these blood type genes. The presence of the secreting gene in a persons genome makes him a secretor and absence makes him a non secretor. The gene is designated as (Se) for Secretors and (se) for Non-secretors and it is entirely independent of the blood type A, B, AB or O. The individuals secreting antigens in the body fluid are designated as ABH secretors in blood banks. Individuals having O blood group secrete antigen H, A blood group secrete A and H antigens, B blood group secrete B and H antigens in the fluids. A secretor gene helps a person to gain a degree of protection against different environmental conditions especially the micro flora of a particular environment and also the lectins present in them. It helps them in promoting the growth of friendly, stable blood type intestinal bacterial ecosystem which depends on the blood type antigens present in the mucus of an individual. Secretor status does modify carbohydrates in the fluids present in the body and their secretions and it also affects and influences the attachment and persistence of the micro flora present in the body. Secretors are at a higher advantage than non-secretors. Non-secretors have a potential health disadvantage. They possess many metabolic traits such as carbohydrate intolerance, immune susceptibilities. Different tests are available for determining an individuals secretor status. Most common test uses saliva or other body fluids of an individual for testing the secretor status. These tests are based on the principl e of Agglutination Inhibition where the antigens are neutralized by the corresponding antibodies so that these antibodies will not be further be available to neutralize or agglutinate the same antigens residing on the red blood cells. ELISA could also be used for determining the presence of the secreted Lewis antigens in the saliva or other body fluids. The alleles Se and se differ in the frequency and have an anthropological value. They occur in different frequency in different populations. They have a high frequency in the American Indiana and a low frequency in the southern Indians. In US 20% of the population is secretors whereas 80% of the population consist of non-secretors. The fusion allele of the FUT2 (secretor type alpha(1,2)-fucosyltransferase) gene at a high frequency and a new se385 allele in a Korean population SECRETOR AND NON-SECRETOR A person secreting blood group antigens into the body fluids and other secretions like saliva, semen, tear, mucous in the digestive tract and respiratory cavities are named as secretors. In similar terms they put their blood type antigens in the body fluids. They secrete antigens according to their blood type, A secrete antigen A and H, B secret antigen B and H, O secrete antigen O and AB secrete A, B and H antigen. Secretors expresses Lewis b (Leb) antigens on the RBC where as non-secretor expresses Lewis a (Le a) on their RBC.These antigens in the body fluids give additional protection to the individual against the various microorganisms and the lectins present all around us. 15- 20% of the population consists of non-secretor. These individual fail to secrete the blood group antigens in their body fluids hence they become susceptible to bacterial and superficial yeast infections. A large no of them sometimes also suffer from the autoimmune disorder. This could also be correlated with the secretor and non-secretor phenotype. The body secretions of secretors and non-secretors differ quantitatively and also qualitatively. The type and quantity of the antigens present in it differ among different individuals. In some cases the non-secretors may contain the A and B antigens in the saliva but the quantity is less and even quality is very low hence they have similar functional problem. There are certain properties which are specific for secretors and differ in non-secretors. Some are listed below: Intestinal alkaline phosphatase activity ABH secretor correlates the activity of alkaline phosphatase and serum alkaline phosphatase present in the intestine. Non-secretors have low activity of alkaline phosphatase and serum alkaline phosphatase which is responsible for the breakdown of fat and assimilate calcium. Low molecular weight alkaline is present in both secretors and non-secretors and high molecular weight alkaline phosphatase is present only is secretors. Bacterial flora The ABH blood types influence the population of bacteria residing in the local vicinity of the gut mucin glycoproteins. Bacteria produce enzymes that have the capability to degrade the end sugar of A, B, and H blood antigens and which are consumed as food by them. The B antigen degrading bacteria produce enzyme to remove the end alpha-D-galactose and A antigen degrading bacteria produce enzyme to detach N-acetylgalactosamine which are used as a source of food by them. Blood clotting The secretor and the ABO genetics influence each other and effect upto 60% of the vWf concentration variation in plasma. Raised levels of factor VIII and vWf may cause thrombotic and heart disease in future. Secretors have the slowest clotting time, thinnest blood, least tendency of platelet aggregation, low amount of factor VIII and von Willebrand factor (vWf). The non-secretors have highest clotting time, thick blood, high amount of factor VIII and von Willebrand factor (vWf) and low bleeding time. The blood viscosity is also influenced by the secretor status of that individual. Phenotype Lewis Characteristics of Clotting Le (a- b-) maximum action of factor VIII and vWf Very Low bleeding times (seen in A, B and AB) Le (a+ b-) intermediary action Low bleeding times (seen in O) Le (a- b+) minimum action of factor VIII and vWf Very Long bleeding times (seen in O) Blood Type Lewis and Factors effect Blood Clotting Immunoglobulin Variations ABH non-secretors express low concentration of IgG immunoglobulin. The secretion of varying concentration of diverse constituents of the blood group is controlled by the secretor gene and it also affects the phagocytic activity of the leucocytes which provides an added advantage to the non-secretors. The leucocytes of the non-secretors possess a greater ingestion power when compared to the secretors. The O and B blood group non-secretors have the highest phagocytic activity. The presence of different concentration of anti-I in the an individuals serum is affected by the ABO group, secretor status and sex of the individual. The secretors females have a high level of anti-I in the serum as compared to the males. The non-secretor have low levels of IgA and IgG antibodies and hence have frequent problems with the heart valve. Genetics and Biochemical pathways The secretion of the blood group antigens in the body fluids and other secretions are genetically influenced by certain allelomorphic genes. Secretor gene contains two alleles (Se) and (se). The dominant gene Se is present in the homozygous or heterozygous condition in the secretors which lead to the secretion of antigens into the body fluids. se is recessive allele and is present in non-secretors in the homozygous condition. SeSe and seSe produces a dominant secretor phenotype and sese produces a recessive non-secretor phenotype. Basically three genes are responsible for the formation of the A and B antigens. They are namely ABO, Hh, and Sese genes encoding glycosyltransferases which produces the A and B antigens. H antigen present in the individual with O blood group is the precursor for the formation of A and B antigens. H antigen act as a backbone for A and B antigens. The O gene is considered as amorphic. The allele Hh and Sese reside on each locus and are closely linked together. It is also suggested that one of the allele has arisen by the gene duplication of the other. The second allele on the same locus is really rare. The product related to this allele hasnt been discovered yet and hence it is considered as amorph. The oligosaccharide responsible for the formation of the A and B antigen can exist in a simple linear fashion or a complex branched fashion. Infants A, B and H antigens contain high amount of linear chained oligosaccharide whereas oligosaccharides present in an adult contain high amount of branched chained oligosaccharides The A and B antigen is synthesized from a common intermediate known as substance H. The conversion is carried out by the addition of a sugar molecule to the non reducing end of the H oligosaccharide chains. This addition affects the reactivity of H antigen. The ABH substances are secreted in the Urinary respiratory tract, gastrointestinal tract by mucous glands residing there. The secretor gene regulates the synthesis of blood group antigens in the glands of small intestinal mucosa. The secretors and non-secretors produce A and B substances which are basically glycoproteins in pylorus and Brunners glands and produce A and B substances those are soluble in alcohol and glycosphingolipids in nature. The secretors also produce ABH substances in the prostate and lactating mammary glands. The secretion of breast is rich in H substance but poor in substance A and virtually absent in substance B. The synthesis of these constituents in the pancreas and secretory cells of sweat gland is not controlled by the secretor gene. The blood groups substances were also found in the calyxes and collecting tubules of the secretors (Se) but it could not be concluded that whether they are produced by the kidneys or are generally excreted. These secretions were noticed in the eight to nine weeks old salivary glands and stomach and later it appears throughout the gastrointestinal tract. Glycosphingolipids carrying the A or B oligosaccharides are present on the membranes of RBCs, epithelial and endothelial cells and are also present in the plasma in the soluble form. The glycoproteins carrying the similar A and B oligosaccharides are responsible for their activity in the body fluids. In the body fluids they are present in the secreted form. The A and B oligosaccharides which do not contain the carrier proteins are present in the milk and urine. The chromosome 19 containsFUT 1 and FUT 2 genes which code for fucosyltransferase. FUT genes numbered from 1-7 and form clusters which are responsible for the production of enzymes called as fucosyltranferases. The cluster is located on chromosome 19q13.3. Fucosyltranferase helps in the formation of fucose moiety which is added to the H antigen and further gylcosylate the A or/and B antigens. H antigen is a basic blood group antigen present in each and every human being but the content varies in different individuals of the same ABO group. A general pattern indicates that its strength varies as O>A2>A2B>B>A1>A1B. Water soluble H antigen has been demonstrated in the saliva and the body fluids of the individuals.H antigens are fucose containing glycan units which are present on the glycolipids or glycoproteins residing on the erythrocytes membrane or in the secretions. The fucosylatedglycans are the substrate for the enzyme glycosytransferases that are responsible for the formation of the Lewis and A, B blood group antigen epitopes. Secretors contain both the alleles whereas non secretor contains the null allele for FUT2 gene. The FUT 2 gene codes for fucosyltranferaseenzyme in the exocrine tissues which lead to formation of antigens in the body secretions and body fluids. The A and B genes produce glycosyltranferase that add sugar to oligosaccharide chains that is converted to H antigen. The H antigen are constructed on the oligosaccharide chain. The oligosaccharide chains could be of two type : Type 1 and type 2. The glycosphingolipids present in the plasma and on the membranes of glandular and parenchymal cells and glycoproteins present on the cell surfaces or body fluids carry either the type 1 or type 2 chains. The glycolipids antigens present on the RBC contain type 2 chains. A gene encodes N-acetyl-galactosaminyl-transferase and B gene-encodes galactosaminyl-transferase and add   GalNAc   and  Gal   in alpha (1-3) linkages which is acts on the H gene transferase. The H gene produces fucosyltransferase that add fucose to the terminal Galactose molecule of type 2 chain. It forms an alpha (1-2) linkage. A and B antigens are constructed when the A and B transferases attach respective sugars to the type 1 or type 2 chain substituted with Fucose. The secretor gene FUT2 located at 19q13.3 and codes for the activity of the glycosyltransferasesin concert with the FUT1 gene coding for H antigen, needed to assemble both the ABO and Lewis blood group and are active in mucous gland and goblet cells which interact with each other and lead to secretions of antigens in the fluids. The expression patterns of both the genes are different. The FUT1 (H) gene is dominantly expressed in the erythroid tissues which lead to the formation of the H enzyme whereas the FUT2 (secretor) gene is expressed in the secretory tissues and lead to the formation of secretor enzyme. The product of the H enzyme or H gene resides on the erythrocytes and product of secretor gene resides on mucins in secretions. If an individual lack these alleles, he/she will not be able to express the above active enzymes therefore they would be deficient of the substrates which are required by the A or B glycosyltransferases. Therefore they would not express the A and B epitopes. Correlation between Lewis Phenotype and ABH Secretor status The Lewis typing also helps in finding the ABH secretor status. The production of Lewis antigens is genetically controlled. Individuals possessing the Lewis (Le) gene would produce the Lewis antigens which are carried in the plasma by different substances and are absorbed onto the Red blood Cells present in ones blood. The ABO determinants and H/h blood groups factors seem to show structurally corelation to Lewis blood determinants. FUT1 provide the glycans for glycosyltransferases which convert Lewis antigen to ABH antigens. FUT2 allele is expressed in the secretor and is responsible for the expression of type1 H determinant. The secretors convert their Lewis a antigen to Lewis b therefore they are (a-b+) and the non-secretor are (a+b-) as they lack the FUT2 responsible for glycosyltransferase which could convert Lewis a antigen to Lewis b antigen. Lewis (Le) gene and Secreting (Se) gene interact with each other. Initially Lewisais formed and if Se gene is absent in an individual the Lewisa substance is absorbed on the RBC and the individual is typed as Lewisa but in secretors the Se gene controls the activation of the H gene which causes addition of an additional sugar to Lewisa which convert it to Lewisb. Secretors contain both Lewisa and Lewisb in their plasma but absorb Lewisb preferentially on the red blood cells and the individual is typed as Lewisb. Hence we could interpret that presence of Lewis gene would type an individual as Lewisa positive or Lewisb negative or vice versa. An individual could not be positive for both. A person containing both Lewis gene and Secreting gene are typed as Lewisa negative and Lewisb positive whereas a person having the Lewis gene but not the secretor gene is typed as Lewisa positive and Lewisb negative. Individual who does not have Lewis gene regardless of secretor gene is typed as Lewisa negative and Lewisb negative. Note: Lewis Double Negative (LDN) is a sub type of non secretors but Lewis typing cannot be used for them to determine the ABH secretor status. Detection methods The presence and absence of the antigens in the body fluids could be detected by Agglutination Inhibition and Lewis typing. Agglutination Inhibition test could be divided into two parts:- Part I Antibody Neutralization: To determining ones secretor status, the saliva of the individual is mixed by the antiserum (Anti-A, Anti-B or Anti-H) available commercially. In secretors the soluble substances i.e. blood group antigens will react with the antibodies present in the antiserum and will get neutralized. Part II Agglutination Inhibition: The bed blood cells obtained commercially are added to the test mixture. In secretors agglutination of the RBC do not take place as no free antibodies are available to agglutinate them. All the antibodies have reacted with the soluble antigens present in the saliva whereas in non-secretors agglutination would occur upon addition of the RBC as no blood group antigens are present in the saliva so antibodies present in the antiserum are not neutralized and hence would be free to react with the test RBC cells which are added to the test mixture. Hence agglutination is a negative test for secretor status and positive test for the non-secretor status. Note: Anti-H lectin containing phytohaemagglutinin virtually specific for human RBC. Thirteen Cucurbitaceaespecies have been investigated for the anti-H activity present in their seed lectins. Lectins has been extracted and purified from Ulexeuropaeus seeds. It could be used to demonstrate the H secretor status of blood group O individual and also for subgrouping the blood group A individuals. Lewis typing: Individuals carrying the Lewis gene produce Lewis antigens that are carried by the plasma and are also adsorbed on the red blood cells. Lewis antigens do not reside only on the red blood cells. Initially the gene gives rise to Lewisa. If Se gene is present it activates H gene which interact with the Lewisa and add a sugar to Lewisa and hence get converted it to Lewisb. Both Lewisa and Lewisb in present in the plasma of the secretors. If the Se gene is not present then the Lewisa substance is adsorbed on the red cells and individuals are typed as Lewisa. The secretor status of an individual could be determined with help of Lewisa and Lewisb antibodies mixed with an individuals saliva and observing the agglutination macroscopically. Disease Susceptibility among Secretors and Non-secretors Digestive system Non-secretors are more prone to the diseases caused by the oral bacteria in the digestive system of an individual. It includes ulcers, celiac diseases gastric carcinoma pernicious anemia etc. It could lead to dysplasia or increase in the number of cavities present in the digestive tract. Non-secretors are less resistant to the infection caused by Helicobacter pylori which could lead to the formation of peptic and duodenal ulcers. It could easily colonize and cause inflammation in the non-secretors. The non-secretors lack the blood group antigens in the mucus secretions therefore H.pylori attach to the walls of the digestive tract and cause infection. The secretors have a tendency to secrete free ABH antigens in their intestinal secretions which effect the bacterial and lectins adherence to the microvilli present in the gut. The secretors produce these antigens and prevent H.pylori attachment. These antigens act as a decoy in the secretors which prevent them from attaching with the ho st tissues. The non-secretors also show a lower IgG immune response to the H.pylori. They have extreme rate of bleeding and stomach ulcers but correlation between these complications and the secretor status have not been documented yet. The non-secretors are not able to turn off the digestive enzymes and hence they produce large amount of enzyme pepsin and hence are more prone to duodenal ulcers. 50% of the duodenal ulcers are present in non-secretors. 30-40% of group O individuals are affected by the duodenal ulcers and 15- 20 % are affected by the gastric ulcers. They show a high risk factor along with the gene coding for hyperpepsinogenemia I which impact in the risk of duodenal ulcers. Group A individuals have a higher tendency of having gastric cancer and pernicious anemia. Statistics shows that 20% of the group A individuals are affected by gastric cancers and 25% are affected by the pernicious anemia. Oral pathology The non-secretors are more prone to oral diseases like mouth and esophagus cancer, epithelial dysplasia etc. They have more cavities than secretors. Diabetes The ABH non-secretors and Lewis negative (Le a-b-) individuals have a high risk of developing insulin dependent diabetes or complications arising from diabetes. Secretors with juvenile diabetes have a low chance of developing retinopathy. The ABH non secretors which are affected by insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, they show mean levels of C3c and C4 is lower as compared to ABH secretors. Metabolic Syndrome X The Lewis negative men are predisposing to syndrome X and prothrombic metabolism. They have high levels of BMI, SBP, triglycerides and low levels of insulin in serum and plasma glucose while fasting. This relationship is not true for women and is only applicable for the men. Respiratory System   Secretors have an added protection against the harmful environmental assaults directed towards our lungs and as usual non-secretors have a health disadvantage. They are over represented among the people suffering from influenza viruses A and B, rhinoviruses, respiratory synsytial virus and echinoviruses. The secretors who are miners or smokers do receive a protection against the disastrous effects of the cigarette smoking. Asthma is very common among the individuals working in the coal mines. Upon research it was concluded that asthma among them is also related to the non-secretor phenotype present in them. The non-secretor has a tendency to snore and are more prone to COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease). Heart disease The ABH non-secretor phenotype have a high risk of developing myocardial infarction and Lewis negative individuals have a high risk of developing chronic heart disease (CHD) and also ischemic heart disease (IHD). They contain high levels of triglycerides. Alcoholism has a positive interaction with the Lewis negative individuals. Alcohol consumption is protective in these individuals. Autoimmune Disease   Autoimmune disorders such as Sjogrens syndrome, spondylitis, sclerosis, arthropathy, arthritis, and Graves disease are more prone in non-secretors. The ABH non-secretors affected with graves disease produces high levels of antitubulin antibodies as compared to secretors and are unable to produce the water soluble glycoproteins in the saliva. Fetal Loss and Infertility ABO antigens are also found on the sperm of the secretors. These are obtained from the seminal secretions present in them. ABO incompatibility could exist between the wife and husband if could affect the fertility of an individual. This issue has not been properly studied and is therefore under research. Rheumatic Fever The secretors and group O individuals are resistant to Rheumatic fever and more number of cases have been recorded in the non-secretors. Secretor status could also determine whether the rheumatic fever would be followed by streptococcal pharyngitis or not. Neisseria species The non-secretors who do not produce water soluble antigens in the saliva are at the risk of getting infected by Neisseria meningcococcal disease. The immune capabilities of the secretor provide a relative protection in the secretors. The ABH non-secretors produce low level of anti-meningococcal salivary IgM antibodies which provide protection to the secretors against the microorganism. Candida species Non-secretors are barriers of candida species and therefore are frequently affected by the candida infections. The glycocompounds secreted by secretors in the body fluids inhibit adhesins present on the yeast which are responsible for their adhesion with the body tissues. This leads to the development of the chronic hyperplastic Candidiasis. Statistics shows that 68% on the non-secretors are affected by chronic hyperplastic candidiasis. Non-secretor women are affected by recurrent idiopathic vulvovaginal Candidiasis. An individual with a combination of non-secretors and absence of Lewis gene are at relative risk of developing recurrent idiopathic vulvovaginal Candidiasis. Tumor Markers The individuals with homozygous active Le alleles (Le/Le) and inactive (se/se) alleles shows a highest mean value of CA19-9 tumor marker. The Lewis negative individuals irrespective of Se genotype have negative values for CA19-9. The Lewis negative individuals have higher mean value for DU PAN-2 as compared to Le-positive individuals. We can conclude that CA 19-9 marker is not an appropriate tumor marker for Le-negative individuals but DU-PAN-9 is an appropriate tumor marker. UTI Non-secretors show a higher risk of getting recurrent urinary tract infection (UTI) and renal scars as compared to secretors. This susceptibility is higher among negative Lewis subset. Statistics of a study done on women affected with recurrent urinary tract infection stated that 29% of the non-secretor women were affected by UTI and 26% of Lewis (a-b-) women were affected by the UTI. The non-secretor phenotype and blood group B and AB phenotype work together to increase the risk of UTI among women. Women and children suffering from renal scarring with and without the antibiotic treatment for UTI are prone to UTI and pyelonephritis. 55-60% of non-secretors develop renal scars and 16% on secretors develop renal scars. C-reactive protein levels, erythrocyte sedimentation rate and body temperature are higher in the non-secretors that in secretors with recurrent UTI. Conclusion It concludes that there exist a statistical association between the individuals blood-group secretor phenotype and the diseases they are susceptible to. So knowing your secretor status is advantageous as we can use the nutritional supplements more intelligently and effectively. It also makes us aware of the diseases, illness and metabolic dysfunction we are prone to, difference in the levels of intestinal alkaline phosphatase activity, propensities towards blood clotting, tumor markers and different ingredients of breast milk so that we can manage them before hand and would be prepared for them in the near future.

The Concept Of Csr Business Essay

The Concept Of Csr Business Essay 2.2 The History of CSR through the Centuries. The Business Relations, Accountability, Sustainability and Society Centre, known as BRASS, in its report History of Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability (2007), states that The history of social and environmental concern about business is as old as trade and business itself. Commercial logging operations for example, together with laws to protect forests, can both be traced back almost 5,000 years. In Ancient Mesopotamia around 1700 BC, King Hammurabi introduced a code in which builders, innkeepers or farmers were put to death if their negligence caused the deaths of others, or major inconvenience to local citizens. In Ancient Rome senators grumbled about the failure of businesses to contribute sufficient taxes to fund their military campaigns, while in 1622 disgruntled shareholders in the Dutch East India Company started issuing pamphlets complaining about management secrecy and self-enrichment . Moving further, Eberstadt (1977) claims in his study that phenomena of social responsibility were already presented in the ancient Greece, while todays corporate responsibility movement is an attempt to restore a 2,000-year-old tradition of businesses being connected to the community (cited in Panwar, Rinne, Hansen Juslin, 2006). In the 18th century the businesses started to anticipate that having an efficient labour force was essential for the successful delivery of their activities. During that period Adam Smith, the great moral philosopher and pioneer in economics, present for the first time the traditional or classical economic model. The model suggested that the needs and the interests of the public would best be met if the individuals act in self-interest manner. Driven by their own self-interests, the individuals would produce and deliver goods and services which would earn them profit, but also meet the needs of the others (Fernando, 2009). According to Brown (2005), the companies in order to keep their employees satisfied, because of the negative effects that the lack of food, housing and healthcare had in the labour force efficiency, they started to invest in housing, healthcare and nourishment. Thus, the worker villages of the industrial revolution, company medical facilities and the subsidized wor ks canteen appeared. That action of social philanthropy by the companies can be considered as the forerunner of the modern day CSR. Sims (2003) claims that the contemporary CSR originated back to the beginning of the 20th century and is based upon two principles. The first, the principle of charity, is based on religious tradition and suggests that those who are well financially should give to those with difficulties. The second one, the principle of stewardship, says that the organisations have an obligation to serve the society and satisfy the publics needs since their wealth and the power that they have springs through their activities within the society. This second principle had an impact on affected how companies were faced by governments, press and other groups and led to the conduction of new more socially responsible laws. The turn of the businesses to the society and the development of a more societal thinking led the organisations to increase their responsibility and consideration for both social and environmental well-being. This response to environmental and social matters by the corporations is what it is known today as Corporate Social Responsibility (Panwar et al., 2006). 2.3 Definitions of Corporate Social Responsibility The rise of the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility during the past decades resulted to the continuous debate about the exact meaning of the term. The only generally accepted view about the term CSR is that is a concept which covers several aspects. Frankental (2001), comments that CSR is a vague and intangible term which can mean anything to anybody, and therefore is effectively without meaning. Castka, Bamber, Bamber and Sharp (2004) argue that there is no single authoritative definition of CSR. The CSR concept seems to be a loosely defined umbrella embracing a vast number of concepts traditionally framed as environmental concerns, sustainable development public relations, corporate philanthropy, human resource management and community relations. During the examination of various literatures it can be seen that there is not a single generally accepted definition, although many authors and worldwide institutions defined the term CSR in similar ways. The first academically accepted definition of CSR can be found in the book Social Responsibilities of the Businessman, written by Howard Bowen in 1953. Bowen defines CSR as an obligation to pursue those policies, to make those decisions, or to follow those lines of action that are desirable in terms of the objectives and values of our society (cited in Panwar et al., 2006). Carroll (2004) argues that the social responsibility of businesses encompasses the economic, legal, ethical, and discretionary (philanthropic) expectations that society has of organizations at a given point in time, while Buhmann (2006) simply defines CSR as doing more than what is required by law. Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2005), define CSR as the ways in which an organisation exceeds its minimum obligations to stakeholders specified through regulation. The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) defines CSR as the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as the local community and society at large (cited in Castka et al., 2004). Finally, the internationally known law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in the report The Development and Impact of CSR on the Construction Industry (2006), defines CSR as the voluntary integration of environmental, social and human rights considerations into business operations, over and above legal requirements and contractual obligations. To conclude, it can be clearly seen that the base line of the above definitions is the volunteering obligation that the organisations must have over their employees and their families, the environment and the general public which sometimes may go further their legal requirements. 2.4 Layers of Corporate Social Responsibility According to Sachs, Ruhli, and Mittnacht (2005) the probably best known economic paradigm that prepare the ground for further research on the concept of CSR is the Carroll Pyramid (Figure 1). FIGURE 1 Carroll (1991) suggests that there are four kind of social responsibilities that an organisation should take into account while conducting its activities and those responsibilities constitute total CSR. Those four social responsibilities of an organisation were presented into a four-layered pyramid model, called The Pyramid of Responsibilities. The four layers of responsibilities are economical, legal, ethical and philanthropic. The bottom layer and the foundation of the pyramid is the Economic Responsibilities. The business must be profitable in order to keep its shareholders satisfied, produce goods and services necessary to the consumers and be able to create new jobs and promote innovation. The second layer of responsibilities is the legal and is all about following the law. The businesses should not only be profit driven but at the same time they must respect the laws and regulations produced by government and it is expected that the businesses would keep their economic activities inside the framework of the law and pay by the rules of the game. The ethical responsibilities are related to fairness and morality. The peoples rights and beliefs must be respected, any kind of harm, physical or social, must be avoided and any harm caused by others must be prevented. The last layer is the philanthropic responsibilities which urge the businesses to be good corporate citizens. The businesses through their activities must contribute resources to the community and most importantly must be able to help to improvement of the quality of life. Carroll placed the four layers of responsibility in a pyramid in order to show the strong connection between the four kinds of responsibilities. If a kind of responsibility in the pyramid model is absent then the ones above cannot be achieved. Lantos (2001) characterises the Carrolls pyramid model of CSR as altruistic or humanitarian and argued that the firm will be good to use it as marketing too in order to promote its image. Following this view Lantos (2001) proposes a new model of responsibilities by reclassifying Carrolls pyramid from four to three layers. The first layer of Lantos model is the Ethical CSR and includes economic, legal and ethical responsibilities as one group. The second layer is the Altruistic CSR which is equal to Carrolls philanthropic layer and suggests that businesses must contribute to the community even if a part of the profits must be sacrificed. The last layer of Lantos model is the Strategic CSR where businesses are fulfilling their philanthropic responsibilities not only because of generosity but also because they expect financial returns from the positive publicity. 2.5 Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility are two close related concepts but they are not identical. As it can be seen Business Ethics play a very important role in Carrolls Pyramid of responsibilities as Ethics Responsibilities are placed in the second highest layer. Both concepts refer to values, goals and decision making based on something more than just making a profit (Mullerat, 2010). In general terms the bottom line of ethics is individually doing the right thing while avoid evil and harmful actions for you and the others in your activities. On the other hand CSR is more about the obligations that an organisation must have over its stakeholders than just its shareholders. A socially responsible organisation must act ethically (Mullerat, 2010). Phatak, Bhagat and Kashlak (2005) define Business Ethics as the moral thinking and analysis by corporate decision-makers and other members regarding the motives and consequences of their decisions and actions. Furthermore, Ferrell and Fraedrich (1998) add that business ethics compromises moral principles and standards that guide behaviour in the world of business. The concept of Business Ethics is vital for every self-respected organisation and this is why many companies today develop codes of ethics and make commitments about their ethical behaviour to the public (Fisher, 2003). According to Seitel (2001), the organisations develop ethics codes in order to: Increase public confidence: Due to various scandals, mainly concerning corruption and briberies inside organisations, the publics trust for businesses has been declined. Thus, companies have decided to adopt the ethics code in order to improve their image. Stem the tight of regulation: Due to the declining trust and confidence of the public for businesses, the governments increased their legislations and regulations in order to reverse the situation. The companies adopted the ethics codes in order to show that they have ethical behaviour and can be trusted. Improve internal regulations: Due to the increase of the size of organisations and the development of multinational operations it is essential that some codes of conduct must be created in order to have the same behaviour standards among the employees. Business ethics depend on two main factors, culture and time (Svensson and Wood, 2003). The business environment culture is influenced by traditions, religion, ethical values and individuals and can be defined as what is accepted and what is unaccepted. The companys success can be affected if different opinions, that is to say different cultures, cannot be adopted satisfactory by the organisation. Additionally, what is accepted and what is unaccepted can be affected by the business time element. The business world is a fast changing environment and what is considered ethical today it can turn out to be unethical tomorrow. As it can be seen the success or the failure of a business is closely connected with ethics and that is why Business Ethics must be used as a corporate philosophy rather than a corporate code in every organisation. To conclude, Johnson et al. (2005) argue that the societys expectations, which have major influence on companies and organisations, are based on three levels of Business Ethics. The macro level is the first one and is related to the ethical posture of the company. Simply, the macro level is related to the extent in which the organisations are willing to do more than their legal requirements in order to satisfy their stakeholders. The second one is a part of the macro level and is the Corporate Social Responsibility level. This level is concerned the ability of organisations to surpass the minimum requirements needed in order to maintain the organisations ethical stance. The individual or managerial level is the last level of Business Ethics. This is a very important level since is connected with the behaviour and actions of individuals inside the organisation. 2.6 Drivers of Corporate Social Responsibility The current momentum behind Corporate Social Responsibility is being built based on a variety of very important factors. Ernst and Young (2002) mention that there are five key drivers which encourage the increasing business focus on CSR. These are: (1) greater stakeholder awareness of corporate ethical, social and environmental behaviour, (2) direct stakeholder pressures, (3) investor pressure, (4) peer pressure and (5) an increased sense of social responsibility (cited in Jones, Comfort and Hillier, 2006). Panwar et al. (2006), argue that there are diverse motivations that lead to the adoption of CSR by the organisations. For example a business is adopting CSR in order to meet mandatory legal requirements aimed at controlling destructive business practices while another business is using CSR in order to increase its productivity and improve its financial performance. It is also suggested that a company by using CSR in its practises can improve functional areas such as market positioning and risk management. According to Wood (1991), the concept of CSR is being driven by three major principles. Firstly, businesses are obliged to use their power responsibly since they are above all social institutions. Secondly, the responsibility for the outcomes of the involvement with the public is upon businesses. Lastly, discretion must be exercised in decision making processes by the individual managers who are also moral agents. Andriof and McIntosh (2001) believe that the driving force behind the concept of CSR is the consumers and employees. These two categories are holding the power in the market system nowadays. Consumers and employees are now well informed about the several challenges the world has to face and they do not really believe that the governments can change things. They accept that corporations are the most powerful social institutions of the present era and most importantly they are willing to reward those corporations who are responsive to their concerns. Finally, Girod and Bryane (2003) use a strategic marketing view arguing that CSR is a key tool to create, develop and sustain differentiated brand names. Furthermore, the Commission of the European Communities (2002) argues that the organisations in order to better respond to the fundamental changes in the overall business environment they adopted CSR and used it as an important element in new and emerging forms of governance. These changes include globalisation and the responsibilities companies feel the need to address, as they increasingly source products and services in developing countries; the issues of image and reputation, which have become increasingly important elements in corporate success; and the need for companies to recruit and retain highly skilled personnel (cited in Jones, et al., 2006). 2.7 Benefits of Corporate Social Responsibility Many organisations are using nowadays CSR as a marketing tool due to the fact that the implementation of CSR practices can bring to the organisation a wide range of potential benefits, both direct and indirect. The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has said that implementing a CSR policy, can bring real business benefits by reducing risk, by enhancing brand value, by opening doors and creating good will, and by improving staff efficiency and morale. It can also attract stable and ethical investment and add competitive edge (Chartered Institute of Building, Report) According to Mackey, Mackey Barney (2005) in the case that a company surpasses the minimum CSR requirements then the potential benefits can lead to a positive effect to the companys performance and value. Gildea (1994) and Zaman et al. (1991), stress out that research has shown that companies that care for the environment and exhibit good CSR practices experience increased consumer purchase preference in addition to increased investment appeal (cited in Panwar et al., 2006). Many consumers prefer to buy for ethical business. A survey conducted by Cone Inc. (2004) showed that 91% of the consumers have a more positive image of a product or a company when it supports a cause. The 90% of the consumers would consider switching to another companys product or services if they found out about a companys any unlawful or unethical practises. In addition, Muckiewicz (1993) supports that the reputation of an organisation plays a vital role as research studies show that 9 out of 10 consumers use it in order to decide which product or service they will buy from those that are similar in price and quality. According to Bernstein (2004), CSR benefits both the company and the community. Due to use of CSR the corporate culture and corporate name of the company can be improved significantly thus the best employees can be attracted and the motivation of the workforce will remain in high levels. The society benefits from CSR practices as well through a variety of services and action, though the company has to create some sort of societal benefit in order to be called socially responsible. Some of the potential benefits that a business can have from the use of CSR practices can include improved financial performance and profitability; reduced operating costs; long-term sustainability for companies and their employees; increased staff commitment and involvement; enhanced capacity to innovate; good relations with government and communities; better risk and crisis management; enhanced reputation and brand value; and the development of closer links with customers and greater awareness of their needs (cited in Jones et al., 2006) . Table 1 presents a summary of business benefits of CSR. TABLE 1 Concluding, it must be noted that the benefits from the adoption of CSR practises can never be predicted or be constant since each company operates in a different and always changing environment. Barnett (2007) adds that this unpredictability could lead to limited support for CSR initiatives from the board, in times of financial instability. Thus, the business case supporting CSR has to be specific for every company and based on Rowley and Berman (2000) CSR achievements of an organisation cannot be collated against some standards, since those does not exist. Furthermore, McWilliams and Siegel (2001) point out that the potential existence of those standards would allow CSR to be considered as part of the investment decisions, as the company would be able to make judgements for its business case in a more formal way. 2.8 Criticism against Corporate Social Responsibility The concept of CSR, as it can be seen from the various definitions presented on previous paragraphs, is based upon the principle that businesses do have another responsibility than just making profits. Every organisation has a responsibility towards the society, its people and the environment as well. At the same time, many are those who are opposed the idea of integrating CSR practices into their corporations and they believe that shareholders interest can be conflicted by operating a good business. Dr Milton Friedmann (1970), a renowned economist, in his article The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits affirms that there is one and only one social responsibility of business is to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game, which is to say engages in open and free competition without deception or fraud. According to his economic model the organisation is an economic institution which should only focus in the economic scope. Organisations are seen purely as legal entities incapable of value decisions. A manager who uses a firms resources for non-profit social purposes is thought to be diverting economic efficiency and levying an illegal tax on the organisation (Balabanis, Phillips and Lyall, 1998). Following this view Dr Robert Barrington (2008) states that the managers are concentrated on soft issues rather than hard issues of the bottom line and this is something that is costing money to the shareholders. Moving further Frankental (2001), conclude that CSR is simply a public relations invention and it will remain like this. He believes that CSR can only have real substance if it embraces all the stakeholders of a company, if it is reinforced by changes in company law relating to governance, if it is rewarded by financial markets, if its definition relates to the goals of social and ecological sustainability, if its implementation is benchmarked and audited, if it is open to public scrutiny, if the compliance mechanisms are in place, and if it is embedded across the organisation horizontally and vertically. Henderson (2001) after the examination of various issues related to the concept of CSR comments that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦the current widely-held doctrine of CSR is deeply flawed. It rests on a mistaken view of issues and events, and its general adoption by businesses would reduce welfare and undermine the market economy. In the same motion Moir (2001) suggests that those who adopt the neoclassical model of business would follow the view that the only social responsibilities that a corporation can have are to provide employment, pay taxes and mainly to maximise its profits; therefore, maximise its shareholders value. On the other extreme of the arguments above, Dave Packard, the co-founder of Hewlett Packard Company once said I think many people assume, wrongly, that a company exists simply to make money. While this is an important result of a companys existence, we have to go deeper and find the real reasons for our beingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. We inevitably come to the conclusion that a group of people get together and exist as an institution that we call a company so that they are able to accomplish something collectively that they could not accomplish separately they make a contribution to society (cited in Handy, 2002). Concluding, Freeman (1984) argues that a corporation is wrong to be seen just as a private economic institution, as it was suggested by Friedman (1970), but it has to be also seen as a social institution. This way, corporations would be responsible for any of their actions against the people, the community and the environment. Based on his Stakeholder Theory, companies operations should not be based on the interests of their shareholders but they have to be based on the interested of their stakeholders. 2.9 Corporate Social Responsibility and Stakeholders The definition given about the concept of CSR from Johnson et al. (2005) includes the words obligations to stakeholders, which indicates that stakeholders have an important role to play in this extent. Freeman (1984), the father of the Stakeholder Theory of the firm, defines stakeholders as any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of the organizations objectives. The Stakeholder Theory of the firm is used as a basis to analyse those groups to whom the firm should be responsible (Moir, 2001). The identification of the different stakeholder groups of the organisation is extremely important during the implementation of CSR practices. Usually the stakeholder groups are separated into primary and secondary stakeholders. According to Clarkson (1995) a primary stakeholder group is one without whose continuing participation the corporation cannot survive as a going concern, while a secondary stakeholder group is those who influence or affect, or are influenced or affected by the corporation, but they are not engaged in transactions with the corporation and are not essential for its survival. Based on those definitions a primary stakeholder group contains shareholders and investors, employees, customers, suppliers, governments and communities. The secondary stakeholder group includes the media and a wide range of special interest groups (Clarkson, 1995). According to Freemans (1984) definition of stakeholders the relation between the company and its stakeholders can be described as two-way. Castka et al. (2006) support the view that the implementation of CSR is all about the right choices and strategic decisions and comment that the dilemmas that an organisations stakeholders can have are which choices and decision must choose in order to satisfy. Berman, Wicks, Kotha and Jones (1999), in order to find a solution for those dilemmas, derived two distinct stakeholder management approaches; the instrumental and the normative approach. The first, instrumental approach, suggests that concern for stakeholders is motivated by the perception that financial performance can be improved. The second, intrinsic stakeholder commitment approach, assumes that organisations have a normative (moral) commitment to advance stakeholders interests (Castka et al. 2006). The instrumental approach was the one empirically supported in Berman et al. (1999) res earch while Harrison and Freeman (1999) mention that the conduction of more research is essential in order to clarify the model of the normative approach. Although further research is required it can be clearly anticipated, through the examination of various literature, that the instrumental approach is the most desirable among researchers. McWilliams and Siegel (2001) suggest that corporations need to carefully consider in which aspects of the CSR to invest in and they comment that by using cost-benefit analysis the managers can ideally determine the level of CSR. Additionally, Agle, Mitchell and Sonnenfeld (1999) argue that the decision to make a CSR investment is driven by the needs of the most powerful stakeholders within the organisation, such as top management staff and is usually connected with their desire to gain more profits and increase the shareholders value. Finally Castka et al (2004) believe that the purpose of CSR is an investment and it must be considered and treated like one. Moving further they suggest that the balance between the need for maximizing profit from CSR and the demand for CSR from multiple stakeholders is the key to a core return on investment in CSR (Figure 2). In order to achieve this balance stakeholders expectations should be assessed and examined through dialogues and must be translated and included into the companys strategy plan. FIGURE 2 2.10 Areas of Corporate Social Responsibility Andriof and McIntosh (2001) write that CSR is not chequebook philanthropy, nor a study based on business ethics. They argue that the concept of CSR can be described as a vision that corporate leaders have for their business which is beyond of just making profits. CSR has an impact on every activity of the company and can affect areas either inside or outside the company. According to Andriof and McIntosh (2001) the four distinct areas that CSR encompasses are: The Community The Environment The Marketplace The Workplace By operating within these four areas companies can conduct specific programmes and make the difference and can actively monitor, evaluate and change their effects of their activities. The implementation of CSR and the thinking behind becoming involved in these areas represents the new way of doing business. 2.11 Activities of Corporate Social Responsibility The concept of CSR can be divided into many and diverse domains. Sen and Bhattacharya (2001) provide six broad domains of CSR activities, based on a comprehensive summarisation of CSR domains contained in Socrates: The Corporate Social Ratings Monitor (Kinder, Lydenberg, Domini Co. Inc. 1999), a database that describes and rates more than 600 companies in terms of their CSR records. These domains of CSR activities are: Community Support: The company provides support to the community with the use of health and educational and housing programs for financially disadvantaged. The generous and innovative giving is promoted Diversity: The company provides initiatives for sex, race, family, sexual orientation and disability diversity Employee Support: The company promotes health and safety, ensures job security and profit sharing, develops relations with the labour unions and allows employees involvement. Environment: The company avoids the use of hazardous waste management techniques, uses and produces environmental friendly products, develops pollution control and recycling techniques. Non-domestic Operations: The company prevents operations in countries where human right violations occur or unhealthy labour practices take place. Product: The company produces safe product and promotes research and development and innovation. Following the same line Johnson et al (2005) present a checklist of the organisations responsibilities. Those responsibilities are divided into two categories, the internal and the external aspects of CSR, based on the areas that the organisations activities can affect. Internal aspects of the companys activities can include employee welfare, working conditions, job design and intellectual property. External aspects of activities can include environmental issues, products, markets and marketing, suppliers, employment, community activity and human rights. 2.12 Factors influencing Corporate Social Responsibility

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Table of Contents Background 1 Aim 1 Objectives 1 Limitations/Scope 1 Evaluation of Steel Co Performance and Reward System 2 Performance and Reward management Tools 3 Pay Structure 5 Performance and Reward for different groups 6 Conclusion 7 Recommendations 7 References 8 Background The company Steel Co, which has been established for around 30 years, has been in a steady decline during the current recession and although a Divisional Director has been employed by the owner the fortunes of the company have not improved. The staff is unhappy, unproductive and unimpressed by the Human Resource system that currently exists in the company. The pay structure that currently exists within the organisation has been much debated among employees who feel it is unsatisfactory. The Business Adviser will research Performance and Reward management tools in order to help the company develop a more suitable Performance and Reward system to use. A variety of sources will be used in order to evaluate the system and tools against other organisational frameworks. The pay structure within the company will also be looked at in order to identify any possible changes that could be made. Aim The aim of this report is to evaluate current Human Resource Practices within Steel Co and identify weaknesses that the current model possesses. Performance and Reward management tools available will be evaluated in order to make recommendations on how the Management tools could compliment the system that Steel Co currently employs. Objectives To achieve the aim of this report there are 4 Objectives which are considered: 1. Evaluate the Performance and Reward model that the company currently uses in order to identify weaknesses and areas whe... ...ng conditions as well as overall organisational performance. Due to being intrinsic rather than extrinsic the company does not incur a high cost and thus would be able to retain and motivate employees further. References Works Cited http://www.businessballs.com/balanced_scorecard.htm http://www.tatasteeleurope.com/en/careers/general_vacancies/benefits/ http://www.nationalforum.com/Electronic%20Journal%20Volumes/Lunenburg,%20Fred%20C.%20Goal-Setting%20Theoryof%20Motivation%20IJMBA%20V15%20N1%202011.pdf http://www.cimaglobal.com/Documents/ImportedDocuments/Tech_rept_Effective_Performance_Mgt_with_Balanced_Scd_July_2005.pdf http://www.allenword.com/360feedbackform-final.pdf http://www.cipd.co.uk/hr-resources/factsheets/pay-structures.aspx#link_3 http://www.benefitsandcompensationresources.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/why-a-family-job-approach.pdf