Of Mice and Men Curley’s Wife

mice When John Steinbeck wrote of mice and men, he showed there was a lot of inequality during the 1930’s. This essay shall attempt to portray the inequality of women in Steinbeck’s novel. George the main character of the story, first sets his eyes on Curley’s wife, his initial impression of her is that he has â€Å"never seen no piece of jail bait worse than her† (Steinbeck 2006 p36). In the novel Curley’s wife is a beautiful woman who constantly shows her beauty to the men on the ranch. She dresses inappropriately for a woman married to the boss’s son. She had full, roughed lips and wide spaced eyes, her fingernails are red and her hair hangs in little rolled clusters, like sausages†. (p34 Steinbeck 2006). Curley’s wife always wanders around the ranch in search for someone to talk to. However, the ranch workers stay wary of her as they believe she will only give them trouble. Curley’s wife is isolated, self absorbed and a dreamer. Curley doesn’t seem to have any respect for his wife at all, Candy tells George (Steinbeck p30) why Curley wears only one glove on his hand which is soaked in Vaseline so it is kept soft for his wife and George finds this disgusting. This is degrading to her as she is just there for his pleasure. She is just a wife who is a trophy to show off hence the saying ‘trophy wife’. Dreams are heavily involved in this book. Like many characters in the book, Curley’s wife also has a dream. She dreams of being a film star. She appears to be trying to get the men into trouble but her dreams and frustrations show that she is lonely like the other people on the ranch. She hated her upbringing, so when a guy told her she had the potential to be a movie star and he would be in touch, finally she found a way out. However, being a young naive girl like she was, she fell for his story and she never heard or even saw the guy again. Instead of Hollywood and all its glam, she ended up marrying young and getting trapped on the ranch. Being the only woman there and no one to talk to makes you emphasise with her and soften towards her and feel her loneliness. Curley is not interested in her dream and there is only one person she tells her dream to and that is Lennie. I think she tells ennie because she knows he doesn’t comprehend what’s going on and it goes through one ear and out the other but at least she’s telling somebody her dream even if they don’t quite understand but ironically the one person she tells is the same person who takes it away for good. John Steinbeck makes very good use of dreams throughout the novel. Each character is shown to have greater depth than we might have expected and we are able to see how lonely and disappointed their lives are through the quite humble ambitions that they have. The men seem to want security in their lives whereas Curley’s wife wants to escape from the boredom and lonesomeness that surrounds her and get rid of the title ‘Curley’s wife’. Although Curley's wife may be considered static, she does not change throughout the novel Curley's wife is essential to the plot. Therefore, she is not simply â€Å"unnamed† because she is unimportant. Curley's wife is unnamed for several reasons. She is first and for most not worthy of a name. A name implies that a relationship can exist. Curley's wife is not capable of a relationship; she is not worthy. With a name also comes identification and familiarity. If we were to feel any sort of empathy for Curley's wife, we may not understand or appreciate Lennie's role in her death. We may actually care that she is dead. There is also the historical role of women in society. As a writer of social issues, Steinbeck wants the reader to recognize the inferior role of women in the world. The lack of name demotes Curley's wife to insignificant status. She is not as important as the men in the story. Curley’s wife is very flirtatious. In fact she is so flirtatious that the farmers refer to her as ‘having the eye’. The men see her in the ranch as the cause of many problems like her husband’s short heated attitude and the fear that they will be sacked. But as the story is about to reach its climax, she begins to add more complexity to her own character by letting Lennie in on her dreams, what she is all about. Here she reveals that she doesn’t have the eye at all but she is just lonely. She says that she dislikes Curley because he is always annoyed and so she comes around the farm to get away and find someone that she can talk to. In this conversation with Lennie she tells him the dream that she had for herself. She dreamed of becoming a famous actress and she would have wanted to live in Hollywood. But just like many of the other characters her dream went unrealised. So instead of being an actress living a glamorous life in Hollywood, she is stuck living in a ranch with a husband that she really doesn’t like, living in a ranch full of loneliness not havin

Stereotypes of Mexicans and Illegal Immigrants

Stereotypes of Mexicans and Illegal Immigrants All Mexicans are landscapers or construction workers and all Mexican women are housekeepers and maids. There are lots of different stereotypes associated with Mexicans. These stereotypes originated when Mexicans began to illegally cross the border from Mexico into the United States. Mexicans wanted to come to this country and live the â€Å"American Dream†. Unfortunately when they arrived here they found it nearly impossible to find a high paying, steady job because no company would hire an illegal immigrant which led them to work into manual labor.Since the majority of Mexicans coming to the United States at that time were illegal immigrants working in manual labor, this is where the stereotype that all Mexicans are landscapers or construction workers came from. Also, that all Mexican women are housekeepers and maids. I was born here in the United States, however my mom is from Guatemala and my dad is from Mexico. Hearing these k inds of stereotypes can be offensive and sometimes even hurtful to me coming from a Mexican background.Years ago my parents had illegally crossed the border from Mexico into the United States by trying to escape from all of the drug trafficking and terrible living conditions that were going on in their countries. It wasn’t easy for them to find a job here since hardly any company would hire an illegal immigrant. After a long time of searching, my dad finally found a job working as a painter at some fancy apartments, and my mom as a housekeeper. Both my parents work hard for what little they earn. Sadly neither of them finished graduating high school due to lack of money.Now it is up to me to make a difference and be the first in my family’s generation to graduate high school and college and live a successful life. I think society has taken a major downturn because of the way stereotypes affect people and how people react to being grouped into one stereotype or another. Today we are very quick to judge others after we find out where they are from, what race they are or how much money they have. I believe this society needs to work on stopping that habit before it goes any further and gets worse.

Born-Alive Infants Protection Act (2002) Should be repeale Research Paper

Born-Alive Infants Protection Act (2002) Should be repeale - Research Paper Example However, because of its definitive character, the BIAPA also has a sweeping effect on U.S. Supreme Court decision on Roe v. Wade, which legalizes abortion. For the proponents of abortion rights, the BIAPA has reduced the legal bounds of abortion. For them and some medical practitioners, there are certain â€Å"situations involving human life (that) sometimes involve complex ethical challenges.† (Religious Tolerance) It is in this respect that the pro-choice camp as well as the advocates of reproductive health rights has raised anew calls for the repeal of the BIAPA. For many years, after the U.S. Supreme Court made a final and executory decision on Roe v. Wade, abortion has been considered legal in the country. The decision is not to be taken as a mere rule that declares abortion as legal. It must be understood in the context that it grants recognition for the rights of women to determine what is best for their reproductive health. It has enshrined such rights alongside the basic freedoms stated in the Constitution. The decision also strengthened the growing international movement for the women’s right to determine their own lives, free from the gender-biased secular and religious regulations. In this regard, Roe vs. Wade is one progressive legal step that makes the U.S. more advanced in terms of providing liberty and respecting the rights of its citizens, especially women, an example that the rest of the modern world can learn from and emulate. However, the BIAPA is not only an obstacle to the advancement of the rights on reproductive h ealth and self-determination. It is actually step backwards to the era prior to Roe v. Wade. While the BIAPA was still a house bill called H.R. 4292, the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League (NARAL) vehemently opposed it. According to them the bill attacks the very essence of Roe v. Wade. The definition of legal personhood as pointed out in the H.R. 4292, extends to premature infants who

False Confessions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

False Confessions - Essay Example It is also a prosecutor’s most compelling weapon (Kassim & Sukel, 1997). A conviction is possible by confession evidence alone. In the process of police interrogation, obtaining a confession is one of the most important aims. A study by Zimbardo (1967) approximated that of the criminal cases solved by the police, over 80 percent are solved by confession. Confessions are a very dominant form of evidence. This is possibly due to observers misattributing the cause of the confession as being internal to the confessor while disregarding situational factors, for instance a possible coercion which may not be apparent to an observer (Gilbert & Malone, 1995). The big question, however, is whether all confessions are authentic. How are we sure that all suspected individuals give true confessions out of their own wish, without duress during the police interrogations? For instance, in Britain, false confessions rank secondly only to mistaken identities as a cause of wrongful conviction among the cases referred to the Court of Appeal. It is unclear how often false confessions result in wrongful convictions. Scholars, however, agree that enough cases have been documented to raise an eyebrow over such a risk. Leo (1998) states three possible reasons why it may be hard to approximate the prevalence of false confessions. They are: The interrogation procedure and interview tactics used the police have changed over the years. Usually, interrogation is not the first step in an investigation. It is not in question, though, that it can be the last substantial step in an investigation. In the process of an investigation, those involved collect scientific evidence as well as human evidence. For instance, witness statements, eyewitness statements, and collateral statements are collected. At this stage, â€Å"interviews† and â€Å"interrogation† are treated as different enterprises. Law enforcement and interrogation training manuals claim interviews are non-custodial (for

Breastfeeding and Population Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 47

Breastfeeding and Population - Assignment Example The mother also loses the protection against the development of ovarian and breast cancer that breastfeeding can give, in a later life. Most recent studies have illustrated breast and ovarian cancer as the greatest population detriments to the female population. There are a number of strategies, which are used to encourage mothers to breastfeed their children. For example, lactation amenorrhea, which relates to natural post-partum fertility that occurs when a woman is not menstruating, is one of the strategies employed to encourage mothers to breastfeed their newborns. Through this, breastfeeding is regarded as a population control technique where women, in the underdeveloped countries, are considerably advised to breastfeed for six months exclusively, by their government and other non-governmental organizations. Most mothers also have different myths associated with pregnancy especially in the rural settings. For example, breastfeeding cannot be relied upon to prevent pregnancy, which evidently is not the case because various scientific studies and experiments have proven this undoubtedly true. Mothers, therefore, are always advised to breastfeed their children exclusively through certain accurate criteria to give perfect results. In many high-income countries, like Australia, women do not exclusively breastfeed infants for the required period of six months as stipulated by the World Health Organization. In many cases, they tend to prefer an early gradual introduction of other forms of nutrition like the infant formulas due to job pre-occupation hence no time for the baby.

Happy employees are more productive Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Happy employees are more productive - Essay Example According to Brickly, Smith and Zimmerman, past studies have shown that happy employees are more interested in meeting organizational objectives (65). Contented workers are usually better-equipped to handle incidences of work-related stress which may arise. They also tend to be fully invested in helping an organization to meet its objectives. Many employees will not commit to remaining for long periods of time with one particular organization. Instead, they seek to learn about the working conditions in different firms so that they may relocate to those which offer the best terms. However, if an employee fully believes that a company is challenging him or her to fully develop his or her potential, it is unlikely that the employee will walk away from such a company even when it experiences hardships, because the worker is emotionally invested in it. This kind of devotion is highly priced in all industries, because it saves the costs of training and hiring additional workers once the mo re experienced ones are attracted to better-performing companies. According to a research that was documented by Brickly, Smith, and Zimmerman, happier workers will invest more of their time and energy in ensuring that they do their best in their allotted tasks (53). The study, which was carried out by Dr Eugenio Proto, Professor Andrew Oswald, and Dr Daniel Sgroi in the University of Warwick, revealed that happier workers are typically 12% more industrious than workers who may be discontented, or even apathetic where their work responsibilities are concerned. In any company, executives have to cultivate a culture of happiness if they wish to benefit from the full focus of the efforts of their workers. In many cases, senior executives imagine that monetary incentives are the only way in which they can truly motivate their workers. However, the reality is that there are many other things that can

Project Progress Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Project Progress - Essay Example This implies that the company is an established brand in the market. According to the company’s risk management plan, the plan has been shortened by two months while the budgetary allocation set aside for risk management is exhausted. The above five occurrences above will have varied ramifications on the operation and profitability of the company. The management must therefore employ specific strategies in order to curb to manage the risks that are always likely to recur. The occurrence of the company’s major risks had varied consequences to the company. Hacking is a global threat that often results in the loss of a company’s most fundamental assets. The company therefore lost its information among other valuable assets all of which resulted in losses for the financial year. The loss of assets through the theft was yet another incident that had similar ramifications as the company lost property worth millions of dollars all of which were part of capital. However, the company had an elaborate risk management plan. A risk management plan should always protect the company’s assets and interests by preventing any form of the identifiable risks. The company invested in risk management by allocating a sizable capital consisting of both financial and human resource. The subsequent manifestations of the specific risks are therefore a portrayal of the failure of the risk management projects. Despite the fact that the manifestation of the risks in the company portrays a failure in the risk management plan, the plan helped mitigate the effects of the risks when they manifested themselves. The management plan for example provided for the backup of the company’s information and the use of appropriate firewalls to protect the company’s database and information system from any form of unauthorized access. The two were essential in mitigating the effects of the hacking since they did not only prevent

What role has human activity played in causing climate change Essay

What role has human activity played in causing climate change - Essay Example Fossil fuels burnt to achieve humanistic objectives raise the extent of such greenhouse gases in the atmosphere as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and chlorofluorocarbons. Besides, rapid deforestation has also contributed to the 30% increase in the extent of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere over the last two centuries which is even expected to double in amount by the end of 21st century should the current practices continue. (Hamburg et al, 1997). Methane, second to carbon dioxide in amount in the atmosphere is generated from rice cultivation and decaying landfills. Human agricultural and industrial activities have drastically increased the amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere which has led to an increase in temperature and ozone depletion. Studies have been conducted on various levels to estimate the human contribution to the change in climate and scientists are of the view that had humans not been involved in the game, Earth’s surface temperature would not ha ve even risen by 0.5C where it is actually foreseen to rise by 3.5C till 2100 since 1991. (Hamburg et al, 1997). Research suggests that humans are chiefly responsible for changes in climate. Hamburg, SP, Harris, N, Jaeger, J, Karl, TR, McFarland, M, Mitchell, JFB, Oppenheimer, M, Santer, BD, Schneider, S, Trenberth, KE and Wigley, TML 1997. â€Å"Common Questions about Climate Change†. United Nations Environment Programme - World Meteorological Organization, viewed 5 September, 2010,

Homework questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Homework questions - Essay Example Scenario planning refers to an analytic model employed by a corporate organization for future predictions regarding corporate strategy (Schoemaker, 2005). Therefore, the process may be employed both locally and globally as a strategic management tool with regard to future trends. For instance, insurance companies may employ scenario planning so as to ascertain the occurrence of certain risks. Cultural values play a crucial role in the management process (Berrell and Wright, 2009). For instance, some leadership aspects may be as a result of the passing of cultural values from one generation to another generation. Other styles may be as a result of westernization processes. Thus, cultural values act as a link between various values such as education, technology and corporate culture. This, in turn, shapes the desired management style, thus, underlining the importance of cultural values in management processes. Through virtual team membership, in completing an Organizational Change Development Project, simulation analysis of the Blue Horizon Cruises allowed us to effectively analyze various cultures that often result in conflict (Berrell and Wright, 2009). This was in reference to the reaction towards capitalistic culture around the world. Thus, different cultural orientations towards this practice were analyzed and appreciated. Through coverage of course, the relationship between social science research methods and practical Organizational Change Development issues was emphasized. This was owed to the relationship between various cultural practices and Organizational Change Development issues (Berrell and Wright, 2009). Thus, we were able to employ various social science research methodological practices in relation to outlining Organizational Change Development issues while also paying attention to various ethical issues. Embracing of the ‘genius of and’ is crucial to the existence of any organization. However, western companies be hindered by

Importance of having a scholarship in Canada Essay

Importance of having a scholarship in Canada - Essay Example In addition to financial and educational benefits, the scholarship provided me with career benefit. Earning a prestigious scholarship makes me a more attractive job candidate. Most employers understand the competitive nature of the scholarship and as such, they recognize scholarship as an accomplishment. It demonstrates to potential employers that I have exceptional abilities in the academic realm. Listing scholarship on my resume helps me to stand out when searching for a job and possibly help me to achieve the career that I want. The scholarship also came with personal benefit; it made a significant difference regarding how much resources and time that I had during college to spend to enhance my knowledge and experience through internships, volunteer opportunities, and service-learning. The security and money afforded by a scholarship allowed me to be more selective regarding how much I spend and how I spend my free time. I am delighted to have studied in Canada as the country prov ided me with an unforgettable experience. As I had mentioned earlier, I am originally from Saudi Arabia and I have lived for a while in the United States. Studying in Canada meant a lot to me; I was able to learn from the leading lecturers and in excellent modern facilities that inspired forward-thinking progress, and innovation. Regardless of the level of education one is pursuing, the cost of education in Canada is affordable and enables one to acquire globally recognized qualifications that will set them on the path to success.... It demonstrates to potential employers that I have exceptional abilities in the academic realm. Listing scholarship in my resume helps me to stand out when searching for a job and possibly help me to achieve the career that I want. The scholarship also came with personal benefit; it made a significant difference regarding how much resources and time that I had during college to spend to enhance my knowledge and experience through internships, volunteer opportunities, and service-learning. The security and money afforded by a scholarship allowed me to be more selective regarding how much I spend and how I spend my free time. I am delighted to have studied in Canada as the country provided me with unforgettable experience. As I had mentioned earlier, I am originally from Saudi Arabia and I have lived for a while in the United States. Therefore, studying in Canada provided me with a completely new form of experience. Studying in Canada meant a lot to me; I was able to learn from the lea ding lecturers and in excellent modern facilities that inspired forward thinking, progress, and innovation. Regardless of the level of education one is pursuing, the cost of education in Canada is affordable and enables one to acquire globally recognized qualifications that will set them on the path to success. I am no different. All my classes in Canada reflected multicultural and diverse society. Canada has high academic standards, as well as rigorous quality controls, which meant that I earned high-quality educational qualifications that will open doors for my future and be of great benefit to my long-term career goals. A Canadian certificate, diploma, or degree is recognized globally as being equivalent to

Challenges Library Management System Essay Example for Free

Challenges Library Management System Essay n 1981, UNESCO published a study prepared by Jean Lunn1 from Canada, Guidelines for Legal Deposit Legislation. His study is now 30 years old since its publication. Many countries have amended or significantly rewritten their legal deposit laws (Germany, Indonesia, and Norway in 1990; France in 1992, Sweden in 1994, Canada in 1995, South Africa in 1997, Denmark in 1998 and Japan Finland in 2000). Others are in the process of doing so (Australia, India, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland and United Kingdom). The forms of intellectual and artistic expressions have grown in different dimensions. New published media have been developed and electronic publications are now an integral part of many national publishing heritages. UNESCO was under pressure to bring out a revised edition of the Guideline in order to review the impact of it on other countries and to incorporate new forms of publishing, such as, electronic publications. The new revised and updated edition of the Guidelines of Legal 2 Deposit Legislation (2000, UNESCO) by Jules Lariviere is found to be a useful tool. The Indian relevant act, Delivery of Books Act 1954 (rev. 1956 to include newspapers and periodicals) has been under the scanner shortly after it was put into application and over the last five decades the National Library, Kolkata and the three other recipient regional public libraries, Connemara Pubic Library, Chennai, Central Library, Town Hall, Mumbai and Delhi Public Library, Delhi, and especially the publishing world directly involved with it, expressed concern and drew attention of the Government of India, of its limitations and ineffectiveness. The National Library, Federation of Indian Publishers (FIP) and several professional library organizations discussed its drawbacks and recommended revision or specific amendments of the act at various seminars, conferences and other forums. Ministry of Culture, the concerned agency of the government of India, set up several committees to deal with the National Library. The Recommendations of the National Knowledge Commission3 and its Working Group on Libraries (NKC-WGL, 2006) is completely silent on this and other national library related issues. It would be appropriate to draw attention to an article by 3. Challenges in Library Management System (CLMS 2012) Bandopadhyay (2000) former Director of the National Library, is exhaustive enough with a complete set of plan of action for the concerned Ministry to initiate the revision process at the earliest. As a follow up, the Ministry took some steps to obtain the views, of other stakeholders, including academics, library users group and senior library professionals. Based on these suggestions / recommendations a revised draft bill on this issue was prepared that is awaiting final clearance of the Ministry since 2006. Role of Legal Deposit Act: In simple terms Legal Deposit is a statutory obligation which requires that any organization, commercial or public, and any individual producing any type of documentation in multiple copies, be obliged to deposit one or more copies with some recognised national institution/s. It is important to make sure that legal deposit legislation covers all kinds of published material, that is, material generally produced in multiple copies and â€Å"offered to the public regardless of the means of transmission. † Public distribution could mean â€Å"performance† or â€Å"display† e.g. radio or television programme could be considered as â€Å"published† for legal deposit purposes when it has been broadcast. Within the electronic publications environment, it should be noted that a â€Å"one copy item† such as, a database , stored on one server, could be subject to legal deposit requirement since it is made available to the public through a technology enabling the public to read, hear or view the material. 5 (Lariviere ). Most countries rely on a legal instrument of some sort in order to ensure the comprehensiveness of their national deposit collection. In all countries with legal deposit system, â€Å"published material† would naturally include books, periodicals, newspapers, microforms, sheet music, maps, brochures, pamphlets, etc. In some countries audio-visual material (sound recordings, films, videos, etc. ) is also subject to legal deposit and there are several countries where electronic publications are also included into the legislation, but they have done this in different way; some have excluded on-line electronic publications because of the numerous unsolved technical problems related to their acquisition and preservation problems related to ever changing technological scenarios. Legal deposit legislation serves a clear national public policy interest by ensuring comprehensive acquisition, recording, preservation and access of a nations published heritage. The role of a legal deposit system is to ensure the development of a national collection of published material in various formats. It should also support the compilation and publication of national bibliography in order to ensure bibliographic control over a comprehensive deposit collection. In addition, an effective legal deposit legislation guarantees to citizens and researchers within the country and abroad, access to research collection of  the national published material. Countries are developing many different models, but are clearly unable to keep pace with the massive changes and challenges related to the deposit of intangible publications. Department of National Heritage6, UK (1997) brought out a consultative paper on current legal deposit of publication issues based on a questionnaire which identified several pertinent issues and posed a number of specific questions to which sought responses from individuals and organizations. This document could also help Indian group and the government agencies in formulating the revised DB Act. Profile of Indian book publishing Before we deal with Indian Delivery of Books Act let us first look at the present trends in book publishing in India. Over the last four decades a large majority of English language publishing has concentrated in and around the capital, Delhi. The city is also a major centre of Hindi publishing industry. With the rapid growth of higher education from 1960s and the pressure built-up within the faculties due to UGCs policy of publish or perish resulted in the increase of publications of research monograph. India is one of the few countries where 4 4. Invited Lectures theses and dissertations submitted for Ph. D. and other similar higher postgraduate degrees in humanities and social sciences particularly, get published as a routine matter, whereas in science and technology this would be a rare phenomenon. There is no reliable source of annual book publishing data in India or any comprehensive list of Indian publishers in different languages. D. N. Malhotra7 (2010), former President of FIP and an established publisher in English and Hindi claimed of having 15,000 20,000 publishing houses, mostly run by individuals or as single family business. According to Vinutha Mallay8 Senior Editor of Mapin Publishing, India is the sixth largest publishing industry in the world with annual growth of 15-20%; third largest publishers of books in English, around 90,000 to 100,000 books are published annually, there are about 19,000 publishers in the country; in addition sixty per cent of global publishing outsourcing is based in India. This growth trend is noticeable only from the 70s onwards when book trade turnover increased gradually due to numerical growth of educational and research institutions at every level. As we look back a few decades, the demand of English books grew fast in libraries of newly established universities, research institutions and other academic centres. Individual buyers of books constitute only a small percentage. Bulk of the titles was imported from the English speaking countries, mostly from the UK and USA based publishing houses. This book import business is largely handled by a few Delhi based book importers and distributors. To accelerate the book supply process from the shelves and warehouses the importers / distributers devised a practice of sending books on credit to academic staff and libraries, through local vendors or jobbers (newcomers in book trade to supply books on approval basis). They were allowed to take back books â€Å"not selected† within a credit limit of six months only. Within a few years these jobbers turned into legitimate vendors with book stock of their own which could not be returned to the wholesalers within the stipulated six months credit limit. They start bookshops with the dead stock of their own and continue to supply books to the institutions on prevailing terms and conditions. These vendors, having direct contacts with the researchers and faculty members on day to day basis, being the actual selectors in all educational institutions, get offers to publish research monographs of academics. Many of them grabbed these offers on their own terms thereby joining the exclusive club of publishers. We now find several of these vendors are retail bookshop owners, library suppliers and also publishers, all in one. Perhaps it would not be out of place to add a few words of Iain Stevenson9 on the recent trends in British publishing keeping in mind that India is claimed to be the third largest English language publishing country. Since the beginning of this century, there have been strong trends in British publishing in the increase in concentration of publishing and book selling ownership balanced by healthy specialization and the second is an increasing awareness and impact of electronic media and delivery across sectors that have created a large impact across the book trade. In 2004 over 161,000 individual book titles were published in the U.K. as compared to 119,000 in 2001 and over 2. 5 times the number in 1990. Consumers spending on books reach 2436 m. sterling pounds (in 2000 it was 2000 million) out of which 30% was from the export sales. Individual buyers comprised the largest market share, about 70% of total book sale and 20% to academic institutions and corporate bodies. Indian Legal Deposit Legislation or Delivery of Books Act 1954 and its aftermath The act, commonly referred to as DB Act10 was amended in 1956 to include newspapers and serials under its purview. Annual publishing of books in India during 1950s was small 5. Challenges in Library Management System (CLMS 2012) and below 30,000 titles, whereas by 2010 it is claimed to have exceeded 100,000 [estimated figure obtained from FIP in the absence of any official data from any reliable source] with substantial increase in the coverage of subjects, such as, science and technology. In a recent 11 Annual Report of the Ministry of Culture the National Library claimed to have received 29,875 publications under the DB Act which happens to be only 30% of the estimated total publications as indicated by senior executives of the Library in several professional forums. It was also being pointed out in such gatherings that the other three recipient libraries under this Act, in Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai received even less during the same period. It is worth noting that this was claimed to be the highest figure ever reached by the library due to a special drive12Intellectual resource (NACONAL 2006). UNESCO Statistical Yearbook is silent on the number of books published annually or the number of libraries in India over the last several decades, although India is one of the major contributors and active member of this international body. This sad state of affaire obviously reached, and continue to be, due to simple negligence of all concern. In most other countries annual publication figures were being provided by organizations declared as recipient/s under the legal deposit or copyright legislation of the country. There must be several reasons for the Library to reach in such a state and to argue, we guess, the limitations of DB Act cannot be the primary cause of it. Rigid administrative and fiscal rules and regulations adopted by the Library to operate under the guidance of the Ministry, is surely to my mind, a major factor but not the main one. The crux of the matter is National Library never received a large number of recent Indian publications under the DB Act. We do not know who all are claimed to be Indian publishers. A sizable number of them are ignorant of DB Act obligations. It is also a fact that number of one time authorpublishers is also very high (15% 20%) especially in vernacular languages. The National Library together with the Central Reference Library committed to bring out Indian National Bibliography(INB) based on the books received under the DB Act, similar in format of the British National Bibliography (BNB). However, neither the British Library (formerly British Museum Library) nor the Indian National Library is in any obligation under their respective legal deposit acts to bring out national bibliographies of books thus received under their respective legal deposit acts. . Bandhopadhyay13 points out,rules and policy adopted are working smoothly for the British Library but similar regulations unexpectedly, failed to work in our case. One has to keep in mind the fact that default in U. K. is an exception rather than general rule unlike in India. The provision of penalty for default in DB Act of Rs. 50. 00 sounds just notional. Either revise it to a figure e. g. , Rs. 1000. 00 or 4-5 times of the actual market price of single copy, whichever is higher or just make it voluntary, and hope for the best. The reason of suggesting the latter provision is to avoid the highly cumbersome and built-in procedural delay within our legal system. Since 1958 National Library did not take any legal action against one single defaulter till date. In UK and USA penalty clause is not mentioned as the legal deposit provision is covered under the countrys copyright acts. It is because of this factor legal deposit provision is genuinely more effective and acceptable to authors and publishers of these countries. It would be more realistic to suggest that National Library shall receive one copy of every Indian publication and the three other regional repository libraries in Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai shall have the right to claim any current publication in their respective regional languages only, delivered free of cost under the revised provisions of the DB Act. The current practice of demanding four copies of every publication to be delivered free of cost to each of 6. Invited Lectures these four libraries (including National Library) failed to meet our expectations. This is in addition to what publishers have to comply with the demands of different state central libraries under the Press and Book Registration Act of 1867. Moreover, a large volume of these books and other publications, thus received, especially language publications that are not so commonly used in some regions are usually being dumped or just temporarily stored as these are of no use to the library. This is a colossal wastage of national resource. On the other hand it would not be cost effective to make these so to say, unused books (four copies of each) routinely processed, provide costly storage space as well as maintaining them for the posterity in four regional libraries. The National Library shall receive one copy for preservation and access only; create bibliographic records for the benefit of all stakeholders. There are several categories of publications e. g. in English, Hindi, Sanskrit and Urdu (EHSU) languages shall find users in other three regional libraries. Let us accept the real time scenario in terms of availability and accessibility for application of information and communication technologies (ICT) within library systems. Bibliographic data of publications received by the National Library under legal deposit legislation will be accessible to others from INB and National Library catalogue / database online. These three libraries shall buy one copy of all selected books in EHSU languages, from any local vendor / publishers. Additional fund annually spend by three libraries on this account shall be reimbursed from a special annual central government grant. The proposed module is based on the British legal deposit act where the British Library, London receives one copy of every book / publication and the other five libraries (Wales National Library, Aberystwyth, Scottish National Library, Edinburgh, Oxford University, Cambridge University and Trinity College, Dublin) obtain direct from the publishers, one copy of every book of their choice, selected from the weekly list of books received in the British Library under the legal deposit act. We made an attempt to get some estimation of the annual cost of books published under these four (EHSU) common languages from INB and the National library that would give an idea of the total fund required for the three regional libraries under the revised provision of the Act. All the three libraries receive some annual grant from the central government. The revised provision in the act will also bring some savings in terms of time and resources, as lesser number of books are to be dealt with by the libraries. Sooner than later, it  will be a reality (within a decade or so) of making available a digital copy of an Indian publication by the National Library online, that was not originally selected or received earlier to a library or an individual from its own stock within or outside the country. The technology is already in experimental stage at various levels. Slowly and gradually a large part of Indian publications will be brought out in e-format only, which will also change our current perception of borrowing or consulting a book from a conventional library. Till we reach that stage in India and the transitional period of overlap (20 years? ) we shall carry on with both the systems as we are now have both bullock carts as well as a BMW 7e series cars on our roads for transportation. Indian library systems shall take a longer path and time to switch over to reach this goal. Moreover, any change in our library modernization programme shall be fully dependent on application of technological innovations resulting in inevitable 14 acceptance of a never ending process. Thomas Abhram in a recent article expressed, â€Å"ebooks will be hugely cheaper with the removal of paper and inventory costs†¦. All things taken into account, books in print format are not certainly going away ever from circulation. And e-books, from a publishing point of view, are a consummation devoutly to be wished. We in India, specially the National Library are to continue dealing with print copies of books for several decades together with information resources available in e-books and or in any other format. 7 Challenges in Library Management System (CLMS 2012) Table 1: Books in Indian Languages Received in National Library LANGUAGE 2007 08 Assamese Bengali English Gujarati Hindi Kannada Malayalam Marathi Oriya Punjabi Sanskrit Tamil Telugu Urdu Total 97 991 5756 127 2370 687 1500 1400 2661 602 112 3685 248 521 20757 NL/DB Act 2008 09 35 1463 5385 348 1722 600 1200 1351 52 576 287 2526 145 304 15994 337 2189 5530 476 1237 877 866 1341 750 000 111 1186 406 292 15598 300 350 450 830 INB (2010) AVERAGE COST. The figures quoted above (Table-1) under Books received by the National Library under DB Act during 2007-08 and 2008-09 and those listed in INB for 2010 (CRL) were obtained from the respective libraries on personal requests. In a paper presented at the NACONAL 2006 by Mandal Syed Abuzar15 (2006) indicated National Library received about 20,000 books annually during 1990 2002. They claimed the Library received about 30,000 during 2005-06 due to some special drive and about similar number of volumes during 2010-11as recorded in the Annual Report of the Ministry of Culture. Unfortunately we could not get breakdown of figures under each language of 29,875 books received during 2005-06 nor of INB listed figures for 2009 and 2011. The significant gap of Oriya books received during 2007-08 and 2008-09 was due to some special efforts put by the concerned language specialist during 2007. [Note:Average cost of recently published books in English, Hindi, Sanskrit and Urdu (EHSU) languages has been worked out from a sample of books procured by University of Delhi, Central Library, Central Secretariat Library and the U. S. Library of Congress, Book Procurement Centre in Delhi. We made here an estimation of annual additional grant amount to be provided by central government to support the three regional libraries (in Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai) under the proposed revised legal deposit legislation. The National Library shall receive one copy only of every Indian publication free of cost delivered by the publishers, and the three regional public libraries are to purchase one copy of any book (in EHSU languages) selected by a library from open market. The three libraries are entitled, under the law, to receive free of cost, one copy of a book published in respective regional languages. It is estimated that each library shall selectively acquire per year about 30,000 new Indian publications (10,000 EHSU + 20,000 in respective regional languages) out of about 90,000 books published annually. It means, central government shall reimburse annually the cost of 30,000 books in EHSU languages where average cost of a set of four EHSU books is Rs. 2000 or Rs. 60 million (30,000 x2000 = 60,000,000). In addition, another 10m (Rs. 10,000,000) would be required to cover annual subscription cost of EHSU periodicals and newspapers. Thus we reach an estimated figure of Rs. 70m or 7crore (add another 10% 8 Invited Lectures annually for inflation). These figures are being presented to get some idea of the extra cost we propose to pass on to the central government exchequer. ] If this revised guidelines are adopted in our legal deposit act (now under revision) by taking over the extra burden of book fund of the three regional libraries by the central exchequer then we could surely expect of getting better cooperation from the publishing fraternity in fulfilling their responsibilities towards the provisions of the revised act. Group of publishers bringing out EHSU language publications are to supply only TWO free copies, like all other publishers, one to the National Library and the other to Parliament Library. The only sensible expectation of the publishers from the CRL / National Library is to bring out a comprehensive, up to date online INB, listing all currently published titles thus received under the act and provide facilities of easy access to the readers within a reasonable time frame. Under the revised provision of the act, there is a strong opinion that Chennai based Connemara Public Library shall receive one copy free of cost, of every publication in Dravidian languages (e. g. Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu). Similarly Central Library, Mumbai shall receive books in all western Indian languages, such as Marathi, Konkani, Gujarati, etc. , and Delhi Public Library shall get publications in Punjabi, Kashmiri, etc. as commonly spoken in the three respective regions. National Library is to receive one copy of all the publications. In addition to the respective regional languages publications these three libraries shall purchase one copy of publications of their choice, in English, Hindi, Sanskrit and Urdu (EHSU), from publishers / local vendors. Total annual cost of this category of publications shall be reimbursed from central exchequer. With the introduction of advanced network technologies, libraries shall be benefitted for not to process (Catalogue / classify highest cost factor) these books as relevant data can be downloaded from INB. The second alternative is to incorporate legal deposit provision within the revised copyright legislation as done in the USA and UK. It is possible to reduce the number of defaulting Indian publishers to bare minimum. Only very recently the National Library claimed to have increased intake of publications under the Act by extensive promotional work through the media and sending direct appeal to publishers that have helped it in bringing more and more publishers within the DB Act net. Secondly, if the total number of copies of each title (an average of seven copies) under both PR and DB Acts could be drastically reduced to minimum two only, there is a hope of getting full support and cooperation of Indian publishers to go by the rule book. Third and the most important factor is to make INB up to date and bring it out at regular frequency (monthly! ) with the target of putting it online within a scheduled time frame. What we need is determination and political will to make the Indias National Library the effective hub of Indian library systems. Similarly, there are several other issues, listed below, which also require attention by both the National Library and appropriate government agencies that shall help in making India proud of its National Library. Central Reference Library (CRL): In 1971 administration of the CRL was separated from the National Library by making it a subordinate office under the Department of Culture. This was an ideal opportunity we missed, for shifting the CRL to Delhi. In the middle of 1970s Central Government created a new wing of the Central Secretariat Library (CSL) and named it as Tulsi Sadan Library to collect and provide access exclusively to all Indian language (excluding English) publications, to commemorate the 400th year of Tulsidasa (of Ramcharitmanas fame). CSL could have been merged with CRL and allowed it to operate from some temporary location till a permanent home could be found or built at the proposed site opposite to the National Museum on 9 Challenges in Library Management System (CLMS 2012) Janpath, originally proposed by Edwin Lutyens. CRL would have been the natural choice of declaring it as the fourth recipient public library in Delhi, under the DBAct (instead of making the Delhi Public Library with reluctance, during the 1970s). Ministry of Culture is now under heavy pressure for shifting the Central Secretariat Library out of Shastri Bhavan complex due to severe space crunch and security issues. It is a fact that CSL has lost its original objective of serving information needs of all central secretariat units. Today all the ministries are having their own libraries with specialized collections to cater their respective information needs. It now serves as a general reading room for Shastri Bhavan employees. Reading for pleasure is not so common with the government employees. Central Secretariat Library is administratively a subordinate office of the Ministry of Culture. A large section of its regular visitors, viz. postgraduate students and research scholars have stopped visiting the library due to overwhelming security checks involved in getting through Shastri Bhavan. Recently several thousand volumes of its rich older collections were being disposed under executive orders to make room for babus of the Ministry. It could have been easier to find a suitable location for CRL (incorporating CSL) in Delhi during 1970s. Attempts were also being made during the 1970s and 1980s to merge the CRL with the National Library but these were also stalled by staff associations of the two libraries. During this period, management of the National Library was weak as a result, library service also suffered considerably. Central government in Delhi continued to be indecisive in taking appropriate steps while local library administration in Kolkata failed to deal with the day to day issues in any effective manner. It was more of a failure of the management both at the operational as well as policy making levels. The government allowed the National Library to drift away in the absence of any suitable action plan in place to overcome the crisis. Nor there was any move or pressure from any other corner library professionals, media or library users group. This long drawn uncertainty and lack of effective management control within the National Library campus directly affected services and administration of Central Reference Library thereby putting publication of INB also on the back burner. Indian National Bibliography (INB): It started in 1958 following the British National Bibliography (BNB) format. To overcome the complexity of multi-script languages it adopted Romanization of all scripts with the descriptive part of each entry in English. This has created problems for many who are not familiar with Roman script or English language. The job of printing INB monthly issues was given exclusively to the Government of India Press in Kolkata that failed to realise, from the beginning, the importance of maintaining the production and delivery schedule. After years of persuasion by CRL the Ministry allowed printing of INB through private press. Cataloguing of every title, received by the National Library under BD Act, is first to be acknowledged by the Library then sent to CRL on record, where it will be catalogued once according to INB practices and then books shall be sent back to the National Library for re-cataloguing according to its own specified rules followed by due processing for storage. This long drawn administrative procedural factors and duplication of cataloguing  process have claimed to be a major cause of delay from the date of receipt of the publication to the time its record is found in INB followed by making it available to readers of National Library This delay factor has also indirectly discouraged publishers to follow the DB Act guidelines strictly on the pretext of not finding INB to be a regular and up to date periodical either as a reliable check list of current Indian publications or a selection tool for libraries and other stakeholders; nor their publications are found in any bibliographic record of the National Library on time. National Library takes its own time, sometime nearly two years, to allow access to the books received under the DB Act. Importance of promotion and marketing of INB did never get much support from the concerned authorities. Adoption of appropriate technologies at 10 Invited Lectures different levels of administration and access to resources has been continuously lagged behind. Most national libraries of the world are having full responsibilities of preserving and allowing access to their collections by providing adequate indexing and other access tools, e.  g. national bibliographies, subject bibliographies, annotated catalogues of special collections, many of these are now accessible online on their respective websites. We must allow the National Library for setting up National Bibliographic Division with full control of bringing out INB and to provide other bibliographic services covering pan-India in appropriate standardized formats, as required from time to time. By taking full advantage of technological advances supported by a group of committed well qualified staff the Library would be able to help in both improving and widening the scope of services to individuals as well as to provide back-up services to a large number of academic and public libraries in and outside the country. For example, the day Indian libraries in general adopt the same processing format for all new titles listed in INB,India can claim to have won half the battle in modernizing our library services and systems. Without going into details one can only highlight the fact of centralized processing initiated and applied in most national libraries which have directly and indirectly helped respective library systems of these countries. We are well aware of the fact that both the CRL and INB are as if, linked with the DB Act by an umbilical cord that needs to be focused and dealt with separately for a drastic revision. Proposals l l Title of the revised act may be â€Å"Delivery of Publications (National Library) Act. Definition of Publications shall include – all printed documents, such as, books, periodicals, serials, newspapers, e-publications including audio books, CD books, DVDs and digital online publications and /or any other reformatted or original document produced for commercial distribution, e. g. microform documents. Only one copy of all publications shall be delivered free of charge, direct to the National Library of India (or at an address specified by the Library). The act shall also make adequate provision for the three regional libraries based in Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai to receive on.

Project cost management

Project cost management Introduction The successful design, development and implementation of projects are very complex and at times daunting tasks for many project managers. The sum of growth in competition and globalization, institutionalization of innovation-based economics, rapid development of technologies, the uses of outer resources, increase in the significance of customers focus and the shortening of products and services cycles means that projects cost management has become a multifaceted issue for majority of businesses today. In essence, this has resulted in the need for the adoption and focus on project based on cost management of business activities. Indeed a lot of researchers emphasis the need for a multi-project environmental management of projects that pays cognizance to the key ingredients that will ensure for the success in projects. This paper will synthesis, analyze and dissect the key attributes that are seen to be inherently important for ensuring effective project cost management. Towards this, an insightful and succinct discussion of the following key factors for successful projects shall be done; appropriate senior management levels commitment to the project, adequate project funding, project requirements analysis and specifications, stakeholders involvement, risks management and presence of a contingent plan. While several dimensions could be pursued under each element only few will be highlighted Ensuring for effective project cost management Phillips (1) illustrates that From IT to construction, most projects have to purchase materials: routers and cables, shingles and cement, and so on; we must always buy some things to complete the project work. Without even underlining the scope or schedule of a given IT project, funds must be availed and properly managed and appropriated to achieve the goals of the project. In the cost management of IT projects, there are three major estimates cost techniques that project managers should make use to effectively manage their projects. These include the Ballpark estimate, the budget estimate and the definitive estimate. According to Barkley (68) Ballpark estimate is also known as the rough order of magnitude (ROM)which is based on high-level objectives, provides a birds-eye view of the project deliverables, and has lots of wiggle room in that most ROM estimates are dependent on the industry and have a range of variances from -25% all the way to +75%. The budget estimate that is also known as the top down estimate is more accurate than the Ballpark estimate and is always formulated at the beginning of the projects life. It includes a number of conditions just like the Ballpark estimate in that it takes into consideration a range of variances and assumptions that are characteristics of any projects estimation. The definitive estimate or bottom up estimate is the real opposite of the budget estimate (Haughey, 29). In effective cost management of an IT project, it is imperative that all the estimate methods are used to mitigate the effects of overhead costs on the project. Baldwin, Rose-Anderssen, Ridgway, Allen, Lopez, Strathern, and Varga (1), clearly demonstrates that The definitive estimate requires a work breakdown structure (WBS) and a WBS is not a list of activities, it is a detailed description of deliverables-oriented decomposition of the project scope. The attention to the creation of goods and services and technologies has significantly increased over the last few years that have prompted and preconditioned the need for better and more efficient projects cost management. This call for paying cognizance to the following key factors; Senior management support The success of projects will to a large extent rely on the interests, support and commitment of the senior management. This is in order to ensure that everybody in the project team and indeed the whole employees are focused and committed. Most projects in organization are sometimes conceived, funded and developed without appropriate senior management involvement or approval. Armstrong (25) has for example noted that some projects go forward without the management clearly conceptualizing what the project entails. A distinction between mere approval and commitment should be clearly discerned so that the projects run smoothly. According to Dennis (87) and Blair (13), most projects fail when the senior management lacks a clear understanding and a paucity of the projects perceived benefits, risks and difficulties. This is fundamental because the management plays a central role in costs appropriations and budget allocations for project activities. This means that while the projects approva l may actually have been acquired, in the euphoria of getting the projects approved; some of the risks may be ignored or glossed over. Efficient project cost management especially in the field of IT should however ensure that projects approvals are not based on hype and unrealistic calculations but on a framework that encapsulates a realistic assessment of the projects benefits, risks and costs. Adequate financing or funding for the project This forms the fundamental groundwork for the achievement any IT related projects objectives and goals. Most IT projects being initiated will require some substantial funding and resources deployment because they are always characterized by abnormally huge overhead costs. However, Kerzner (11) and Loosemore, Raftery and Reilly (161), have noted that ample project funding is not in itself a panacea to projects success. It has been advanced that inadequate project funding will most invariably result on delivery of less than promised. The realization of projects success has been positively correlated with efficient resources management and budget controls. According to Armstrong (32) effective resources management as well as its impact on the compatibility between the costs management and project value accumulation has been empirically proved in literature. Researchers show that in order to avoid the gap between the organizational strategies and the limited resources, it is purposive that available resources are reviewed and aligned to the budget in a seamless manner. This means that a lot needs to be arranged before and also during projects executions. A clear delineation of all the resources that are essential to the successful running of the project and a formulation of a budget that captures all the needs and requirements is therefore important. Armstrong (33), succinctly state that A project funding should be seen as a continuing and flexible process in that while a reasonable estimate of project expense must be made to obtain initial approval, this figure should not be considered as the final project cost. This point is further buttressed by Meyer (172) in illustrating that As the true scope of an IT project is revealed, the project manager can more accurately identify project expenses and recalculate the costs at several checkpoints in the project life cycle so that the new figures are communicated to senior management. Requirements analysis Requirements analysis should be carried out in order to develop the architectural design or frameworks of the specific IT project for the initiation and inception of the project. This calls for a thorough discussion between the clients and/or the stakeholders in order that all the salient issues are brought to the fore and the project is set off on a sound footing. According to Armstrong (27), client consultation at all the stages of an IT project development should always be done in order to avoid situations where repeated references to the project requirements are the case or projects are discontinued entirely. Requirements analysis should be detailed and the analysis or the project manager should visit, communicate and discuss the project requirements with the clients on a conclusive and comprehensive manner. A clear delineation of what will be delivered or not within projects scope should ideally be done. Project managers will attest to the fact that taking a thorough requirement analysis ahs the benefit of arriving at an accurate estimate on a project. This will reduce the effects of time wasted in search of more funds and convincing clients and other stake holders to increase funding after its initiation. In addition to the above, it comes with the added advantage of taking due care of crash programs and thus protects the projects from the effects external factors (Meyer, 171). Development of a comprehensive project plan and its cost components Basically, there are three main benefits to be realized through the development of a clear, comprehensive and elaborate project plan. One such benefit is that through adequate planning, the planners are able to present a clear and well documented or properly focused understanding of project. Secondly, adequate planning ensures that all issues are raised to help avoid instances of overlooking some issues that may later prove problematic. Finally, adequate planning reinforces and helps build confidence in the success of the project. Jiang and Gary (20) elucidates that project planning should never be viewed as a waste of time. This point has been buttressed by Armstrong (29) who has advanced that a very strong correlation between the lengths of time allocated to the project planning and the ultimate projects success abides. Stakeholders involvement The attainment of all the stakeholders involvement has been cited as an important ingredient in the success of IT projects in organizations. This means that every stakeholder in the organization is seen too own the project. This ensures that there are no complains about the project contents and performance when it is completed. This becomes more poignant when it is noted that projects warrants large investment of resources such as time, efforts and money. The involvement of the employees, internal customers and other important stakeholders should therefore be paid utmost cognize (Raz, Erez, 48). Frequent project status reporting should accompany the progress of the project and this should be done on as a regular interval in as far as is soundly possible. As early as the projects life, frequent reporting should help spot and identify adverse issues, as well as how these can be overcome. Jiang and Gary (31) have noted that it is not important that regular updates are provided but the accuracy of such reporting be the case so as to ensure that the status of the projects progress are accurate, realistic and timely. Risk assessment in an IT project It is important that a detailed risks assessment is carried in an IT project so as to ensure for the success of a project. Essentially, risks assessment may fall into two categories, i.e. the more usual and obvious risks and the risks that may be generated from the functions and requirements of a particular problem (Raz, Erez, 53). A businesslike approach to project management requires carefully considering and addressing these risks with internal customers and senior management as part of the projects approval process and if the risk analysis leads to a decision not to move forward, it is much better for everyone involved that the decision is made sooner, rather than later (Raz, Erez, 55). Armstrong (34) has advised that it is prudent to consider the possibility of some failures in the projects that would call for the development of contingent plans to overcome difficult situations should they arise and a project may have to incorporate items that were overlooked, or changes in the business needs associated with the project. This may result in delay of some projects that were dependent on this project or indeed some other business activities. Successfully and efficient project cost management will therefore entail the development of contingent plans to mitigate against such occurrences. In the course of an IT project development, a lot of issues and difficulties may arise. Thus, while some problems may have been anticipated, some occurrences, the need to clear to meet deadlines among others may create insurmountable pressures and tensions. These must be mitigated through the adoption of sound cost management approaches that ensures that issues and matters arising are addressed and mitigated. In some instances, continued top management support must be continually sought so that commitment to the project remains true, and un-anticipated funding requirements are met or delays in operations are understood. In obtaining senior management support, project managers must be willing to present an accurate picture of the potential difficulties inherent in the project in that insofar as is practical, senior management must be given a realistic assessment of the potential for difficulty and be willing to stay the course if things go wrong (Dennis, 95). Conclusion Effective project cost management is a multifaceted issue especially in an IT related project and difficulties abide in the identification and management of all potential difficulties and the ramifications that are associated with the successful development, budget appropriation and implementation of projects. This will depend to some extent on the size of the project where it is seen that the larger the size, the greater the probability of unseen contingencies. In large IT projects for example, the task can prove overwhelming and massive to coordinate. Organizations attempting to find and resolve all IT project difficulties and potential difficulties may not find the issues presented here as all inclusive as there are a lot more issues that must be paid cognizance for the efficient project cost management. However, while the draft does not strive for perfection, it can nonetheless be adjudged that paying attention to the issues raised, a project manager will be better prepared and k nowledgeable enough that undoubtedly greatly enhances the likelihood of a successful project and cost management strategies. WORKS CITED Armstrong, Mark. 2007. Simplified Risk Assessment. Engineering management journal.10, 1: 19-24. Baldwin, James, S., Rose-Anderssen, Chris., Ridgway, Keith., Allen, Peter, M., Lopez, Alvaro.,Strathern, Mark and Varga, Liz. (2006). Management Decision-Making: Risk Reduction Through Simulation. Website: http://www.palgrave-journals.com/rm/journal/v8/n4/pdf/8250020a.pdf Barkley, Bruce. 2004. Project risk management. McGraw-Hill Professional. Blair, Gerald, M. 2007. Planning a Project. http://www.see.ed.ac.uk/~gerard/Management/art8.html?http://www.ee.ed.ac.uk/~gerard/Management/art8.html Dennis, Lock. . 2007. Project management. 9th edition. London: Cooper Lybrand Haughey, Duncan. 2000. Planning a Project using a Work Breakdown Structure Logic Network. Website: http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/planning-a-project-using-a-work-breakdown-structure-and-logic-network.html Jiang, James, J. and Gary, Klein. Software project risks and development focus. Project management journal, 32, 1: 4-9. 2001. Kerzner, Harold. Project management: A Systems approach to planning, scheduling, and controlling. 9th edition. New York: John Willey Sons. 2006. Loosemore, Mark, Raftery, Justin and Reilly, Chris. Risk management in projects. Taylor Francis. 2006. Meyer, Brad, C. Project Costs and Crashing. 2002. Retrieved on February 22, 2010 from Website: http://www.cbpa.drake.edu/bmeyer/webm120/PPT_Crashing.pdf Phillips, Joseph. Project Cost Management. 2010. Retrieved March 15th, 2010 from Website: http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/project-cost-management.html Raz, Tzvi and Erez, Michael. Benchmarking the use of project risks management tools. Proceedings of the project management Institute Annual Seminars and Symposium.1999.

Organizational Structure of Proctor and Gamble

Organizational Structure of Proctor and Gamble Procter Gamble The company I have chosen for the assignment of managing change in organization is Procter Gamble. The company is a Fortune 500 American multinational corporation headquartered in Downtown Cincinnati, Ohio that manufactures a wide range of consumer goods. It is 6th in Fortunes Most Admired Companies 2010 list. PG is credited with many business innovations including brand management and the soap opera. History and Background of Company In 1887 PG institutes a pioneering profit-sharing program that gives employees an ownership stake in the Company. This significant innovation helps employees connect their vital roles with the Companys success. In 1924 PG becomes the first company to conduct deliberate, data-based market research with consumers. This forward-thinking approach enables us to improve consumer understanding, anticipate consumer needs and respond with products that improve their everyday life. In 1994 PG becomes one of the first companies to formally respond to consumer correspondence by establishing the Consumer Relations department. The addition of toll-free phone numbers in 1973 and e-mail in the 1980s further enhance consumers ability to contact us and keep the consumer at the heart of all we do. In 1995 Crest is co developed with Indiana University. This collaboration delivers a product that is a breakthrough in the use of fluoride to protect against tooth decay, the second-most prevalent disease at the time. In 2002 PG develops Naturella feminine pads specifically to meet the needs of low-income women in Latin America. Based on deep consumer understanding, Naturella responds to consumers desire for freshness with chamomile, a unique ingredient never before used in feminine care products. In 2005 High Frequency Stores common in developing markets emerge as our largest customer channel. Consisting of nearly 20 million stores across the world, HFS represents a particular opportunity in fast-growing, low-income markets. Through HFS, we connect to consumers with affordable products and packaging specially designed for their needs. Investigation Organizational Structure of Procter Gamble General definition of Organization structure: Organizational structure specifies the firms formal reporting relationships, procedures, controls, and authority and decision-making processes. Developing an organizational structure that effectively supports the firms strategy is difficult, especially because of the uncertainty (or unpredictable variation) about cause-effect relationships in the global economys rapidly changing and dynamic competitive environments. When a structures elements (e.g., reporting relationships, procedures, and so forth) are properly aligned with one another, that structure facilitates effective implementation of the firms strategies. Thus, organizational structure is a critical component of effective strategy implementation processes Types of organizational structure Simple Structure The simple structure is a structure in which the owner-manager makes all major decisions and moniÂÂ ­tors all activities while the staff serves as an extension of the managers supervisory authority. Functional Structure The functional structure is a structure consisting of a chief executive officer and a limited corporate staff, with functional line managers in dominant organizational areas, such as production, accounting, marketing, RD, engineering, and human resources. Multidivisional structure The multidivisional (M-form) structure conÂÂ ­sists of operating divisions, each representing a separate business or profit center in which the top corporate offiÂÂ ­cer delegates responsibilities for day-to-day operations and business-unit strategy to division managers. Procter Gamble The structure of the Procter and Gamble is multidivisional structure. Because the simple structure is used in a small organization where the owner works as a manager and take all the big decision for the company. Typically, the owner-manager actively works in the business on a daily basis. Informal relationships, few rules, limited task specialization, and unsophisticated information systems describe the simple structure. Frequent and inforÂÂ ­mal communications between the owner-manager and employees make it relatively easy to coordinate the work that is to be done. Functional structure is used for the organization which is growing but relatively small organization. This structure allows for functional specialization, thereby facilitating active sharing of knowledge within each functional area. Knowledge sharing facilitates career paths as well as the professional development of functional specialists. However, a functional orientation can have a negative effect on communicatio n and coordination among those repreÂÂ ­senting different organizational functions. Because of this, the CEO must work hard to verify that the decisions and actions of individual business functions promote the entire firm rather than a single function. Procter gamble is a relatively big organization with a business spread internationally so they are using multidivisional structure. The multidivisional structure of PG consists of operating divisions, each rep-resenting a separate business or profit center in which the top corporate officer deleÂÂ ­gates responsibilities for day-to-day operations and business-unit strategy to division managers. Each division represents a distinct, self-contained business with its own functional hierarchy. As initially designed, the M-form was thought to have three major benefits: (1) it enabled corporate officers to more accurately monitor the perÂÂ ­formance of each business, which simplified the problem of control (2) it facilitated comparisons between divisions, which improved the resource allocation process; and (3) it stimulated managers of poorly performing divisions to look for ways of improvÂÂ ­ing performance. Active monitoring of performance through the M-form increases the likelihood that decisions made by managers heading individual units will be in shareholders best interests. Brands and Products Brands Beauty and Grooming Products Some of the most famous products of beauty and Grooming brands are as under: CoverGirl Dolce Gabbana Puma Gillette Health and Well-Being Some of the most famous products of Health and Well-Being brand are as under: Vicks Oral-B Always Household Care Some of the most famous products of Household Care brand are as under: Ariel Bounce Bounty Background to Change In January 1999, Jager, a PG veteran became the new CEO taking charge at a time when PG was in the midst of a corporate restructuring exercise that started in September 1998. Jager faced the challenging task of revamping PGs operations and marketing practices. Soon after taking over as the CEO, Jager told analysts that he would overhaul product development, testing and launch processes. The biggest obstacle for Jager was PGs culture. Jager realized the need to change the mindset of the PG employees who had been used to lifetime employment and a conservative management style. On July 1, 1999, PG officially launched the Organization 2005 program. It was a program of six-year duration, during which, PG planned to retrench 15,000 employees globally. The cost of this program was estimated to be $1.9 billion and it was expected to generate an annual savings (after tax deductions) of approximately $900 million per annum by 2004. Change in Organization Structure Till 1998, PG had been organized along geographic lines with more than 100 profit centers. Under Organization 2005 program, PG sought to reorganize its organizational structure from four geographically-based business units to five product-based global business units Baby, Feminine Family Care, Beauty Care, Fabric Home Care, Food Beverages, and Health Care. Internal Change The change the PG going to make internally is starting new business unit in the organizational structure. This change probably effects the whole organization. Because it must share the organization sources financial as well as human resources. External change Environment is changing rapidly so the organization also needs to be a dynamic to cater the environment change. PG is the big organization so its new business unit definitely effects the environment and creates a new market. The Mistakes Committed The Organization 2005 program faced several problems soon after its launch. Analysts were quick to comment that Jager committed a few mistakes which proved costly for PG. For instance, Jager had made efforts in January 2000 to acquire Warner-Lambert and American Home Products. Contrary to PGs cautious approach towards acquisitions in the 1990s, this dual acquisition would have been the largest ever in PGs history, worth $140 billion. However, the stock market greeted the news of the merger negotiations by selling PGs shares, which prompted Jager to exit the deal. Implementing Strategies to Revive PG In June 2000, Alan George Lafley (Lafley), a 23-year PG veteran popularly known as AG, took over as the new President and CEO of PG. The major difference between Lafley and Jager was their style of functioning. Soon after becoming CEO, Lafley rebuilt the management team and made efforts to improve PGs operations and profitability. Lafley transferred more than half of PGs 30 senior most officers, an unprecedented move in PGs history. Building Diversity in the Organization At PG, we believe in taking advantage of all the unique and special differences that our employees possess and leveraging them to the fullest. Since diversity is a business strategy for PG, our efforts are focused on bringing in people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds with remarkably diverse lives and career experiences. Organizations that are in touch are far more capable of understanding consumers from all walks of life. They are far more capable of understanding, appreciating and leveraging their own diversity. They are more capable of tapping the diversity of outside partners. Our recruiting efforts target universities all over Pakistan and are aimed at bringing in people with different leadership and thinking styles. Today, our organization draws from more than 30 schools and universities. We also focus on gender diversity by targeting women at universities for females and holding diversity sessions for female students on campuses. Women offer a different perspective that is crucial to our success. We aim to balance not only organizational diversity but also diversity within the various departments. Women make up about 25 percent of the workforce at PG Pakistan. To stress this goal to our employees, PG Pakistan has introduced many initiatives. To avoid defining our diversity objectives too narrowly and limiting them to percentages and representations of certain groups, PG has made tremendous recruiting efforts and has launched programs such as flexible work arrangements and the day-care center. Diversity is respected and required across all levels of the company. In fact, diversity action plans are developed in each region of the world to give local diversity strategies the best chance of success. Change Management Model: Dealing With Change 1. Denial The first response to a significant change is often shock, a general refusal to recognise the information. In this way we protect ourselves from being overwhelmed. Common responses include: Denying: This cant be happening. Ignoring: Wait till it blows over. Minimizing: It just needs a few minor adjustments. It is possible to continue working in the denial phase, but sooner or later the impact hits home and a personal response is required. Management Approach OF PG Be up front with information to individuals and groups of staff. Let them know that change is going to occur. Acknowledge their fears of change as legitimate. Explain what to expect and suggest actions they can take to adjust to the change. Give them time to let things sink in, and then have a planning session to talk things through. 2. Resistance In this phase things often seem to get worse. Personal distress levels rise. It is common to spend time looking for someone or something to blame, or to spend time complaining about the new set-up. Resistance is about fear of change. People may become physically ill, feel all sorts of physical, emotional, and/or mental symptoms. Some people may doubt their ability to survive the change. During this phase there is a greater focus on mourning the past, more than preparing for the future. Many people want to avoid the situation or pretend it is not happening, sometimes by moving back into denial. The self-acknowledgement of feelings being experienced, will ready people to move more quickly to the next phase. Management Approach of PG Listen, acknowledge feelings, respond empathetically, encourage support. Dont try to talk people out of their feelings, or tell them to change or pull together. If you accept their response, they will continue to feel they are able to tell you how they are feeling. This will help you respond to some of their concerns. Use questions to stimulate broader thinking and perspective setting. 3. Exploration After a period of struggle, individuals and organizations usually emerge from their negativity, breathe a sigh of relief, and shift into a more positive, hopeful, future-focused phase. People realize they are going to make it through OK. It can be as subtle as just feeling better, or as obvious as sleeping through the night for the first time since the change started. The timing is different for each person. New directions do not emerge all at once. Rather, what emerges first is the energy to put a search into action. People begin to discover and explore new ways, to start clarifying goals, assessing resources, exploring alternatives, and experimenting with new possibilities. A motivation to swing into action occurs without trying first to find the right way. It is important to resist completing the exploration phase too soon by accepting something less than what the person is capable of. This is a period of high energy, with creativity at its peak. Management Approach of PG Focus on priorities and provide any needed training. Follow-up on projects underway. Set short-term goals. Conduct brainstorming, visioning and planning sessions. Foster all learning opportunities to help overcome fear of change. 4. Commitment Finally, the individual has broken through the problems, discovered new ways of doing things and/or adapted to the new situation. The commitment phase begins with focus on a new course of action. This could be new ways of doing the job, or finding a new job. The successful commitment to a new course of action shows there has been learning growth and adaptation on the part of the individual. Management Approach of PG Set long-term goals. Concentrate on teambuilding. Create a mission statement. Validate and reward those responding to the change. Look ahead. Strategies pursuing by the Procter and Gamble Strategy 1 Delight the consumer with sustainable innovations that improve the environmental profile of our products. Strategy 2 Improve the environmental profile of PGs own operations. Strategy 3 Improve childrens lives through PGs social responsibility programs. Strategy 4 Engage and equip all PG employees to build sustainability thinking and practices into their everyday work. Strategy 5 Shape the future by working transparently with our stakeholders to enable continued freedom to innovate in a responsible way. Resistance and its Handling y PG Strong resistance to change is often rooted in deeply conditioned or historically reinforced feelings. Patience and tolerance are required to help people in these situations to see things differently. Bit by bit. There are examples of this sort of gradual staged change everywhere in the living world. PG the Psychological Contract is a significant aspect of change, and offers helpful models and diagrams in understanding and managing change potentially at a very fundamental level. Also, certain types of people the reliable/dependable/steady/habitual/process-oriented types often find change very unsettling. People who welcome change are not generally the best at being able to work reliably, dependably and follow processes. The reliability/dependability capabilities are directly opposite character traits to mobility/adaptability capabilities. Certain industries and disciplines have a high concentration of staff who need a strong reliability/dependability personality profile, for example, health services and nursing, administration, public sector and government departments, utilities and services; these sectors will tend to have many staff with character profiles who find change difficult. Age is another factor. Erik Eriksons fascinating Psychosocial Theory is helpful for understanding that peoples priorities and motivations are different depending on their stage of life. The more you understand peoples needs, the better you will be able to manage change. Be mindful of peoples strengths and weaknesses. Not everyone welcomes change. Take the time to understand the people you are dealing with, and how and why they feel like they do, before you take action.

Societal and Individual Interdependency in Salingers Catcher in the Rye :: essays research papers

In a perfect world, everyone would be happy with the way they are and everyone would accept the differences of others. Unfortunately, the world we live in is not perfect and not everyone accepts who they are . Is there a reason why people cannot be content with their lives or with the differences of other people? The answer is yes, and the reason for the discontent is society. With society telling the masses what is, and is not acceptable, it is no wonder that people seem â€Å"lost†, and are desperately searching out their place in the sun. This search for identity seems to be the case in JD Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye. Through settings in the novel and symbolism, Salinger illustrates that while the main character, Holden Caulfield, needs the support of the environment around him, the environment also needs Holden as a person. Holden Caulfield is out of place in any environment in which he is placed. At Pencey, his school, Holden gets excluded from the act ivities of his classmates. At the very beginning of the novel, Holden becomes expelled because his grades are not up to Pencey’s standards and also because he does not feel like he belongs there. Holden separates himself from his classmates for the most part by not becoming involved in the school. Although Holden is the equipment manager of the fencing team, he distances himself from his companions by losing the equipment, showing that he does not fit in, and he really does not want to. As he reflects back on his final day at Pencey he says: â€Å" They kicked me out. ...I was flunking four subjects and not applying myself at all. They gave me frequent warnings to start applying myself...but I didn’t do it† (Salinger 4). The school is throwing Holden out because he is not what they want to represent to potential students. They want to show examples of fine, upstanding young men, instead of giving off the image of the failing, confused young man. Salinger uses Pe ncey as a mock society of some sorts. Holden does not fit in at Pencey, and he most definitely does not fit in as seen in the later settings of the novel. A second example of Holden’s isolation from his classmates can also be seen when he stands alone on the top of the hill during the â€Å"big game†.

The History of Babylonian Mathematics Essay -- Babylonia Mathematics E

The History of Babylonian Mathematics The history of ancient Babylonia is really long, but this essay is a short and to the point summery of the entire history. The history of Babylonia started near the end of the year 2000 BC, when invaders were attacking the Sumer kingdom. Sumer was a powerful kingdom in the western part of Asia, and it some what occupied what would become Babylonia. After the kingdom of Sumer was destroyed the city-states of Larsa and Isin came into settle on the land once occupied by Sumer. This led to fighting between Larsa and Isin. After hundreds of years of fighting Larsa defeated Isin. But, just as Larsa beat Isin, Hammurabi came to power in the city of Babylonia. Hammurabi went on to defeat Larsa and start a vast kingdom in the place where the Sumer kingdom used to be. Hammurabi was a very powerful military and political leader. Also he set up a code of law stating â€Å"an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth†, this law is called the Hammurabi code and is still used today. Hammurabi’s dynasty was also called the First Dynasty of Babylonia. This dynasty ruled for about 200 years until 1530 BC. Under the control of this dynasty, Babylonia entered a period of prosperity and peace. The Babylonians developed an abstract form of writing based on wedge-shaped symbols. Their symbols were written on wet clay tablets that were baked in the hot sun. Many of thousands of these tablets have survived to this day. They had to use straight lines because curved line could not be drawn in the wet clay. They used these tablets to aid in the calculations of problems. They studied math with the help of these tablets. They studied in mathematics because having a peaceful nation they had no need to specialize in military and warfare, so they learned math and discovered new forms of math. A tribe known as the Kassites began to attack Babylonia when Hammurabi’s son ruled the empire. Over the centuries, the Kassites weakened Babylonia. Finally, around 1530 BC a Kassite dynasty was set up in Babylonia. After about 150 years, the Babylonians and the Kassites lived in peace until the Assyrians attacked Babylonia. They weakened Babylonia so much that the Kassite dynasty fell from power and the Assyrians took control. Because of an influx of many nomadic tribes, Babylonia fell into anarchy for about 200 years. During the 800s B... ...e. And if their table of reciprocals, which was used to help them do math, was used today, it would most likely confuse everybody. But, back then they had to use because they did not have calculators or computers to make math easier. We also don’t use a positional number system where the base is 60 rather than the base of 10. One thing that the Babylonians used that is still in use today is the Pythagorean triples. The study of math he study of math is important because with out math we wouldn’t have all the things we have today, such as computers, cars, planes, space exploring technology, etc. With out math all that stuff, which we take for granted would not be around. We would still be in the dark ages if people with a great understanding for math hadn’t been there to invent new things and pull us out of the dark ages and into the techno age. Even though I may not me a mathematical genius, I realize that with out math I would have to write my whole report out on hand instead of a computer. I could not play my video games or chat online with friends if it wasn’t for math and the understanding of it. The study of math is important to society and probably always will be.

Understanding Counter Reformation Essay -- Catholic Church Political R

In order to understand the Counter Reformation one must consider the political factors and motivators behind them as well as the belief factors when examining clashes with the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church during 16th century experienced a reformation that was both politically and belief driven. The Catholic Reformation also known as the Counter Reformation allowed the church to clearly define its position, eliminate unchristian practices and examine its role in world. This paper will address the political motivators of the Counter Reformation, the unchristian practices that fueled corruption and the clearly defined religious concerns of reformers. It will establish that the use of patronage and nepotism ultimately undermined the spiritual piety of the church. Also, the movements that brought spirituality back to the church will be addressed along with those movements that led to separation from church. In detailing the events and character of this era and analyzing the outcomes of reform it will be concluded that the Counter Reformation was the beginning of a stronger church and an end to an era that quite possibly could have led to the dissolution of the Catholic Church. One must understand the political make up of the Catholic Church during this period prior to addressing the reforms to the church. The church was far more than a religious institution. The Catholic Church was supreme in Europe. The power of the pope was total and this was supplemented by the power the Holy Roman Emperor had as temporal defender of the Catholic Church. Even though the church had no determinate territory it was a state. It had a monarch as a pope, it princes in prelates and its subjects in Western Christendom. It had legislative assemblies in ecumenical councils, a constitution in cannon law, and fiscal agency in the Curia. It went to war, negotiated treaties and collected taxies. The church was the Holy Roman Empire with a stronghold throughout Europe. But this would quickly change.(www.History) At the time of the reformation there was great concern that the Old Church with all its history and tradition was in trouble. This concern came from both within the church and outside the church. Protestant and Catholic reformers alike were troubled by the corruption in the church and its inner workings. Reformers saw that the Christian faith had in many ways been taken... ...ounter-Reformation after the Council of Trent a large shift in power occurred in Italy. The Pope who was once a large political figure in Italy had lost his political power but gained Religious Power. Patrons, who had dispersed kin as clergy members all over Italy, also lost power. Their power of placement of clergy was no longer allowed and bishops were given the choice of where clergy members should be located. The Political power that had once belonged to both the Pope and the Patrons had now been given to the sovereigns of the separated nations, who full well knew that in the Council of Trent their power would grow. The Council of was a turning-point in the Catholic Church. There was a certainty in practices and beliefs, the church’s foundation had been strengthened and there was a base to grow. Catholicism had reestablished itself and it was a force to be dealt with. By the end of the sixteenth century the Catholic Church was still making some serious reforms. This reform movement which extended into the seventeenth century raised moral and educational standards of the clergy. All inspired by the church with a new zeal and morale. One must conclude that reform was needed. Understanding Counter Reformation Essay -- Catholic Church Political R In order to understand the Counter Reformation one must consider the political factors and motivators behind them as well as the belief factors when examining clashes with the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church during 16th century experienced a reformation that was both politically and belief driven. The Catholic Reformation also known as the Counter Reformation allowed the church to clearly define its position, eliminate unchristian practices and examine its role in world. This paper will address the political motivators of the Counter Reformation, the unchristian practices that fueled corruption and the clearly defined religious concerns of reformers. It will establish that the use of patronage and nepotism ultimately undermined the spiritual piety of the church. Also, the movements that brought spirituality back to the church will be addressed along with those movements that led to separation from church. In detailing the events and character of this era and analyzing the outcomes of reform it will be concluded that the Counter Reformation was the beginning of a stronger church and an end to an era that quite possibly could have led to the dissolution of the Catholic Church. One must understand the political make up of the Catholic Church during this period prior to addressing the reforms to the church. The church was far more than a religious institution. The Catholic Church was supreme in Europe. The power of the pope was total and this was supplemented by the power the Holy Roman Emperor had as temporal defender of the Catholic Church. Even though the church had no determinate territory it was a state. It had a monarch as a pope, it princes in prelates and its subjects in Western Christendom. It had legislative assemblies in ecumenical councils, a constitution in cannon law, and fiscal agency in the Curia. It went to war, negotiated treaties and collected taxies. The church was the Holy Roman Empire with a stronghold throughout Europe. But this would quickly change.(www.History) At the time of the reformation there was great concern that the Old Church with all its history and tradition was in trouble. This concern came from both within the church and outside the church. Protestant and Catholic reformers alike were troubled by the corruption in the church and its inner workings. Reformers saw that the Christian faith had in many ways been taken... ...ounter-Reformation after the Council of Trent a large shift in power occurred in Italy. The Pope who was once a large political figure in Italy had lost his political power but gained Religious Power. Patrons, who had dispersed kin as clergy members all over Italy, also lost power. Their power of placement of clergy was no longer allowed and bishops were given the choice of where clergy members should be located. The Political power that had once belonged to both the Pope and the Patrons had now been given to the sovereigns of the separated nations, who full well knew that in the Council of Trent their power would grow. The Council of was a turning-point in the Catholic Church. There was a certainty in practices and beliefs, the church’s foundation had been strengthened and there was a base to grow. Catholicism had reestablished itself and it was a force to be dealt with. By the end of the sixteenth century the Catholic Church was still making some serious reforms. This reform movement which extended into the seventeenth century raised moral and educational standards of the clergy. All inspired by the church with a new zeal and morale. One must conclude that reform was needed.