How & Why the Crusades Were Successful and Failures Essay

The Hundred Years’ War, was a conflict between England and France, was not actually a single war that lasted a hundred years; instead it was a series of wars interspersed with periods of peace that began in May 1337 and ended in October 1453. The three main conflicts were the Edwardian War won by English king Edward III; the Caroline War won by French king Charles V; and the Lancastrian War won by French king Charles VII. The Hundred Years’ War was the outcome of disputes between the ruling families of the two countries, the Plantagenets in England and the Capetians in France. Since 1066 the English had controlled rich agricultural areas of France, and the two countries had often fought over these territories. In the 1300s marriages between English and French nobles meant that both English and French kings had a claim to the French throne. During the Edwardian War the English took control of large areas of southwestern France and the northern coastal city of Calais. Although England was smaller than France, it was able to muster a large army. Equipped with longbows and arrows that could pierce French armor, the English defeated the French cavalry. During the Caroline War, the French regained much of the territory lost during the Edwardian War. This success was due to able military leaders and the development of a full-time, professional army and a taxation system to support it. During the Lancastrian War, the English allied with Philip the Good, duke of Bourgogne to conquer most of northern and western France. The tide changed, however, when Philip changed his alliance to the French. It was during the Lancastrian War that the heroic efforts of Joan of Arc, who fought the English, allowed uncrowned French king Charles VII to be officially crowned. The use of newly invented cannons also significantly aided the French war effort. Although the English maintained control of Calais until 1558, they were never again a serious threat to French sovereignty rule. One of the central causes of the Hundred Years War centered on the relationship between the Kings of France and England regarding the duchy of Aquitaine located in Southwestern France. In 1259, the Treaty of Paris designated that Henry III held the duchy as a fief of the French king. As a vassal to the King of France Henry was required to pay liege homage to the king. This meant that the King of England was required to do homage whenever the kingship of either England or France changed hands. However, Henry was the King of England. Control over the French throne further complicated matters. In 1328, Charles IV, King of France, died without a male heir. Edward III, the King of England, held claim to the throne via his mother who was Charles’ sister. The other important claimant was head of the Valois house (Philip VI) grandson of Philip III. Philip VI gained the throne and moved to confiscate Aquitaine in order to consolidate his power. Edward led a raid into French territory in 1338 to defend his claim and two years later declared himself the true king of France. Another cause of the Hundred Years’ War was economic conflict. The French monarchy tried to squeeze new taxes from towns in northern Europe which had grown wealthy as trade and cloth-making centers. Dependent as they were on English wool, these towns through their support behind English and Edward III. The hundreds year war was one by the French. The Hundred Years War was the last great medieval war. The Hundred Years’ War was a series of separate wars, battles, and political feuds lasting from 1337 to 1453 between two royal houses for the French throne. The reason that the French ultimately won is because the English war effort in France was dependent upon their alliance with the Burgundians, but when the Burgundians tepidly switched allegiance to the King of France, it truly crippled the English war effort. As a result of the Hundred Years’ War, the French and English people, who had been ruled as one nation after the Norman Conquest, began to assume separate national identities. They also developed new military tactics. The wars, however, had been a serious drain on the populations of both countries, bringing about a decline in feudalism. France had been severely damaged during the fighting. This was partly caused by official armies conducting bloody raids designed to undermine the opposition ruler by killing civilians, burning buildings and crops and stealing whatever riches they could find. It was also frequently caused by routiers, brigands frequently soldiers serving no lord and just pillaging to survive and get richer. Areas became depleted, populations fled or were massacred, the economy was damaged and disrupted, and ever greater expenditure was sucked into the army, raising taxes. Historian Guy Blois called the effects of the 1430s and 1440s a ‘‘Hiroshima in Normandy’’. Of course, some people benefitted from the extra military expenditure. England, in contrast, had begun the war with more organised tax structures than France, and much greater accountability to a parliament, but royal revenues fell greatly over war, including the substantial losses incurred by losing wealthy French regions like Normandy and Aquitaine. However, for a while some Englishmen got very rich from the plunder taken from France, building houses and churches back in England.

Praise Song for the Day – Interpretation

Praise Song For The Day November 26, 2012 This poem, Praise Song for the Day by Elizabeth Alexander, is one of the most memorable poems that have been recited within the last 20 years. Immediately after President Obama was sworn into office, Elizabeth Alexander recited her poem to the masses that had gathered on that cold winter day in January. The piece is full of symbolism, with the tone being hopeful, inspiring and thankful.The poem begins with a description of daily life which is filled with the daily grind of hard working individuals, often doing the work that drives this great nation of ours†¦small businesses, blue-collar laborers, honorable professions such as teaching. The possibility of coming together as a people in spite of our differences is expressed in terms of our words (â€Å"spiny or smooth†¦words to consider, reconsider†). From will to words to concrete results (e. g. , highways), we interact with each other–past and present.The boundary of a highway may inspire someone today to go further and see what else is possible, keeping hopeful aspirations alive by â€Å"see(ing) what’s on the other side. At the same time that we fear the uncertainties of the future (which also divides us), we can envision it in terms of its possibilities (â€Å"We need to find a place where we are safe; We walk into that which we cannot yet see†). I think she is trying to say that we should also honor the sacrifices of poor, immigrant laborers of the past who made our present reality possible as well as the modern immigrant laborers who continue to build upon the dreams of their ancestors. â€Å"Say it plain, that many have died for this day. Sing the names of the dead who brought us here, who laid the train tracks, raised the bridges, picked the cotton and the lettuce, built brick by brick the glittering edifices they would then keep clean and work inside of†) The resolution of conflicts between people has many routes. Fo r families it may be â€Å"figuring it out at kitchen tables† while other conflicts require political movements, struggle, and protest. This poem is a song of praise for such peaceful resolutions and for this historical inaugural day which would not have been possible without the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.The religious belief systems of different peoples that allow us to get along with other peoples differ in degree. The poem presents an even stronger concept of love that goes beyond â€Å"Love thy neighbor as thy self†, and even beyond â€Å"marital, filial, national. † Some believe the way to unity is to avoid being selfish, not hurting others, and treating others as you would your compatriots, your kin, or yourself. This poem suggests there is a love that extends beyond those whom we are familiar with to include â€Å"a widening pool of light. Finally, in relation to the present day, there is a sense of the immense possibilities (â€Å"anything can be made, any sentence begun†). This is contained in the words that may inspire others to action that may bring such a love closer toward reality. From disunity (â€Å"walking past each other†) to blindly â€Å"walk[ing] into that which we cannot yet see,† this poem now suggests the alternative of â€Å"walking forward in that light† guided by a new vision of a love that may unite us. I focused on the symbolic element of the poem, because I liked the presentation and how it flowed.It made me think about how far we’ve come in this country. I believe that Elizabeth draws the reader into the poem just I was drawn, by suggesting that we as a nation that was literally built off the labor of slave labor and indentured servants, has evolved into a country that elected its first African-American President. Each day we go about our business, walking past each other, catching each other’s eyes or not, about to speak or speaking. All about us is noise. All about us is noise and bramble, thorn and din, each one of our ancestors on our tongues.Someone is stitching up a hem, darning a hole in a uniform, patching a tire, repairing the things in need of repair. Someone is trying to make music somewhere, with a pair of wooden spoons on an oil drum, with cello, boom box, harmonica, voice. A woman and her son wait for the bus. A farmer considers the changing sky. A teacher says, Take out your pencils. Begin. We encounter each other in words, words spiny or smooth, whispered or declaimed, words to consider, reconsider. We cross dirt roads and highways that mark the will of some one and then others, who saidI need to see what’s on the other side. I know there’s something better down the road. We need to find a place where we are safe. We walk into that which we cannot yet see. Say it plain: that many have died for this day. Sing the names of the dead who brought us here, who laid the train tracks, raised the bridges, picked th e cotton and the lettuce, built brick by brick the glittering edifices they would then keep clean and work inside of. Praise song for struggle, praise song for the day. Praise song for every hand-lettered sign, the figuring-it-out at kitchen tables.Some live by love thy neighbor as thyself, others by first do no harm or take no more than you need. What if the mightiest word is love? Love beyond marital, filial, national, love that casts a widening pool of light, love with no need to pre-empt grievance. In today’s sharp sparkle, this winter air, any thing can be made, any sentence begun. On the brink, on the brim, on the cusp, praise song for walking forward in that light. Alexander, E. (2009, Feb). Retrieved Nov 26, 2012, from Poetry Foundation. org: http://www. poetryfoundation. org/poem/244896

Advantages and Disadvantages of Outsourcing Business Functions

To start with, without any doubt, outsourcing has greatly modified the worldwide business arena. Not long before, outsourcing was just considered like a means for reducing several operational expenses. Nevertheless, since the present competition augmented and new companies also started entering the marketplace, wise companies are at present depending upon outsourcing for gaining a competitive benefit while further intensifying their worldwide spread. Outsourcing an outside corporation for handling tasks usually carried out in-house, is quite prevalent conception for many companies (Grossman and Helpman, 2002b). Procedures like payroll, logistics and bookkeeping are normally outsourced for cutting down costs and increasing effectiveness. Particularly, outsourcing the company’s functions has turned out to be highly popular over the past few years since a large number of companies have started realizing the advantages associated with this concept of outsourcing (Grossman and Help man, 2002b). Further, taking into consideration the above discussion this particular paper attempts to examine the concept of outsourcing along with several advantages and disadvantages associated with it by taking the case of Barclays Bank.   To start with, outsourcing  basically encompasses contracting a company’s process to some third-party supplier (Gilley and Rasheed, 2000). At present, the notion of "outsourcing" has become quite prevalent all around the world. Outsourcing could involve contracting out consumer support business or even IT support. The concept could even involve shifting assets along with employees from one corporation to another (Gilley and Rasheed, 2000).  In addition, outsourcing is also adopted for illustrating the process of transferring control of public provisions to some for-profit corporations (Grossman and Helpman, 2002b). Moreover, it takes in both domestic and overseas contracting  and at times includes off-shoring  or relocating an organization process to some another country as well. Gilley and Rasheed (2000) state that financial savings from lower abroad labour expenses is a major impetus for outsourcing or off-shoring. Outsourcing refers to the practice of one company co ntracting with some another company for offering facilities that might else be performed through in-house employees. Regularly the procedures that are outsourced can be performed through the company itself, nonetheless in a number of cases there are financial advantages that are an outcome of adopting outsourcing approach (Quelin and Duhamel, 2003). Further, as fraction of the continuously progressing trend, jobs like e-mail facilities, payroll and call centre  provisions are some among the highly widespread outsourced operations. These procedures are administered by separate companies that specialise in these facilities, are often located abroad and involve a low cost of labour (Gilley and Rasheed, 2000). According to Quelin and Duhamel, (2003), outsourcing can be defined as a mutual concept wherein two parties operate collectively, sharing the threats as well as incentives of a two-way association which lays emphasis on unremitting enhancement. Momme (2002) holds the view that outsourcing results in better performance due to the reason that it develops long-standing collaboration grounded upon faith among the individuals. Moreover, outsourcing means a far-reaching alteration in the manner individuals operate, taking in group work, mutual judgment making as well as collaborative acts. However, the more thorough these alterations are, the more complicated the job of executing them is expected to be. According to Gilley and Rasheed (2000), outsourcing points towards the modifications within the social structures of minimum two companies, along with the possibility for confrontation being substantial.   Initially, organizations which come to a decision to outsource do so, could be because of several reasons. One of the most important reasons is to attain cost savings or superior cost management throughout the outsourced function. Organizations generally outsource to a supplier who is an expert in a particular operation and could carry out that task more competently than the organization (Momme, 2002). The recent researches bring to light the fact that on an average, outsourcing organizations attain around 9% saving in costs and about 15% augment in volume and excellence. Moving ahead, other common basis for outsourcing is to attain headcount declines or reduce the variations in recruitment which might take place due to the alterations in demand for a good or facility. Also, organizations outsource with the intention to trim down the workload on their staff members or to put forward additional development prospects for their staff members by releasing them from monotonous tasks (Momm e, 2002). A large number of organizations go for outsourcing with the purpose to get rid of interruptions and compel themselves to lay high emphasis on their chief proficiencies. Some companies outsource in order to attain higher monetary flexibility, as the vending of resources which previously assisted an outsourced operation could perk up an organization’s  cash flow (Quelin and Duhamel, 2003).  However, a likely drawback in this interpretation is the fact that several suppliers require long-term  agreements that might lessen down flexibility. Going further, a main ground for outsourcing computer programming as well as other  IT (information technology)  operations is to attain admittance to latest expertise and outside proficiency. Several experts assert that the organizations are exposed to latest expertise through suppliers in any case, so instead the companies can simply appoint individual having the proficiency they need or are searching (Blinder, 2006). However, this is not appropriate for  small scale organizations that normally could not meet the expense of appointing computer specialists or formulate the internal expertise in order to uphold high-level expertise. At the time when such operations are outsourced, the small level organizations attain admittance to latest techniques which might aid them in competing with larger organizations. Apart from all this, politics is also considered to be a common reason for partnership sourcing. For instance, several organizations might initiate the outsourcing plan subsequent to witnessing the successful attempts of a rival. Some may be directed towards outsourcing by supervisors looking for individual gain or by a wish to get rid of bothersome divisions. Lastly, outsourcing puts forward an appealing option for start-up organizations while they develop. In such situations, outsourcing could release the industrialists from tiresome and time-taking operations, like payroll, in order to make sure that he or she could focus on the  marketing  as well as sales functions which would make possible for the company to generate money (Blinder, 2006). Besides, several advantages associated with partnership sourcing there also exists a number of possible shortcomings such as inefficient  quality management,  reduced organization trustworthiness, an extensive bid procedure and a loss of planned arrangement (Wartzman, 2010). There might also be inbuilt disadvantages for upholding definite operations internally. For instance, organization staff members might hold a superior comprehension of the market and their vested preferences might imply that they are more expected to create judgments taking into account the organization’s objectives. However, it is very important for the companies to make sure that they never outsource any operation which straightforwardly influences superiority or service.   Moving ahead, both sides must be cautious while stepping into an outsourcing agreement. Every associate must be certain that the other party is dedicated to the contract to the similar degree that they are. In case if not, the a ssociation could happen to be source consuming and would turn into just other burden on finances already going through pressure. Further, other issue related to the outsourcing might take place at the time when both sides attempts to make others to become accustomed with their manner of operating (Blinder, 2006). The customer and vendor might hold views as to how they wish to carry out their operation and in case if the other party does not agrees to these, at that time both might struggle to have the same opinion on conditions.   Advantages of outsourcing to Barclaycard include: The disadvantages of outsourcing for Barclaycard include: Thus, it is highly recommended to consider the interests of staff members and customers and then only make an informed decision.   As soon as an organization has arrived at the decision to go for outsourcing, there still exist several facets that need to be taken into consideration while developing an efficient transition and in developing a partner association along with the supplier (Wartzman, 2010). There is a sequence of steps that need to be followed by the companies. Firstly, the organization should decide what kind of outsourcing link would best satisfy its requirements. A few companies share premeditated  decision making among their suppliers, whereas others outsource just on a restricted and as-required basis. After that, the corporations require to obtain the assistance of chief recruits for the judgments associated with outsourcing. A number of firms come across disagreement from staff members who hold the view that their jobs face risk because of outsourcing. This is principally essential within companies wherein staff members are represented through  worker unions.  Moreover, during the mid-1990s, the problem of outsourcing was chief in various strikes made by the United Auto employees in opposition to American automobile producers. According to Wartzman (2010), developing a  team  comprising of outsourcing professionals, individuals from higher  management  and employees as well as the supervisors of all influenced sections of the organization, can help to deal with worker issues related to the decision. In order to uphold the faithfulness and efficiency of remaining staff members, it might also be supportive in planning programs so as to aid employees which might be dislo cated because of outsourcing. After addressing people concerns, the corporation could start getting in touch with potential suppliers, either officially or unofficially and asking particular questions regarding the facilities offered and the conditions of the agreement (Kakabadse & Kakabadse, 2000). Moreover, the supplier need to hold experience in managing alike business and must be capable of giving the customer’s wants the precedence they should be given. Going further, the organization should choose a supplier it has faith in so as to formulate an equally advantageous partner association (Blinder, 2006). It is essential for the corporation to build up tangible measures for job performance prior to stepping into a contract in addition to financial incentives in order to motivate the supplier to stick to time line and manage costs (Blinder, 2006). Further, the agreement should evidently describe accountabilities and outcome criterion, summarize privacy regulations and possession rights to fresh thoughts or knowledge and take in methods of severing the affiliation if required. As the supplier is expected to hold additional experience in formulating outsourcing contracts as compared to a small customer organization, it might also be useful to discuss with a legal representative at the time of agreement negotiations.  Ã‚   To conclude, it can be clearly stated from the above discussion that outsourcing among several other kinds of association have turn out to be a well-liked as well as an effectual means of administering organization development and putting forward for the organizations a possibility to lay high focus on their chief proficiencies. The advantages associated with outsourcing take in cost savings, cost management, augments volume, trims down the workload on their staff members, puts forward additional development prospects, helps the organizations to get rid of disruptions and enables them to focus on their chief proficiencies. Apart from a number of advantages related to partnership sourcing there also exist, various shortcomings including inefficient  quality management,  reduced organization trustworthiness, an extensive bid procedure and a loss of planned arrangement. Moving ahead, issues related to the outsourcing might also come to pass at the time when both customer and vendor attempts to make others to become accustomed with their manner of operating (Wartzman, 2010). Further, when firms decide to go for outsourcing, they must keep in mind several steps and factors so as to formulate efficient association. Blinder, A. (2006) Offshoring: The Next Industrial Revolution? Foreign Affairs, Vol. 85, No. 2, pp. 113.128 Gilley, K. M. and Rasheed, A. (2000) Making More by Doing Less: An Analysis of Outsourcing and its Effects on Firm Performance, Journal of Management, Vol. 26, No. 4, pp. 764 Grossman, G. M. and Helpman, E. (2002b) Outsourcing in a Global Economy, Princeton University Kakabadse, N. and Kakabadse, A. (2000) Critical review – Outsourcing: a paradigm shift, Journal of Management Development, Vol. 19, No. 8, pp. 668-728 Momme, J. (2002) Framework for outsourcing manufacturing: strategic and operational implications [Online] https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8862/ce484baaad9d9b20c4982e1b7697346f20c7.pdf, Date Accessed: 23/04/2017 Quelin, B. and Duhamel, F. (2003) Bringing Together Strategic Outsourcing and Corporate Strategy: Outsourcing Motives and Risks [Online] https://studies2.hec.fr/jahia/webdav/site/hec/shared/sites/quelin/acces_anonyme/outsourcing/2003emj-QuelinDuhamel.pdf, Date Accessed: 23/04/2017 Wartzman, R. (2010) Insourcing and Outsourcing: The Right Mix,  Bloomberg Business. End your doubt 'should I pay someone to do my dissertation by availing dissertation writing services from Advantages and Disadvantages of Outsourcing Business Functions In contemporary business, outsourcing takes the lead. This is necessitated by the fact that many business affiliation endeavors to capitalize all aspects of the progress of science, procedures, and advances to deliver satisfactory results to the client. This effect is f great significant as it necessitates concentration to advantages of focus capacities and arranged headings of activities.(Anikin and Rudaya, 2009) This prompts central lessening of expenses on the formation of the last outcome because each part wears down making it perform better without any addition contributing for adjusting new development sorts. This review concentrates on extraordinary conditions and hindrances experienced in outsourcing within banks in Kazakhstani. The discussion starts with a composed work survey of outsourcing that includes speculations and sorts of outsourcing, its central focuses, and hindrances. It will therefor expose delayed consequences of this audit, system investigation, and examination. Outsourcing is included two words sourcing implies " an exhibition of work exchange and selection of individuals to fit in certain position of work." Business communities affiliated understand that there exist individuals and organization who can deliver and perform better, speeder, smatter and give quality results. (Power, Desouza and Bonifazi, 2006) .Ashley stated that outsourcing "the undertaking of risk and duty concerning playing out a most remote indicate or affiliation another substance" (Ashley, 2008). Practically, outsourcing can be delineated as the game plan of errand occupations pariah, who can redesign, more sensible and snappier. Perpetual supply of regulator over implementation of subcontracted most remote point; subcontracting can be bound both from inside and outside sorts. Inside subcontracting is "rearrangement of purposes of repression in commercial structure aimed at saving switch completed its implementation" and external subcontracting is "strategy of accomplis hment of restricted or generally linked abilities to outside subcontractors" (Anikin and Rudaya,2009) for example, partitions of joint exercises of outside outsourcing solidify emphases thought, energized exertion, joint changing, and created effort in investment, although dissections of joint exercises of inside outsourcing wire entire arrangement relationship, at this moment collaboration, and single affiliations. Subordinate upon profitable utilization of purposes of intrigue and restructuring of risk and duty outsourcing is constrained into secluded and full outsourcing sorts. Halfway or specific outsourcing is "the endeavor of particular purposes of constringent or business techniques to outsourcer, while set of frequently related cutoff focuses are completed by association itself, and full subcontracting suggests "the assignment of discrete ability to outsourcing association with commanding it with full responsibility concerning most extreme's accomplishment (Doyle and Tapper, 2001). Outsourcing incorporates distinctive exercises, and each ponders can be portrayed by two or three structures that are installed in different hypothetical frameworks. An unimaginable bit of the reviews for outsourcing influenced by three rationalities: Resources available, Competency Approach on core values, theory of transaction. The advantage in outsourcing view works from a suggestion that connection that needs gigantic, extraordinary, exceptional and managed assets and limits, may look for an outside supplier to whipping that insufficiency (Henry A. 2008). As indicated by Perunovi? and Pedersen, the most discernible utilization of the advantage for outsourcing philosophy method is the masterminding stage for depicting the fundamental organization system and in the merchant affirmation sort out for picking a fitting broker (Perunovi? and Pedersen,2007). Affiliations will relate crevices to assets and breaking points in the savviest way to deal with keep up a particular thing and it s high ground (Urquhart,2002). The substance of the center fitness hypothesis is that it ought to be within the confinements of the organization, however, that assorted exercises that the connection supervises, which are not checked to be center or fundamental to its capacity, ought to be well-thought-out for subcontracting (Prahalad and Hamel, 2003).As appeared by Henry "a center limit can be considered as a social occasion of properties that a connection has which in this way engages it to satisfy high ground" (Henry, 2008). If the association is to concentrate on its inside aptitudes as the present of its supportable high ground, then exercises which don't constitute center health where an outside firm can be selected with lower cost. Furthermore, exchange rate concept has been made to stimulate an examination of the nearby expenses for development, changing, and watching undertaking acknowledgment under option association structures (Kay, 2005).The measure analysis consequently cost hypothesis an exchange, through outpourings of Williamson "happens when a not all that terrible or association is transferred over an imaginatively restrict interface" [16]. Pioneers upscale the time and transfer costs related to executing an exchange inside their affiliations – for sourcing versus creation and sharing costs related to working trade the outsourcing market. Affiliations can pick whether to purchase at the stores choice depends on upon the buying cost set since the expenses of period and expenses of the exchange. The hugest purpose of enthusiasm of subcontracting is focusing on motivation works out, cost speculation stores, access in comprehension, improve execution, and flexibility. To begin with, various researchers agree in transit that by giving over noncore activities to a confined in untouchable, an association can concentrate on activities essential to its key offer and addition its forceful arranging (Fan, Ramachandran, Wu and Yue,.2006) Second, outsourcing, all things considered, is held toward one of the guideline targets as cost speculation reserves (Liao and Reategui,2002).The remarkable necessity arises when a particular resource, either human or apparatus resources, is not required full time, or the attempts to get the advantage can't be guarded. For instance, for a medium-gage business keeping particular fitness and support is required from time to time. Since the cost of enlisting and setting up a fashioner who is capable in PC sustenance is too high, it will be helpful for th e relationship to subcontract this attempt. Third, by outsourcing affiliations have the likelihood to contact to particularly qualified workforce, which might not be interested in the customer alliance and thoroughly abuse the providers' hypotheses, degrees of progress, and pro limits Fourth, a fundamental explanation for outsourcing accepted is achievement of an adjustment in completing the subcontractor affiliation may offer thus of benefits of operating to a grand scale. The inconceivable level can give an assortment of points of confinement and openings which will spare the best accessible expert, who won't have any desire to work in a less captivating customer condition. Also, with master groups, the level of effective involvement is relied on to be advanced, as a result of the more critical social event of staff on assignments when showed up distinctively in connection to inward operations.Fifth, adaptability is the key elucidation behind outsourcing for a couple of affiliatio ns. Outsourcers' understandings and the professions of their experts rely on upon the level of flexibility to commercial change conditions. A central weight to outsourcing is honest to goodness loss of mechanism over procedures, safety hazard, and enigma, quality issues, reallocation of costs in existing social events. Notwithstanding, burden related to the loss of control over the outsourced operations starts from the reason that administering outside resources requires extraordinary points of confinement which is a blend of the aptitudes of individuals and procedure affiliation, contract affiliation, and power approach. Second, in each useful sense, each outsourcing contract has terms of security and plan clarified, however, the execution and study are continually troublesome. In genuine cash related affiliations, necessities keep information known to hypothesis banks far from vendors, specialists, and collection of diverse individuals who intend to use the inside information despicably (Jiang, Klein, Tesch D and Chen,2003) Third, one motivation to outsource is the yearning of getting favored association from the outso urcer over from inside staff. The subcontractor must be selected in a certain model to manage affirmation that there is no frightful impact in transit of things and attempts passed on. Something else, affiliation may free its position open.Fourth, the affiliation will agree to a course of action with the subcontracting affiliation that will cover the straightforward segments of the association that they will give. Anything not shrouded in the understanding will be the clarification behind the relationship to pay an extra cost. For instance, an overseer may purposefully forbid costs to bolster one decision, for example, picking one provider versus another, selecting in-sourcing instead outsourcing, or staying in a particular commercial or not (Liao and Reategui, 2002) Fifth, the outsourcing is dependably related to the culmination in masters' brains. It is equivalently an issue for the affiliation's top association social occasion to pick how to change the present workforces. As spec ified by Bragg, affirming such a fundamental transformation and seeing it missed the mark can provoke end of no less than one of an association's organization staff. Criticalness of this investigation is in examining condition of subcontracting mechanisms for banks Kazakhstan. Notwithstanding the way for outsourcing ended up being to a significant degree pervasive subject among coherent works ever all over the world examination for outsourcing practices in Kazakhstan in dealing with a record industry of the Republic. Also, furthermore outsourcings transformed into a systematical consider for a heavy part of masters, it started to deal with various qualities affiliations can be unmistakable. Outsourcing being broad aligned and cleaned about any business hover, like this; it must be viewed as parts shown by specialists, who look at outsourcing wonders, are correlated. In this way, the objective of this examination is to recognize certified central focuses and shortcomings of outsourcing by focusing on points of interest grabbed, and risks stood up to particularly banks in Kazakhstan. Growing outsourcing information by keeping cash and not too bad contender for this survey, trial of this examination includes three banks working in banks. For performing honest to goodness look into it is imperative to pick change to analyze system that will give information gathered that is related to research Every close meeting with top head of associations was chosen as the method for rhythmic movement asks about. The principal favored angle of versus meeting, where one can modify the request as primary and assurance that the responses are genuinely grasped by repeating or reevaluating the application. Consequently, Respondents are guided by summary of meeting subjects in the main segments of this audit. There was no inclination issue from driving respondents to focus only things on the once-over in light of the way that the once-over during the meeting. Respondents were permitted to look at untouched. The meeting was driven in Russian lingo and meeting time was changing long ho urs. Patron suggests that eye to eye converse with it is perfect for examination in an impartial way. Worldwide HSBC Kazakhstan adequately works in broad framework wherever across the globe Kazakhstan illustrative of HSBC Group is incorporated to be little relationship with other neighborhood banks. Like this, its subcontracting mechanisms principally stream out from confined resources. Being a merger of two banks its obliged as of late surrounded bank to outsource get ready concentration Alem Card LLP, in light of the way that making and keeping up taking care of structure of its particular forces is uncommonly exorbitant to banks. Furthermore, Halyk Bank works with regulatory foundations, and a number of clients is extraordinarily higher. Along these lines, Halyk Bank is constrained to search for outsourcing outcast pro communities to guarantee constant change in execution to clients. As indicated by examinations of subcontracting magnitude and sorts, outsourcing rehearses in banks. Both organizations are encountering an outsourcing breaking point of "segment cards managing" which is genuinely a champion among the most costly cutoff points among the managing a record operations, and in this way, it requires entire arrangement (8-12 years) and unchanging association among bank and outsourcer. Both BTA Bank and Halyk Bank are outsourcing "most systems" and "all things considered fulfilled" which can be appeared by the detail of outsourced farthest point and with the way that part cards were dealing with can't be allotted not so much. Propel, examinations uncover that equally, BTA Bank and Halyk Bank are improving "inside outsourcing." The illumination behind this is the way that the level of control over execution of arranging concentrates especially impacts implementation of the bank in entirety. Additionally, the rate at which the HSBC regulates outsourcing is les s, and in this effect, the outsourcing is, therefore ‘’outside’’. The clarification behind this is traverse of outsourcing associations has at this very moment character (1-3 years) and only "a couple of support and dealing with a record frames outsourced." Additionally, the inspiration driving why HSBC Bank is using "deficient outsourcing" gives off an impression of being sound due to the traverse of outsourced limits. If when only "a couple of systems outsourced" and they needn't trouble with unusual condition of switch over execution, complete subcontracting with disengaging entire organization handle with reorganization of threats and commitments is unrealistic. Outsourcing twisted up observably a champion among the most generally utilized contemporary business rehearses. Regardless, it has both motivations behind interest and put-down. While attractiveness of labor in which affiliation works and centers that it sets deviations, subcontracting can comparatively modify and pass on purposes of intrigue or dangers to customer membership. From our examinations, clearly, practices for outsourcing are not comparable in all relationship, this particular advancement considered for real money related companies. Two or three outcomes can be taken from this work. On the off chance that an affiliation is practically nothing and has obliged assets, then it desires to subcontract. In any case, subcontracting rehearses can't accreditation such fundamental favored perspective as cost lessening seen in many banks Anikin BA, Rudaya IL. 2009, Outsourcing and outstaffing: high technologies of management. Moscow:Infra-M. Anikin BA, Rudaya IL. 2009, Outsourcing and outstaffing: high technologies of management. Moscow:Infra-M;. Ashley E. 2008,Outsourcing for dummies. New Jersey: Wiley Publishing;.   Doyle C, Tapper D. 2001.Evaluating the benefits of IT outsourcing. An IDC White Paper Fan LL, Ramachandran S, Wu YH, Yue ZN.2006, Outsourcing in business. Henry A. 2008, Understanding strategic management. Oxford University Press.   Henry A. 2008, Understanding strategic management.Oxford University Press. Jiang J J, Klein G, Tesch D, Chen HG. 2003,Closing the user and provider service quality gap. Communications of the ACM; 46; 72–76. Kay N. 2005, Coase, The nature of the firm and the principles of marginal analysis. University of Strathclyde. Liao KG, Reategui LA. 2002, Information technology outsourcing in emerging markets. Massachusetts institute of technology Liao KG, Reategui LA. 2002, Information technology outsourcing in emerging markets, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Perunovi? Z, Pedersen JL. 2007, Outsourcing process and theories. POMS 18th Annual Conference. Power MJ, Desouza KC, Bonifazi C. 2006. The outsourcing handbook: how to implement a successful outsourcing process. Kogan Page Limited. Prahalad CK, Hamel G. 2003, the core competence of the corporation. Harvard Business Review 3; 79-93.   Urquhart C. 2002, Applications of outsourcing theory to collaborative purchasing and licensing. Aberystwyth: University of Wales.   Urquhart C. 2002.   Applications of outsourcing theory to collaborative purchasing and licensing. Aberystwyth: University of Wales Advantages And Disadvantages Of Outsourcing Business Functions This research report has been conducted on the topic â€Å"Advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing business functions†. This research program will discuss the concept of outsourcing which is being used by businesses for enhancing their effectiveness and reducing the workload. Outsourcing is used by the businesses for enhancing their performance as well as focusing on the important activities or operations of the business. It will also discuss the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing to the business. Different methods and techniques will be applied to the collection of data. These methods and techniques will be discussed in this research report. Objectives are set for identification of the goals which need to be adopted from the execution of the activity or series of activities. This research report has been conducted with a motive to collect data related to the various advantages and disadvantages associated with the use of outsourcing to the business. Knowledge will be developed of the concept of outsourcing and its importance for the business. Various articles, journals and internet sources will be used for developing knowledge regarding the research topic. The scope defines the boundaries of the research and aspects which will be covered in this research report. Outsourcing is widely used by the businesses for enhancing the performance of the business. This research report will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing. Various research methods or techniques will be put to use for gathering information related to the research topic. An action plan will be prepared for conducting the research project as per the plans. Outsourcing is an important aspect of the dynamic business environment as there has been a rise in the use of this concept. Businesses are enrolling in outsourcing for ensuring that the operations of the business are performed in an effective manner. Outsourcing has contributed towards the attainment of the objectives of the business. The main objective behind the use of outsourcing is to manage the time by focusing on the crucial aspects of the business. Globalisation has promoted the concept of outsourcing. Previously outsourcing was used for cost cutting but with the change in the business environment, outsourcing has been used for enhancing the performance and focusing on the important activities of the business. For operating in an effective manner in the dynamic business environment, it is vital to adopt effective strategies. Different authors have presented different views for outsourcing which have been discussed in this research project (Sturgeon & Gereffi, 2011). The term outsourcing can be defined as the use of outside resources for the purpose of execution of the operations of the business by handling the operations to outside company or third agency. Businesses are using outsourcing for the purpose of enhancing the performance of the business, reducing the cost, time and efforts, enhancing the effectiveness of important functions of the business and increase the productivity of the business (Tayauova, 2012). There are few disadvantages associated with the use of outsourcing. These disadvantages of using outsourcing include an increase in the cost, lack of proper infrastructure facilities, lack of support on the part of the government, depletion in the quality of the products or services outsourced, the threat of leakage of the confidential information of the business and lack of control on the operations. Focus on the business while taking outsourcing decision is on quality of the services, confidentiality, and control on the operations ou tsourced. Companies are considering outsourcing for reducing the legal and financial obligations which are contributing to the cost of the business (Mirza, 2012). Different factors are responsible for determining the decision of outsourcing. Businesses are analyzing different aspects related to outsourcing for drawing a decision. Different functions or operations of the business are being outsourced by the businesses for enhancing the effectiveness and focusing on the important functions of the business. There has been a fast increase in the use of outsourcing. The concept of outsourcing includes appointing the third party for the purpose of performing or executing the operation of the business. Companies are using outsourcing for encouraging the chances of success and growth as well as gaining a competitive advantage over the others in the industry. Private and public organizations both are using outsourcing for enhancing their performance (Galetic, et. al., 2011). Research questions are formulated for forming a base for the data collection process. Research questions are mentioned below: Research methodologies cover different methods or techniques which are applied for the collection of data related to the research topic. This research project has discussed the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing to the business. Information has been collected for gaining knowledge of the aspects related to the research topic. These methods or techniques are mentioned below: Research method: It is vital to execute the research program in an effective manner and for this purpose there is a need to gather quality data which will enhance the quality of the research program. Qualitative research method will be used for collecting data for the research project. Qualitative research method will help in collecting quality data by collecting primary and secondary data (Crossman, 2017). Use of primary and secondary sources of data will contribute towards the attainment of the objectives of the research project. Research questions will be used for collecting primary as well as secondary sources of data. Qualitative research method will help in collecting information related to the behavior patterns, data related to needs of the users and human experience (Quick & Hall, 2015). Research approaches: Qualitative research approach will be applied for the collection of quality data related to the research program. A qualitative approach is an effective approach which will help in collecting quality data. The qualitative approach provides quality data which helps in enhancing the knowledge related to the reasons, opinions and different aspects related to the research topic (Crossman, 2017). Primary and secondary sources of data collection sum up qualitative approach which forms a base for the reliability and authenticity of the research project. The questionnaire will be prepared and distributed among the employees for collecting information. Different journals, articles and internet sources will be used for collecting secondary source of information (Thomas, 2015). Data collection: Data collection is an important aspect which ensures that the research is being executed in a proper manner. Quality data can be collected with the application of primary and secondary sources of data collection. This data will help in the completion of the research project in a successful manner. Primary data can be understood as the raw data which a researcher directly collects from the respondents for gaining understanding (Smith, 2015). Primary sources are used for collecting first-hand information. The questionnaire will be used for collecting raw form of data directly from the respondents.   Secondary data can be explained as the second-hand information which other researchers have collected for performing their researches (Johnston, 2014). This form of data ensures that reliable data is presented for enhancing the quality of the research project. For the collection of secondary data, journal articles and internet sources will be used. Data will be collected which is of after 2010. This is done for ensuring that the updated or current data is presented in the research (Turkenburg & McAuley, 2013). Procedure and technique: time has acted as a limitation in this research. Due to lack of availability of time, random sampling technique will be applied in this research program. Random sampling will help in the analysis and interpretation of the data in a better manner within the limited timeframe. Random sampling technique is a sampling technique which provides equal chances of being selected to every sample of the population (Nishad & Sankar, 2016). Strategy: a strategy needs to be adopted for the purpose of conducting the research in an effective manner. This strategy ensures that the research is conducted properly and covering every aspect. For the execution of this research program, systematic approach will be used. This systematic approach will ensure that the research is covering every aspect of the research by ensuring that nothing important has been left out. Different activities of the research will be conducted in a sequence and an action plan has been prepared for conducting the research in a sequence (Nirmala, 2013). Targeted market: target market is set for identification of the source from where information related to the research project is to be collected. Primary and secondary sources of data collected have been selected for collecting information. Primary data will be collected from the employees working in international organizations. This information will help in forming a view related to the research. Secondary data will be collected from the internet sources, newspapers, books and articles. Choice: Different alternatives have been analyzed for the purpose of selection of the most suitable or appropriate alternative for conducting this research project. Ethical consideration: ethical aspects help in the identification of right and wrong. This research project has been conducted by following the values and principles for conducting the research within the ethical boundaries. Confidentiality will be maintained for protecting the confidential information of the respondents. Presentation of data will be done in fair manner for ensuring that fair views of the respondents have been presented. Few limitations have been identified which have acted as issues for this research project. Dealing with these limitations in an effective manner is required for the execution of the research program properly. Time available for the execution of this research was limited. For coping with this limitation, random sampling technique has been used. Lack of resources is another limitation which affects the execution process of this research program. For the completion of the research program in a successful manner, different resources need to be applied or used. Lack of access to data also affected the data collection process of this research program. Deciding the topic for the research Decision will be made regarding the selection of the research topic. Plans will be formulated for preparing guidelines for the execution of the research program. Implementation of the plan will be done as per the plans formulated. This phase of the research project include collection of data with the application of primary and secondary sources of data collection. The analysis will be done on the collected data for forming the basis for conclusion and recommendations. Interpretation of the collected data Analysed data will be used for interpretation of the results. The conclusion will be based on the analyzed and interpreted data and recommendations will be provided. Thus, from the aspects discussed above, it can be concluded that the role and importance of outsourcing is increasing in this dynamic business environment. There are various aspects which are responsible for the increasing use of this concept. This report has discussed these aspects along with the aspects affecting the performance of the business adversely. This report has discussed a summary of the literature review as well as different methods or techniques for the collection of data related to the research topic. Limitations have been discussed in this report which could have affected the execution process of this research project. Crossman, A., 2017, â€Å"An Overview of Qualitative Research Methods†, ThoughtCo. Fita, M., 2012, â€Å"6 Reasons Why Social Networking is So Popular These Days†, Brandiginity. Galetic, L., Aleksic, A. & Klindzic, M., 2011, â€Å"Outsourcing and Downsizing As Modern Organizational Trends in Croatian Companies†, The Business Review, Cambridge, Vol. 17, Number 1. Johnston, M. P., 2014, â€Å"Secondary Data Analysis: A Method of which the Time Has Come†, Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Libraries, pp. 619 –626. Mirza, A. A., 2012, â€Å"The Impacts of Outsourcing on the organisation and economy- A critical Look on Ericsson Transformation Planning Outsourced to India†, Blekinge Institute of Technology. Nirmala, Y., 2013, â€Å"Chapter four: research design†, Language in India, vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 102. Nishad, P.M. & Sankar, S., 2016, â€Å"Efficient random sampling statistical method to improve big data compression ratio and pattern matching techniques for compressed data†, International Journal of Computer Science and Information Security, vol. 14, no. 6, pp. 179. Quick, J. & Hall, S., 2015, â€Å"Part three: The quantitative approach†, Journal of perioperative practice, vol. 25, no. 10, pp. 192 Smith, N.L., 2015, â€Å"Using Action Design Research to Research and Develop Evaluation Practice†, New Directions for Evaluation, vol. 2015, no. 148, pp. 57-72. Sturgeon, T. & Gereffi, G., 2011, â€Å"Measuring Success in the Global Economy: International Trade, Industrial Upgrading, and Business Function Outsourcing in Global Value Chains†,  Survey of Current Business, 91(2), pp.33–59, 61–66. Tayauova, G., 2012, â€Å"Advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing: analysis of outsourcing practices of Kazakhstan banks†, Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, pp. 188 – 195. Thomas, J. A., 2015, â€Å"Using unstructured diaries for primary data collection†, Nurse researcher, vol. 22, no. 5, pp. 25. Turkenburg, J. P. & McAuley, K. E., 2013, â€Å"Data collection and processing†, Acta Crystallographica Section D, vol. 69, no. 7, pp. 1193-1194. Advantages And Disadvantages Of Outsourcing Business Functions Discuss About The Advantages Outsourcing Business Functions? Outsourcing of the business functions is among the effective actions in the contemporary businesses, given that many organization will attempt to utilize each one of these enhancements of technology, techniques as well as technologies to provide competent and competitive products which will gratify the customers (Alonso, Clifton and Dà ­az-Fuentes, 2015). This predicament is usable to both partners required, given that each could concentrate on their resources to build the core competencies and prospective directions of the activity. This could result in the decrease of the costs on the production of the final product since every part function on it, through its ideal without using off the additional effort along with investing for the understanding of the new activity (Alonso, Clifton and Dà ­az-Fuentes, 2015). In this study it focuses on the advantages and the disadvantages of outsourcing the business functions. The purpose of this research is to provide an insight and a discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing of the business functions (Carnahan and Somaya, 2013). The study evaluate on whether the advantages expected from outsourcing maintenance activities are more than the associated disadvantages. This research has focused on the advantages and the disadvantages of the outsourcing business functions. The research will provide the reader to a much clearer understanding on the issue of outsourcing of the business functions. Definition of the outsourcing: according to power et al. outsourcing consists of two terms that are out and sourcing that describes â€Å"the act of transferring of the work, obligations and decision rights to someone else’’ (Carnahan and Somaya, 2013). Organization need to source out work given that still others who could get it done much cheaper, quicker as well as much better. In the right context and the deployed shrewdly, outsourcing of the business function could be a god way for the organization to improve on the efficiencies and bolter on the bottom line. The following are some of the advantages of outsourcing of the business function. Streamline of the cost of business: The primary cause that explains why the business outsource the company function would be to decrease on their cost of the procedures. Outsourcing lowers on the cost through capitalising the comparative benefits along with economies of scale which is common in the sectors (Chen, Hong, Jiang and Kubik, 2013). It is often expected that outsourcing can conservatively generate twenty percent saving on the cost to the enterprise operations (Carnahan and Somaya, 2013). This may be due to that outsourcing has a comparative cost benefit on the labor. Improvement of the business flexibility: as a result of outsourcing of the business functions, organization could enhance their services via taking the benefit of the time zone differentials. Focus on the core business: the outsourcing of the business enterprise functions allows organization to concentrate on their know-how along with the central business (Chen, Hong, Jiang and Kubik, 2013). Whenever a busi ness go outside their expertise, they enter into the business functions and the procedures which they might not have the expertise relating to and could possibly take away from the primary focus (Creon, Grover and Teng, 2017). An illustration, on this is when a grocery store choose in introducing the florist to their operation. Should there be too much concentrate on the section of the company they lose the focus to their primary business that is the grocery. Enhanced quality: This may be accomplished by using the vendors that have much more understanding so they have specialized procedures. Certainly this may be trough contracting out a cleaning program (Chen, Hong, Jiang and Kubik, 2013). An outside service might have the resources for employing, appropriate training in addition to facility inspections that could have never been offered in the event that these types of features were kept in the house. Focus: certain business could opt to outsource on their enterprise functions to be able to get rid of the disruptions in addition to force themselves to focus on their core competencies. This might be attractive advantageous especially to the start-up firms (Creon, Grover and Teng, 2017). Outsourcing has the capacity to free the entrepreneur from the cumbersome as well as the time intensive duties, for instance the payroll, to ensure that one can possibly focus on the sales along with the marketing actions which are most suitable to the business especially in the long run development and also success of the business (Gonzalez, Llopis and Gasco, 2013). The things get done quickly. The business has a tendency to outsource the functions since it get the work performed much quicker. In the event an enterprise continues to be working with the limited number of the staff members, you may get things completed whole faster by passing time consuming activity to the freelancer or maybe the external businesses. Furthermore, organization will continue to work around the clock (Gonzalez, Llopis and Gasco, 2013). This really is a major benefit of outsourcing the digital work overseas which will be a substantial difference to encounter in times of the time zones and the holidays. Higher customer satisfaction scores: The seller agreements usually guarantee a given level of the quality as well as service which could be harder to handle in house. An example, is an employee who has been called in sick, it is looking to the responsibility of the sellers in complying with the replacement to the contractual agreement. The business competitive advantage through outsourcing the functions. It could bring the flexibility to a business, by turning on the fixed costs into the variable costs as well as freeing up the capital (Gonzalez, Llopis and Gasco, 2013). Moreover, outsourcing could offer the business the edge especially when adapting to change the market conditions. Additionally, through outsourcing of the business functions it has been found that it can free the business to focus on its strengths (Gonzalez, Llopis and Gasco, 2013). This can be beneficial to the business hence allowing the employees to concentrate on the main duties and on the future strategies. Increase of the productivity:   outsourcing of the business functions have been found to increase of the productivity especially through delegating of the functions which are not in your business core competencies (Willcocks and Cullen, 2013). This will enable the business to increase on the complete advantages and generate an increased return on the productivity. The risk sharing: certainly one of important facet of determing the outcome of the campaign is the risk analysis. Outsourcing numerous business function parts could assist the business to shift particular responsibilities to the outsourced vendor (Rochester and Rochester, 1995). Given that the vendor who is outsourced is a specialist, they could anticipate the risk mitigating element significantly better. Cost saving: cost saving can be an important aspect of outsourcing the business functions. The cost saving could offset, setup or the production costs which are associated to the office space (Creon, Grover and Teng, 2017). These savings frees up the resources which could be used for other functions in the business. Loss of the managerial control: when an organization sign on an agreement to have another company execute the function of a division or a particular task, you are transforming both the administration and the control of that function over to the other business (Willcocks and Cullen, 2013). You should have an agreement, but the managerial control might remain in an additional organization. The company which you are outsourcing the solutions will never be related to the similar specifications along with the mission which drives your enterprise (Caruth, Haden and Caruth, 2013). They will be driven to making of the profit from the solutions which they are providing to you in addition to the other business like yours. Hidden expenses: the business would probably sign an agreement with the outsourcing firm that they might cover the particulars of services which they might be offering. Anything that is not offered in the contract could be the basis for extra charges (Liu and Wang, 2014). F urthermore, it is possible to experience the legal fees to be able to maintain legal representation to evaluate the agreements which you will sign. Lack of confidentiality: This is one of the primary issue with outsource the business function. The business needs to forego some form of privacy over their primary business secrets (Liu and Wang, 2014). Furthermore, the company must pass certain data such as the login details, the customer information along with the critical information of the processes of the business and safety measures that are undertaken, to permit the outsourcing firm to implement on the task in hand (Liu and Wang, 2014). Furthermore, the outsourcing organization will also be analysed for their internal security procedures which might result to data risk which can be stolen or even a fraud might be committed which leads to the loss of reputation along with the confidence of the client. This risk is high especially in which the financial data continues to be handl ed for example the banking information or maybe the credit. Poor customer experience: an actual and practical danger of the disadvantage of outsourcing on the business function is the loss in the customer assurance. There is developing variety of the businesses that are looking to offshore are meant to the foreign staff at a cost that could be a portion to exactly what the native employees gets (Caruth, Haden and Caruth, 2013). Even with the extensive training acquired, it has been determined that the customers possess poor experiences particularly when they are speaking with the foreign English speaking specialists. This might result in confusion along with misconception. Decrease of quality: the quality could acts as each a benefit along with a disadvantage within this discussion. The outsourced enterprise features, unless there is certainly a stiff quality check in place, they are able to quickly lessen on the advantages which a business initially saw in the whole idea of the outsourcing (Liu and Wang, 2014). Since all the outsourcing contracts have been drawn up in advance and there is not much room especially to the leveraging of the price, outsourcing company might resort to less than legal techniques to permit them generate an income. Risk of the conflict of interest:   before an organization sign on the outsourcing agreement, it is important to keep in mind that the service provider could currently be managing similar account or even the competitor’s ones (Liu and Wang, 2014). An outsourcing service provider will aim at handling many customer as possibly can. It may be difficult to know who their client are even after an extensive research and due diligence has been made (Gobble, 2013). The service providers are bound to other non-disclosure agreement with the other clients. One cannot compel them to disclose whether they are managing the other competitors. This can pose a risk to the business which could lead being used by the competitor (Schniederjans, Schniederjans and Schniederjans, 2015). Any data that is given to the service provider it could be used against the business one way or another without having knowledge of it (Gobble, 2013). Risk of exposure to the confidential data:   trust can become one of the major issue when outsourcing services since the arrangement entails sharing of the information which is confidential (Gobble, 2013). The non-Disclosure agreements are some of the usual set of the document that are used for enforcing it and they can become logistical inconvenience. A bad publicity and the ill-will: The word outsourcing could bring to mind various thing to different individuals. In case one lives in a community that has an outsourcing organization and they employ ones friends and neighbors, outsourcing is good (Kotlarsky, Scarbrough and Oshri, 2014). In case these individuals lost their jobs since they have been shipped across the state or across the world, outsourcing could bring a bad reputation. If the business outsource their operations, morale could suffer from the remaining workforce. Language limitations: In the event that the client call center is outsourced to another country which converse a complete different language, there could possibly be levels of the discontent for clients dealing with the language barriers of someone who has distinct accent (Kotlarsky, Scarbrough and Oshri, 2014). Organizational knowledge: a worker who may have recently been outsourced might not have the same comprehending and enthusiasm for the business as comparison to the regular employee (Dolgui and Proth, 2013). There may be the potential that an outsourced staff member would interact with the client compared with being as knowledgeable of the business which may result to the negative client experience. Legal compliance and security: it is critical that problems in relation to the legal compliance along with security are handled in a formal documentation. The processes that are outsourced needs to be managed to be able to make sure that there is diligence with the legal confor mity along with the system security (Dolgui and Proth, 2013). An illustration might be the information technology function and having an outsourced staff utilize their access to the confidential customer data for their very own gains. Staff layoffs: outsourcing usually lead to the need to the decrease in the degree of the staff. Except if it might be organized via attrition, layoffs are unavoidable (Wuyts, Rindfleisch and Citrin, 2015). This is very difficult at the best and if this is not handled well, it could have an adverse impact on the remaining staff (Dolgui and Proth, 2013). Additionally, when an organization is researching vendors to outsource it is important to reflect on your particular requirements and get at least three requests for the proposal to make sure that the enterprise is getting the best value for their money . Outsourcing of the business functions has become one of the widely used contemporary business practices. However, it has both benefits and drawbacks.   While the character of the work in which the organization operates and aims that it set could change, outsourcing could change on as well as bring both benefits and risk to the client organization. From the analysis discussed above on the benefits and drawback of the outsourcing, it is obvious that the practices of outsourcing the business functions are not similar to all the organization. Several aspect can be learnt from this literature. If a company is small and has limited resources, then they need to outsource. Nonetheless, it is important to note that the outsourcing activities cannot always ensure that common benefits such as the cost reduction are achieved. Alonso, J.M., Clifton, J. and Dà ­az-Fuentes, D., 2015. Did new public management matter? An empirical analysis of the outsourcing and decentralization effects on public sector size. Public Management Review, 17(5), pp.643-660. Carnahan, S. and Somaya, D., 2013. Alumni effects and relational advantage: the impact on outsourcing when a buyer hires employees from a supplier's competitors. Academy of Management Journal, 56(6), pp.1578-1600. Caruth, D.L., Haden, S.S.P. and Caruth, G.D., 2013. Critical factors in human resource outsourcing. Journal of Management Research, 13(3), p.1. Chen, J., Hong, H., Jiang, W. and Kubik, J.D., 2013. Outsourcing mutual fund management: firm boundaries, incentives, and performance. The Journal of Finance, 68(2), pp.523-558. Creon, M.J., Grover, V. and Teng, J.T., 2017. Theoretical Perspectives on the Outsourcing of Information Systems. In Outsourcing and Offshoring Business Services (pp. 25-52). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. Dolgui, A. and Proth, J.M., 2013. Outsourcing: definitions and analysis. International Journal of Production Research, 51(23-24), pp.6769-6777. Gobble, M.M., 2013. Outsourcing innovation. Research-Technology Management, 56(4), pp.64-67. Gonzalez, R., Llopis, J. and Gasco, J., 2013. Information systems offshore outsourcing: managerial conclusions from academic research. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, 9(2), pp.229-259. Kotlarsky, J., Scarbrough, H. and Oshri, I., 2014. Coordinating expertise across knowledge boundaries in offshore-outsourcing projects: The role of codification. Management Information Systems Quarterly, 38(2), pp.607-627. Liu, S. and Wang, L., 2014. Understanding the impact of risks on performance in internal and outsourced information technology projects: The role of strategic importance. International Journal of Project Management, 32(8), pp.1494-1510. Rochester, J.H. and Rochester, H., 1995, September. Advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing. In Professional Communication Conference, 1995. IPCC'95 Proceedings. Smooth sailing to the Future., IEEE International (pp. 77-82). IEEE. Schniederjans, M.J., Schniederjans, A.M. and Schniederjans, D.G., 2015. Outsourcing and insourcing in an international context. Routledge. Willcocks, L. and Cullen, S., 2013. Intelligent IT outsourcing. Routledge. Wuyts, S., Rindfleisch, A. and Citrin, A., 2015. Outsourcing customer support: The role of provider customer focus. Journal of Operations Management, 35, pp.40-55.

Stepfamilies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Stepfamilies - Essay Example Wilkes and Fromme (2002) investigated the stability over time of themes in the experiences of biological parents, stepparents, and adolescents in stepfamilies. Twelve adolescents, ten stepparents, and nine biological parents from ten stepfamilies that participated, completed follow-up questionnaires that sought to determine if the themes found in the earlier study were still present in their stepfamilies four years later. The results indicated areas that remained stable over time and areas of positive change and adjustment. The results also suggested the need for further research about the specific factors that shape adjustment to stepfamilies. The initial study consisted of 37 participants from 12 families. Of those 37 participants involved in the initial study, 31 completed follow-up questionnaires. Of the 12 families involved in the follow-up study, the adolescents consisted of six females and six males. All of the adolescents were Caucasian. The average age was 16.6 years. All of the children were the biological child of one of the parents living in the home. Four were from stepfather families, two were from stepmother families and six were from blended families. Of the stepparents involved in the present study, there was one Hispanic stepfather and the rest were Caucasian, three of the stepparents had never been married before, and six of the stepparents were male and four were female, with an average age of 41.2 years. Among the biological parents, four were female and five were male. All of the biological parents were Caucasian, with an average age of 43.6 years. Prior to the current marriages, eight of the biological parents had been married in the past. Assessment procedures included three questionnaires: one for the adolescents, one for the stepparents, and one for the biological parents, plus second versions with modifications made to render the wording appropriate for members of the stepfamilies that had been separated. The statements related to the core themes identified in the initial study. The questionnaires in Wilkes and Fromme's (2002) follow-up study asked each participant to rate their level of agreement with 32 to 34 statements on a five-point Likert scale. Based on the ratings participants gave to statements, averages were calculated to determine the level of agreement or disagreement with each statement. One of the major overarching themes found in the initial and follow-up studies was that adolescents were continuing to find ways to cope with the losses in the stepfamily formation process. These losses included undergoing changes in relationships, adapting to different family traditions, experiencing less power in the stepfamily, and having a sense that their family had changed very quickly. 'Therapists' perceptions of bioparent-child relationships in stepfamilies: What hurts What helps'- Cartwright, C. (2003). Stepfamily relationship research has focused on step relationships with particular emphasis on stepparent-stepchild relationships, despite increasing evidence that residential bioparent-child relationships can be negatively impacted through remarriage and stepfamily living. In a project by Cartwright (2003), nine stepfamily therapists were

Dance 3 (fitness and wellness) Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Dance 3 (fitness and wellness) - Assignment Example ty and high lipid levels (signified by the high low-density lipoproteins) also predisposes Joe to acquiring Diabetes of the type two variety especially if any member of his family has had diabetes before. He is also likely to get gallbladder diseases, osteoarthritis, dyslipidemia and cancers. Social exclusion may lead Joe to succumb to depression and other mental disorders. Therefore, there is a need for Joe to manage his lifestyle better. To make himself fit, Joe should start by enrolling himself in a local gym and dedicate a particular time of the day for exercises. By doing this, he would be also be engaging in more social interactions and therefore promoting his social wellness (Hoeger, page 200). He should seek a religious domination of his liking and attend regular services. Also, he should analyse his skills and hobbies and look for a job that befits him. He should also take time to be relaxing and go out for dates with members of the opposite sex to enable him be able to get a suitable partner of his choice. All these will enable him create a balanced lifestyle that would reduce the risk of the above diseases. Sally needs to seek the help of a good psychologist to help her unravel the source of her demotivation. Alternatively, she could do a self-evaluation to pinpoint the root of her demotivation. After the emotional problem is solved, she should enrol herself back to the gym on a regular basis. Since her sport of choice is athletics, she should engage in regular jogging in the morning and treadmills in the gym. Each week she strives to increase the distance of running to improve her performance. She should incorporate the principle of commitment and self-discipline to record improved performance. She should also eat healthily. A diet plan for a single day could resemble the one

Case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 88

Case Study Example The project will further result in the region’s infrastructure develop as well as increase trading activities. According to the theory of utilitarianism, an act should be classified as immoral only if its consequences are so severe that people would wish the agent of that action obliged to act otherwise (Hinman 142). Despite its effects on the environment, the positive consequences of this project outweigh the negative consequences mainly due to its economic significance to the region. In addition to the above macro issues, several micro issues too should also be considered. Investing in this project involves both money and time and getting returns from these two investments will be significant to personal happiness, according to the theory of eudemonia, which states that the ultimate goal of human life is happiness and good life. This goal can be achieved by practicing virtues in one’s daily life and is defined as a quality that allows a person to succeed at an idea (Hinman 145). In this sense, the investment is recommended as long as it promises personal happiness. The investment should therefore be implemented as both theories support

International financial markets IP 1 Assignment

International financial markets IP 1 - Assignment Example This paper is an attempt to look into the differences that exist in two countries where Acme Corporation is considering establishing a Greenfield investment. These two countries are the United Kingdom and Nigeria. Well, it must be remembered that these two countries are totally different in several aspects that can really affect the decision of the corporation to venture into their markets. The UK is a member of the European Commission and is generally a developed economy with good and well managed sectors. On the other hand, Nigeria is one of the largest economies in Africa with a very large consumer population that drives economic growth. Trade and economic policies The UK prractices an open economy where trade liberalization and competition for free trade is highly cherished and encouraged. Any business is able to trade freely and invest competitively without any unnecessary restrictions from the government. One of the greatest concerns of the government here is to maximize the op portunities that exist for international trade in order to economically benefit the country. Well, this is after the recognition that trade enables countries to specialize in activities that enable them to fully explore and exploit their resources and strengths. This open economy system has enabled the UK to experience high economic growth rates over the years especially in the post-war era. The policy has also strengthened the UK’s consumer markert as corporations and businesses strive to stay competitive amid the challenges and realities of this age (Smith, 2010). Over the years the UK has been known as a haven of very favorable trade policies that enabled many of its firms go multinational. Even though this attribute has slightly been lost over the years courtesy of very high interest rates and the global financial meltdown, the government through the Bank of England has incessantly been trying to bring down the interest rates and increase the money supply in the banking s ystem with a view of restoring economic stability. Nevertheless it must be remembered that the trade policies in the UK are generally investor friendly and may not be much different from the US case. Nigeria is a developing economy grappling with the economic challenges that affect most countries in this category. However, it is a booming economy driven by its productive oil sector coupled with a very high population that creates a lot of demand for consumer goods and services. Even though the federal government of Nigeria recognizes the benefits of trade liberalization and the need to open up the market for international competition, challenges have always been realized. Like in any other developing country, the infant industries have to be protected from the stiff competition posed by foreign corporations. There also exists the common assumption that free trade can only exist under an ideal economic system which is always impossibility. Nigerian trade policies are driven under the auspices of the Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) that seeks to restore the economy of the country after several decades of economic instability that bedeviled the country (Olaloku, 2007). As such, the government has been trying to encourage capital inflows into the country through foreign direct investments. This is in a bid to reduce the country’s dependence on the oil sector by creating other sources of revenue. However, the federal gover

Astronomy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Astronomy - Research Paper Example The gravity would decrease since as you come closer to the center of the earth there is the decrease in gravitational pull. Therefore, the gravitational force would be weak almost the same as the moon’s centrifugal force. The moon would move away from the earth’s atmosphere since there would be less gravitational strength to keep it within the earth’s atmosphere. Furthermore, the weight of everything will be less by half since the gravity will decrease by half. Because of the reduced gravity the fish and other sea creature will float on water easily and would have problem sinking because of the in density of the earth’s matter. When the astronaut floats out of the international space station for him, to get back to the arm of the space station, he should throw away the set of tools he has. This concept applies the Newton third law of motion which states that for every action force there is the reaction force. So by throwing the tools away, the center of gravity of the set of tools and the astronaut will react against each other and, therefore, move in the opposite direction. This because the astronaut and the tools have the common center of gravity hence, they must remain the same. The tool set will move to the other direction as the body moves toward the space station. Hence, the astronaut will be able to rescue himself. The Newton third law is what works in aerospace engineering. It explains the generation of thrust by the rocket engine. James Webb space telescope is the next big thing in the field of astrophysics. I support it because Webb’s telescope has a combination of large apertures, diffracted image quality and infrared sensitivity over an extensive wavelength range that is not available from the ground or spaced-based facilities. In addition, Webb’s telescope has broad collecting than Hubble’s, and it is capable of extending to longer wavelengths in the infrared. Moreover, it

Executive Leadership discussion Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Executive Leadership discussion - Research Paper Example A good plan can be implemented only by a person who has the knowledge, skills and leadership abilities (Ammons and Newell, 1989). A good leader is the driver for a business to reach the destination of success. Thus, executive leadership is what the business depends upon for success. All business organization will have multiple level of employees, and employees at higher levels make decisions while the employees at lower levels implement the decisions. The success of any organization is entirely dependant on the leadership qualities exhibited at the top level (Elliott,  Clement &   Lessem, 1994). If the organization has a good executive at the top, the management will be good. Good management transfers its effects to all levels of employees and this in turn improves output or production and the quality of the product. Rhonda Abrams (1991) believes that executive leadership is required for the effective growth of an organization. All managers in the organization should have leadership accountability and this accountability needs to be discharged by the leader for the overall growth of the organization. Executive leadership provides a practical approach for improving the decision making capacity of the managers at all levels. Decision making forms the basis of achievement of targets and overall development of the organization. The executive leaders have to take up the responsibility of building the organization. They make fundamental changes in the organization and implement them. They motivate the managers to accept the change in the best interest of the organization (Elliott,  Clement &   Lessem, 1994). According to Wyne R. Davis, these are a few requirements of an executive leader. An executive leader, who has the ability to carry out the above responsibilities, will make the organization successful in terms of business. The executive leaders are responsible to bring an overall positive change to the organization. They set the right goals and aims

A Digital Proof Write-up Essay Example for Free

A Digital Proof Write-up Essay The problem in A Digital Proof has two parts. The first is to fill in five boxes with numbers that fit the criteria: each box has a number, and the digit that is placed in each box must be the amount of times that number appears in the whole five digit number formed by the boxes. The second part of the problem is to prove that there is only one solution. How I went about solving this problem was somewhat simple; at least, it was at first. I started from the ‘four’ box (the fifth box, labeled with a four). I realized that four wouldn’t work in that box, because that would mean that there were four fours, and that wouldn’t work. I couldn’t put three in the box, either, because that would require there to be three fours, and that wouldn’t work out either. Two didn’t work for the same reasons as four and three, and even one wasn’t a possibility. This left me with one option: zero. One box down, four to go. Easy, right? That’s what I thought as I filled in the ‘three’ box, again with a zero for the same reasons that I’d put a zero in the ‘four’ box. Four wouldn’t work because that would require three to be in four boxes, and then that wouldn’t leave room for any other numbers. Again, this was the reason that three, two, and one didn’t work. For three, too, the only possibility was zero. Up until now, things had been fairly straightforward. Then, once I hit the ‘two’ box, things began to get more complicated. Here, I couldn’t put four or three because two of the boxes had already been filled, and I couldn’t change that. Then, I tried two. This could work, but only if there was a two elsewhere. I couldn’t put a two in the ‘one’ box, but I could put it in the zero box, because of the ‘four’ and ‘three’ boxes. Good thing I didn’t change those. That left me with the ‘one’ box. There was really only one option for that box, and that was putting a one in it. That was my process for solving the seemingly daunting, but surprisingly easy problem. I know that 21200 is the only solution to this problem, because after working it through logically, it becomes apparent that no other set of numbers would work in this problem. While I found the problem a lot less difficult than I had anticipated, that isn’t to say that it was an easy assignment. It really forced me to think, which was useful because a lot of the time I try to avoid things where I need to think too deeply. Doing this problem forces you to be disciplined and stick with the problem until it’s finished, and makes you actually think about the problem carefully, from every angle. I think that if I could change the problem, I would provide more of a guideline as to how to go about solving the problem, because I was completely stumped at the beginning. Even this, though, I’m not entirely sure about. I believe that having to figure out a way to go at this problem was beneficial to me, and helped me get into the right mindset to do the problem right. I wouldn’t really say that I enjoyed working on this problem, but it wasn’t horrendous like I’d been expecting it to be. And the problem was definitely hard. No t too hard, but not easy by any means. If I had to give myself a grade on this, I’d give myself an A- or B+. My process wasn’t the most unique or interesting, because I just went at it from back to front. I didn’t write anything particularly new or different in my write-up, but I did put effort in and I did manage to get the problem done, and provide sound reasoning to back up my claims. Overall, I think that this write-up is solid A- material

Effects of Psychological Contract on the Work-Life Balance

Effects of Psychological Contract on the Work-Life Balance A contemporary analysis of the concept of work life balance and the effects of the psychological contract within the business Aimed towards Retail Terms of Reference To define, explore and critically analyse the extent to which contracted work in the retail business is affected by psychological contract theory Establish from primary and secondary sources the factors which impact on the work life balance for employees, and if any policies and practices are effective. Examine the various ideas from the literature around organisational culture and the psychological contract, in order to determine how Toys R Us fits with these definitions. To draw conclusions around the extent to which Toys R Us has managed to achieve a suitable work life balance for all of their employees without the use of a psychological contract; and to examine possible future changes/ recommendations which could be implemented to create said contract. Literature Review The journal Management Research News (2007) provides a useful starting point, as it looks to review the literature around the psychological contract in order to help develop an understanding around the various unique agreements and the work environment that underlies modern working. As such, the paper is a conceptual paper, and its main aim is to categorise the existing knowledge around the psychological contract in the workplace, as well as to provide practical direction for future research. The results of this investigation indicated that the context of the psychological contract must be reconsidered, due to the nature of the flexible modern working environment where jobs are not always seen as being long term commitments. As such, it is important to consider the impact of organisational justice, rather than looking at potential relationship development (Management Research News, 2007). This is particularly relevant for retail organisations such as Toys R Us, where a large number o f their staff may be students or other short term casual workers. Unfortunately, there has been little research into the levels of job security felt by temporary employees and contract employees, and how this impacts on any psychological contract which may exist. This is addressed to some extent by De Cuyper and De Witte (2006), who examined how perceptions of job security, as well as job satisfaction and organisational commitment, varied from permanent employees to temporary ones. This research was based on the claims of psychological contract theory, which holds that a lack of job security only arises if the psychological contract is violated, and that permanent employees tend to feel stronger psychological contracts that temporary and contracted workers. Their results support this argument, showing that the temporary staff tended not to create strong psychological contracts with their employers, and hence their perceptions of job security did not impact on their overall performance. In contrast, for permanent employees job security was a key pre dictor of both job satisfaction and organisational commitment, indicating that the psychological contract is of greater concern for permanent staff (De Cuyper and De Witte, 2006). Indeed, George (2003) found that the use of temporary and contract workers in an organisation could actually harm the psychological contract which existed between the permanent workforce and the organisation. These finding are based on a detailed study of 256 permanent employees across three organisations, and showed that the extent to which contracting and temporary workers were used, combined with the duration of their use, had negative impacts on permanent employees’ trust in the organisation, as well as the psychological contract with the organisation. These results are explained by the fact that permanent workers see the increased use of temporary and contract staff as indicating that their organisations do not have a strong commitment to their permanent employees. As such, permanent employees begin to see themselves as being less attached to the organisation. The grounded theory approach taken by George (2003) indicates that this is consistent with theoretical prediction s that the use of contract staff acts as a violation of the psychological contract for permanent staff, since contracting makes it harder to permanent workers to advance in the organisation. As such, when attempting to manage this, organisations should look to show strong levels of commitment towards their permanent employees, as this will help counter the perceived violations from the use of contracted staff. Whilst George (2003) claims that this can be achieved through making permanent employees supervisors and trainers of other employees, there is little empirical data to support this, hence it is not clear if this would be a valid method for countering the negative impacts of contracting. Another useful empirical study in this area comes from Ellis (2007) who used the theory of psychological contracting to develop a framework exploring employee reactions to the various promises and contract violations they received from their employer. This is based on the hypothesis that an employee’s status within the organisation may affect their perceptions of promises and contract violations, but this will depend on what the promise is about. This hypothesis was tested using a survey of 163 full time employees working for 25 different organizations. The results supported the hypothesis, showing that supervisory and managerial employees placed more value on promises and violations that their manual labouring counterparts. This indicates that, not only will contracted employees have a less significant psychological contract but, in industries where contracted workers are often used for manual labour, this effect will be pronounced by the lower value manual workers assign to organisational promises and violations (Ellis, 2007). When considering the work life balance, Watson (2001) discusses a lecture given by Ewart Wooldridge, the director of the Civil Service College, who claims that many employees are now moving towards a more flexible approach to work. This is in contrast to prior situations, in which work tended to be the dominant feature in many workers’ lives. This is claimed to be largely due to factors such as recession; the reduction in the power of the trade unions; and the rise of a new psychological contract, which is focused on individual employees more than on organisations. As such, Watson (2001) claims that employees will tend to offer less loyalty to their existing employer, whilst attempting to improve their overall employability in an attempt to find a better job with another employer. Whilst they will continue provide their current employer with effective results during this period, they will be less likely to fully commit themselves to their employer. As such, unless their employ er promotes the work life balance they require, there is a chance that the employee will lose faith in the organisation, reducing their effort and hastening their departure (Watson, 2001). However, it should be noted that Watson’s (2001) article is entirely based on theoretical arguments, with not empirical backing. This may reduce its relevance and validity to all situations. In contrast, Conway and Monks (2008) exploration of the relationship between HR practices and employee commitment is based on a case study analysis of three health service organisations in the Republic of Ireland. This research examines how employees perceive HR practices such as work life balance, and how these perceptions affect employee level commitment and perceptions of the psychological contract. These findings indicate that there is a disparity between the HR practices which are valued most highly by employees, and the practices detailed in the HR literature and those which are practiced by organisations. This indicates that organisations need to consider the basic factors underlying the employment relationship and the psychological contract, rather than simply introducing the latest HR practices (Conway and Monks, 2008). However, this research is somewhat limited by the fact that it is only based on one industry, and includes just three organisations. Sturges and Guest (2004) conducted a much larger survey into the factors which affected the perceptions of the work life balance amongst new graduates who had recently started working. They found that the main factors affecting perceptions were conflicts between work and non-work priorities; the number of hours worked; and the degree of organisational and personal commitment shown by the graduates. As such, whilst most graduates tended to look for a good work life balance, their desire for long term career progression tended to lead them to work increasingly long hours in an effort to progress earlier. However, this tendency led to a worsening relationship between the graduates’ perceptions of work, which ultimately acted to harm the psychological contract. As such, Sturges and Guest (2004) argue that organisations need to introduce policies and practices designed to promote a healthy work life balance, showing support for their employees’ lives outside of the workplace , in order to avoid any negative impacts on performance. In addition to this, Sutton and Griffin (2004) argued that the degree to which employees’ expectations prior to starting work were supported by their experiences in the job had a significant impact on their perceptions of their work life balance and the psychological contract. This argument was assessed through a longitudinal study of 235 occupational therapy students who were about to start work, and compared with their views 14 months later. The results showed that if their experiences of work after entering a job were not consistent with their expectations, the employees were more likely to perceive psychological contract violations, and hence lower job satisfaction. In particular, the expectations around work life balance were found to be driven by the recruitment and selection process (Sutton and Griffin, 2004). This indicates that policies aimed at improving work life balance need to take account of, and control, employee expectations at the recruitment stage in order to be effective. Unfortunately, as before, the narrow nature of this study, which only examines one occupation, makes it of limited relevance to the case of Toys R Us. Another factor found to be relevant to the psychological contract, and violations of the contract, is employee personality. Raja et al (2004) carried out a survey of personality types and responses to the psychological contract, finding that personality characteristics such as extraversion, neuroticism and self-esteem were all related to employee perceptions of the psychological contract. In addition, personality characteristics tended to predict employee perceptions of breaches of the contract, as well as when these breaches were perceived as violations. This indicates that, when designing policies, organisations need to pay attention to employee personality characteristics, and their potential impact on the psychological contract. In addition, when considering the nature of the psychological contract, it is important to realise that the contract is a dynamic thing, which can grow and develop over time. As such, organisations need to consider the need to display a level of commitment to shared values, as well as the welfare of their employees, if they are to develop the contract and the level of organisational commitment shown by the employees. Indeed, Barnett and Schubert (2002) claim that a developing psychological contract and employment relationship can have significant benefits for employees and employers alike. Their survey of 194 employees working in a large retail organisation showed that employees valued their employers having strong principles, and showing concern around their employees’ welfare. This indicates that these are key factors to be considered when developing policies and practices aimed at strengthening the psychological contract. Further research in the retail sector comes from DAnnunzio-Green and Francis (2005), who examined how managers’ view of an emotion management leadership programme acted on their perceptions of the psychological contract. The results of this study indicated that the programme led to a shift in perceptions away from a transactional psychological contract, and towards a relational one. This in turn influenced managers’ perceptions around what the organisation’s expectations of them were, as well as what the organisation offered them in return. This effectively led to the construction of a new, ‘trial’ psychological contract, where managers agreed to believe that the leadership programme would create a more favourable work environment, both for the managers and their subordinates. The managers then internalised and tested the contract to determine whether the organisation’s actions lived up to the promises contained in said contract. This indicate s that organisations need to be sure that any new policies enacted do not create unrealistic expectations, as then any benefits from the policies will be undone by the resulting breaches of the trial psychological contract created by the policies (DAnnunzio-Green and Francis, 2005). Finally, Porter et al (1998) carried out a significant study into the extent to which these perceptual gaps between the promises of the contract and the actual behaviour of the organisation had significant explanatory power over and above measures such as employee satisfaction. This was based on a study of 48 executives and 339 employees over four organisations, in an attempt to determine the promises made to the employees, the employees’ perceptions of these promises, and the employee’s perceptions of the actual benefits provided. This showed that the larger the gap between the perceptions of the promises and the perceptions of the actual benefits, the lower the level of employees’ overall satisfaction with the organisation. This effect was found to be significant even after considering factors such as employee satisfaction with their job and their performance. As such, it appears that employee perceptions of organisational promises can have a more significant e ffect than many other factors, including the nature of the employee’s role and their performance within the organisation (Porter et al, 1998). References Barnett, T. and Schubert, E. (2002) Perceptions of the Ethical Work Climate and Covenantal Relationships. Journal of Business Ethics; Vol. 36, Issue 3, p. 279-290. Conway, E. and Monks, K. (2008) HR practices and commitment to change: an employee-level analysis. Human Resource Management Journal; Vol. 18, Issue 1, p. 72-89. DAnnunzio-Green, N. and Francis, H. (2005) Human Resource Development and the Psychological Contract: Great Expectations or False Hopes? Human Resource Development International; Vol. 8, Issue 3, p. 327-344. De Cuyper, N. and De Witte, H. (2006) The impact of job insecurity and contract type on attitudes, well-being and behavioural reports: A psychological contract perspective. Journal of Occupational Organizational Psychology; Vol. 79, Issue 3, p. 395-409. Ellis, J. B. (2007) Psychological Contracts Does Work Status Affect Perceptions of Making and Keeping Promises? Management Communication Quarterly; Vol. 20, Issue 4, p. 335-362. George, E. (2003) External Solutions and Internal Problems: The Effects of Employment Externalization on Internal Workers Attitudes. Organization Science; Vol. 14, Issue 4, p. 386-402. Management Research News (2007) Understanding the psychological contract: a direction for the future. Management Research News; Vol. 30, Issue 6, p. 432-440. Porter, L. W. Pearce, J. L. Tripoli, A. M. and Lewis, K. M. (1998) Differential perceptions of employers inducements: implications for psychological contracts. Journal of Organizational Behavior; Vol. 19, p. 769-782. Raja, U. Johns, G. and Ntalianis, F. (2004) The Impact Of Personality On Psychological Contracts. Academy of Management Journal; Vol. 47, Issue 3, p. 350-367. Sturges, J. and Guest, D. (2008) Working to live or living to work? Work/life balance early in the career. Human Resource Management Journal; 2004, Vol. 14 Issue 4, p5-20. Sutton, G. and Griffin, M. A. (2004) Integrating expectations, experiences, and psychological contract violations: A longitudinal study of new professionals. Journal of Occupational Organizational Psychology; Vol. 77, Issue 4, p. 493-514. Watson, B. (2001) Report: A New Deal? Understanding the Psychological Contract. Public Money Management; Vol. 21, Issue 3, p. 57.