The Indian Agriculture Sector

Agriculture is the backbone of Indian economy. It accounts for nearly 20 percent of the aggregate output. To be specific, nearly half of the population depends on agriculture for their livelihood (Government of India, 2010, p. 6). Contribution of the agricultural sector to the economy is declining, however other sectors thrive.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Indian Agriculture Sector specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More For example, approximately 45 percent of the total output was obtained from the agricultural sector in the early 70s,. The figure has dropped to less than 20 percent in the last decade. Nonetheless, agriculture still remains a significant source of employment for many Indians. It provides jobs to over half of the country’s population (Government of India, 2010, p. 12). The dwindling agricultural production has led to a decrease in agricultural exports and an increase in agricultural import s. The ratio of agricultural exports to the total exports dropped to 10 percent in 2010 compared to 20 percent in the early ’90s. On the other hand, the ratio of agricultural imports to the aggregate imports grew by approximately 6.6 percent in the last three decades (Government of India, 2010, p. 13). The decrease in agricultural production and the increase in agricultural imports have been a cause of major concern. Hot debates didn’t provide any solution to the problem, as well as small reforms. situation deteriorated which led to introduction of the next five-year plan. As a result, the government came up with a five-year plan, which solely targets the agricultural sector. The five-year plan is aimed at reversing the disturbing trend in the sector. The five-year plan puts emphasis on the country’s self-sufficiency and self-reliance in the food production (Vaidyanathan, 2010, p. 9; Government of India, 2013, p. 5). This paper explores the impact of the 11th fi ve-year plan on India’s agricultural sector, particularly in promoting local food production and economy stability. 11TH  Five Year Plans (2007-2011) As the country’s population keeps growing, the nation needed to enhance its food production to take care of the ever-increasing demand. Given the significance of the agricultural sector to the economy, the government introduced the 11th five-year plan to provide support and incentives to farmers and other stakeholders in order to enhance production of food (Government of India, 2013, p. 5).Advertising Looking for essay on agriculture? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More There are four principal elements of this policy. The first element is enhancement of viability of agricultural operations by increasing market access, availing insurance cover, and monitoring agricultural commodity prices (IBEF, 2013, p. 7). The second element is provision of suitable technologies thr ough research and training. The third element is increase of budgetary allocation for agriculture and its infrastructure so as to improve efficient use of natural resources and of agricultural commodity markets functioning. Last but not least is provision of better delivery of services, for instance, loans to farmers, veterinary services and general farm inputs. In a nutshell, the 11th five-year plan was aimed at increasing food production by providing special programs and building agricultural infrastructure (IBEF, 2013, p. 7). The Impact of the 11th Five-Year Plan on the economy and local food production Figure 1 below shows India’s GDP growth rate over the last ten years. It is clear that between 1997 and 2007 the real agricultural output was decreasing, whereas the non-agricultural output was increasing. The ratio of agricultural GDP to the total GDP was very low during that period. This forced the government to reconsider its policy on food production, hence to introduce the 11th five-year plan (Central Statistics Office, 2011, p. 44). The 11th five-year program introduced the National Food Security Mission (NFSM), which significantly increased production of cereals in the country. The principal goal of the National Food Security Mission was to establish scientific elements which incorporate mechanization, soil supplements and crop security measures (Government of India, 2013, p. 6). The 11th five-year plan helped to attain 3.2 percent agricultural GDP growth. Even though the figure was below the projected value of 4 percent, it was significantly better than the figures under the previous policies (Central Statistics Office, 2011, p. 45). Figure 1: Agriculture and Non-Agriculture GDP Growth Rate in India in the Last DecadeAdvertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Indian Agriculture Sector specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Source: (Central Statistics Office, 2011) Before the introduc tion of the 11th five-year plan, the share of acreage of agricultural lands decreased by approximately 20 million hectares. Similarly, the area under food grains shrank by 10 percent. The lowest production was recorded in 2008. However, the introduction of new technologies under the 11th five-year plan led to 80 percent increase in acreage of agricultural lands. The production of rice, wheat and maize increased significantly, followed by pulses on the second place. Under the 11th five-year plan, food grain output increased by 2.3 percent (Central Statistics Office, 2011, p. 45). Generally, Indian agribusiness is characterized by diminutive and divided area holdings. There are around 130 million active holdings in the country. On average, each active holding possesses approximately 1.2 hectares. Less than 1 percent own more than 10 hectares (Sharma, 2011, p. 6). Before the introduction of the 11th five-year plan, the overall productivity among the smallholder producers was exceedingl y low. Their participation in the market was poor because of such reasons as high transaction costs, low yields, inadequate information and small market consumption. In addition, increased land fragmentation led to big losses on farmlands. As a result, many farmers opted to lease their lands or seek gainful employment outside the agricultural sector (IBEF, 2013, p. 5). The introduction of the 11th five-year plan brought some positive results. The 11th five-year plan supported the formation of cooperatives and self-help groups. The cooperatives and self-help groups not only helped farmers to access credit facilities, but also to market their products. The government increased access to loan facilities by providing interest-free loans and subsidized inputs.Advertising Looking for essay on agriculture? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More For this reason, many Indians went back to farming (IBEF, 2013, p. 6). By the end of 2012, cultivation areas had increased by 8 million hectares. The government also introduced other support programs through the 11th five-year plan, such as water for canal irrigation, power for groundwater pumping, retention price subsidy scheme for fertilizers, and access to the international market (IBEF, 2013, p. 7). According to the IBEF (2013, p. 7), the main objective of the 11th five-year plan was to increase the production of food grains by 20 million tons. The government allocated roughly 900 million U.S. dollars for the project. There are four main achievements of the 11th five-year plan for the first year according to the National Food Security Mission (NFSM). The first achievement was a 70 million tons to over 90 million tons increase of wheat production. The second achievement was a 90 million tons to over 110 million tons increase of rice production. The third achievement was an 80 mil lion tons to over 100 million tons increase of maize production. And the last was a 13 million tons to over 15 million tons increase of pulse production (IBEF, 2013, p. 7). Figure 2 below highlights the growth rate of land, labor and capital output based on the agricultural GDP index. Even though the productivity growth rate in the agricultural sector has always been low, averaging 2 percent per year, during the 11th five-year plan it reached 5 percent. This was the highest figure recorded in the country’s history. The closest was 3 percent, which was recorded in 1981. As a matter of fact, the Commission of Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) estimated the growth rate of real wages in the agricultural sector at 8 percent per annum during the period (Government of India, 2013, p. 9). Figure 2: Growth Rate of Land, Labor and Capital Output Source: (Government of India, 2013, p. 9) The introduction of the scientific elements, for instance, labor saving mechanization led to the rapid increase of private investment in the agricultural sector. This is attributed to the country’s rigid labor laws and the ever-increasing wages (Shiva, 2013, p. 2). Although mechanization helped farmers to deal with labor challenges, it caused a sharp decline in capital productivity. Even though moderated by gains from trade deals and debt cancellation, long-term investment in the agricultural sector may be unsustainable due to deteriorating capital productivity (Shiva, 2013, p. 3). The 12th five-year plan (2012-2017), which is basically a continuation of the 11th five-year plan also emphasizes increase of food grains production. The two plans (11th and 12th five-year plans) recognize the fact that self-sufficiency in food production can only be attained by increasing the production of staple foods. In India, food security is inextricably linked to food grains. Therefore, the debates on food shortages are concentrated on rice, wheat, maize and pulses (Sharma Dinesh, 201 1, p. 30). 12th five-year plan is also expected to produce high results and solve a lot of food problems in India. The 11th five-year plan helped substantially to make India a food sufficient country, despite the rapid growth of population. In other words, India is currently food secure due to the 11th five-year plan (IBEF, 2013, p. 9). Conclusion Agriculture in India is both a source of food and livelihood. In addition, the sector is very important to the country’s economy. However, the period between 1997 and 2007 was characterized by low agricultural productivity and high levels of food shortage. This forced the Indian government to spend a large amount of money on food import. On the other hand, the ratio of agricultural imports to the aggregate imports grew by approximately 6.6 percent in the last three decades regardless of the initiated key reforms in the agricultural sector. However, the reform programs were ineffective. This led to the introduction of the 11th five-y ear plan, which was aimed at making India a food-secure country through the production of food grains. The plan significantly helped reverse the situation. As a matter of fact, the 12th five-year plan, which runs up to 2017, is just a continuation of the 11th five-year plan. The 12th five-year plan also aims at increasing the production of food grains, which are staples in India. References Central Statistics Office 2011, Revised Estimates of Annual National Income 2010-11 and Quarterly Estimates of Gross Domestic Product, 2010-11, Central Statistics Office, New Delhi. Government of India 2010, Agricultural Statistics at a Glance 2010. Web. Government of India 2013, Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-2017): Economic Sectors, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, New Delhi. IBEF 2013, The Indian Agriculture Sector: Investments, Growth and Prospects, India Brand Equity Foundation, New Delhi. Sharma, VP Dinesh, J 2011, High Value Agriculture in India: past Trends and Future P rospects. Web. Sharma, VP 2011, India’s Agricultural Development under the New Economic Regime: Policy Perspective and Strategy for the 12th Five Year Plan, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. Shiva, V 2013, Agricultural Sector in India. Web. Vaidyanathan, A 2010, Agriculture Growth in India: Role of Technology, Incentives and  Institutions, Oxford University Press, New York. This essay on The Indian Agriculture Sector was written and submitted by user Lilia Ramos to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Atomic Bomb3 essays

Atomic Bomb3 essays Now imagine yourself for a while being in one of the following Japanese cities, Hiroshima or Nagasaki. You are having a normal day like always when suddenly you look up at the sky and see an airplane drop millions of papers warning you to get out of your city. The paper fliers tell you to leave your city because you are about to be bombed by a single bomb capable of destroying the entire city. You think it a joke so you do nothing as everyone else does. Three days pass and you are still thinking about what the paper said. Suddenly you hear the expected plane, your heart starts pumping faster, then you see the plane deploy a large object from the sky, you start thinking about what the paper said but now its too late. You see the object hit the ground. There is a large flash, people are running and screaming down the street. Then you realize it really was a bomb. This event took place in World War II when the United States dropped the atomic bomb in Japan. I am going to be speculating about speculation about the cause and effect of the atomic bomb. In 1939, the German born scientist Albert Einstein had informed President Roosevelt about the possibility of creating a powerful bomb. It would produce an extremely powerful explosion by splitting the atom. Einstein and other scientist feared that Germany might develop such a bomb first. In 1942, the United States set up a secret project called the Manhattan Project, to develop the first atomic bomb. The first test explosion of an atomic bomb occurred in the New Mexico Desert in July 1945. Roosevelt died in April 1945, and Vice President Harry S. Truman became President of the United States. Truman met with the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin the Russian dictator in Potsdam, Germany, in July 1945. At the Potsdam Conference, a conference between the Allied forces to discuss war options, Truman learned of the successful test explosion of the atomic bomb ...

The Public Needs to Know Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Public Needs to Know - Essay Example More essentially, health and nutrition is a remarkable topic for children because of their growth. Recently, the school made changes to the breakfast and lunch programs to improve nutrition and health mainly because of its importance to the children`s growth, economic situation, special needs of the children, process and the benefits of the program. The recent economic trends all over the world have not been friendly or up to people`s expectations. The economic recession and downfall has seen many people struggling to provide basic needs for their families while at the same time affording other secondary needs that include leisure activities. Despite the negative economic changes, people must continue living and catering for the basic needs of which education, health and nutrition are included (Marotz, 2011). This means that whatever the case, people must be healthy and take proper nutrition to survive. Despite the economic situation, the school has endeavored to provide a balanced d iet for children so that learning can take place effectively the same way their growth and development can. In this manner therefore, the school decided to change the breakfast and lunch program for the schoolchildren to fit the economic hardship while maintain the health of the children in the best way possible. The expensive foodstuff was reduced by substituting them with foods with the same nutrients but at a lower cost. For example for breakfast, the school substituted manufactured cereals with a muffin and a glass of milk for every child (Dalton, 2005). This was also added with fruits. For lunch, the school substituted processed juices with fruits while maintain the normal diet (Marotz, 2011). Schoolchildren eating a healthy meal In the change of the breakfast and lunch programs, the school took into account the special needs of the children. As it is clear, not all persons take the same type of diet because of bodily issues and medicinal concerns. This program is meant for chi ldren roughly between four years and twelve years. The school put this into consideration and took care of all special needs of the children (Marotz, 2011). The children are at a very delicate but essential part of their lives. This is a special need because their bodies are at growing and development stage. Any interference or inadequate feeding means that their growth and development will be impaired and stunted. Children naturally prefer foods that they enjoy most. Therefore, it is essential to make healthy food choices appealing. Children also imitate their caregivers. Therefore, they require caregivers who act as role models by eating healthy. Children with medical problems were also catered for in the change. This means that the school introduced a wide variety of diet for children because of their special nutritional and developmental needs, which include medicinal and health related issues. This was aimed at helping children grow and develop and at the same time enjoy learni ng (Marotz, 2011). A child eating an excessive fatty food Another most important area that was featured in the recent changes in breakfast and lunch program changes to improve nutrition and health is process (Shilstone, 2009). Process in this case all the considerations that were looked into before the changes were made. For example, the school had to take a survey of the children`s needs, age, health and medicinal requirements before the change was made. For example,

The context of international business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The context of international business - Essay Example The company was founded by Jack Cohen in the year 1919, the number of stores as on April 2012 happens to be 6,351 stores. (Burgemeister, 2003, p. 192). The total revenue of the company happens to be ?64.539 billion as on 2012. The total market share in U.K. is 30.2%. The major global competitors of the company are Walmart, Carrefour, Aldi, Royal Ahold and Metro. Identifying the company’s main drivers of accessing foreign markets using theories of FDI FDI stands for foreign direct investment. There are various theories of FDI like the product life cycle theory, internationalization and eclectic paradigm theory of the OLI frame-work. Among these the internationalization theory has been used to identify the key drives. The internationalization theory states that a company operating in a matured economy needs to expand the horizon beyond the local market to get competitive advantage and economies of scale. In the early 90s Tesco was lagging behind Sainsbury’s as the second largest retailer in the country and the operations of the country was subjected to the U.K. market only. But the global economic reforms couples with the drive to become a global major retailer urged Tesco to enter the global market. The first phase of internationalization begun as Tesco entered Hungary in 1994. Since then there has been no turning back, Of-course there has been certain problems in countries like France, but looking at the overall perspective the results speak for themselves. Today Tesco is largest retailer in U.K. and the third largest retailer in the world right after Wal-Mart and Carrefour. Mainly Tesco is a general merchandise and grocery retailer and operates as following the business to consumer framework. External Environment Analysis External or macro environmental factors are those that cannot be controlled by an organization and yet the modus operand of an organization gets severely affected by the changes or developments in the external environment. The m ain external environmental factors include political, economic, social and technological factors. However, the legal factors are also to be included. Bit, since most of the legal legislatures in a country are developed by the government itself the legal factors are hereby included in the political factors. Here it is to be added that Tesco entered in U.S. in the year 2007. Therefore the PEST analysis has been based on the external environmental situation in 2007 -2008 only (Henry, 2008, p. 89). Political United States has always been a politically stable country. And the governments in U.S. have always welcomed business investments from both local and international firms. Many specialists have tagged U.S. as a very stable political country irrespective of the political regime. Probably due to such attitude of the political leaders of the country the country has become one of the strongest economies in the world. As mentioned earlier as far the legislative system goes the country as mentioned has a business friendly legal environment welcoming investments. Legal and Regulatory reforms in the 1970s actually resulted in de-regulation in various sectors and enhanced competition and efficiency.

Making decisions Essay Example for Free

Making decisions Essay Written by Bernard Malamud, â€Å"The Natural† title does place a key meaning to the term, â€Å"the natural† as it is an inspiring baseball story that places a good read. The author discusses several character traits as well as interesting characters that are found in real life. Therefore, â€Å"The Natural† represents its meaning in such a way that it portrays the natural real life characters of America. Furthermore, â€Å"The Natural† by Bernard Malamud is a work different from the rest of the literature he has written. â€Å"The Natural† is a title that portrays â€Å"the natural† baseball craze of Americans; this is something that is very â€Å"natural† in this literature because the game of baseball places a â€Å"natural† exciting feeling within the American public. The craze of the game is absolutely â€Å"natural† and therefore, the author reflects many characteristics and story plots throughout the novel. Therefore, this can be one of the reasons why the title term, â€Å"The Natural† would place the same meaning as, â€Å"the natural. † After reading through Bernard Malamud’s novel, â€Å"The Natural,† I also felt that there were mixed natural feelings of loss and victory associated with the natural life pattern. Malamud highlights on natural traits of man’s emotions throughout the novel where we experience heightened love, sense of victory as well as loss. The beginning of the novel is strange but the story slowly picks up after a span of 15 years where we see the coaches desperately trying to win the baseball game slot. At this particular stance, we sense the â€Å"naturalness† displayed in the story by the author when Roy takes a straight hit at his first ball throw that makes Roy seem very â€Å"natural† at his game. By â€Å"natural† here, we mean Roy’s fluent attempt at his game that makes him the hero of the novel. Though the psychiatrist tries to messes with his mind, a â€Å"natural† instinct is always followed by a sense that shows familiarity as well as fluency with the task that Roy is trying to accomplish. Roy is not a trained baseball player and that is the reason why we would state that Roy’s â€Å"naturalness† in his game is an attribute he has from within. The title, â€Å"The Natural† can also be related to love or infatuation that Roy develops for Memo Paris since his arrival at Knights. Love or infatuation is truly a â€Å"natural† feeling and again, the author maintains the theme of his title that precisely corresponds to the story he is narrating to his audience. Apart from the natural skill of Roy that Bernard Malamud displays in his character, we also come across the natural feeling of love in the story. â€Å"The Natural† truly places an emphasis on its title and the Bernard Malamud knows his choice of the title. â€Å"The Natural† not only displays the realistic aspects of feelings but also skills that the character in the novel is fluent in. â€Å"The Natural† as stated earlier, also displays several characters that show a natural resemblance to real life characters. It is evident to come across beautiful and wicked women in real life and thus, what we read in â€Å"The Natural† too relates to the natural life. Bernard Malamud discusses the several factors that are associated with the natural aspects of one’s life by narrating Roy’s story. Bernard has been extremely entertaining in providing a perfect baseball story that is of â€Å"natural† interest for its readers and the readers comprise of millions of American baseball fans due to the fact that American baseball is the national sport of the country. We further witness how Bernard Malamud tackles the several issues of Roy’s life naturally where victory is definitely a part of one picture and another picture that Malamud represents at the end of the story is the loss. â€Å"Nature† or â€Å"Natural† has different meanings, of which Bernard Malamud has attempted to cover most of the meanings that have been portrayed in the story. Mostly, it is the realism stance of the story that counts in the Bernard Malamud’s narration. The stance of growth and advancement, as in real life, is another sign of â€Å"naturalness† in Bernard Malamud’s text, â€Å"The Natural. † The real â€Å"natural† life also accounts for the good and the bad. We witnessed characters that came from good backgrounds as well as bad backgrounds. Therefore, the realistic â€Å"naturalism† in the novel plays a vital role in giving an insight into the title; that is â€Å"The Natural. † Overall, the themes that can be found in â€Å"The Natural† placed a natural feeling in the heart of the readers. We saw how victory takes place and how the character in the story, Roy faces defeat as well. We also come across the sense of greed that leads Roy to accepting the bribe that made his team lose. The story serves as a valuable lesson for the readers to take the actions and consequences act into account as for every action, there is a consequence. If the action is good, the consequence is good and if the action is bad, the consequence will also be the same. With regards to the title of the novel, â€Å"The Natural†, I agree with it due to its coinciding incidences with the realism of life. The author successfully draws a sense of naturalness in the entire novel thereby making the title, the perfect match for it. Including the themes of love and infatuation, Bernard Malamud completes his story by highlighting on every aspect of human emotions. Bernard Malamud’s style of presenting the story in a realistic manner pertaining to the game of baseball as well as several characters draws a tremendous interest for the readers to look into the realistic factual characters presented by him in the novel. â€Å"The Natural† is a perfect title that applauds victory and sheds light on failure; love and infatuation; the good and the bad as well as choices. This characteristic feature of the novel makes it distinct and unique, the themes of which are truly â€Å"natural† in every sense†¦ LESSON 2: TROY AND ROY COMPARISON Troy and Roy are characters that are similar as well as differ from each other in many ways. Roy had clearly been an achiever in his life, till the â€Å"almost† end. In case of Troy, we don’t see that coming in his life except before he was jailed. Instead, Troy’s life revolves much around his own family and his own past and his own emotional drama. Roy had his love and his piece of infatuation, victory, failure as well as growth throughout the story. We see the same happening in Troy’s case but with a much different note. The only similarity I found through both the characters was their aim to become a baseball player of which, Roy had achieved a permanent status of a â€Å"natural† baseball player while Troy had given up on baseball based on his age. However, in Troy’s case, we didn’t see this aim in his life. Yes- he wanted to become a baseball player, he became the best baseball player but never returned back. He lost the opportunity when he was provided with one. Roy, however, is wise while making his decisions though at the end of the story, he too loses himself towards greed. That is another part of the story. I agree that both the characters have faced setbacks and triumphs in their own way in their respective stories but they cannot be stated as the â€Å"black and white† versions of the same kind of American male. Troy is more of a confused personality who loses opportunities while Roy is an achiever and the only moment he failed was when he was presented a lofty sum by Judge to lose the game or else, it was clear that Roy would have had led Knights to the path of victory. Troy revolves much around his personal life where he is involved with his sons, Cory and Lyons with his wife Rose and his girlfriend, Alberta. His brother Gabriel has a small role to play but Troy’s feelings towards his brother Gabriel where he holds himself responsible for his misfortunes shows Troy’s naive attitude towards understanding issues. Unlike Roy (whose game and success came naturally to him), Troy has an abusive childhood who was abused by his father. Eventually, the same influence and history was repeated by Troy on his other two sons. There is no change of heart throughout the story. We also sense that though there is a considerable time lapse between the lives of Troy and Roy, age didn’t deter Roy from playing baseball again while Troy easily gave up his game. The other similarity that I can state in both the characters is the sense of moral weakness. Troy and Roy are morally weak. Troy cheated on his wife by involving himself with another woman while Roy gives himself in to the bribe by the Judge. Roy’s character is exhibited less emotionally except when he involved himself in love and infatuation. Troy’s character is more on an emotional stance where he has his life and feelings in dilemma since the beginning. Though, both the characters face their actions and their consequences in their own manner, both the stories end with a sad note; Roy with his failure and Troy with his death. However, Troy’s daughter, Raynell does seem like an angel in the story. Troy had imaginarily built fences around his relationships wanting to keep death away from those he loved and those he hated as well. He had built his own boundaries and thus, was an unsuccessful father and even an unsuccessful husband (as he cheats on his wife). Roy’s weakness lies mainly with money and love as he too had a poor childhood and therefore aimed to become a baseball star. Troy is a fifty-three year old man who has built imaginary fences around himself from everyone in his life, including his own wife and therefore cheated on her. Roy, on the other hand, didn’t cheat on him and thus, Troy and Roy cannot be regarded as the black and white versions of the same American protagonist displayed by the two authors. Troy and Roy are similar, but in a smaller sense with each other. They come across misfortunes and in the end, have a sad ending to their lives. Their emotional stance on the events they faced in their lives is different. In both the novel stories, we come across a time lapse that had passed between the characters. Roy, as I believe, is sincere in his motives and is only confused about certain issues in his life. Troy, on the other hand, does not understand the essence of life at all and proceeds with life as it is, without willing to make any changes. Roy, a personality mostly not guided and mistaken, is underestimated though he has had a few bad hits in the baseball game, based on the story. Troy has faced a long hurdle of hardships throughout, especially when he quit his career as a baseball player after going to the prison. We also witness discrimination, apartheid in August Wilson’s play, â€Å"Fences† where Troy is Black and is not promoted for a long time to the position of the driver based on his skin color. We come across no such issue of discrimination in Roy’s case but further, Roy’s foolishness to achieve the woman he wants. Roy is willing to do anything for her and therefore, blindly accepts what Judge offers and thus, lands in a situation where he is a loser. He could have been victorious only if he had used his senses in a stronger way while making decisions (and by not letting his emotional part overtake him). Troy, on the other hand, has his life in a completely irreversible state where Troy’s confidence is completely shattered by the term he spent in prison. Therefore, he couldn’t change what already happened in his life and therefore, didn’t have sufficient confidence to go back to his previous life. Troy and Roy both differ in a great respect but share only some similarities.

Improving Patient Safety in Stroke Rehabilitation Wards Essay -- Strok

Patient safety is a major issue in health care, especially in the public sector. Studies show that as many as 10 patients get harmed daily as they receive care in stroke rehabilitation wards in hospitals in the United States alone. Patient safety refers to mechanisms for preventing patients from getting harmed as they receive health care services in hospitals. The issue of patient safety is usually associated with factors such as medication errors, wrong-site surgery, health care-acquired infections, falls, diagnostic errors, and readmissions. Patient safety can be improved through strategies such as improving communication within hospitals, increasing patient involvement, reporting adverse events, developing protocols and guidelines, proper management of human resources, educating health-care providers on the need for patient protection, and commitment of the leadership to the task. This paper talks about patient safety and how it can be improved in stroke rehabilitation war ds of both public and private hospitals. Organizational Goal/Objectives for Patient Safety Every hospital is committed to ensuring that their patients in stroke rehabilitation wards and other facilities are safe from any form of harm that may occur as a result of the health care providers’ negligence. Firstly, every hospital integrates quality and safety approaches into its everyday’s operations to promote and enhance the safety and quality of its environment and services respectively (Garban, 2011). This is usually complemented by other strategies meant for enhancing organizational knowledge to improve efficiency and overall productivity. Some hospitals provide further training to their health care personnel to ensure that they efficiently incorpor... ...nurses: How to prevent harmful events and promote patient safety. Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Davis Co. Snell, S., & Bohlander, G. W. (2013). Managing human resources. Andover: Cengage Learning. Spurgeon, P., Burke, R. J., & Cooper, C. L. (2012). The innovation imperative in health care organizations: Critical role of human resource management in the cost, quality, and productivity equation. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. Watcher, R. (2012). Understanding patient safety. New York, NY: McGraw Hill Professional. Williams, M. (2007). Comprehensive hospital medicine. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders. Wu, A. W. (2011). The value of close calls in improving patient safety: Learning how to avoid and mitigate patient harm. Oakbrook Terrace, IL: Joint Commission Resources. Youngberg, B. J. (2013). Patient safety handbook. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Palm Inc – from handhelds to smart phones

From Handheld to smart phones. The pioneers of Palm Inc. Palm had been the leader in the market of hand-held computers with high market share and profitability as well as a brand name recognition level to which many other firms could only dream. Palm's brand has faded substantially and as of April 2010, the company was acquired by HP for $ 1 -B. Below , I have listed Palm Inch's list of errors that the organization made over Its life cycle and necessary recommendations. Error 1 . Palm Inc. Did not establish a great enough sense of urgency. Since Palm Inc. ‘s inception, no formal business strategy was designed and implemented.Based on the â€Å"Ecology Theory† Palm Inc. Entered the market as a r-Specialist and eventually transited as a K-generalist, by approaching different product markets. However, Palm Inc. Failed to be successful as a k-generalist due to operating with outdated skills and competencies. The company has failed to examine the market and competitive realit ies for potential crises and untapped opportunities. Palm's efforts stopped at the PDA product, while the competition has managed to find ways of implementing he Pad's features Into cell phones market. Error 2. Palm did not create a powerful enough gulden coalition.Based upon the â€Å"Institutional Theory† firms that do survive – they become legitimate In the eyes of the shareholders. Chances of survival increase by adopting the rules and codes of conduct found In the Institutional environment. Despite having started as the industry leader, Palm's development over the years did not look as rosy. Palm failed to get the shareholders, board of directors, senior management and even a customer representatives together to help them evolve a shared assessment of their company problems and opportunities, and create a minimum level of trust and communication.Error 3. Lack of vision. Palm had no clear vision – of what was the picture of the future that the company wanted to achieve ( product , customer target,etc). The company changed its name several times , and also changed its vision and strategy. From the case, we know there was no new product offerings during 2001 thru 2008. At the same time, other competitors Injected the marketplace with new Innovations, Palm gradually became a small and marginalia player In the Industry. The Innovation Is the basic power of the company,but Palm doesn't have the strong impetus. Demographic change.Customers and clients that are being targeted are ever changing. In earlier times, smart phones were necessary for business members who would need to keep up with e-mail. However, these days there is the prevalence of a much younger generation using smart phones for a variety of reasons (social networking, picture taking, communication etc. ). Palm Inc. Must adapt with these changes and keep up with the demographic changes of its relevant customers. Palm Inc. Needs to create a Sino to direct the change and effort bu t also to develop strategies for realizing that vision.It Is essential that the organization communicate the vision both inside the company as well as with their partners. Error 4. Under communicating the vision help If they believe that useful change Is possible. Without credible communication the hearts and minds are never captured. It is imperative that Palm Inc. Established Also ,employees and managers from all levels of the organization adopt the change. In 2001 Palm Inc. Initiated a radical internal restructuring and decided to reduce the cost base making the first-ever layoffs.Microsoft had reduced staff during the technology recession too , but they made more research money available for developing mobile software – But Palm Inc. Failed this aspect. Error 5. Not removing obstacles to the new vision. Palm Inc needed to empower other to act on the vision by creating a value proposition for employees. In 2001 Palm Inc. Initiated an internal restructuring by separating th e hardware and software divisions into two distinct units. The split resolved the inherent conflict of interest by licensing software or its win competitors in the hardware market.The hardware innovations were features that could be added to the phones and music players. Palm spent too much cash to develop the new SO and new smart phone. And the marketing capitalization is much shorter than the competitor. This situation causes Palm to not balance the money within each department. So the whole company can't run efficiently. For example, Palm can't self-finance marketing campaigns and in-store training of sale staff. In 2003 Pal Inc. Decided to spin off the software business and to use the raised cash to rather invest into the development of new smoothness.Palm Inc. Could have saved time and money by completely focusing on smart phones. Palm can't bring up the effective marketing strategy. The price of a new phone is more expensive than the ‘phone. The competitiveness is tiny t han other brands. After failing to seizing the market with new phone, Palm made an â€Å"attractive† product bundle on its phone. That turns out to be stressful to Palm. Failure of negotiation ability. Nevertheless Palm's new product was delayed because of certification issues with the carrier. At the same mime, Palm has a conflict with the dealer. Error 6.Plan for and create short term goals. In 2001 Palm Inc. Initiated an internal restructuring by separating the hardware and software divisions into two distinct units. The spiff produced good short-term results and due to high quality the software was used in phones for some time. In 2004 Palmate devoted more resources to smoothness and expanded Tree Family . The new Tree series was relatively successful with good margins. Error 7. Declaring victory too soon. After a few years of hard work, managers got tempted to Clare victory with the first clear performance improvement.Palm had a huge success in 2006, with the Tree series . Tree smart phones let Palm earned 30 percent of market share in the United States and brought Palm back to life. Having this success experience, Palm could have used this experience to bring out more great ideas and make them come true. However, between 2007 and 2009 new Palm product launches were rare, while the demand for the Tree and Centre fell quickly or never took off as expected. Error 8. Not anchoring changes in the corporation's culture.Until new behaviors are rooted in social norms and shared values, they are subject to degradation as soon as the pressure for change is removed. In order to overcome this issue many organizations need to invest in leadership development and succession plans consistent with the new approach. Recommendations : 1 . Apply R skills in new areas and diversify Palm's business : operating system know how could have been ported to other applications and platforms. E. G. : Possibility to enter new related businesses with high market growth rates: Ta blets, Notebooks. 2.Overcome entry barriers in the smartened market: increase the negotiation power by teaming up with major players like Samsung. 3. Limiting their development and costs by encouraging the open source development community to develop applications. 4. Entering other market segments by making use of Palm's â€Å"know how' by starting to develop commercial applications for other smartened operating systems. Fill smaller niches in the smartened market with respect to general environment forces: Coloratura and Political and Legal Forces: Smartened operating systems with high data regulations for users with sensitive data.As the fear of theft of personal information's or sensitive data is rising in certain groups of society (e. G. Decision makers like politicians and managers). Demographic Forces: Senior Friendly Smoothness for aging societies with health or special care features. Remote GAPS tracking, monitoring and streaming of health parameters to doctors and relative s. Global Forces: Provide a low-cost operating system which runs on cost effective hardware for the growing low income population of the world (Reverse Innovation). 5. Invest in leadership development and succession plans consistent with the new strategy.