Understanding Media and Communication

Table of Contents Introduction Ideology Audience â€Å"Form of realism† â€Å"Modes of representation† Conclusion List of References Introduction Films are lengthy plays recorded on electronic devices, which focus on telling factual, mythical, tradition, scientific and fictional stories. A film results from the creative skills of the producer who writes the script that the actors follow while acting. Most films attempt to replicate real situations, which have transpired in the past. Conversely, music is a composition that consists of lyrics. However, visual images as evident in the presence of images and sounds lack in music.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Understanding Media and Communication specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Evidently, such media platforms pass information to the mass in an extensive manner. Nonetheless, they make use of different styles thus translating the intended messages. This paper aims to contrast the two media platforms based on certain aspects that include ideology, realism and audience. Transmedia narratives are story narrated over different media platforms. A story falls into this category once it conforms to three or more media platforms. The exponential developments in the media world have facilitated the growth of transmedia narratives. Diversification of media platforms will be the predominant factor driving the growth of transmedia narratives by creating more platforms. The discussion below compares two media platforms thus music and film. The discussion exemplifies the techniques and devices used in storytelling in music and films (Abba 2009). Ideology Ideology is a general term that describes certain ideas or values that people follow. Overtime, mass media has been an avenue that fosters definite ideas. This means media platforms can lead to changes in ideologies. Films have the capability to tell lengthy and complex narrative because t hey can accommodate a dynamic cast. In addition, they make use of sound and picture in messages. Film uses different techniques to suggest its significance. On the contrary, music uses few techniques since it faces limitations. Music only makes use of sound. Therefore, it cannot integrate all the techniques and devices into sound. However, films can integrate the techniques and devices into sound and images. The visual ability in films means that they have the capability to influence persons. Music can influence ideologies due to its rhythms and creatively used lyrics. Essentially, both are influential; however, films seem to exude significant influence. With the digital advancement, a filmmaker can now film complex pieces. In order to enforce certain ideologies, films use devices such as rhetoric techniques. Music and film have applied rhetoric relatively equally. Evidently, rhetoric refers to any part of the story where the storyteller asks a question yet the artist comprehends th e answer. The style is evident significantly in film than music (Post and Gold, 2006). Audience Transmedia narratives exude diverse story lines. Transmedia narratives require fanatical audience that will endeavor to follow the variety of stories that exist. These narratives capture a wide range of audiences because they are present on numerous media platforms. It worth noting that music commands a large crowd than film because it is cheaper.Advertising Looking for essay on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More A vital element of transmedia narratives is that they bring the audience on-board. Once the audiences participate, they can adjust the storyline making it linguistically and ethnically suitable for the industry. This means that the audiences have a certain level of responsibility to add to the entire plot. This makes transmedia narratives more acceptable. The level of participation in altering the plot w ould be minimal since film involves diverse issues that include cast and resources. Conversely, altering the plot would be easier since it involves lesser people and resources. This means the flexibility of music gives it an edge over films, which are rigid. Transmedia allows a single story telling on a multitude of ways. With the technological advancement, transmedia will help to explore previously untapped market. Indeed, it would suit audio oriented stories while film would be suitable for graphical and audio oriented stories. â€Å"Form of realism† Realism involves making a representation of real life situation in literature of arts. It fundamentally involves replicating a real situation. In contrasting the two media platforms with regard to realism, it is imperative to analyze their capability to replicate situations and scenarios. Films are competent of replicating situations exemplarily since it has both visual and audio capability. When they have a trained cast, they can bring out any story magnificently well. However, films require a substantial amount of resources to support the crew and equipment. Story telling on film requires an assortment of skills. This is because a film requires a script, which captures the basis of the story. Conversely, the process of storytelling in music is considerably simple but requires a gifted person. Telling a story in a song requires the singer to blend in the ideas, which is not an ordinary fit. However, storytelling through music is much simpler and inculcates fewer techniques and devices. On the contrary, storytelling through films involves many devices since it can accommodate a larger cast. This means that it can have antagonist protagonist, narrator, foil, and confidant. The antagonist, narrator, and antagonist represent the varying views, which may exist due to a certain story. The use of such a cast gives depth to the story telling in films since the story has to give space to allow the varying speaker s to assert their views. Such diverse thought brought about by the cast will trigger the audience to pay attention. This means that the audiences are not just ordinary listeners. It is challenging and impractical to integrate such a cast in a song because it would lose certain aspects such as rhythm. Indeed, films have the capability to replicate a situation given the right cast and resources. These are attributable to the sound and visual aspect of films. In addition, film allows the audience to see the narrators and members of the cast. Music integrates poetry into lyrics to create rhyming words and thus improve rhythm in the song. Poetry represents the most incorporated style in music (Khlentzos 2011).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Understanding Media and Communication specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More â€Å"Modes of representation† These modes present model of film making utilized in the past. These modes represent the patterns that film production engaged. These modes apply in film making by providing guidance to the filmmaker on the procedures to follow. This reveal an aspect of film making that is procedural (Isaken Dorval 1992). Therefore, storytelling through films is more technical and procedural than through music since set procedures are non-existent. This reveals filmmaking as a bureaucratic procedure that requires a certain set of processes followed. This represents a key difference between story telling through music and film. In music, there is no set procedure and the quality depends on the creativity of the musician. The artist has the responsibility to merge various genres to create a magnificent presentation. Filmmaking seems to follow a procedure in storytelling to guarantee a given quality to the listeners. Conversely, the modes are likely to lead to a good story telling since the set procedures facilitate quality work. Both media platforms have definite face ts, which work in tandem. These two media outlet provides minimal avenue for feedback. In storytelling, it is imperative to create an avenue for feedback as it contributes to the overall plot of the story. In addition, it makes the audience an active participant in storytelling. Media platform such as blogs sites are pioneer in this field since they provide an avenue for the listener to articulate their feeling with regard to a given story. Interaction between the storyteller and the audience is crucial since the audiences are able to contribute to the plot of the transmedia narrative (McWilliams, 1998). Conclusion Transmedia narratives have become a predominant force in the 21st century communication. This is because most people are on social media and other correlated platforms. Music and films have been critical in creating this new media phenomenon. Music or songs only last for a diminutive phase while films are relatively lengthy. Basing on time, films can inculcate more styles , techniques, and devices to spruce up storytelling. The styles applied include ambiguity, rhetoric and a diverse cast. Overall, films use more devices and techniques than music. Music and film are primarily different since the latter makes use of both images and sound while the initial only utilizes audio. The ability of film to make use of both sound and images has granted it advantage over music in storytelling. Nonetheless, the use of music in story telling surpasses the use of film despite its advantages. List of References Abba, T 2009, Hybrid stories: Examining the future of transmedia narrative, Liverpool  university press, 2, 1, pp 59-75.Advertising Looking for essay on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Isaken, S Dorval, K 1992, Mode of symbolic representation in a cognitive style, Web. Khlentzos, D 2011, Challenges to Metaphysical Realism Web. McWilliams 1998, Effective Storytelling Web. Post, D Gold, L 2006, Literary Devices Web. This essay on Understanding Media and Communication was written and submitted by user Lina L. 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.

BNL Essay essays

BNL Essay essays Barenaked Ladies Biographical Essay The Canadian band, Barenaked Ladies, has sold 500,000 copies of their well known album, Gordon. Scarborough, Ontario's The Barenaked Ladies started in 1988 as the duo of Page and Robertson who had previously played together in a Rush clone band. They released a cheap cassette called Buck Naked' in 1989 followed by 1990's 'Barenaked Lunch' which was the Creeggan brothers debut. By 1991 Tyler Steward had joined the band and the group was stirring up publicity both with their savage wit and impromptu acoustic concerts (especially on live radio) but in the media by being banned by Toronto mayor June Rowlands who wouldn't allow them to play in Nathan Phillips Square due to their 'offensive' name. Barenaked Ladies have a very diverse group with a more diverse array of songs, there are many, many huge singles that have been let out by this amazing band. Their first big single was If I Had A Million Dollars, which made its debut in 1992. The song is categorized as a comical fantasy song. There are many different versions of this song. There are solo acoustic versions, live versions, and many more. There are different versions of this song so that the artist can give different feeling and renditions to the melody, an acoustic guitar holds a more mellow melody. While live versions hold more of a jumpy melody. Their overall most popular song was not just one single, it was the entire Gordon album. The Gordon album sold well over 500,000 copies. The album incorporates many genres of music. There are contemporary, pop, rock, and soothing songs. Gordon is the epitome of all the great BNL songs. In 1992, The Record, which is a Canadian album Chart hits company ranked Gordon as #1 in the year of 1992. That shows the magnitude and popularity of the Barenaked Ladies in their home country. Barenaked Ladies are very generous as well. They contributed over 3 mil ...

What Half Life Means for Evolution

What Half Life Means for Evolution Perhaps the most widely used evidence for the theory of evolution through natural selection is the fossil record. The fossil record may be incomplete and may never fully completed, but there are still many clues to evolution and how it happens within the fossil record. One way that helps scientists place fossils into the correct era on the geologic time scale is by using radiometric dating. Also called absolute dating, scientists use the decay of radioactive elements within the fossils or the rocks around the fossils to determine the age of the organism that was preserved. This technique relies on the property of half-life. What Is Half-Life? Half-life is defined as the time it takes for one-half of a radioactive element to decay into a daughter isotope. As radioactive isotopes of elements decay, they lose their radioactivity and become a brand new element known as a daughter isotope. By measuring the ratio of the amount of the original radioactive element to the daughter isotope, scientists can determine how many half-lives the element has undergone and from there can figure out the absolute age of the sample. The half-lives of several radioactive isotopes are known and are used often to figure out the age of newly found fossils. Different isotopes have different half-lives and sometimes more than one present isotope can be used to get an even more specific age of a fossil. Below is a chart of commonly used radiometric isotopes, their half-lives, and the daughter isotopes they decay into. Example of How to Use Half-Life Lets say you found a fossil you think to be a human skeleton. The best radioactive element to use to date human fossils is Carbon-14. There are several reasons why, but the main reasons is that Carbon-14 is a naturally occurring isotope in all forms of life and its half-life is about 5730 years, so we are able to use it to date more recent forms of life relative to the geologic time scale. You would need to have access to scientific instruments at this point that could measure the amount of radioactivity in the sample, so off to the lab we go! After you prepare your sample and put it into the machine, your readout says you have approximately 75% Nitrogen-14 and 25% Carbon-14. Now it is time to put those math skills to good use. At one half-life, you would have approximately 50% Carbon-14 and 50% Nitrogen-14. In other words, half (50%) of the Carbon-14 you started with has decayed into the daughter isotope Nitrogen-14. However, your readout from your radioactivity measuring instrument says you have only 25% Carbon-14 and 75% Nitrogen-14, so your fossil must have been through more than one half-life. After two half-lives, another half of your leftover Carbon-14 would have decayed into Nitrogen-14. Half of 50% is 25%, so you would have 25% Carbon-14 and 75% Nitrogen-14. This is what your readout said, so your fossil has undergone two half-lives. Now that you know how many half-lives have passed for your fossil, you need to multiply your number of half-lives by how many years are in one half-life. This gives you an age of 2 x 5730 11,460 years. Your fossil is of an organism (maybe human) that died 11,460 years ago. Commonly Used Radioactive Isotopes Parent Isotope Half-Life Daughter Isotope Carbon-14 5730 yrs. Nitrogen-14 Potassium-40 1.26 billion yrs. Argon-40 Thorium-230 75,000 yrs. Radium-226 Uranium-235 700,000 million yrs. Lead-207 Uranium-238 4.5 billion yrs. Lead-206

Management Accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Management Accounting - Essay Example The ability of an organization to identify these competitive forces and understand their nature helps them in developing a differentiation strategy to survive in the market (Fleisher & Bensoussan, 2007) Therefore, it is crucial to identify the competitive forces to which H is subject to. H is experiencing competition in acquiring hauling contracts. Since hauling is the main business that the organization depends on, the organization is under a big threat. One of the reasons why the organization is experiencing competition is due to the existence of many contractors and subcontractors. Resultantly, the organization is experiencing shortage of contracts in the market. In a business environment, when customers reduce, the organization is expected to face profit reduction in the long run. In the recent past, J contractor has lost about a third of its contract since the J Company changed its management. This competition has affected the organization in terms of profit margins. Contracting companies in this market operate at very low profit margins as part of their pricing strategies. The price competition is giving pressure to H Company to reduce its prices to win tenders in the business environment. Usually, when there are many investors in the business environment, the customers gain a higher market bargaining power, and the investors lose their bargaining power. This market pressure forces the organization to lower their prices and consequently reduce their prices. Another problem in this market environment is the seasonal nature of labour. This implies that the organization will have no work to do during the low seasons. This is a big threat to the organization’s survival. Given that the organization has permanent workers that need to be paid during this period of time, it is a big threat to the survival of the organization. In addition, the organization has

A Comparative Analysis of Amores Perros and Babel Essay

A Comparative Analysis of Amores Perros and Babel - Essay Example A Comparative Analysis of Amores Perros and Babel Amores Perros marks the debut of Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, as a film maker. This movie shares many common features with the film â€Å"Pulp Fiction. The only difference being that, Pulp Fiction has glorified criminals even to the extent of giving them the status of demigods. On the other hand, in Amores Perros, criminal elements are projected just as they are in actual life, and no attempt is made by the filmmaker to give a positive angle to negative characters. In Amores Perros, stories that are first narrated separately are later connected with each other. Firstly, the audience is introduced to the characters of Susana and Octavia, with the former being the wife of Ramiro, Octavia’s elder brother. Ramiro never shows any affection towards his wife, and it is but natural for the love-starved Susana to be drawn towards the benevolent and relatively kind-hearted Octavia. Susana plans to elope with her brother-in-law and her infant, after he (Octavia) earns some decent money. Octavia, propelled by the objective of making it big, takes to dog fighting and eventually does manage to earn a substantial sum. Next, the characters of Daniel, a magazine publisher, and Valeria, a renowned model, are introduced. Both of them live together, after Daniel leaves his family. Later, a serious road mishap grievously injures Valeria and puts an abrupt end to her successful modeling career, and the prosperous life expected by Daniel becomes just an unfulfilled dream.

Work Life Balance Programs Cost Or An Investment Management Essay

Work Life Balance Programs Cost Or An Investment Management Essay Work-life balance programs are fast gaining popularity in developed countries, even though they are viewed as novelties in Malaysia. Work-life balance programs can be defined as any benefits, policies or programs that help employees find ways to manage the demands of the workplace and life outside work (Ortega, 2006) or strategies, policies, programs and practices initiated and maintained in workplaces to address flexibility, quality of work and life, and work-family conflict (Bardoel et al, 2008). In other words, work-life balance programs are designed as a two pronged approaches to achieve meaningful achievement and enjoyment in everyday life (Joshi et al, 2002). There are many forms of work-life balance programs such as flex-time, child-care facilities at work, gyms and concierge services and paid vacations. Many reasons are cited for the introduction of work-life balance programs at the workplace, the most common being that it increases productivity as well as employee loyalty. While these are all valid justifications, the costs of having work-life balance programs should not be ignored. Therefore, do the benefits of work-life balance programs outweigh the costs? Going further, should these programs be considered a cost or an investment to the firm? While it may be easier to estimate the returns on investment of a project, it is difficult to financially quantify the impact of work-life balance programs. Thus, companies have to resort to a series of performance measurement tools that are indirectly related to financial return. The best performance indicators are in terms of human resource management. One of the benefits of work-life balance programs can be seen through recruitment. Successful work-life balance programs are powerful marketing tools for attracting new employees who are drawn to the company not just for good remuneration, but other perks too. Work-life balance programs also help to create a better relationship between employer and employee that can be mutually beneficial. One of the main sources of workplace stress is unreasonable demands made on employees time. Thus, programs that assist employees to better manage their time lead to greater job satisfaction. This is evident in the healthcare industry where employees have to work alternative hours in a very stressful and emotionally draining environment. Work-life balance programs in the healthcare industry like wellness programs and child care facilities bring balance and perspective to the lives of employees (Ortego, 2006). This leads to greater productivity, lower job turnover and absenteeism, greater esprit-de-corps and more loyalty towards the employer. In terms of operating costs, retaining employees reduces the cost of training new employees and the time it takes to train new staff to be competent. In fact, there is some evidence to support the argument that compan ies that offered work-life balance programs outperformed those that did not (Joshi et al, 2002). To evaluate if such programs are good investment, we need to examine them from three metrics, which are efficiency, effectiveness and impact (Bardoel et al, 2009). Efficiency metrics are those that measure the cost of work-life balance programs to ascertain the return on investment (ROI). Effectiveness measures are those that indicate how work-life balance programs affect the capacity and actions of employees in targeted talent pools. The third type of measure concentrates on the real impact of work-life balance programs on organizational performance by measuring the value added to an organization by a work-life balance program. Interestingly, research has found that managers often collect data on efficiency, but not on effectiveness and impact factors. This is a major limitation because efficiency measures do not reveal the value added to such programs. The second group of metrics termed effectiveness metrics, assess the outcomes related to the intended effects on individuals of work-life balance programs, for example through employee satisfaction surveys. Again, surveys are useful but they do not gauge whether such programs have positively impacted performance. Though financial ratios such as ROI are typically used to assess core competency, it should be remembered that ROI focuses on financial indicators whereas work-life balance programs use non-financial indicators. Impact metrics measure the ability of work-life balance programs to improve the quality or availability of a particular talent pool, for example to achieve competitive advantage by lowering absenteeism and turnover. To illustrate this cost versus investment dilemma, let us examine three types of work-life balance programs childcare, office gymnasium and flexible work hours. Childcare facilities are provided to entice workers from dual-income households where both parents work. There are many forms of childcare facilities such as in-house child care facilities, after school programs, subsidized child care, and referral services. The main benefit of having such a facility is to help employees cope with the demands of caring for their young children and their jobs and reduce stress among employees as they are assured about the safety of their children (Ortego, 2006). When employees are happy and well-adjusted, it is believed that they become more productive and can contribute more to the company. Other fringe benefits include tax reliefs and exemptions to employers (Deery, 2008), though this is only available in a few countries. On the other hand, the costs of maintaining such childcare facilities are numerous. They include the cost of setting up the facility, the cost of employing qualified staff to care for the children and other operating costs. Also, there is no empirical evidence to support the argument that such facilities promote productivity (Michel et al, 2009). In some cases, the employee might spend more time at the childcare facility instead of at work. In addition, it is almost impossible to quantify the ROI of a childcare facility. Another popular form of work-life balance program is the office gym. A gym is provided because it is believed that exercise promotes good health and reduces job stress. In turn, healthy employees are more productive and there are fewer cases of absenteeism due to poor health (Stimpson, 2008). However, running a gym is potentially expensive. Equipment must be bought, a special room must be prepared and in some cases, physical trainers must be employed. Setting up an office gym must also be done with caution as not all employees would enjoy working out to keep fit. Some may prefer other forms of exercise like swimming, jogging or playing tennis or some may not bother to exercise at all. Hence, it would be a waste of resources to set up a gym when few employees utilize it. There must be proper rules as to when the gym can be used to avoid abuse. In addition, if the gym is open beyond office hours, the cost of operation must also be considered. Finally, the cause and effect relationship of setting up an office gym and increased productivity are largely conjectural. The third type of work-life balance program mentioned earlier is flex-time. This is a form of work schedule that allows employees to select the hours they will work, for example a condensed work week or a shift (Deery, 2008). Flex-time is particularly attractive to those who have to juggle work with other demands like caring for aged parents or looking after young children if childcare facilities are not provided at the workplace. Flex-time is also beneficial for the company in terms of decreasing overhead costs. If employees work different schedules that do not overlap, equipment such as computers and desks can be shared. Companies that do business with firms in different time zones will also benefit as they are able to operate for longer hours and do not have to pay overtime Bourne et al, 2009). Nevertheless, there are some problems associated with flex-time including difficulty of communicating with employees who work outside regular office hours. There are also concerns about sta ff abusing flex-time. If the flex-time schedule is not structured properly, it could lead to the office being staffed sparsely during peak hours (Burke, 2005) and this is unacceptable. In conclusion, from a purely financial perspective, it would appear that work-life balance programs are more of a cost than an investment to the firm. These programs rely on qualitative measures to estimate their success whereas investments rely on quantitative indicators and attempting to reconcile both is problematic to say the least. However, it would be unfair to dismiss work-life balance programs as facile and unprofitable. Just because something cannot be measured with crude financial instruments does not mean it does not exist. The benefits of work-life balance programs on the happiness and well being of employees are well documented. When employees are happy, they become more productive and this ultimately benefits the organization. Therefore, companies should adopt work-life balance programs as long as they are not a severe financial burden. Question 2 Do you think work-life programs can increase retention? Why or why not? How could you assess whether such a program were a good investment? One of the key reasons cited for the proliferation of work-life balance programs is that they contribute to increased retention of employees. Before we answer how work-life balance programs do so, we first need to examine some of the key reasons for employee turnover. It is widely acknowledged that conditions at the workplace affect job turnover. There are many reasons why employees quit because of conditions at the workplace such as long hours, conflict with colleagues and superiors, lack of appreciation shown by employers and unclear job descriptions. For example, long hours at work and increased work intensity both contribute to adverse physical and psychological conditions and lead to negative family functioning (Burke, 2005). Workplace stress can be caused by long working hours, excessive workloads, weekend duties, inadequate physical activity and an unhealthy lifestyle. All these lead to a reduction in the quality of health. When employees are severely overworked and excessively strained, they experience symptoms of fatigue, depression, musculo-skeletal pains, sleeping disorders and an increase in chronic diseases (Tsui, 2008). When the situation becomes too stressful, employees leave their jobs, even opting for those that pay far less but involve less stress. If workplace stress is prolonged, it leads to burnout. Lee and Shin (2005, cited in Deery, 2008) examined the psychological dimensions of job burnout and concluded that it consisted of three components namely emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and diminished personal accomplishment. Burnout is potentially fatal as it increases the risk of coronary diseases, stroke and suicidal tendencies. Employees who lack time to spend with their family or maintain a social life are more likely to be emotionally exhausted, which impact negatively on their job satisfaction and eventually cause them to leave their organizations (Karatepe and Uludag, 2007 cited in Deery, 2008). The following diagram illustrates the relationship between stress and how retention can be improved by work-life balance programs: (Source: Deery, 2008) Also, employees quit their jobs because of dissatisfaction. The top reason why Americans leave their jobs is because they do not feel appreciated (Ortega, 2006). This dissatisfaction may stem from having inadequate job descriptions and unreasonable demands made by employers. Some may be insufficiently trained to perform their jobs or lack sufficient re-training when their job description changes. To compound the matter, there is no assistance for employees when they encounter technical problems when their jobs change and management is indifferent to their plight. All these contribute to stress and increased dissatisfaction with work. Obviously, remuneration is another factor that leads to job dissatisfaction. Employees become unhappy with their jobs when they feel they are inadequately compensated for their efforts based on comparisons of the remuneration of their peers within the organization or within the industry. In the absence of other benefits that work-life balance programs of fer, there is little incentive for employees to remain within a company if they can earn more elsewhere. Female employees are faced with additional problems that their male counterparts do not experience. Despite advances in promoting equal rights for women at the workplace and the gradual acceptance that the traditional roles of both men and women have and need to evolve to reflect the changing times, female employees still feel they have to shoulder the traditional burden of being the perfect housewife and mother, in addition to proving that they are as capable as men at the workplace. Therefore, women are more vulnerable than men to suffer from stress caused by the conflict of managing the roles of employee, wife and mother (Michel et al, 2009). Often, it is because the workplace is inattentive or even hostile to the problems faced by female employees that compel them to leave the workplace when they start a family or when the demands of their family changes. These are some of the primary causes of employee turnover. High turnover is unacceptable, particularly amongst skilled or knowledge-based workers. Particularly in western countries which have declining birth rates and a tendency for job-hopping, the need to retain key staff is essential. Retaining existing internal resources such as good staff, is crucial to maintain an organizations success (Bourne et al, 2009). High employee turnover breaks the continuity of operations and this will adversely affect efficiency. For instance, when an employee leaves, there is bound to be a break in service until a qualified replacement is found and trained. High staff turnover can foster a culture low in morale and loyalty. From a financial viewpoint, there are two major costs associated with turnover which are replacement costs and preventative costs. Replacement costs are the costs of recruiting, selecting and training replacements; loss of output or efficiency during this process; possible wastag e; spoilage and efficiency due to inexperienced staff (Burke, 2005). On the other hand, preventative costs are the costs of retaining staff through pay, benefits and work-life balance programs. Hence, there is greater pressure for employers to strike a balance between eliminating unproductive employees and formulating new and innovative ways to attract and retain talent. There is some evidence to support the postulation that work-life programs can increase retention, provided that the main cause of workplace stress is juggling work-life balance (Osif, 2009 and Joshi et al, 2002). One, work-life balance programs like wellness and physical fitness programs help reduce the symptoms of stress and promote greater physical health. On the other hand, counseling and support groups help employees to manage their stress. While it is impossible and perhaps not desirable to eliminate all forms of stress at the workplace, such programs can contribute a great deal in managing negative stress. When employees are better able to cope with the demands of the workplace, they are less likely to suffer from burnout and less likely to leave. Secondly, work-life balance programs like flex-time are much welcome by working mothers and employees who may want to further their studies and work at the same time. Additional flexibility in terms of working hours will ensure that employees are not compelled to leave because they cannot work the traditional office hours. This will lead to greater retention. Thirdly, in a bid to retain the best and brightest, companies have to resort to novel ways such as work-life balance programs. Assuming that remuneration is similar between two companies, additional perks will go a long way to making a company the desired place to work. Even if a company offers slightly less salary than its competitors, some employees will be enticed to remain there because of the programs and fringe benefits others do not offer. Finally, companies need to show that they value their employees who often have to sacrifice so much for work. While the traditional viewpoint is to provide financial incentives, very often it is the non-financial gestures that make employees feel valued. For example, having office parties or company vacations may be more personal and sincere gestures to show appreciation when the company performs exceptionally well rather than just provide generous bonuses. In that sense, work-life balance programs can be viewed as the minor intangibles that collectively show whether the employee is valued or not. On the other hand, having work-life balance programs does not alleviate an employees woes if they are caused by other stress factors. For instance, if unhappiness at work is because of lack of sufficient training, then overcoming it would be to provide the necessary training. Findings suggest that training quality is positively related to training satisfaction, job satisfaction and the intention to stay in the company. Thus, this type of training is important as a means of retaining employees. In addition, there is no guarantee that such work-life balance programs will increase retention. No substantial longitudinal study has been conducted to ascertain the effectiveness of such programs in leading to long-term retention of staff, and the costs may outstrip the advantages in the long-run, particularly when the economy is bad and the company needs to cut expenses. In conclusion, there is some evidence that supports the notion that work-life balance programs can increase retention (Turner et al, 2009). Introducing flexible working hours and arrangements, providing better training, breaks from work and better work support all enhance employee retention by resolving some of the work-life conflicts faced by employees. Nevertheless, these programs can only be regarded as good investments if they are proven to improve retention of quality staff in the long term and contribute to the overall profitability of the firm. Question 3 Besides flextime arrangements, wellness programs, child-care options and fitness centers, describe three other common mechanisms to improve employees motivation and retention. Present steps to implement such mechanisms in a typical organization. A company can motivate employees through work-life balance programs. Apart from the ones described earlier, other programs like sabbatical leave, paternal leave and work naps are some of the other mechanisms that can improve employees motivation and retention. While sabbatical leave is normally associated with academic institutions, the scope of sabbatical programs is quite extensive, but basically they provide unrestricted time away from work so that the employee can do what he or she wants. For example, the employee can opt to take sabbatical leave to learn how to paint, travel extensively abroad or for further education. Sabbaticals are viewed as a means to allow critical talent time to recharge and people generally return supercharged and more productive than before (Pagano and Pagano, 2009). Basically, there are three defining characteristics of sabbatical leave. One, the time away is planned. Two, it is extended generally for at least four weeks with some firms offering up to three months and three, the employee is expected to return after the break. There is some psychological basis for providing sabbatical leave. Such a work-life balance program is viewed as a form of work motivation. Specifically, it fulfils Maslows Hierarchy of Needs theory. According to Maslow, needs are arranged in a hierarchy from the most basic to the highest level (Baron, 1998). There are five hierarchies of needs which are (in ascending order) physiological needs (the need for food, water and sleep), safety needs (need for security), social needs (need to belong), esteem needs (the need to develop self-respect) and self-actualization needs (the need for self-fulfilment). Therefore taken in this context, taking a sabbatical leave to fulfil a longstanding desire is a form of self-fulfilment that will ultimately benefit the individual. However, employers generally tend to negatively view sabbatical leave of this nature as an indulgent form of fantasy and a waste of both time and money to the company. Yet, harbouring unfulfilled desires will adversely affec t productivity as the employee will feel frustrated. In addition, even the best job can seem monotonous after a while and sabbatical leave should be viewed as a way of gaining fresh perspective and overcoming work fatigue. There are some problems when instituting sabbatical programs which is why companies tend to avoid them. The first problem is lack of top management support. Top management must see the merits of such a program to implement it successfully. Secondly, there is a problem of scheduling. Too many employees taking sabbatical leave at the same time is a serious threat to business, especially during busy seasons. From the employees viewpoint, sabbatical leave can be problematic in two main respects. One, the employee may be worried that if he or she is away for too long, the company may decide that it can do without them. Two, returning to work after a lengthy sabbatical can be very stressful and intense since there will be a lot of unfinished work to attend to (Turner et al, 2009). However, sabbatical programs can be successful if well implemented. First, the company should determine the objectives of such a program, be it to re-energize employees, attract new employees or improve work culture. Two, the company should study the market to see what other companies are offering to come up with better programs. Three, employees should be involved in the decision making process to gain their input and insights. Four, the program should be developed by preparing a sabbatical leave policy. This should include support documents like departure checklists, timelines and scheduling requirements. Five, the program should be piloted to ascertain its effectiveness and adjusted if necessary (Pagano and Pagano, 2009). Frederick Herzberg developed a theory of motivation called the Two-factor theory that is similar to Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. According to Herzberg, job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction acted independently of each other (Baron, 1998). Hence, there are factors at the workplace that cause job satisfaction, whilst there are other factors that cause dissatisfaction. The positive satisfaction factors are collectively termed motivators. These include recognition of a job well done, a sense of achievement and personal growth. Hence, they reflect Maslows hierarchy of needs. However, Herzberg describes another set of factors called hygiene factors. Hygiene factors do not provide positive satisfaction such as company policy, and working conditions, but their absence could cause dissatisfaction. Therefore, work-life programs can be regarded as hygiene factors, the absence of which causes job dissatisfaction. While it is common for most companies to provide paid maternity for their female employees, few in Malaysia extend paternity leave to male employees, though it is common practice in Scandinavian countries. This is a fringe benefit that is being increasingly sought after by more and more employees. As the traditional roles of men and women evolve, more fathers now want to have a more hands-on approach to parenting. This means being with their wives during childbirth and tending to the needs of mother and child during the crucial period following birth. The Family and Medical Leave Act in America allows for a minimum of 12 weeks paid paternity leave while those in Scandinavian countries allow leave to be extended for up to three years (Joshi et al, 2002). While it is unlikely that Malaysian fathers will want to take such a long time off from work, more would like to spend a week or two with their recuperating wives and new infants. Therefore, providing paternity leave acts as a form of motivator to encourage male employees to remain with the company (Robbins and Judge, 2007). Implementing paternal leave at the workplace should not be too difficult as the procedure is similar to maternity leave. Hence the same documents for record keeping can be used. Taking a nap at work would seem extremely unprofessional and unproductive. Yet, some researchers conclude that taking short naps at work, termed power naps may actually increase alertness and productivity. The scientific argument in support of power naps is that it is designed to replenish down time during out circadian rhythm which normally occurs during the afternoon. Some of the benefits of power naps include increased memory, response time and cognitive skills. Taking power naps may be linked to the drive theory which is a theory of motivation that suggests that behavior is pushed from within by drives stemming from basic biological needs like sleep (Baron, 1998). The problems associated with permitting power naps at the workplace include the duration of the nap, scheduling and top management support. It is generally believed that a power nap of fifteen to twenty minutes is sufficient to yield the abovementioned benefits (Robbins and Judge, 2007). Anything longer than that will result in the employee falling into deep sleep which would result in sleeping difficulty at night. However, the company must decide when it is permissible for employees to nap. Some allow employees to nap during their lunch break while others prepare a schedule. While it is not necessary to prepare special sleeping areas since employees are perfectly capable of sleeping at their desks, it is important to ensure that such naps do not interrupt the flow of work. Customers must also not see employees napping as it would create a negative perception of the company. However, if implemented correctly, power naps may be amongst the cheapest and most beneficial forms of work-life balance programs. In conclusions, these are but a few examples of the many work-life balance programs that can be designed to provide motivation and improve retention of employees. Deciding on which to choose will depend on the size and nature of the organization, its work culture and the target benefits of such programs. Top management should keep an open mind about these initiatives for if conducted in the correct manner, the desired results can be obtained.

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad Essay

Juxtaposition is one of the many literary element used in emphasis of a concept or an idea. In the novel Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad juxtaposes the motifs of light and dark to emphasize the wickedness present throughout the book. Through juxtaposition, Conrad not only emphasizes the darkness in Africa but also intensifies the dark hearts of the Europeans. The major darkness in the novel is the land of Africa itself. When Marlow first makes his way upstream with his crew, he describes the land of Africa as a dark place, saying that the river was â€Å"an empty stream, a great silence, an impenetrable forest. The air was warm, thick, heavy, sluggish. There was no joy in the brilliance of sunshine† (30). He uses lightness words like â€Å"brilliance† and â€Å"sunshine† to intensify this darkness. Also, Conrad even depicts Africa as the â€Å"heart of darkness†. He says, â€Å"we penetrated deeper and deeper into the heart of darkness. It was very quiet there. At night sometimes the roll of drums behind the curtain of trees would run up the river and remain sustained faintly, as if hovering in the air high over our heads, till the first break of day† (31). Africa is full of darkness and it all happens at night, before the sun rises and brightens up the world again. â€Å"I looked around, and I don’t know why, but I assure you that never, never before, did this land, this river, this jungle, the very arch of this blazing sky, appear to me so hopeless and so dark, so impenetrable to human thought, so pitiless to human weakness† (51), describes Marlow. Here, the darkness is portrayed as gloom, not the darkness of evil. Even the â€Å"blazing† sky looked hopeless. By juxtaposing the words â€Å"blazing† and â€Å"dark†, Conrad emphasizes that the glum of the land defeated its bright and sunny sky. Through the use of juxtaposition, the darkness of the land of Africa is emphasized and intensified. Conrad also uses juxtaposition of the character of the accountant to emphasize the darkness not only in the Africans but also in the Europeans. When Marlow meets the accountant, he states â€Å"I met a white man, in such an unexpected elegance of getup that in the first moment I took him for a sort of vision. I saw a high starched collar, white cuffs, a light alpaca jacket, snowy trousers, a clear necktie, and varnished boots† (15). Marlow describes the white accountant as some kind of a miracle. The white man was elegant and had decent clothing among all the madness happening around them. However, from how Marlow describes what happened in the accountant’s office, this accountant is not a kind man. Marlow accounts that â€Å"when a truckle bed with a sick man was put in there, he exhibited a gentle annoyance. ‘The groans of this sick person,’ he said, ‘distract my attention. And without that it is extremely difficult to guard against clerical errors in this climate.’† (15). He complains about the dying sick man and how this man is distracting him from his work. By juxtaposing the white European with his dark behavior, Conrad shows the evilness of humans. Mr. Kurtz is a mysterious character in the novel, containing both the dark devil and the real Kurtz. The first description of Kurtz occurs in the part where Marlow describes the outlook of a brochure. He says, â€Å"it was very simple, and at the end of that moving appeal to every altruistic sentiment it blazed at you, luminous and terrifying, like a flash of lightning in a ser ene sky: ‘Exterminate all the brutes!’† (46). This is a description of the brochure Kurtz is writing for the â€Å"International Society for the Suppression of Savage Customs† (45). The first part of the brochure, the part written before Kurtz have gone mad, is typed up with the use of a typewriter. Then on the bottom of the page, the words â€Å"Exterminate all the brutes!† was scribbled on hastily. Even when Kurtz was on the verge of death, he was living immersed in darkness. â€Å"His was an impenetrable darkness. I looked at him as you peer down at a man who is lying at the bottom of a precipice where the sun never shines† (64). Conrad straight up uses the words â€Å"impenetrable darkness† to describe Kurtz. At the end of the quote, he said â€Å"where the sun never shines†. The sun is used to emphasize the darkness of Kurtz’s heart because it never shines. It was dark, it is dark, and will be dark unless a miracle occurs and causes the â€Å"sun† to shine down in the â€Å" precipice†. The character of Kurtz is probably the darkest character in the novel and this is shown by the juxtaposition. Marlow, the frame narrator, starts and ends his story by saying that the darkness isn’t just in Africa. In the beginning of Marlow’s story, he talks about how we are living in a constant flicker of lightness among the darkness. By starting the story with â€Å"Light came out of this river since – you say knights? Yes; but it is like a running blaze on a plain, like a flash of lightning in the clouds. We live in the flicker – may it last as long as the old earth keeps rolling! But darkness was here yesterday† (3), it can be seen and foreshadowed that there are darkness no matter where you go. This is even before he describes Africa, showing that Africa isn’t the only heart of darkness. These â€Å"flickers† intensifies the darkness when it drapes over us. The nameless narrator ends the novel by saying, â€Å"the offing was barred by a black bank of clouds, and the tranquil waterway leading to the uttermost ends of the earth flowed somber under an overcast sky – seemed to lead into the heart of an immense darkness† (72). After starting out the story with a description of the darkness in the world, the nameless narrator ends the novel with the descriptions of the darkness in Europe. This narrator describes that there was a storm when the Nellie made its way down the Thames River, not only literal but also metaphorical. The metaphorical storm reflects the darkness of the hearts of the Europeans. By using light and bright words, Conrad intensifies the evil and the despair in the novel Heart of Darkness. 2nd sentence. 3rd sentence.