The Strings of Our Lives free essay sample

Have you ever thought of what we are made of, what makes us who we are? Scientists all over the world are scratching their heads at this one question, constantly trying to find a solution. The String Theory is one idea that resounds with me. The theory in general describes that a ‘string’ makes up a quark, which in turn makes up a proton or neutron, which then creates an atom, and then, essentially, the world. I’d like to think that moments in my life have made me who I am, just like the little strings that make up the atom. Small, yet significant. Like the String Theory, and the world, there are endless possibilities in life, and the future seems to be indefinite. Like every child, I can remember feeling the need to grow up as fast as possible, when school and fun were one, and when life was full of happy endings. We will write a custom essay sample on The Strings of Our Lives or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page However, being a high school student changes all that, as grades and competition among friends becomes the focus of life. On paper, I’m a scholar and a talented student, but I don’t stop there. Grades and awards cannot define who I am. I’m a collection of different heritages and European ethnicities, and each and every one of them helps play a role in who I am today. I could not live without some form of literature, and covet I mythology of any kind. All of these interests are only small pieces of the strings that make me who I am. One moment in time can drastically change a life, no matter how long or short it is. One moment could throw the strings that make up life out of balance, forever changing the path of that life. As I think about these types of moments, one manages to surmount all the others. Last year, after years of uncertainty and confusion, I made the decision to pack up my life as a senior at my high school in Maine, and move half way across the country to South Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to finish my last year of high school under my mother’s care. Most said that making a decision like this would be detrimental to my education and that it would make my life unnecessarily challenging, and I agreed with them. However, after moving to this new state, this new town, and this new school, I began to change my opinion. That decision allowed me to experience a copious amount of new cultures and activities and gave me the ability to meet hundreds of new people who have their own collections of strings to share with the world. So when someone says, ‘How could you?’ I say, ‘How could I not?’ After all, there are strings to be made. For everyone has strings; it’s what you create with them that defines you.

On-tap Inspiration Online

On-tap Inspiration Online On-tap Inspiration Online On-tap Inspiration Online By Ali Hale Do you ever find that you have an hour or two free to write, but you just can’t get inspired? Whether you want a compelling idea for your next short story, a topic for your blog or a starting prompt for a poem, your brain just seems to be blank. If only there were some way to get inspiration on-tap†¦ Thankfully there is! It’s called the Internet, and it’s jam-packed with ways to find your next great idea†¦ Twistori Twistori finds Twitter feeds which contain certain words: love, hate, think, believe, feel and wish. To use it, just click on one of the words on the left-hand side, then watch text stream up your screen. If you click rapidly on several words, you can come up with some brilliant juxtapositions – often, putting together two very different thoughts can result in a great piece of writing. These are just some of the lines I saw. Any of these spark off some (maybe slightly crazy) ideas? I think Im inheriting a cat tomorrow I feel like Im riding my exercise bike to nowhere. Why cant I get frequent rider miles and fly to Italy with them? I can tell its already going to be a crazy super long week. I wish I could duplicate myself!! I hate birthdays and i hate signing cards and celebrating them at work. Imagination prompt generator The Imagination prompt generator gives you a random prompt every time you click. Good for non-fiction writers, especially personal essayists. Just click on the ‘Next prompt’ button. If you find writing on one prompt two easy, pick two to combine in the same piece. Here’s a few it came up with for me, and my thoughts on how they could be used. â€Å"List five books that youve read this year.† – If you’re a blogger, pick books on your topic and write a review of them for your blog. â€Å"Without my life partner, Id† – This would be a personal, reflective piece, perhaps something for your journal. It could even be suitable to send to a magazine. â€Å"Can you live without electricity for a month?† – Questions like this one could lead to an article on how dependant we are on electricity, or even a piece of fiction about a TV-and-computer-addicted teenager being taken on a very â€Å"low-tech† family holiday†¦ Random Word Generator combined with Flickr Open these two sites in different tabs or browser windows. The Random Word Generator will give you a word – and Flickr will find you an image. Get your word by hitting ‘New Word’ (it’s easiest to use nouns, but other types of word can yield interesting results.) Then type that word into the search box on Flickr. Pick one of the images that comes up – to get the best of the lot, sort by ‘Most interesting’. Don’t spend too long choosing your image, just pick one, click on the thumbnail in the search results to see the big version, and gaze at it for a while. This could yield ideas for a poem, story, article, even a letter or journal entry. We Feel Fine We Feel Fine asks the question â€Å"What are you feeling?† and finds answers from thousands of blogs. It is a rich source of emotions and ideas, and lots of fun to play with. Give it a minute to load, then click on one of the floating coloured blobs. (You can also change mode to ‘Murmurs’ to see a list of streaming text – try out the different options in the bottom left corner.) You’ll get thoughts like these: â€Å"i sometimes tend to dwell on not having the life i wish i had and then i hear stories like these and it makes me very grateful for everything i have† – This could be a great starting point for a blog post on gratitude, or perhaps for a story where a character undergoes a complete shift in their state of mind when they learn about someone else’s troubles. ‘i feel like for the first time my outlook on life has vastly improved’ – This raises a lot of questions: why has the speaker’s outlook improved? How were things different before? This could make a good start – or even a whole theme – for a story. ‘i don’t feel too guilty about it because i don’t cook breakfast for people who don’t get out of bed before nine thirty’ – You could take this in several directions; perhaps a short story about a mother exasperated with her layabout teenagers, an article about sleeping habits and waking-up times, or a blog post on how to become an early riser (though that topic’s been fairly well covered.) What are your favourite sites for online inspiration? Those are just a few sites that I love, and I’m sure there’s dozens of great ones I’ve not even discovered yet. Share your favourites in the comments below (and if you’re willing, let us know what they’ve inspired you to write!) Or if you try out one of the above sites, tell us what you come up with†¦ Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the General category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:36 Adjectives Describing LightThe Parts of a WordPresent Participle as Adjective

The Divorce Effects

The Divorce Effects Introduction Divorce involves restructuring of the family where parents separate. When people get married, they get children in the union and who are under the care of both parents. Divorce causes emotional and psychological strain among the parents. The process of divorce is very involving and parents end up as opponents and seek to be independent (Roderick 6). Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Divorce Effects specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More After divorce the parents reside in different houses and have to settle with the other about the custody of children. In most cases the children remain in custody of the mother. Although some people believe that parents absorb the major effects of divorce, I believe that divorce has a big effect on children than parents. Discussion on how effects of divorce on children are more than effects on the parents Emotional effects According to Friedman (17), when parents di vorce the family members are affected. The children as well as the parents have to adjust to changes and may take up to two years to settle down. They often have emotions that are triggered by the divorce. In cases where children exposed and saw the parents engage in conflict, children find it more comfortable to live with a single parent and be not see the parents engage in quarrels. On the other hand, some parents keep their differences secret from the children. When they divorce, such children usually have a harder time to cope with the change than children who knew their parents differences. Therefore parents can live in a marriage for the sake of the children. Children encounter difficulty Children from divorced families portray differences from those who grow up in stable families. Divorce affects children’s social life because some have difficulties relating with other members of society when compared with the others. Roderick (pg 8), argues that some children from t he divorced families may learn skill of copping with difficulties and therefore may end with less problems than those from non divorced families.Advertising Looking for research paper on psychology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The recovery from divorce of the children is depended on the pace of the parent to pull through the difficult times. As Wilson (pg 10) argues, in cases where parents recover quickly, the children were able to cope with changes while those parents who took long to overcome challenges posed by divorce, their children continued manifesting problems like regression. Unprepared to deal with change Young children find it unbearable to deal with divorce of the parents because at their age they have not learnt how to muddle through changes and are thereby not fully ready to handle separation of one of the parents. Most often, boys have a harder time than girls when parents divorce. When they devel op problems, the divorced wife poorly manages the son’s problems and may liken him with the father besides having her own problems. The problem may include the fact that they had a relationship with the father which is no longer present. Children are affected by the separation of parents. ONeill (Para 2) reveals that the father figure or the mother figure is important to children. They lose the connection and some support they got from the parent. Loss of one parent Children end up spending limited time with parents. The divorce makes the children live with one parent and may see the other parent at another time. This makes them fail to experience the love and care of the parent who is away. The parents may enter into other relationships where they have to spend some time with the new found partner. The child does not fully enjoy the company of both parents as the parents may be committed to other relationships. Failure in effective parenting Some parents change their style o f parenting after divorce as Hughes (Para11) mentions. They abandon some practices that would have benefited the child positively. For instance parents may fail to assist in home work since they relocated due to the divorce. The abandonment of the practices affects the child more than the parent because the child needs quality parenting which they are denied. Children are largely affected by the process of divorce where both parents are adverse enemies. They are affected more than the parent when the two parents extend the fights in court about who is to provide care for the children. The child changes in the way they handle situations and may become irritated easily. Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Divorce Effects specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More They may become criminals and at times attempt to take their life. They may also deliberately neglect authority and at time run away from their home. In some cases children feel insecure and uncertainty about their future. Children suffer when the parents involve them in the divorce cases. Because parents need someone to confide in, some parents end up discussing their problems with the child. The child gets hurt when they become awre of their parents antagonism towards each other. They get feeling of helplessness since they both parents are important to them. Roderick (Pg 14) supports the claim then process of divorce is traumatizing to the children. For this reason single parents living without divorce are viewed as healthier than families that are conflicting. Moreover, children love to live in a peaceful family rather than a family with violence. Economic effects Children have more problems than parents when affected by changes in economic support. Divorced parents may have economic challenges as suggested by most of the authors. Due to inadequate finances following divorce, the single mother of father may relocate and the children change the school they attend as a consequence (ONeill 16). Children lose relationships and friendships that are already and may be required have difficulties copping in the new environment. They may also change their lifestyle due to economic constrains. Psychological effects Children are psychologically affected by divorce. The memories of a good family, when the conflict began and became worse, the divorce process and later the experiences after the divorce remain in the child brain. Another experience that remains to distress children with divorced parents is the movement from one parent’s residence to the other. Such children suffer because they consider that if the situation would change they would have one home (Friedman 27)Advertising Looking for research paper on psychology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Divorce is stressful and not pleasant. The parents may understand and be willing to go through some changes as a result of the divorce. Children suffer more than the parents because they are neither prepared nor do they understand why they should put up with some changes. The encounter is more unbearable when the parent marries again and divorces again. Change in organization of family Some divorces causes greater loses of relationship with extended family members as well as the organization of a family (Wilson pg 9). The child may lose conduct with the other parents kinsmen like lovely grandparents and only meet them less frequently. During annual parties like a birthday, the child may feel the loss of important members of the extended family and the absence of one parent. Recommendations Children are affected by divorce more than parents because it has negative impact on the child’s maturity. Considerations made when parents choose to divorce do not include the feelings and opinions of the children. Thus children are forced into separating without being involved. Tension increases when one parent influences the child to side with one parent. Friedman (Pg 15) notes that both parents should be committed to follow the progress of their child both in education and in social life. Additionally, parents can make efforts to see their children most often as the children need the figure and emotional support from both parents. Furthermore, parents can also consider staying in the marriage for the sake of the children. This is because children suffer even more than the parents for due to the divorce. Conclusion The effects of divorce cannot be under estimated because children are affected more than their parents. Based on the words of Wilson (pg 1) we can learn that children of divorced parents are affected by the loss of one parent, financial changes that cause change of lifestyle and relocation. They are affected emotionally and psychologically and may end u p with low self esteem and a feeling of helplessness. In addition, stress and memories concerning the divorce remain high among the children and hence they are affected more than the parents. Friedman, Debra. Towards a structure of indifference: the social origins of maternal Custody. New York: A. de Gruyter, c1994. ONeill, William. Divorce in the progressive era. New York, New Viewpoints, 1973 Roderick, Phillips. Putting asunder: a history of divorce in western society. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1988. Wilson, Mike. Divorce. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, c2009

5 More Sentences Rendered More Concise

5 More Sentences Rendered More Concise 5 More Sentences Rendered More Concise 5 More Sentences Rendered More Concise By Mark Nichol Each of the examples below illustrates a distinct strategy for shortening and simplifying sentences. A discussion and a revision follows each example. 1. You can go ahead and turn off the valve. The phrase â€Å"go ahead and† is a classic example of an extraneous phrase, preceding a verb, likely to turn up in speech when the speaker wishes to avoid seeming too assertive, but it has no place in writing, and the sentence can be further pared down by reducing it to a bare imperative statement with an implied subject: â€Å"Turn off the valve.† 2. If possible, take the rug outside and shake it to dislodge resistant dirt. Similarly, the two-step instruction in this sentence is easily truncated to a more concise direction by omitting the first verb and replacing it with the second one after the latter has been divested of the pronoun that follows it: â€Å"If possible, shake the rug outside to dislodge resistant dirt.† 3. It is not a matter of if such a risk event might occur, but more a matter of when it will occur and the organization’s preparedness to reduce the impact and proliferation of the event. The counterpoint phrases in the sentence are easily combined: â€Å"It is a matter of if, not of when, such a risk event will occur, and of the organization’s preparedness to reduce the impact and proliferation of the event.† 4. The Safe Harbor agreement was the framework used by companies in the United States and the European Union to exchange citizens’ personal data. This mechanism was declared invalid by the European Court of Justice on October 6, 2015. Simply constructed declarative statements are easily combined, usually by one of two methods- either insert one modified sentence into the other as a parenthetical, or, as here, revise both sentences so that one can be tacked onto the other: â€Å"The Safe Harbor agreement, the framework companies in the United States and the European Union used to exchange citizens’ personal data, was declared invalid by the European Court of Justice on October 6, 2015.† (Note, too, the shift from passive to active construction of the verb used. Also, the entire sentence could be rendered more active- and slightly shorter- by replacing the subject as follows: â€Å"On October 6, 2015, the European Court of Justice declared the Safe Harbor agreement, the framework companies in the United States and the European Union use to exchange citizens’ personal data, invalid.†) 5. Phorusrhacids were known as â€Å"terror birds,† and it’s clear why. They were prehistoric carnivorous birds. They were the largest flightless birds to ever walk the plant. They reached a height of up to ten feet. They were natural inhabitants of South America.   This annoyingly inelegant paragraph, written in simple, repetitive sentences as if by a child, is easily rehabilitated by employing the first method described in the previous example- incorporating a couple of the statements into the others: â€Å"Phorusrhacids, natural inhabitants of South America, are informally known as â€Å"terror birds,† and it’s clear why. These prehistoric carnivorous avians, the largest flightless birds to ever walk the plant, stood up to ten feet tall.† Find 5 more examples in this post. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Creative Writing 101Peace of Mind and A Piece of One's MindQuiet or Quite?

Should Iran be allow to have it's own nuclear power Research Paper

Should Iran be allow to have it's own nuclear power - Research Paper Example America’s double standards in terms of foreign policies towards Israel and Muslim world are causing big concerns in the Islamic world. Many people believe that Israel already have nuclear arsenal and hence there is no point in criticising Iran’s efforts to acquire nuclear power. Many others are of the view that allowing Iran to acquire nuclear power may intensify the problems in the Middle East. This paper analyses the arguments in favour and against allowing Iran to become a nuclear power. Opponents of Iran's nuclear program often argue that Iran should opt for the more economically efficient electricity from natural gas-fired power plants. Such arguments are also not valid. A recent study by two MIT professors indicated that the cost of producing electricity from gas (and oil) is comparable with what it costs to generate it using nuclear reactors — not to mention the adverse effects of carbon emissions or the need to preserve Iran's gas reserves to position Ira n in 20 or 30 years as one of the main suppliers of gas to Europe and Asia (Sahimi et al.). It is a fact that the available fossil fuels stocks in this world are sufficient enough for 30 or 40 more years. Industries are developing rapidly and the automobile uses are increasing every day. Under such circumstances, it is necessary for all the countries to look for alternate energy sources. Iran publicly says that they are trying to develop nuclear technology to meet their energy needs. It is a fact that energy crisis is a big problem in most of the countries. Since the fossil fuel is exhausting rapidly because of the increased exploitation, it is necessary find out alternate energy sources. Many countries turned their attention towards nuclear power to solve their energy crisis. For example, India is establishing a series of nuclear power stations across their territories to solve energy crisis. Under such circumstances, disallowing Iran from acquiring nuclear power cannot be justifie d. At the same time, many reports have shown that Iran is trying to develop nuclear arsenal rather than nuclear power stations in the name of energy crisis. In other words, Iran is trying to utilize nuclear power for destructive purposes rather than constructive purposes. Heated public rhetoric has filled the newspapers and radio broadcasts since Summer, 2003, warning that Iran is nearly ready to produce nuclear weapons and that, if she were ever to actually produce those weapons, she would be an unacceptable risk to her neighbours and to Israel through direct military confrontation. Further, Iran is said to be ready to supply global terrorists with nuclear weapons, thus posing a risk to the United States, to Great Britain, and to the European Union (Nuclear Armed Iran Vs. America – Whom Should The World Fear?). If Iran is trying to develop nuclear arsenal for destructive purposes, then they should be prevented from doing so. It should be noted that the destructive power of n uclear arsenal is unimaginable. Nagasaki and Hiroshima have shown us the destructive power of nuclear weapons. The damages caused by the nuclear weapons in Nagasaki and Hiroshima are negligible compared to the capabilities of modern nuclear weapons. Under such circumstances, UN like global agencies is trying to prevent countries from developing nuclear arsenal. A war between two nuclear powers may

Determining HRIS Needs Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Determining HRIS Needs - Research Paper Example Though the adoption of technology in HR department has exhibited a whole range of advantages in managing firms’ human resource, technological advancement equally poses a wide range of challenges that span ethical, financial as well as legal implications. Technological advancement within the field of HR presupposes higher skills for the staff. Moreover, the staff in the firm wholesomely expects higher levels of accessing data than was the case before adopting the HRIS. This therefore shows that in adoption of these systems, there is a need for proper future planning. There may be some requirements for changes in technology or government regulations in the future, which in the event of unpreparedness may adversely affect the firm. Such planning needs are: need for caution in incorporating the ever-dynamic social media as tools of recruitment. New applications as well as legislations keep showing up hence the need for a better system that would accommodate the dynamics. There is the need to adopt systems that can easily expansion and reporting requirements as stipulated by different legislations and government regulations, as this will always keep changing. Taking caution on the use of hosted approaches through which firms rent services from other service providers or unreliable software. Technological advancement may face out the software in use thus lending the organization helpless. While taking long range planning for these HRIS, an organization should also be aware of the changing trends within the HR practices where records are showing that managers are adopting HR systems through which analysis of individual employee performance can be monitored and evaluated. This will assist in the choice for the most appropriate systems to minimize costs of revising and changing. Finally, long range planning will take into account transparency challenges where the system adopted should ascertain confidentiality of personal information. This is especially important with the technological awareness that is currently exhibited (Johnson and Gueutal, nd, 4-6). HRIS requires periodical analysis. There are the advantages that make the methods more appropriate than others. However, it is worth noting that the methods exhibit major setbacks and can thus not ascertain accurate measurements. Error-some data may result from the drawbacks that are associated with data collection faults associated go these methods. Apart from the limitation of time, both focus group as well as the interview method is limited in costs, human resource requirements and language barrier (U.S. General Accounting Office, 1991, 40-66). On matters of costs, interviews as well as the focus groups require the services of one on one questioning for the purpose of focus groups while the interviews may be over the communication media as well as the one on one interview. These two cases require a lot of funding as compared to other methods as the secondary data. In relation to human re source, the interview method and the focus group methods both require the services of competent personnel. In the instance of poor personnel, the data collected is inaccurate while the reverse is true. On matters of language, it is seen as a critical disadvantage because the two methods of collecting data requires some form of communication; either written or better still the oral communication. In the instance of differences in language, communication would not take place and in the process, no data at all will be collected. From the above analysis, the

Company Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Company Law - Essay Example The factual scenario raises various issues in company law relating to the legality of proposed transactions. With regard to the proposed transactions and dissatisfaction of Ergan,Arif and Moshe as minority shareholders in the actions of Pedro and Morgan;this initially raises issues of breach of directors’ duties under the Companies Act 2006. Section 171 of the Companies Act 2006 (CA) provides that â€Å"a director of a company must- a) act in accordance with the company’s constitution, and b) only exercise powers for the purposes for which they are conferred† (CA). Section 175 of the CA further imposes a positive obligation on directors to â€Å"avoid a situation in which he has, or can have, a direct or indirect interest that conflicts, or possibly may conflict, with the interests of the company† (Section 175 of the CA). If we apply this by analogy to the current scenario, it is evident that Pedro and Morgan have awarded themselves pay increases despite t he fact the company is making marginal profits. As such, this would suggest a conflict of interest with the interest of the company. Moreover, the common law and equity impose duties on directors and section 179 of the CA expressly states that â€Å"the consequences of any breach†¦ of sections 171 to 177 are the same as would apply if the corresponding common law rule or equitable principle applied†.... k v Deeks ([1916] 1 AC 554) asserted that directors cannot take advantage of an opportunity or information that belongs to the company without prior approval of the company. The common law fiduciary duty is further bolstered by the provisions of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986, where the courts can disqualify directors whose companies have failed as a direct result of their misconduct for periods up to 15 years. Moreover, under section 172 of the CA, there is a new duty deriving from the equitable fiduciary duty principle expressed as a duty to promote the success of the company. To this end, Section 172(1) sets out a non-exhaustive list of guidelines that directors should refer to including (without limitation) the relationship with suppliers and customers, impact of decision on environment and members of the company. It is important to ensure compliance with this and failure to comply cannot only result in exposing the company to potential claims, but can also lead to piercing of the corporate veil for potential actions against the director (Wild, 2009). Furthermore, section 173 of the CA 2006 imposes a positive duty on a director of a company to exercise independent judgment. Section 174(1) sets out the common law duty of care and skill and section 174(2) sets out an objective test similar to the dual obligations test extrapolated under section 214 of the Insolvency Act 1986 in relation to the wrongful trading provisions. In context of the current scenario, this will have a bearing in relation to the concerns regarding the sale of the company’s property at undervalue. Firstly, it is evident that the proposed sale of the company property must be in the best interests of the company under Section 172 of the CA 2006. If the sale at undervalue is not

Personal Impact Reflection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Personal Impact Reflection - Essay Example Given that I come from a different culture from the dominant Western culture, this course has influenced how I perceive issues surrounding sex and sexuality and how I may enlighten my society about sex and sexuality. Specifically, the course has offered me an information and knowledge that I can utilize in making connections to my culture’s beliefs, attitudes, and perceptions about human sexuality and gender. Through this course I have gained insights that I could apply in enlightening members from my culture/society in understanding why different genders are perceived differently across cultures, and the effects of such perceptions on issues such as family life, marriage, gender roles, and relationships and intimacy. Additionally, the course has influenced my perceptions towards issues such as underlying physiological, psychological, and social dynamics of Lesbian Gay Bisexual & Transgender people and relationships, and the influence of differences in cultural backgrounds on society’s attitudes towards LGBT people and relationships. Overall, the course has offered valuable insights into how sex and gender issues are interpreted differently across cultures, and why social expectations about issues surrounding human sexuality vary across different cultures and

Literacy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Literacy - Essay Example Through learning of vowels a kid is able to learn the different sounds and later how to make a syllable. Syllables are the basic units of words which are further joined with helping words to make a meaningful word or a sentence. Every literate person learned how to write or read through some formal or informal education. Informal institutions like the kindergartens and baby cares play a big part in the society regarding this matter (Holbek 7). At this period am proud to say my parents played a major role in what I am today. In class I never understood how to pronounce some vowels, finish my homework and majorly how to write my name. The latter, on many occasions made me skip writing my name on writing books or the quizzes we were frequently given. Pronunciation was a big burden in my kindergarten life, especially words that had two or three syllables (Kozol 194). Each day after school, my parents used to teach me these problems countless times before I slept, which was kind of a torture for me at some point. At times when I was stubborn, I was occasionally punished through spanking and some grounding. Through the frequent teachings and memorizations, I learned how to write my name and even learned some pronunciations beyond my level. Pronunciations and writing of my name is one practice that I believe would never end any time soon, because I still use them up to now (Kozol 199). Apart from the basic learning of writing and pronunciations, the kids are also given time to play.

The relationship between Frequency and phase- shift in Butterworth filters Essay Example for Free

The relationship between Frequency and phase- shift in Butterworth filters Essay The phase characteristic of Butterworth filters varies with the particular frequency in the passband and also with the ratio of cut-off frequency to sampling frequency. The cut off frequency occurs at the point where the phase shift is half its maximum value. The frequency of the Butterworth filters is often flat (they have no ripples). Therefore the Butterworth has a linear phase characteristic. The function of their magnitude has monotonic changes contrary to other filters which have non-monotonic ripples (Daryanani, 1976). The Butterworth filters have rolls off slowly and thus a particular specification of stopband needs higher order to be implemented. This is because the gain is high at higher frequency and lower at low frequency. Similarly the group delay increases with decrease in frequency. All filter options of the same order has the same phase shift. 2. How this relationship affect the waveform of a complex signal with multiple frequency components sent through it. The waveform of any complex signal that passes through a Butterworth filter shows no ripple although it rolls off at a slower rate around the cut off frequency. Lack of ripples in the Butterworth filter enables it to have a linear phase characteristic. Any signal passing through Butterworth filters experiences slight distortion but not as extensive as it occurs in Chebyshev filters and Elliptic filters. The phase of the signal is inverted in the case of multiple frequency components. The damping ratio of Butterworth filters is approximately 1. 1414 which produces a flat response (Thomas, 1971). Questions 1. The purpose of the LPF in the demodulator . and its bandwidth Low pass filter in the demodulator is meant to suppress the subcarrier frequencies which are contained in the FM stereo of the demodulation signal. In other words, it filters out carrier frequencies Thus the resulting magnetic distortion doesn’t affect the output signal. The bandwidth of the low pass filter is determined by the number of signal sampled that need to be filtered at a given speed (the sampling frequency). The LPF also helps in preventing deterioration in the sound quality (Graeme, 1971). 2. How to calculate the bit clock of the demodulator from the carrier frequency? The bit rate of the clock is a sub multiple of carrier frequency. This means that the bit clock frequency depends on the number of channels multiplied by the number of bits per channel ((Thomas, 1971). For instance if the CD audio has a carrier frequency of 44. 1Hz, with 32 bits per(2) stereo channel, then the bit clock frequency will be given by carrier frequency divide by the channels times the number of bits 44. 1/ (32/2) = 2. 8224 MHz Eye Diagram 1. Snapshot method allows multiplexing up to ten single nucleotide polymorphisms. It is primer extension based multiplex system. It compares every single incoming bit to the threshold voltage and judges whether it is a zero or one. Therefore, snapshot method can put exact decision on time and voltage of every signal. However, the eye diagram is used for high speed serial interfaces. Snapshot method is also used to measures the intuitive performance of the links (at instant time) whereas the eye diagram takes substantial time to give the link performance. It makes the correct decision on whether the incoming signal is one or zero. The eye diagram requires massive knowledge in algorithms to analyze and it takes quiet along time for acquisition. Snapshot method, on the other hand gives the performance at instant time and it is easy to analyze (Graeme, 1971). 2. The effects of differing forms of interference on the signal Interferences render the wireless systems completely unusable. The three major forms of interferences include the intermodulation, radio frequency interference, and electrical interference. The intermodulation interference occurs due to the merging of strong radio signals in a wireless network while electrical interference is caused by digital equipments and lighting system. The radio frequency interference is caused by communication equipment. It is essential to know which type of interference has occurred so as to avoid unnecessary and unproductive solutions (Daryanani, 1976). References: Daryanani, G. (. 1976). Principles of Active Network Synthesis and Design. J. Wiley Sons. Thomas, L. C. (1971). A Multipurpose Active Filtering System. † Newnes: Elsevier Graeme, J. et al. (1971). Operational Amplifiers Design and Applications. New York: McGraw-Hill. 1971.

An Introduction to the airline industry

An Introduction to the airline industry The airline industry is a very competitive market, in the past 2 decades the industry have expanded and still expanding its routes domestic and globally in the beginning airline industry was partly government owned but in the recent years many privatization with airline industry have taken place. D E L A G (Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-Akiengesellschaft ) the first worlds first airline which was on the 16 November 1909 this airline was started mainly with the government owned/assistance this airship manufacturers were the Zeppelin Corporation and their head quarters was in Frankfurt. The two Americans named Rufus and Marriott tried to start the Americas first airline but the attempts were failed due to the airline catching fire. The five airline which was first started still exist these airlines are the oldest ones. KLM its the Netherlands owned, Avianca airlines owned by the Columbia. Qantas is Australians, Czech Airlines operated by the Czech Republic, Mexican Airlines by the Mexico. A fter the world wars there was some inventions have been made and the demand for new planes the designs and the techniques have greatly constructed and soon after the world wars the air rout throughout the Europe have been set up since the past 15 years the airline route have became a baggiest necessity of both business and common peoples that it is hard to live without the air travel the main pros for the Air travel is it reduces time and making the peoples to visit world in the affordable time. The airline industry can be categorized into four different and main Operations International: This service take more than130 passengers and have them and can take anywhere in the world. In this category the business have its revenue for at least $ 1bn. National: In this category it can take the passengers up to 150 and the business have its revenue for from $100 m $1bn Regional: The small companies which mainly focus on the flights with quick halts and the revenue of this business is less than $ 100 m. Cargo: The main focus of these airlines is to carry goods. Emirates (airline) introduction and its growth: Emirates airline is the major airline of the UAE and it is the subsidiary of the Emirates group it is also the national airline of the UAE (Dubai) its major operations is from the Dubai International Airport. It was founded in the year 25th October 1985 The Hub of the Emirates airlines operates its services to the ninety six (96) destinations and about 56 countries and covering around 6 continents. The company also operates the worlds longest flights to New York, los angles and other two states in Unites States of America including Houston (Texas) the cargo services of this airline is operated by the Emirates Cargo services Division at present the Emirates group has more than 40,000 Employees Employed and it is the one of the top 10 world class airlines in the world. Emirates group as a new and young company faces problems back in 1980s when the gulf airways cut down its flights to Dubai the rescue of help from the Dubai royal family invested $10 million in order to begin, the head of the airlines was sheikh Ahmad Bin Saeed al Makhtoom and he is also the present chairman since then the airlines have made its growth in the fleet and also have expanded its destinations. Emirates Airlines Growth and Incorporation: Emirates group have made tremendous efforts to grow since 1990, research shows that Emirates is one of the fastest growing airline in the world since the Emirates group have made partnership with AA (American Airlines) in 1994 it started providing the world class service to the passengers throughout the world soon after the partnership Emirates revenue turned to $634 M in the end of 2004, then after the airlines ordered 7 new Boeing 777 in 1996 costs about $1 Billion. In May 1998 Emirates enter into the agreement with Sri Lankan Air Lines to manage the airlines for 10 year In the year 2008 Emirates launched its nonstop flight to New York. In the year 2010 Emirates group have launched its flights to many new destinations in UK, Paris, Bangkok, Australia, and Saudi Arabia Do you agree with performance linked reward system? Summarize the recent trends of reward system in your organization or the organization you have chosen. Discuss its impact on productivity in your organization Performance linked reward system: The most important way to impress employees is only by reward to share the profits and allow them incentives by paying them bonuses the theory of reward system says that this is the way the employees will share in your dream when you fulfill their dream. The mechanism of this system can make this possible. The reward system is not just paying the bonuses and letting employees shares in the stock options. It is more likely to do with promotions, benefits and other incentives which can motivate employees unfortunately many companies do not offer this which leads to the failure of their organization so all the employers and I should agree with the reward system to sustain in the market with the competitors. (Donna Dee prose P: 33) The basic principle of reward system is that, you get what you reward the Employees. The main principle of management is things are done quickly if you reward the Employees, they shows positive attitude towards their works and their behavior changes if you reward them for their work. If you set a certain target for the employees and when they achieve it reward them immediately failure to do so will affect the results in the future and never hold behind the employees rewards. Therefore the main principle of motivation is by providing rewards and every organization should agree with this system for a successful organization. Benefits in working with airline industry (Emirates): Individuals interested in finding a job which can provide a good career prospects which will provide the option to travel the entire world and enjoying all the benefits as a part of the Emirates group then its hard to find the better industry than airlines and specially working for the Emirates one of the worlds best flight. There are number of benefits packages for the employees and career development programmers the group provides. In the further studies about the airline industry in the Unites States Of America there are nearly 100 airlines and 500,000 peoples are employed by them many of the positions provide excellent benefit packages, Emirates as world class airlines travels to providing services in 56 countries and expected to be added more in 2010 creates more job opportunities than the USA and runs a great reward system. Emirates Group: Emirates Group as a world class airline provides a very wide range generous benefits to the permanent employees who are employed globally. The group follows a detailed research and analysis on compensation and benefits policies by doing so the group can retain the top talented employees. This case study provides the understanding of the total benefits working for the Emirates, the reward system the company includes the cash and non cash elements. The Summary explains the basic elements of the Emirates group reward for the employees, this explanation for the compensation and reward system provides the information for the candidates working for the emirates group depending on what are their role and the unique skills and personality. The Najm award scheme is the reward and recognition program me of the Emirates Group. The Najm (Star in Arabic) recognizes, motivates and awards employees that either display exceptional behavioral competencies (going the extra mile) or identifies organizational improvements (enhanced safety, reduced cost or improved revenue) Cash elements rewards in emirates group Competitive salary and progression through salary range Emirates employees enjoy the competitive salary into cash; depending on the country they like E.g. The employees working in Dubai and K.S.A enjoy the tax free salary per month and rest all countries pays the normal tax depending on their countys legislations. Salaries are paid depending on their role and knowledge and specialization that the candidate can input into the role, the group carries a research with the relevant businesses and reviews on regular basis in order to remain competitive in providing the rewards to their employees. Employees receives the increase in salary range by the company when the responsibilities have been increased it is provided to keep employees motivates as money is a biggest motivator and used to divert route of employees to a desirable direction. Allowances The Group provides the accommodation for their employees or they give out the allowances for accommodation and it also provides the transport allowance or transport. The candidates in specific roles are only eligible for this role. Profit share schemes The company runs the profit share schemes to the employees depending on the financial statements of the group. Protection in exchange rate scheme The employees who works in the UAE their 50% of the salary is protected against adverse exchange rate towards dirham and your currency classification Professional allowance For the employees who possess the specialization skills company runs the scheme of recognizing their talents. Non Cash elements rewards in Emirates Group Annual leave The company provides 30 days of the annual leave excluding the public holidays. The annual leave will increase depending on the length of service. Gratuity/pension schemes Company runs a gratuity/pension schemes depending of the labor law rules and regulations of the country they work/ live in. For example in UK, if an employee signs up for the pensions Schemes Company deducts certain amount and pays monthly pension after the retirement age. The UAE labor law the employees are provided a gratuity on the end of service. This type of service is available to the candidates depending of the conditions like of employment and circumstances. Free holiday tickets Free holidays tickets are provided to the employees and their dependants/family for the destinations of their holiday and also runs schemes that employees can buy a ticket for the families and friends on the discounted fare. Education allowances Company provides financial support for their employees towards their tuition fees for the employees who are on senior positions to train them to requisite job skills besides these childrens of employees are allowed to claim the education allowance for the time of entire time of service. Insurance Insurances like Medical, Dental, life and Accident are provided to the employees throughout the length of service they are with the company. Provident funds On leaving the company employees are provided the provident fund that they have been saving throughout the service company decides either to pay the Gratuity or provident fund whichever is the higher the provident fund is like the long time savings of an employee with the company employee have to contribute 5% and company inputs 12% of the basic salary. Emirates card Emirates employees enjoy the privilege of being an emirates employee they can enjoys the benefits throughout the 1000s of outlets of the emirates group in UK and around the world. . Additional reward system in Emirates Group    Recognition reward from supervisors Employees with emirates enjoys the rewards from the supervisors when they feel the value of the candidate that they are performing consistently this the simple way to say thanks by words or by writing a thanks giving letter or by providing them an appraisal.

The True Dangers of the H5N1 Virus :: Bird Flu Avian Influenza Pandemic

The True Dangers of the Feared Pandemic Abstract The H5N1 strain of the avian flu is a virus. It has the potential to be very dangerous especially through its ways of transmission. The statistics of the current deaths and possible deaths also show the possible pandemic arising in the near future. However, this topic must be put into perspective and the common belief that it will eradicate our world is rather exaggerated. There is actually a higher chance that the avian flu will not become a deadly killer. Still, there are many possibilities and no one can be completely sure of the outcome. The H5N1 Virus Avian flu is probably one of the most feared possible outbreaks. The H5N1 strain is the particular strain in question. If this strain mutates, allowing for easy human to human transmission, there is an immense chance for a worldwide pandemic. This pandemic could leave the Earth barren with the possible eradication of humans unless there is a gene that allows a small percent of humans to be resistant (Siegel 33). The H5N1 virus has been the most feared virus because of its likelihood to mutate. The structure of the H5N1 virus is the main reason of its possible mutation. The envelope of the H5N1 virus is comprised of three proteins. Two of them are the hemagglutinin (H) and the neuraminidase (N). The hemagglutinin is the layer used to penetrate the host cell. It has receptors that bind to cells, allowing it to open and infiltrate the host cells. The receptors are very specific to the receptors on the cells to which it binds. This is the reason that viruses with H5N1 Dangers 2 the H5 subtype have not been able to transmit from human to human very easily. Birds have been its main target and up to this point, have been affected to most. The neuraminidase serves as a mechanism used to cut the virus free from the mucus and other inhibiting factors of the immune system, allowing the virus to move about freely in the body (Tambyah, Leung 16). Because this virus very rarely infects humans, the resistance it will face in the human immune system is predicted to be minimal. The virulence of H5N1 in its ability to multiply rapidly, making it more likely for the virus to mutate by chance. The greatest fear is that the virus will mutate in a way that permits it to gain airborne transmission, allowing it to spread rapidly from human to human.

The Environmental Impact of Off-Shore Oil Exploration and Production Es

Introduction The extraction of oil onshore has been ongoing for several decades. Offshore oil extraction is a process that began decades after onshore exploration had begun. For many years, scientists and the oil companies were certain that the exploration and production of petroleum from deep-water formations would not incur any sort of environmental damages. Several decades later, scientists learned new information from monitoring programs and research studies that offshore drilling did cause effects on the health of benthic organisms and other marine fauna in the proximity of offshore platform rigs. This paper studies the consequences of offshore platform rigs on marine organisms and wildlife from the perspectives of what causes environmental degradation offshore, the issues pertaining to marine life, and the detriment incurred by oil exploration and production (E & P). This paper begins with a brief explanation of how the oil industry works and how a well is chosen, drilled, and put into production. Subsequently, I present the four major externalities from offshore oil E & P: (1) drilling muds and cuttings, (2) waters, (3) chronic oil spills, and (4) possible socio-economic disturbances. The final section of this research study presents concluding remarks. Quick overview of oil Exploration and production Oil companies performing exploration and production services belong in the ‘upstream’ area of the business. Upstream oil companies such as Exxon, Shell, and BP, among others, lease the services from ‘service companies’ to perform the actual drilling of the well. Pride International, Halliburton, Baker and BJ are a few major service companies. Pride International performs drilling worldwide, both onshore and offsho... ...Milligan/Milligan_e.html National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration Ocean Report : Offshore oil and gas Available at url http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov/oceanreport/oilandgas.html Southward, J. A. An Ecologists View of the Implications of the Observed Physiological and Biochemical Effects of Petroleum Compounds on Marine Organisms and Ecosystems Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences, Vol. 297, No. 1087. (Jun. 1982) Pages 241-254. Travers, B. W. and Luney, R. P. Drilling tankers, and oil spills on the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Science, New Series, Vol. 194, No. 4267. (Nov. 19, 1976), 791-796. UNEP IE and The E & P Forum (Oil Industry International Exploration and Production Forum) Joint Publication Environmental Management in oil and gas exploration and production E&P Forum/UNEP IE 1997.

Midterm Exam Essay

Utopian Stories After reading the short stories thought this semester, I have found that many of the Utopian stories are thematically the same. A Utopian story is a short story or novel in which someone pays the cost for perfection in society. There are three short stories that are most thematically alike those are: The Lottery by Shirley Jackson in 1948; The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula K. Le Guin in 1975; and Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. in 1961. I have chosen these three stories because someone pays the cost in each of these stories and the results in each of them are the same. The elements of plot, characterizations, settings and symbols of each of these stories are alike. The story The Lottery by Shirley Jackson is about village who stones a villager, old or young, once a year, for good crops and harvest. This person is chosen by a draw from a box. As in the lottery, the short story entitled The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula K Le Guin is about a community that isolates and eglects a child for a â€Å"perfect† community and in Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. he community is restrained by handicap’s so that everyone can be equally perfect. All of these stories plots have the one person that is tortured or killed for everyone else’s happiness. Someone has to die or be neglected for perfection, they become sacrifices and not willingly. They are chosen unfairly or are held back of their gi fts. The characterizations in each of these stories are simply innocent. None of the main characters had a choice and if they rebelled they were still put to death. In The Lottery Mrs. Hutchinson seems to be a normal mother and a great wife. She was doing as women in that time should have done, and she was late because she was doing the dishes. She was innocent. In The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas a young boy is neglected and frowned upon as a sacrifice. It is not said that this boy had done anything to deserve this, or that he was chosen because of his behavior. He was innocent and very young, most likely pure. In Harrison Bergeron both the mother and father were a normal family however the father had to wear a handicap to make im less intelligent and Harrison was a normal boy that was smart and talented however he disagreed and paid a cost. I believe that all the characters were treated unfairly. They all seemed to be nice and normal. The settings and Symbols of each of the stories are in a small village or community. A smaller community is easier to control and persuade. I think that the symbols are similar they are all restraints in a way or isolation. Stones were used in the lottery and when thinking of a stone I think of something cold and hard and very uncomfortable. In the Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas they used a basement to keep the boy in. When thinking of a basement I think of a dark cold place also very hard and uncomfortable. In Harrison Bergeron they used handicap’s that were probably uncomfortable and the loud sounds in their all very uncomfortable. In conclusion I believe that these three stories were all thematically alike. The Lottery, The Ones Who Walk away from Omelas, and Harrison Bergeron were all great stories and I would recommend them to anyone who would like to read a utopian story.

Reseach Report

Internal Communication in [pic] Improving the internal communication within the Eurest division in Holland Casino Utrecht Student:Saskia Roose Studentnr. : 20022355 Supervisor: Mr. B. Van der Sluijs Date:June 2009 The Hague School of European Studies Executive Summary A recent employees satisfaction audit, showed that the employees of Eurest in Holland Casino Utrecht were very dissatisfied about ‘communication’. Though, when I asked them they could not describe the exact problem and if I would ask what needed to change for them in order to improve the communication they did not know.The goal of this thesis is to improve and optimize the internal communication for Compass in Holland Casino Utrecht by finding out what the needs of the employees are in regard to the internal communication. The central question is: ‘How can the internal communication of Compass Group in Holland Casino Utrecht be improved in order to fulfill the needs and expectations of its employees? ’ Research methods that are used are desk research, a group discussion with employees, interviews with floor managers and supervisors and an internal ommunication survey. The research starts with evaluating the current internal communication situation. Views on the situation from both employees as management are taken into consideration. The communication survey is used to provide insight on the needs and expectations from the employees concerning the internal communication. At the end recommendations on improving the current communication means is given and a new communication structure is composed. Conclusions from the research are: The currently used communication means are not sufficient for providing information to all employees – More attention needs to be paid to the bottom-up communication (meetings and performance reviews) – Communication between the management team needs to be improved – Employees need more types of information Table of contents Introduction 1 Motive to do the research 1 Research goal 1 Central question 2 Sub questions 2 Justification of research methods 2 Organization of thesis 3 1. Theory 4 1. 1 Internal communication 4 1. 2 Functions 4 1. 3 Types of information 5 1. 4 Communication flows 5 1. 5 Communication means 6 . Company profile 8 2. 1 Compass Group 8 2. 2 Eurest in Holland Casino Utrecht 8 2. 3 Organizational Structure 9 2. 4 Employees 9 2. 5 Leadership Style10 2. 6 Organizational culture10 2. 7 Problem11 3. Internal Communication Situation Analyses13 3. 1 Internal Communication13 3. 2 Interviews Floor Managers and Supervisors16 3. 2. 1 Floor managers16 3. 2. 2 Supervisors17 3. 3 Audit results18 3. 3. 1 Overall satisfaction18 3. 3. 2 Information need18 3. 3. 3 Communication means19 3. 3. 4 Meetings21 3. 3. 5 Performance reviews22 3. 3. 6 Contact with manager22 4. Conclusions23 5. Recommendations27 List of References32 Appendices33Introduction â€Å"The single biggest problem in communication is t he illusion that it has taken place. † George Bernard Shaw Motive to do the research Next to my study at HEBO, I have been working as a waitress for Compass Group in Holland Casino Utrecht for more than 4 years. After the latest employee satisfaction survey (appendix X) concluded that one of the things my colleagues were most dissatisfied about was ‘communication’, I was curious to find out what was wrong. I often had heard complaints about not getting information, but when I asked specifically what they thought the problem was, nobody really had an answer.I decided that this was a good subject to do my thesis about. Why were the employees so dissatisfied with the internal communication and what could be done about it? I asked the location manager if they had an internal communication plan, which they had not. I explained to him that I had to write a communication plan to finish my studies at HEBO. As I referred to the bad score communication made on the last empl oyee satisfaction research and the signals that I had picked up from my co-workers, he agreed that it would be a good idea to make an analyses of the communication structure.Research goal The goal of this thesis is to find out what the bottlenecks in the communications flows are in order to improve and optimize the internal communication for Eurest in Holland Casino Utrecht, to provide a clear view on the effectiveness of the communication means that are being used and to find out what the needs of the employees are in regard to the internal communication. With my recommendations I hope to contribute to a positive change in the internal communication, so that the employees feel better informed and will be more involved in the organization.Central question ‘How can the internal communication of Compass Group in Holland Casino Utrecht be improved in order to fulfill the needs and expectations of its employees? ’ Sub questions †¢ What is the current internal communica tion situation? †¢ Which communication means are being used and how effective are they? †¢ What are the bottlenecks in the current internal communication? †¢ What is the information need of the employees? †¢ How would the employees like to receive information? †¢ How can the current communication means be made more effective? What can be done to improve the internal communication structure within the Eurest department in Holland Casino Utrecht? Justification of research methods To find an answer to the central question, I used several research methods: a literature study, desk research, a group discussion, interviews and a survey. Next to that working in the casino myself already gave me a good view on the situation. Informal talks with my colleagues were also a great source of information, they gave me insight in the perspective of the employees as well as the management team.The literature study is based upon several books and articles that provided inform ation about the importance of internal communication in organizations. As there was no internal communication plan present, I wanted to stress the importance of internal communication, its functions and goals. The theory illustrates what kind of information employees need in an organization and which means can be used to distribute this information and apply this to the situation in the Compass department in Holland Casino Utrecht.Subsequently desk research uncovered the current internal communication structure and the communication and deliberation means which are being used. A group discussion helped me to get a better insight on how the employees viewed the problem. With a small group of employees I discussed their information need and effectiveness of the current communication with the management. I asked the where they thought lied the problem and what should change to improve the effectiveness of the communication? The interviews with the floor managers and supervisors had the same purpose: providing insight on how the management looked at the problem.Did they even think there was a problem and what was going wrong if there was? I asked the same questions to both groups, employees and managers, so I could easily find similarities and differences. The results of the discussion group and interviews with floor managers and supervisors were the basis of questionnaire which all employees could fill in. Transcripts of the discussion group and interviews can be found in appendices I – VII. To conduct the survey I made a questionnaire. It contains mainly closed questions with the opportunity to give comments. It consisted of five different parts: General information – Information need – Communication means (written communication means) – Deliberation forms (verbal communication means) – Personal information As employees do not use a computer at work, it was more effective to let them fill in the questionnaire by hand. The quest ionnaire can be found in appendix VIII. 36 of the 55 employees returned the survey. This brings the response of the questionnaire to over 65%. Unfortunately, a great number of employees did not want to fill in yet another questionnaire or were just too busy with their work.The results of the survey can be found in appendix IX. Organization of thesis The first chapter provides a theoretical framework for finding an answer to the central question. In the second chapter the company is introduced and a more in-depth description of the problem is given. The third chapter gives an overview of the current internal communication situation, based on desk research and interviews with the floor managers and supervisors followed by the results of the communication survey. The fourth chapter contains the conclusions, followed by recommendations in chapter 5. 1.Theory To obtain an answer to the central question of this thesis it is important to understand what internal communication is. In this c hapter the importance of internal communication and its functions are explained. Subsequently a description is given of the types of information employees need to be able to function in an organization. After that an overview of the components (communication flows and means) that are necessary to ensure effective communication are described at the end of the chapter. 1. 1 Internal communication Koeleman (2008) describes internal communication as: the intentional production of messages that can be received and interpreted. This process takes place within an organization in an informational and relational context that shapes the significance of messages? Internal communication is vital if an organization is to function properly: cooperation assumes exchange of information; motivation is an important factor to achieve quality and can be improved by communication; processes of change cannot do without communicative support. (Vos & Schoemacher, 2001, p. 81) To ensure effective internal c ommunications it is important to have a clear, concise and consistent communication structure.The internal communication structure is the whole of deliberation forms, channels (flows) and (digital) means that are available within an organization along which information exchange and dialogue can take place. (Koeleman,2008, p. 5) 1. 2 Functions Internal communication has 4 main functions. Koeleman (2008) describes them as: 1. ) to facilitate work processes (task information): information about what to do and how to do it; 2. ) to motivate and create commitment amongst employees; 3. ) to aim the organization and to intensify the identification (policy information): information about the joint goals and course of the organization. 4. to optimize the use of knowledge available in the organization (knowledge management): the creation of a work environment where everyone is stimulated to handle and share knowledge; (p. 19) 1. 3 Types of information To be able to function within an organiza tion, employees need certain types of information. It is important to make the distinction between different types of information. Task information is all the information that supports the primary process in the organization. Employees need to cooperate in order to perform their work properly. For example work instructions, working procedures, problems with machines or materials etc. Policy information is information about policies and organization, in which direction is the company going and why? For example a new mission of the organization, reorganization, new projects etc. ; Management information is information about the progress the company is making. For example results, figures and customer satisfaction etc. ; Social information is Information about the social policy and personnel information. For example house rules, new and leaving employees, information about pensions etc. (Reijnders, 2006, p. 126) 1. 4 Communication flows All the information that is send out in an organi zation flows in different directions.Figure 1. gives o good overview (Koeleman, 2008, p. 26) Vertical communication is communication between superiors and employees from different hierarchical levels. This can be top-down, from superior to employee, as well as bottom-up, from employee to superior. Horizontal communication is communication between people that work on the same level in the organization, like meetings or discussions. Diagonal communication takes place between employees who work on a different level and on a different department. Line communication is the communication along the hierarchical lines in the organization.The upper management provides the middle management information that they need to pass on to the operational staff. With parallel communication information can directly be send to all employees from a central point in the organization, so that everyone receives the same information. Meetings or internal magazines are means that can be used with parallel com munication. Formal communication is communication through the formal communication network, This could be a meeting or a memo, but it always contains official information. Informal communication is the social contact that employees have outside the formal network.Informal communication cannot be controlled, but is an important part of the total communication. 1. 5 Communication means Organizations can use various communication means to send information to members of the organization. Choosing the right instrument to transport messages is important to achieve the objectives that have been set. Usually, organizations use a combination of communication instruments, so that a communication mix exits. We can distinguish three categories of internal communication instruments: 1. ) Verbal ( group discussion, conversation, performance review, staff meeting, kick-off meeting, brainstorm session) 2. Written ( newsletter, memo, internal magazine, notice board, poster, year report) 3. ) Digital & audiovisual ( intranet, e-mail, weblogs, podcasts) Personal (verbal) communication is the most effective form of communication. (Koeleman,2008, p. 26) It gives the people involved the opportunity to give direct feedback to what the other person is saying. Employees frequently prefer personal over non personal information. Even though as effective personal communication might be, organizations often choose written and digital communication means (non personal communication) to get information to their personnel.The advantages are that a larger group of people can be reached in the same time and that the information can be read again. It is cheaper and it takes less time than personal information, but there is no space to give feedback and the sender can never be certain if everyone really received and read the information. 2. Company profile In this chapter, a brief description of the parent company is given. Subsequently the Eurest division is presented and more in-depth descript ion of the communication problem is given. 2. 1 Compass GroupCompass Group is a world(wide) market leader that provides food and a range of support services for over 5 million customers every day. In the Netherlands Compass Group is known by the brand names Eurest and Medirest. Both are specialized in foodservices. Eurest provides food and catering services to a wide range of companies from schools to prisons and from theme parks to big events. Medirest offers her services to companies in the social service sector (http://www. compass-group. nl/over-ons/). 2. 2 Eurest in Holland Casino Utrecht Eurest provides their service to three of the fourteen establishments of Holland Casino.They focus on all the food and beverage activities within these casino’s. One of the establishments is Holland Casino Utrecht where Eurest set up their own vision and values. Eurest Horeca / Holland Casino Utrecht’s vision: ‘To exceed the expectations of the guests of the casino with our products and services, every day again. ’ This mission is propagated by the values the location manager has set up: †¢ Teamwork †¢ Observing procedures †¢ Fun †¢ Eye for detail †¢ Transparency †¢ Integrity The management team added: †¢ Keep your promise †¢ Mention the positive, not only the negative †¢ Openness †¢ Understanding †¢ Acceptance Commerciality 2. 3 Organizational Structure [pic] Fig. 2. Organizational chart 2. 4 Employees The Eurest division in Holland Casino Utrecht currently employs over 80 employees. This includes the kitchen and waiting staff and the employees from the company restaurant. The chef (kitchen manager) is the manager of the kitchen, the dishwashing and the company restaurant. Furthermore, five floor managers have their own unit which they are responsible for. These units are the bars inside the casino. All together there are seven bars in the casino. Every unit has a supervisor, who is respon sible for the functioning of the unit.This thesis will further only discuss the internal communication between the waiting staff and the management team because this group indicates to have the most problems concerning communication. 2. 5 Leadership Style The management style is best described as a persuading style, which is characterized by a lot of support and control (Vos & Schoemacher, 2001, p. 93). Floor managers focus on the performance of tasks, but are also very human orientated. Every floor manager, as well as the location manager, uses the leadership style ‘management by walking around ’ (Vos & Schoemacher, 2001, p. 94).By walking around on the work floor they keep in contact with the employees. It gives them a clear view on what is happening inside the casino and it gives the employees the opportunity to give feedback or ask questions. 2. 6 Organizational culture Erik Rijnders (2008) describes organizational culture as follows: ‘Organizational culture i s comprised of the norms and values of an organization, the way that the members of the organization interact with each other, with assignments and tasks, with their superiors and subordinates, with external developments and with developments in time’ (p. 7). Eurest employees are bound to strict rules and regulations in respect of working procedures, handling money and interaction with casino guests. The casino expects great service for its guests. Therefore observing procedures, eye for detail and commerciality are some of the most important values of Eurest. An interesting part of the culture is that though the employees work for Eurest, they seem to have more affinity with Holland Casino. If you would ask employees where they work, almost everyone will say ‘at Holland Casino’ instead of ‘at Compass Group’.Even though working procedures are very formal, the interaction between co-workers and floor managers is very informal. Eurest observes an open communication culture where everyone can speak their mind. As seen in the values of the organization, openness is encouraged and employees will address a colleague or floor manager when a problem occurs. 2. 7 Problem In the last employee satisfaction survey ‘communication’ scored below average. It was one of the points that the employees were the most discontented about. Some remarks that were made by employees: – ‘Communication for part timers needs to be improved.When you cannot attend the briefing, because you start at a different time, you miss out on important information’ – ‘Employees do not feel taken serious’ – ‘I feel badly informed’ – ‘I don’t get feedback to my questions’ The employee satisfaction survey can be found in appendix X. In personal conversations with employees I asked them they thought what was wrong with the communication. Some of the answers were: – â⠂¬ËœManagers do not listen. ’ – ‘If I ask a question, I never get an answer. ’ – ‘If I cannot attend the briefing, I do not get the information’ – ‘They never tell me anything around here’These statements show that there are problems in the internal communication. One of the difficulties in the casino is that because the casino is open from 12 in the afternoon until 3 in the morning, employees and managers work in shifts that start on different times during the day. Because of the different shifts, it frequently happens that employees and/or floor managers do not see each other for a few days, which obstructs the communication. An often heard complaint is that floor managers forget to give feedback on questions and that employees do not feel taken serious.They feel unmotivated and uncommitted, which this results in a high turnover. Another problem is that information does not reach every employee. When employees are not present at the briefing they miss out on the information that is provided and memo’s are often not read. Employees declare that they frequently do not know about new information. The management team also seems to have a problem in their communication. One of the conclusions from the satisfaction survey is that the management team itself is not well informed. Managers send out different and confusing messages as not every manager is up to date.What is making it difficult for the management team is that there is no communication plan and there are no objectives. Furthermore there has never been any research done after the effectiveness of the communication means that are currently in use or to the information need of the employees. So far four main communication bottlenecks can be identified: – There is no internal communication policy – Shift work makes communication difficult – Information does not get through to all employees – Management team itself has trouble with communication 3. Internal Communication Situation AnalysesThis chapter will discuss the current internal communication in the Eurest department in Holland Casino Utrecht. First the communication system and the means that are used will be illustrated. After that the floor managers and supervisors perspectives will be discussed in reference to the interviews. Subsequently, the results from the internal communication audit will be given. 3. 1 Internal Communication Because Eurest is only a small division of Compass Group it does not have its own communication department. The management team arranges all communication to the employees itself.There is no communication policy, but a mix of tools is used to send information. If you want the internal communication to function well, you need to have a clear basic structure. Employees and managers have to be familiar with the channels and methods of this basic structure. The basic package is used to send out different types of information that employees need. It has to be suitable for top-down-, bottom-up-, horizontal and diagonal communication (Koeleman, 2008, p. 95). To analyze the basic internal communication structure I used a media/content matrix (fig. ) (Koeleman, 2008, p 97). This matrix gives a clear overview of the communication means that are used, the type of information that is send, the sender of the message and the frequency. The data in the matrix are based on desk research, interviews with floor managers and the answers of the discussion meeting. The briefing and memo’s are the most important communication instruments. In the briefing floor managers provide mainly task information for the night or day ahead, but policy and social information is also given during these briefings.Briefings are moments when there is personal contact with the floor manager (top-down) and for employees there is the opportunity to ask questions or make comments (bottom-up). The problem with the briefing is that during the day employees start at different shifts, but only the employees that start at 12:00h and 19:00h can attend the briefings. Briefing reports were used before to give employees that start at other times the possibility to read the briefing information. Though the management has stopped handing out these reports because they thought the employees were not interested.In addition there were problems with the distribution of the reports to the units as employees frequently forgot to take them with them to their unit. Unfortunately now a large part of the employees misses important information. Memo’s are used to send out policy and social information. Sometimes they are used to provide task information as well. There are several places that are used by the management to place a memo. In most cases a memo is put on the folder in every unit. Supervisors also use the folder to place memo’s about specific information about the unit that is ot relevant to members of other units. Other places are the pigeon holes of the employees and the notice board in the kitchen. A problem with memo’s is that employees are often not aware that there is a new memo. Holland Casino Utrecht and Compass both publish internal magazines every two and three months. Though in personal conversations with employees and even floor managers, I found that the Compass magazine (‘Dienblad’) is thrown away without reading it because the information is not relevant to the Eurest employees in the casino. Om de Tafel’ (Internal magazine HC Utrecht) is being read, but as it is primarily made for casino employees, it contains more information about the casino than about Eurest. Meetings should be held four times a year. They create involvement and are important to motivate employees. Meetings are the only moments that the unit teams are complete and problems can be discussed with the whole team. Unfortunately, not every unit meets four time s a year. It is remarkable that in these times Eurest uses only one digital communication means, e-mail, and that it is only used to send work schedules to the employees.Furthermore I noticed that there are no parallel communication means. This means that there is no way of directly sending information to all employees. Management is dependent on spreading information by memo’s and briefings, which do not reach all employees. 3. 2 Interviews Floor Managers and Supervisors To get a complete view and to hear about the managements point of view on the situation I conducted interviews with the floor managers and two of the deputy managers. Not only the communication between management and employees was discussed, but also the communication between the management team itself. . 2. 1 Floor managers Floor managers admit they are not aware of the information need of the employees. They feel they provide information, but notice that a lot of information does not get through to all emp loyees. They claim that different work schedules and shifts work against effective communication, but also think that employees are sometimes just not interested in new information. Another point that comes back in almost every interview are the briefings. The floor managers are aware that the information that is given in the briefing, is only available for the employees that start on that time.They point out that the briefings do not have a fixed format. Most of the briefing information is task information about the day before and the night or day ahead. But the briefings are also used to provide information about casino activities for guests, policy and social information and important information about changes in working procedures. This information is frequently not repeated in following briefings during the week and briefing reports are not handed out because of the lack of interest from employees. The result is that important information is missed by a large group of the emplo yees.The contact between the employees and floor managers is perceived as good by all floor managers. They all frequently walk around on the work floor, which gives them the opportunity talk with employees and to discuss problems or ask questions and vice versa. In spite of the good contact between management and employees, the floor managers acknowledge that questions from employees frequently remain unanswered. Another problem that comes up in every interview are the communication problems between the management team.Because of the different shifts the floor managers team is seldom complete. The management team meets once a month, but these meetings are not structured and are often used as an outlet, which makes it difficult to come to agreements and make decisions. Most of the communication takes place by e-mail and daily reports. Due to the lack of joint deliberation, floor managers take actions without informing their other colleagues, which causes frequent miscommunication. Tw o floor managers point out that there is a lack of control.Control from the floor managers and supervisors on employees and work procedures, but also the lack of control and coaching from the location manager on the management team. Results are that without control or evaluation moments new rules or procedures lose vigor and the situation turns back to how it was before. ‘Maintenance’ and ‘making it important’ are often heard terms, but are rarely observed. The floor managers indicate that they have a very work load. Not only do they have to make new policy, they also have to implement, carry out, control and evaluate it.Without well structured communication it is difficult to inform the whole team about changes and as there is always someone who cannot attend the discussion it is difficult to get support from the whole team. Because of this every floor manager seems to have his or her own objectives that are important to them, which causes confusion amongs t the employees. They all agree that they miss someone at the back office that makes and supervises the policy, so they can focus on operational tasks. 3. 2. 2 SupervisorsBoth supervisors indicate that the employees do not get enough information. Supervisors receive information by e-mail, but as normal employees do not have a casino e-mail account they do not get this information. The communication means that are currently being used are working sufficiently, but especially in case of the briefings there should be done more to distribute the information to every unit. One of the supervisors points out that there is no communication means that reaches all employees in the same time.They claim that the contact between the management and employees is going well. Though both floor managers and supervisors should be pay more attention to answering questions. It now frequently happens that someone forgets to get back on a question. In this way needed information gets stuck somewhere along the hierarchical line. To the question of what should change to improve communication they point out that the management should show more discipline in communication towards the employees. Furthermore communication between the supervisors has to be improved.At the moment there is no team spirit or mutual support. As there are several new supervisors the team has to be rebuilt. In this process they need more coaching from the floor managers. 3. 3 Audit results As the survey was divided in different parts, I will separately discuss the outcome of each subject. 3. 3. 1 Overall satisfaction I started the survey with questions about the overall satisfaction with the communication. A previous employee satisfaction survey from Sjors Vreeswijk showed that communication was one of the points employees were most dissatisfied about.Based on the answers given in the discussion group, I asked questions about the information provision. It drew my attention that 58,3% of the employees is satisfie d with the information they get about their daily tasks and 50% knows where to find the information they need, but over 40% of the employees indicated that they do not always receive the information they need to perform their tasks. Over 36% of the employees are not always up to date about new information and only 22,2% claims they are. Furthermore the figures show a lack of information about Holland Casino and Compass. 8,9% of the respondents did not think they receive enough information about the two organizations, while both companies distribute internal magazines every three months. Positive is that the majority of the respondents feels that there is an open communication culture and that their opinion is being heard. 3. 3. 2 Information need In the interviews with the floor managers, I found that it was not clear to them what the information need of the employees was. The type of information that is send most is task information.I made a list providing topics of all types of in formation that could or could not be relevant to the employees and asked how important it was for the employees to receive information about these topics. The information that is considered very important to the employees are customer satisfaction results (63,9%) and professional knowledge about food beverages (55,6%). This is not surprising as these topics are dealt with every day and customer satisfaction are the results of the employees’ work. Information about training or education possibilities (47,2%) and new colleagues are also considered very important.It is remarkable that 25% of the employees finds information about Compass Group important and an equal 25% finds it unimportant. 33% does not have an opinion about it. Also in their opinion about the importance of information about results from Compass group the employees are divided: 30,6% finds it important information, 30,6% does not find it important or unimportant and 25% finds it unimportant information. Informat ion about the vision and goals (44,4%) and about the results of Eurest in Holland Casino Utrecht (47,2%) are considered as important information that employees would like to receive. 3. 3. 3 Communication meansTo establish the effectiveness of the current written communication means, I asked the employees whether it was important to them to attend the briefings. 36,1% agreed very much with this statement and 44,4% also agreed that the briefings were important. 41,7% thinks that the briefings provide sufficient information for them. Over 40% (11,1 + 36,1%) agrees that the information given in the briefing is important to carry out their daily tasks. It caught my attention that almost 40% does not read the briefing report when they cannot attend the briefing, but over 50% indicates that they read it when it is present.I asked some employees how these numbers were possible. The answer was that the briefing reports often were not handed out by the floor managers or that colleagues who d id attend the briefing did not bring it with them to their units. The numbers show that employees think that the internal magazines do not provide relevant information for them. Only 5,6% agrees that the Compass magazine has relevant information against 19,4% for the Holland Casino magazine. 36,1% even totally disagrees with the presence of relevant information in the Compass magazine.Even though 61% of the employees agrees that memo’s provide sufficient information, 36,1% does not. The motivation that employees give to their negative answer shows that employees often do not get to read new memo’s. Some do not know where to find them and some give as a reason that they just do not know that there is a new memo. Another important question is how employees would like to receive information. I asked them what would be the most effective communication means for receiving information about certain subjects. Because the ommunication means that are currently used are limited, I added communication means that could be good alternatives. In the next figure you can see the most chosen communication means per information topic. I highlighted the briefing and memo in red, the internal magazine and newsletter green, e-mail is blue and presentation is orange. | | |3. Welk communicatiemiddel zou voor jou het meest effectief werken m. b. t. het verkrijgen van informatie over de volgende | |onderwerpen? |Informatie over†¦ Communicatiemiddel % | |Dagelijkse werkzaamheden |Briefing |86. 1% | | |Memo |30. 6% | |Nieuw beleid, procedures en regels |Memo |66. 7% | | |Briefing |63. % | | |E-mail |33. 3% | |Compass Group |Personeelsblad |38. 1% | | |Nieuwsbrief |36. 1% | |Resultaten van het bedrijf (Compass) |Personeelsblad |38. 9% | | |Nieuwsbrief |36. % | |Resultaten van ons bedrijfsonderdeel (Compass in HC Utrecht) |Nieuwsbrief |44. 4% | | |Presentatie |38. 9% | |Visie en doelstellingen Compass |Presentatie |52. 8% | | |Nieuwsbrief |27. 8% | |Vakkennis m. b. t. dranken en gerechten | | | |Workshop/Cursus |86. 1% | |Klanttevredenheid (Mysterie visits) |Memo |66. 7% | | |Briefing |47. 2% | |HACCP Checks |Memo |61. % | | |Briefing |36. 1% | |Acties en activiteiten in het casino |Briefing |50. 0% | | |Memo |50. 0% | | |E-mail |41. 7% | | |Nieuwsbrief |36. % | |Holland Casino Utrecht |Personeelsblad |47. 2% | | |Nieuwsbrief |33. 3% | |Resultaten van het Holland Casino |Personeelsblad |47. 2% | | |Nieuwsbrief |30. 6% | | |Presentatie |27. % | |Opleidingsmogelijkheden |E-mail |47. 2% | | |Memo |38. 9% | | |Nieuwsbrief |36. 1% | |Nieuwe collega’s |Briefing |86. 1% | |Persoonlijke info zoals verjaardagen, geboortes etc. |Personeelsblad |47. % | | |Nieuwsbrief |36. 1% | | |E-mail |50. 0% | | |Memo |44. 4% | |Vacatures |Nieuwsbrief |38. 9% | In figure 4 you can see that employees prefer to receive information that is of direct influence on their day to day activities, in briefings or in a memo.Also information about customer satisfaction and cleaning checks is preferred to be received in a memo or in the briefing. The largest part of the employees would like to obtain information about Compass Group and Holland Casino (results and other information) in a newsletter or an internal magazine. Though they would like to see the results of the Eurest department and the vision and goals in a presentation. It was surprising to me that the employees did not seem to be very interested in using new communication means.E-mail is mentioned as a communication means in four of the given topics, concerning new policies, procedures and rules, activities in the casino, training possibilities and vacancies. The newsletter is also a communication means that is not currently used, but would be the means of choice on several topics. 3. 3. 4 Meetings Meetings are an important part of internal communication. It gives employees the possibility to discuss problems they encountered during their work and it increases cooperation and involvement i n the organization.Especially in the Eurest teams, it is one of the few moments a year that the teams are fully complete and are able to have discussions with the whole team present. It is not surprising that 77,7% of the employees thinks that regular meetings are important. In the Eurest department in HC Utrecht, four meetings a year are the standard, though the frequency tends to differ from this standard. Only 13,9% of the employees indicates that their team has four meetings a year. Over 60% of the employees meets less than four times a year. 63,9% of the employees feels that their unit does not meet enough (fig. 5). [pic] 3. 3. 5 Performance reviewsEmployees from Eurest get a performance review once year. 44% of the questioned employees replied that this was true. Though the many replies on whether the employees were satisfied with their performance reviews, shows that there are some points for improvement. Most of the respondents that replied they never had a performance revie w are part-time employees that work for Eurest for over a year and full-timers who work for the organization for less than a year. The 25 percent of the employees that claim they do not get a performance review every year are mainly full-timers who have been working for Eurest for over a year.This tells me management has to better hold track who has to have a performance review. These personal contact moments with the manager that gives an employee motivation to improve their work and the opportunity to ask questions about their personal development. Temporary employees do not get their performance reviews from Eurest, but from the employment agency they work for. 3. 3. 6 Contact with manager 52,8% of the respondents claims to be satisfied with the support their manager gives them. Though frequent heard complaints are that the manager is often not present on the work floor or just not available.In addition to this, questions frequently remain unanswered, which causes discontent amon gst the employees. 4. Conclusions In this chapter I will draw conclusions from the desk research, interviews with the floor managers and audit results in combination with the theory described in chapter 1. Subsequently I will give recommendations which will be realistic and feasible, so that they can be integrated in the organization. 1. Information provision Do the different media provide sufficient information?When we look at the media/content matrix on page 15 we can conclude that most of the communication means are used to send task information. The internal magazines also provide other types of information, but the employees indicate that the specific information about Compass Group and Holland Casino does not apply to them. The briefings and memo’s also provide policy and social information. The problem with the briefings is that not every employee can attend the briefings and the information cannot be found somewhere else. Briefing reports are a solution to informing t he employees who cannot attend the briefing.Employees indicate they read the briefing reports when they are present, but because the reports are often not distributed employees do not get the opportunity to read them. Memo’s are read, but still a large group of employees indicates that they are often not aware of any new memo’s. The bottom line is that too many employees do not get the information they need because of failing communication means. Furthermore, the information that is offered is not enough. In the survey employees indicate that they receive enough task information, but they find it important to receive policy and management information as well.These types of information are often not provided or in many cases, not received. 2. Communication flows Are there enough communication means to assure communication flows in different directions (top-down, bottom-up, horizontal and diagonal)? Within the Eurest department communication flows mostly along the hierar chical lines. The management team and deputy managers provide information to the staff using several communication means. For top-down communication briefings and memo’s are used. Problems with these means is discussed above. Furthermore two internal magazines also provide information.Nevertheless employees indicate that the information given is these magazines is not relevant to them and that they would like to receive information that is tailored to their situation. The means for bottom-up communication are meetings and performance reviews. Every unit should have meetings four times a year. Unfortunately the survey revealed that most units meet less than determined. By being able to discuss and solve problems with the whole team increases motivation and involvement in the team. Furthermore it gives the team the opportunity to address the floor manager and deputy managers on issues that are playing within the team.Performance reviews are another more personal means of bottom -up communication which gives an employee the opportunity to discuss their progress with their floor manager. Again employees indicate that they do not have a performance review every year. Floor managers should be better aware of this. Another positive way of enabling bottom-up communication is management by walking around. The floor manager on duty, as well as the operational manager when he’s present, regularly walks around the casino to assess the situation on the work floor and talk with employees.This gives employees the opportunity to directly address the floor manager when they have any questions or problems. A point of improvement is that frequently questions remain unanswered. Due to the different work shifts it frequently happens that the floor managers in question does not see the employee for several days, especially with part time workers, and forgets to give an answer. Horizontal and diagonal communication mainly takes place through e-mail (management team) and in personal conversations and phone calls on the work floor. Furthermore, it is remarkable that almost no parallel communication means are being used.Parallel communication increases commitment to the organization and strengthens the organizational culture. These means are especially handful to reach the full staff when sending out important information. Eurest currently does not have a means to reach everyone in the organization in the same time and no central point where employees can look up information. The only digital communication means that is used is e-mail. This is used only for top-down communication to send work schedules to the employees. There are no staff meetings or kick offs where additional information is given to the entire staff. . Management communications The management team currently meets once a month. This is not enough. Because of the different work shifts, the whole team is seldom complete. Horizontal communication between the team flows mainly by e-mail and daily reports. Meetings are not structured and used as an outlet rather as an opportunity to discuss important issues in the organization. Because there are not enough opportunities to meet with the whole team, there is too much miscommunication between the management team, which causes confusion amongst the employees.From the interviews with the floor managers and supervisors I can further conclude that there is no unity in the team. Again, more frequent and structured management meetings could be the solution to solve this. As currently floor managers take action without consulting the entire team small groups of one to three managers start a project, but as there is no support or control from their colleagues, these projects often are not realized in the end. Important terms are ? maintenance? and ? making it important?. To maintain a certain policy or to make something important, you need the support of the whole management team.For an organization that is running almost 24/ 7 it is important to keep communicating if you want everyone to be informed. As one of the supervisors said in his interview: ‘It is important to keep communicating at all times, even when you think it is not important enough. ’ The same counts for the supervisors team. They also say that there is no unity in the team and they as well have meetings only once a month. The supervisors would like to see more coaching from the floor managers as new supervisors are often left to fend for themselves. . Needs and expectations employees Results of the communication survey show that though employees know where to find information, they do not always receive the information that is necessary to perform their work. More than one third of the employees claims not to be up to date about new information. This number is too high! The employees are most interested in receiving information about customer satisfaction, professional knowledge about food and beverages, training and educati onal possibilities and actions and activities in the casino.What is remarkable is that they receive information about Compass Group and Holland Casino, but they claim to not receive enough information. When I asked some of the employees about it, they claimed that the information that these magazines provide is not tailored to their situation. The management team mainly provides task information, but from the survey results I can conclude that there is a high need for policy, management and social information as well. In regard to choosing communication means to provide the information, memo’s and briefings are still popular especially for providing task information.Though for company results about Compass Group, their own Eurest department and Holland Casino employees prefer to receive the information in an internal magazine or news letter. E-mail is also mentioned to be effective for receiving certain types of information. As these are communication means that are currently not being used, it is sensible to look at the possibility of introducing these media to the communication structure. Meetings are considered very important, but should take place more often. In the matter of performance reviews, management has to be better aware of which employees did not had a review yet.Especially part-time employees claim not to have a performance review each year. 5. Recommendations The following recommendations give an answer to the central question: ‘How can the internal communication of Compass Group in Holland Casino Utrecht be improved in order to fulfill the needs and expectations of its employees? ’ In making these recommendations I looked at the results of the communication audit, theory and findings throughout my research. I will start by discussing how to make the current communication means more effective. Subsequently I will introduce two new communication means.To give an overview of the new, recommended communication structure I made a new media/content matrix which includes the people who have to take responsibility for the communication means. 1. Briefings The problem with the briefings is that not all employees are able to attend the briefing and miss out on the information that is given. Briefing reports are a good way of providing this information to the employees that could not be there. Employees indicate that they read the reports when they are present, but currently they are often not distributed to every unit.The management should reinforce the use of the briefing reports and make sure they are distributed to every unit at the end of the briefing. Like this, employees have the opportunity to read the reports and keep up to date with new information. 2. Memo’s As memo’s are the only written means that the management team uses to send other types of information besides task information, it is critical that the memo’s reach all employees. Currently employees often are not aware of new memo’s and miss out on the information that is given.Memo’s can be found on the folder of every unit or in the pigeon holes of the employees, these places are easily looked over or forgotten as new memo’s are not in clear sight. I would recommend to put the memo’s in a central and more visible place. As employees spend most of their work hours on the units, it would recommendable to hang up notice boards at every unit on a clear and visible place. The notice boards can be used to put up memo’s, briefing reports and other information that is relevant to the unit. The supervisor of the bar should be made responsible to keep the notice board up to date. . Meetings Every unit should have four meetings a year. Though from the survey results I can conclude that this is not the case. Employees feel that the meetings are very important, but they do not meet enough. Well structured and frequent meetings increases involvement of the employees. Four meetings a year is the rule. The floor manager and supervisor of the units are responsible for organizing the meetings and should maintain this number of meetings a year. 4. Performance reviews Performance reviews are held once a year.The reviews are a point of motivation for the employees as they give feedback to how they work. Some employees indicate that they do not receive a performance review every year. These employees are mainly full-timers who work for Eurest less than a year and part-timers. Floor managers should me better aware of who already had an performance review and who still has to get one. 5. News letter A news letter is currently a communication means that is not being used. Though in the communication survey comes forward that employees would like to receive certain information in an internal magazine or news letter.Two internal magazines already exist, but Eurest employees claim that they do not provide relevant information. They would like to receive information about Compass, Holland Casino and their own Eurest department in a format that is tailored to their situation and information need. As internal magazines take a lot of time and money, two things that the managers at Eurest do not have, a news letter would be the better option. The news letter should contain: – information about Compass Group that is relevant to the employees – results of the Eurest department in HC Utrecht information about upcoming actions and activities in the Casino – information about upcoming workshops and trainings – social information, such as new and leaving colleagues, vacancies and birthdays I also suggest to send the newsletter by e-mail. In this way employees can read the information at home. All the recommendations made above are based on providing information. If you want employees to have a better understanding of why things happen and why certain decisions have to be made a presentation or kick off are two ways of providing this information. 6. Kick off and presentationsA kick off can be a way of communicating when changes in the organization occur. Presentations can be used to present the annual returns and information about the mission and goals of the coming year. Both communication means are currently not used by the management team. Employees indicate that they would like to receive information about these topics. If the management team wants to create better understanding, I recommend to use a kick off or presentation more often. Like this, the employees receive management and policy information in a personal way that also gives the opportunity to give feedback and ask questions.The location manager should be responsible for kick offs and presentations. 7. Training and workshops Workshops and trainings are motivating for employees to learn new things, on top of that management shows support by offering employees this extra training. Professional knowledge about food and beverages and customer satisfa ction are considered as very important topics by the employees. It increases their knowledge and supports employees in carrying out their work. Currently there are a few trainings and workshops each year.Some can be followed by all employees and some are specifically for the employees of the restaurant, who need more in-depth knowledge to be able to advise their guests. As employees indicate that these are very important topics to them, I would advise to plan a several workshops each year. 8. Contact management The contact between management and employees is perceived as good on both sides. Because of the management by walking around, managers have frequent personal contact with employees. A point of improvement is giving feedback to questions.It is too often forgotten to get back to an employee, which causes the feeling of not being taken serious. Questions should be answered the same day. When this is not possible the question can be answered by e-mail as well. 9. Management commu nication Better communication within the management team can only be reached when there is an opportunity to actually communicate. For an organization that operates almost 24/7 a day it is crucial for the management to have frequent communication moments with the whole team. The management team currently meets once a month.When meeting only once a month there is too much to discuss and meetings are often closed without making decisions on anything. As a result the meetings are not structured and used as an outlet. It is recommendable to have weekly meetings to improve communication between the management team. It is necessary to keep each other up to date about new developments, improve cooperation between the managers and to have better control and insight on what the members of the team are working on. The meetings have to have a clear structure with fixed items on the agenda that are discussed every week.In this way it should be possible to discuss problems and come to agreements that are supported by the entire team. Weekly meetings will also provide the opportunity to discuss progress on new projects and schedule controls on certain procedures. The overall communication between the management team can benefit from meeting weekly instead of once a month. 10. New communication structure Currently the briefings and memo’s are used to send out task, policy and social information that is important to all employees. As stated before, these communication means do not reach the whole group and important information is missed.In the recommendations above, I made suggestions about how to improve the current communication means and how to make the internal communication more effective as whole. To give a clear overview of the newly recommended communication structure I made a new media /content matrix (fig. 6). This matrix gives a clear view on which communication means will be used to send out which type of information, who will be the sender/responsible for the use of the means and how frequent the means will be offered to the employees.It contains a basic structure with communication means that will provide the largest part of the internal communication. The additional structure contains the media that provide extra information. List of References Compass Group Web site: http://www. compass-group. nl/over-ons/ Eschauzier, L. , (2007) HET ligt aan DE (interne) communicatie. Retrieved Januari 13, 2009, from the Reply to All Web site: http://www. replytoall. nl/corporate-communicatie/het-ligt-aan-de-interne-communicatie/ Hopkins, L. , (2006) What is internal Communication?Retrieved January 13, 2009, from the Better Communication Results Web site: http://leehopkins. net/2006/07/06/what-is-internal-communication/ Koeleman, H. , (2008) Interne communicatie als managementinstrumen. Alphen aan den Rijn: Kluwer McNamara, C. , (n. d) Basics in Internal Organizational Communications. Retrieved January 12, 2009, from the Free Management Library Web site: http://www. managementhelp. org/mrktng/org_cmm. htm Olsthoorn, A. C. J. M, & Velden, J. H, van der, (2007) Elementaire Communicatie, Strategie – Beleid – Uitvoering. Utrecht/Zutphen: ThiemeMeulenhoff Reijnders, E. (2006) Basisboek Interne Communicatie, Aanpak en achtergronden. Assen: Van Gorcum Vos, M. , & Schoemaker, H. , (2001) Integrated Communication, Concern, Internal and Marketing Communication. Utrecht: Lemma Publishers Vos, M. & Otte, J. & Lindes, P. , (2003) Setting up a Strategic Communication Plan. Utrecht: Lemma Publishers Vreeswijk, S. (2008) Verslag Medewerkerstevredenheidsonderzoek 2008. Utrecht List of Appendices Appendix IInterview J. Polman Appendix IIInterview A. Zinser Appendix IIIInterview J. Rietsnijder Appendix IVInterview H. Kleeftstra Appendix VInterview M. van der Kaaij